Image courtesy: Techradar
Techradar posted the A99 hands-on review. And the most interesting part is the comparison with the Nikon D600, Nikon D800 and Canon 5DmarkII. You can see it here. Let’s look at the RAW files:
1) Signal to noise ratio: The A99 is on par with the Nikon D600 while the Canon has an edge from ISO 3.200 towards.
2) Dynamic range. The A99 isn’t the best at ISO 50-100 but form 200 ISO towards it’s on top with the D700 and 5DmarkII.
Overall it looks like the A99 and D600 are damn close in their performance. Certainly the A99 holds up well with the best in this class. Now le’t see if the RX1 can beat them all! Can’t wait to see these results on techaradar soon.
More A99 tests: New A99 test by Yodobashi (translation here). A99 video by SAR reader Baron (on vimeo). New image samples by Frank Doorhof.
A99 Cyber Monday deals: Free 32inch HDTV on every A99 purchase! Check out the deal at AlphaCameraDeals (Click here). In UK you will get 15% off on sony.co.uk (A99 = 1952£). By entering the voucher code SONYBF10 at the checkout you’ll get 15% off TVs, HiFi, cameras and Handycams. There is also a small $54 price drop via [shoplink 15618 ebay]BigValue on eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]. And login and set your A99 search on Slidoo to get notified one Bay price drops and deals.
A99 store links: Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Jessops, Wex UK, Wex Germany, Sonystore DE–UK–FR–IT–ES–NL–SE–FI–CH and more links at Alphacameradeals.
30 Responses
Amazing performance!! I can verify this in the field having now shot 3 weddings with the A99. It is comfortably beating my D700 for both detail, noise, dynamic range and tonal performance and holds it’s own beautifully against the 5D III, with significantly better dynamic range (no blown highlights where 5D III does in the same situation). Looks like that SLT mirror won’t matter so much after all. Bring on the DXOMark.
The A99 can certainly take on the likes of a D700 but Techradar results are always a joke. Their spiky graphs and non linear results in general should raise all kinds of red flags. Not a good predictor for DXOmark results at all, despite their use of DXO software. It’s most likely their input that is a mess.
In this case it does confirm my feeling that Noise is less at 3200 than at 1600 ISO. Saw this with other models of Sony as well (A77) at least in part of the shots. Not a problem, and overall performance is very good (better than I expected before the A99 came out).
Hi Troj, I agree and make of it what you will but there are those who prefer Tech Radar when it suits them (5D III owners mainly) and those that prefer DXOMark (Nikon Owners) either way we can expect with the superior electronics and same sensor that the gap with the D600 will be very small and probably only on ISO performance, I expect color depth to be higher, DR about the same.
DxO mark is not biased towards Nikon. Other sites confirm that Canon’s manufacturing of sensors has kept the same technology for a while, unchanged, which gave it bigger margins when sourcing and manufacturing sensor waffers. Sony and Nikon, on the other hand, have constantly changed their manufacturing focusing on small improvements disregarding the economies of scale in keeping the same nm densitiy.
There was once a great link on Canon 5D3 vs Nikon D800 on dynamic range which showed the shortcomings of Canon’s aging sensor tech. Mind that I am not saying they do not have the technology to challenge Sony/Nikon, but perhaps management has decided to not increase manufacturing costs and keep the same production lines.
It’s easy to miss the more important part of this test. First, they’re all close enough that it just doesn’t matter, all three brands are making cameras that can shoot excellent, low-noise, high-dynamic range images…probably time to quit OVER-examining and consider things like features (Sony KILLS Canon and Nikon on usability, on Live View alone.)
But if you’re going to compare these fine details of image quality, you have to read the data right. The a99 does BETTER above ISO 3200 in JPEG than they have it doing in RAW. In fact, the JPEG performance at ISO 6400 is close enough to the Canon shooting RAW for the difference not to matter much.
That tells me two things….ONE, Sony’s JPEG processing engine is BETTER than the other two players…quite a bit actually, and good enough that you don’t have to shoot RAW at all.
But it also means that TECHRADAR doesn’t have the right RAW workflow Sony….if they did, the noise situation would IMPROVE from JPEG to RAW, at least a tiny bit, NOT worsen.
It should be great news for Sony users….with Live View you don’t have exposure mistakes or white balance issues and the JPEG is on par with with Canikon’s RAW files on noise…..NO reason left to shoot RAW with a SONY!
Techradar test measurments seem to be very inacurate because 5D MK III does not have the dynamic range of any of the other cameras (supported by DxO, who have a more solid methodology) so I would take everything they say with a big grain (or three) of salt.
A99 may be equal than other Nikon cameras, I have no doubt, but no way the Canon has the dynamic range and noise signature they speak of in the comparison. It looks as if Techradar was sponsored by Canon or their tests are performed by dickless monkeys.
In the real world http://www.fredmiranda.com/5DIII-D800/index_controlled-tests.html
I guess this one http://www.chipworks.com/blog/technologyblog/2012/10/24/full-frame-dslr-cameras-canon-stays-the-course/
Can i say the title is misleading? Can I say it is on par when in RAW?
