David Martyn Hughes

Sony A77 files - jpg and raw

2011-11-17T09:30:00.000Z

The jpgs. from the Sony A77 have rightly been described as being somewhat "ordinary" and certainly the raw files offer the opportunity to get a lot more from an image. Below is a workflow comparison between raw and jpg.

Firstly the out of camera jpg. and a 100% blowup.

For the raw file, these are the settings I'm currently using to process A77 files in Adobe Camera Raw / Photoshop.

For this picture I slightly increased the contrast in curves.

This picture needed a slight adjustment for the sky which was a little too cyan for my tastes.

Looking at a 100% blowup again, the file is "punchier" and is sharper with more definition.

It must be remembered however that I'm creating a file here for the picture library sites that I supply. The image is processed in this way for print reproduction.

Shottery with Sony a77

2011-11-16T15:27:00.000Z

Sony A77 30mm f/2.8 Macro lens

One of the most famous houses in the UK, Ann Hathaways cottage, the home of the wife of William Shakespeare, is situated in a small village just outside Stratford-upon-Avon. I have lots of pictures of it, but none in Autumn, so I went to photograph it, and its surroundings, yesterday with the Sony A77.

Sony A77 85mm f/2.8 SAM lens

Sony A77 30mm f/2.8 Macro lens

Sony A77 85mm f/2.8 SAM lens

Sony A77 30mm f/2.8 Macro lens

Sony A77 85mm f/2.8 SAM lens

Sony A77 30mm f/2.8 Macro lens

MORE GENERAL RAMBLINGS ON THE STATE ON THE CAMERA INDUSTRY.

2011-11-15T16:36:00.000Z

MORE GENERAL RAMBLINGS ON THE STATE ON THE CAMERA INDUSTRY.

(Inspired?? by a post about Sigma and Pentax appently announcing decreasing sales figures)

I've always found Pentax to be very frustrating. In my last days of film I used a couple of MZ 35mm cameras and a 645. There was then a long wait for them to get into digital. By then I'd sold my limited lenses and gone elsewhere.

It seems to take them ages to get round to anything, and of course they come up (down?) with something like the Q system. My last experience was with the K-5, nice camera but not quite as good as it could be, as I found out when I bought a Nikon D7000.

I've more or less given up on them now, and I'm not convinced Ricoh can revitalise them.

Sigma do still make some unique and useful lenses, but their camera excursions, particularly the overpriced SD1, have been a bit of a disaster. Having the boss whining on twitter about how he was sorry that the SD1 was ridiculously expensive, didn't help.

I suspect companies are just hanging on and trying to see the recession out. Those with lots of resources and other product lines like Samsung, Sony and Panasonic will presumably survive quite comfortably and the others will hope they can hang on. Some presumably will go the way of Pentax and merge.

When it comes down to it, just how many camera manufacturers do we need? When I started out it was Nikon, Canon, Pentax, Olympus and Minolta who dominated everything, with companies like Leica on the (high priced) periphery. Fuji made film and a few others knocked out some compact cameras. We now have Nikon, Canon, Sony, Olympus, Panasonic, Fuji, Pentax, Sigma, Ricoh, Samsung and Leica making and marketing what might be described as "serious" digital cameras. Add in Kodak and Casio and a few others in the point and shoot market, and thats 13+ camera manufacturers competing for whats going to be a less than thriving marketplace for some time to come.

If those 13+ are all still doing what they do now in 5 years time, I would be very surprised. Kodak seem about to wave bye bye soon anyway, and Ricoh have swallowed up Pentax.

There's an awful lot of duplication anyway, and not just in the P & S market. It seems to me companies have too many cameras on sale that are just covering price points rather than catering for needs. Do we really need anything more than a beginner/basic model, a mid-range model and a high specification "pro" model in a DSLR range?

Personally I'd love to see a return to "modular" systems, whereby you can have a motordrive if you want it etc. This could even be extended to sensors.
Instead of coming up with all-in-one, everything you need in one package systems how about a camera with a choice of 12, 16 or 20MP sensors? It would save on manufacturing costs, keep product lines running longer and still provide an upgrade path. Add in choices of AF speed, buffer size, fps etc. and you could have a much more cost effective system. Car manufacturers do it, so why wouldn't it work for cameras? Save on re-tooling, advertising, packaging and probably keep more photographers happy.

For example if I own an Olympus E-P3 and I decide I want more MP's, then the only way I can do that is change brands. If I've owned my E-P3 for a while, then it may just be that I quite like it and would maybe like to upgrade to something similar, thats just got higher specification. At the moment my choice is either wait (and hope) that my company of choice comes up with the right product for me, or else switch brands. In which case I may end up being a "lost" customer.

A friend of mine once suggested that companies now want us to "join their team" and base our lives around their products. Bought it, accessorised it, got the T-shirt. Apple, bless them, are very fond of promoting the "i-life" and its not an uncommon phenomenon. Take your Panasonic card out of your Panasonic camera, which you keep in your Panasonic bag and put it into your Panasonic TV while cooking your dinner in your Panasonic microwave, seems to be what all these companies would like us to do.

As a long term committed "non team player" I find this anathema, as I'm sure many others do. Maybe one day the people who actually run these organisations might wake up to the fact that the answer is to give us what we want intead of what they think we want.

Panasonic G3 Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton review - Conclusion

2011-11-15T09:57:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton

Panasonic G3 Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton

My tests and use of this lens have proved to me that it is a very good lens indeed. Its very fast and very useable at f/1.2, and as such is incredibly useful in low light situations. However I have mixed feelings about its use as an all-round lens on the systems I tested it with. For my NEX-5n, it is quite simply stunning and in combination with that camera provides a top quality standard lens capable of extraordinary results at all apertures. It is also simple to use. However it must be remembered that this is an expensive lens, and that expenditure has to be justified.

Because of the limited nature of the NEX lens range at the moment, it will fill in a gap for me. A very fast standard lens is something that I will find a lot of uses for, especially since it also produces such sharp results at f/5.6 > f/11, the apertures I use the most. On m4/3 its not so useful for me. Partly because of the focal length it gives on that system and partly because there is already a top-class lens that fulfills the "fast standard lens" function on that system. Namely the 25mm f/1.4 Panasonic Leica, which of course has AF and is about half the price of the Voigtlander.

For my review of that lens see:- http://soundimageplus.blogspot.com/search/label/Panasonic%2025mm%20f%2F1.4%20m4%2F3%20lens%20review

As I said at the beginning, I am unable to give any opinion as to how this lens might perform on a Leica, since I no longer have my M9. I would imagine it would perform very well indeed, but if you are interested in that, I suggest that you search out a seperate review. I would provide a link myself but I don't know of one. If anyone has a link that they know of, then if you put it in the comments section below I'll add it to the post.

Panasonic G3 Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton on Panasonic G3

2011-11-15T09:27:00.000Z

Panasonic G3 Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton

Some samples at f/1.2.

The following are samples at f/8. These are jpgs. straight out of the camera. To view full-size high resolution file, click on the image through to flickr > Actions > View all sizes > Original

Below is a test at ISO 100, showing the different apertures. As usual this is tripod mounted and all of the images are processed in Adobe Camera Raw using the default settings. Large high-resolution version available by clicking on image > flickr > Actions > View all sizes > Original.

Once again the images are very sharp, though they don't look as sharp to me as those from the Sony NEX-5n. There is also a slight magenta cast on the images.

I'm unsure as to how useful this lens is on m4/3. There are some good fast alternatives available, and I don't see this lens as being any improvement on the Panasonic 25mm f/1.4. On the NEX it fills in a gap, and works as a "standard lens". On m4/3 it becomes a 70mm f/1.2 35mm / FF equivalent, and that isn't particularly something I would use a lot.

I haven't tried it on my Olympus E-P3 because of the problems of using manual focus lenses on that camera. It is very fiddly, opening the lens up, enlarging a section of the image, focusing and then returning it to the whole frame, and re-selecting the aperture. The G3 is easier in this regard, but again the NEX-5n is so good for this that any other camera suffers by comparison.

So I can't really see myself using the 35mm f/1.2 on m4/3 much, aside from video use, when it could be very useful indeed, and easier to use.

Panasonic m4/3 "Pro" Zooms

2011-11-14T10:36:00.000Z

http://www.43rumors.com/ft3-from-unknown-source-upcoming-x-zoom-lenses-with-f2-8-constant-aperture/comment-page-1/#comment-82704

Both from 43rumors above and via a source of my own, it seems there are two new X type zooms coming from Panasonic next year. These are the previously rumoured 12-35mm f/2.8 and 35-100mm f/2.8 lenses. Both with f/2.8 throughout.

With the X design, these should be around the size of the current 14-42mm and 45-200mm lenses. So pretty small and light for what they are, which is m4/3 versions of the 24-70mm f/2.8 and 70-200mm f/2.8 35mm / FF lenses which have been regarded as the "workhorses" of "pro" photographers for some time now. These are the particular favourites of many wedding and event photographers.

In many ways, they seem a strange choice for Panasonic. I wouldn't have thought that they add any particular benefits to the system. Particularly with the release of the three fast primes this year. The 12mm f/2 , 25mm f/1.4 and 45mm f/1.8 all give faster, high quality options, and strike me as much more useful for the situations for which these zooms are intended. My own thoughts on zooms like 24-70mm f/2.8, have always struck me as not wide enough, not long enough and not fast enough. When I was shooting weddings, I never used one of these, for either my Canon or Nikon DSLR's, and preferred to use fast primes instead.

Whether Panasonic think that this gives their m4/3 lens range a certain "pro" gravitas, who knows, but I certainly haven't seen a great clamour for lenses like this to be released.

Having said that, for what I do, they could in fact be very useful. 12mm at f2.8 still gives bags of depth of field, and could be very useful for low light location shooting. Plus it would be nice to have a telephoto zoom that doesn't always end up at f/5.6 or f/6.3 at the long end. True a 200mm equivalent isn't that long, but I can see lots of uses for that 2-stop advantage, particularly if the lenses turn in a decent performance wide open.

Whether I'm still using m4/3 when they get released is something I can't really be sure of at the moment, but if I am then I will probably give these a try.

Worcester with Olympus E-P3

2011-11-14T09:32:00.000Z

Olympus E-P3 12mm f/2

Wonderful warm sunny day. I went to photograph Worcester, with particular attention to the new canalside development which has recently been completed.

Olympus E-P3 45mm f/1.8

Olympus E-P3 12mm f/2

Olympus E-P3 45mm f/1.8

I then walked alongside the River Severn to the Cathedral. City centres that are centred around rivers are always very attractive, and with its wide path alongside the water Worcester is particularly scenic.

Olympus E-P3 12mm f/2

Olympus E-P3 45mm f/1.8

I used my Olympus E-P3 plus 12mm f/2 and 45mm f/1.8 lenses. I was hoping I would come to some decision about what to do with my m4/3 gear in which I've got about £3000 invested but hardly use. However I'm no nearer deciding whether to keep it, sell it or expand it. I certainly enjoyed using the E-P3 and I got some good pictures.

When my choice was between a large heavy DSLR / lens combination or m4/3 there wasn't really any debate. But that situation has now changed with the arrival of the Sony NEX-5n and the A77. The NEX system is obviously pretty light and the a77 plus my two lens kit (30mm and 85mm) isn't heavy either. Both give great image quality plus more MP's plus less "troublesome" files.

However the pure pleasure I get from using the E-P3 is difficult to consider giving up. If only it didn't look so good!!

Olympus E-P3 12mm f/2

Review of the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 on Sony NEX-5n - Part 4 "Real world" use

2011-11-13T10:09:00.000Z

All images - Sony NEX-5n Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton II

Using the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton II yesterday confirmed to me what the tests showed. This is a very sharp lens. It also showed just how good the bokeh is, and how well it renders out of focus areas at any aperture.

Its not often that you get lenses these days that have a real "character" but this is one of those. Its a small thing, and many wouldn't notice or care, but I find the way this lens renders images, very attractive. Like all good lenses the precise point of focus is obvious, and again like a good lens the transition from this to the out of focus areas is very smooth.

Voigtlander have come up with a little gem here. When you take into account the fact that its a very fast lens, and that it works very well at wide apertures, add in that its very sharp indeed when stopped down and the fact that it has great build quality and it does seem to me that this is probably the "best" lens I have ever bought.

True, a £1000 lens should be good, and it would be surprising if it wasn't. However in terms of very fast 35mm lenses, its actually quite reasonable. Leica make a 35mm f/1.4 and its £3,400. There's a Zeiss for £1400. Nikon and Canon & Sony all make one around the £1200 mark. So factor in the extra 1/2 stop and you have a bargain!!

A fast lens wouldn't really be that useful to me if it didn't perform well at the apertures I use normally. As I indicated from the test results yesterday, from f/5.6 to f/11 its at its best. This was great to see, as far as I'm concerned, because these are the apertures I use the most.

Yesterday I found myself trying wider apertures than I normally use, just to see what it was like, and admittedly because I was having fun using them. But when I got down to some serious stuff and started using the lens in a way that I would "normally" I was very impressed indeed.

Pixel peeping these files is a real pleasure, and I could go on about the 3-D effect, depth of colour, film like rendition etc. but that sounds pretentious so I won't!

However what I will say, is that using this lens on the NEX-5n, has convinced me that I made the right decision to sell my Leica M9. No, the files are not quite as sharp, but they are VERY close. However, the files are cleaner then the M9 in that they have less moire and less luminance noise. I do continually bang on about how good the 5n is, and this post isn't going to be any different. Steve Huff and Michael Reichmann have both talked about how well the NEX-5n works with m-mount lenses and I would certainly add my voice of support to that.

I've written before about the value of buying these expensive manual lenses, specifically to use on cameras like m/3 and the NEX system. When that choice involved a m4/3 sensor with a 12MP sensor, I came to the conclusion that they would be useful to fill in gaps and provide wide aperture fast lenses where none existed, but the benefits in terms of overall image quality weren't that great. This opinion changed somewhat with the arrival of the Panasonic 16MP sensor, when a difference could be clearly seen. However to a certain extent that has changed with the arrival of the 12mm and 45mm lenses from Olympus and the 25mm f/1.4 from Panasonic. However, though I think that the Sony NEX e-mount lenses are underated, I still haven't seen a great lens from Sony as yet. There are good reports about the Zeiss 24mm and the Sony 50mm, but both are as yet unavailable.

