SAR note: This is a guest post by Patrick Murphy-Racey. If you wnat to write an article for SAR contact me (Andrea) at sonyalpharumors@gmail.com. Thanks!
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Mirror-less is More… Guest post by Patrick Murphy-Racey
I’m a convert to Sony, having shot Nikon & Canon my entire career as a photojournalist. I’m a recovering Sports Illustrated photographer that got into Sony through the A99V and Samyang glass strictly for shooting video. Sony afforded me many options not even thought about yet like EVF in a full-frame body, articulated LCD, focus peaking, balanced audio option, and the small & compact size that allows me to fly with very little and still keep my production value high. I recently acquired the A7 for its 60P capability with full manual control. On a whim, I also picked up the RX-10 because it just looked cool and seemed perfect for a budget super-wide to stick on jib-arms, sliders, and to attach to things for POV shots. Put simply, if the RX10 only shot video and cost twice as much as it does, it would still have almost no rival and be a great value. That it also makes fantastic stills is a huge bonus.
This image came from an assignment I shot up in Chicago in the first week I had the RX10. I was shooting all day at this law school and in the afternoon after I was all packed up and ready to head home, I got a call about shooting a quick portrait of four people. One of them had to catch a plane and I was told I had about ten minutes to pull something together. I remembered seeing the frosted lettering in the lobby area commons and how you could see right into “the loop” from that place. I also knew there was plenty of window light there so off I went in a big hurry. I had my A7 and a bunch of Nikon glass that I could have used with the metabones adapter, but then I realized every lens I had was duplicated in the RX10 and I thought, “let’s just travel light and go!” And go we did with this as the result:
I have been talking about the RX10 on my Facebook over the last few months and I have had a lot of photographer friends call me to ask me about more details when they see the images I’m producing with it. I got so many of these calls that I finally made up this joke to offer them:
So, three photographers are sitting in a bar. One says, “let’s use our imaginations and dream up the greatest camera ever! OK, it should be small, and lightweight,” the first says. “It should have a fast lens, at least f/2.8,” says another. “It should do great video and have built in image stabilization.” Another chimes in, “it should be able to shoot 60P, allow complete manual control of exposure and have a de-clicked aperture ring right on the lens.” It should be able take real microphones and have on-board phantom power from the camera.” “Yeah, and have a headphone jack so you can hear if there is a problem with audio before it’s too late,” says the first one. “I want it to shoot ten frames per second and make NO noise (laughter from around the table).” “The battery should last a long time and allow copious chimping throughout the day (chuckles).” “It should have a built-in ND filter so you could shoot wide open in bright sunlight for both video as well as stills. And it should sync flash at 1/1000th so you don’t have to take real lights and you could just use a small flash for portraits.” “OK, if we’re going crazy, it should have a Carl Zeiss lens on it and zoom from 24-200mm and keep the same aperture (more laughter).” “If you are going that far, you should be able to click one button and be able to send the image to your phone and onto the bride’s Facebook right from an assignment.” “One last thing, I want to be able to shoot squares like the old Hasselblads, 2:3, 4:3 for 8×10’s, and 16:9 for landscape and do in camera tilt-shift effects I can control.” Everyone is laughing now. When things quiet down a bit, the one who started the whole thing says, giggling, “All this for just $1298.” Everyone screams laughing and one falls out of the chair…
At this point, RX10 goes wherever I go, even when I take the heavier Nikons. Between the OSS on the RX10 and Adobe Premiere’s “warp stabilizer,” my Steady-Cam doesn’t get much use these days, but it’s OK as the vest always made me sweat anyways. Sony is way out ahead in almost everything regarding shooting stills and video. I’m very excited to see the new A7s with a hopefully a more quiet shutter in the future…
A friend of mine called me a couple weeks ago in a jam. He had hired a second photographer to shoot a wedding with him and just a few days before, he backed out. His contract with the bride specified two shooters. He called me and asked if I could help him out.
