Focus Numerique published a new interview with Tôru Katsumoto from Sony. Those are the most interesting info (Attention: Google translation):
– “After the launch of Alpha 33 and 55, the critics were actually more positive than what we ourselves expected. In addition, we are working on new models of electronic viewfinders, much more efficient, and we therefore decided to use this type of viewfinder for our next model.”
– Will the next Fullframe model use the new electronic viewfinder? “The decision has not yet been made, especially for devices with 24×36 mm sensor. I think, one of the electronic viewfinders can even compete with the optical viewfinders of those models. But not in the near future, regarding the fact that the resolution of a 24×36 mm optical viewfinder is very high.”
– “At the end of 2010, we do not have the technology to do without the mechanical shutter.”
– Tôru says that Sony will make a high-end compact camera (a là Panasonic LX5
42 Responses
This sounds like great news.
Sony is hitting hard! Excellent! All have become lazy, lately. 🙂
Admin please check those optical-optical translations and references about viewfinders. Something is not right with text. Sounds a bit confusing! 🙂
Oooops.. You’re right. It’s a typo. Should read correctly: “I think, one of the ELECTRONIC viewfinders can even compete with the optical viewfinders of those models.”
Other important highlights:
– The megapixel race will continue between Sony and Canon. They think that they can improve everything at a time, so there’s no point in making low-mpx sensors.
– Not a chance for global shutter in year to come
– Not a chance for DNG in Alpha cameras
Sensor technology will indeed continue to evolve, but Sony have put themselves at a huge disadvantage in regards to ISO sensitivity with the SLT design.
Sony’s implementation of the pellical mirror allows for only 70% of the light to reach the sensor. When directly compared with Nikon’s or Canon’s offerings, this means that the SLT design will produce images that are either noisier or slower as you’ll need to bump the sensitivity or increase the shutter time to make up for that lost light.
They’ve produced a wonderful technology for the soccer mums out there who want to do a bit of videography and a take a few happy snaps of the kids, but they’ve really given the middle finger to the pros.
Then again, I dont really blame them for doing that as the novice shooters make up the majority of the market, and the pro sector has already been claimed by Nikon and Canon due to their lens selection and vast array of system addons.
(different Joel)
I don’t know that the disadvantage is “huge.” We’re talking 1/3 to 1/2 of a stop here. It’s hard to quantify but take the difference between ISO 800 and 1600 in the A580… the mirror accounts for less than half of that difference. This would be enough to notice but rather small at the same time.
I wouldn’t discount this camera as something video pros wouldn’t use because I think quite a few will… probably not as a primary device because of the lack of manual control but as a way of offering a different feel to the final cut and to capture some video that is impossible with any other SLR. Sony has decided that it’s all about the focus, and I don’t blame them; I’ve found maintaining good focus in action video to be exceptionally difficult.
If they just release a firmware update to add/improve the manual video controls of the A55, as well as adding more FPS modes (like 24 p), you “betcha” that the A55 will suddenly become an awesome powerhouse in that area, blowing the T2i out of the water at the same price point. Hopefully the A77 will be even better!
Well, we’ve seen the samples already Joel. There is a difference between ISO 6400 from A55 and ISO 6400 from A580, both using the same sensor, but A580 being classic-mirror DSLR, and the difference is very small, visible in fact only in dark corners. And what Sony did to SLT cameras is increased sensitivity, not longer shutter speeds as You suggested as one of the options.
So the actual results say something opposite to what You are talking about.
Mega Pixelrace just starting. For sure it is manly dependent on processor and data storage capacity. Moreover may be very high end computers which could easy handle 150Mpix 200Mb files (only 160 items in 32GB card). My i7 6GB RAM do well 24Mpix Raws, but not sure about larger.
“No global shutter for several years” – surprising weakness of CMOS tech.
If you need DNG, adobe converter is available.
“Mega Pixelrace just starting.” – Starting? It never ended! Only for some time it was only Canon racing with Canon, ROTFL. But it continues for roughly 10 years already!
