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Posts Tagged ‘Sony’

Sony a6100 review sample gallery (DPReview TV)

16 Nov

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Check out our gallery of Sony a6100 sample photos captured during this week’s production of DPReview TV.

View DPReview TV’s a6100 sample gallery

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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The Sony a7R IV is the best camera for landscape photographers

16 Nov

We’ve updated our guide to the best cameras for landscape photographers with a new overall winner: the Sony a7R IV. Take a look at the full shortlist for all of our picks.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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DPReview TV: Sony a6100 review

16 Nov

The a6100 is Sony’s newest entry-level APS-C mirrorless camera. As Chris and Jordan highlight in their review, it features some useful upgrades over to the [apparently immortal] a6000.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel to get new episodes of DPReview TV every week.

  • Intro
  • Design and handling
  • Animal eye-AF
  • Jpeg processing
  • Burst shooting
  • Kit lens
  • Image quality
  • Real-time tracking
  • Auto ISO limitations
  • Video capabilities
  • Conclusion

Sample gallery from this episode

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Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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A closer look into the latest financial reports from Canon, Nikon and Sony

15 Nov

It’s no surprise the camera market is in a decline, earmarked by continuously-decreasing unit sales, revenue and operating income. It seems as though no company is safe from the impact of both smartphones and the general decline in demand for DSLRs, but while the numbers are indeed in a freefall, the reality is the actual macro-level outlook is far more nuanced than catchy headlines alone can tell.

To take a more overhead view of the camera industry, we’re dug into the industry-wide numbers from CIPA and broken down the most recent results from Canon, Nikon and Sony to compare them year-over-year (Y/Y) to see how things are shaping up.

CIPA

CIPA provides an overarching view of how the camera industry is doing through the participation of nearly a dozen camera companies that report their production and unit shipments to CIPA on a monthly basis. Since we’re only looking at the last two quarters from Canon, Nikon and Sony, we’re only going to dive into the numbers for the corresponding months of CIPA’s data.

CIPA’s September graph showing interchangeable lens camera unit sales over the past three years.

From April 2019 to September 2019 (the latest statistical data CIPA has made available), CIPA reports 8M total digital camera shipments: 4.4 million interchangeable lens cameras and 3.6 million cameras with built-in or fixed lenses. This is an overall decrease of 22-percent Y/Y with a 23-percent decrease for interchangeable lens cameras and a 20-percent decrease in cameras with built-in or fixed lenses.

CIPA’s September graph showing interchangeable lens unit sales over the past three years.

These decreases are concerning, but still less dramatic than the Y/Y change from 2017 to 2018. This change could be due to a few factors, but the most obvious one is that both Canon and Nikon introduced their full-frame mirrorless systems in late 2018, which likely helped to slow down the declining market as consumers hopped onboard the newer systems. However, it’s clear from the following numbers that neither Canon nor Nikon saw their full-frame mirrorless options replace the declining sales of DSLRs as both companies might ultimately be hoping.

Canon

For its FY2019 Q2 and Q3 numbers, Canon reported 2.06 million unit sales for interchangeable lens cameras and 1.36 million compact camera sales during its FY2019 second and third quarters, a decrease of 16-percent and 13-percent respectively Y/Y for the same time period.

A breakdown from Canon’s Q3 financial presentation that highlights the units sold in Q3 as well as the net sales and operating income of its Imaging Systems division.

This 16-percent decrease is less than the industry-wide 22% decrease as noted in CIPA’s data, but these two quarters last year were before Canon’s EOS R (and EOS RP) was announced and it’s possible that DSLR sales were depressed in expectation of the new cameras being around the corner. So, while the numbers are better than the market in general, with all of the development and marketing that went into making its new RF-series gear, it’s merely softened the blow rather than boost unit sales.

In regards to finances, Canon has reported ¥394B ($ 3.6M) in revenue and ¥23B in operating profit over the past two quarters, a decrease of 19-percent and 59-percent, respectively. It’s worth noting the drop also includes the loss of revenue and profit from the broadcasting and cinema gear that was included in last year’s numbers and has since been moved elsewhere within Canon’s business structure.

A breakdown of the net sales and operating income of Canon’s respective business divisions for its third quarter.