So there are still gaps needing to be filled for NEX cameras, and I certainly think that lenses like the Voigtlander can fill those gaps. However its important to stress that to see a significant difference, I believe that you have to make sure that when using an m-mount lens it is a very good one. Much as I like my Voigtlander 28mm f/2, I do realise that its not the sharpest m-mount lens ever made, and consequently when I tested it against the Sony kit zoom, it wasn't that much better. However the 35mm f/1.2 is somewhat different. There is a real observable advantage using this lens as compared to any Sony lens, either e-mount or a-mount, on the NEX-5n. In Part 1 of this review I wrote "(the lens is) really going to show just what the 5n sensor is capable of" From just limited use I'm finding that its capable of a lot. Yesterdays images were certainly the sharpest I've got from the camera, and they were a pleasure to look at. And its not just a confirmed pixel-peepers difference.

So there is a case, I think, for considering top of the range m-mount lenses to get the best out of cameras like the NEX-5n. But again I must stress, only if its going to be important to you. If you use the 5n as a "serious" camera and are planning to do some "serious" work with it, in a situation where you are looking to get the best image quality you can, then lenses like the 35mm Nokton will help with that. However, I know that I'm not going to use it all the time, and there are occasions when the zooms and other lenses I have are a much better option. But certainly in any low-light situation or when I need the ultimate quality I can get from the NEX-5n then this Voigtlander is going to be my go-to lens.

Review of the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 on Sony NEX-5n - Part 3 Test Shots

2011-11-12T17:03:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton II

Test shots from the 35mm f/1.2 Nokton lens at ISO 100. Apertures from f/1.2 to f/22. Tripod mounted. Shots processed in Adobe Camera Raw in Photoshop, using Camera Raw Defaults.

As usual clicking on the image through to flickr > Actions > View all sizes > Original gives you a large high-resolution version.

WARNING - GUSH ALERT!!

I've done tests like this before. However these are the sharpest results I've ever got from ANY camera / lens combination I've ever tested in this way. (I would add that I've just returned from a trip out with this lens on the NEX-5n and "real world" results are just as good.)

f/5.6, f/8 and f/11 are just stunning.

Taking it slow!! Wide open, there is some CA and fringing, which seems to be typical for many Voigtlander lenses. However I still think for f/1.2 the results are pretty impressive. The lens just gets better from here, peaking at f/8 with an incredibly sharp rendition. At f/16 and f/22 the results are softer, but still very good indeed. As Corwin mentioned in the comments of a previous post, considering this sensor is not optimised for m-mount lenses (Unlike the Ricoh m-mount module for instance) the combination produces quite extraordinary files.

If you look at the green plant on the right of the test image. I looked at it and thought there were some sharpening "jaggies", but no I went and looked closely at the plant and it does have this slight serrated edge.

There's no way I expected the results to be this good.

As I indicated before, anticipating the next part of this review, the lens and NEX-5 performed just as well out in the field. I took the opportunity to test it from f/2 to f/11, which is what I would reasonably expect to use outdoors, and my eyes weren't deceiving me, it is an incredibly sharp lens. After just one day, I'm thinking this is the best I've ever used. Certainly I can't wait to get out and use it again.

Internet trolling as a marketing tool!!

2011-11-12T16:32:00.000Z

http://photorumors.com/2011/11/11/major-camera-manufacturer-using-internet-trolls-to-promote-their-own-products/

Just when you think you've heard it all. PhotoRumors have this story about a "a major camera manufacturer" using "internet trolls" on forums to promote their products.

When you think about it, it explains a lot.

Note the comment about which forum they DIDN'T post it on. Is that a clue?

Review of the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 on Sony NEX-5n - Part 2 Design & Build Quality

2011-11-12T10:27:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton

I've decided to do quite a thorough review of this lens because I haven't seen very much on it at all. However it should be borne in mind that I don't own a Leica anymore, so exactly how useful this will be for Leica users, for whom its primarily intended, I cannot say.

Having said that, since more people own Sony NEX and m4/3 cameras, and since there isn't a native lens of this type, nor ever likely to be one, hopefully it will be useful to users of those cameras.

First off, its important to mention the price. This is not a cheap lens. Mine cost me just over £1000. So its never going to be a mass market lens. It is for those who need a very fast lens, and need to squeeze out every bit of available light.

Those who know Voigtlander lenses will also realise that there is a cheaper (less than half the price) 35mm f/1.4 available. This lens is also much smaller. However I should get one thing out of the way at the start. The 35mm f/1.2 is a significantly better lens wide open. Its only half a stop faster, but its some way sharper that the f/1.4. The smaller lens turns in a great perfomance when stopped down. I had one and liked it very much, however at f1.4 its not the sharpest. The f/1.2 also has a nicer bokeh as far as I'm concerned.

So to start, I'm including a few examples of what you can expect from this lens wide open.

All of the images below taken on a Sony NEX-5n at f/1.2

Above taken from the Robert White website -

http://www.robertwhite.co.uk/product.asp?P_ID=3319&PT_ID=706
Since I've used this from their site, I will put in a quick plug for them. This is where I

bought my lens, and indeed its where I buy a lot of my m-mount lenses. There aren't

many places in the UK that sell Voigtlander and Zeiss, and Robert White are always

extremely helpful and knowledgeable.

The lens is an update of the 35mm f/1.2 Nokton, and its very similar. The new lens is slightly lighter, but its still heavy for an m-mount lens. Voigtlander seem to be following the Leica pattern here, with heavier larger lenses being the order of the day. The recent 25mm f/0.95 m4/3 and 75mm f/1.8 m-mount and 50mm f/1.1 lenses are all of this type.

Mounted on my NEX-5n the 35mm f/1.2 was very manageable, but I must admit I mounted it onto my Olympus E-P3 and it was a heavy combination.

Again in common with the lenses I mentioned above, its beautifully made, as indeed it should be for a lens costing over £1000. The focusing barrel is very Zeiss like in that it has a slight "resistance". I've noticed this on Zeiss lenses. Since Voigtlander and Zeiss share the same manufacturing plant its not surprising that they should feel similar. I'm presuming its something to do with projected long term use. Its a little unusual however and you do have to get used it.

The lens hood is one I've had around for a while, and the filter thread is 52mm. The lens focuses relatively closely for an m-mount lens. Just under 0.5 metre. M-mount lenses don't focus particularly closely, because of the problems this creates with the Leica rangefinder system for which they are designed, so its typical in this respect.

The lens feels very solid on the NEX-5 and with its focus peaking indicator its very easy and quick to focus. I really do think that this system on the newer NEX cameras is the best system ever devised for manually focusing lenses. Its nice that such a modern camera is able to provide this facility for these very "old school" lenses.

So, to sum up, its well made and works beautifully but its heavy, chunky and expensive. As I think you can see from the samples, its pretty special wide open. It is a specialist lens however, and though it also produces wonderful results stopped down, its not going to be for everyone.

I've always loved these super fast primes and I did love the results from my 25mm f/0.95 on my m4/3 cameras. However it was quite difficult to use and I felt it was making my eye problems worse. However with the NEX-5n I have no such difficulties. Its supposed to be sunny this weekend so I'm looking forward to going out with it to see what it can do.

More later.

Review of the Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 on Sony NEX-5n - Part 1 Introduction

2011-11-11T13:22:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton

Due to an unexpected large sale and some money in a couple of normally under performing picture library accounts that I rarely check, I was able to buy a lens I've had my eye on for some time. The m-mount Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2 Nokton. This is the updated version of the lens with a VM mount. Though it may seem a bit over the top for Sony NEX and m4/3, I don't regard it as such.

A few test shots revealed that the reviews (very few I must say) that I read are correct. It is very sharp wide open and superb when stopped down. I see it is a very nice addition to my NEX collection, and its really going to show just what the 5n sensor is capable of. I'll put together a more detailed look at it soon, but in the meantime, here's the usual camera porn shots.

40 something lenses - The places I photograph the most.

2011-11-11T09:23:00.000Z

All pictures - Sony NEX-5n Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron

I originally had the intention of making this post about using 40 something lenses, i.e. lenses that have the field of view that are equivalent to 40-45mm on 35mm / FF. However reading BB's flickr comment on the above picture, I thought I would expand it to write about my local environment, which is where the majority of the pictures posted on this blog are shot.

All of the images were taken with my Voigtlander 28mm on a Sony NEX-5n. This is roughly equivalent to 42mm on 35mm / FF. For some reason its a focal length, or field of view I like and one that seems to suit what I do. I often put this down to the Pentax Limited 43mm lens I used in my film days, and in particular the week I spent on the Cote d'Azur using this lens alone, since I had somewhat carelessly managed to render the rest of my equipment inoperative!

I still remember the pleasure I got from using that lens on a Pentax MZ-5. I was surprised at how just much I could get out of it, and I also remember the sense of liberation that I got from what seemed at first to be a restriction. Prior to that I had never done anything similar, always feeling that I had to take out a battery of lenses or a zoom to cover any eventually. It was during this week that I did finally realise that as a photographer I wasn't taking or capturing pictures but using what tools I had to create or make them.

For some reason a 40 something lens works very well for me, and seems to fit very well with what I want to include in my "photographic frame" of what I see in front of me. I like it so much that I once photographed 95% of a wedding using a 28mm lens on a Canon 7D. I didn't intend to do that, and carried other lenses with me, but that 28mm just seemed to be the "right" lens for most situations.

This carried over into my landscape / location work and I have particularly enjoyed using the 20mm Panasonic pancake lens on my m4/3 cameras.

I'm still not really sure why I find it so appealing, but I guess we all have one focal length that seems to work best for us.

The images for this post, and indeed for the majority of this blog are taken in an area of the English Midlands. This is south of the city of Birmingham, and includes the counties of Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire. Its an area of rolling countryside, heavily agricultural, criss-crossed by canals and full of small villages. It includes Stratford-upon-Avon and goes south to the Cotswolds.

Its not an area of dramatic landscape, its generally quiet, pastoral and very green. There are lots of thatched cottage and half timbered buildings. Someone once commented that I make the pictures of the area look like some kind of "idealised" view of a "fantasy" picture postcard England, but to a large extent the pictures reflect what the area actually looks like. True, I'm selective about what I photograph, but my pictures are pretty much an accurate representation of what its like.

I was born and spent my early years here, and after spending many years living and working in London, I returned a few years ago. So its an area I know pretty well. It is I guess an environment I'm comfortable in. And while I love visiting and photographing more spectacular areas, and like many UK residents have a fascination for the coast and the sea, I couldn't imagine living in areas like that.

The area has served me well in terms of picture sales from stock photography, and I've always put that down to the fact that Stratford-upon-Avon and the Cotswolds are popular tourist areas, known across the world, and also the fact that the area is rich in locations that can be used for generic images to produce an attractive image of the English landscape. Since I've always sold lots of images to the travel industry, I assume thats where lots of my pictures end up.

The worlds most expensive photo

2011-11-11T07:12:00.000Z

http://www.businessinsider.com/andreas-gursky-photo-record-most-expensive-2011-11#1-andreas-gurskys-rhein-ii-1999-sold-for-4338500-in-2011-16

The following is re-posted here from the thread at:- http://www.mu-43.com/f35/4-338-500-photo-18204/

The problem with art and money, is that the money tends to obscure the art. Because of the sums involved, debate centres around "Is it worth it" rather than "Is it any good"

I can't think of any photographic print that I would consider to be worth $4M + but I might have an opinion on whether I like it or not.

Its difficult when looking at a representation of the world such as in the picture being discussed. We might say that we could have taken it, but then we didn't did we?

Saying that we have something similar, or rejected the opportunity to create something similar, doesn't really have any bearing on it either. Andreas Gursky creates images for the fine art market, which involves a different sensibility to other photographers who don't.

I have no idea of his motives, whether he is truly "expressing his vision" or simply "doing it for the money", but the whole process of working and the environment in which he works is somewhat different.

The record for the highest fee was previously held (briefly) by Cindy Sherman. Untitled #96: Cindy Sherman's $3.9 million photo (Breningstall.com) This is somewhat different, as all her pictures are elaborately staged self-portraits. This is clearly something that others are not able to duplicate in terms of content, though the concept is not a new one.

Whether something like this has more "merit" than the Gursky, is like most things, a matter of opinion. I personally like her work and always have done, but I leave the financial valuation of it to those who want to buy it.

I feel much the same way about the Gursky. Personally, again I like it, which is unusual because his other pictures don't really give me any sense of enjoyment. However, the valuation is to a certain extent irrelevant. I'm not competing with him, and while it would be nice to sell one of my images for the sum mentioned, I'm aware thats never going to happen.

Its not going to happen because I'm not part of that world, nor do I wish to be, and what I'm trying to achieve with my photography, and how I undertake it, is completely and utterly different. I like to think that Gursky would still be producing the same work, whether he gets the "big bucks" or not, but I have no idea whether that is the case, and since he makes so much money from his photography, it must now be impossible for him to know either.

So rather than money "rewarding" art, are we now in the situation where money "creates" art? and many argue that market forces are driving photographers who inhabit the fine art world, to create a certain kind of picture. Whether thats true or not only they can say, but some of the acknowledged greatest works of art in the world, the Cistine Chapel, the Mona Lisa etc. were commissioned work, so I guess the concept of money influencing artistic achievement isn't really anything new.

The curse of the (certain kind of) hobbyist.

2011-11-10T07:03:00.000Z

There's a certain kind of photographer / hobbyist that populates the internet that seems to be so lacking in ambition, knowledge and skill, that I'm mystified as to why they bother.

They post pictures of their dogs and cats, grubby children with faces covered in god knows what and what they had for dinner.

In their view every camera, lens, accessory etc. is overpriced, too expensive, too complicated.

They ask questions rather than open the manual.

They can't tell the difference between an image shot on a camera phone and a real camera.

They moan if any camera won't fit in their pocket.

They use all the ghastly filter effects on cameras and in software.

They seem to be especially fond of those ridiculous border effects, you know the ones that look like distressed wood. Presumably to characterise their images as "art".

They think Cartier-Bresson plays midfield for Arsenal.

And of course they regularly tell everybody, what THEY think, what THEY do, how THEY have the best camera, and THEY are the experts. A friend of mine once commented that "Its strange how the very worst photographers are the ones who lecture us the most"

Of all of this, I think its the lack of ambition that gets me the most. Actually lack of ambition is being kind. The "I can't be bothered" philosophy is probably more appropriate. In which case, why on earth do these people populate internet forums? And usually repeat the same old unproven, untested opinions about cameras they have never used as the rest of their kind. Because it seems they can't be bothered to find out for themselves, to come to an opinion themselves. They wait until they read some review, and then endlessly repeat the bits that suit them.

They also seem to expect all the technology that is present in modern day cameras to solve all the mysteries of photography, so when, as usually happens, they fail to produce a masterpiece, its the cameras fault. Actually bothering to learn how to achieve good results seems beyond them.

And are they like this in the rest of their lives? Are they like this at work? Do they apply the same practices and philosophy to parenting for example? I suspect not, so why apply this to photography?