This is a good guy and so I agreed and the next day I headed towards Chattanooga on my motorcycle. It was a gorgeous day, and riding on the twisties to get to this barn in the countryside was pure joy. Because I elected to take the bike rather than my car, here is what I brought with me:
1-Sony RX10
2-extra batteries (only used one)
1-8′ light stand
1-small Chimera light bank
1-Yongnuo 560II flash
1-set of Yongnuo radio remotes
1-good attitude, open mind, & rain gear just in case
Weddings are usually fairly stressful affairs with lots of cooks in the soup each with their own needs, emergencies that need plans, fires to put out, personalities to learn, and the pressure is always there to produce excellent work, capture the right moments, and do a good job for nice people.
When you are the second shooter covering a wedding, it’s a nearly stress-free situation. I could just concentrate on making nice images knowing that my buddy Mike was pulling the weight and dragging the gear. I had virtually no weight, and carried the RX10 all day. I had a “big time” as they say down here in East Tennessee. I made a few nice images and have no regrets about leaving the D4S that I bought the week prior at home. If I brought that to shoot, I would have had to have brought the two zooms and the weight of all that would have equaled OVER 4- RX10’s. Put another way, the total weight of the Nikon and two zooms would be 8.1 lb.. The RX-10 weighs just 1.8 lb.. Another comparison is really out there: Retail price on the Nikon stuff that would go from 24-200mm at f/2.8 is $10,300 vs. $1298 for a new RX10. Think about that! Here is a short video that I made which includes both stills and video that I captured with my RX10 and all hand-held: http://vimeo.com/90119636
In another recent shoot my subject was a bank president outside and show their corporate building in the background. The time for the shoot was not ideal: 1pm when the light is pretty much at its worst. I found a nice spot across the street in the shade, and was in a Hasselblad mood so I selected 1:1 on the RX10, and shot square. I was able to sync flash way up high and engaged the internal ND filter so I could shoot wide open. The combination of 80 ISO, NF filter, and the high sync speed allowed me to underexpose the blue sky and really make the woman stand out. Elapsed time for the whole shoot, you ask? About 3 minutes. It would have taken less time but the RX10 was set for 10 fps and it took me a while to find the right menu to get back to single frame the rest of the assignment. When you shoot with strobes outside, it can be really hard to see the LCD on the back of the camera. Not so with the RX10 as it was showing me what I was shooting as I was shooting each frame immediately after each pop of my little flash. I never had to even take my eye from the viewfinder.
OK, so the RX10 isn’t perfect as it only has a 1″ sensor, which is slightly smaller than APS-C, but the ability to shoot in bright sunlight with a low ISO and the ND filter means you can shoot at f/2.8 on the side of a glacier at noon. But it gives me excited pause for what its replacement might be. A 4K version of the Rx10 would be an amazing asset to many videographers, especially if it was capable of 60P at 4K!!! With the smaller sensor size, I wonder if Sony could pull that off. My Sony A6000 ha been pre-ordered and I’m excited to test with that new camera with it’s new sensor as well. The A6000 at $650 just might just be faster than your 1Dx or D4s. The videos that amateurs and camera store employees have posted are downright scary. My point is that as the Cold War rages one, white vs. black, Sony, Panasonic, Olympus, and Fuji are all working hard on the technology that we will all use in the immediate future. EVF’s are here to say and while I never thought I’d say it, they are better. The fact that Sony has elected to put over 2M pixels into the new A7s’s viewfinder is staggering. It should increase by double the ability to find sharp focus with fast lenses of any make.
Last week I used the RX1o on a cool assignment to shoot four Marines who will become JAG Corps. lawyers upon graduation from school. I started out lighting the flag which was pretty involved. The stars required a separate light as the blue was so dark next to the stripes; this required an additional head with a grid-spot to concentrate the light into just the blue area. Each Marine got their own 5 degree grid-spot to create the dramatic light, and each from a slightly different direction. It was a huge room that is actually a volleyball court most days, and we needed every square foot of it to make this image happen. Finally, the guys were patient and let us do our thing. I ended up shooting this on the Sony RX10 as it afforded me the depth of field with it’s 1″ sensor to carry focus through all four guys and still shoot wide open at f/2.8 with the internal ND filter on.