What a BS!
The Nikon D800 and D600 absolutely whooped the 5D MkIII in DXOMark in terms of both ISO and DR.
The question is whether you trust a company that specialises in camera testing, or a jack-of-all-trades geek tech site.
How about trusting the photographs? Instead of numbers and numbers alone?
Cause on a photographs from what I can tell: Nikons hardly “whoop” 5D MkIII all across the board as DxO suggests.
They do in terms of DR in RAW files, clearly visible too. The DXOmark results however suggest that they are very close in terms of SNR (no whooping…) which again matches practical results from their respective RAW files.
Sky_walker, you missed my point. I’m sure photographs look very decent on all of the cameras in the real world – any modern FF sensor can take high quality images – but that does nothing to explain how Techradar managed to get very different results to DXOMark. Techradar have the Canon coming out easily on top in SNR results at high ISO, and the dynamic range results are much closer than DXO suggests.
You may not be interested in just numbers (neither am I), but those numbers translate to real world usage.
Fredmiranda, digilloyd, and many others have confirmed the Sony sensor advantage over the canon sensor in real photographs. The DXO results are real. Techradar’s results are a joke as always. You can google the comparisons in real photographs for yourself.
Whatever the quality of Techradar’s tests, vis-a-vis DXO, I am increasingly getting the feeling that the A99 has effectively closed the gap with Nikon cameras with the same or very similar sensors. I believe that Popular Photography, in their cover article on the the A99 (just a hands-on report) implied that they believed their tests of the A99 would prove to be very good indeed. Moreover, I am amazed at how few complaints I am seeing about the A99’s performance from people who have actually used the camera.
As a canon guy as well, I can be honest and say I don’t believe this chart :/ if they put the 5d mark 2 it does have better ISO performance than the 5d mk III , then. Ok, I like the a99 for movies for the reason when it actually goes into the right hands (that video with Phillip bloom with rx1) it’s hard to explain but the video life is incredible and that’s i want the a99!!’
As a canon guy as well, I can be honest and say I don’t believe this chart :/ if they put the 5d mark 2 it does have better ISO performance than the 5d mk III , then this make a chart I have belief in. Ok, I like the a99 for movies for the reason when it actually goes into the right hands (that video with Phillip bloom with rx1) it’s hard to explain but the video life is incredible and that’s i want the a99!!’
In short, this canon guy who loves Sony would say this some baloney’
Uhg damn iPhone, I meant to say. I do not believe or agree with this chart!!
I use the eye test in my methodology and I have seen crap from the A99, A900, 5D3, 1DX, D800, D4, and medium format. And I have seen awesome results from a pay-per-use cellular phone. There just happens to be an over-abundance of crap from cell phones and I’ve seen brilliant shots from the expensive bodies. There are 2-3 types of shots the A99/A77 can get the others can’t or they can get those shots much cheaper. There are 2-3 shots the Nikon and/or Canon bodies can get their competition can’t or they can get those shots much cheaper. Anyone in the full-frame market who hasn’t already made their bed is mistaken if they don’t look into these facts before they make a purchase. It is very costly to switch after the fact.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ill-padrino/8207319515/
photos like that from that a99 on flickr makes me want it even more >.<
I must be true, there’s a graph!
Wait until it’s printed! Then it’s even more true 😉
More over, the A99 shows a very impressive performance within the important ISO range of 50 to 3200. In this relevant ISO range the A99 is on par with all major competitors. No one really shoot at higher ISO levels to expect stunning useful results!
Yes but the comparison doesn’t look so good when compared to the flagship D800, the D600 is the cheap Nikon which reflects less glowingly on the A99 if thats where the comparative benchmark is now being set. Low ISO results are what count if the camera is being used on a tripod for studio or outdoors work. Sony needs a D800 killer, from all reports it has the technology and the sensor in the D800 is Sony – so why havent they done it?
“Overall it looks like the A99 and D600 are damn close in their performance”
Thats o.k.
But, the D600 is for 2000€, the A99 for 3000€
You can’t compare D600 to the A99 on price alone…
A99 is a far more professional camera than the D600.
1/4000 shutter and slower flash sync = D600.
The A99 has lots more features and better weather sealing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CPeVlfLNAg
this guy had the every new full frame camera in his hands, and pretty much didn’t shoot anything great or outstanding, its really about how well the tool fits in the hands of a great mechanic, for me I see the sony a99 being a great video / photography camera from my 5d mkii , I just want two spectrums of different quality and representation’s that I believe spit out great art.
the nikon just doesn’t do it for me at the moment :/
At the end it is about the quality of the picture and video performance of the camera. And mannnnnn the Sony A99 is STUNNING. In photos and in video. I came from Nikon for over 6 years. Sony is superior in dynamics and analogue feel.I want the maximum in emotion for my video and photos. The Sony A99 is the only one who now can give the thing I really want.