The % of people in the world who have some kind of capability to produce a photograph is probably quite large. Many do use this as a way of documenting their lives and the lives of their families and friends. Great, nothing wrong with that. But what makes a small percentage of these "snappers" decide to spend huge amounts of time on internet forums, posting their dreadful pictures and opinions, being rude, insulting others and generally being a nuisance? Are they bored at work? Does a forum give them a chance to vent some of their frustrations? Do they feel a sense of identity by inventing some ludicrous pseudonym and wasting bandwith with banalities and trivia?

There are many who seek to learn, to discover, and, god forbid, improve. However, ask the wrong question, or the right question in the wrong way and chances are you will be descended on like a pack of wolves. Or get branded a "troll". I've often wondered how many genuine beginners have been alienated about photography by the reaction of others, who they mistakenly believed might offer them some help. Whenever I see a particularly nasty series of posts, I always look up the perpertrator. More often than not they have no pictures of their own to view, or if they do, they are the usual collection of pets, children and food.

Of course, if you are a really bad photographer, then its unlikely that you will be aware of the fact. We've all seen Pop Idol and X factor and laughed when the real clunkers seem to have no idea of how terrible they are. However the photographic talentless have an advantage on the internet. They don't actually have to show what they can do. They can misinform and abuse all they like without ever having to post a picture.

I write of course, as someone to whom photography means a great deal, Aside from my family its the most important thing in my life. I have worked at and come up with a situation whereby it earns me a living, and yes I am somewhat obsessive. So maybe its hard for me to understand those who see photography as merely an interesting way to spend their free time, and as something interesting to write and communicate about, with like minded others. Well maybe it is, but what I find so difficult to understand, is once that interest becomes active, what causes it to stop or stall? To say, well thats far enough, I can get a picture in focus, and thats enough for me. With the best will in the world, if all people want to photograph is their pets, their children and their lunch, my reaction is what on earth are they doing on internet forums?

We do of course get examples like Vivian Maier, who took extraordinary images, but felt no compulsion to either do anything with them or even show them to anybody. A true "hobbyist". But then my suspicion is that she wouldn't have gone anywhere near an internet forum either.

These days however it seems OK to parade your lack of skill, ambition, talent and knowledge and wear this ignorance as a badge of pride. Why else would we have "reality TV"? I do have a lack of patience with anyone who undertakes a creative pastime and doesn't seek to improve, to learn and to produce the best work possible. And yes, to make sacrifices in order to do that. How much do the people who moan about the price of photographic equipment spend on alcohol, clothes and their cars? How much time do the people who moan about the complications of modern cameras spend learning to play computer games on their mobile phones?

Ultimately, if photography (and I do mean photography, not cameras) is important to you, then why would you put limits on how far you want to go with it? Why would you say, "Thats enough for me"? If its not important enough to keep moving forward with, to keep learning, experiencing, trying new things and evolving, then what is the point? Is it just a way of passing the time or is it something that inspires and stimulates?

Some of the greatest photographers have been part time, amateurs and those who had to fit it in between earning a living. However, doing it out of interest only and giving it your best shot aren't mutually exclusive. If I see people who are far from full-time photographers and yet produce an inspiring body of work, then they have my respect. If I see peoples work that doesn't display any ambition or the capacity to move beyond the banal and the commonplace then they don't. And ultimately if I'm not interested by their photography, then why on earth would I be interested in what they say about it?

Pro NEX-5n?

2011-11-09T13:17:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 16-50mm f/2.8 a-mount lens

I put this together for the piece I wrote on the adapter. Interesting, but hardly useable, right? Well in fact it is very useable. In fact it works very well indeed. Since the NEX-5n has such good high ISO performance, I've been testing it out indoors, to see how it works as an indoor events camera. Since there usually needs to be some perception of the "big camera = pro photographer" illusion (nonsense though it is) I tried the 16-50mm f/2.8 a-mount lens on it.

Despite the size of the camera (or lens controller, as it might be more accurately described in this case!) the outfit does have a certain "stand back I'm a pro" look about it, particularly when there's a photographer behind it.

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 16-50mm f/2.8 a-mount lens

In terms of handling and operation, I find it difficult to fault. Yes its lens heavy, but that isn't particularly unusual. Look at any sports photographer, and almost everything they use is similar. Coming from the traditional background of cradling the lens in my left hand when looking through the vewfinder, I'm used to that anyway. Those who are used to compact cameras and live screens would find it unusual, but then I find that method of handling a camera strange.

In terms of AF and speed, I'm also not finding any problems. The AF speed is fine and in terms of motordrive shots, it is very quick indeed, and if shooting jpgs. I can shoot burst after burst without the buffer slowing me down. However with raw there are times when the camera won't let me shoot as it saves the images.

There's a downside I guess in terms of no weather proofing, but as I said I'm looking at this for indoor and dry weather use. How about build quality? Well I can't say anything definitive on this as I haven't had it long enough to know. It certainly feels a very solid camera indeed, but how it would stand up to repeated heavy duty use, I cannot say. However I do know that I and other photographers have subjected m4/3 cameras to pretty serious use, and they seem to stand up to it fine, so I see no reason why the NEX-5n shouldn't cope with what I would put it through.

The great advantage is the cameras really impressive high ISO performance. These are all taken at ISO 3200 as jpgs. and they are very good indeed.

There is even some latitude to pull up some shadow detail without adding noise, which at ISO 3200 is good news.

It would take a lot of courage to use a NEX-5n for "pro" jobs but as a back up camera I can see it working very nicely. I may have an opportunity soon to give it a go, and I'll report back on what happens.

Olympus in deep trouble.

2011-11-08T08:38:00.000Z

What started as seemingly some kind of "cultural dispute" between senior executives at Olympus is turning into a major financial scandal. The company has now admitted hiding losses for 20 years and has currently lost 70% of its value. It seems unlikely that we can expect anything on the camera front for some time to come, if at all. It would be a shame if a company with an illustrious history in camera design and manufacture were to disappear, but with shocking revelation after shocking revelation and the scale of the figures involved, it seems unlikely that there will ever be a return to "business as usual".

Its possible the brand and its current products can be picked up by another company and survive in some way but any notion of it continuing as before is surely impossible.

For the latest on what is proving to be an endless stream of ever more damaging revelations, here's a link to the Reuters website.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/08/us-olympus-idUSTRE7A702X20111108

Sony a77 and prime lenses

2011-11-07T12:14:00.000Z

Sony A77 30mm f/2.8 Macro lens

Yesterday I went out with the a77 and 30mm f/2.8 macro and 85mm f/2.8 SAM lenses. The same lenses I'd used the day before with my NEX-5n. Both performed very well, and the outfit was pretty much the lightest DSLR (DSLT) combination I've ever used.

Just to give an idea of the resolution of the a77 here is a huge blow up.

Note the clearly visible writing on the lighbulb and the red rectangle on the left which shows just how small this enlarged section is.

There are still critical articles about the a77, including some recent nonsense about it having "too many pixels". The people who write this stuff obviously have never been involved in selling their images. Try telling some of my clients my pictures have "too many pixels" or the other ridiculous phrase "You don't need more than x,y, or z (fill in the number you want) MP's" This usually means any of the following:- "This camera has a bigger sensor than mine" "I can't afford a camera with a bigger sensor" "I'm going to rubbish this bigger sensor because then mine will seem superior" or something similar. Pixel envy or denial is just as ridiculous as saying more pixels = better pictures. More MP's means higher resolution and more recognisable detail when an image is blown up. It doesn't mean that an image is sharper or has a higher quality but then neither does it mean that the image is inferior.

There have also been some other nonsensical statements, such as "The megapixel war is over" and I was particularly amused by Canons version of this when they announced the Canon 1DX. (By the way is it now obligatory for every camera to have X in the name?) They said something similar. However I don't remember them saying much when they had the highest number of MP's in one of their cameras. "Yes we have more MP's than Nikon, but obviously the D3, with its larger sized pixels, has an advantage over our cameras which are crammed to the limit with the things" is not something I remember reading!

So here's a few more images for all you "pixel challenged" photographers out there from my over-populated sensor, which of course I've only got so I can go "My cameras got more than yours, so there!!"

Sony A77 85mm f/2.8 SAM lens

Sony A77 30mm f/2.8 Macro lens

Sony A77 85mm f/2.8 SAM lens

Panasonic GX1 - More thoughts

2011-11-07T08:55:00.000Z

I think this does look good. Certainly my excitement for the Panasonic half of the m4/3 system has been re-awakened by both the design, the improvements and the continuity (finally!) from the GF1. This is presumably the 10th. anniversary camera that they talked about earlier this year. (10 years since the first LUMIX digital camera) and the styling reference back to the L1 is a nice touch.

The G3 sensor is a decent one, and it will be interesting to see just what improvements they have come with regard to high ISO performance. There's a few nice touches. Level guage, mp4 video (very useful for the kinds of video many will shoot on this) and its good to see that they have retained the aluminium body from the GF1, which I always liked the feel of.

It does show, I think, that there is a commitment from Panasonic towards the "retro fanboy" "serious enthusiast" section of the market that the X100 and NEX-7 are aimed at. I was beginning to wonder whether Panasonic had forgotten about us!!

From being on the verge of giving up on m4/3, this has encouraged me to remain with the system. I've used it extensively and enthused about it, but was beginning to think that it was stalling somewhat and that Panasonic in particular had ideas about their target markets that didn't include me. However it does seem that they have taken note of the reaction to the X100 and NEX-7 and have come up with a camera that will appeal to the people who are interested in those cameras while still continuing along their own evolution path.

It won't satisfy everybody of course. While the new EVF can't fail to be an improvement on the previous one, many would have liked it to be in-body. However I think it carries on the design theme of the GF1 and personally I don't mind the modular approach, particularly if it means it retains that "rangefinder look" that I find very appealing.

I'm actually surprised at how much I like it, and the early leaks didn't really do it justice. I very much wanted to stay with m4/3 and this has given me a good reason to do so. I'll be waiting impatiently to see when I can get my hands on a silver one + viewfinder.

It is somewhat ironic that this will probably be available before the NEX-7. Tragic though the reasons for that are, maybe that particular "Ill wind" will blow Panasonic some good.

Panasonic GX1 official announcement

2011-11-07T06:38:00.000Z

Lots of links and links to links.

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/panasonicdmcgx1/

http://www.dpreview.com/news/1111/11110720peppleinterview.asp

http://www.dpreview.com/news/1111/11110719gx1.asp

http://www.43rumors.com/panasonic-gx1-announced/

http://www.1001noisycameras.com/2011/11/panasonic-gx1.html

Looks good.

Using a-mount lenses on a Sony NEX-5n with an LA-EA2 adapter - Some thoughts on the Panasonic GX1

2011-11-06T10:33:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 30mm f/2.8 macro a-mount lens 1/60th. sec. f.2.8 ISO 500

Yesterday I took out the 30mm f/2.8 macro and 85mm f/2.8 SAM lenses with my NEX-5n using them with the LA-EA2 adapter. A few tests are all very well, but trying something out for real shows up any problems, if there are any.

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 85mm f/2.8 a-mount lens 1/60th. sec, f/8 ISO 500

The adapter worked very well. I got the impression that AF was very marginally slower than with native NEX lenses, or using the lenses on my a77, but I really had no complaints, and I could have been imagining it anyway. There does also seem to be a slight double click when I press the shutter thats very similar to m4/3 cameras, but overall the whole operation is very smooth and its certainly way better than the grindingly slow AF of the LA-EA1 or something like the 4/3 > m4/3 adapters. It is of course a good deal more sophisticated with the included mirror and focusing motor. The only other review I've read of this adapter is at Luminous Landscape - http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/ae2_16_50.shtml and certainly that seems to come to the same conclusions, i.e. that if you have a-mount lenses and a NEX camera, its a very useful piece of kit.

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 30mm f/2.8 macro a-mount lens 1/60th. f/2.8 ISO 200

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 85mm f/2.8 a-mount lens 1/60th. f/2.8 ISO 500

One thing I should mention, is that even though there is neither body or lens stabilisation in these combinations, I was still able to use relatively low shutter speeds. 1/60th. sec, with an 85mm lens on an APS-C sensor is not something I would normally use, but I got sharp, shake free images. There is no moving mirror, as in a DSLR, and the curtain mechanism on the NEX-5n is designed to only move once, thus reducing vibration.

Also this was a pretty dark wood, and the weather was dull. I was using the lenses wide open at f/2.8 but still had to increase the ISO higher than I would normally. I was using auto ISO and I saw readings coming in at 500, 640 and even a few in the darker areas at 1600 and even 3200. The images are pretty "clean" however showing the excellent high ISO / low noise characteristics of the sensor. I did have the exposure set to +0.7 throughout and this helped to keep the shadow areas relatively noise free.

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 85mm f/2.8 a-mount lens 1/60th. sec. f/2.8 ISO 1600

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 85mm f/2.8 a-mount lens 1/60th. sec. f/2.8 ISO 500

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 85mm f/2.8 a-mount lens 1/160th. sec. f/2.8 ISO 1000

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 85mm f/2.8 a-mount lens 1/160th. f/2.8 ISO 640

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 30mm f/2.8 macro a-mount lens 1/60th. f/8 ISO 500

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 30mm f/2.8 macro a-mount lens 1/60th. f/8 ISO 250

In terms of the lenses themselves, they performed very well. These are two of the relatively cheap and lightweight primes that are part of the Sony a-mount range. As I've written before, there are obviously some savings on the build quality but optically they are excellent lenses. Indeed both performed very well wide open, which is always a good sign. I'm pleased with them.

I wrote briefly about the LA-EA2 adapter and the potential it gives for creating a modular system between my a77 and NEX camera. It should also eliminate lens duplication. Since I have managed to get myself two different 30mm macro lenses, this is something for the future and not the present! It does turn NEX cameras into genuine backup cameras for photographers who use Sony DSLR's (and DSLT's). Despite the sweeping and innacurate statement from my "favourite internet pundit" that "Pros don't use Sony" they do, so this adapter is very useful. It also allows the use of lenses that are missing from the current NEX lineup. There is currently nothing wider than 16mm. and this does really need to be dealt with if anyone from Sony happens to be reading this! In the meantime the only alternative is a "legacy" lens, the somewhat underwhelming Sony 11-16mm or the Sigma and Tamron 3rd. party alternatives. I'm currently thinking about either the 8-16mm or 10-20mm f/3.5 lenses from Sigma.

As I said yesterday the adapter isn't cheap and its probably not worth it unless you have a mount lenses or are desperate to get a super wide angle with AF on a NEX camera. Finally it works with the 5n, but there is going to have to be a firmware update for it to work with other NEX models. As far as I'm aware that update isn't available yet.

