Building a Better Pixel, Part 2

By David Em

June 14, 2004

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In my last column I took a look at the technologies driving the latest generation of digital camera sensors from Nikon, Fuji, and Sigma. This week I'll take a look at how the cameras they live in perform in the real world.

I worked with Nikon's Coolpix 8700, Fuji's S20 Pro, and Sigma's sd10 in our lab and in the field. Whenever possible, I tried to directly compare the three cameras' imaging capabilities. I captured some very high quality images with all of them, but my results varied considerably depending on a number of factors.

All these cameras can record images in their own proprietary RAW format. RAW images can be manipulated extensively after capture and don't suffer from JPG artifacts. In order to give the cameras and sensors their best shot, I performed most of my tests in RAW mode.

Nikon's Coolpix 8700

Nikon draws a clear distinction between its "professional" line and its other offerings. Nikon's Coolpix cameras are mostly "prosumer" models that sometimes feature more cutting edge technologies than their professional brethren that tend to evolve more slowly. The Coolpix line has been consistently innovative over the last few years, featuring a variety of body designs and sensors.

The $999 8-megapixel Coolpix 8700 is based on the 5 megapixel Coolpix 5700, a camera I took some great pictures with about a year and a half ago. Like the other 8-megapixel cameras on the market, the 8700 uses Sony's 2/3 inch 8 megapixel CCD sensor. Despite this, the various models produce different results since they all use different internal circuitry.

For example, while Canon, Minolta, Olympus, and Nikon use a three-color filter mask on the sensor, Sony uses an additional fourth emerald color. (In my last column, I reported that Nikon also uses the fourth color, but apparently that's not so).

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