“surprising weakness of CMOS tech.” – finally a chance to see the great return of CCD??? Hopefully!
G12/LX5 killer please 🙂
honestly, enough of electronic viewfinder. its bad enough we are facing computer screens most of the time, having it in the viewfinder will just make me go blind faster..plus it consumes battery..so be green and stick with optical viewfinder will you, sony?
What is DNG?
🙂
Try wiki/google. And I don’t use it so not my problem XD
DNG means Digital Negative. It’s a raw file type, which hopefully will become standard one day.
It’s Adobe idea for RAWs that supposed to become standard one day, but never will, in the same fashion Linux will never rule the home PC market (even despite I hear about this ever since ’80s).
Linux is solid in what is now the “home PC”… smartphones. Android, WebOS, and MeeGo/Maemo. Not to mention you can’t avoid linux in your home router and other embedded devices.
Open does win, but generally only in unentrenched areas. Unfortunately, proprietary camera RAW formats are pretty entrenched.
I don’t care about DNG, raw is so simple format that anyone who can wrote “hello world” program in C, can write demosaicing one.
The point of DNG is to have a standard RAW format rather than every camera having its own format. That will improve software forwards compatibility and decrease the barrier of entry for competing RAW converters/plugins. It is a good thing.
how? i mean who cares (politely)
if you are serious enough and willing to spend over 1k on your computer and you complain about the 1/3 stop of light from the slt i am willing to bet you have adobe photoshop cs3/4/5 or lightroom. and both of them have no issues with sony raw.
and if you are really serious you use a dedicated raw converter because you want optimal sharpness, and those handle sony fine too.
so i guess i just dont see the benefit to the pro-sumers and pros.
You might start by reading this:
http://bythom.com/dng.htm
This is the #1 reason:
“Many software products support DNG naturally; you don’t need a new raw converter update when a new DNG-capable camera comes out.”
It’s not true that CS3/4 have no issues with Sony Raw. Every new camera requires a new ACR update, which means you have to be on the latest version of Photoshop/LR. I upgraded from CS3 to CS5 almost entirely because I was buying a new camera (GH2, A55, or D7000, which I’ve narrowed down to the A55) and wanted to continue working in RAW with ACR.
If the A55’s native format was DNG, I wouldn’t have had to do that. I could have continued using CS3 just fine.
That’s why DNG (and really, any open standard) should be promoted.
can somebody show me a competitive between a55 and a580 to high ISO?
Why the people talk without base, you have the a580 and a560 to choose.
Hi. just look at http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM
Choose A33 and A560 at which is same sensor and u will see the difference. Choose some high ISO and u will clearly see that a560 has less noise and better colors.
Clear choice for me : OVF
Compared ISO 3200 still life between the A560 and A55, and they are basically identical. So if you’re willing to accept the A560, then the A55 is still in play.
Joel, I’m with you I cant see a difference worth commenting on. I tried an experiment getting a co-worker to randomly pick images and move them about and then I’d try and pick which image came from which camera. Nah, got a 50% average which means I was basically guessing.
I’m not saying there isnt a difference, but I do think that the differences are so small and so limited that its not something worth worrying about.
http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM
Compare Iso3200 “New Indoor (INB) 3200” between A33 and A560, if u dont see the difference maybe You are looking at thumbail. Click on it to enlarge it to 100%.
Yes, because A55 has a better sensor. And in EVF design it is degraded and performs similar to worse sensor in A560.
In my point of view of ISO performance it is roughly: A580>A560=A55>A33
That’s why I said ‘if you’re willing to accept the A560, then the A55 is still in play.’
Now I wish for DNG too! Damn!
LOL!
Its a cool and welcomed idea. No more those nasty upgrades for your favorite softwares.