I got a bit "over excited" when I saw the video of the upcoming Panasonic GX1 camera. It is a very aesthetic camera, and just what us "retro fanboys" like to see. Hopefully Panasonic will keep the build quality of the original GF1 and not shave too many millimetres off it, in an attempt to make it smaller. It does I think show however, that contrary to what I've been suggesting, Panasonic are picking up this interest in cameras that have this "old school aesthetic" And certainly I'm very glad to be proved wrong on that, as it looks a very nice little camera. Also the "buzz" about it is very positive.

Some interesting comments included quite a few people that expressed the idea, that while it doesn't particularly offer anything new apart from a few performance tweaks and an add-on viewfinder that might actually work, because it looks so nice, they would probably buy it. This is Panasonics X100 or NEX-7, and, as far as I'm concerned, its easily Panasonics most stylish camera.

I did of cause look at the sexy video and want it. But this morning a bit of common sense kicked in. Is it going to perform any better than the G3 I already have and hardly use? Well the answer to that is, apart from some marginal improvements, no its not. Thinking back to my experiences in the afternoon with the NEX-5, I got to thinking, when was the last time I happily used a m4/3 camera at ISO 500, 640, 1000 etc. and knew that the results would be perfectly acceptable for the picture libraries who sell my work? When did I last expose m4/3 shots at +0.7, safe in the knowledge that I wouldn't get highlight burn out? The answer to both questions is never.

None of this means of course that I won't buy a GX1, I'm not THAT sensible! As I write this I can feel the conflict. Part of me is saying I want it, its gorgeous, and another part is saying, so that will be one more pretty camera sitting on the shelf unused then! And that indeed is the essence of my current problem with m4/3. From what I've been writing recently, it will have become obvious that a camera like the NEX-5n works much better for me. Now there's a viewfinder I can take advantage of the better high ISO performance, better dynamic range and all the little handling things I like so much, plus the excellent focus peaking etc. But there is no getting round the fact that to me, the NEX is ugly. I like the metallic industrial look of the lenses, but the cameras I find very unattractive. Maybe thats why I like the 18-200mm on the camera as the lens's sleek look and size dwarfs and "hides" the camera!

So sexy looks and reasonable performance or sensible, yet plain functionality and great results. I wonder which will win?

Panasonic GX1 video

2011-11-05T18:59:00.000Z

Via 43rumors - http://www.43rumors.com/ft5-hot-panaosnic-gx1-video-and-pictures-leaked/

As I said, I may have my doubts about the long term future, but I have no plans to leave m4/3

just yet. What a very pretty camera! Its actually on the Panasonic website. (At the moment)

Sony NEX-7 delayed in Europe.

2011-11-05T16:25:00.000Z

According to this weeks issue of Amateur Photographer magazine here in the UK:-

"Sony has confirmed that it has postponed, indefinitely, the European launch of its NEX-7 camera"

Please note:- this is in the magazine, and not on the website.

Sony LA-EA2 a-mount to NEX adapter with translucent mirror.

2011-11-05T11:05:00.000Z

The Sony LA-EA2 adapter for using a-mount lenses on NEX cameras, taking advantage of the translucent mirror technology of the a77 etc. arrived this morning. As you can see from the video it works very well and is obviously a vast improvement on the LA-EA1 which takes an age to AF.

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 16-50mm f/2.8 a-mount lens

Sony LA-EA2 adapter

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 16-50mm f/2.8 a-mount lens

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 30mm f/2.8 macro a-mount lens

Its simple to fit, just like any other NEX lens, then fit the a-mount lens into it, and its ready to go. It turns the NEX-5n into a "Mini" DSLT. Obviously the NEX doesn't count as a mirrorless camera any more, since the adapter contains its own.

I tried a few shots with the 30mm f/2.8 macro a-mount lens and it worked fine. Pretty much the same as the NEX 30mm f/3.5 macro "native" lens.

Sony NEX-5n LA-EA2 adapter 30mm f/2.8 macro a-mount lens

If you have a-mount lenses and are looking to get a NEX camera, but would prefer not to buy a whole new lens system then its an obvious answer. Its not cheap though, around the £350 mark currently, and it is quite bulky. I like it because it really does create a modular system between my a77 and NEX camera(s) with full function enabled on the NEX. There is a 1/3 to 1/2 light loss because of the mirror, whuch brings the NEX in line with the a77 in terms of light gathering.

As far as I'm concerned it means I can now look around for wide-angle options for both cameras and have one lens for both. I'm looking at the Sigma 8-16mm currently, which is very wide, and the APS-C version of the 12-24mm lenses that I used on my DSLR's.

I'll be using the adapter "in the field" and will report back on how it performs.

Canon EOS C300

2011-11-04T16:46:00.000Z

I'm not quite sure why there's so much attention on photography websites concerning the $20,000 Canon C300 video camera and some $47,000 lenses to go on it. (Well actually I am, and I think you all are too!!)

For point and shoot upgraders then.

Thread at Serious Compacts.

2011-11-04T11:37:00.000Z

If people are interested in the issues I've raised about my surrent camera "conversion" there is a thread over at Serious Compacts that deals with this in more detail.

http://www.seriouscompacts.com/f50/bar-soap-my-system-choice-4724/

Sony NEX-5n and Nikon 35mm f/1.8G

2011-11-04T08:35:00.000Z

Missing in the NEX lens line-up is a "fast standard" type lens. I have two lenses that, via manual focus might fit the bill. The first is a Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron which I liked very much when I tested it here: http://soundimageplus.blogspot.com/2011/10/sony-nex-5n-and-manual-focus.html

The second is the last piece of Nikon kit that I still have, and deliberately kept to see how it works with the NEX-5n.

Sony NEX-5n Nikon 35mm f/1.8G

I went out yesterday, when it stopped raining, to try it out.

The results were very good, its a sharp lens, even at f/1.8. There is some CA and purple fringing wide open. Operationally its more difficult to use than the Voigtlander. I have an adapter that lets me change the aperture, but its very difficult to guage what I'm using as there are no markings. f/1.8 is easy enough but the rest is guesswork and can only be estimated by looking at the shutter speeds. Most of the above were taken (probably!) somewhere between f/5.6 and f/11. I really can't be more specific than that.

This morning however, a more satisfactory solution appeared. The LA-EA2 adapter has become available and I have ordered one. This should allow me full-speed AF on a-mount lenses, though with the loss of 1/3 to 1/2 a stop. I'll test it out and see how that works. The a-mount 35mm f/1.8 would then give me the light gathering abilities of an f/2 or f/2.2 approx. Is that enough when combined with the 5n's high ISO abilities? I'm not sure but I'll find out soon.

So how did I end up with this? And keep going on about how good it is. And why did I sell the Leica M9 and my Nikons?? - Part 2

2011-11-03T10:59:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n 16mm, 30mm, 18-55mm, 55-210mm and 18-200mm lenses

Continuing the story of my latest gear "rationalisation".

The Nikons went when I got the a77. Nothing wrong with either the D7000 or D5100, but again its a megapixel advantage. Whether or not the Nikons produce better images, or are better cameras, is in many ways immaterial. In my line of work the more MP's the better. It means I can sell images for higher fees, the people who buy them can use them at larger sizes or crop them.

The raging debates on the merits of one camera system versus another on forums are basically splitting hairs. The websites who sell my work like more MP's, the people who buy my pictures like more MP's. With the a77 I can provide these. It happens to be a very good camera and the image quality is excellent, but it has to be said, even if the pictures it produced were inferior to the D7000 (and at everything bar high ISO they aren't) they would still be more commercial because of the higher pixel count.

If I was a sports or news photographer, other things would come into the decision of what camera to use. How fast and resposive is it? Does it have a wide lens choice? Is it good in low light? When these considerations are taken into account, a camera like the D3S with its 12MP sensor is the camera of choice for many. However since I shoot landscape, location and travel shots, my needs are different, and the a77 is perfect for me.

The main reason for all this changing around is something else though. It also revolves around a camera that I don't even have yet. The Sony NEX-7.

As soon as this was announced, it seemed the perfect camera for me. I often talk about how I can manage cameras like the D7000 and they are not that heavy. But in reality I do have real problems. At the end of my last big 10-day trip, I was having to lie flat out on the ground to let my back recover, every half hour. This as a result of hauling a Nikon + zoom lenses around. I write all the time about about how weight is much more important to me than size. I'm an outdoors photographer and what I take pictures of involves a lot of walking. So I have to carry everything with me. Doing this day after day has repercussions and I've been doing this now for over 20 years, so there's a fair amount of wear and tear on my back muscles. I'm glad to say that my stamina and fitness are holding up but many of the muscles I use to carry this gear and shoot with, have taken to complaining quite vigorously.

So the NEX-7 looked (and still does) a godsend. A light small camera, with a huge sensor. It is still my plan to get one at the first available opportunity. Since it shares a sensor with the a77, I've had a good opportunity to assess that, and I'm very pleased with it. I've also taken the opportunity to look at the OLED viewfinder in both the a77 and NEX-5n and I'm very happy with that also. So unless there is some significant other problem with the NEX-7, I've basically done the research and the camera should be just what I'm looking for.

Along the way I've been impressed by the a77 and am planning to keep that for all those situations when I need a DSLR (lookalike!) and I've also been very impressed by the NEX-5n, with regard to its overall handling, image quality and high ISO performance. It therefore strikes me that it makes sense to go with these three cameras, add in the new SLT adapter so that I can use a-mount lenses to fill in any gaps in the NEX system (and there are quite a few) all of which gives me an integrated system and one that I think will provide me with the best compromise between useability, portability and image quality that I can achieve with whats available currently.

It also frees up some of my equipment budget and means that I don't have so much money tied up in very expensive systems such as Leica and Nikon.

So where does this leave my m4/3 gear?

I tried writing a piece on this a few days ago and I got such a heated and in some cases, downright nasty, response that I ended up removing the posts and the comments. However I am going to discuss this again, but in order to prevent a re-occurance of what happened previously, I've disabled commenting on this post.

Micro Four Thirds has served me well, in fact it has been my main system of choice for the past 2-3 years. Not so much in recent months however, for reasons I will come on to.

Its been light, portable and provided me with the quality I need. Its been a bit short on the megapixel front, but I've got round that by shooting stitched multi-image panoramas. There are also some superb lenses available. However things move on, and I get the impression, rightly or wrongly, that the development of the system is somewhat stalled. Stalled in the amount of pixels that they are able to get on the 4/3 sensor and stalled in the way that every new model that is introduced seems to be only a marginal improvement on the previous one. I also get the feeling that I'm now some distance away from who they are targeting these cameras at. I've written enough times about how I dislike the ever decreasing size. A GF3 with a pancake lens may be a miracle of engineering and take really good pictures, but without a viewfinder (and the current Panasonic one is mediocre at best) I find something like that really uncomfortable and difficult to use.

It could be argued that the Sony NEX-5n is even smaller, but when the viewfinder is added and a NEX lens fitted, it suddenly turns into something else for me. There are lots of complaints about the size of the NEX lenses, but I like the fact they are bigger. My 5n with the 18-200mm fitted feels great to me. Because of the way I hold a camera and because of what I'm used to I feel very comfortable with this. Yes it looks all wrong, but looks aren't everything.

And of course for the bulk of my work, this is all I need. I shoot in good light outdoors, with low ISO's for the vast majority of my work. Substitute the NEX-7 for the 5n and that will be my workhorse. And if it starts to get a bit heavy I've got alternatives. The 30mm and 55-210mm outfit I used the other day is very light, and for the first time in a long time I finished my shoot with no back pain. Then there's the ultra-light 16mm and the upcoming Zeiss 24mm and 50mm lenses. Again neither of those is very heavy.

So it seems that I may well be moving away from m4/3. Its been happening gradually over a period of time anyway. I didn't even take any of my m4/3 gear with me for my recent trip, preferring to use the Leica and my Nikons.

There is one problem though!

Olympus E-P3 12mm f/2 45mm f/1.8 Lens Hoods

This is the most gorgeous camera outfit I've ever owned. To my eyes it is truly beautiful. If I didn't have to earn my living from photography, this is what I would use. To be honest this is going to be almost impossible to get into a cardboard box and take the post office. Far more difficult to sell than my Leica. I just don't want to sell it. My nephew suggested that I needed something to take pictures of for tests with all the other cameras! So I imagine this outfit will be staying. I don't think I'll use it that much, but everybody needs one indulgence and this is mine.

So how did I end up with this? And keep going on about how good it is. And why did I sell the Leica M9 and my Nikons?? - Part 1

2011-11-02T20:25:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n 16mm, 30mm, 18-55mm, 55-210mm and 18-200mm lenses

Well lets get the Leica out of the way. I wrote recently that it was economically a disaster. Taking pictures with it didn't get me more sales, and when I worked out how much I'd spent on it and the lenses I use with it, the cost was about £1 every time I pressed the shutter. This was clearly ridiculous, and no matter how much I liked it (and I liked it a lot) it was going to have to earn its keep or else I'd sell it.

After thinking long and hard, I realised that I wouldn't be using it as much as I needed to get it to "earn its keep". No macro, no telephoto, no zoom, no AF and all those dust spots to constantly remove. I reluctantly decided to sell it, did so, and with my tax allowances, just about broke even. Its been a privilege to own a Leica, and I'm not ruling out buying another in the future, but I've freed up some of my equipment capital to try some other things out. I did feel a tinge of sadness when it went, but then its just another camera. (And if you believe that you'll believe anything!!)

Part Two tomorrow.

30mm f/2.8 macro lens on Sony a77

2011-11-02T19:51:00.000Z

After yesterdays good performance with the e-mount 30mm macro on the NEX-5n, I finally got round to giving the a-mount version I have a work out on the a77. Unfortunately I picked a very windy day and had a lot of failed shots. However when I got something that stayed still, it did a good job. It seems to hunt a little more at the macro level than the NEX version, and its certainly not made as well. However its a good performer and when I got the focus right, its very sharp.

Also turned in an excellent performance for non-macro shots. It is a very cheap lens, but thats just the build quality. Optically I like it very much.

How good is NEX image stabilisation?

2011-11-02T15:18:00.000Z

Just how good is the NEX image stabilisation?
Well from these samples, using the 18-200mm on a NEX-5n, its very good indeed.

1/10th. sec. 100mm hand-held

1/10th. sec. 200mm. Hand held.

1/25th. sec. 200mm Hand held.

1/10th. sec. 200mm. Hand held.

Sony NEX 30mm f/3.5 Macro and 55-210mm Zoom lens reviews - Part 3

2011-11-02T05:43:00.000Z

I used the NEX 30mm f/3.5 Macro and 55-210mm Zoom on a trip around the Birmingham suburb of Bourneville yesterday. This is the village created by the Cadbury family around the chocolate making factory. It is part of my familys history as my Grandmother worked there over a hundred years ago, in the days when they let the workers eat as much chocolate as they wanted. Apparently if you lasted more than a month without ever wanting to eat it again, you were doing well!

