The Amazing Sony A1/A7/A9/APS-C & Anything else welcome Mega Thread!

I don't think electronic shutter is anything that bothers me right now.
I never use mechanical anymore, having an electronic shutter that works for everything is a godsend for me (y)
 
Lol.

Joking aside the Sony lineup made sense, until the A1 came out.

A7 "entry level" all rounder - makes sense
A7R high res model - makes sense
A7S video model - makes sense for videographers
A9 - High performing sports model - makes sense.
A1 - High res high performance sports cam - Kind of made sense at the time but now I question where the A9 fits in.

If the rumoured A9iii is true then performance wise it needs to be at least on par, or surpass the A1 for it to be a meaningful upgrade over the A9ii but this will then likely take sales away from the A1, especially for sports togs who do not need hi res and would prefer the smaller files.

If the A1 is to run parallel to the A9 as a high res version of the A9 (similar to the A7 and A7R) then it's a heft premium just for a bit more res :thinking:

If the A9iii is on the cards for me it's got to have the latest AF AI (or maybe a new version), better EVF, better LCD (included the new fangled vari-angle and tilt), lossless compression, and better slow shutter panning with the EVF, i.e. little to know slideshow effect. Oh, faster readout time too so the electronic shutter can be used with flash.
Yeah but there’s about 11-12 models available to buy, they don’t really discontinue the older ones, way too many. Other manufacturers tend to retire older models so eventually prices on newer technology drops a bit. Sony just go up, they will hit a point where people consider it’s taking the p***.
 
I never use mechanical anymore, having an electronic shutter that works for everything is a godsend for me (y)

I use the electronic shutter with MFT cameras and would only switch to mechanical under flickering artificial lighting. Some say that the electronic shutter can change the bokeh at wide apertures but I can't say I've ever seen any real effect and rolling shutter isn't an issue for me so that leaves banding as the only issue.
 
I use silent/electronic shutter on my A7III where silence is important, but otherwise prefer the better performance of mechanical shutter.
 
What's the better performance?

Wider dynamic range (so I've read) and none of the rolling shutter effects.

As an aside, I find it easy to spray a lot more in silent shutter - the sound and sensation of taking a picture help me to not keep mashing the release.
 
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Wider dynamic range (so I've read) and none of the rolling shutter effects.

I've not noticed any DR effects with MFT. Not saying DR and bokeh aren't affected by the electronic shutter it's just that I've never seen anything that's struck me as an effect. Rolling shutter might affect me less than once a year but like banding it's something that we should be aware of and we should switch to mechanical if we think it;s going to be an issue.
 
Yeah but there’s about 11-12 models available to buy, they don’t really discontinue the older ones, way too many. Other manufacturers tend to retire older models so eventually prices on newer technology drops a bit. Sony just go up, they will hit a point where people consider it’s taking the p***.
I don’t understand why they don’t retire the older models either. Maybe keep the last one running for 6 months or so and then stop them
I use the electronic shutter with MFT cameras and would only switch to mechanical under flickering artificial lighting. Some say that the electronic shutter can change the bokeh at wide apertures but I can't say I've ever seen any real effect and rolling shutter isn't an issue for me so that leaves banding as the only issue.
Electronic shutter doesn’t change bokeh AFAIK, the issue arises when you use electronic first curtain. This is because you have two different shutters at slightly different focal planes.
I use silent/electronic shutter on my A7III where silence is important, but otherwise prefer the better performance of mechanical shutter.

Wider dynamic range (so I've read) and none of the rolling shutter effects.

As an aside, I find it easy to spray a lot more in silent shutter - the sound and sensation of taking a picture help me to not keep mashing the release.
I’ve read about DR differences but the charts on photons to photos seems to disagree with this.

Since changing the colour of the flashing box when shooting in burst mode to something much more visible I no longer take too many shots (y)

CC97495E-4182-4E3C-967B-EB467C90FF20.jpeg
 
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As it's quiet...

These were taken with my Nippon Kogaku 24mm f2.8. It's a lovely lens and built like a tank but is susceptible to flare, as some old lenses can be. I've just reprocessed these in PS2022,

mvCMnK2.jpg


hn9dXOg.jpg


I took that 24mm and the NK 50mm f2 out as a set a few times. This was taken with the 50mm f2.

qVCjGGB.jpg
 
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I’ve read about DR differences but the charts on photons to photos seems to disagree with this.

