Body of the current A7/s/r series
That this kind of rumors I am 99% certain it’s going to become true! According to many of my very best sources Sony is preparing a huge special event in late January early February (right before CP+). Unlike (the rather boring) Photokina there will be much more exciting news at CP+. There will be (at least) one new FF E-mount camera with those characteristics:
1) First of a complete new generation of interchangeable Full Frame E-mount camera(s). Which means the tech is redesigned from ground up!
2) Complete new sensors (this means brand new tech and huge bump forward in quality). I hope to get details about that soon but it should have “many” Megapixels.
3) Use of an advanced version of the hybrid A6000 autofocus system.
4) Unlike the current A7 series this new generation of FF E-mount cameras are made for the very PRO market! Designed to challenge the best DSLR cameras on market like the Nikon D810 or Canon 5DmarkIII (on aspects like autofocus, reliability, build quality and features).
Also lenses to come too: New FE lenses will be announced along the new camera launch (including one lens that has no specs on the official roadmap).
Possible surprises: I also got word about other cameras (1 A-mount and 1 E-mount). But sources didn’t tell me if those will be announced at the same event too.
I am yet not sure if that camera is a A7/s/r replacement or (more likely) a new sort of A9 PRO camera series. I also have been told those cameras will be displayed at the CP+ show in Japan which starts on February 12. Don’t know yet when the exact announcement date is (maybe late January already?). I am working to get the details about those cameras and with a bit of look I can unveil some more details soon. To not miss any of them quickly subscribe our social network:
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More tidbits about the new camera: I have been told the A7 camera series was a Sony “attempt” to study the market. This new PRO FE camera was developed with maximum possible resources and tech knowledge. It will be Sony’s first serious camera to fight against the big ones. We will finally see if Mirrorless can succeed against DSLR cameras when it comes to “grab” the professional market. That camera is also the main reason why Sony is launching their PRO service all over the world (article on SAR here). It’s also very likely there will be different variations of that new camera generations coming during 2015 and 2016.
What are you hoping for? While I am working to get 100% reliable specs on the camera just let us all know in our comment system and/or on our SonyAlphaForum how you would like that new camera to be…more megapixels than the A7r? Bigger than the A7 series? “Rangefinder” design? HYbrid EVF/OVF?
…Stay tuned 😉
And if you have some “rumor” to share just send me an anonymous messages here:
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Reminder (SR = Sonyrumor):
SR1=probably fake rumor
SR2=rumor from unknown sources
SR3=50% chance it is correct
SR4=rumor from known sources
SR5=almost certainly correct!
Hot: The full Black Friday deals can be seen on at that Amazon US page (Click here to see the long list).
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I still want a 90/85mm 2/1.8…
Breaking news: A-mount still dead
old news
Any news on the video features? I.e internal 4k. It sounds like this camera is geared toward the pro photographer. Still very good to here about. Hoping a successor to the A7s is on its way with a low MP count and internal 4k as well.
Not yet. But 4K is very likely. I would say 95% chance to see it coming. 8K is coming 2016 only.
Sounds great. Let’s hope they don’t make the body too big.
All pro bodies are big. You can’t work all day with a tiny hand cramp camera, especially if you use heavy fast pro lenses.
+1
Depends on what you mean by “pro”. Many professional photographers are using Fuji cameras and primes these days, at least where I live (Europe). But from what I understand that might not be the case on the other side of the Atlantic. For sports, big is necessary. For reportage and portraits, I think not.
PRO bodies mean best ergonomics for me. Best ergonomics than A7 series, this is what we really need to use big lenses on A7 series. Please sony, make a minolta maxxum 7/9 ‘styled’ camera, with the best ergonomics.
So “the Alpha Mount is going to be THE Pro Model and will be refreshed not so often” and now “The Pro FF E-Mount Cam”…
Is it just me, or the info laid out here contains nothing new from previous rumours we’ve heard of already except the “new gen” “ground up” tech being developed?
No offense but it feels like click-bait.
EDIT: Actually… this post also encourages an endless amount of wish-list comments.
If you refer on mssing specs it’s right. But the new here are:
– To be displayed on CP+
– It will be market as a PRO camera (higher level than A7 series)
– PRO af and high megapixel count
– And now it’s also SR5 which emans I am 99% sure it’s coming (before I was not).
Didn’t you say almost the same things about A99II and Photokina with SR5?
There was never an SR5 rumor on the A99II. Best ranked was SR3 saying it would come early 2015.
With all due respect, and not aimed at you, Admin, but PRO as a definition of anything is highly arguable.
Take Fuji’s definition on PRO and features they call PRO and how many photographers wouldn’t agree.
PRO is vague because I used two NEXs professionally without any detriment to my work or output after using Canon 5D2s.
Of course “PRO” can be defined in many ways. I have been told with PRO Sony means be on par with a DSLR performance on every key aspect. Not just sensor.
for battery life, that might be the last performance to fight back the traditional- OVF-DSLR , i guess. at least, by current tech in coming years
I’d like a 24MP camera with autofocus that competes with what the D810/5D3 have.
Despite being mainly landscape oriented, I don’t need more than 36MP just yet. A faster focusing body with a few longer zooms — like a 100-400mm lens — would allow me to go completely Sony and ditch my longer lenses I use with Canon.
So… where is the actual rumor part?
– To be displayed on CP+
– It will be market as a PRO camera (higher level than A7 series)
– PRO af and high megapixel count
– new sensor tech
– And now it’s also SR5 which emans I am 99% sure it’s coming (before I was not).
@SAR_Admin
Will this cam be in store before march 2015?
When will we hear more about A-Mount?
Yes.
I hope to have some A-mount news soon 🙁
I want that cam for auroras and im planing with mid/late february!
If its true, the cam will do 50k ISO as a no brainer!
i hope the last symbol is for ‘smile 🙂 ‘, not for cry “:(”
i’m waiting for upgrading my aging a850
It’s for cry because It’s long time I am waiting to get an SR5 rumor on A-mount 🙁
understood, thanks very much for the confirmation… 🙁
A-mount is gone as the 2014 “A-mount year” is gone~ (LOL)
Sony ditched the A-mount roamdap in 2014. Because they saw E-mount sleling better than epxected 🙁
It was the year of the Alpha so far. I am not sure if it ever was meant to be “A” or “E” Alpha, simply Alpha. This is at least what the Photokina booth looked like…
It was supposed to be specifically the Year of A-Mount, not “Alpha”
Andrea thank you for your hard work. Its the new sensor with a huge bump forward in Quality which interests me the most. I hope the sensor has a similar DR to film
Yep, DR is increased. That they told me. With some kind of tech I didn’t really understand. Let’s hope it’s not just marketing blabla…
So then, where are the f2.8 zooms..?
not coming in 2015 🙁
Haha, thats the Pro-thing about this Pro-Cam… no lenses 🙂
LA-EA4…
I am not sure if all people like lensadapters on their camera… it extends the size.
It does not change distance to the sensor so the size is the same.
LOL, most adapters are at least 1-5 cm long. So this makes 10 cm for the lens for example (or more) + 5 cm the adapter +5 for the camera. I talk about the size of the adapter, not the flange range/distance.
What are the chances of a new battery? I would ditch the A7r for anything that gives me 100% more battery yet still the same size.
No info on battery 🙁
Turn on Plane-mode and turn off LCD 😉
rubbish news. so now i cannot buy a6000 and a7. and if they do not launch a7000 and a7mk2 in jan, what should i do? damn
lol
on the contray, if it positioned on higher grade than a7R, i would suggest you buy a7 now, and enjoy it & current low price for at least 1 year. Maybe you can get the a7mk2 then with nice price, but similar electronic performance (comparing to the new ‘PRO’ body).
New E-mount lenses
SEL24F2 zeiss
SEL135F1.8 zeiss
SEL500F4 G OSS
SEL70400 G OSS
SEL70200 F2.8 G OSS
SEL300F2.8 G OSS
RIP A-mount lenses…
Any news on the high end NEX?
It’s real 🙂
“Pro” body, aha…
And for Canikon I thought d4x and 1D are the pro bodies. The 5Dmk3 and D800 are in the same class as A7 cameras for me. Maybe for a different purpose, but used by many Pros already. Fast AFull is nice but not only those 0.05% of sports photographers are Pros to me..
from Ala to Andreas 😀 finally comes the new FF-ILCE
Typical… i just bought a A7R a couple of weeks ago and a replacement comes out :sigh:
Any ideas about the new sensors?
I don’t think it’s a replacement. Which emans it costs more than the A7r.
…and what about ISO? something like A7s??
no.
:-(…thanks
Now we know why the D4x is so late. Sony wants to be the first to use the new high res sensor?
Interesting, I have an A7s but still cling onto my Nikon D3 and lenses as the A7 series can’t compete in usability for events. A pro body could see me finally move across to Sony fully.
+1!!!
If it is truly designed to be the best possible camera using all tech Sony has to offer we can safely assume that it will use new fullHD OLED EVF presented along with the EVF that Samsung uses in NX1, maybe with greater magnification which would guarantee truly immersive experience. Secondly, high megapixel sensor with electronic shutter like A7s to eliminate shutter shock that A7r suffered from. Thirdly, few hundred PDAF points on sensor for class leading performance and that will require very powerful CPU, which brings us to another point – heat dissipation. It’ll probably have to use liquid heat pipes to move the heat from the sensor and CPU.
Unfortunately, without pro lenses it will have a hard time convincing pros to ditch their systems for this new PRO E-mount camera. It needs 24-70/2.8 and 135mm+ fast primes.
I like your username.
me too 🙂
hahaha thanks 😀
But it’s not that I was wishfully thinking what Sony should do, it’s what they have to do if they want to convince potential buyers that they’re better than D810 and 5DIII 🙂
And for the record, my nickname comes from old Nightwish song, from the times when Tarja was still their lead singer 😉
While being “better” is one thing, I think the A7 series have been more successful by being “different” ergo better in other aspects.
IQ is better than Canon, size is better than DSLR, Liveview is better for third party lenses, etc.
I agree, they’ve proven that you can be better by being different. But in the process some issues came to light (shutter shock, battery life, AF speed). If they manage to fix those issues, without creating new ones, then IMO they can easily triumph FF DSLR’s which are very big when compared to something like A7r.
About IQ, LV and size I agree wholeheartedly, this is where Sony easily wins 🙂
From what I have seen, shutter shake is not an issue as some report. I have tried to contest this on the basis of lack of technique, or bad technique, mixed with pixel density/ size of circles of confusion and focal length choice related to shutter speed.
In short, in 36mp, the density is high enough to more or less require x2 the shutter speed based on the rule of thumb 1/focal length. The camera is really light, which doesn’t help. Also, the reason why a D800 “doesn’t” have this issue, is because the weight of that camera plus lens easily counters part of your body motion.
Now, 24mp is more or less the limit of that rule of thumb of 1/focal length shutter speed depending on the weight of the camera and your holding technique.
I have used my friend’s a7r with his 35mm FD lens and I have not replicated the issue.
Battery life is also not an issue I would say was “created”. Rather, Sony thought that using the same battery as the NEXs would keep current A7 series owners happy with the switch since they would not have to dispose/sell at loss their batteries like every Canon/Nikon user does when changing cameras. I think it is a wise decision to keep the same batteries for this generation and having 2-3 batteries for enthusiast use is more than enough for a date’s shoot. That being said, the lack of a separate battery charger should be a crime.
AF speed will improve. It is not an issue…its just current gen (1st GEN!) FF contrast AF tech.
I believe there is too much smoke going on with those two things you mention. Seriously, cameras today are more capable than 95% of users.