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/320th. sec. f/6.3 ISO 100 153mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/400th. sec. f/6.3 ISO 500 210mm

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/125th. sec f/9 ISO 100

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/200th. sec f/7.1 ISO 100

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/400th. sec. f/6.3 ISO 500 210mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/400th. sec. f/6.3 ISO 125 210mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/250th. sec. f/5.6 ISO 250 150mm

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/250th. sec f/8 ISO 100

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/500th. sec f/8 ISO 100

CONCLUSION

Both lenses are useful, and much needed additions to the still somewhat sparse NEX lens range. Its all very well to have adapters for a-mount lenses, but a range of native optics is a much better idea.

The 30mm macro is a really excellent lens. It works very well for its specialist function and also doubles as a very nice standard lens. f/3.5 is a little slow, which isn't a problem for me, but some might find that restricts its use somewhat. As indicated before, the NEX-5n camera is so flexible in terms of ISO performance, that used with that camera the lens is very versatile. Not everyone will want to use the lens with a 5n however.

The 55-210 is also a useful lens. Similar focal lengths to this zoom usually get released much quicker. For example the 45-200mm for the Panasonic m4/3 system was released at the same time as the G1 and its 14-45mm zoom. So a lens like the 55-210mm is long overdue. Its performance is very typical of slow telephoto zooms of this type. These lenses are always a compromise, but its nonetheless capable of good results. I suggested that it has very similar results to my 45-175mm X Panasonic zoom and it also reminds me of the files that I got from my Nikon 55-300mm. As long as you don't expect the same results as prime lenses then you won't be disappointed.

So, Sony are now up to 5 lenses for the NEX system actually available in the shops. I'm pleased with all of them and yet again would advise you to check them out for yourself if you are considering buying any of them. I have seen no evidence of the supposedly inferior optical quality that is so often quoted on forums. All of these lenses compare very favourably with those for similar competing systems such as m4/3 and Samsung NX. They also compare very well with similarly specified and priced DSLR lenses. From what I've seen, up to now the 30mm f/3.5 macro is the star of the show. I really do like this lens and it reminds me of the results I get from my 25mm f/1.4 Panasonic Leica, which as far as I'm concerned is high praise indeed.

Finally, I'll end where I started, with the build quality of these lenses. All of the NEX lenses I have are superbly engineered. It makes me wonder what happened with the a-mount lenses? These NEX lenses are certainly better constructed than any a-mount lens I've ever owned, better than any m4/3 lens, with the exception of the Olympus 12mm, and better than many, if not most, DSLR lenses. Holding one is like handling a piece of precision engineering, and though I'm sure they are not to everybodys taste, I think they are extremely aesthetic and a delight to use. I know appearances aren't everything, but it helps!!

Sony NEX 30mm f/3.5 Macro and 55-210mm Zoom lens reviews - Part 2

2011-11-01T17:47:00.000Z

Real world with the Sony NEX 30mm f/3.5 Macro and 55-300mm Zoom lens.

SONY NEX 30mm f/3.5 MACRO LENS

This is a very good lens. Slow at f/3.5, its looking really good for sharpness at f/4 and by f/8 its really impressive. One nice thing is it doesn't hunt for focus as much as other macros I've used. Focus locks on nice and smoothly. I must state that I'm no macro enthusiast or expert, so please bear that in mind. However the close ups I did take with it were top class and were achieved without any problems.

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/100th. sec. f/3.5 ISO 100.

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/100th. sec. f/3.5 ISO 100

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/60th. sec, f/3.5 ISO 100

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/60th. sec. f/4 ISO 160

Using the lens as a non-macro also proved successful.

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/60th. sec. f/4 ISO 100

I've included some shots below with 100% blowups to show how it records detail.

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/500th. sec. f/8 ISO 100

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens 1/250th. sec. f/8 ISO 100

Overall I was very impressed. I do very little macro work so this is mainly going to function as a prime general purpose lens, with the ability to get close when I need it. I have the Alpha mount 30mm f/2.8 for my a77, and that functions much the same way. It is slightly faster, and would work with an adapter on the 5n for manual focus as the current adapter is somewhat inefficient and slow. I've tried it already and its difficult to work with for AF. The new adapter + fixed mirror would work better obviously, but since it looses 1/3 to 1/2 a stop of light, whether its a better option than the e-mount lens remains to be seen. I'll probably do a comparison when the adapter becomes available.

Used as a slightly wider than standard lens the 30mm f/3.5 would function as a nice one lens, light outfit. The speed is somewhat of a handicap, but part of the design brief for e-mount lenses must be to keep them as small as possible, hence the relatively small maximum apertures that all the ones released so far have. When the Zeiss 24mm f/1.8 and 50mm f/1.8 are released, then there will be some faster lenses available. Having said that the low noise performance of the NEX-5n sensor gives a lot more latitude in terms of the ISO settings that can be used.

SONY NEX 55-210mm f/4.5-6.3 OSS Zoom Lens

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens

While the 55-210mm zoom is not up to the standard of the 30mm macro, its a decent lens. It has the usual problem of not being great wide open at its longest setting, but overall it produces acceptable results for that, and at its shorter end, stopped down is very good indeed. There is no way, I think, to achieve stellar performance at long telephoto and wide aperture settings without paying a huge price premium and an equally huge size and weight. The 55-210mm is a "walk around" lens, and meant to be light and relatively small.

In performance terms it reminds me very much of the Panasonic 45-175mm X lens I bought and reviewed recently. The results seem very similar.

Here are a few test shots, followed by some with 100% blowups.

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/400th. sec. f/6.3 ISO 800 210mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/400th. sec. f/6.3 ISO 2000 210mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/100th. sec. f/4.5 ISO 125 55mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/200th. sec. f/5.6 ISO 640 129mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/400th. sec. f/6.3 ISO 1600 210mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/320th. sec. f/6.3 ISO 100 149mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/160th. sec. f/5.6 ISO 100 55mm

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens 1/500th. sec. f/7.1 ISO 100 210mm

I've yet to discover how slow I can use the lens at with its built in OSS stabilisation sytem.

I enjoyed using both lenses and they are very pleasing to use in practice. The whole outfit with the 5n, viewfinder and these two sleek "metallic" lenses is somewhat different to what I'm used to. I find I'm warming to this modernist look. I must repeat again how well made this all feels. I have written repeatedly about the plastic, lightweight and somewhat fragile feel of Panasonic cameras and lenses. The feel of this NEX system is much closer to the Olympus Pens and the 12mm and 45mm lenses. In fact I like the NEX lenses better. NEX is a very unfussy system, and uncluttered. In use its actually very liberating, providing of course I don't want to change any settings in the menus.

More Later.

Sony NEX 30mm f/3.5 Macro and 55-210mm Zoom lens reviews - Part 1

2011-11-01T10:30:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n 30mm f/3.5 macro lens

Sony NEX-5n 55-210mm zoom lens

Bot of these lenses arrived together, so I'm going to review them together. As usual this will be close to a "real-time" user experience, with me relating how I get on with on with them as I use them. As ever, what you read in the earlier parts may get changed later, but thats how I like to do it.

The first thing to say, is that yet again these NEX lenses have absolutely superb build quality and manufacturing. The zoom and focusing rings on the 55-210mm are perfectly weighted for me, with just the right amount of play and stiffness. There is no zoom creep here, nor does it feel as if there is any likelihood of any. I love retro, but I also have a soft spot for sleek and modern too. These are definitely "super sleek" lenses. I actually think they are quite beautiful. They feel metal, though I have no idea what they are actually made of. They are also very light yet feel really substantial and a delight to hold.

First indications are that they are both good performers in the optical department. The sun has just come out so I'm off to try them out.

More later.

m4/3 does William Shakespeare

2011-11-01T09:08:00.000Z

Back in those dim distant days when I was still shooting m4/3 (about 2 weeks ago) I was in Stratford-upon-Avon. The centre for all things Shakespearean. Falstaff Kebab House, Cordelia Cabs, Puck Pizzas etc. Its actually quite a feat to take a picture without a connection to the bard.

Panasonic G3 14-42mm

Panasonic G3 45-175mm X lens

Panasonic G3 14-42mm

Panasonic G3 45-175mm X lens

Panasonic G3 14-42mm

Posted to show that the 3 cameras and 5 lenses I still own and use from Olympus and Panasonic haven't been "retired" just yet.

Frenetic few days.

2011-11-01T03:17:00.000Z

Its been a frenetic few days.

Sold my Leica M9 - bought lots of Sony gear - got described as "The most interesting photographer in the world"!!!! (If thats true - God help the others!) - got called a few other, far less complementary things as the result of seeming to stir up a hornets nest by daring to suggest that Sony cameras gave me more of what I want than other systems I've been using - got criticised for having views I don't hold and for writing things that I didn't - decided to delete the posts that were causing all the trouble and the comments that went with them - then decided I was fed up with all of it and shut down commenting altogether - then decided I was going to give up blogging completely - then woke up yesterday morning and changed my mind - decided to re-design the blog - then had my all-time record day in terms of visits and page views courtesy of 4 links from other sites.

All this when I'm trying to cut down on letting this enterprise dominate my life and get down to some work that might actually earn me some money!!

Add in that my bank account filled with Leica and Nikon sale money is emptying again as I proceed to snap up all the NEX lenses. Today a 30mm macro and 55-200mm are arriving. However sanity may prevail with a visit to the bank this afternoon.

Kirk Tuck enthusing over the Nikon 1

2011-10-31T20:52:00.000Z

http://visualsciencelab.blogspot.com/2011/10/nikon-1-counterintuitive-crazy-and.html

An alternative, and very enthusiastic take on the Nikon1. By someone who can actually take a photograph.

A 100% blow up from the dark side of the force

2011-10-31T20:20:00.000Z

Sony NEX-5n 18-200mm zoom

So here's a 100% blow up from one of those terrible NEX lenses that have so treacherously persuaded me to join their evil empire (If you think thats over the top you should have seen some of the comments I binned yesterday!!) As you can see its soft as blancmange and riddled with CA.

Nikon 1 at Digital Rev TV

2011-10-31T19:31:00.000Z

Two views on the Nikon mirrorless interchangeable camera. Seems like its really good for taking terrible pictures of a climbing wall!

Sony 16-50mm and LA-EA2 adapter test

2011-10-31T13:28:00.000Z

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/ae2_16_50.shtml

Test of the 16-50mm f/2.8 Sony Alpha lens and the LA-EA2 adapter.

PIctures with the Sony NEX-5N and E 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 OSS

2011-10-31T07:54:00.000Z

Its a big lens. (Understatement of the year!) It is everything that critics of the NEX system dislike. A disproportionately sized lens on a very small body. I would have said and thought much the same.

All images - Sony NEX-5N 18-200mm

In reality it handles very well. Its not unknown for lenses to be larger and heavier than camera bodies. Sports and nature photographers cope with this all the time. I took to it quite easily. I'm used to DSLR's and fairly large zooms, so I've got into the habit of cradling the lens. I'm probably more comfortable with this than using very small cameras. I sometimes have problems in finding a way to hold them comfortably.

One review of the lens said that it was very similar in terms of size to other lenses of its type, and certainly thats what I found. Put the Panasonic 14-140mm on a GF2 or GF3 and its pretty much the same. Generally superzooms like this are pretty big.

Like all of the Sony NEX lenses, it feels and looks very well made indeed. There is no zoom barrel creep, and the zooming and focusing rings are very smooth. I was pretty impressed by the build quality, and it certainly seems like its designed to last.

In terms of image quality its performance is also typical of many lenses of this type. Not so great wide open or at its longest setting, but a pretty decent performer overall. It is of course, unbelievably useful, and saves having to take out a whole bag of lenses and be constantly changing them.

I now have three NEX lenses, and all of them are good solid performers. This myth has grown up that these e-mount lenses are somehow "sub-standard". The owners of other systems are quick to criticise them, often it seems without actually using them. I can't believe that I've got three unique, especially good samples, so I'm assuming that other 16mm f/2.8, 18-55mm zooms and this 18-200mm are the same quality. And that quality is generally excellent.

In a couple of earlier posts I did some tests on this:-

http://soundimageplus.blogspot.com/2011/08/comparison-between-panasonic-g3-12mm-f2.html

http://soundimageplus.blogspot.com/2011/09/kit-lenses-are-they-any-good-part-4.html

The 18-200mm is a very useful addition for me, though its very much going to be a good weather lens for landscape and location work, as its very slow at the telephoto end. The size doesn't bother me, and in terms of my most important consideration, when used on the NEX-5n its a relatively light outfit.

Sony NEX-5n Video

2011-10-30T12:04:00.000Z

Two short videos shot with the NEX-5n and Voigtlander 75mm f/2.5 Heliar.

Sony NEX-5N Voigtlander 75mm f/2.5 Heliar

Sony NEX-C3 and 5n High ISO noise

2011-10-29T20:41:00.000+01:00

These are ISO 6400 shots, same everything, auto white balance etc.

In terms of colour balance, both are actually way off. However the NEX-5n is definitely "cleaner". I thought at first that it had smudged more detail, but if you look at the middle word on the headstock, the 5n has actually recorded more detail.

Whether this is an "improved" sensor or better in-camera processing I'm not qualified to say. However I know which I prefer.

Please note:- This isn't in any way a "scientific" test, and I don't have the means to do one. However these results are similar to other comparisons that I have done. It proves only that my NEX-C3 seems noisier at high ISO's than my NEX-5n.

Sony NEX-5N - USER EXPERIENCE and REVIEW

2011-10-29T11:24:00.000+01:00

Sony NEX-5N 18-200mm

Michael Reichmann at Luminous Landscape entitled his excellent field test of the NEX-5N, "What a difference an "n" makes. " I couldn't agree more. After only two days this has become my favourite camera and I believe the 5N's sensor is the best I've ever used.

This IS the "holy grail" of cameras as far as I'm concerned. Superb image quality in a small, light package. Fast AF, positive shutter, great viewfinder, wonderful high ISO performance, comfortable handling, top class HD video, relatively inexpensive, ability to accept 1000's of lenses and an impression of good build quality.

So is there a downside? Well its an ugly design. I did get to thinking that there might be a few Olympus designers looking for a job in the near future, so maybe Sony could give them a call.

IMAGE QUALITY.

Here are some 100% blowups from images I took yesterday. Just to push things even further they are taken from files that I interpolated up to the size of the a77, i.e. just under 70MB. Even doing this didn't have the usual effect of softening the images. They are still detailed and crisp.

