Rumour: will Nikon turn analogue to digital?

There’s an interesting rumour coming out of a new patent from Nikon, with news that the Japanese camera giant may have come up with a way to make film-based cameras useful again with a digital back.

Found by an eagle-eyed blogger from Japan, the patent from Nikon granted a little over a week ago would allow you to throw on a detachable camera back with a built in digital imaging sensor.

The technology used to capture the image could also be positioned deeper in the camera by turning a screw, useful given that every camera has a different position of where the film plane would be.

Likely designed to work with Nikon’s massive range of single-lens reflex cameras – we have a few around here – the concept would essentially bring these wonderful cameras back to life, especially in a time when film is becoming harder and harder to find.

As with all patents, we have no idea if or when this will be put this into action, but hopefully we’ll see some evidence of this new technology at CES in a few weeks.