Throughout its presentation for investors, Canon specifically references the ‘deterioration of [the] macro-environment,’ which is more or less investor spin for the camera market is in decline—a fact backed up by CIPA numbers, as well as numbers from other camera manufacturers during the same time period. Canon also echos the sentiment that you’ll see in Nikon and Sony’s report below, saying there is ‘intensifying price competition.’ Interestingly though, Canon isn’t downgrading its forecast for the remainder of the year—something Nikon has done for two straight quarters now as you’ll see below.

Canon also notes that it’s working to lower inventory before the end of FY2019. Based on numbers provided, Canon has ¥157B worth of inventory as of the end of FY2019 Q3; less than it had this time last year (¥174B), but still higher than previous FY2019 quarters.

A breakdown from Canon’s Q3 financial presentation that discloses current inventory levels compared to previous quarters and last year.

Something always worth keeping in mind is that Canon’s Imaging Systems business accounts for a relatively small percentage of its overall income. Based on the numbers from FY2018, Canon’s Imaging Systems division represents 25-percent of its overall revenue and 37-percent of its operating profit.

Also, Canon’s FY2019 numbers are skewed when looked at Y/Y, as it moved its broadcasting equipment and cinema-use video cameras from its Imaging System division to its Industry & Others division.

Nikon

Moving onto Nikon, the numbers don’t get any prettier. In its most recent financial statements covering the past two quarters, Nikon says it sold 800K interchangeable lens cameras, 1.3M interchangeable lenses and 500K compact cameras. These numbers are down 25-percent, 21-percent and 41-percent Y/Y, respectively.

Revenue, Operating income and unit sales broken down in Nikon’s Q2 financial presentation.

In its financial presentation for investors, Nikon has updated its forecast for how many units it expects to ship this coming fiscal year, as well as the number of units it expects the digital camera market as a whole to bear. Nikon believes it will sell 1.5M interchangeable lens cameras, 2.5 million interchangeable lenses and 900K compact cameras, down 100K units across the board compared to its previous forecast from August 2019 and down 28-percent Y/Y.

Comparing Nikon’s numbers to Canon show the situation is more dire for Nikon. Canon’s EOS R and EOS RP haven’t done as well as Canon expected, but Canon is forecasting unit sales to drop 17-percent Y/Y whereas Nikon’s forecasting nearly double that at 28-percent. This means Canon is expecting a decline less than the market as a whole according to CIPA’s numbers whereas Nikon is six percentage points worse than what CIPA is reporting.

A chart from Nikon’s Q2 financial presentation that breaks down the sales of its ILCs, interchangeable lenses and compact camera unit sales.

In addition to unit sales, Nikon’s revenue and operating income aren’t cheery either. Over the first half of its FY2020, Nikon reported 119B yen in revenue and an operating profit of just 2B yen. Compared to the first half of its FY2019, those numbers are a 21-percent and 85-percent decrease, respectively.

Much like Canon with its RF-series, the cost Nikon has sunk into its Z-mount system and accompanying lenses has likely contributed to the massive decrease in operating profit. It’s not cheap to develop new systems and lenses, especially considering the amount of capital required to get new factories and fabrication up and running at full scale.

A chart from Nikon’s Q2 financial presentation showing revenue, operating income and unit sales figures compared to last year, as well as the forecast for the remainder of this fiscal year.

Nikon specifically calls out its Imaging Products Business in the presentation, saying it was the only division that wasn’t ‘mostly in line’ with its estimates. The materials specifically say the camera market ‘has deteriorated further as market shrinkage accelerates and competition intensifies.’ It also cites the increased cost of its Z-mount system lineup expansion as ‘a burden’ to its operating profit and notes it overestimated the sales forecast of its Z-series cameras.

For a company that’s stated in the past that its Z-series is more or less the future of the company, continually low numbers isn’t the best look, especially considering how much Nikon relies on its camera division compared to the likes of Canon and Sony. Nikon goes so far as to say it hopes to ‘fundamentally transform’ its Imaging Products Business to ‘generate enough profits to justify [the Imaging Products Business] existence as a business unit.’

Sony

Of all the financial results we look at, Sony’s has consistently been one of the most challenging to gain details insights on. Due to how they structure their business segments, we can’t really delve into the figures in detail as we can with Canon and Nikon. However, Sony didn’t specifically mention anything too positive or negative about its camera division, which hints that there wasn’t anything too notable about its latest quarters.

A breakdown of sales and operating income for Sony’s Electronics Products & Solutions division. This division includes Sony’s camera sales, as well as mobile devices, televisions and other electronics.