It’s tougher and tougher to find clients that are willing to pay for photographs like this one. I had a pick-up truck full of lighting equipment on hand. In the course of the 45 min. shoot, I used around $14,000 worth of Elinchrom strobes, light modifiers, and grip equipment. There was a total of 7 heads used to shoot the photograph here and an additional head for head-shots and portraits we also did at the same time. I started to shoot this image with the A7 and 55mm f/1.8 which is razor sharp but I could not carry the depth I needed for how I placed the Marines so the RX10 was an easy answer, once again. $14K in lighting to shoot an image with a $1200 camera; I like that ratio. It was a fun day and I’m happy with the picture. I know the guys are:
Things are really getting interesting right now and Sony seems to be able to respond at breakneck speed in developing new products that are all logarithmically better than the last generation from just a few months ago. All in all, I hope the “big two” wake up and smell this EVF coffee. Sony’s Java is tasting mighty fine to me while the “big two’s” cups are virtually empty. Sony’s lineup is really looking good right now with all kinds of possibility. They need to put out a whole lot more glass if the E mount cameras are going to really have a chance to take off. And they need to make Sony lenses for the A7 series and not just the pricey Zeiss versions—real photographers are having a hard time making a living these days. We need more glass that is reasonably priced as well as the high end faster versions of EVERYTHING. My wish list for E mount is pretty simple: I want a 135mm f/2 or 1.8, 90mm f/2, 35 f/2, a true 100-150mm macro at f/2.8 or 3.5, & a 14-24mm f/4 zoom to rival Nikon’s.
There are a lot of ways to spell Mirror-less but for my money, S-O-N-Y is how I choose to do so. The Panny stuff is awesome for video but is that crazy 4/3rds that I just can’t get my mind around when all I shoot is 16:9. The Fuji stuff right now is really hot for stills especially among my recovering newspaper peeps but the video is lack luster. Sony is also HUGE and has been a leader in the video biz forever. I feel like I’m right where I need to be, at least for now. I need some more work to start saving cash for the A7s so if any of you have work you could send my way, I’m al ears.
0 Responses
1st blood 🙂
That’s a great sales pitch for the RX10. I’m an A77 owner and I’ve been looking for a carry around camera for some months. My choices are between the A6000 but it means spending money on lenses, the new RX100 mk3 and the RX10. I started out in photography with the Sony F717 and loved it and reading this article the RX10 has just gone to the top of my wish list. I miss just picking up a camera and shooting without changing lenses.
Then the RX10 should be at the top of your list, it is an utterly brilliant camera that a lot of people don’t seem to ‘get’. It just has everything in the one body, no swapping anything just pick up and shoot and it tackles most things brilliantly. Hell in low light I think it’s cleaner than the A65/A77 and others who’ve used both agree.
It is an amazing camera… Just needs a few more people to stop looking down their noses at the ‘small’ sensor.
a6k + 16-50 + 55-210 is about the same price as rx10.
And mostly not as good as the RX10.
Why? I’m new to photography and am interested in learning. Insight would be great. TIA
I do not want to do more tahn GET BEST A MANUFACTURE CAN…
so dont make this oldfashioned idiotic marketing somebody must convert..ore so.
WE DO NOT HAVE 10 bit for everybody the codec is worde and so the
Manufacture can bring us the blinki brinki show for 2015 2016 and so on.
And this si for all. That a rx-10 in comon is a small and afordable red scarlet
( if would put it close is other hand)-but why this limmitations with new chip?
hm?
Not to be to close to a F5, and so we get the show and so on.
In 3 Months this cam will be called rx-102 and oh wounder now it is a 499,-$
machine and so on. To end. yes it is the best Sony can do for you with normal
baragin- sipmle rx-10 F5 nothing between you sghould take any more..
What the f#©k is your problem, man? Still recovering from an hangover? LOL 😀
What a “grammar/spelling-fail” post… LOL
Canon’s marketing department on crack. SSDD.
Obviously the same fart-smeller who posts Canon’s “marketing” trash here everyday. He always refers to “marketing” . . . then proceeds to nag and niggle, sh*t and giggle, flame and troll till his eyeballs roll . . . postures as many yet all with one goal, . . . to turn this forum into his own as$hole.
