Plastic is popular because, if it's of the right quality and used correctly,
it's a better structural material for cameras than metal. You might not like
that (I don't like it, myself), but it's true.
Probably true because of its ability to absorb shock without
permanent deformation.
Plastic also allows a tiny body with complex innards. That tiny
auto-focusing/zoom-lens camera you tuck into your shirt pocket would be
virtually impossible to manufacture if it were made of metal.
Since molding/casting is common to both plastic and metal I don't
really understand that. In addition to achieve the same strength
plastic must be thicker. What makes modern cameras small is the
electronics which replaces hardware. Mechanically very simple.
I've been wondering for the past few years whether Nikon or Canon will be
the first to "bite the bullet" and introduce a "true" professional camera
with a plastic body. My guess is that, if it does occur, the camera will be
essentially identical to their current top metal-body camera. This will
allow pros who already own the top camera to buy the plastic version as a
backup without having to "apologize" for their purchase.
It might be argued that it was not a professional level camera but
Canon did this with what I believe were the N70 and N80 back in the
80s. Virtually identical except that the expensive "pro" model was
metal and the lower priced model was plastic. I think however that
the properties of plastic and metal are so different that each
version would need to be designed separately.
I think the conversion to plastic would probably be done by imparting
some status to the material as has been done with carbon fiber. Then
the cheap metal body would be the back up. :-)
--
Winsor Crosby
Long Beach, California
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