With such a build up was expecting something more, eg. this plus RX1 with curvy sensor plus more. But it is positive news, makes FE as a system more attractive, and best of all should push the price of the A7s down to a place I can afford 🙂
I find it kid of sad that we’ll be flooded with “wish-list” comments rather than discuss what could potentially PRO mean for the new cameras/lenses.
Any camera can be PRO because the photographer can make it so.
Hasselblad’s 500 series have neither AF, nor fast operation, or weather sealing, or fast zoom lenses, yet they have been the mainstay of many photographers from Avedon to Mapplethorpe.
Same with every Leica that is not weather sealed, or AF, or anything PRO.
How about those Olympus point and shoots Alex Majoli used for his work?
But no, wait.. I want to TELL EVERYONE WHAT I WANT!
Well you could start telling me what “PRO” for you means 🙂
I just said it.
global shutter, 5 axis body stabilizer, foveon sensor pack in 1
that’s exactly my wishlist 🙂
4999USD 😛
To me PRO is someone (not something) who has a profession, in this case related to photography, and can live thanks to it.
Companies put the word “pro” on some products to gather the attention of customers, but fact is that the photographer behind the camera is always more important than the tools he/she uses.
Nobody is denying the fact that a good tool is better than a crappy one, but a real good photographer can use whatever tool at the best way. And creat something good.
Pro reportage, of course. For still shots/posed photography FE is does everything already. It’s all about AF and tracking.
What I’m hoping for? Lets see, what annoys me with the A7r? The shutter, i.e. X-sync and the vibration issue. Ergonomics with large lenses plus better battery life can easily go hand in hand(we’re talking about a production cam after all; the bulk of the luggage is additional gear anyway), AF on par with the a6000 or NX1 would be nice.
Improved sensor? That’s to be expected, I’d guess…
There are two possibilities here: either it will be a significant step forward, in which case it will carry a price premium of some magnitude, or the ‘huge bump in quality’ will be no such thing; more an incremental increase that teases and tempts.
Certainly, the A7 series produces fantastic pictures, but the A77 and A99 are indistinguishable in 99% of the cases, despite being a few years older.
I find it hard to believe that, taking into account the history of digital images, there will be a great jump. If Sony can address the various areas of criticism (AF speed and accuracy, together with jpeg rendering) to compete with the top level Canon and Nikon, the price will probably be in the £3000 for a body range.
I hope it happens, but it won’t be something I could get.
My thoughts, just that my deleted comment was sarcastic. Nevertheless, GAS is entertaining. To be realistic, better is always better, but relevance is what matters. And Sony missed so many relevant matters independently from tech progress, so why should Sony manage to get it right this time? The new sensor tech is interesting. Sony can sell new sensors to Nikon and Oly where this new tech will be implemented in real cameras. And this will last some time.
In terms of raw resolution you won’t get a big jump – simply because other limits on resolution take their toll. But increasing the color sampling to full RGB per pixel w/o risk of moire and more color depth&dynamic range would open quite a few additional doors. Maybe not OOC, but once you go for advanced grading in post that’s certain.
Admin
Clearly this will be an amazing new E mount camera.
The big question is what level of compatability will this have with..
Current A mount lenses?
Nikon lenses?
Canon lenses?
Specifically …will full high speed autofocus be supported, and in the case of A mount will both stabilization and full high speed autofocus be supported?
I have no info on that yet 🙁
Barry, I know you like grasping at straws your a-mount system has a future but, really, figure the odds. ;^)
Sony seizing the initiative by slamming out as many A7 series bodies as it can, and not giving Canon, or Nikon any chance to counter, and they won’t. It’s going to be a horrible year for them (Canon, and Nikon).
The A7, A7r, and A7s is hurting the Canon’s, and Nikon’s FF camera sales. The A5000, A5100, and A6000 are hurting Canon Rebel, and Nikon D3XXX sales.
After the dust settles (and it will), the A7, A7r, A7s, A7x will have seized a huge chunk of Canon’s, and Nikon’s DSLR market, a market the A-Mount never ventured into. The A-Mount has always been a semi-pro line with some models possessing professional features.
So Cameras like the A77II, and A99II will be around for years to come.
However IMO the A-Mount has been reserved for an entirely different purpose, which is Sports, and Wild Life Photography.
The A77II just made the 7D MKII irrelevant, and the 12fps 36mp A99II will easily do the same to the D4S, and 1DX, especially the rumoured 8K prototype doing the rounds at most of the trade shows are correct.
Most Canon shooters with collections of Canon glass will have no interest in the A77II over the 7D MkII. The 7D MkII is far from irrelevant and will sell multitudes more than the A77II. The A77II is great, but don’t kid yourself.
No but they’ll buy a A7x, and use their Canon glass. Then they’ll sell their older glass, and buy native Sony lenses.
And after they own a A7 or two they’ll probably be more keen in buying a Sony DSLR than a Canon or Nikon if need one.
Its called a Halo Effect.
Its why iPhone, iPod, and iPad owners ended up propelling Apple Macintosh (Also on its death bed) from 2% to 23% of the North Americas computer market in less than five years.
There are going to be Sony DSLR-style cameras in E-mount. This rumour more or less confirms Sony’s strategy in that regard.
Why would a Canon convert who has an A7 and native glass buy an A77 or A99 in A-mount, necessitating more new glass? If the performance of these new cameras matches Sony’s intensions to compete with the 5D MkIII or D810, what exactly would be the point of going to A-mount?
Sorry, but the A77II is the direction the A-Mount is headed. The A-Mount is headed in the all out speed theme, and probably sacrificing IQ IOT accomplish this.
I don’t care it does 12fps, and 90% are keepers, and the shots still look great.
A7 owners are already buying A-Mounts especially the A77II. Its light cheap hard hitting and future incarnations will be much faster, with a better AF systems. 16fps hopefully.
It’s an amazing camera, I’m glad I bought instead of the 7D MK II. The A99II is the next on my list, and the 5D will be replaced with a A7X
I’m a A7 (future A7X) and 5D MK III user who bought a A77II, so what your problem?
I have no problem, but I think you missed my point, which was to suggest that A-mount has a limited future, especially bearing in mind this rumour.
I’m not really sure how to take your post, as it seems you genuinely believe that A-mount has a big bright future, despite all the evidence so far suggesting that it is being wound down. When/if Sony releases pro-level E-mount cameras with DSLR performance, which this rumour suggests is the aim, then what purpose does A-mount serve in the long term?
The A-Mount has the same shelf life it began with. The A77II is by all accounts successful, and the A99II will achieve its goals as well.
The A-Mount community is small, but were larger than the Pentax community, and most mirror-less communities, and Sony still supports us, and will continue to do so.
We buy native lenses, and Sony makes more per camera sales than its mirror-less users, who adapt other manufacturers lenses.
Actually the A-Mount isn’t winding down, and it’s refreshing its semi-pro, professional line, and lenses as a faster rate than it has in the past.
“Winding Down” They just delivered us the world best performing DSLR.
I get your A7 is the worlds greatest camera thing, I own one, and while it’s a decent camera I still prefer to use the A900 for most jobs.
I’ll likely get the A7x or whatever they call it, but the A99II will likely replace my A900 as the real work horse.
Of course I work for a living, and what do you do?
I don’t think the A7 is the world’s greatest camera and I didn’t suggest otherwise. I also own an A77.
I’m also not sure what my occupation has to do with Sony’s future plans or my ability to comment on this subject. You’re not suggesting your status as a pro has any bearing on Sony’s plans, are you?
Sony doesn’t listen to its users, and my opinion doesn’t matter to them. In fact none of our opinions do. Even when I speak to their sales, and marketing people (there is a large conference almost every other month in Toronto) you get the impression they either don’t understand the needs of the average photographer or they just don’t care.
Sony’s actually believes they know what’s best for us, because they’re all seeing, and all knowing. The Oracles of Photography.
We’ll see both A, and E Mounts in the coming years so long as they make Sony money, they don’t care about anything else rate now. They’re preoccupied with surviving the fallout from their pathetic lines of cell phones, and tablets (that nearly bankrupted them).
Actually I’m more interested in buying new strobes (Elinchrom ELC Pro 500/1000), and a 150 cm Deep Octa than another camera body this year the. The A77II, A7, and 70200G2 tapped me out this year.
Obviously, Sony’s foray into FF mirrorless has been very successful. However, the mirrorless front isn’t all roses. One reason they went FF is because cropped mirrorless is a saturated market filled with many also-rans who couldn’t compete in DSLRs and are desperate.
Equally obvious is the fact Canikon will eventually have to compete better in mirrorless. When they do and if they do a better job of bridging the gap between DSLRs and mirrorless they will bury Sony. The only thing saving Sony is bridging that gap is a tall order which Canikon still hasn’t figured out yet.
While I may get an a77II someday (so I’m no Canikon fanboy), I’m not delusional enough to pretend it makes the 7D Mark II ‘irrelevant’. It’s better but there’s little doubt the Canon will outsell the Sony by orders of magnitude. Sony hasn’t fully figured out the importance of a ecosystem. Canon gets it. Nikon pretty much gets it.
If I have any reservation sinking money into future Sony gear is they really have no loyalty to their customers.
“12fps 36mp A99II” lol
Yesterday admin said Nikon will not be using the new Sony supersensor soon.
Since I have no idea what new camera I will be putting my new Sigma 150-600 sport lens I have cancelled my preorder and will wait to see what comes out.
Incedently the reviews on the lens are great..especially at 600mm f6.3 in the center…and that is the most important conideration for this lens
Florent..sigma rumors..said the mtf for contemporary version will not be released till shortly before the lens release..first quarter of 2015.
I just increasingly uncomfortable making a decision without this important information.
Well, Sony releases separate sensors for mirrorless and DSLRs even when they’re substantially the same tech. So if you look at the implication of what Admin is saying it means no matching Sony DSLR coming around the same time. Will Sony’s sensor division start playing games with releasing sensor tech? I doubt it because long-term it’ll cost them a lot of money being an unreliable partner.
I don’t mind putting money into glass. Bodies churn too quickly. Just look at the rate of Sony sensor churn. I’m very glad I went used on my D800. It’s pretty much met my expectations. To be frank, a new higher megapixel body better be a significant improvement in noticeable sharpness and detail while maintaining or expanding low light and dynamic range. That’s a tall order. And even then I’d probably wait to buy it used or deeply discounted long after introduction.
One thing to keep in mind. I’ve heard it many times and I’m sure you have but sensors based upon Sony’s 36 MP design create huge RAW files which create a sluggish workflow. Sure, my PC is 3 years old or so but when I bought it I bought the highest end gaming graphics card available at the time (no, didn’t go dual card), added a RAID array for disk performance, and bought a solid quad core processor (no, didn’t go Intel Extreme). Still, DxO is really sluggish processing files. I took about 2k photos on an early October cruise and I’ve yet to go through over 1/3 of them. It’s a bit slow slogging through them.
I never really thought you’d switch brands and I get it. While I’m not dumping my a-mount stuff, even if I get another Sony body it’d likely be APS-C and I’d be reluctant to buy anything but cheap used glass (most likely Minolta) for it. I don’t really trust Sony all that much right now.
Oh, I forgot to mention the central point. Even if Sony comes out with the best mirrorless FF ever that gives you a massive stiffy you have to wait until Sigma comes out with a FE mount 150-600mm. Wouldn’t hold my breath. And if Sony makes the new camera 100% compatible with a-mounts without an adapter kluge or with a better adapter kluge (except IBIS obviously) you’re in the same boat and have to pray Sigma breaks tradition, includes OS for a Sony mount.
