3D Printing technology is contributing to the development of a new production technique for fully functional photography equipment. The minds behind the much vaunted RepRap 3D printer movement have just fabricated the the first stage – the basic structure of a Canon 5D DSLR. The outcome of this process is an entire camera body, including an attached zoom lens accompanying the main frame. Have a glimpse of the 3D printing process of the camera below.
In a time where the sophisticated cameras of mobile phones have slowly but inevitably replaced traditional point-and-shoots, DSLR’s have still remained unbeatable and irreplaceable for photography professionals and enthusiasts requiring advanced photographs – in a world that does not rely entirely on Instagram’s sepia effect. But even though the primary function and status of DSLR’s hasn’t changed, the means to produce them just might radically do so in the not too distant future.
Visually the 3D printed product bears a striking resemblance to the actual camera. Take a look at the promising results by comparing the 3D printed version to Canon’s original product for yourself.
The current development does not yet incorporate the other needed components and parts such as optics, but the innovative 3D printing community believes that the day of homemade fully functional cameras is much closer than traditional camera manufacturers would like to believe. And when the time does arrive when the optics and removable zoom lenses can be created in by 3D printing-slash-photography enthusiasts, in their own homes, the inevitable result is that all electronic device manufacturers — including camera manufacturers — will have to face a future shaped by 3D printers. When that day arrives, they will have to adapt or diminish into obscurity – the latter being the same e-retirement home where those aforementioned point and shoot cameras reside.
Source: WebProNews, RepRap Central
