Advanced Photo System
It was sold by various manufacturers under several brand names, including Eastman Kodak (Advantix), FujiFilm (Nexia), Agfa (Futura) and Konica (Centuria).
APS also could reduce camera and lens size and weight by using a smaller image format; unlike the older amateur formats, image quality would be maintained by using newly-developed films, featuring emulsions with finer grain size and a flatter base material.
The other major innovation delivered by APS was the "information exchange" process in which the camera recorded data directly on the film; this would simplify cropping prints to a desired aspect ratio and potentially could provide photofinishers with exposure data to optimize print quality.
However, by the time APS was released in 1996, the first digital cameras had appeared, providing many of the same benefits with the additional convenience and economy of eliminating the developing process.
[1] In 1991, Canon, Fujifilm, Kodak, Minolta, and Nikon formed a consortium to complete the new photographic system,[2] and the alliance was publicly announced in 1992.
[3] Initial testing of APS film cartridges with 40-exposure rolls started in 1994; details about the magnetic-stripe information encoding[4] and formats were provided later that year, although the prototype "Standard" frame size, at that time, was narrower than the final APS-C frame, with a 7:5 aspect ratio, 23.4×16.7 mm (0.92×0.66 in).
[2] At that time, Kodak CEO George M. C. Fisher announced that US$500 million had been invested in the new system to date, and an equal expense would be required going forward.
[9]: 39, 40 At launch, all five manufacturers announced point-and-shoot APS cameras;[9] the Canon ELPH (IXY/IXUS) drew particular attention and demand for its compact size and stylish all-metal body.
In addition to the frame format, the information exchange (IX) standard included with APS identifies the film cartridge with a unique six-digit serial number.
Some cameras can use IX to record additional metadata, including exposure information, onto the film, either optically or magnetically.
The film is on a polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) base,[6] and is wound on a single spool, housed in a plastic cartridge 39 mm (1.5 in) long.
The system was invented by four engineers at Kodak, who were awarded patents in 1992 and 1993 and who jointly were named the National Inventor of the Year in 1996.
Most cameras with magnetic IX automatically record the exposure date and time on tracks in the magnetic layer, outside the visible area, with more advanced models allowing the user to specify a predetermined caption to be printed on the photo or record the exposure settings, as well as determine print aspect ratio.
[47][48] Before the system was released, Herbert Keppler expressed doubt about the potential market for APS SLRs, as both professional and amateur photographers would be constrained by the format's limitations, but thought the reduced size could appeal for niche uses such as photographers who want a more flexible lightweight travel option than a point-and-shoot.
Of these the Canon EOS IX and the Nikon Pronea SLRs could use existing 35 mm SLR lenses with Canon EF and Nikon F mount, respectively, whereas Minolta opted to create a new lens mount which later was shared with the Minolta Dimâge RD 3000, an early digital SLR (DSLR).
Concurrently with their APS SLR film cameras, Canon, Minolta, and Nikon released lenses specifically intended for use on APS film cameras; the APS-specific lenses have shorter focal lengths to compensate for the reduced image size.
[59] To accompany the Pronea SLRs, Nikon released six IX-Nikkor zoom lenses, all designed by Haruo Sato, which were lighter and had a smaller image circle, similar in concept to the later Nikon DX format lenses released with the company's DSLRs, starting in 2004.
