Sun Apr 9, 11AM ET, I will have a live Twitter/YouTube/LinkedIn/Facebook discussion with Prof. Shree Nayar of Columbia U., an Okawa Prize Winner (see his wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shree_K._Nayar for his numerus awards) on #computervision, #computationalimaging, #cameradevelopment, etc.

Fujifilm’s First Stacked, Back-Illuminated, X-Trans Sensor Coming in 2022

Fujifilm has announced that it is currently developing a new flagship camera that will feature the company's first back-illuminated, stacked layer X-trans CMOS sensor.

The company has said that to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the X-system, it plans to bring out not only new lenses (which were announced as part of a lens roadmap) but will also launch a new flagship camera that features the company's first combination stacked layer and backside-illuminated X-trans CMOS sensor.

While Fujifilm's current fourth-generation 26.1-megapixel image sensor that is featured in the X-T30, for example, is already backside-illuminated, the company has never used a stacked structure before.

Back-illuminated, also referred interchangeably as backside-illuminated or BSI, sensors are a type of image sensor that uses an arrangement of imaging elements that increase the amount of light captured and therefore improve low light performance. Typical front-side illuminated sensors are constructed similarly to how a human eye works with a lens in front and the photodetectors in the back. While easier and simpler to manufacture, the way the parts that make up the sensor are arranged will actually cause some of the light that hits it to reflect back outwards and reduce the amount of light signal that it is capable of actually recording to make an image.

Image by Cmglee, CC BY-SA 4.0

In contrast, back illumination rearranges the same elements behind the photocathode layer so that the wiring no longer is in front, which improves the light-gathering capabilities from about 60% efficiency to over 90%.

A stacked CMOS is considered a next-generation backside-illuminated sensor and was first developed by Sony in 2012. In this design, the supporting circuitry that was moved behind the photodiodes in a standard backside-illuminated sensor are further moved below the active pixel section and adds an additional 30% improvement to light gathering capability. Because parts have been rearranged on a stacked CMOS sensor, designers can do more with the space. Sony, for example, has built RAM directly into the sensor which has resulted in dramatically improved readout speeds, a system that has allowed the Alpha 7R IV, Alpha 9 II, and Alpha 1 cameras to perform extremely fast frames per second bursts at ever-increasing resolutions.

Generally speaking, this sensor design doesn't improve image quality but instead focuses the benefits at pure speed of data transfer.

In the case of Fujifilm, the company hasn't indicated how much resolution should be expected out of what is likely to be the fifth-generation X-trans sensor, but even if the company chooses to stick around the mid-20-megapixel range, the performance gains from adding that stacked design will very likely be considerable when compared to the fourth-generation sensor currently available.

#equipment #news #backsideilluminated #bsi #cameradevelopment #developmentannouncement #fifthgeneration #flagship #fujifilm #newflagship #stackedcmos #xtrans

Canon Rebuffs Rumors That Its R3 Sensor is Made by Sony

Since Canon's initial development announcement for the EOS R3, rumors have swirled that the company -- despite its statement otherwise -- was not the manufacturer of the backside illuminated sensor at its core. A report published on June 17 stated factually that the R3 sensor is made by Sony, and Canon has responded.

As PetaPixel reported on April 13, Canon stated that the upcoming EOS R3 sensor "will feature Canon’s first-ever full-frame backside-illuminated stacked CMOS sensor that it designed in-house."

Nearly a month after Canon's R3 development announcement, Canon Watch noticed that some language had been adjusted on Canon UK's website. What once stated "designed and manufactured by Canon" was adjusted to "developed by Canon." This was the first in a set of reports that would surmise that Canon was not the maker of the sensor.

Two days later, Canon Watch followed with a translation of an interview with Russian Andrey Tishchenko, Canon Russia's Head of Product and Consumer Expertise. In it, Tischenko stated that the R3 was "the first backlit Stacked Sensor BSI we have developed ourselves" and when asked if it was Canon's first stacked sensor, he responded that "the Canon G7x Mark III has a 1-inch Stacked CMOS sensor."

This statement was taken to mean that since the G7x Mark III sensor was made by Canon and Tischenko counted it as among a Canon device, therefore it was possible that the R3 was also made by Sony.

On June 17, these rumors finally culminated in a story published on EOSHD that definitely stated based on documentation of a new Sony sensor -- the IMX554DQC -- the EOS R3 sensor would not be made by Canon but instead would be a Sony product.

The report points to a product sheet from Sony that describes a 35mm full-size 30.38-megapixel back-illuminated sensor capable of capturing 36.6 frames per second in still picture mode.

"This is the first time Canon has had to go to Sony for a modern flagship EOS camera, to tap the company’s back-illuminated stacked sensor technology," the report reads. "It must work out more economical to buy the sensor from Sony than to develop the same thing themselves and license all the patents. Still, a sign of the times."