Sony NEX-5N 18-55mm kit zoom

Sony NEX-5N Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron

So how, does this compare with other sensors I've used and been impressed by? (It should be made clear that these are my personal impressions and I have no graphs or figures to back this up. There are plenty of those elsewhere)

Leica M9. The Leica sensor still produces sharper images. But not by much. The 5N sensor however has better dynamic range, more accurate colour, much better high ISO performance and (though this is early days) I'm presuming it won't collect dust spots. The Leica sensor also has noticeable moire on many shots.

NIkon D7000. The previous Sony 16MP sensor. This new sensor improves on the sensor in the Nikon camera in terms of sharpness, clarity and particularly high ISO performance. The 5N apparently has a weak AA filter. "It would appear that the camera has a quite weak AA filter which then allows the best lenses to really show their stuff." - Michael Reichmann This does of course make it all the more remarkable that its so good at high ISO's.

Nikon D3X, Sony a850 and a77. The 25MP sensors I've used. As I've indicated I believe interpolated files from the 5N are really close in terms of resolution to all these cameras. I also think the files are sharper than any of the other cameras.

m4/3. About even in terms of sharpness (using the best m4/3 lenses) but significantly better in terms of dynamic range and of course high ISO. With the previous NEX cameras I've used, I've always stated that these APS-C vs 4/3 comparisons are, in my view, somewhat exaggerated. However for the first time I'm seeing a real improvement here. Demonstrating to me, at least, that its not necessarily the sensor size that makes the difference but the sensor quality that is the important thing.

Sony NEX-5N a mount 85mm f/2.8 SAM

Sony NEX-5N Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron

So in terms of image quality this is a very impressive sensor. There's also something very attractive about the files. There is good colour depth and contrast. Its difficult to define, and I am getting into the realms of pretension here! but there's what I would describe as a real photographic quality and they don't look "digital". As I said this is getting a bit silly, so just ignore it or indulge me!!

For lots of low-light samples see this previous post.

http://soundimageplus.blogspot.com/2011/10/sony-nex-5n-high-iso-is-it-best-ive.html

HANDLING

As soon as I screwed in the viewfinder and brought the camera up to my eye, I smiled. My initial thought was "NOW this works!" Just being able to hold the camera in a stable way makes it much more user-friendly as far as I'm concerned.

And the viewfinder is really good. At low ISO's you just don't realise that its electronic. It looks just like a very clear bright optical finder. In low light there is interference but this is still better than squinting in the dark. This is very impressive indeed, and using the focus peaking function its a breeze to use manual focus lenses. Plus its polarised sunglasses friendly. (Big plus point for me)

Again, as far as I'm concerned, this is the best viewfinder (electronic or optical) I've ever used.

See more on using manual focus lenses (or more accurately one MF lens!!) here:-

http://soundimageplus.blogspot.com/2011/10/sony-nex-5n-and-manual-focus.html

I spent a lot of time with the camera yesterday. I went on two long walks, shooting in beautiful light, and I can't actually remember going into the menus. Because of the quality of the images I just set it to auto ISO. Unlike my m4/3 cameras when I have to make sure that they are always on the lowest setting, the 5N produces noise-free images at much higher settings than my Olympus or Panasonic cameras. I had the AF fixed on my preferred dead centre setting and I selected aperture priority. If I wanted to alter this with the AF lenses I used, I just changed this with the thumb wheel. This I could do without moving from the viewfinder.

The only other control I used was the MF assist button to bring up the magnified view for focusing. I got into the habit of doing this before bring the camera to my eye. I generally already knew what I was intending to focus on, so I focused, lightly pressed the shutter button to bring back the full image, checked my composition and then pressed the shutter. It was simple, quick and a pleasure.

For more on this see:-

http://soundimageplus.blogspot.com/2011/10/sony-nex-5n-and-wonderful-autumn-light.html

SO WHY ALL THE GUSHING?

There are lots of post on this blog that are less than complementary about the Sony NEX system, either specifically or in general. In fact the Sony NEX-5 + 16mm lens combination still holds the record for my most quickly discarded camera.

There are several reasons for this I think.

The NEX-5n name seems to indicate that this is a minor upgrade to the NEX-5, but as indicated at the top of this piece thats a misleading impression. This is a major upgrade, with some quite significant changes. Primarily the sensor, which is a huge improvement on the NEX-5 and also on the NEX-C3, which I currently still have. That last bit is also a clue to all this fanboy stuff. I still have the C3. Despite the fact its too small for me and it has no viewfinder, I haven't sold it yet. The reason for that is that the images it produces are really good. Not up to the 5N, even at low ISO's, but still very attractive.

I bought it originally to "prepare" for the NEX-7 I was so excited by. Since I had such negative feelings about the NEX-5, I wanted to see if I could "get on" with the system. I enjoyed the size and weight very much but still longed for a viewfinder. Just to set the record straight, I'm not opposed to working with live view. There are many occasions when I find it really useful. But for the majority of what I do, an eye-level finder suits me better. I'm more comfortable with it, and it allows me to compose in camera more successfully. So the option of the viewfinder is the second reason why I've become such a devout NEX convert.

There is also a very important third reason. Sony seem to be going in the same direction that I want to go, whereas the manufacturers of other cameras I use, such as Panasonic, seem to be heading in the opposite direction. I'm most definitely not "teenage facebook girl" and a lot of cameras that I might be potentially interested in seem to be aimed at that market. Sony have stated that they have been surprised by the popularity of the NEX system and also by the kind of people who are using it. Initially, you could see that they were probably aiming for the same target consumer group as Panasonic seem to be, but unlike other manufacturers they seem to learn quickly and are prepared to adapt. They most definitely targeted a different group of photographers and with the improvements in the 5N, plus the addition of the viewfinder, they seem to have succeeded in making it a camera that can be used in different ways by a wide variety of potential users from point and shooters to serious photographers.

If the 5N and subsequent NEX cameras are aimed at upgrading compact users only, then why the superb sensor? why the competition beating EVF? Is that market really interested in that level of quality? I'm inclined to think not. Sure the 5N has its share of gadgetry and of course there is the inevitable touchscreen, but all of this peripheral novelty value stuff is backed up by seriously impressive image quality and functionality. Take the improved shutter. Eliminating the need for the curtain to go up and down as on m4/3 cameras. Thus eliminating that annoying "clunkiness" that my Olympus and Panasonic cameras have. The shutter on the NEX-5N is quick and precise. Its also relatively quiet which is another bonus.

There is also now a rumour that Sony have abandoned their previous lens "road map" and have decided to work on some pancake lenses instead. Showing that again they seem to take note of what people want.

So while appreciating that this may all be coincidental, I do have the impression that Sony are the likeliest to provide me with the tools I require in the future. Initially I saw those coming from Panasonic / Olympus but now I very much get the impression that they are not. Olympus seem convinced that 12MP is "enough" and in the light of the current revelations, who knows whats going to happen. Panasonic seem to be trying to create the ultimate "matchbox camera" and seem to only come up with some serious improvements if they think Sony have the advantage over them. Is it a co-incidence that they have finally decided to make a useable add-on EVF only after Sony announced theirs?

SONY LENSES.

Sony NEX-5N 18-200mm

I've never subscribed to the "Sony lenses are rubbish" view. However there may be some who might question my Sony "road to Damascus" moment because of this perceived lack of quality lenses. While agreeing that they have some way to go to provide a comprehensive system, I have a real fondness for many of their supposedly "cheap and cheerful" options. There are several lenses which have cut build quality down to the bare minimum in order to make them very competitive on price. I currently have 30mm macro and 85mm a-mount lenses, and I certainly wouldn't describe them as particularly robust. But they are optically sound and produce more than decent images.

Concerning the NEX lenses. Sure there are only 3 available currently. I have all of them, and from my uses of them they are better than they are generally portrayed, which to be honest isn't difficult.

However once you take account of what you can use with a NEX camera, via adapters, then the situation becomes much less an issue. I'm keeping my two Voigtlanders and 3 Nikon primes in the short term, until I see what the NEX primes are like when they become available.

So my conversion to full-blown Sony fanboy is almost complete. The plan is to complete "the set" with the NEX-7. After using the 5N, I am wondering if its going to offer me much more than that, but I know I'm going to want it, so resistance is futile!

Sony NEX-5N and manual focus

2011-10-28T19:08:00.000+01:00

Sony NEX-5N Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron

After saying that the Sony system I seem to be heading towards would enable me to "stop fiddling about with MF lenses" what did I spend the afternoon doing? Yes, "fiddling about with a MF lens"!!

Sony NEX-5N Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron

I decided to give my Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron a try on the NEX-5N. Just to see how it worked. It was in fact a delight. This is the best system for focusing a MF lens I've ever used. Better than a Leica rangefinder system because I see the image exactly as it will turn out and I don't have to work with innaccurate frame lines. Better than the system in m4/3 because I don't have to have open up the lens to get accurate focus. With a manual focus lens attached, one button touch or in fact just touching the rear view screen brings up a magnified view, focusing is easy at any aperture because of the focus peaking feature, then touching the shutter button brings back the full image. Simple. If using a small aperture there is actually no need for the magnification screen, as focus peaking shows whole areas that are in focus. Its fast, its easy, its accurate.

Sony NEX-5N Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron

I was manually focusing the 85mm f/2.8 Alpha mount lens I used this morning, and while the process is the same, the manual focus ring is slightly more difficult to operate, being smaller. This is where lenses designed for the purpose work better.

Sony NEX-5N 85mm f/2.8 SAM

I'm going to be writing more tomorrow on the NEX-5N, but initial use indicates that, when fitted with the OLED electronic viewfinder, I believe this to is going to be a great camera for me. The images taken with the Voigtlander 28mm were stunning, incredibly sharp and detailed, not a hint of CA and enlarged to the size of my a77 files, probably superior in terms of resolution. I may have been critical of Sony in the past, but with this camera they have got it seriously right.

I'm not alone in this of course, its been getting rave reviews everytime I've seen it written about. I've already sold my Nikons and yes the M9 has gone too. My m4/3 cameras look like they are destined for ebay too. All for a DSLR lookalike with a mirror that doesn't move and a compact that looks like a bar of soap! Strange times, but I've been photographing with a smile on my face for over a week now, so I'm not complaining.

Sony NEX-5N and wonderful autumn light

2011-10-28T12:17:00.000+01:00

Sony NEX-5N 18-55mm

The arrival of the OLED viewfinder coincided with some wonderful autumn light, and gave me an excellent opportunity to try it out with the NEX-5N.

Sony NEX-5N 85mm f/2.8 SAM

Sony NEX-5N 18-55mm

Sony NEX-5N 85mm f/2.8 SAM

Sony NEX-5N 18-55mm

With the addition of the viewfinder NEX suddenly becomes a different system for me. All the virtues of size and weight become a reality, and at last I can take advantage of the superb image quality without struggling to compose with just a live view screen. For me NEX now becomes a camera system instead of a collection of gadgets.

With the EVF, which performs just like the one in my a77, using the 5n was a pleasure. It has eye recognition just like the Panasonic G1/G3/GH2 etc. system and is indeed, as many have commented the best EVF currently available. In bright sunlight and wearing my polarised sunglasses, I could still clearly see what I was photographing.

Before going out I did try a MF m-mount lens and when I was out I was using the 85mm f/2.8 manually focused, as the adapter is pretty slow and the misty conditions made it difficult anyway. Using the focus peaking I got accurate results reasonably easily.

So, Sony have moved things along. Its nice that they have responded to the clamour for an EVF, and have come up with a really good one. The NEX-5N moves to the top of my list of mirrorless cameras, and thats not something I would have envisaged writing until a short while ago.

OLED viewfinder for the Sony NEX-5N and HUGE carbon footprint.

2011-10-28T09:59:00.000+01:00

The OLED viewfinder for the Sony NEX-5N isn't available in the UK yet. However it was for sale on ebay from Digital Rev in Hong Kong. I bought one, and much to my surprise its arrived in 2 days. While I'm incredibly impressed by the speed it got here (via Fedex) I can't help but feel somewhat guilty at the amount of aviation fuel its taken to get something so small to my door.

Sony NEX-5N High ISO - is it the best I've ever used? - SonyImagePlus? - A77 jpgs.

2011-10-27T10:10:00.000+01:00

Sony NEX-5N 18-55mm photographed with NEX-C3 and 16-50mm f/2.8 zoom at ISO 3200

As part of my plan to become SonyImagePlus! I bought a NEX-5N yesterday, and I have ordered the add-on OLED viewfinder.

Sony NEX-5N 18-55mm photographed with NEX-C3 and 16-50mm f/2.8 zoom at ISO 3200

The NEX-5N is getting rave reviews across the board. In particular people are commenting on how good the high ISO performance is. Well they are 100% right. The answer to the question in the title of this piece is yes, these are the best high ISO results I've ever seen on a camera I've owned.

These below are at ISO 12800.

Sony NEX-C3 Alpha > NEX adapter 16-50mm f/2.8 photographed with NEX-5N and 18-55mm zoom at ISO 12800

Sony NEX-C3 Alpha > NEX adapter photographed with NEX-5N and 18-55mm zoom at ISO 12800

Sony A77 16-50mm f/2.8 SAM and NEX-C3 85mm f/2.8 SAM photographed with NEX-5N and 18-55mm zoom at ISO 12800

Sony A77 85mm f/2.8 SAM photographed with NEX-5N and 18-55mm zoom at ISO 12800

If you compare them with the ISO 3200 achieved with the NEX-C3 at the top of the page, you'll see what I mean. These are really superb, clean and sharp, and these results make a mockery of most cameras high ISO performance.

Below are samples at ISO 6400 and 3200.

Sony NEX-C3 85mm f/2.8 SAM photographed with NEX-5N and 18-55mm zoom at ISO 6400

Sony NEX-C3 Alpha > NEX adapter 16-50mm f/2.8 photographed with NEX-5N and 18-55mm zoom at ISO 6400

Sony a77 85mm f/2.8 SAM photographed with NEX-5N and 18-55mm zoom at ISO 3200

I would add that these large lenses on the small NEX bodies actually handle very well. In fact the larger the lens the more "natural" it feels. Even on the largest DSLR there are still lenses that overwhelm even them, so they have to be used in a "lens cradled" position anyway. Its going to be interesting to see how the new adapter with the SLT functions. I'm planning to get one of those when they become available.

Sony NEX-5N 16-50mm photographed with NEX-C3 and 16mm f/2.8 zoom at ISO 3200

SONYIMAGEPLUS?

You thought that was a joke right? Well it seems thats the way I'm heading. The three cameras and accessories that Sony announced together are the basis of what I see as an integrated modular system. That should allow me to put together a smaller, lighter and cheaper system than I have currently, with the potential to give me superb image quality, plus the versatility to handle anything, either for my core stock work or indeed any commercial and commissioned work that comes along.