I dunno. In high school I had to study a book about a guy who lets life pass him by waiting in the expectation some life-changing greatness will occur. Don’t be that guy. ;^)
Currently the 600mm plus a new camera to put it on are my priority.
I am not commited to staying with Sony
Nor am I committed to leaving Sony.
I do however need to wait for enough info to choose the best option.
Sony cannot provide a sufficient selection of glass and accesories to satisfy the professional market…thats what Canikon does best.
Utilizing that resource bu allowing full compatability will quarantee that the new Sony camera will
I agree with you Canon is being saved by its ecosystem and I’ve said as much. Personally, Canon’s 400mm 5.6 was a great draw for me. However, their bodies, while competitive and capable of great photographs, aren’t best-of-breed. So I had to go 2nd best on long lenses.
The Nikkor 300mm f/4, while significantly shorter, works nicely with their 1.4x II’s (available on FleaBay in mint shape at reasonable prices). Nikkor 1.7x teleconverters work pretty good stopped down as well. Important to me (not to you, I realize) it’s compact enough to fit in my medium bag with my D810 and 3 other lenses (which fits easily under airline seats as carry-on). It’s very hand-holdable as well which is huge for me.
Unfortunately, many of us want to go longer without a teleconverter and preferably even a bit longer with a 1.4x. Frankly, that’s when all the systems start to suck. Natively, obviously, mirrorless systems suck the worst. Pentax sucks. Sony gives you a 500mm f/4 that’s the most expensive one imaginable. There’s some old Minolta glass out there. I don’t track used Canon gear but I probably could get a 1st gen Nikkor 500mm with AF for sub-$4,000. A 1st gen 600mm with AF for less than $4,500. Still a lot of scratch and the 600mm’s AF is supposed to be a bit weak.
As you know, that leads us back to the Tamron vs Sigma S/C debate. I think we both agree the Sigma S is the one to get even realizing the C isn’t out to review yet. We also know, with Sony the Sigma S is off the table.
I saw you wish for a Sony 150-600mm f/5. Makes sense but we both know it’ll never happen and, if the long shot occurred, it’d cost a fortune if it was done right (or a piece of junk if it were affordable).
Nikon becomes the logical choice for most of us a-mount fans because we’ve come to love Sony’s best-of-breed sensor tech. Unless someone can prove me wrong long with some hidden bargain I’ve missed, Canon’s slightly better lens selection doesn’t offset their step behind in bodies as proved by the mediocre 7D Mark II. I’d be more likely to go for a Nikon D7100 used if I was interested in APS-C.
Your comment graphically illustrates the point I have been making.
Currently matching the best lens choice with the best camera choice…especially for Sony users…is very difficult and sometimes not even possible.
Full compatability wpuld make the process simple..if you are willing to use an adapter just choose the best lens and put it on the best camera…if you want a native lens instead choose the best native lens.
If Sony biolds the best lens/value people will buy Sony…if not they will buy Something else.
With barely 10% of the high end camera market Sony has everything to gain and nothing to lose by doing so.
If Sony is going to build a better camera than Canikon then they need to put that better camera in the hands of Canikon users.
Compatability with Canikon? Why that? There is no need for Sony to do that (why should they pay Canikon to use their lenses). There are enough third party adapters to do so. No need for Sony…
If this new pro model camera would be fully compatable with Canikon lenses via adaptors Sony would have a chance of getting the over 95% of pros that are currently heavily invested in Canikon glass into the system…otherwise it will be an very uphill battle..see for example my response to Earl Fargas about the Sigma lens I pan to buy that will not be manufactured in Sony mount…therefore I neetd to buy a Canon or Nikon camera..even thogh I want to stay with Sony…in order to get the lens.
As anti-E mount as I sometimes appear to be I would buy this E mount camera if it were fully compatab ‘ll e with the lenses I want…otherwise I may be unable to do so.
Barry, Sony’s concentrating on the FE Mount, and it’s making breakthroughs that weren’t possible with the A-Mount.
As the A7 series lead the way forward it will erode the public confidence in Canon, and Nikon. They’ll be seen as producers of obsolete technology.
Kind of like when Commodore was trying to pump out/market the C64 well into the 90’s.
Then the market will shift in favour of Sony, and you’ll see a rapid increase in A-Mount sales.
This is what happened to the Macintosh following the iPod, and iPad launches.
The entire A/E mount battle is about Sony not includind A mount users in this new technology..otherwise A mounters would embrace it.
As for Canikon..they currently domminate the high end market that Sony wants to occupy.
Allowing a painless transition with full lens compatability would generate many many more converta..a lot quicker…than forcing an all or nothing approach….it would also show that Sony is concerned for the welbeing of thier users..not just thier profits..an impression currently very lacking.
The FE is the A-Mount’s Trojan Horse
Ford makes cars, and trucks. Honda makes bikes, and cars. Camera companies normally multiple lines. Look at Sony’s video cameras, and count how many mounts they currently juggle.
The A-Mount just launched the A77II which by all accounts is the most advanced DSLR in the world.
The A99II rumoured specs are 12fps, and 36mp, and if they are achievable this camera will be the most advanced SLR to date.
The A-Mount is clearly being redesigned for SLR centric users, where overall speed is the priority.
I don’t know about you but my A77II is absolutely outstanding on the 70200G2. I’m guessing the A99II will be better.
So let the FE get its time in the Sun cause A-Mounters need it to succeed in order to crack the Canon Nikon dominance in the SLR market.
Once the FE is synonymous with professional performance the A-Mount will tag along, and once again regain the market share its lost in the last year.
Mirrorless will soon catch up to dslr in focus speed and then all new cameras will be mirrorless…that is the future and it is written in stone.
The compatabilty story has not yet been written.
With full lens compatability most people will embrace the change…without the compatability there will be resistance…and if Canikon provides compatability and Sony does not they will have missed the opportunity to gain substantial market share.
They will also make it much more difficult for me to buy another Sony camera.
And when it does they’ll be a MILC A-Mount ready for purchase.
There won’t be mirrorless A-Mount.
It makes no sense for Sony to support two identical mounts with two sensor sizes each.
The axe just fell on A-mount. Here’s hoping they have good adapters for all my A-mount glass.
Just finally realized this? I switched to Nikon earlier this year. Still keeping my a-mount gear but to the extent Sony mouths any support for a-mount to keep us around they’re pretty much lying. Something derivative still might dribble out but it’ll be too late to market.
I still carried a delusional hope . . .
And, despite my cynicism, I hope you’re right. I’d like to give my old glass a 2nd life. The predictable price drop on the a77II has me thinking in that direction but the camera just isn’t interesting enough IQ-wise for me. Based upon this rumor (sandy soil, I admit), it doesn’t look like there will ever be a Mark III.
Certainly not, although a bit more patience couldn’t hurt, especially if we intend to keep our A-mount glass. My wife has been using the A77II, and it’s actually a very good camera. But I’m beginning to resign myself to a switch, either to Nikon, or to E-mount (more likely). My biggest complaint would be loss of IBIS, but the reduction in size/weight might offset my concern considering how I use my stuff.
I agree with you 100%. Actually, I’ve spend so much on Nikon gear this year (and with a preorder for a Sigma 150-600mm/1.4x in a Nikon mount in) 2015 would be a much better timeframe for me to reconsider Sony.
Well, I agree with you 80%. Just caught your comment on IBIS. Probably a deal killer though by 2016 or 2017 a cheap used body might be worth playing with.
Problem is, if we’re going to commit to a switch, better to sell the lenses before the walls come crashing down on A-mount and the market is flooded. Thank goodness there are Sony users out there who don’t read this page!
Well, when I was more of a noob than the noob I currently am, I bought some kit-quality lenses because I didn’t know how serious I’d be. They have no value. The only new remotely expensive (relative term) glass I bought was a new 11-18mm Sony lens and a Tamron 200-500mm. The next most expensive lens was a used Sony 100mm macro. Other than that, a lot of used Minolta lenses. Few over $100.
I consider that expenditure of probably $3,000 (over 3 years) to be a sunk cost. To put it in perspective, the cheapest lens I bought for my Nikon was over $1,000. That investment I’d need to recover a chunk of and have no real fear I couldn’t get 70-80% of it back.
If – and I give it no better than a 10% chance – Sony came out with an ergonomic mirrorless camera that offered a better migration path than the IBIS-less kluge their mirrored adaptors offer (e.g., Nikon adapters don’t have a mirror – not pimping them, BTW) I’d be more likely to chuck my Nikon gear on eBay and switch back to Sony.
That’s why I hang around and cheese off the drooling mirrorless fanboys who tell me to pack sand to the Nikon forums. ;^)
I dove into A-mount glass headfirst, and even bought a $5000 Sigma 500mm f/4.5 in the mount, an investment that will be impossible to recover. This on top of my numerous Zeiss lenses. So I have a lot to lose.
Unfortunately it seems to be a question of when, not if, I make the switch. And fortunately I can use the adapter for my 500mm with E-mount, and keep certain other lenses (e.g. Zeiss 135mm f/1.8), while replacing others (Sigma 35mm “art” and the Zeiss 50 1.4 with the new Zeiss Loxias). There are benefits to switching, but it’s going to hurt.
Already happened from my experience – my Sigma 35/1.4 went for £400. The 24/2 didn’t do too well either and the beercan is more valuable as a paperweight…
Maybe no A77 MK III – But the MK II is also REALLY good ^^. And it´s really a bargain at the actual (low prices). Especially if you have a good bunch of A-mount glass ^^ (and especially if you compare it´s price / performance to the competitors …).
Btw.: I am sure, that there´s an (adapter-) update coming. Maybe it´s performance is not as good as the A77 MK II ones, but for sure better than the actual LA-EA4 ^^. It just makes sense (if Sony is really coming up with “pro style” E-Mount bodies). So A-mount is still more or less future proof.
E-mount bodies have ergonomics, IMHO, that suck. I don’t see that changing. What’s going on is typical. SAR makes some rumor and people run with it expanding greatly upon it with hopeful speculations based upon their dreams. There’s nothing in SAR’s rumor to suggest a better adapter. In fact, the implication is Sony is out to bury the DSLR not support it in any way.
A pro e-mount definitely makes the odds of even an a99ii slim. That said the a77ii is worth a lot of if you used the old version – iq is quite an upgrade.
If sony launches an e-mount beast, with best ergonomics… and launch an LA-EA5 with more focus points (like A77II)… Why not change?
A camera that can take a-mount (with adapter) and e-mount lens?
Or the next AF speed on the sensor will be so good that a-mount lenses will need only a ‘dumb adapter’
Because doubtful that will happen.
If they had an ounce of common sense it’d be bundled to encourage a-mount owners to switch. Then again this is the same Sony that didn’t think people would draw any conclusions from the pathetic (for a-mount) photokina showing.
I’m glad I got out when I did – even then I took a painful hit on my a-mount kit…
As for now the only advantage of the A over FE is better sensitivity of dedicated phase detection sensors. And in last interviews Sony men told the A mount would stay as a sport camera.
If Sony produces FE camera with fast autofocus with high sensitivity, there is no need at all for A-mount but legacy lences and their owners. There is no need for large flange focal distance as there is no mirror. The only hope is Sony will produce FE cameras which can adopt two types of lenses via integrated adapter, which is an ergonomic part of a camera.
Well – An updated LA-EA4 with the actual AF speed (and AF points) of the best A-Mount bodies and it´s done. It´s (more or less) that easy. And Sony don´t even need a “convertible” camera body. Just bundle it in a set ^^.