Since changing the colour of the flashing box when shooting in burst mode to something much more visible I no longer take too many shots (y)

View attachment 376973

Depends on the camera and also the brand.
For example have a look at different in dynamic range on the R5 ;)
 
I don’t understand why they don’t retire the older models either. Maybe keep the last one running for 6 months or so and then stop them
It means Sony can offer a much wider range of price points without having to produce additional cameras, the A7II with 28-70mm seems to have been popular as a budget choice coming in much cheaper than the newer models and still offering great image quality so it offers a route into FF for many more people without having to buy second hand. Looking at the RX100 the current mk7 is over £1,000 which is going to be far too much for many people who may also not benefit from the high speed stacked sensor or the long lens however by offering the old RX100mk3 as well it offers people a much cheaper option under £500 with the shorter zoom but faster lens and still the benefits of an EVF and the 1in sensor. They are quicker to retire some old cameras like the A9mk1 so I think the older cameras that they keep selling do make sense.

On a different note entirely, does anyone here use an APS-C camera as a pocket camera? (I'm thinking jacket pocket rather than trouser pocket) I wan to use my phone less for photos and was toying with buying an RX100M6 until I realised it won't work with my older version of Lightroom (I know this is a problem I have to face at some point) so was thinking of getting the RX100mk4 back out but was looking at an old Nex-6 and 16-50mm I have and thinking that would fit in a jacket pocket. The A6500s aren't a bad price second hand now so while the 16-50mm isn't a great lens optically, it would still be quite a capable little setup if I could carry it with me all the time.
 
Yeah but there’s about 11-12 models available to buy, they don’t really discontinue the older ones, way too many. Other manufacturers tend to retire older models so eventually prices on newer technology drops a bit. Sony just go up, they will hit a point where people consider it’s taking the p***.
That's not entirely the case. The street price of the older models does drop despite being on sales many years after release.

I guess they keep them around to offer a cheaper alternative instead of releasing/developing a cheaper lineup of cameras.
 
On a different note entirely, does anyone here use an APS-C camera as a pocket camera? (I'm thinking jacket pocket rather than trouser pocket) I wan to use my phone less for photos and was toying with buying an RX100M6 until I realised it won't work with my older version of Lightroom (I know this is a problem I have to face at some point) so was thinking of getting the RX100mk4 back out but was looking at an old Nex-6 and 16-50mm I have and thinking that would fit in a jacket pocket. The A6500s aren't a bad price second hand now so while the 16-50mm isn't a great lens optically, it would still be quite a capable little setup if I could carry it with me all the time.

I have a ZVE10 which is a cracking little camera, apart from no minimum shutter in Auto ISO and no EVF. Coupled with the 16-50 and Samyang 45mm 1.8 it’s a decent little camera
 
Depends on the camera and also the brand.
For example have a look at different in dynamic range on the R5 ;)
Wow, shocking. I’d only looked at the two Sony ones they’ve done. Unfortunately they’ve not done the A9II but as the A9 shows the same traits add the A73 above I’d expect the A9II to be the same.
 
On a different note entirely, does anyone here use an APS-C camera as a pocket camera? (I'm thinking jacket pocket rather than trouser pocket) I wan to use my phone less for photos and was toying with buying an RX100M6 until I realised it won't work with my older version of Lightroom (I know this is a problem I have to face at some point) so was thinking of getting the RX100mk4 back out but was looking at an old Nex-6 and 16-50mm I have and thinking that would fit in a jacket pocket. The A6500s aren't a bad price second hand now so while the 16-50mm isn't a great lens optically, it would still be quite a capable little setup if I could carry it with me all the time.

I have a Fuji X100f which fits in the inside pocket of my lighter summer jacket, longways down. My RF style MFT cameras fit in too but because of the different sizes and shapes the MFT cameras and lenses they tend to tumble in the pocket and become uncomfortable whereas the Fuji remains upright. So, size and shape and tendency to tumble or not could be issues.
 
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Wow, shocking. I’d only looked at the two Sony ones they’ve done. Unfortunately they’ve not done the A9II but as the A9 shows the same traits add the A73 above I’d expect the A9II to be the same.

