Phase One announces IQ3 100MP Trichromatic, a new digital back they say sees color like the human eye

 

 

Phase One has announced the latest addition to its IQ3 digital back family, the IQ3 100MP Trichromatic. This digital back is built around a new CMOS sensor which is the result of a close collaboration between Phase One and Sony.

What makes the 100MP Trichromatic digital back special is that it has been designed to capture color as the human eye perceives it. Phase One states that the result is "astonishing color definition - with which champions of photography are able to create and express their artistic visions more accurately than ever before."

The 101-megapixel medium format sensor in the IQ3 100MP Trichromatic Digital Back incorporates new Bayer Filter color technology which allows the sensor to "render color more authentically than ever." Fine art photographer Tony Hewitt, who has shot with the new Trichromatic back as part of the Phase One XF camera system, says of the new sensor, "As a photographer, one of the things that excites me the most is having the opportunity to use color to evoke emotion. The Trichromatic Camera System itself becomes a true extension of my vision, and what my eye sees and what my eye wants to express - the camera delivers."

On a more technical side, the IQ3 Trichromatic has the lowest - and Phase One says the cleanest - base ISO of any medium format CMOS sensor with its new base ISO of 35. This leads to "the absolute lowest digital noise for any CMOS system of its size." Phase One Image Quality Professor Niels Knudsen says, "The ability to capture an image that reflects exactly what you see the moment you press the shutter button, with little interpretation or conjecture, is a fantastic leap for photography and more importantly, for the integrity of image quality."

 

 

Like the two other IQ3 100MP digital backs, the original IQ3 100MP and the IQ3 100 MP Achromatic, the IQ3 100MP Trichromatic offers 15 stops of dynamic range. Unlike those other two digital backs, the new Trichromatic has an ISO range of 35-12,800, as compared to 50-12,800 and 200-51,200 respectively. Also like the other IQ3 100MP sensors, the new digital back produces 16-bit files.

The Phase One IQ3 100MP Trichromatic is available now through Phase One partners. The digital back itself has a suggested retail price of US$44,990. It can be purchased with an XF camera body and a free prime lens in a bundle for $49,990.