Please, make this camera more ergonomic than A7 series.
Sony, be inspired by Minolta Maxxum 7/9 (but with small size, and lightweight)
Use a greater battery, possible the a99 battery.
I suspect you’re dreaming.
For sure, this camera will be a dream.
A lightweight camera, but very ergonomic.
Olympus already did this with OMD EM-1
And if sony changes the in camera grip protuberance, the A99 battery would fit.
This makes a lot of sense from Sony’s standpoint but if anything I would have hoped for a decently priced LAEA4 upgrade with increased focus points.
With a smaller (or no) tripod collar style hump at the bottom…
Yep. Would make sense – As it seems like the A-Mount isn´t THAT important any more in Sonys future. And no one would be angry (that the A-Mount is running out) if it´s working like it should – So: At about the same level / speed as the A-Mount bodies directly.
Maybe it´s coming with the new line of “pro body” E-Mount cameras (would make sense – Makes it easy to switch from A-Mount to E-Mount – As you can keep your lens lineup). ^^
Greatly articulated sum up. Indeed, if they could actually implement the integration of the A-mount into the e-mount system without penalty it would be a fantastic achievement that would address a lot of concerns of long term customers.
LA-EA5 with a77II focus points. This will be awesome.
As an owner owner LA-EA4 I’m not hopeful for upgrade in form of increased focus points wider area etc. The adapter already is awfully crowded; the thickness of it might well be a limitation when compared to an SLT setup in full sized A Mount body. Let’s hope I’m wrong.
And ideally bundled (or given away with proof of purchase for an a-mount body)
What’s the point of huge MP sensors if the lenses can’t resolve them? What mid-range zoom are they going to use on this new sensor? Certainly not the FE24-70 or FE28-70
From a purely practical POV If you need to zoom: the Tamron 24-70, or the EF24-70; for best results various primes.
Even without a (full) set of lenses that give you great AF and great image quality at the same time having both options united in one body is a good start.
Nobody cares about how many lines that their camera and lens actually resolve. People wawant to “feel” like they are shooting 36million pixels photos.
People don’t care that theit 36mp images are really only 15-20% higher than a 16mp image.
Get with it man….it’s all about the “feeling” of having a 36mp sticker on the camera body
If you’re a pro dropping that kind of money, you care far more about the results than what people see you shooting with. At a guess, the only native FE lens that will struggle is the 28-70.
The new FE16-35, FE35, and FE24-70 at least will struggle. They can’t even resolve the A7r as it sits right now fully
Any APS-C or RX news ?
Curious about the A mount/E mount debate… Isnt this change happened before to Canon’s FD mount when they switched to EOS? Sony is just following suit and everyone lose their mind :/
It’s going to have to have in-body image stabilization for A-Mount lenses.
New sensor tech would be nice, but the reason I switched from my Nikon SLRs and lenses and went with SONY for my first DSLR back in 2006 was the in-body image stabilization.
No other full frame pro cameras (other than the a99, a900, and a850) allow you to mount a 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, or 135mm prime lens (i.e. a professional photographer’s workhorses) and be able to shoot them with image stabalization.
And no, high ISO is not a replacement for image stabalization. Take for example, a situation where you’re mixing off camera strobes with ambient light and you’re limited to shooting at 1/250th of a second. Having your 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, or 135mm prime lenses be stabilized is a benefit to the SONY alpha A-Mount system that will be visible in your work. It is in my work. And I love(d) SONY camera bodies for that reason…
exactly, its a whole other shooting style. IBIS FTW
I could not agree more. Please see my fuller comments just posted.
Very clever. A9 body with PRO ergonomics, IBIS and LA-EA5 with A77II focus points (covering full frame area)
+1
It’s a great thought but I doubt we’ll see it – ibis didn’t exactly get the pros beating Sony’s door down and they’re already committed to oss for FE. At least it opens the door to a body that’s comfortable to use with the inevitable fast zooms.
So in other words you don’t want an e-mount camera at all but an a-mount camera.
I do. But if SONY’s best tech goes into the a9 (and if the a9 is an E mount camera) (and if SONY never releases a Zeiss 35mm F1.4 for A-Mount) then it looks like the a9 will be my only upgrade path from the a900 (as I don’t like the a99).
I’m hoping the a9 will be a better camera than the a99 II. I think we all are.
i hope it will be a7 like, small and retro look, so i will buy
Noooooooooo, no retro look please! Make the camera more ergonomic, and this retro look of the A7 series isn’t ergonomic.
No tot mention quite ugly.
It reminds me a lot of the Minolta X700, i don’t find it ugly.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minolta_X-700#mediaviewer/File:Minolta-X-700.JPG
My A7 definitely could be more ergonomic…
Hey Bruno, There are so many “ergonomic” camera. you can pick from a dozen: D750, 5D, A99, GH4, NX1 Let us/me have at least one unergonomic camera. 🙂
All of them don’t have what A7 Series have: Small + Full Frame.
I don’t want a big camera, i want a camera with a decent sized grip.
The OMD EM-1 looks adequate to me…
“Many mega pixels”
I hope it’s not “too many” mega pixels!
not too many no 🙂
In 46-50 Mp territory?
I am yet not sure. Between 36 and 46 😉
I have a very strong feeling it will be 46 Mp, because both Nikon and Canon will use a custom Sony design in their flagship cameras next year, and both parties expect big MP numbers.
it’s my feeling too 😉
Just a hair under the (cropped) medium frame sensor that’s everywhere nowadays 🙂
I bet the new 46 Mp sensor will be better than the current top of the line 36 Mp one, even pixel per pixel.
4K will be possible with 4 =>1 pixel binning.
I have high hopes for this camera!
What makes you think Canon will use a custom Sony design in their flagship cameras? I’m curious.
Nikon used custom design Sony sensors in the past, especially for top of the line cameras.
Speaking as someone who is already shooting with a 1st gen Sony 36mm sensor all I can say is yawn. Certainly, if you’ve been on the sidelines (I’m thinking of you Barry [grin]) waiting for some megapixel line in the sand to get crossed it’s exciting news. Your ship might finally have arrived. Or maybe not.
Hi Andrea!!!…Any RX20 news yet?
no.
DOH!! I suppose next month is a no go for RX20? I can’t beleven I have to buy a crappy Lumix now.
Looks like Panasonic is the winner in the bridge segment this christmas.
I can’t believe Sony would give that segment to them…unless Panasonic legally required it from Sony as a condition for buying Sony’s 1inch type sensor
A Sony professional 7-type body must now offer a totally Silent Shutter, leaf or electronic, and the facility to change lenses to the best Sony or Zeiss glass, but must also include the ability to adapt Nikon, or Leica lenses, or whatever we have already. Many users have too much money already invested in lenses to abandon these entirely. Therefore ISIS or at least a 4-stop equivalent is essential! Weather-sealing too of course.
30 MPX will offer more than enough resolution for most, but please Sony, adapt some of that special quality of the A7S to give us wonderful quality up to 6400 ISO, rather than needlessly high and unrealistic figures beyond that.
A curved sensor promises much — including making our existing lenses quite irrelevant! What would be miraculous though would be a Foveon sensor useable up to certainly 800 ISO, or better, 3200, but with three equal layers, unlike the Sigma Quattro: the Merrills truly display a startling and unique 3-D depth; in a Sony 7-type body of course. Restrict the Foveon output (at FF) to around 32 MPX equivalent (as I believe Digilloyd has urged already), make the frame large enough to hold an adequate battery; use two processors to handle all that info.
We are already almost there, a year or two after the introduction of FF digital mirrorless cameras. Come on! Be brave — and DO IT — please!
Forget about the adapters. Sony is not going to sell a mount with built in adapters or adapters rings for Canikon lenses. It would be an admission of failure for their own lens line up… Metabones, Kipon and all the chinese brands are in charge of that… And I have serious doubt about a possible change in the sensor technology. If it’s a fast AF camera, I have serious doubt that it will be a foveon-alike technology. What the point of an action oriented camera with poor high isos abilities?
What “pro” means mostly nowadays (it means nothing in reality but…) : image quality all along the iso range + great handling and direct controls + large and comfortable EVF + fast and reliable AF-S AND AF-C + great battery life.
–> for an all around camera.
For more specific uses (landscape for example) a foveon-like sensor gould be a great idea, but i doubt that the first FF AND fast af mirrorless will be a foveon…
I agree – it’ll be a next gen sensor, but the odds of it being foveon are slim if they’re marketing it as an all rounder.
– What are you hoping for?
– A small, light-weight, super compact FE camera. I’ve been hoping for an A5 (or NEX-9 previously) for years and I’m actually a bit disappoint to know this will be a plus instead of minus to current A7.
I’m carrying my A7 in my camera bag and practice shooting on my way to office or home, everyday. As a previous NEX5 + M-lenses user, I feels the inconvenience from A7’s size. Especially that SLR style EVF is indeed a big trouble (to me as I shot in waist angle, only tilt LCD is useful).
So for me, my dream E-mount camera is a Full-Frame at least not bigger than NEX7, brick-style, no EVF or any other big stuff pops out, then I can put it in my pocket and keep a low profile for me.
It’s the same to the lenses. I know that the E-mount design limited the size of lenses, but I’m really hoping to get some lenses with lower IQ, build worse, even full plastic, but smaller and lighter. Currently the only lens I can carry daily is FE35 and it makes totally no more sense than RX1.
Use the Olym m43 product line as example, if in the FE product line the A7 is the same position as EM5, I’m waiting for the EP5.
so… get an rx1
I did consider this for a few months, but the biggest problems for me are that first RX1 has no tilt screen, second is my fav focal is 50mm
I understand, I’m carrying around my a7 almost everywhere and the weight of it makes me want to carry my a6000 much more. I bought the a7 wanting to learn about the FF first hand, but the weight and size feels like a small DSLR. I like it, I don’t have any complaints, it’s just not as grab and shoot as smaller NEX cameras.
Yup. I’m used to my NEX-5n and M28/2.8A combo. After got my pre-order a7R it became a question I asked myself very usually that did I just pick a wrong camera?
I don’t know the answer yet, but what I do know is that as I’ve bought it I’ll get it prepared for every second, although I’ll also keep waiting for any new stuff which may suit me more.
You are in a very small boat of people that actually want a smaller camera. Most of us would like a more robust, solid feeling unit. Not everyone has tiny hands like a 7 year old
You’re right, that is the fact i’m facing. Actually it doesn’t has many relationship with the size of hands, but the way to shoot. I’d like to dive into street with low weight load and stealth. At the first time I came into NEX is because I treated these as modern-designed Leica (with tile screen for example, and peak focus while Leica has not at that time). I have totally no desire about the DSLRs so I feel not so good when I realize almost everybody treat the A7 as a “smaller DSLR”
Sorry but I just can’t hold myself to talk more.
I’ve quite understand and realized that I’m just a tiny bit of wired single among all camera users, no matter pro photographers or hardware players.
In all of my friends only 2 have similar idea with me, 1 is a zeiss ikon film cam user while another just left films and bought a Olympic. . And even they are shooting different topics in different way than me.
Around me, over 90% mirrorless buyers are much more suit compacts, they will never buy the second lens and only use auto mode. They buy mirrorlesses just because it looks cooler or output cleaner pictures, than iPhone. The main sounds in the community is “mirrorlesses are kid’s toys, big + heavy + hard + black = good”.
I attended the official announcement activity of a7 in Shanghai because I pre-ordered one in Sony store. Even there I cannot find a person to talk. Over a half attendees are 80 years old grandfathers (Sony is very popular and trusted in old people in China due to some history reason), mostly A900 owners. Then a half in the other half are hardware players who think nothing about photography, or family recorders who only shoot their girls or kids.
