Agfa ActionCam (1995)
A joint venture digital SLR with a three-CCD sensor system, sold as a professional tool in 1995.
Overview
The Agfa ActionCam is a digital SLR camera produced through a collaboration between Agfa and Minolta, marketed in 1995 as the Agfa-branded version of the Minolta RD-175. It uses a modified Minolta Maxxum 500si Super body with a digital back and features interchangeable Minolta A-mount lenses. The camera was designed for professional use in fields like medical, insurance, and scientific imaging, targeting markets where high ISO performance and digital capture were emerging needs. Minolta engineered the hardware, while Agfa developed the firmware and software.
Specifications
| Imager Type | 3x 0.38MP 1/2" CCD |
| Resolution | 1528x1146 pixels (1.75 megapixels interpolated) |
| Lens Mount | Minolta A-mount |
| Shutter Speeds | 1/2 – 1/2000 s |
| Aperture Range | Maximum effective aperture f/6.7 |
| ISO | 800 |
| Storage | PCMCIA Flash ATA cards (Type I, II, or III), including internal 128 MB PCMCIA hard drive |
| Interface | SCSI |
| Weight | 1,210 g |
| Dimensions | 161 mm × 128 mm × 145 mm |
| Battery | 1 × 6 V (2CR5), 1 × 7.2 V (NP-500H), 1 × 3 V (CR2025) |
| Image Format | MDC (RAW) |
Design
The camera uses three 1/2" CCD sensors—two for green and one for red/blue—fed by a dichroic prism block that splits incoming light. Relay optics compress the image by 0.56× onto a 12 mm × 16 mm sensor area. The dual-green sensor design increased sensitivity to match ISO 800 performance. Final images are interpolated from the combined sensor data. The bundled software, "Agfa ActionCam Digital Film," was initially Macintosh-only and required a computer to process images, with transfer times ranging from 50 to 108 seconds.
Context
The Agfa ActionCam was one of the few professional digital SLRs available in 1995, competing with Kodak DCS models. It offered lower noise than many contemporaries and was among the first consumer digital SLRs used in professional animation, notably in the production of the video game "The Neverhood." At $9,995, it was priced about 20% below comparable Kodak models, though still inaccessible to amateur photographers. The complexity of its three-sensor system contributed to reliability issues over time.
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