Nikon may produce a backplate that can transform a film SLR camera into a digital one, hinted Nancy Carr, general manager of Nikon's consumer digital camera group.

Digital adaptations of leading SLRs have been available for at least three years for between #7,000 and #10,000 - several times their component costs. One company has shown, but not shipped, a universal 35mm backplate with its guts fitting into a cylinder the size of a film cartridge.

Most photosensors are smaller than a 35mm film, so the view they see is smaller. Otherwise, there seems to be no great problem in replacing the film by a sensor, logic and storage. Carr said Nikon had explored the idea. "All I can say is 'watch this space'," she told journalists after the digital photography seminar.