There are tons of trainings or classes teach shooting flowers, mountains, rivers, or girls. I’ve found just no reporting or documentary class.
And… The rare ones I found shoot similar thing as me love only films, they just hate digital 🙁
I’ll hazard a guess that you’re not a working pro…
You’re right. Shooting is just a hobby for me, I’m not making money by that. Actually I just started to learning things about shooting at Spring 2012, less than 3 years at all.
The topic most interest me is the street and people in there. I’m a Chinese actually and people live in cities of east Asia at least Shanghai are quite unfriendly when they see a camera, unlike in US.
That’s fair enough – I got a bit of hassle using by a77 for street photography a few times (I live in London). There’s no reason why they couldn’t make a smaller a7 without an evf (or with an evf as an add on).
Yup, the stealth is a very big part while another is the size and weight.
I’m not sure how strong are you but I’m far from a muscle man. 1kg maybe easy for a few hours but a whole day will be a problem (I’m used to wrist strips instead of tranditional strips) to my right wrist, especially combine to keyboards and touch-screen cellphones.
And… Rush in the peak hours’ subway with a big bag isn’t a easy job.
An a77, 35/1.4 and 24/2 weighs about 2kg, so I’m definitely noticing the difference with an a7, 55/1.8 and 35/2.8 at the end of a long day.
Of course, the a7 combo has less than half weight. I came from nex5 and leica m28/2.8a so my load doubled, but it’s still barely acceptable for me. It’s just a feeling problem.
While the size is a bigger problem. I guess your camera bag of a7 and a77 shouldn’t have big difference, maybe smaller. But for me it’s from 0 to 1. I used to put my nex in my pocket but now I have to carry one more bag.
My guess would be: larger body, internal stabilizer (menu controls whether the IS of an OSS lens is used instead), large battery (the A-series one?), AF system of A6000, huge buffer, top LCD display, 4K internal recording, 48MP – everything built on fast and reliable. Like A7s: providing 2 batteries and an external charger. I doubt silent shutter is doable on a high megapixel count just today…
If I was Sony I would also release a cheap fullframe A5, that is as large as A6000, and has no EVF. To completely flood the FF market with their camera for $1100ish.
These pro featured full frames are likely to be MUCH more expensive then the consumer a7 series currently on the market.
Which is a good thing IMHO – the a7 offers an affordable stepping on point and leaves plenty of room for a pro line.
Pros who already shoot with a D700, D800, D4, D3, 5D Mk III, 5D Mk II, or 1Dx would gladly pay the high price that SONY’s new a9 will command if it offers features that are a true upgrade from what they’re already shooting with.
Sorry amateurs. Pro means pro pricetag.
I, for one, am glad to hear that SONY is thinking about finally making a camera for pros and marketing it to pros.
I’d gladly cough up the money if it has the complete package.
I think you can bet on a larger body. Not to separate it optically from A7 series – it need to be larger in order to become more ergonomic than the A7, and to have some more space for pro controls.
I do like my A7R much, but for my large hands it is a pain to work with for a couple of hours – alone the shutter button (placement and this weak pressure point) deadened my fingers after somewhat a hundred shots in a row or so.
Larger Body, FM500 battery, more controls, EFC, Silent Mode, better AF, and as lens a wide angle TS – my dream.
WHERES MY XAVCS ON A7???? T_T
I completely agree. I’d prefer Sony, for the sake of change, would release firmware updates with “easy-win functions” like XAVC-S (maybe 4K as implemented in Panasonic LX100) to make existing customers/owners happy.
If this thing comes in the same “a7” style body it will be a complete waste. Coming from a professional perspective its REALLY nice to have something small, but it needs to be built in a body that can withstand drops, dings and weather better. There is such a thing as too small and the a7 style body fits that bill.
Hopefully this will be a dslr form factor body like the one we saw on dispaly before the a7 was launched.
now were talking…
my wish:
– 30/32MP sensor
– imporved A6000 like AF (mainly in the terms of low-light AF capabilities)
– fixed shutter shock
– silent shutter
– in terms of handling I would welcome some kind of mini-joystick for the the focus point selection (I HATE the fact that I need to press some button in order to be able to start picking the focus point, I think this has to be addressed if sony wants pro handling)
– kick-ass EVF with high magnification that would blow me away
– as for the misterious large aperture prime: it has to be a portrait lens finally, and should be a 1.4 at least (85/1.4 cz for the A mount is not big by any means, so something similar could go very well with the cam) perhaps even a 1.2 😉
would a a9 version of the a7s be in the works?
That I don’t know yet. But my “guts” tell me it’s possible they make it for real 🙂
I am a working Pro and use Sony cameras exclusively right now. But I have several issues with the A7r that I have to have a A77III as well. First the AF on the A77II has to make its way to the A7 series otherwise it’s very handicapped. I can’t do a lot of event, PR work with the A7r as focus tracking is just not up to par on the A7 series , so first it must get to the level or better with AF like the current A77II. Flash sync needs to get at least to 1/250 of a second, obviously it needs EFC as this is not acceptable on what the A7r is. I get by but I should not have to think about or deal with shutter vibration. The mount itself needs to beef up a great deal. I use several Canon TSE lenses that are very heavy and some big A mount glass. The entire body also can use a stronger build. It’s about long term durability more than anything. Seriously we throw cameras all over the place in the heat of a battle.
Higher megapixels would not hurt us but the ability to shoot at a lower resolution raw to pick up camera speed and for certain things we simply don’t need 50 mpx. So give us raw adjustability. Get totally rid of loose compression too. If you can’t afford hard drives get the heck out of the business. Do not touch my bloody raws period. Lol
Obviously we need a LA-5 adapter to take fully advantage with A glass and the hundreds of focus points.
You can tell this has been on my mind. Lol
Obviously faster wider, longer lenses . Make two sets one without regard to size and weight and give us 1.4 glass than a set that either starts at 1.8 or F2 and be smaller and lighter. There serving several masters here not a clump of people. We have different needs
We need an E mount full frame without regard to size at least. Deeper grip- add about a half an inch and move the shutter button forward. This will improve the camera 10 FOLD. Look at how the new Samsung NX1 implements it’s grip. It doesn’t force your damn hand into some weird upright position- it’s natural.
Yeah, I’d be interested in a larger camera if the AF was stronger and the button layout more friendly. I’ve been using the A7r for almost a year now and the layout still isn’t second nature. It’s very fiddly. Like Guy Mancuso says above, the AF right now isn’t up to snuff and I usually bring my Canon gear (and my A7r) to do events. I also agree about lenses – just make the best FE lens they can and stop compromising on size. The 24-70 and apparently the 16-35 are both overpriced for what they deliver.
Grips either have to be large: so that you can wrap your hands around them in a prescribed manner,
or:
Friction grips like the X-Pro 1 that favours medium-large hands that use whatever position they want.
Personally, large grips limit the way I work, and make the camera more tiring to hold unless I’m using longer lenses. With all short lenses, medium-sized to massive grips get in the way. Friction grips allow great freedom of hand movement for all sorts of non-sports camera holding.
That said, if you’re going to put a bloody grip on a camera, at least make it wrappable. The X-T1 is far too small for medium-large size hands, and cramped grips like the D800 are problematic for all sizes of hands.
It’s not the size of the grip only, it’s the placement, the friction, and the shape of the camera. You’d be surprised what can be done with a gripless friction bracket.
agreed here. shutter release at an angle pls
Like you, I’m a working pro, but I am a little confused by your issues.
Of course, I don’t know the kind of jobs you do and I don’t want to appear rude or disrespectful. However, I’m puzzled as to why you have the cameras and lenses that you do. If you want lightness, then I wouldn’t keep the Canon gear, but if you need out and out performance with respect to focus, the I wouldn’t have opted for the A7r.
Until recently I had Sony A99s, but wanting to lighten the load and looking for low light performance, replaced the whole kit (including most lenses) with two A7s. For those time when I need more resolution and the occasion calls for it, I supplemented with two A7. I would only get an A7r if I did a great deal of studio work or the clients specifications required it.
Certainly, I’m always keen for improvement and this may bring some, but I think it will be at a cost and I’d only buy the tool for the job. If the one I have now works, I wouldn’t get another.
E-mount Again ???
The 4th FF in E-mount…
Like it or not, that’s the future.
Sony releases FF cameras only once every four years so you better be prepared to wait.
Where does this leaves the medium format rangefinder rumour? The one that referred to a Sony MF rangefinder with EVF, and Mamiya rangefinder with OVF and OLED overlay? This would still be interesting, the thing i regret the most is having sold my Mamiya 6.
What to expect of Sony?
What i expected of Sony was Sony to support existing customers on medium to long term via firmware updates. What i fear the most is seeing one or two fresh firmware updates, then support gets an order to kill any kind of support so that sales of new bodies can proceed and the old bodies get no attention. Two or three years of fw updates isn’t unrealistic, not for the kind of money spent on this kind of gear.
Sensors, what i hope is 20 stops DR at 1 million ISO but alas that won’t happen sadly, though if any company will pull it, at the current pace then that company will be Sony. If further segmentation is ahead then a body with A7S performance and increased DR at high iso, say, 14-15 stops, and a “landscape” body with 16-17 stops at low iso would be epic.
If they do it on the day Canon announces their 5D Mk.IV, slightly beforehand, they get a bonus for raining on Canon’s parade. If they do it while Canon’s Maeda-san is giving an interview, they unlock an achievement and will earn the gratitude of millions of disgruntled Canon users. I’ll buy two bodies if their campaign uses the words “seeing” and “impossible”.
What i really wanted of Sony was decent battery life, and no dubious issues. What is it with this “though E-mount” thing? Do we need it? Is it something that we can ignore? What is the Sony position on it? Light leaks? What is this? Compression artifacts? Can’t we have the option to compress the ARW files on or off in the camera? This would be so trivial to do it’s even offensive. Looking forward to February.
At last the real McCoy is coming. Because 2.0 must be better in all aspects.
Admin do you have any news on XAVCS for the current series?
not yet. But I surely hope it’s coming. I want that on my A7r : )
This feature will be very welcome!
LOL, the whining about the $3900 (just my guesstimation) price tag will be alarming.
It all depends form the features. If it also makes me a coffea in the morning I am sold 🙂
On the other hand: paying a few bucks extra hurts once. The cuts that come with saving them hurt every day. Not to mention the costs for band aids, or whatever is required to alleviate the problem.
I agree! But, please, we should not inflate the prices before the launch.
Sony definitely reads SAR
Yeah, paying up for something I really want has never been a problem. Actually, when the A7/A7R were released, I was surprised they were not priced higher. Still, there seem to be a massive crowd expecting good stuff to be sold for peanuts. Wish is one thing, expectations another.
Pro bodies are $6000+, pro tele primes in the 200-300mm range are $5000+ and $10000+ in the 400-800mm range, pro primes in the rest of the focal range are $2000-$4000.
so.. no A7000?
Of course there is an A7000! I just don’t know exactly WHEN it’s coming…
If you talk to any working pro about SONY’s current offering of camera bodies (or better yet, if you show any working pro SONY’s current offering of camera bodies) the biggest complaint that you’re going to hear is going to be about how shooting through the EVF isn’t something they think they could get used to.
The a9 is going to have to have a better EVF than the a99 and a7 series cameras. It needs to have less lag, richer black levels, and ideally be physically bigger.
