Retro Digital Photography - Canon ION-Mac 560

Here’s a little piece of retro chic for you as we come to the cusp on 2008-2009. The ION-Mac 560 still video system from Canon that brought a whole new dimension to computer imaging.

Back in 1992 the ION RC-560 was Canon’s top of the line Still Video camera, capturing images onto 2-inch reusable and interchangeable video floppy disks ready for use and display on any standard TV or other audio-visual equipment.

With the correct hookup the images could even be put onto your Apple Macintosh, apparently their top of the line then, something like the IICX running late Mac OS 6.x or early 7.x in colour.  As one would expect the camera had all the features available on standard non-digital cameras, from auto-focus to 3x electric zoom, and the ability to chose between “maximum image resolution, or maximum storage”. In double-density frame mode, apparently 25 images could be stored on the device, whilst optimized field mode could store double that. Pictures in the brochure also show the (optional) film adapter FA-C57 that allowed any user to easily turn 35mm colour slides and negatives into digital format files for store on your Mac.

Yet more selling points included:

• Video output in 24-bit colour or 8-bit monochrome.
• Up to 50 automatic image previews on your Mac screen which could be saved to the desktop as a visual index of the video floppy.
• ‘Point-and-click’ selection of single or multiple images to be acquired.
• Ability to edit and enhance images.
• Image export via standard file formats, with industry-standard JPEG compression and decompression.
• Support for Apple’s QuickTime system enabling animation.
• Ability to erase single or multiple images at any given time for a video floppy.
• Transfer from a Mac to video floppy using the optional recording board.

Ultimately the ION-Mac 560 system was designed to bring full colour computer imaging to the Mac and avoid the need for traditional developing methods of photographs, and of course with the right connectors, wires and video boards made the RC-560 a power imaging peripheral in its day.

Check out the brochure in detail on Flickr for yourself: