Camera Timeline from 1981-1990

By josephal

  • 1981

    Sony releases the Sony Mavica, the world’s first digital electronic still camera. University of Calgary Canada ASI Science Team builds the All-Sky camera, the first true working digital camera was built by the. It was designed to photograph auroras and used one of the 100 x 100 pixel Fairchild CCD image sensors. The Pentax ME-F becomes the first autofocus 35mm SLR. It uses in body focus sensor coupled with a motorized lens.

  • 1982

  • 1983

  • 1984

    Canon demonstrates first digital electronic still camera.

  • 1985

    Pixar introduces digital imaging processor. Fuji makes the ES-1 a SVC, a still video camera that was also an SLR with a 50-150mm manual zoom. Minolta releases the Minolta Maxxum 7000, the first 35mm of its kind. This camera as well as all Minolta AF SLR's to follow incorporated both the autofocus sensor and the drive motor in the camera body.

  • 1986

    Fuji releases the first disposable camera named the Quick Snap. Also called the “single-use camera”. Canon manufactures and distributes digital cameras after the release of the RC-701, a still video camera that had four interchangeable lenses and sold for about $3,000. Kodak introduces a 1.4-megapixel sensor, making it the first megapixel sensor small enough to fit in a handheld camera. These cameras were the first with enough resolution to produce a 5x7 photo quality print.

  • 1987

  • 1988

    Fuji develops the DS-1P, the first fully digital consumer camera to be sold. This camera recorded images on a 16MB internal memory card. Sony introduces the MVC-C1, the first consumer model of their MAVICA line of electronic still video cameras. Similar to other MAVICA models, this was not a true digital camera. Digital Darkroom became the first image editing software for the Mac computer. The first JPEG and MPEG standards were also set during this time period.

  • 1989

  • 1990

    The first camera phones were released. Kodak develops the Photo CD system. Adobe releases Photoshop 1.0, making it the second digital editing program available for Macs. Logitech introduces the Dycam Model I and Fotoman digital cameras. It was a digital camera capable of capturing 320 x 320 pixel black and white photos. The camera had 1 MB of internal memory that could store up to 32 photosThe camera came with a cable to download these photos to a computer and sold for $995.