Introduced in 1988, the Kodak Tactical Camera can be considered the world’s first practical DSLR. Take a look at this amazing camera.
Okay, perhaps calling the Kodak Tactical Camera the first DSLR is a bit of a stretch, but as one of the first SLRs with a digital sensor, it can be considered as the origin of todays digital camera market.
The George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film recently tracked down this historical camera and saved it from being discarded. Only two Kodak Tactical Cameras were created in 1988, and this particular model was reportedly a few days away from being trashed along with other assets during the clearing of one of Kodak’s old buildings.
Take a look at the video below for a rundown of the camera’s features. Note the Canon New F-1 body, and the massive storage brick. The sensor itself was only capable of capturing black and white photos at 1 megapixel resolution.
Want to know more? The Kodak Tactical Camera was a precursor to the Kodak DCS, or Digital Camera System, of the 1990s and early 2000s, which was a series of cameras consisting of Canon and Nikon SLR bodies merged with Kodak digital sensors. These Franken-cameras were cumbersome and unwieldy, as they required large external storage add-ons. However, through constant progress, the problems with digital SLRs were solved, and we’re lucky to have some very advanced and easy to use DSLRs available today. If you’d like to learn more, a good starting point would be the Kodak DCS page on Wikipedia.
Via PetaPixel.
yes!!! after i contact Mr. James Mc Garvey and ask him if he has a prototyp for my world´s largest Canon F-1 collection,he find and save this prototyp see now in the rochester museum !!!!
regards Detlef from Germany