A77, NEX-7 and NEX-5n cameras give me large files, cover any high ISO needs I might have and high quality video. With the SLT adapter I can use alpha mount lenses in addition to the (somewhat sparse at the moment) e-mount selection.

So, no more having to put together different systems, which has always meant a certain amount of duplication. No more fiddling around with manual focus lenses. No more different sensor sizes. The APS-C format suits me very well. It still gives me close to the m4/3 depth-of-field advantage, plus with the NEX-5N, high ISO performance that is probably way beyond what I normally need, but handy to have anyway. Because Sony do make light lenses, my weight concerns are taken care of, and while I do realise some of their offerings are "lightweight" in build quality, I really don't give my equipment that much of a hard time. Finally in terms of image quality, no I'm not going to get the "ultimate", but its certainly well up to the standard I require and the particular market I supply has no problem with it.

A77 JPGS.

Finally, as a follow-up to the piece I wrote on the A77 jpgs., I've been sending off out-of-camera jpg. files to many of the stock libraries who market my work. This includes some of the very "picky" ones. They are all accepting them with no problem.

I have often written about how these libraries are more concerned about other image qualities than sharpness.. The assumption is always that the buyer will sharpen for use after deciding on the size for reproduction. This has always been the way it works, and as I've pointed out in the past, companies like Getty recommend that files look slightly soft. CA is generally regarded as worse than this slight softness (by this I mean how images look out of the camera with no sharpening applied) and since the a77 "cleans up" its jpgs very well in this regard, I can see why the libraries would like them.

Add in the fact that when a77 images are reduced in size, which will be the case in the large majority of sales, the softness disappears anyway. For example, if I reduce an a77 jpg. file down to the dimensions of an image shot on 12MP m4/3, it does then look sharper than the equivalent original m4/3 jpg. and pretty close to a carefully processed raw file taken with the best lenses m4/3 can offer. Since I sell very few full-size, high resolution images, these supposedly "soft and mushy" jpgs. will never appear as such to clients, at the smaller sizes they download. If they do buy a full-size file, its still going to look fine since photographers and libraries have been up-sizing digital camera images for years, with a consequent softening of detail.

So, in terms of what I do the a77 jpgs. seem to be no handicap. As a long time advocate of shooting raw, it may come as a surprise that I'm now sending of jpgs. However files from the a77 are proving very difficult when it comes to removing CA, and the jpgs. from the camera are almost all 100% "clean". Until I come up with a lens profile that works, or Sony send one to Adobe, I may be uploading jpgs. for a while. Not ideal as I'm a bit neurotic about this, but if the people who pay my bills are happy, why should I complain?

Short film by Phillip Bloom

2011-10-26T15:16:00.000+01:00

A wonderful short film by Phillip Bloom, shot on a Sony NEX-5N. Great Stuff.

The difference between cameras.

2011-10-26T12:44:00.000+01:00

My attitude to this "rubbishing" of the a77 (and there's a lot of it about) is simply, Its your loss.

There seem to be many who are prepared to write it off without even seeing what it can do, and some of the posts on forums are simply ridiculous.

Because as far as I can see, the actual real-world differences between cameras and sensors are becoming less distinguishable as time goes on. Its probably actually quite difficult, these days, to find either a camera, a sensor or a lens that is downright bad from any system from m4/3 upwards. Sure some are better than others, but the differences are way less than is often conveyed by these tribal, fan club type posts that attempt to persuade others of the posters wisdom and skill in picking their particular camera system.

Back in the early days of digital, there were some real differences in sensor performance as engineers and designers were learning how to overcome technical obstacles that restricted image quality. Nowadays sensor manufacturers like Sony, Canon and Panasonic have mostly solved the problem of producing decent images for large-scale reproduction, and the differences are now more about emphasis. Good high ISO results, good video results etc. I know of no camera from a Panasonic GF3 "upwards" that is now incapable of producing an image that could be used as the cover of an A4 magazine or an A3 double-page spread.

So what are all these arguments about? To be honest, as time goes by, it escapes me more and more. There is unfortunately a strand of "enthusiast photography" that is more concerned about the ownership of the "right gadget" rather than the photography itself. For example sites talk about the NEX-7 as the next "hot camera". Isn't this somewhat pathetic? Shouldn't we be much more concerned about how it performs? Unfortunately, I get the impression that is the least of some peoples concerns.

There is also this attitude that seems to prevail in certain circles, that once you have made your choice, you stick with it. Changing your mind is taken to be a sign of weakness, or dithering or something else equally pathetic. One of the reasons I enjoy Kirk Tucks writing (and I'm glad to say he has returned to blogging after his short hiatus) is that, like me, he changes his mind and his camera systems on a regular basis. However some camera system owners seem to echo the famous speech by William Holden in the Wild Bunch. "When you side with a man, you stay with him. And if you can’t do that, you’re like some animal – you’re finished!" Its plainly ridiculous to apply this to camera ownership, but some quite clearly do.

Ultimately, what camera you use should be down to how successfully it fulfills your needs. One or two small functions that may be unimportant to others can make all the difference to some. Indeed the reason I'm so enthusiastic about the a77 is because it does just that. The fact that I can use the viewfinder wearing my polarised sunglasses may seem trivial, but its really important to me. There are other bits and pieces that I went through in my review that do the same. Add them all up and it becomes a camera I've very happy using. However, I'm not going to say that "This camera is a Canikon Killer" "This camera blows away the opposition" or other such meaningless and insulting statements.

I've made comments in the past about how I find it difficult to "get on with" Canon DSLR's, but I never have and never will come up with something so ridiculous as "6 reasons not to buy a Canon DSLR". I would never insult anybodys intelligence in that way, though there are others who have no such scruples.

That we have this incredible choice is a cause for celebration and not bitter and acrimonious "debate". I could do my job with any serious camera from the large choice available, and what I choose is mostly a matter of personal preference and those small but significant ways of operating that I mentioned earlier.

Less pontification would be nice, and the worlds available bandwidth could be substantially increased if those who insist on foisting these "rubbishing posts" on us would actually think before they press send.

Unfortunately, I have no confidence whatsoever that is ever going to happen.

Now I know I made the right decision!

2011-10-26T11:15:00.000+01:00

My "favourite" internet pundit giving out his usual disinformation, this time on the a77. "No pros shoot Sony" Really!!

Dpreview review of Sony a77 - Are the jpgs that bad?

2011-10-26T10:48:00.000+01:00

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/sonyslta77/

There's a review of the a77 up at Dpreview.

Normally I don't comment on other reviews, as these things are, by their nature, usually a matter of opinion. As indeed are my accounts of my experiences with cameras.

However there are lots of comments on the quality of the cameras jpgs. both in the review and circulating in forums.

"Mushy" "Soft" "Look just like a compact camera" are some of the comments I've read.

Here are some 100% crops from raw and jpg. I haven't said which is which. Are the jpgs really that bad?

Sony A77 - Gets the job done.

2011-10-25T19:57:00.000+01:00

Sony A77 16-50mm f/2.8

Despite its number of headline grabbing features the A77 is actually a pretty simple camera to work with. It also does things smoothly and efficiently. It reminds me very much of the Nikon D700, in that it just "Gets the job done".

Sony A77 16-50mm f/2.8

Even though I've only had it a few days, I'm already taking it for granted. The AF always locks on, the exposures are incredibly accurate and just what I want, with no need for me to start adding exposure compensation. It lets me get on with taking the pictures and I find I'm already just giving the screen a cursory look only as yet another perfectly exposed, spot on focused, image appears on the screen.

My kind of camera!

Sony A77 16-50mm f/2.8

Sony 85mm f/2.8

2011-10-25T17:22:00.000+01:00

Sony A77 85mm f/2.8

There's a somewhat (incorrect) assumption that Sony don't make many decent lenses.

Personally I've never had a problem with them. The 85mm f/2.8 SAM is a case in point. Cheap, light and sharp. The A77 sensor shows just what its capable of. Its even sharp wide open.

Sony A77 85mm f/2.8

These were taken on a NEX-C3, via the Sony adapter. Very slow AF but of course with the focus peaking feature MF is easy. The lens worked well on this camera too.

Sony EX-C3 85mm f/2.8

Nice lens.

Sony A77 - User Experience - Part 8 - Video

2011-10-24T07:01:00.000+01:00

Sony a77 16-50mm f/2.8 lens. Recorded and edited in 1080p 25fps. Final version in 720p. Entirely hand- held using Super Steady Shot. Full manual control of aperture, shutter speed and manually focused using focus peaking. Image stabilisation added in iMovie.

Shot in a very strong wind. You can see the iMovie stabilisation doing its thing on some of the footage - its the "wobble" at the bottom of the frame.

Sony A77 - User Experience - Part 7 - Conclusion

2011-10-23T12:46:00.000+01:00

So, I'm in the position to give some sort of concluding summing-up to my days with the Sony a77 and 16-50mm f/2.8 zoom lens.

There's no doubt that this camera ticks more boxes for me than any camera I've ever owned. While I hesitate to state that its a great camera for anybody, I can say with some pleasure, that its a great camera for me. It suits me in so many ways, that I use it with a smile on my face.

+ POINTS

BIG files! Great for landscape and stock.

Quality of images is top class. Sony have got their 24MP APS-C files looking virtually identical to their 24MP FF files.

Great operation and handling with some really outstanding features:-

Built in spirit level

Sunglasses friendly OLED viewfinder

High quality live view screen

Eye sensor controlled switching between EVF and screen

GPS built in. I used this yesterday and its great. Lots of sites I sell on use this

Super Steady Shot stabilisation is again top class

Articulated screen - best I've used
Fast AF
Quick positive shutter
Quiet high-speed burst mode

Well-organised menu system

Excellent build quality (Though obviously no long term use to substantiate this)

Well thought out layout and excellent grip

Not excessively heavy

Not excessively large

Good quality kit lens

- POINTS

Crop / Zoom option button seems pointless to me

Panorama mode works very poorly

Some operations are somewhat slow

High ISO performance disappointing above ISO 3200

Since the minus points are not of any great importance for what and how I shoot, the camera gets a very positive thumbs-up from me. I can't wait for the NEX-7 to have most of this available in a smaller, lighter package.

Though it isn't a DSLR (Its a DSLT?) I will always have a need for a camera of this type. Though something like a NEX-7 will do most of what I need (Assuming it fulfills its promise in the same way that the a77 does) that extra bit of performance and speed that the a77 offers is always useful for the variety of situations I shoot pictures in.

In fact I like it so much that I've been photographing all the rest of my cameras and putting them on ebay. And I do mean ALL my cameras. The a77 allows me to upload high quality, high resolution images to the sites where I sell my work, the images are beautifully saturated, sharp and capable of extremely large reproduction. I have to make no compromises using the camera, it allow me to do what I want to do, in the way that I want to do it. There's been a wonderful absence of fiddling with small buttons in the last few days and like the Nikon D7000 before it (still a great camera) the a77 allows me to stop thinking about what I'm using and concentrate on what is more important, what I'm photographing.

Above all this is a photographers camera. Not a gadget, not a toy, a serious, useful photographic tool that is designed for one thing, to make creating good pictures as easy as possible.

If I was to rate it, I'd give it 9/10 (It could be lighter!) and my somewhat varied collection of cameras could soon be turning into a Sony fanboys dream. I'm working towards the a77, a NEX-7 and a NEX-5n + Viewfinder for low light work, and that may be what I end up with after Christmas.

I've written before how impressed I was with Sony and the long interviews that my nephew and I had with them at the Focus on Imaging show last spring. Virtually everything that we both asked for has turned up in the a77. We weren't alone in what we talked about obviously, and to be honest most of the features were probably well-advanced anyway. I would say however, that all the things that the a77 includes and offers us as photographers are mostly sensible, well-thought out and geared towards those of us who are committed to producing the best work that we can.

No its not for everybody and there will be many who see it as a disappointment, but with this level of performance, resolution and options and at this price point, I can see a lot more photographers drifting towards the orange a. In many ways it IS a revolutionary camera, and the innovations and advances it uses will impact on many future models.

I saw the entry of Sony into the "serious" digital camera market as a good thing. However up to now I think they have struggled and got lost in a plethora of bewilderingly similarly specified models that didn't really get the adrenalin pumping. Solid but uninspiring, is the description I would use. With the a77, a camera over which they certainly took their time, they have moved into another gear. Sony seem to have spent years playing catch-up with Nikon and Canon. I think the next few years may see that situation reversed.

Highly recommended.

Sony A77 - User Experience - Part 6 - 16-50mm f/2.8 "Kit" zoom

2011-10-23T11:35:00.000+01:00

All images - Sony A77 16-50mm f/2.8

So how good is the 16-50mm f/2.8 zoom, available as a kit with the a77? A difficult question to answer objectively since I have nothing to compare it with. Plus the performance of a lens and a sensor doesn't exist in isolation, particularly when the camera "sees" the lens and performs "corrections" regarding CA, distortion etc. as in this case here.

If you already own a set of Alpha mount lenses, then the lens may not be of particular interest, other than it fills in a gap for you, but if like me, you currently own no other lenses, then its performance could be significant.

Significant because this is certainly a good value lens. It gives an idea of how Sony rate the a77, as they have chosen to release it not with an 18-55mm zoom, in a similar fashion to other cameras from a variety of manufacturers, but with a "pro-spec" lens. This is after all the APS-C equivalent of a 24-75mm f/2.8 (35mm / FF) which many consider essential for serious, "professional" work. These are often one of the "top of the line" lenses for other systems and they can be heavy duty in terms of size, weight and price. The 16-50mm f/2.8 is relatively small, light and inexpensive for a lens of this type, and while no lightweight I've had no problems carrying it around for the last few days.

As far as I'm concerned the option of the Zeiss 16-35mm f/2.8 is out of the question. Having tried one out, its incredibly heavy and would make the combined camera / lens weight in excess of 1.5kg. For my work, which involves a substantial amount of walking, I wouldn't even consider it. There are the alternatives of the Zeiss 16-80mm or the 16-105mm, neither of which get particularly great endorsements from photographers. I have ordered an 85mm f/2.8, which I used before with the a55 I had, and I'm undecided about whether to get a 30mm f/2.8 or a 35mm f/1.8 to use as a 2 lens prime outfit. Again I used both with the a55 and they worked well with that.

But I will be keeping the 16-50mm f/2.8, and I'm actually very pleased with the results. I'm not going to be doing any serious comparitive testing with it. As I indicated in a post a short while ago, I have neither the time or inclination to do that anymore. This, and all future, reviews will be based around my use of equipment as part of my work. I'm not setting anything up anymore, and my decisions as to whether to keep a lens and my opinions about it are based totally on how it fits in with the way I work and what I use it for. If that helps others come to a decision then great. If people want more, then there are a range of other reviews and user experiences to view also. This is, after all, just one persons opinion.

So why do I like the 16-50mm?

