Could Nikon be working to bring 5-axis stabilization to their DSLRs?Â
One of the really cool things that could happen with DSLRs is giving them in body image stabilization since they’ve had lens stabilization for many years now. There are a few notable exceptions in regards to DSLR cameras having 5-axis stabilization (Pentax in their full frame K1 DSLRs for example), but in terms of the big two, Canon and Nikon, this would be an unprecedented attempt to win back some of the customers lost to the glitz and glamour of the constantly innovating and evolving world of Mirrorless cameras. However, we’re 99% sure that a fake report is actually bringing up a pretty solid point about it all.
Usually patents released online to various outlets feature some source, or image files to corroborate the reporting on the patent. But in this case, the outlet in question has not provided any of the above, leading some to wonder about its authenticity. We thought the idea of this was worth discussing, but do feel that we need to strongly warn that this could all be a load of crap, but like we said, it should make for an interesting discussion.
It has come to light, through some new (however unconfirmed) patents, that Nikon is prepping or at least working on some tech to bring the five axis stabilization that we all love from mirrorless cameras over into the Nikon ecosystem. This is some pretty big news because this tech has really, mostly only been seen in mirrorless cameras up to this point.
The reporting over on The New Camera seems to indicate that Nikon may opt to try and implement some sort of body based stabilization technology, not unlike what we have seen in Sony’s cameras and other mirrorless offerings that feature IBIS. However, the other alternative mentioned points to the possibility of Nikon toying with the idea of building some sort of advanced stabilization technology into a new line of lenses. But, what that would actually look like was not disclosed.
This deserves a dump truck load of salt at this point because the patents being referenced are unsubstantiated and could be completely fake. We looked into the patents as best as we could, and we were able to confirm through the Japanese Patent Office that JP-225405 is an actual number attached to a patent filing. But beyond that we were not able to see the documents, so we are unable to confirm what has been reported.
Sitting here looking at these, the obvious idea would be to attempt the same style of IBIS technology that we have seen implemented in other systems. The tricky part is building that in to work around the mirror and avoid conflicts.
However, let’s be real, the new ‘advanced stabilization lens lineup’ totally sounds like something Nikon would try to do. Why add it into the camera bodies when they could add it into lenses, charge a ridiculous sum of money for them, and get to do that multiple times for each lens when someone wants to buy and use the 5 axis stabilization?
We would certainly love to see this sort of tech make its way into the mainstream, DSLR realm, so it is great Nikon is at least looking into the various avenues available to them. It will be interesting to see how (if at all) they choose to implement this technology – if this patent is what TNC says it is.
