Nikon E Series Digital Cameras

Nikon E Series Digital Cameras



Written by David Barth in February 2006



History of the Nikon E Series digital cameras



In 1986, Kodak designed and fabricated the world's first Digital Camera Sensor (DCS). It had 1.4 megapixels (million picture elements). Production for Kodak digital cameras began in early 1990 with a 1.3 megapixel sensor digital camera back, the DCS-460, mated to a Nikon F90 body. At the time of its introduction, it was the world's highest-resolution commercial production digital SLR camera.

The Kodak DCS 520 was was mated to a Nikon N2000.

In partnership with Nikon, Fuji developed the E2, introduced in July 1996.

A subsequent Kodak digital back offering 6 million pixels, the DCS-560, was mated to a Canon EOS body.

Later, Kodak used the Nikon APS format Pronea 600i to develop a digital SLR. Kodak finally introduced a digital back to be mated to the Nikon F5, called the DCS-660, but Nikon decided to go its own way with the Nikon D1, announced in early 2000.


Description of the Nikon E2



Technical highlights of the E2 are a 1.4 million (1,364 x 1,032) pixel sensor. The E Series is compatible with most Nikon SLR equipment and accessories, including Nikkor lenses and Speedlights.

E2 Characteristics:
  • Three metering modes
  • Four exposure modes
  • Auto bracketing at two or three different exposures
  • Three exposure compensation variations: +1/4 EV, +l/2 EV or -3/4 EV
  • Nine custom settings
  • User-id recording to an Image Memory card


Description of the Nikon E3



Nikon announced the Nikon E3 in 1998 but it actually became available in December, 1999 - just a few months after the Company announced the long-awaited Nikon D1 Digital SLR camera. The E-series has a few handicaps in its basic design and the call for a conventional SLR-type design was more desirable than the bulky E series.

The E3 series, comprised of Nikon E3 and E3s, was the third model from the partnership between Nikon and Fuji Film. The Nikon E3/E3s was also sold as Fujix DS-560(A)

This camera was quite similar to the earlier E2/E2s and E2N/E2Ns models except that the E3 series models can deliver a higher resolution at 1.4 million (1,364 x 1,032) total pixels as compared to E2N's 1.3 million pixels (1,280 x 1,000 array). There are many more enhancements both from the design features as well as the software.

The Nikon's E3 series was also compatible with most Nikkor lenses (older lenses may have limitations) and many other Nikon system accessories including speedlights and remote triggers. It allowed photographers to download images directly to a PC, or operate remotely from a PC.

E3 Characteristics:
  • SCSI high-speed interface
  • Can shoot up to 3 frames per second (fps) for 12 consecutive photos with its larger buffer (the standard version E3 shoots at one frame per second)
  • The sensitivity control of the E3 series models has an intermediate setting (MID) which permits STD (Equivalent to ISO 800 film), MID (equivalent to ISO 1600 film), and HI (equivalent to ISO 3200 film)
  • Metering Range (with f/1.4 lens in STD mode)
    • EV 1 to 16-1/3 for Matrix Metering
    • EV 15 to 20 for Center-Weighted Metering
    • EV 2 to 20 for Spot metering
  • A controlled aperture starting from f/4.8 (to f/38) instead of the previous f/6.7
  • Auto Bracketing (AEB) which allows the user to shoot 2 to 3 frames, each with different exposures
  • Compensated value range from ± 1/4 to ±-3/4 (9 combinations are available)
  • The C (continuous shooting) mode allows the E3s to shoot up to 12 consecutive shots
  • Independent PV (Preview) mode
  • A PC mode
  • White Balance, when operating in MANUAL, has 6 settings/selection
    1. Incandescent light (3,000k)
    2. Fluorescent light (6,700/5,000/4,200K)
    3. Fine weather (5,300K)
    4. Cloudy weather (6,500K)
    5. 5) Shade (8,000K)
    6. Flash mode (5,700K)
  • Reduction Optical System "ROS" which enables Nikkor lenses to capture "virtually" identical "full frame" picture angles and aspect ratios as they do when mounted on conventional film cameras, even with wide angles and fisheye lenses
  • An X-sync terminal with a top sync speed of 1/250 second
  • In M or S mode, the shutter fires at the user speed that is set, but 1/350 to 1/2000 second settings cannot be chosen
  • Matrix-Balanced Fill Flash is possible with Nikon TTL Speedlights including SB-28, 27, 26 and 25
  • External sync (PC) terminal is provided


Overall, although all the E-series models may sound inferior in the Pixel-war among the many new entries, the camera has a few areas which make it a very attractive alternative to the current line up of Nikon Digital bodies. All E-bodies have lens interchangeability.

Technically, the 2/3 inch CCD should outperform the 1/2 inch sensor despite the weak figures in delivering high pixels. The camera is packed with most of the technologies you can find in any top notch film-based SLR, including flash, exposure control to metering options.


Description of the Nikon E3s



The Nikon E3s is the last digital camera manufactured by Nikon before they produced with the D1. It is extremely rare because the D1 was released only a few months after the announcement of the E3s, and the cost of the E3s was $18,000. The E3s is the most sophisticated digital SLR from Nikon that had mechanical parts based on the F5 body with the following features:
  • Matrix Metering
  • Auto Balanced Fill-in Flash
  • Connecting ports for TV, Mac, and PC computers for image display
  • Resolution at least 1.3MP
  • Integral optical stabilizer
  • Full open compatibility with all AI manual focus lenses
  • Integral optical system that keeps the lens focal length unchanged. This means your 15mm gives the same angle of view with this camera, not 1.5X factor like on subsequent Nikon digital cameras.
  • The camera uses a PCMIA card.
  • E3s camera serial numbers began at 8300000.
  • Nikon Speedlights such as the SB-28 with TTL are compatible with the E3
  • A long-life, rechargeable M-MH (nickel-metal hydride) battery powers E Series cameras, allowing the shooting of up to 1,000 consecutive shots
  • Reduction Optical System (ROS) achieves nearly identical picture angles when the same Nikkor lens is mounted on either an E Series digital or a Nikon 35mm format SLR camera
  • High sensitivity 2/3-inch, 1.4-million square-pixel CCD for processing high-definition (1,280 x 1,000 pixel) images
  • three selectable modes at the ISO equivalent of 800 (STD), 1600 and 3200 (HIGH)
  • Auto White Balance (AWB) function and a total of six white balance settings are provided
  • Multiple Compression Modes - Images are stored in TIFF or three JPEG compression modes: HI (uncompressed TlFF), FINE (compression ratio 1/4), NORMAL (1/8), and BASIC (1/16)
  • A Nikon EC15 PCMCIA card is used to store images
  • A convenient delete function erases any chosen shot or all shots previously taken, making it easy to free up space to save your best images
  • Has a SCSI interface
  • Does not have a USB port
  • A multi-card reader or Nikon's own PC-card Reader can be used to transfer images to a computer


E-series models also have their shortfalls. For example, you can only view the images via the eyepiece, but the image is superior to EVF system employed in many point-and-shoot cameras. The camera size and weight is like a dinosaur, and the storage options are quite limited.

The good thing is, these cameras are considered obsolete and they should be relatively inexpensive. Web designers may find them extremely useful if they don't require high-resolution images, and they can mount any Nikkor lens. A commercial studio owner may also find them handy for quick passport output.