He probably speaks and writes multiple languages while you smoked joints and drank Jim Beam in back of some crappy highschool while skipping class only to find later in life you have the vocabulary of a fourth grader.
I’m an italian native speaker, sorry if my language is not so “up to speed”. I’m fluent in French, English, Norwegian and Swedish.
And now?
If you were trying to be funny (offensive would be the right word) then: big fail for you as well.
Have a good one, professor!
You appeared to criticize his language…I defend him…and you get offended?
Mine was a joke, yours was an attach to a persons you don’t know.
I think he doesn’t need any “avenger” with a shiny armor to defend him.
You should not be attacking people in that way, especially those you don’t know.
Those are the type of words you can use with your friends (if they will ever let you).
Fair enough..but. Did you ever stop to consider that maybe the person you were joking with is disfigured and can’t type on a keyboard that well? After all, you don’t know this person. Sorry I misinterpreted your post. I thought you were attacking this person.
My parents gave a really good education.
Usually I refrains from attacking anybody; I do it only if they deserve it, certainly not those in the condition you wrote about.
Apologies accepted.
Let’s try not to be so dramatic.
I don’t know him, sure, and it might be as you say: if that’s the case I’ll be the first one to write a well felt apology.
But I’m 99.9% sure he’s perfectly fine…
“He probably speaks and writes multiple languages”
That may well be the case but I am not sure English is amongst them, you need a translator and a ready reckoner to figure out/guess what he is saying
I have no idea what the hell are you talking about, but I laughed anyway
$300 Blackmagic hyper deck shuttle, it’s not complicated mate.
They already make a video oriented version of this camera that does 4K and higher bitrates, called the AX100. That’s a video cam, this is a hybrid.
But hopefully we DO get an XAVC-S update like the RX100 III.
@ Patrick, m43’s doesn’t mean it shoots video in 4:3, they shoot 16:9 like everything else. The RX10 is native 3:2 and m43’s 4:3, but both use the fill width of the sensor and crop top and bottom for 16:9, in fact the GH1/2 used to do a kind of ‘native’ 16:9 as well.
Anyway, completely agree with you (and those that have actually used them, rather than look at a spec sheet) the RX10 is an amazing ‘do it all’ camera. Thanks for sharing.
As much as I love my A7 etc, I think it’s these RX engineers that are really breaking the moulds.
Thanks, I really enjoyed reading your post and also the photos taken with the RX10. Its a camera I’ve been considering for some time, it seems to be a hidden hit in a similar way to the Ricoh GR (which I own) … and cheaper than many of the newer mirror-less zoom lens on the market right now.
Its also nice to get a description of the setup work for the photos. Thanks.
I also would like an FE equivalent of the fabulous Nikon zoom 14-24 f/2.8, even if it is a bit slower like the another top (m43) lens 7-14 from Panasonic.
For UWA work I find that the 14-24mm works perfectly with my A7r , UWA is one area where AF is hardly a deal breaker.
The pictures in this article are postprocessed by 14years old amator with the first touch with Lightroom? So ugly…
Please elaborate, I’m curious and want to learn! What’s wrong with them?
There’s actually not a lot wrong with the “post-processing.” Certainly nothing seriously wrong with the two business shots, they’re sharp, accurate color, good contrast.
The sepia shot is not excellent, but it’s not horrible. I think the processing there is more a case of personal taste.
The marine shot looks like a professional, but not expensive effort. It’s really not terrible, it just doesn’t have that “high end” feel, and I don’t think you see the fingerprints of bad editing so much, as the image just doesn’t feel expensive. The problem may be the shot itself more than the editing…..if the camera were a couple feel lower and closer to the subjects, they would have felt taller and more imposing, and everything wouldn’t feel so symmetrical and plain.
Unfortunately, the best picture, and the most interesting composition, the girls running at a wedding, I can SEE the efforts to lighten the girls….when you can actually SEE the edit, that’s when you’ve failed in my opinion. But I wouldn’t call it amateurish in context with the other shots, just a little case of “over-effort.”