According to Sony’s current Q2 and Q3 reports, its Electronics Products & Solutions EP&S segment — which includes digital cameras amongst other electronic products — pulled in 977.4B yen in revenue and 66.5B yen in operating profit. This is a decrease of 13-percent and an increase of 35-percent Y/Y, respectively. Sony doesn’t elaborate much on the sales of camera gear, aside from saying that overall unit sales have decreased year over year.

A breakdown in sales and operating income for Sony’s Imaging & Sensing Solutions division, which is responsible for the manufacturing of its imaging sensors.

Moving onto Sony’s Imaging & Sensing Solutions (I&SS) segment, which is a separate — but related — business responsible for making its image sensors, the latest reports put its cumulative Q2 and Q3 earnings at 541B yen and 126B yen. This is an increase of 18-percent and 64-percent, respectively. Sony says a ‘significance increase in sales of image sensors for mobile products,’ mostly due to smartphone manufacturers now putting multiple camera units in their devices, as the main reason for such dramatic growth Y/Y in both revenue and operating profit

Conclusion

All in all, there’s plenty to take away from the latest numbers and results. The digital camera market continues to shrink and although full-frame mirrorless cameras from Canon and Nikon are somewhat picking up the slack in sales, they’re not entirely mitigating the decrease in DSLR shipments—especially for Nikon.

Furthermore, the cost of research and development (not to mention marketing and promotional material) that goes into launching cameras and lenses with new mounts has dramatically impacted the operating profits of the imaging divisions. As Canon and Nikon continue to pump money into their newer systems, operating profit will likely stay low until economy of scales kicks in and the new fabrication components are paid off. But declining DSLR and compact sales without corresponding growth in the mirrorless market isn’t going to make the transitions any easier to get through.

The market appears to be dropping at a slower rate than it has in past years, but it’s still not great news. At what point it will stabilize remains to be seen, but with an Olympic year next year and more mirrorless developments in the works across the entire industry, it’ll likely be a while until we find out.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Sony adds Real-Time Animal Eye AF to the RX10 IV via firmware update

15 Nov

Sony, today, released a firmware update for its RX10 IV camera that gives it Real-Time Animal Eye AF and improves the overall stability of the camera.

Firmware version 2.00 adds the same functionality we’ve seen Sony add to a number of its other mirrorless cameras. As with the other cameras, the update makes it possible to use Sony’s AI-powered eye-tracking feature on certain animals. Sony doesn’t specifically say what animals the functionality is limited to, but does note in the firmware changelog that ‘Eye detection may not be possible depending on the environment, animal type or the movement of the animal.’

Below is a brief explainer video of the feature shared by Sony on its YouTube channel:

Firmware version 2.00 for the RX10 IV is available to download for macOS and Windows computers on Sony’s RX10 IV support page.

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Review: Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E-Mount

14 Nov

The post Review: Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E-Mount appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Anabel DFlux.

sigma-35mm-f1-2-art-lens-review

Considering the amount of articles I’ve written about shallow depth of field, it is safe to say that anything wider than f/1.8 is my sweet spot. However, Sony has found itself severely lacking in my favorite fast aperture: f/1.2. Well, my friends, Sigma has come to save the day with the brand new Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E Mount! It’s the fastest autofocus lens available for Sony mirrorless cameras to date.

I had the pleasure of taking this lens out for a spin on my Sony A7r IV and Sony A7r III and making all of my creamy bokeh dreams come true.

Lens build

Sigma-35mm-f1.2-ART-lens-review

Upon first glance, this lens is large and heavy. Many people wouldn’t realize this is a wide-angle 35mm focal length. The weight is a bit daunting when you use a mirrorless system, especially since one of the big selling points of mirrorless is the small size of the camera. However, the benefit of mirrorless is that all you’re carrying is the weight of the lens, which I don’t mind.

The weight of the Sigma 35mm f/1.2 ART lens is very worthwhile. The following are the reasons why.

In true ART fashion, the lens is solid, sturdy, and what I’d consider shock-resistant. Give it a bump, you’ll see (no, please don’t do that intentionally!). The lens features a dust and splash-proof structure with additional water and oil-repellent coating on the frontmost surface of the lens. I can personally attest to these, having already taken this optic out in some dire conditions. I put lenses through the wringer, and if they can’t survive me, they aren’t a worthy build!