Canon seems trade off dynamic range for being able to shoot at 20-40fps. Sony don't seem want to make that trade off.

With a stacked sensor you get the best of both worlds.
 
Merry Christmas All :)

Hope a good day is had by everyone. And the weather dries up for some photography later on :ROFLMAO:
Thanks, no photography for me today ;) And nothing photography related from Santa either :eek:
 
Nothing photo related either.

But Boxing Day sunrise is looking about the best (driest and less windy) for about the next week!
Rain all week for us :rolleyes:
 
From the rumor site... The A7RV gets good reviews...



Spending £4k on a camera would need a bit of mental adjustment for me though but I suppose it's the going rate for a top end FF camera and might even seem cheap once adjusted for inflation and compared to the top end stuff from years ago? Maybe?
 
The most i have spent on a body is £2.5k (5Dmk4)...it's actually not that long ago at 2017. I thought it was longer than that.
 
...

On a different note entirely, does anyone here use an APS-C camera as a pocket camera? (I'm thinking jacket pocket rather than trouser pocket) I wan to use my phone less for photos and was toying with buying an RX100M6 until I realised it won't work with my older version of Lightroom (I know this is a problem I have to face at some point) so was thinking of getting the RX100mk4 back out but was looking at an old Nex-6 and 16-50mm I have and thinking that would fit in a jacket pocket. The A6500s aren't a bad price second hand now so while the 16-50mm isn't a great lens optically, it would still be quite a capable little setup if I could carry it with me all the time.

I have an A6000 as my travel camera - as you mention, with the 16-50 it will fit in a coat pocket, and when I tried a few of the smaller cameras at the time (mainly Sony RX100), I found they were too small for me to comfortably use.
I have my A6000 in a small shoulder bag - it fits the A6000 with 16-60, 55-210, 35 & 50 f/1.8 OSS primes, a couple of spare batteries (essential!), lens cloth, etc.
It's a great little setup in terms of what I can shoot given the size (and cost).
 
From the rumor site... The A7RV gets good reviews...



Spending £4k on a camera would need a bit of mental adjustment for me though but I suppose it's the going rate for a top end FF camera and might even seem cheap once adjusted for inflation and compared to the top end stuff from years ago? Maybe?

The most i have spent on a body is £2.5k (5Dmk4)...it's actually not that long ago at 2017. I thought it was longer than that.

You both have moved a cog with those posts......

There's me, better off now than I was in 2010 still using the old A7. But back then I spent maybe a touch over £2000 on a 5D2 kit!!

:ROFLMAO:
 
Spending £4k on a camera would need a bit of mental adjustment for me though but I suppose it's the going rate for a top end FF camera and might even seem cheap once adjusted for inflation and compared to the top end stuff from years ago? Maybe?
I wouldn't have an issue spending it, if I had the money and didn't need it elsewhere (y)
 
I'm in the fortunate position I have money to spend to cameras (mostly because I don't tend to spend much elsewhere) but the higher the cost, the more I have to be sure it's going to be worth it for my use. I've had ups and downs with camera equipment over the years and some cameras or lenses have been absolutely fantastic buys worth every penny but others have been a complete waste for me. The A9 is my most expensive camera and I'd bought it when upset about my Dad's illness becoming a lot worse so why not enjoy my time, not a good idea I know but it's been fantastic, my puppy is now 18 months old and I have so many superb action photos of him growing up that I will never be able to get again. Even just the other day he met with one of his best friends for a play and I have lots of great shots of the two playing together that I will treasure.

I enjoy taking photos at the time but over time they become more special for me which all makes the money spent worthwhile.
 
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The most i have spent on a body is £2.5k (5Dmk4)...it's actually not that long ago at 2017. I thought it was longer than that.
You both have moved a cog with those posts......

There's me, better off now than I was in 2010 still using the old A7. But back then I spent maybe a touch over £2000 on a 5D2 kit!!

:ROFLMAO:
I wouldn't have an issue spending it, if I had the money and didn't need it elsewhere (y)

I've just looked at my account at Wex and on 8th November 2013 I spent £1,549 on the A7 and 28-70mm f3.5-5.6. That's still the most I've spent on a camera.