Admin, any rumor for a mount entry level full frame?
It reads like a paid Sony infomercial and is filled with over the top claims that would make a fanboy blush. The “slightly smaller 1” sensor has less than one third the area of the Sony
/ Nikon APS sensors. The rather unattractive shot of the marines is no challenge to any modern camera { a deep DOF shot taken with artificially controlled lighting } . I have both the RX10 and A7r , as for the 55mm shot not having enough DOF , perhaps he did not notice that you can stop down the lens to get whatever DOF you need. In controlled lighting there is no disadvantage to doing this .
You may not like the Marine picture, I’m not overwhelmed by it either (to be honest I would’ve taken it in 10 minutes with a $40 hot light by shooting 4 separate images)….and I’d agree that he could’ve taken the shot with another camera, because in this SPECIFIC case, the added DOF wasn’t necessary.
But the point is valid, and often overlooked….as professionals we’re usually striving for LESS DOF, and there are real situations where more DOF at the same aperture setting is a huge advantage.
I was shooting a group yesterday, outdoors, natural light, where I wanted extreme DOF, and yeah, I could’ve struggled on my APS-C, or I could shoot at ISO 125 and f8 on the RX10.
The writer is excited to discover a camera that most everyone else thinks of as only a “bridge” or a compromise. It’s really an amazing, potentially PROFESSIONAL tool.
Dave, I assume if you were shooting a group outdoors in daylight { bright enough to shoot ISO 125 @f8} it would typically with be a wide -standard focal length { in order to fit the group in }. Considering that a 28mm would give you from 5ft to infinity at F8 or 2.5ft to infinity @F16 even at the 50mm end shooting at F8-F16 would give no shortage of DOF.
As a former wedding shooter i have shot literally thousands of outdoor group shits with FF. APS & even MF film DOF was never a problem . The A7r has better SNR and tonal range at 800ISO than the RX10 has at base so there is no real penalty for stopping down even if you needed to raise the ISO.
He finally found a camera that clicks all the right boxes for him and he’s excited about it and it shows in this post. You will sound like a fanboy too once you do find something in life that get’s you this excited. Until then, you just wouldn’t understand I pity you that you have to rain on other people’s parade.
Ko, I have had the RX10 since the first day it came out here in the UK. I fully appreciate the sheer fun this camera gives in use. It is the hyperbole of the posts that belongs on a paid commercial.
He made numerous nonsensical claims from the size of the sensor to not being able to get the DOF with the 55mm F1.8. If { as he implies } he was shooting at the equivalent AOV on the RX10 in controlled lighting all he had to do to get the DOF was stop down the 55mm after all he had ” $14,000″ worth of lighting with him ,not that the shot demonstrates any mastery of lighting. For a low ISO deep DOF shot the RX10 delivers nothing special.
Then we get the silly comparisons to the D4s an RX10 is 3 stops behind the D4S in noise, with the F2.8 lens on the RX10 giving the same DOF and total light gathering of an F7.6 ! lens on FF. This is just an example of the admin hunting the net to find pro Sony posts presumably linking to them to make us all feel good for choosing the “right ” camera maker. Honestly would any of the shots posted not be as easily achieved with a competent P&S. The shot from Chicago looks like it was taken with a harsh on-board flash , over bright main subjects and strong shadows on the two men .
For video, the difference with a D4S is nowhere near 3 stops though.
Sofar we have someone with a real name, credentials and an opinion on one hand and the opinion from an internet warrior on the other hand.
I assume your name is Zohee ? the discussion was about stills there was no mention of video regarding the D4. If you honestly think these are good shots then you are very easily pleased. I appreciate your self-appointed roll is to defend all things Sony , but that is the problem { for sycophants } with free speech we are all entitled to our opinions.
There is not one of these shots that could not be achieved by a competent P&S. I see mediocre B&W conversations , harsh flash { that $14,000 sure isn’t being used to its best} ,an up the nose wide-angle shot of a women and a huge DOF snapshot of the marines. What you see is of course another matter.
