Mamiya ZD camera and Mamiya ZD digital back for Mamiya 645 AFD.

Since the Mamiya ZD is not yet available for testing, we took the Mamiya 645 AF out for testing with a Leaf Valeo 22 wireless digital back. Here we are photographing orchids in a greenhouse in Guatemala, Central America.

Since Leaf and MegaVision each independently first brought out medium format digital backs circa 1992, the medium format back has always been interchangeable, just like a film magazine.

But Mamiya and Pentax were two companies that designed and manufactured medium format cameras that did not use a separate interchangeable film magazine. Now, independently, each of these companies has announced the same design concept for medium format digital cameras.

Mamiya came first, and at Photokina 2004 and then at PhotoPlus 2004, announced the Mamiya ZD. This is available in two formats: still as an interchangeable back (to fit all Mamiya cameras that accept a film magazine or digital back). But the ZD is also available in a self-contained Mamiya camera, the Mamiya ZD. The actual camera is supposed to be available this summer.

Previously we have used primarily Hasselblad for medium format, or Rollei. This was our first experience with the Mamiya. Our report is based on six months use of this camera in Greece, Guatemala, Germany, and the US. The FLAAR Report is available from www.wide-format-printers.NET, in the link for digital photo equipment reports.

What will happen now is that most independent back manufacturers will have to quickly ally with a partner that makes cameras. This is what Imacon and Hasselblad cleverly did last year. Mamiya and Pentax each simply allied with themselves: each makes the backs and the fronts (the cameras). Recently Jenoptik (backs) allied informally with Sinar (they make cameras, and also backs, but Sinar will drop their own backs and feature those of Jenoptik).

This leaves Rollei and Contex as isolated (no digital back partner) and leaves Leaf, Phase One and MegaVision as isolated (no partnership with any camera manufacturer). You do not need an MBA from Harvard Business School to predict what will happen in 2005 and 2006. Bronica led the way. It simply evaporated.

We hope all the companies survive, since competition is what keeps things going. But in the meantime, we want to be sure that our over quarter of a million readers continue to receive reviews based on our own personal in-house testing of equipment, keeping in mind it is very expensive for us to manage the field trips and projects where we use the medium format cameras in real world conditions. Since the Mamiya ZD is not yet quite ready, we continue updating our evaluations of the Leaf Valeo, with comments on the Leaf Aptus. We are now concentrating on the Imacon Ixpress backs with the Hasselblad.

Shortly we will have another medium format back for testing and write-up, since this is what our readers expect of us.

Most recently updated April 25, 2005.