I was always brought up to be careful with money and it's hard to get out of that mentality although I have spent an eye watering amount on cars and at one time I bought and changed cars like some people do cameras and lenses. Cars have been my only weakness and although I have too much photography kit it doesn't scratch the surface of what I've spent on cars. Recent troubles in my family have lead me to thinking that I/we should spend as we want but being more careful is a difficult mindset to get out of. Just yesterday when washing up I was hoping the supermarket would get some more of their bargain price but still good washing up liquid in stock as I'm down to my last bottle and then I thought "Hang on, why am I trying to save 10p on a bottle of washing up liquid?"
 
I've just looked at my account at Wex and on 8th November 2013 I spent £1,549 on the A7 and 28-70mm f3.5-5.6. That's still the most I've spent on a camera.

I was always brought up to be careful with money and it's hard to get out of that mentality although I have spent an eye watering amount on cars and at one time I bought and changed cars like some people do cameras and lenses. Cars have been my only weakness and although I have too much photography kit it doesn't scratch the surface of what I've spent on cars. Recent troubles in my family have lead me to thinking that I/we should spend as we want but being more careful is a difficult mindset to get out of. Just yesterday when washing up I was hoping the supermarket would get some more of their bargain price but still good washing up liquid in stock as I'm down to my last bottle and then I thought "Hang on, why am I trying to save 10p on a bottle of washing up liquid?"

I think I spent about £550ish on the A7 in early 2015.

I'm more of a "justify" person really. The Ford Focus I've got does what I want it to do. Reasonably cheap to run considering. I can drive through the Bristol and Bath clean air zones..... £3.5k 5½ years ago....... I've got a mate who pays over £600 a month to drive 4 miles each way to work in a V8 F-Pace Jag. My tax and insurance and MOT is less than £600 a year.....

Same as a new camera. I shoot static stuff, usually on a tripod. I don't really need anything newer. Maybe in a few years when I've got grand children running around etc things might be different though :)
 
I think I spent about £550ish on the A7 in early 2015.

I'm more of a "justify" person really. The Ford Focus I've got does what I want it to do. Reasonably cheap to run considering. I can drive through the Bristol and Bath clean air zones..... £3.5k 5½ years ago....... I've got a mate who pays over £600 a month to drive 4 miles each way to work in a V8 F-Pace Jag. My tax and insurance and MOT is less than £600 a year.....

Same as a new camera. I shoot static stuff, usually on a tripod. I don't really need anything newer. Maybe in a few years when I've got grand children running around etc things might be different though :)
All depends on your likes, wants and priorities I guess. I only do about 7000 miles/year these days but I still like a nice car, I’d rather do this than spend £50-60 down the pub, or buy a designer t-shirt for £60. I’m not at all saying there’s anything wrong with either, it’s just a question of where the individual wants to spend their money.

What does irk me though is when people say things like “you obviously charge too much if you drive a car like that” or something. What’s funny about it is that it wasn’t even that expensive (in car terms) at £21k
 
All depends on your likes, wants and priorities I guess. I only do about 7000 miles/year these days but I still like a nice car, I’d rather do this than spend £50-60 down the pub, or buy a designer t-shirt for £60. I’m not at all saying there’s anything wrong with either, it’s just a question of where the individual wants to spend their money.

What does irk me though is when people say things like “you obviously charge too much if you drive a car like that” or something. What’s funny about it is that it wasn’t even that expensive (in car terms) at £21k

Yes. Very true.

I guess I'd rather have a weekend away every month instead of paying that much to drive to work.

Horses for courses :)
 
Same as a new camera. I shoot static stuff, usually on a tripod. I don't really need anything newer. Maybe in a few years when I've got grand children running around etc things might be different though :)

My A7 will be 10 years old next year so I suppose the chances of a failure are increasing plus whatever it's covered with is bubbling. Nothing has gone sticky though, my Panasonic G1 went sticky. If and when it does fail I suppose an A7III is the obvious replacement.

I can't remember when I last got my MX5 out. It's due and MoT and a service soon so I will be out in it.
 
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What does irk me though is when people say things like “you obviously charge too much if you drive a car like that” or something. What’s funny about it is that it wasn’t even that expensive (in car terms) at £21k

I used to get comments about the two seat sports cars I had but people forget that upper end more ordinary cars can cost as much or maybe more.
 
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