Fair enough. I appreciate your well thought out response. I mistook it as bashing as many trolls do when someone posts something that excites them and labels them fanboy. You make many good points as well point out the errors his post. I agree that most of these shots could easily be made with just about any camera.
I still think the point of this post is that the RX10 is a great all around stills/video camera that you can just grab and go without needing to carry a bunch of other lenses and filters. That’s why I found this post very helpful as I wish I could simplify my setup because I feel sometimes changing lenses gets in the way of enjoying just being in the moment while I’m travelling. For me this would be the perfect travel camera if only it could give me more shallow dof to match my NEX 6 with 35mm and 50mm. Until then I’m waiting for an e mount 16-1000mm constant f0.95 lens that will be the same size as the 16-50 kit lens and with cost no more that $300:-)
I would appreciate if you give me a shout when the “16-1000mm constant f0.95 lens” comes out lol
Seriously, you’re just working too hard. You didn’t understand the guys blog, and you’re just in attack mode. It’s hard to give you any credibility, because you simply don’t understand what the guy was trying to say.
His comparisons to the D4s weren’t silly, only YOU tried to make it about noise. He was shooting an OUTSIDE wedding as a second photographer, it had nothing whatsoever to do with noise…that’s just the kind of stupid comparison people bring up to win arguments, and avoid UNDERSTANDING someone else’s opinion.
It’s like the idiot sports photographer that thinks that all that matters is predictive autofocus…”you can’t be a professional photographer with an a57, it can’t autofocus moving subjects.” The whole time talking to a portrait photographer that doesn’t shoot action.
The hard truth is, I see BAD photographers every day who spent thousands on their gear…..and I know GREAT photographers that can work miracles with anything with a sharp lens. If you understand the limitations of the RX10, and can still get the shots you want, it’s a better choice than any camera that costs more. ANY.
It’s only if you CAN’T get the shots you want, that there is ANY justification in spending even ONE dollar more.
I’m guessing this is a way of looking at things that you’re just not going to understand.
In other words, assuming you can do everything you want to do with it, the RX10 IS better than the D4s. To the tune of THOUSANDS of DOLLARS better.
Dave , as I have repeated it is the over the top hyperbole of his statements that I have an issue with. Along with the distinctly average results he has posted here. I am fully aware how capable the RX10 is in the right hands and in the right situation.
I would say that the the images come pretty close to the “bad” photographer with thousands of dollars worth of gear are you seriously saying that you think that considering he had “$14,000” worth of lighting and a $1300 camera that the marine shot is anything other than medicore.
He mentioned the D4 as it is the heaviest pro camera he could come up with.To outperform the RX10 regrading image quality . The lowliest Nikon/Sony/Pentax APS DSLR will do just fine for a fraction of the price and weight,. Nor do you need F2.8 lenses on FF or APS to get better DOF control and better light gathering.
I guess you are one of the folk the admin was aiming at. Give yourself a good pat on the back for choosing the right camera.
Excellent guest post. Thank you for sharing. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with being positive and excited.
Absolutely magnificent post
It’s nice to hear someone not just talk up the tech that duplicates and exceeds SLR, but to keep mentioning the EVF.
For the last decade, the EXTREMELY small number of people who’ve figured it out, have had to endure the un-enlightened pros and reviewers endlessly saying “and the EVF is getting closer to the OVF” and other such nonsense.
If you learn to shoot DIFFERENTLY….true live view on an evf, for a creative shooter, is INFINITELY better. Not catching up, not comparable, not a little better, not a lot better…INFINITELY better.
If Sony trained 50 artistic, professional shooters to shoot TRUE live view cameras correctly, and changed their marketing strategy to an emphasis on the advantages of SEEING your shot before you take it, they could transform the industry (at an even faster rate)
All cameras can be divided into “has EVF” and “blind.” SLRs are BLIND.
By the way, I’m another shooter who usually uses a variety of APS-C and full frame cameras, but who has become ADDICTED to the RX10 over the last 6 months.
Of course this is exactly the kind of article that will bring out the fanboys…..the Nikon, Canon, Glass, fanboys….who never even try the cameras they bash.
The number of likes you got says it all. Plus one.