That would go well with “If it aint broken, don’t fix it(upgrade it)” philosophy. Following that philosophy in PC software will bring us all some needed peace of mind. 🙂
Nice review of the a55
http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/AA55/AA55A.HTM
Particularly:
“I have to say up front that I’ve never been a fan of EVFs. While they do permit much more information overlay than conventional optical viewfinders, I’ve always felt that EVFs’ limitations have outweighed their advantages.”
and
“Bottom line, while the Sony A55’s EVF doesn’t entirely conquer the challenges of its genre, it goes further in the right direction than any other I’ve experienced to date. Most telling is that I now find myself reluctant to give up its benefits and return to world of purely optical viewfinders once again.”
And hopefully by the time the a77 it’ll even be more improved.
If onlt the 560/580 had a usable sized OVF it would be easy to just get that and wait to see what magic happened down the road. These things are smaller than the a200???!!!
Yea… it’s the only reason why I haven’t pre-ordered the A580 yet, duh…
Seriously… they could go at least with A200 sized… still small, but not THAT small. *facepalm*
Can’t wait for the next FF with OVF.
1/2～1/3 slower shutter or 1/2 ～1/3 higher ISO, to me, is unacceptable in mid-high tier SLR.
We are doing everything to squeeze the IQ, including faster lens with more money.
Maybe 5 or 10 years later, I can put it away.
You see, it’s funny, cause from the Sony press conference it looks like they made a decision of bringing A700 successor in SLT tech due to great response of testers and press. Yet they forget that what’s acceptable in entry or even mid-range, at the same time is complete nonsense in advanced camera for many people.
I agree Nikon D3x/s are not evf and never will be.One of the things that made a900 such a great camera was its 100% OVF which works great under any light and does not drain batterey. When is spend 3K on a camera body, I excpect every feature to be superior to those on mid-level bodies. There is now way a tiny LCD can do the same thing as OVF not to mention some stupid piece of glass in front of the sensor. Sony, if you ever want to be respected by photo people stick with proven basics: weatherproofing, FF, OVF, integral vertical grip, lots of buttons and switches. Also, forget about your fancy video and live view because many Pro shooters don’t need extra weight of rarely used features. I have traveled a lot these last 5 years, and I have never seen pros using live view or shooting video.
Photographers are worst when it comes to change…
If it were up to them AF would be missing to…
Lol! Resistance is futile! 🙂
has nothing to do with ´resistance´ or the introduction of AF many years ago..
sony is very good, at developing entry-level or midrange camera´s, but when it comes to high-end camera´s they just don´t get it..
prosumers and pros just have different needs, then entry-level or midrange-photo-enthusiasts, that´s all..
I always find it funny that none pros know exactly what pros want & don’t want. Lol. Don’t see any comments from pros! Also, have a look on the getdpi forums. Lots of pros using NEX. Guys, basically if you are a pro you just get on with it & choose what you need. If you are a wannabe, you are an expert on pros. ROTFL
another thing….
10 fps in combination with an EVF that can´t keep up the pace with the high framerate, is what i call: ´spray-and-pray-photography..´
and again, maybe good enough for the occasional snapshooter, but not enough for the serious photographer..
yeah right.. the pro with a canon mkIV or d3s, who for the occasionally shoots (whatever that might be??), is going to buy a nex…do you really believe that? seems you are too much infected with the sony-fan-boy syndrome..
I think lot’s of pros will be using the NEX as their “compact” camera. Thom Hogan is, for one.
What are the alternatives? m4/3, G12, P7000, LX3 all have reduced image quality and aren’t appreciably smaller.
I look forward to the day when PD AF is standard on the sensor, and I can have two bodies… a body similar in size to the A55 and another body the size of the current NEX and use all my lenses on both. Hopefully, that day is less than 5 years away.
the NEX is only compact with the 16mm pancake attached to it.. from 18-55mm and up, you´ll loose everything what was compact on the NEX.
btw, i am a freelance photographer.. and i do get paid for my work..even in my free-time i am busy making stock-photos.. my private photos are made with a canon s90 btw…