Why not make the EVF really large? If small is no longer a requirement of this camera body for SONY’s designers, why not make the EVF hump at the top be as big as the hump on a Pentax 67 with an EVF that’s a couple of inches wide on the inside and an ocular lens in front of it that makes the view into it truly breathtakingly huge?
It would make manual focusing much easier to do, possibly negating the need for focus peaking or magnification. And it would be a real selling point of the camera instead of a reason to “never want to ditch an OVF”…
The OVF doesn’t have to be physically large, but optically large.
One of the largest looking OVFs is the legendary OM1 viewfinder, which is very small on the outside, but when you look through it and see the huge bright frame it is like magic.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/Olympus_OM-1_wtih_50_1.8_Back.jpg
Sure. But have you ever looked through a Pentax 67?
Without the limitation of the pentaprism’s projected image starting out as a piddly little 24x36mm, I think making the EVF larger AND the optical system in front of it larger could yield truly magical results.
A big EVF would be a definite plus – Sony would need two things for that: a display that has much higher resolution, at least on a level with modern smartphones. Something with 1024px or 1280px or so on the long edge won’t gain much from more magnification. And enough power to illuminate that real estate, the current battery wouldn’t last for long.
Both could be taken care of in a MF-sized body of course.
But please retain the focus aids, preferable with an option to put it in an optional sub-window, basically an enhanced loupe that doesn’t hide the whole big picture.
This might be an A7X camera, using Barry’s multi-layered gigapixel sensor 🙂
Giggity.
Fixes:
1) Viewfinder: Fix the oversensitive sensor that switches the back LCD screen off when in horizontal mode.
2) Further protruding handle and improved thumb rest.
3) Rugged textured exterior
4) Dual card slots
5) Bigger battery
Put a big chunky, maybe even ugly grip on the side..akin to the olympus EM1. They added that feature realizing almost everyone who bought an EM5 ended up purchasing and using the additional grip. It’s not pretty but it is extremely functional. IT MAKES AN ABSOLUTE DIFFERENCE! With the right grip, you can carry ANY lens regardless of size around. It’s not the size of the camera that matters- it’s having a proper handle and thumb rest to maximize user control!!!!! If it doesn’t blend smoothly with someones body or motions it will only cause frustration. Sony, please fix this.
Built in Grip… Yes, this is an often overlooked fact when the rubber hits the road most everyone buys the grips and realizes this is what was missing. Might as well build it in from the start and use that space for battery or electric components, no sense in wasting the space on an empty after market grip. I suspect it will have one built in.
I keep measuring my A7 up against my minolta 7000. Very similar in terms of size except the handle on the 7000 protrudes about an additional .5 inches. It makes an absolute world of difference- completely changes the camera. I can’t find any attachment online to give the A7 a more substantial handle in the front. That’s the most glaring omission in my opinion.
All I am hoping for is the Z-shift sensor so that I can use my PRO CANON FD-L lenses with autofocus.
I want rx100 iii viewfinder and size (as small as possible) with fullfram and speed autofocus and 2.8 zoom lenses
Well, since it’s going to be a Pro camera and the tech and design is done from scratch, there’s a possibility that the “A9” as you call it..might be physically much larger than the current A7 series. Maybe just a mirrorless DSLR size camera? Hope not…that’ll defeat the purpose of small cameras.
Agreed that would be a bit of a bummer because f4 lens’s and all.
My A9 wish list:
* DSLR destroying focus tracking
* internal 4K writing
* best ever IBIS
* 48 megapixels
* fastest sync speed
* fastest (and silent) top shutter speed
* a fast native, weather sealed 85mm to go with it
Significantly less expensive than 5DM3/4
And finally it can also bring world peace? 🙂
And cure Ebola
My list is a bit shorter (and humbel? 🙂 )
* Fast AF
* IBIS
* Internal 4K
* fast syncspeed (1/1000)
* Silent (full elecronic) shutter
* stepless aperture
* mobile app with MF and MA (manual stepless aperture) for film
Go Sony go!!!
all of that goes against your last wish 😛
You’re right, of course. I’ve edited it.
Pick any three, really. 🙂
How about true 14 bit color ? But not 8 as is the Sony standard now
Only 8-bit for video, right? Their stills aren’t 8-bit…right? We won’t be getting 14-bit video at all. Maybe 10-bit.
And even if all that were delivered, moron bloggers would still complain. Asston for instance.
I wonder if it will be one camera, or 2 cameras like the A7/A7r… D610/D810… a high resolution beast and a more affordable more responsive second camera. Super high resolution is really only for a narrow subset of “pros.” You have the pros that put responsiveness and speed first — the sports shooters who use the D4s and 1Dx. (Without long lenses, Sony isn’t ready to compete in this tiny market). The pros that need a balance between responsiveness, speed, resolution, size… Who favor the 5Diii, the D750, even the A99… And then the pros who really value the high resolution the most, who shoot with the A7r, D810, and medium format cameras. No single “pro” camera can satisfy these very different markets.
It is also harder and harder to see a place for the A-mount. Other than as a place to hang old lenses natively, what would be the point? The arguments in favor of the A-mount are slipping away…
1 — A-mount is more “pro” body than E-mount… Apparently that won’t be true anymore.
2 — A-mount has superior AF over E-mount… Not really true anymore. Maybe the A77ii is a a tiny bit faster than the A6000 in some situations, but the gap is no longer a major difference.
3 — A-mount has a larger lens lineup… That will be true for a while. But with A-mount standing still in lens development, the E-mount will catch up quickly, and will offer newer and more modern designs. There are 22 full frame A-mount lenses on Sony’s website. There are now 7 FE lenses. According to their roadmap, they should have about 20 lenses by the end of 2015 — basically matching the A-mount. And let’s face it, if lens selection is the biggest issue, then a photographer would go to Canon or Nikon which offer a far greater selection of lenses. (Nikon offers 68 full frame lenses).
So other than service to an aging existing A-mount owners, it appears there will no longer be any competitive advantage of the A-mount over the E-mount within the next year.
Yeah, all the doom and gloom about A-mount will probably turn out to be true in the end after all. Sony should have just said so 2 years ago, but then they would have missed out on many overpriced sales of “updated” Minolta lenses.
I suspect Sony didn’t really “intend” to kill the A-mount, or plan it 2 years ago. Initially, the E-mount was developed as a P&S upgrade. It was APS-C only (and there have been challenges making it full frame). It was marketed under the “NEX” name. The early advertising focused on ease of use. The menu system was rather simple and point-and-shoot type. Early lenses were nothing special.
Go back 3 years, I think the plan was A-mount for serious shooters, and E-mount for the ordinary consumer mass market.
Somewhere along the way, Sony noticed that pros and enthusiasts were being drawn to E-mount, despite all the “pro” features that were missing. They were drawn to the high IQ, small size, and ability to adapt their CaNikon lenses.
So at some point, Sony said to themselves… “hmmm… some pros/enthusiasts are already being drawn to the E-mount… what would happen if we actually created a pro E-mount line?!?!?”
So around this time — probably late 2013/early 2014 — They started to re-position E-mount. They put A-mount on hold (it had never successfully drawn users away from CaNikon… maybe E-mount could succeed where A-mount failed). So for the most part, they put A-mount on hold. They totally changed E-mount from being a P&S upgrade, to being a serious camera — Dropped the “NEX” and simply market it as their top of the line “Alphas.” They developed full frame models and top quality lenses. They changed the menu system from a P&S system to the more sophisticated A-mount menu system.
I think the attitude was… “A-mount isn’t really growing anyway… let’s wait and see what happens with E-mount…”
Now, while I wouldn’t call the A7 series a total game changer in the industry.. I think it was a success for Sony. It has drawn more pros away from CaNikon. Where professional publications use to talk about “Canon v. Nikon”.. You are now hearing more comparisons like “Canon 6D v. Nikon D610 v. Sony A7”
So with the success of the A7…. The A-mount remains on the backburner, while they fully give the E-mount time to shine. Put all their energy into it, and make the A9 the “new Sony Alpha flagship.”
When the dust settles, then Sony will evaluate the market demand, and determine how much energy to put into A-mount.
A mount !!!????
The only news related to a-mount will be the adapter.
if they can make a decent sized good amount adapter then i would be happy with that. but the current lea4 is a monster
I am sure Sony will put A77ii AF module in the new adapter.
can it be a99 mark2 ?
Admin is there rumors about rx100 iiii?
And small fullfram interchangeable lens camera?
IV
FINALLY – a rumor post and a SR5 at that. Thank you Andrea!
Too bad this thing doesn’t come out end of this year.
With some tweaks, the A99 could have been the “Mirrorless that can succeed against DSLR cameras when it comes to “grab” the professional market.” But no.
Seriously, get real. The A99 is great but compared to the D4/D4s and the 1Dx it’s a gadget. Toy body, toy battery, lame AF, slow, mediocre hobbyist IQ and poor low-light performance, dozens of pro features missing, just a handful of semi-pro lenses …
A9 Wishlist:
-Proper firmware, none of that stupid quirks.
-Proper AF with A-Mount lenses, also a LA-EA6 adapter with no mirror but focus motor.
-IBIS.
-I won’t mind a slightly larger body.
-Infolithium M type battery.
-Proper weathersealing. I got sand inside my A7 while it was tucked inside a bag.
-Proper firmware, seriously.
-A firmware which has not been done by interns on their last days.
-Proper lens roadmap.
Will Sony continue to have their lossy compression scheme and 8 bit color ?
Yes Assnton, to go along with you 8 bit brain.
Is this admin posing as a troll again?
Are you related to Shitmael?
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Sony, do whatever you gotta do, just give me two memory card slots and a minimum shutter speed option.
Couldn’t have set it better myself.
Obama speak: Make no mistake. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.
Also, if I hear one more person say that it better not be big, or the lenses better not be big, I’m gonna go bananas. There will be small options, and there will be big options. The a7 is plenty small, and so is the 35 2.8. If you want small. It exists. But Sony has to compete with the professional market as well, so things are going to get bigger at the same time.
For every Sony fan’s sake, I hope they make a big, amazing new camera with incredible af and a gorgeous 24-70 2.8. They won’t be pocket sized, but this system has to accommodate all types of shooters to really compete with canon and Nikon.
Totally agree! I really love my SAL2470Z that still costs $2k.
Agreed, except for one thing: Sony does NOT have to compete in the professional market. Most manufacturers do not, because it is a small, conservative and very well covered market. The FE system is very competitive in the enthusiasts mirrorless mariket and Sony can sell a lot of cameras and lenses and make a lot of money. It’s pretty much a certainty that trying to compete in the pro market will cost a LOT and bring in very little money. You could say it’s all for prestige, but Sony really is not in the financial position to do things like that. They should focus on the FE system, they really have something great going there, something nobody else has.
I love intelligent conversation on forums — it’s such a rarity! So thank you.
That being said, I see what you mean, and I agree that unless they can charm the whole professional market and just dominate, it will likely cost too much make it worth it, on the surface. However, I have found that most people who buy cameras aren’t the wildly intelligent, well-researched hobbyists/professionals we all are. The market much more often tends to follow whatever professionals shoot. Someone wants to buy a camera, so they take advice from their friend who’s a professional photographer, or they ask the guy shooting their sister’s wedding what he uses.
Amateurs want to shoot what professionals use. Even if that means they buy the T9i that has nothing in common with the 1Dx.
So in that vein, I think respect and brand recognition starts at the top. I worked in camera sales for years, and when people were deciding between Canon and Nikon, they would always say things like, “I like the Nikon, but when you watch football, all you see are those white Canon lenses…” So not that I expect sports shooters to all flock to Sony, but in order to get out of the Fuji/Olympus/Panasonic pool and into the Canon/Nikon pool, at some point they will likely need the respect and reverence that comes with making impressive, drool-worthy professional equipment.