Fantastic article and I could not agree more about how amazing the RX10 is. I was blown away by that camera and still want one for my own personal use. Having full frame cameras and aps-c also, I could see just using the RX10 for 95% of what I do in the real world. The Nex-6 is great, but the lenses are not quite as good and versatile as that Zeiss on the RX10 with the smaller sensor. The A7r is also great, but so much harder to use in comparison. It’s the best all in one camera I have ever used 😉
Jay
I’ve shot the rx10 and it is an impressive camera. I’m not sure I’d go as far as this article does but it makes a valid point- Sony is definetly leading in camera innovation by a far stretch.
Great post and images Patrick. Oh, and BTW – love your blog!!
good luck!
I’m trying to figure out if you’re being sarcastic? You do realize you’re talking about a 5 year old camera, when you put that lens on it almost DOUBLES the weight of the Sony, no almost the same about it.
If your goal is to shoot low light stills, or extreme shallow depth of field, we all can figure out without your comment that the 5DM2 is a better choice.
But you have to buy it used…..or if new, the camera plus lens will DOUBLE the cost of the RX10 if not more than double it.
And this camera was never intended to be directly compared to full frame cameras in the first place….but even so, in some ways the RX10 destroys the setup you’re describing. Certainly in speed shooting, where it’s also NOT close. Or in focusing during video, which is night and day better on the RX10.
Or 60p vs. 30 to the RX10…..or the fact you can output uncompressed video.
And are you really going to replace the 24-200f2.8 with a 24-105f4 and call it even?
Really can’t think of a good reason to compare the RX10 to a full frame camera, but since you DID, I thought I’d point the problems in your argument.
Whaever is a troll who spouts ignorant garbage and feeds off reasonable responses to his endless stupidity. As tempting as it is, don’t feed it.
You’re right, I deleted my comment :))
thank you 🙂
each time you look at the mirror you see one troll, and now everyone looks like troll to you? it seems that the problem is inside your head, so please don’t make your problems ours 😉
Patrick, you are dead on regrading the big boys needing to wake up to smell the “EVF Coffee”. It’s astounding how one of THE major players may be on the road to a Kodak moment. You should give the Lumix some thought since you’re a motorcycle guy. The smaller lenses of the Micro Four Thirds system is a huge bonus for going lighter and smaller and the quality is coming very close to the full frame systems. One thing I believe we are going to see is Panasonic making even more progress on the smaller sensors. They have to. Unlike Nikon, Canon and Sony, they’ve committed themselves to one size sensor. All the other players are uninspired to make the smaller sensors better, Hey if you don’t like their smaller sensors just go buy one of their full frame cameras. They win either way. Panasoinc doesn’t have that luxury and they’re going to be inspired to make a Micro Four Thirds sensor equal to or better than Full Frame. I predict it will happen within the next three years. Stay tuned.
You should consider the differences between sensors before saying that Micro 4/3s will be equal or better than FF sensors in future.
there are so many differences mainly pixel size which will affect low light performance , DOF and smoothness of out of focus areas and many many more.
I’m not an expert but I’m sure that those differences won’t make a smaller sensor size equal to a larger one in any way.
Guess we’ll just have to agree to disagree. I stand by my predictions.
“All the other players are uninspired to make the smaller sensors better”
Yeah I know, that 1″ sensor in the RX100 II is SO crap, all I’ve read about it says it’s horrible and even worse than the sensor in the original RX100 was. Sony clearly was not bothered to make that small sensor any good let alone improve it.
😐
Even the RX100 (version 1) has a fabulous sensor that easily overfills my Retina Screen (MBP15). Superb, rich color and excellent sharpness! I am very jazzed about these new small sensor Sonys. Would LOVE to see the RX10 type developed to it’s full potential.
For most snappers, Sony’s current 1″ sensor tech is MORE than adequate.
Exactly Marcel. If you are a company that has at least three different camera lines, all with different sensors, there’s not much incentive to make your smallest sensors equal the quality of your largest sensors. Instead you just suggest to the market place (Me and You) that if they want better quality they move up to your larger, more expensive camera line with larger sensors. This is why I believe Panasonic will excel and photographers all benefit from a small sensor camera that will eventually be producing images as good or better than what we currently see in Nikon, Canon and Sony. With the added benefit of a smaller lighter, less expensive package. Win/Win for the consumer and my aching back.