It has good colour and contrast, distortion is well-controlled and sharpness is excellent at all apertures. For the most part I'm going to be using it around the f8 - f11 mark, and it produces excellent results there.

If you want a more scientific test with graphs and charts, there is an excellent one here:-
http://www.photoreview.com.au/reviews/cameraaccessories/sony-dt-1650mm-f28-ssm-lens.aspx

Finally, while out shooting yesterday, I ended up at Broadway Tower on the edge of the Cotswolds. A Bride and Groom were being photographed and captured on video.

I shamelessly got myself into position to grab a few shots of my own. Including the one below, which will be useful as a stock shot, since no faces are visible. The fact that this is a serious crop from the original, yet still retains the quality needed for using this image for publication, shows the quality of both the a77 sensor and the lens.

Microstock Libraries

2011-10-23T07:05:00.000+01:00

To put this in context - it was written for this thread - http://www.mu-43.com/f35/shutter-stock-rejections-17534/index6.html

"Microstock libraries do like "bright" images. They are not too keen on "moody" "dramatic" etc. Mainly because of the markets they do best in. For example, travel images for brochures, on websites etc. need to be drenched in sunlight, with few or no shadows.

They also like "conventional" colours.

A lot of the reason for this is that many of them, iStockphoto being the obvious example, were set up by graphic designers for graphic designers. On the whole, they are looking for clean, "straightforward" images that they can then use in their "creations".

There is also the notion that most images sold are "upbeat" "positive" etc. I do sell some images that show the "darker" side of life, but on the whole its images that show the world and its people as happy, confident and above all "clean"!! Business and lifestyle images have to show, young, attractive, enthusiastic people, who like nothing better than rushing to their desk, or to school or caring for their equally young, attractive, clean families. Even the oldies have to look "young" if you know what I mean.

There is very little opportunity for reality to impinge on this dreamy idyllic lifestyle, where the sun is always shining and everybody is happy and smiling, all the time. Think toothpaste commercials and you'll get the idea. Consequently I used to call these images "teeth shots" because everybody has pristine white molars. This spills over into everything else. I've said before that I sell a lot of interior property shots, and I make sure that they are "clean" too. I clone out anything that ressembles the reality of how we all live. Its "show homes" full of "show people". Think Stepford Wives and you are in the ball park.

OK, this probably sounds very cynical. But think how people react to advertising. If they open a travel brochure and see beautiful lit landscapes with dramatic thunderous skies, they may not have a photographers perspective on that, but think Oh-Oh, the weather looks a bit "iffy" there.

If people are contemplating looking for a new home, do they want to see that "lived in" look, or a clean, bright environment.

And that is the bottom line. In some way shape or form, these pictures are mostly used to advertise something, to promote something or to sell something.

However, other non-microstock libraries, have opportunities for different kinds of images. There are opportunities for editorial and yes, even social documentary images to find a market. But this isn't with Shutterstock etc. They do have them, but I've had emails from them saying, just clone out a trademark, remove this and that and you have a much more saleable image.

I did say in a previous post that Stock Photography doesn't have much to do with art, and in fact I would describe it as much more of a craft or a skill. But then thats nothing new. Most commercial, fashion, portrait, wedding or advertising photographers are trying to present the client or product they are photographing in the best possible light most of the time. Annie Leibovitz used to shoot grainy B/W for Rolling Stone Magazine, she now shoots high-gloss fantasy images for Vanity Fair, with a substantial increase in her fees.

So do these Microstock libraries want perfection on a budget? Well of course they do. They want wonderful images that leap off the screen and they make no concessions concerning the limitations most of us work under. Before you send out an image, have you thought to yourself "I can't get it any better"? Do you think to yourself "Wow thats a great picture"? Then reduce it to the size of a website thumbnail and ask yourself, "Does it still look impressive"? "Would I want to click on it and see the larger version" If the answer to any of these questions is NO then you need to address that.

It used to be that Stock Libraries were populated with "extras" "not quite made it" "also-rans" and similar types of shots. I myself was guilty of that 20 years ago when I started this. But not anymore. Never was the phrase "Give it your best shot" more appropriate."

Pentax Q review from Amateur Photographer

2011-10-22T10:40:00.000+01:00

Final sentence from the Amateur Photographer review of the Pentax Q.

"For now, though, the Pentax Q will afford its users a smile, some fun and a compact companion, if little else."

I can think of other ways of having "some fun" for a lot less than £600!!

Sony A77 - User Experience - Part 5 - Raw Files

2011-10-22T07:58:00.000+01:00

I've made some raw files available to download. These are .dng files and should open up in versions of Adobe Camera Raw 2.4 and later.

Please note these files are © David Taylor-Hughes / soundimageplus and are made available for personal evaluation only, and under no circumstances can be shared or used for any other purpose whatsoever.

Sony A77 - User Experience - Part 4 - High ISO

2011-10-21T12:39:00.000+01:00

Some high ISO images with the A77. Shot under typical low light conditions, in a dark room in daylight. hand held. I even let the silver of the camera underexpose the images slightly.

As ever larger versions available at flickr > Actions > View all sizes > Original.

As I think you can clearly see the raw files are pretty bad. Totally unusable as far as I'm concerned above ISO 6400. The in-camera rendition of the jpgs is somewhat better, and indeed ISO 1600 and 3200 are actually pretty good.

Incidentally, below is a B/W conversion from the ISO 6400 jpg, using only the blue channel, and that is very useable.

So the highly populated sensor takes it toll at high ISO. This is obviously not the worlds greatest low light camera. However its fine up to ISO 3200. Not an issue for me, but many would perhaps require a better performance. Having said that, when I was shooting weddings, if I had to use higher than ISO 3200 I would break out the flashgun, a somewhat neglected item these days.

These high ISO results would work for me if I was still shooting any kind of event indoors, and I've certainly coped with much worse sensor performance than this. However, I'm not a heavy duty high ISO user and that has to be borne in mind.

I'm not going to be doing any more stills high ISO tests, so I'd recommend the excellent Imaging Resource for that. Their high ISO samples for the a77 can be found here:-

http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/AA77/AA77A7.HTM

Sony A77 - User Experience - Part 3 - Some bad Mostly good

2011-10-21T10:09:00.000+01:00

Lets get the bad out of the way first.

There is this button that blows up the image for a 12MP file and a 6MP file. Its basically a digital zoom and a crop feature. Its jpg. only and its a complete waste of time as far as I'm concerned. Note to Sony - We know how to crop an image! It doesn't work in video. It also functions as a magnifier for manual focusing, BUT - it doesn't work for video where it would be really useful and if you want to use it for stills, you have to deselect the raw or raw + jpg options because it doesn't work with them either!!

Panorama function.

This is getting worse! The camera tells me that it can't create a panorama because I need to move the camera faster, then when I do that it produces a blurred image. I never managed to get a wide panorama at all, as it always stopped before I'd finished. Its hit and miss, impossible to predict what you are going to get and also a waste of time as far as I'm concerned.

Auto-Everything Video.

Camera makers are still trying to persude us that we can use these cameras as auto everything video cameras. Presumably to video the kids on the beach, sports days, family events etc. They make a great play of how they AF doing recording. However because of the larger sensors, and the fancy AF systems, they rarely work well for this. I shot the above using auto-everything. As you can see there's lots of AF "hunting" and exposure changing. The little AF point squares were constantly flickering, moving about and trying to find something to focus on. Admittedly this all happened very quickly and smoother than most, but the final result is not particularly pleasant to watch.

This is all the more annoying because the actual quality of the footage is truly breathtaking. Easily the best I've ever seen on a stills camera equipped with video. With the largest sensor used in any DSLR-type camera to do this, the A77 produces beautiful, high resolution movies that are a joy to behold. Fortunately its possible to use full manual control. When I've worked out how to do it properly, I'll shoot something better to show what it can do. It also has the super steady shot function, which combined with iMovie produces very stable hand held footage, as you can see from the above example.

Out of Camera jpgs.

All of the following are taken from out of camera jpgs. While these very usefully remove most of the CA, fringing and help with lens distortion, they also soften the images. This is fairly commonplace with jpgs. and to a large extent they are no better and no worse than anything else.

All images - Sony A77 16-50mm f/2.8

On the raw front I'm gradually starting to work out how to get the best from the raw files. My reservations about the 16-50mm lens have been somewhat dispelled by approaching the raw development in Photoshop / Adobe Camera raw from a different angle. I basically zeroed everything out and started from scratch. I got a great improvement in CA, by removing all of the "correction" parameters and discovered that on many of the images, there was virtually none. Sharpening for this lens / sensor combination is still something I'm trying to get right. The massively popululated APS-C sensor responds in much the same way as the Panasonic sensor on the GH2 / G3 in that increasing sharpening tends to increase the luminance noise. I'm getting there, but I haven't got it right yet.

The last shot was taken using the articulated screen, which following on from my comments yesterday, is an amazing contraption. It does seem possible to put it in any position. I haven't been able to stump it yet. Its certainly a step on from Sonys previous offerings and indeed its more versatile than the Panasonic system and the Canon and Nikon copies of that.

Some initial impressions

The a77 isn't the game changing, DSLR alternative, great camera that perhaps Sony would like it to be, but it shows amazing potential. There's a few gimmicky features for the gadget heads that could do with either being removed or worked on, but there is certainly enough here that shows what this technology and engineering is capable of.

This is a camera designed for photographers, there's no doubt of that. Many of the headline features, OLED EVF, articulated screen, high speed drive and lots of MP's are really useful and work well. The video output is simply stunning and with some more attention to this Sony could give Canon and Panasonic a real run for their money.

So, not a great camera yet, but the potential for Sony to produce something that is truly ground breaking is there. Things like the incredibly fast, yet relatively quiet motordrive, and more importantly the lightness and low price, make this a very attractive option for many professional photographers. In its current state I think wedding and event photographers will love this. Though I have to say that I haven't checked out the high ISO performance yet.

The a77 has certainly displaced the D7000 as the "best" camera I've ever owned. It does the things I really want a camera to do, really well. It produces high resolution "punchy" images, it covers the majority of my handling and operating requirements and it doesn't make my back any worse (thats the best I can hope for I think!) and it certainly doesn't break the bank.

A 25MP Nikon D3X with a 24-70mm f/2.8 zoom costs £6200 and weighs 2122g. The Sony a77 plus 16-50mm f/2.8 cost me £1660 and weighs 1230g. Both camera / lens combinations are weathersealed. So just over 1/4 of the price and 1/2 the weight. Plus video, plus articulated screen, plus full-time live view. Its new, so judgement on long-term use is impossible, but the numbers will make a lot of sense to a lot of photographers, as they do to me. Sony's ambition to become a big player is starting to show good results, and the NEX-7 has yet to arrive.

Panasonic GX1?

2011-10-20T20:45:00.000+01:00

From 43rumors - http://www.43rumors.com/ft5-gx1-coming-on-november-8-with-g3-sensor-specs-leaked/

GX1 coming from Panasonic with 16MP G3 sensor, new external viewfinder. Apparently designed like the GF1. Whats not to like?

Sony A77 - User Experience - Part 2 - First Use

2011-10-20T11:24:00.000+01:00

All pictures Sony a77 16-50mm f/2.8

There was some nice light late yesterday afternoon, and after charging up the battery for the a77, I was able to go out and give it a short "real world" test.

In terms of use, a few things became apparent.

I really like the AF system. Its very "intuitive" if thats possible. Seems to know what I want to focus on. Some of these multi-point AF systems are often way off in terms of what I want. The a77 works very well however. Its also pretty fast.

There's a built in spirit level, which is the best I've seen. Very useful indeed. I'm not particularly good at getting things straight, and it will save me having to correct the file later.

The shutter is very positive and I can't detect any delay. Because there is no mirror slap its unlike a DSLR. Quiet (ish) and a bit "wimpy" Though nice to use.

By accident I had selected a 3-shot bracket. It does this with one press of the shutter. Excellent.

Colours are nice and warm, and in terms of overall image quality its very good. The images, with the 16-50mm, aren't ultra-sharp, but then I never expected them to be. With this amount of pixels on an APS-C sensor, I imagine there is a pretty strong AA filter. However the files look much the same as my Nikons, and indeed look very similar to those from the a850 I had.

One thing that is very impressive, is the dynamic range. Like the 16MP Sony sensor in the Pentax K-5, Nikon D7000 etc. its possible (At low ISO's) to recover dramatic amounts of shadow detail, without adding lots of noise.

The OLED viewfinder worked fine. I can wear my polarised sunglasses with no problem. In good light it looks just like an optical viewfinder to me. It has eye recognition, like the Panasonic GH1/2 and switches automatically between the two. However this is a bit sluggish. Something Kai at Digital Rev picked up on when he did his review. Its also a bit slow to present the file for viewing after pressing the shutter. I imagine the large files are responsible for this.

A couple of things on how the images look on the screen. I've now had 3 cameras that produce images this size. D3X, a850 and now the a77. All of them produce slightly softish files on the screen. For example images I took recently on my Olympus E-P3 look a lot sharper. However, when I downsize the a77 images to E-P3 size, they are just as sharp, and if I upsize the E-P3 images up to a77 size, a lot of the sharpness disappears and all sorts of artefacts start to appear.

Some of this I'm sure is down to the AA filter, and some to the way in which monitors display images. From the samples I had seen from the a77, I'm getting more or less what I expected. However I'm tempted to swap the 16-50mm lens for a Zeiss 16-80mm, which is a much more useful lens for me anyway.

The images are very "clean" though in common with virtually all of the Sony cameras and lenses I've used, there is a fair amount of CA. Having said that all of the large sensor cameras I've ever used are pretty merciless on lenses. Nikon provided a nice set of lens "correction" presets for Photoshop ACR, but there are only a few for Sony. I will have to put together one of my own.

A couple of other things on the "bells and whistles" which I'm getting round to slowly. When the drive is set to high burst, its incredibly fast, yet because of no mirror, much quieter than most DSLR's. Wedding snappers will love that.

Finally the articulated screen is just amazing. Its a bit "Heath Robinson" at first, and it can be moved into some amazing positions. It is quite a complicated mechanism, and I do have concerns about its long term robustness and the possibility of damage because it does extend some distance. However its an amazing contraption and I can't imagine any situation it isn't able to cover. Here's a video I found showing some of the possibilities.

http://vimeo.com/28116427

Finally, finally, It may sound callous to say this in the light of what has caused the situation, but I may have made the right move to buy the a77 rather than wait for the NEX-7. Apparently the Sony factory in Thailand is under water and has been described as having "No prospect of recovery". SonyAlphaRumors speculated yesterday that the NEX-7 may not arrive until after Christmas. South-East Asia has had an appalling year for weather-related disasters, and it is to be hoped that the situation improves soon.