Also, akin to the ART line is the beautiful glass that is vibrant, sharp, clear, and perfect. It’s very reminiscent of the Canon L-series glass, which I was obsessed with, and was thrilled to find similar in the Sigma ART line.

Lens features

Sigma-35mm-f1.2-ART-lens-review

If you’re a native Sony G-Master user who picks up the Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART lens for the first time, you’ll likely see a familiar feature – an aperture ring. This smooth and easy to use manual adjustment of the aperture is quite a useful feature (especially for those who dabble in video and cinema).

Additionally, what’s really interesting about this lens is the ability to click/de-click the aperture ring, allowing complete silence or clicks to let you know you have turned the ring.

The inclusion of the AFL button adds to the lens’s functionality as you can assign it to various operations.

Lens communication

Sigma-35mm-f1.2-ART-lens-review

You don’t invest thousands of dollars on a camera like the Sony Alpha to not use those features, yes? So why would you grab a lens that isn’t compatible? You just don’t. As such, my deal breaker is whether or not the Sigma 35mm f/1.2 ART lens can speak the Alpha’s native tongue (being a non-Sony-brand lens).

Well, the answer is one that I certainly hoped for: The Sigma is fluent in Sony speak!

As one of the first ART lenses designed exclusively with mirrorless in mind, it’s communication with the popular Sony mirrorless system is key (considering the lens only comes in Sony E mount and L mount). All autofocus features (including eye-tracking [human and animal] and AI autofocus) translate brilliantly between the camera body and optics.

Autofocus

Sigma-35mm-f1.2-ART-lens-review

First of all, the autofocus of the Sony Alpha 7r IV and 7r III are just fantastic. Paired with this lens that is great at communicating with the camera, and you have a recipe for winning. My photo sessions have been so much smoother as a result.

Autofocus has been fast, accurate, and a dream. I have had a hard time putting this lens down, and can always find at least one excuse to bring it along for the ride.

I’ve gone as far as to shoot canine sports with it, even though a focal length of 35mm requires me to get closer to my subject than I’d usually like. However, it’s well worth it for that creamy bokeh, because canine agility fields tend to be quite cluttered with obstacles (which makes for a busy frame without the bokeh).

Whether your subject is running at you, away from you, or to the side, there is no discrepancy in autofocus.

Sharpness

Review: Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E-Mount

Edge to edge sharpness doesn’t even begin to describe how crystal clear the Sigma 35mm f/1.2 ART lens is. If I closed my eyes, I’d swear I was shooting with Canon L glass. The ART glass has been truly tremendous, especially in recent lens releases.

I found that my subject was just as sharp in the center point as any corners. This is great for those that want to take advantage of the 35mm focal length width and do some off-center frames.

The full-frame capability gives it a further wow factor. When attached to my Sony A7r IV – a 60+ megapixel camera – the images viewed on a massive print-calibrated 4k screen equals some jaw-dropping moments. Pairing tack sharpness with this lens’s visual sharpness results in an image that would make even the ultimate pixel peepers happy. From my own use, I’d say peak sharpness was around f/2.0 – f/2.8.

What you see is what you get, as the sharpness translated to prints beautifully.

Bokeh

Review: Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E-Mount

You don’t buy an f1.2 lens not to use it at its widest aperture! It took a bit of effort on my part to ever take it off f/1.2.

The bokeh is creamy, beautiful, and completely effortless. The subject separation is superb, and the client’s response to these magical images is pure bliss. I loved using this lens with cluttered backgrounds as the distraction smoothed away. Even when the aperture is widened to f/2.8, the bokeh continues to be smooth and satisfying.

There is some slight vignetting at the corners, but I quite enjoy this look and add a bit more of it in post-production. Those photographers that are miffed by vignetting may not be too thrilled. However, the 35mm wide focal length does allow for a wee bit of cropping so you can remedy that situation with some corner snips.

The bokeh balls produced with the Sigma 35mm f1.2 lens are very smooth and lovely. You won’t find yourself trapped with no onion-ring bokeh in the editing room, as seen in many other types of similar lenses.

Chromatic aberration

Review: Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E-Mount

Much to my positive surprise, I have not experienced any chromatic aberration or fringing with this lens – even on extremely contrasting subjects. This tends to be a common problem with very wide apertures. Whatever magic Sigma did to this particular lens clearly works because I have yet to encounter fringing.