(But after all that, I think this is also a different time in photography when “professional” and “hobbyist” are blending together enough that there’s some reason to think that just making the best “semi-professional” system may be enough to earn that ubiquitous respect that could bring them into the real big leagues. So who knows, maybe you’re totally right.)
this is a political style rumor, long story, nothing concrete said. Sony started a Pro service without a Pro camera, so it was evident that there was one going to come soon. Now, for the features, if it has all i find listed in the comments, it will be a solid and heavy brick. There is one guess open and that is, A7 style body or A3000 style. Let’s wait for the surprise.
Well, I am the only one saying a new FF E-mount is coming at CP+. And that it’s a PRO cam.
It could have been A-mount, APS-C E-mount, rangefinder, Medium format, low end FE and many other things.
So for me actually that’s a huge news ot know what’s exactly coming!
It is huge news…. Huge that the A99 is getting replaced as the flagship pro camera… and it’s not being replaced by another A-mount.
Thank you for weighing in Shitmael, your comments are always unwelcome.
for me , no need pro a9
(A7R is more than enough ,I work with A7R + LA-EA4 without any problem)
i need new line , classic line
revive contax brand , Make a Contax G2 in Fullframe E Mount and Hybrid Viewfinder like XPRO1 and bang i will buy it for sure if it around 4000-5000$
Digital Contax G3 (Advance NO AA 24 MP), Leica M240 (24MP) ultimate combo camera set for me !!!!
Will Sony continue to have lossy compression scheme and 8 bit color ?
Will your sister continue to go down on sailors?
Thanks for the infos SARs. Products are not so exiting as expected. It seems so, if Sony would try to turn the price screw. Personally, as an amateur, I have no need for the predicted products.
“Pro” in the traditional CaNikon sense means just:
– big and heavy
– extra fast and precise AF
– fixed, inflexible display
– overprized.
Such a development would definatively not be in-line with my needs and wishes for near future Sony camera equipment. I wished much, Sony would do more for the majority of photographers. We are amateurs, mostly not taking any advanced sports photos and have limited budgets.
Mainly, we would benefit from advanced sensors and some other improvements as VF, AF, screen or software. System cost are already now a bit over my limit. Lenses are really expensive and there are no bright AF budget lens alternatives available. If Sony will continue the “pro (price)” strategy, I will not do further investments in Sony equipment, but continue with my more reasonalbly priced SLR and RF lenses acomplished by the three SEL lenses (16-35, 55, 28-70), I have selected before. If the Sony product news in Q1 2015 will be the ones, as SAR predicts, I will most likely continue with the A7 in 2015 and buy no “pro stuff” at all and wait for something meeting my needs better.
It’ll probably undercut the competition in price when you consider the full package. So, in one sense it will be “cheap” for those looking for a certain level of performance.
I like that !!!
I would love to see a new RX2, i spend my life with 35mm, so a compact camera with good lens suit me, RX2 with A7s sensor would be great.
I wish to see RX2 with maybe 24mm 🙂
The # 1 problem with Sony is the compressed files. They create lossy compression that is 8 bits in nature. When you go to pull or push a raw file the Sony bands and pixelates far faster than a Nikon file of the same scene.
I feel my sony a99 files have more latitude than Canon files I work on.
He’s just being an idiot, doesn’t have a clue about compression, color depth or anything else photo related.
Anton, your number 1 problem is you constantly talk out of your a$$.
I agree, lossy compression of raw files needs to end. There is no reason for it.
They will continue playing with different compression schemes, I think, particularly with new larger files.
I’d like to see the A7s sensor in a NEX-7 body with weather sealing.
As much as I like my A7r, I miss the compactness of my NEX-7.
The main requirements for a pro A9 that will have a chance at being competitive should have at least:
-At least 10 FPS with fast and accurate AF tracking.
-AF in very low light.
-full customization of buttons and functions.(to toggle the EVF and LCD as an example)
-better battery life, 1000 shots as a target.
-higher magnification for EVF, with less lag.
-a sensor with less noise, and no banding, and a thinner stack(CFA + cover glass).
-rugged.
-more peaking options
-auto ISO all the way to the max extended ISO.
-minimum shutter speed setting
-usb 3
-trigger RF slave flashes(3 groups)
-touchscreen
-a “My Menu”
-A larger buffer with a fast write to card.
What I’d really like to see:
-open source FW
-regular FW updates to fix issues, or argument features based on feedback.
Pointless. There are no good prime AF lenses. Except the 55 f1.8.
Then we have 11+7 bit raw, noise reduction applied on raw, shutter shock, extremely noisy… These are toys, not professional tool.
Fast prime is coming too. That’s SR100 🙂
Really? That’s 99% problem solved !!
Really loved the 55…but can’t make a system on its own.
It’s on the roadmap here. On the latter grey lines:
http://www.sonyalpharumors.com/the-updated-sony-fe-lens-roadmap-and-a-few-thoughts/
Just continue to make a system around your I-phone and stop being a poser.
I’m a pro. Not a poser. Sorry for you.
Have you ever heard of a Proser? They’re that guy that does the paid gig every once in awhile and can work around light room, but like mostly poses with their gear. Hypsters, weird uncles and young creative types fit this bill. Proser- the new modern poser.
You know yourself, as I can see.
Clap, clap.
85/1.2? 😀
An 85 1.2 STF would be awesome
The diminished return in IQ and light transmission going from f/1.4 and f/1.2 hasn’t been worth it in any of the three 1.2 lenses I’ve tried so far, but the new fuji and leicasonic seem different.
Every manufacturer is doing noise reduction in raw.
Yeah, right. But here it’s too much,
Are you saying there is NR (applied to RAW) beyond or in addition to what a user can disable?
Yes, right.
Your comment is pointless.
It sounds like these are going to be a serious attempt to create a pro camera. Unless you have a crystal ball, how can you possibly predict what these will be like?
A pro camera means nothing without a system. Sorry, man. It doesn’t work making 3 cameras and a few poor lenses.
True, but your complaints are mostly regarding the body. And until we don’t know more details it’s possible that Sony fixed this at least.
I hope you’re right. 😉
We know you’re wrong ZaZa Gabor, BTW how are your sisters doing?
I don’t disagree. Hence my comment regarding the FE roadmap. It certainly won’t be the sports or wildlife photographers first choice for a while 😉
SAR_Admin, any hope of an RX1 update/refresh coming around that time?
yes. But I cannot confirm it with SR5 yet 🙁
Why don’t you share what you have ?
Qometimes, you are making rumors on rumors !!!
Can you confirm something with SR3-4 ?
I have no new info yet to share. Only know it has curved sensor and Zeiss 35mm 1.8 lens (which I already told before).
I hear a lot of rumors are just rumors of rumors. Ofcourse, that might just be a rumor.
Still, I’m glad to hear that there is something in the works :).
I am putting my nikon gear purchases on hold until this comes out… I hope the handling is good and fast. With physical buttons and dials to change settings. No menu diving.
200 coments
150 wish lists!!
260 comments now.
200 pedestrian wishers and a couple of jerks above them all.
You’ve been here long enough to know that SAR rumors speculating on new body or lens roadmaps leads to endless comments of fanboy fantasies. ;^)
It is still surprising, though. Don’t you think?
At one point it is almost a shouting match.
I wonder if anyone here thinks that a Sony researcher comes to SAR, copies all comments at the end of the day, pastes on a word doc, prints this doc and then reads it before he goes to sleep looking for inspiration.
They definetly do this. The folder is labeled “Barry Cam: Confidential.”
That’s…umm…that made me laugh a bit! 580+ comments…
Any news yet on an A-mount discount clearance sell off?
Haha…ouch…that may be true.
Its like saying Ford is going to have a Truck clearance, because the new Focus is on the sales lot.
SLR types aren’t going away anytime soon.
Of course SLR types will be here for a long while yet, but those made by Sony will be mirrorless FF E-mount.
any news on the other news we heard a while back?
Does this mean dual-SD slots? And port doors that actually work? Lossless RAW?
Regardless, I am very excited for a professional A7 body. It had better have S-Log, however.
I hope it has triple card slots. One for JPEG, RAW and then an additional just for selfies.
SELFIE CARD SLOT!?!?!?!?! THAT WOULD BE A DREAM COME TRUE!!!!!
EYE WIFI not
scarcely, with mug shot like the above!
Any news on that monochrome cam?
nope. But there is “one more thing” for 2015. and I hope it’s either the monochrome or the medium format camera…
Or Sony’s version of Foveon, or no?
They only have this “stacked” sensor and that is not a Foveon but a BSI (back side illuminated) sensor.
I hope so too (a monochrome cam)! 🙂
Dear Sony.
I would like a 7r with the polish of the 7s. That is; solid AF you can reasonably trust. Fix whatever’s causing all of those random soft shots and reduce shutter button lag as much as physically possible. If you want to be really cool and up the DR and or improve ISO performance that’s cool too. But really, if your going to do this rapid upgrade thing..waiting until jan/feb is lame. Just do it. We all knew the 7r was a reach and would be an imperfect beast. Heck I still have its box sitting in the Amazon box it came it, waiting for eBay.
I’d love a mountless flangless medium format camera back, or just a super high MP A7-style (but much better made) camera. I’ll not buy FE lenses, either way, but make the experience better please. A7r is a butter for everything from hand-holding to tripod use. Slow, loud, clacky, and largely unstable.
Still I manage well with it.
I remember your review of the a7r. It was probably the most honest review around. Cheers.
Thank you, Xam. It was also a very, very long, rambling, and often poorly written review. That said, I wrote what I truly felt, and still feel. I love what the A7r outputs, but hate basically everything else.
It’s been said: that review was too long-winded and too poorly written. I agree. But I also agree with everything I said. The A7r is a clunky, awful camera to use, but has wonderful output, and if you’re doing still life, and even despite its awful clunky shutter, it is a far better camera than the D800/10. For everything else, it is a tired bugger that deserves better.
EDIT: and thank you for the compliments.
Haha drunken ramblings or not it was very much on the money. I’ve been using the a7r in the studio since March and yeah couldn’t agree more with your review. I have a love/hate relationship with it.
I wonder what “new design” might mean?! Not SLR/T, not RF? Maybe modular, as we were promised before?
Given that at least one version of this camera will be high mpix, we now know that more high quality lenses are on their way. This will benefit all of us.
Other than autofocus, my main complaint is the weak/fiddly E-mount itself. Both my NEX-7 and A-7 have had problems with lens movement sufficient to stop electrical communications. When I mount my 400mm Canon lens on my 1DMKIII, there is absolutely no movement. I would never think of mounting such a lens on my A-7.
I must admit, that I would prefer a larger body. Even the A7/Battery Grip combination is too thin in my hand.
I doubt that IBIS will happen. Stabilization is in the E-Mount lens.
A thicker body and grip would be nice indeed.
You just asked for a smaller camera in your other comment.
What is a “huge bump forward in quality”, I mean to be honest there isn’t much more you can ask for in quality of image. Most of what you want now isn’t related to the sensors ability to capture as much as it is related to how things are captured (global vs rolling shutter) or focusing.
Maybe my eyes are just shot, but I don’t look back at photos I’ve shot in the past decade and say damn if only my sensor had been better that would look a whole lot better.
Both your eyes and brain are shot and have been so for a long time. See your doctor.
There’s more to being “pro” than building a “pro” camera.
I’m not confident that Sony realizes that.
