Sigma SD10
The Sigma SD10 is a digital SLR camera produced by the Sigma Corporation of Japan. It was announced on October 27, 2003 and is an evolution of the previous SD9 model, addressing many of the shortcomings of that camera. The Sigma SD10 cameras are unique in the digital SLR field in using full-color sensor technology, and in that they only produce raw format images that require post-processing on a computer.
Foveon X3 image sensor
Like its predecessor, the SD10 uses a sensor with the unique Foveon X3 sensor technology. The 10.2-million-pixel raw file generated from this sensor is processed to produce a 3.4 megapixel size image file. Although the image file is smaller than images from competing 10 megapixel cameras it is made from the same number of measured data values because the Foveon sensor detects full color data (three values) at each photosite; the actual resolution contained in its 3.4 MP images is about the same as a conventional Bayer/CFA sensor of 7–9 MP. Sigma and Foveon count each red, green, and blue sensor as a pixel, and state the camera has 10.2 million pixels; similarly, companies selling Bayer sensor cameras also count each single-color sensor element as a pixel.