With that said, I’m not saying there isn’t going to be fringing in some peculiar situations, but just that I have not yet personally encountered it. I have encountered fringing immediately with several f/1.4 and f/1.8 lenses from Sony (even the G-Master), unfortunately.

Pros

Review: Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E-Mount

  • Fast and beautiful f/1.2 wide aperture.
  • Full-frame lens.
  • Physical aperture ring with click/de-click switch.
  • Excellent communication between Sony E-mount cameras and this Sigma lens.
  • Beautiful creamy bokeh with no onion-ring issues.
  • Fast autofocus and vibrant output.
  • Little to no chromatic aberration.
  • Price is still very competitive, despite being in the four-digit range.

Cons

Sigma-35mm-f1.2-ART-lens-review

  • Heavy, bulky, and large for a 35mm lens (especially on a mirrorless system).
  • Only available in Sony E-Mount and in Sigma/Leica/Panasonic L-Mount (the lens is designed exclusively for mirrorless systems. Some may see this as a con if they don’t own a mirrorless system).

Conclusion

Review: Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E-Mount

Sigma 35mm f/1.2 Art Lens Review: Conclusion

My final thought is simple: “this lens will be permanently attached to one of my mirrorless cameras.” The investment is well worth the amount of use you’ll likely get out of this lens, even if you don’t shoot at extremely wide apertures such as f/1.2. I have always found it more worthwhile to invest in lenses that grant you more options and versatility rather than less.

The Sigma 35mm f/1.2 Art Lens can easily become a staple of any kit, with an incredibly vast array of uses from portraits, pets, events, fine art, and everything in between. With the popularity of prime lenses, this one is definitely a top contender.

Have you used the Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

The post Review: Sigma 35mm f1.2 ART Lens for Sony E-Mount appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Anabel DFlux.


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Sony teases its next-generation Quad-Bayer smartphone sensor

09 Nov

The people at Sony’s image sensor division have posted a teaser video for an upcoming new smartphone image sensor, the IMX686, on the Chinese social media site Weibo. The new chip is the successor to the IMX586, which was one of the first 48MP Quad-Bayer sensors and has been deployed in several high-end smartphones.

Sony does not reveal the sensor resolution or other specifications in the video but based on rumors about phones that will supposedly use the sensor GSM Arena estimates it to be between 60 and 64MP.

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The video reveals that the new sensor will be released in 2020 and shows a selection of still images captured in a variety of light conditions. The images are not full size, so it’s hard to make any judgements about image detail or noise, but they do look quite impressive in terms of exposure and dynamic range.

Given no phone is using the new sensor yet, Sony has used a prototype board connected to a computer to capture the samples. Have a look at the gallery above and check out the full video over on Weibo.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Updated: Sony a6600 sample gallery

08 Nov

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The Sony a6600 made its debut in late August, and in the months since then we’ve been testing it out in a wide range of situations. Our initial sample image gallery has been updated with images from our latest testing, including an artistic painting competition, because why not?

See our updated Sony a6600 sample gallery

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The Sony a6600 is (almost) a great camera for event photographers

05 Nov

Introduction

Out-of-camera JPEG.
Sony 16-55mm F2.8 G | ISO 400 | 1/250 sec | F2.8

In Eden, there is greasy pizza, hoppy beer, a DJ and a ton of hipsters (myself included). I am of course describing Eden Seattle, an event space in the city’s industrial neighborhood that was recently home to an Art Battle.

Before you ask, an Art Battle is a competitive, live-action art contest. There are a series of twenty minute rounds, with the audience voting at the end of each to decide which artists progress to the finals. At the end of it all, the paintings are auctioned off and everyone goes home happy – often a little tipsy, and possibly with a piece of rapid art under their arm.

As it turns out, the a6600 is just too darn slow

As a photographer, the challenge is to capture the fast-moving, well-lit painters as well as the atmosphere of the attentive audience in the surrounding shadows. This means constantly changing settings to properly compensate for lighting and subject movement. I needed a camera that could keep up with me, that would react instantly to my inputs, and get out of my way so I could get on with taking pictures.

Out-of-camera JPEG.
Sony 16-55mm F2.8 G | ISO 320 | 1/250 sec | F2.8

Along with a new 16-55mm F2.8 G lens, we just got the Sony a6600 into the DPReview office. We already know a lot about the image quality of the camera, and have been impressed with its autofocus system, but I wanted to see how Sony’s APS-C flagship and a high-end zoom lens (plus a couple fast primes for good measure) would cope with the fast-paced environment.