“At this point, RX10 goes wherever I go, even when I take the heavier Nikons.”
That says it all. When he needs a ‘serious’ camera, he still takes Nikons, not A99.
People call themselves ‘Sony converts’ because they use a NEX or RX camera as an addition to their Canikons. Nope, you aren’t.
When you sell your D800 and 5D3 and buy the A99 (choose Sony transculent mirror DSLR over Canikon DSLR), then you are. Or realize that you don’t need fast AF and give up DSLR completely.
He took the nikons out of habit. He didnt use them.
Sounds like a Sony convert to me. Just cause the A99 isnt used, that doesnt mean he isnt.
At this point, A99, A77II, A7 series, RX series are all parallel products based on preference or need. The quality available between them is very similar.
The problem with your reasoning is that it is, to paraphrase, a “camera of the gaps” argument.
You simply define ‘serious’ as ‘when the Nikon is used’ (which is curious in itself), but those occasions are getting rarer and rarer. Previously Patrick _would_ have used his Nikons even for the corporate portraits and the Jag shot. Now the Nikons stay unused.
If you extrapolate where that is headed, you see the future of photography…
+1
Plus one.
Patrick, thank you for this post. It definitely confirms what I’m seeing: mirrorless cameras are definitely the future. Just as some DSLRs are eating into the medium format niche, mirrorless systems are slowly replacing DSLRs for all classes of photographers who would otherwise buy them.
And it isn’t just about bulk. Lens compatibility is far greater with mirrorless systems.
BTW I love that shot of the marines. 🙂
Footnote: I don’t quite understand the obsession with very shallow DOF. It sounds like cheerleading more than sound preference.
Patrick:
Turning to an important 🙂 topic, is that a BMW R1200GS with Touratech panniers parked beside the barn in the video, and is that yours? The RX10 is a great camera, but the GS is the top dog.
Exactly see her my Tread RX 10 vs A 6000
hp?323412-Matching-RX-10-A6000&p=1986437484&posted=1#post1986437484
IMy comment/question is not really joining the discussion, but why do so many socalled real photographers look down on Sony and try to get one to step over to another brand? I have always had a Sony and love it. At the moment I have a Alpha 65 and the RX100 for when I am on the road. I am interested in to hear reactions.
Why bother to understand those people? Simply let people see what your Sony can do.
I own a Sony a7R and a Sony RX10, and I’ve been filming and editing a new Youtube channel strictly with the RX10. The video quality is actually very good and people are often surprised to learn that all that came from the little mighty wonder.
What do you guys think of the quality?
https://www.youtube.com/user/JoanneTechLover
Wow… This was my first guest-post here in SAR. I am taken aback at how many of you have found me on Facebook, contacted me through my website and blog (http://pmrphoto.blogspot.com), and even called me by phone. I’ve been a working pro photographer since I got out of college in 1988. I have made my living as a full-time shooter ever since then. I’ve lived through black and white printing, thousands of rolls of Fujichrome, 4×5, the early daze of digital photography with PS2 and film scanners.
First, I want to say thank you to all of you that found what I had to share useful and informative. In fairness to those of you who disagreed with some or all of what I posted, I thank you for being civil about it.
Last, to those of you that chose to trash my work, poke fun at my images, and proceed to tell me how you would do it better with your computer skills… you guys need to get a life. The internet is a great place to learn for free from the experience of others. It was in this spirit that I sent the post in. Many people helped me along my way in my journey as a shooter and I appreciate them all. It’s my time now, to give back some to those next to me and that are coming behind me. To use these forums as a place to say ugly things to each other when you will never meet is kind of spineless and petty.
My work is my work. It is what it is… MY work. The image and video content that I included were simply projects that I produced in a three week period of time–it wasn’t meant to be my portfolio (www.pmrphoto.com).
You all need to relax, be civil to each other, or else I just won’t play here again…
Kindest regards to all, pm-r 🙂