EOSHD alleges that because of this, the images taken with the R3 are not Canon photos, but Sony ones.

"This means that essentially the images coming out of the Canon EOS R3 are Sony images. Although image processing and colour science do count for a lot, the fundamental capture is by Sony. Politically, this must be hard to take at Canon."

Canon historically does not respond to rumors, but perhaps the nature of this particular report changed the company's mind as it does not treat the report as a rumor or as speculation, but rather as fact.

In a statement to PetaPixel , Canon has reiterated in no uncertain terms that it is not only the designer of the new sensor but also its manufacturer.

The sensor in the upcoming EOS R3 camera is Canon designed and manufactured.

This is the same statement that the company said to journalists in briefings in early April ahead of the EOS R3's official development announcement. Why there have been continued reports that conflict with that messaging is unclear, but there should be no question now -- Sony is not making the R3 sensor, Canon is.

#equipment #news #backsideilluminated #cameradevelopment #canon #canoneos3 #canoneosr3 #canonsensor #development #eosr3 #highendcamera #inhouse #professional #professionalcamera #r3 #response #rumors #sportscamera #sportsphotography

Canon Announces Development of the EOS R3: ‘A New Class of Camera’

Canon has announced the development of a new professional-focused mirrorless camera called the EOS R3, which will sit between the R5 and the 1DX series. Built for speed, it will feature the first full-frame backside-illuminated CMOS sensor developed by Canon.

When it arrives, the R3 is promised to be an "outstanding complement" to the two super-telephoto zooms also announced today for the RF mount: the RF400mm f/2.8 L IS USM and RF600mm f/4 L IS USM. Canon promises that it will "usher in a new category to the EOS R system" and that it will place great emphasis on "superb autofocus performance and speed, with fast-moving subjects."

The camera, which features what is considered to be a professionally-oriented built in-battery grip found on Canon's 1-series DSLRs, is being designed to meet "reliability and durability demands of professionals even when working in challenging conditions."

The development of the Canon EOS R3 and the launch of the new RF lenses are the latest testament to the company’s commitment to professional still and video image and content creators. When the camera becomes available, it will pair well with each of the new RF lenses announced today. Canon is excited to share this news today, and we look forward to seeing the images captured with the new RF lenses and upcoming EOS R3.

-Tatsuro “Tony” Kano, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Imaging Technologies and Communications Group, Canon U.S.A.

As noted, the EOS R3 will feature Canon's first-ever full-frame backside-illuminated sensor that it designed in-house and that the company promises will provide substantially faster readout speeds during still-imaging recording. Additionally, faster readout speeds mean less rolling shutter distortion when the camera is capturing images with the electronic shutter, which Canon says the R3 will be able to do at up to 30 frames per second with full-time Dual Pixel CMOS autofocus active and auto exposure.

Canon does stipulate that continuous shooting speed may decrease depending on the lens used and in different shooting conditions, however.

Speaking of autofocus, the R3 will use the autofocus technologies found in both the R5 and R6, including Canon's body and eye-detection, but boosted to work even better during action-type shooting thanks to Deep Learning technology. In addition, Canon says that the EOS R3’s subject detection AF will offer new recognizable subjects for its AF system, which it says will bolster its focusing capabilities during challenging shooting conditions.

Canon also says that the electronic viewfinder (EVF) will feature the ability to select the initial area for AF tracking simply by looking at the viewfinder. Called Eye Control AF, it can combine with Servo AF to focus and track moving subjects at a specific location in the frame simply by measuring where your eye is looking at any given time. While the feature won't always work with certain sunglasses, mirror sunglasses, hard contact lenses, or bifocal eyeglass lenses, the concept will allow the camera to see what you're looking at and actively adjust autofocus to prioritize what you are seeing and work in tandem with your vision.

If that feature sounds familiar, it's because this is not the first camera into which Canon has implemented autofocus control that tracks the photographer's eye. Originally launched in 1998, the similarly-named Canon EOS-3 was a high-end SLR that pioneered a few innovative features including Eye Control Focus, now rebranded Eye Control AF in the R3. For fans of Canon cameras dating back to the late 90s, seeing the company reintroduce a once-loved camera line is particularly exciting.

The Canon EOS R3 will feature a brand-new, single-piece camera body with an integrated vertical grip section, weather and dust resistance equivalent to the 1-series DSLRs, and work with a new iOS and Android Mobile File Transfer application that Canon will launch along with the camera.

Canon did not make any note of the expected resolution of the new backside-illuminated sensor, the expected release date, nor the price, but says that more information on the camera will be made available when it officially launches.

#equipment #news #cameradevelopment #canon #canoneos3 #canoneosr3 #development #developmentannouncement #eosr3 #highendcamera #professional #professionalcamera #r3 #sportscamera #sportsphotography