As it turns out, the a6600 is just too darn slow.

Taking the good (photos) with the bad (lag)

Processed in Adobe Camera Raw.
Sony 16-55mm F2.8 G | ISO 3200 | 1/100 sec | F2.8

Now, it’s true that the a6600 shoots ridiculously fast bursts, high-speed video, and all that. By ‘slow,’ I mean that I experienced such distinct operational lag when changing settings – lag that is noticeably worse than the company’s a7 or a9 series of full-frame cameras – that it was an incredibly frustrating tool for this type of use.

I was constantly double-checking my settings instead of focusing on my photographs

To start, here’s how I set up the camera: full manual control, with auto ISO. I did this because I wanted to make sure that the aperture stayed wide-open regardless whether I had the zoom or a prime on the camera, and I wanted to be able to quickly change the minimum shutter speed with direct dial control. I could drop to 1/60 sec for static subjects in the dark, and 1/320 sec for the properly-lit painters. But here’s where the lag comes in.

Processed and cropped slightly in Adobe Camera Raw.
Sigma 56mm F1.4 | ISO 1600 | 1/320 sec | F1.4

First, lag in the dials. If I quickly turn a dial, say, three clicks, the camera will almost always adjust my setting by three steps – but only after a small pause. That’s frustrating, but not a deal breaker.

Then, there’s a pretty pronounced lag when swapping between the electronic viewfinder and the rear screen. Again, not a deal breaker, but if I’m changing settings just before, after, or as I’m raising the camera to my eye, sometimes the camera seems to get bogged down and doesn’t catch up to the number of clicks I’ve felt the dial go through. That meant I was constantly double-checking my settings instead of focusing on my photographs.

Out-of-camera JPEG.
Sony 16-55mm F2.8 G | ISO 125 | 1/100 sec | F2.8

Then, there is a lag with the buttons. When I hit the exposure compensation button, I have to wait a beat before I can turn a dial to adjust it (and again, if the camera is swapping from EVF to LCD or vice versa, it would occasionally ignore this input altogether). And I tried assigning the rear AF/MF button to AF-ON, since I prefer back-button autofocus, but then there was a lag before autofocus initiated. It initiated much faster if I left autofocus on the shutter button.

And lastly, there’s lag if you want to use the touchscreen to move your AF point around with your eye to the finder. Sony’s Real-time tracking means I could theoretically keep my AF point in the center, alter my framing to get it over my subject, initiate tracking and recompose at will. However, I don’t want to always have to drastically alter my composition to get my focus point over my subject. But that’s what I ended up doing, because the screen lag meant I couldn’t quickly and precisely move the AF point where I wanted to.

Not a big deal, or a deal breaker?

Out-of-camera JPEG.
Sigma 56mm F1.4 | ISO 640 | 1/200 sec | F1.4

Now, it’s true that the Sony a6600 is an enthusiast camera, not a professional camera, and this sort of use-case is really pushing both what it’s capable of and could reasonably be expected to do.

But here’s the rub – there are other cameras, including the Nikon D7500, Fujifilm X-T3 and the Panasonic G9 – that I can expect to perform well in these situations. It’s not unreasonable to say that a larger sensor in an even more pro-oriented body would be even better, but at least those aforementioned cameras don’t leave me feeling as though I’m waiting for them to keep up with me.

To be fair, I can’t say that another camera would necessarily have gotten me appreciably more technical ‘keepers’: images that are in-focus, properly exposed, and so on. But what I can say is that I would have had a lot more fun, and felt a lot less frustration, and been able to focus far more on my surroundings and compositions if I didn’t have to worry about whether my shutter speed is where I wanted it to be.

Gallery

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DPReview TV: Sony a7R IV Review

02 Nov

Chris and Jordan pay a visit to friend and studio photographer Rene Michaud to test out the Sony a7R IV. Is it compelling enough to tempt a staunch DSLR shooter to switch to mirrorless? And do Canadians wear parkas indoors during the winter? These questions and more will be answered.

  • Intro
  • Rene and Brooke
  • Studio Shots
  • Shooting in daylight
  • Burst Shooting
  • Shadow Push
  • Would Rene switch?
  • Landscape and Multishot
  • Image Quality
  • Video Quality
  • Who is the a7R IV for?
  • Conclusion

Also, subscribe to our YouTube channel to get new episodes of DPReview TV every week.

Sample images from this episode

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