Sony putting that much effort into releasing an all-new pro FE mount before the next A-mount camera can only mean one thing. Bye bye, A-mount. It was nice knowin’ ya.
The next A-Mount replacement isn’t due until Sept 2015.
Sony’s going to seize the opportunity/initiative while Nikon, and Canon are sleeping. They’re going to push new FF E-Mounts non-stop until they’ve every single Canon, and Nikon professional user caves in. I’m pretty sure they’ll run out of letter by the end of next year.
And when newly minted A7 users are looking for something with a little more performance, like 12 fps, IBIS or the ability to fully use outstanding lenses like the STF or 135 ZA they’ll end up buying a A-Mount.
Kinda of the way Apple marketed the MacBook to iPhone users.
Hard to see many FF E-mount users moving back up the weight class unless Sony makes a light and compact A-mount mirrorless that looks like the old film SLRs instead of our modern bulging monsters. I certainly hope so.
They’ll have to release an A99-sized E-Mount camera for those people who need an ergonomic body
I use my 135mm ZA on my A7 with an LAEA3 adapter and it works perfectly. If I wanted autofocus I’d use an LAEA4 adapter and it would also work perfectly. Sony may come out with one more A-mount body before it kills off the line entirely, but you can bet there won’t be any more A-mount lenses. FE mount is the future. Seeya, A-mount!
I wouldn’t hold my breath on that scenario. “Newly minted A7 users” aren’t going to be looking to change mounts again, especially to a mount where they can’t adapt the lenses for whatever mount they came to the A7 from in the first place.
New E-Mount will have a lot of FPS
And Sony will simply release 135mm Zeiss and all kind of lenses with OSS for E-Mount
If they successfully make a DSLR-quality mirrorless, all SLR mounts are dead
Hulk request PROFESSIONAL level wObbLE!
I know this may sound unusual for a pro photographer, but I just need to know one thing: will this new camera have FULLY ARTICULATED lcd?
I’m definitely missing that on the a7. And please bring keep the level indicator!
I never even remotely thought about the possibility of removal of the level indicator! It’s absolutely essential when doing long exposures in dark conditions!
It is (e level) already in the A7!
Yes, but it’s been left out of every apsc e-mount body released since then…
Right? I love that feature one 77 and 99 – use it all the time.
AF as quick as the 810 and 5DMKIII? Yeah of course it will be!
seems unlikely. But I would greatly welcome that
Let’s wait and see. AF of D810 is really really good and accurate, especially AFC. But if they deliver, I will buy one.
– Randefinder EVF like Sony A6000 with magnification as Fuji XT-1
– Silent electronic shutter like Sony A7S
– 24 megapixel with better ISO sensitivity than Sony A7S
– AF sensitivity of -4 EV
– As fast AF as Olympus EM1 in all situations
That would be fantastic!
What do you even need better iso than the A7s for? 😛
Having those performance on a 24mpx sensor, on the other hand…
I fully agree. An A7s with 18 or 24MP, much improved battery life and a few more primes (21, 28 and fast 35) and I would be very happy.
My dream A9 camera would have all the A7S has already plus :
– true 4K APS-C (more MP in FF)
– 5 axis IBIS (Z shift sensor would be huge)
– 10 bits 4K internal recording
– global shutter
– 120fps 1080p
– choice of XAVC and XAVC-S codecs
– larger all weather ergonomic body
– world class EVF
– better menu system
You should get an FS7.
If Sony will claim it is a pro camera and will charge pro level prices – one thing is for sure – it had better have pro level AF performance.
Thank you Captain Obvious.
Actually – it is not so obvious as you think. What passes for good AF in mirrorless land would not cut the mustard in pro DSLR land.
I’d disagree with that:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=up8K_xd_iwU
Much much closer than you think already.
Sorry, read Thom Hogan’s take on that. Not a very well thought out comparison. Another nice comparison was indirectly done over at imagine resource, when they tested the A6000 and D4s almost in parallel. But with every generation the gap closes further. Maybe we see them on par by end of next year already.
Well, the above comparison shows the A6000 isn’t the top pic for mirrorless AF either. But, real world results are telling. You can in fact do fast action with mirrorless cameras and quite well as it stands. If I’m getting paid for my work- like seriously getting paid- I’ll pay the big bucks and grab the best FF and a lens optimized for fast action. However, I think this shows the next generation will put mirrorless on par with DSLR offerings. It’s not in the distant future anymore, it’s at our doorstep.
I think so, too. So far I waited, since the first generation of A7 cameras was not there for me. But this announced camera could make me invest in Sony seriously.
Very exciting.
But if I had a choice, I would greatly prefer an “update” to version 1.1 of my A7R that eliminates the known “bugs” than being offered version 0.9 of a completely new A9.
Fritz
Bring it! All the worry about “Amount is dead,” what about DSLR ? Shouldn’t DSLR owners be worried DSLR is dead! Forget the brand, who wouldn’t want PRO level features/functions and perfromance minus the old mirror technology? Dump the hump? I say dump the Mirror!!!
Anyone who shoots flash photography and understands that EVF is terrible for that, regardless if “settings effect” is on or off.
I shoot flash photography and still see the evf as an advantage to ovf.
How is the EVF terrible for flash photography? All you have to do is turn off the live view settings effect feature and it’s fine.
I shoot flash with EVF and its the best thing happened to my business!
EVF gives me the ability to zoom in and focus precisely.
EVF gives me the ability to see how dark I can go with the ambient therefore it allows me to take a shot w/o any additional light aside form my strobes.
EVF + TTL mode is just so awesome!
the ability to turn off the live view effect is also great for manual flash photography. EVF can see in the dark! optical cant!
A7S baby!
Rubbish. You are clueless.
Awesome. Where do I pre-order?
I’ll I want is a9 with 24mp, 100k iso, autofocus from a6k, and 12 fps. Something tells me they will probably split these features up between two cameras.
Great, Full frame, 50>60 Mp, silent (+no vibration) shutter, full 14 bit files, under £2,500 please, and I’ll buy it!
What they need to do (apart from all the important things Andrea told us) IMHO is a reliable weather sealing (for lens and body, obviously) and eliminate the E-mount “wobbling” that almost everyone here talks about. A-mount has a minimal wobbling, but never caused me troubles. I never tested E- mount that much to mind this flaw, but it must be extremely irritating – and disappointing – to see your lens doing that.
“Almost everyone”. Rather a few loud ones. I don’t have any wobbling problems with my A7.
So what’s this “wobbling phenomena” then? Could it be some deviation of quality standards from Sony? Could it be something related to how people use their cameras? Could it be some premature wear and tear effect not perceived by the engineers? Could it be a defect catalyzed by the use of heavy lenses? It makes me wonder.
Now all those expensive A-mount lenses without stabilization don’t look all that good anymore. If only Sony had chosen to do focal lenght optimized in-lens stabilizations like Canon and Nikon instead of going the cheap IBIS route. Oh well, I guess the used market for A-mount lenses is in no danger of collapsing. 🙂
What makes you think they can’t do IBIS on an FE mount camera? They bought into a tech partnership with Olympus last year, who has the best IBIS out there…
People had this discussion last year, the (overall) mutual agreement was 1. not practical 2. not on Sony’s agenda for some reason
The market is so ready for this. Sony is making all the right moves, including the move to slowly kill off A-mount. I hope this camera has a way better AF system than the A6000 and can AF in the dark. It’s time for mirrorless to pull the rug underneath canikon’s feet. If this camera is as great as we all hope, it’ll seal the window of opportunity for canikon to make a serious run at mirrorless in the future.
+1
I hope they don’t botch it because they’re afraid of hurting the A mount crowd (which includes me). If the consumers want a bigger freaking body just give it to them. Don’t hold back, I don’t care- just give me the product we all know Sony is capable of making. Time to hammer fist the competition into the ground next year. The lenses are coming, now drive it home with a killer MUST HAVE body.
Bigger body and f2.8 zooms. I know the whole initial push for E-mount was “small and light”, and they should keep knocking out those bodies and lenses. However, they need to also realize that pros need what they need, and that’s not *always* light weight over everything else. I’m a big boy and can handle a f2.8 zoom and the appropriate body to handle it. I mean, were everyone’s arms falling off with the A99 and 70-200 2.8?
It’d also be nice is this new “pro” body brought back IBIS, but I’m guessing probably not. I think that ship has sailed.
Trying to get everything into airline carryon backpack and personal item. Not just holding it. One carryon and one personal item case that will slide under the airline seat.
Right, but that’s not a concern for everyone doing pro work. Someone who does all his/her work locally probably doesn’t care about that. Again, I’m not suggesting they should abandon their small bodies and lighter f4 lenses, as they’ve obviously hit a sweet spot for many with those options, but just suggesting they also add some beefier bodies and f2.8 lenses for those who need them.
The new cameras will probably have the same AF as A6000. You’ll have to remember that Sony thinks the AF on A6000 rivals pro DSLR’s (which it don’t).
Fixed shutter vibration? Fixed weather sealing? Fixed sensor reflections? Fixed compressed “raw?” Fixed battery life? I’ll buy it at once.
How can battery life be “broken”?
Agreed. I can carry a few batteries. They are small and I’ve got other solutions for time lapsing which work fine.
Fix the AF and whatever causes these random soft shots on the 7r.
Less spares is better, it annoys me to always have to watch out for battery life. Larger body, larger battery.
Maybe they could fit two batteries inside
I prefer two memory cards.
It really doesn’t bother me and seems like a good trade off for a smaller body which has so many benefits. The only time it really comes into play is when your shooting all day.
If the new A7 is really a pro camera, we can say goodbye to the A mount. But where are the Pro lenses? Samsung moved into the pro direction with the 16-50mm f2-2.8, 50-150mm f2.8, and a 300mm f2.8. I think Sony needs something like the Samsung line of lens.
You have to keep in mind that f2.8 on APS-C is almost equal to f4 on FF.
I think Sony’s hand will be forced to eventually favor one mount over the other. What advantages would there be?
1) Start re-releasing A mount lenses into E mount- except eliminate screw drive, add in other useful features, upgrade lens design, optimize for video, etc. It’s what A mount fans want anyway.
2) Eliminate unnecessary confusion over A and E mount compatibility- adapters don’t equate to compatibility IMO.
3) Direct resources into advancing FE mount lens line up with a critical focus on accessories and flash support.
4) Larger bodies- still compact, but more ergonomic.
It’s going to be a slow kill and transition happening, but I think it’s obvious based on lack of comment, statements regarding SLT eventually being suprassed by mirror less AF, etc. It has nothing to do with the viability of A mount but Sony’s apparent business plan.
A-mount lenses can’t be re-released for E-mount, because they made for another flange distance
why? simply to extend the tube is enough. changing AF motor and aperture lever is more complex thing.
I think that move would generate more whine than any other move Sony’s made on this mount.
Uhm, you can’t be serious, can you? The FE lenses are nearly all highend, most of them being Zeiss. How can it be more pro!?
Considering the Samsung cameras’ smaller sensors, the FE equivalents would be 25-77mm f/3.1-4.3, 77-230mm f/4.3, and 461mm f/4.3. In FE lenses you already have models very close to the first two, the Sony / Zeiss 24-70mm f/4 and the Sony 70-200mm f/4 G.
Who said it has to be FE? we need pro lenses E-mount like 16-50 f2-2.8 and 50-150 f2.8. The a7000 will be PRO APS-C camera so we need pro lens with it.
Sony if you’re lazy making pro lenses for us customers then simply give us better adapter. LAEA4 is garbage just like A99’s focusing. its all cluttered in the mid and it haunts when the subject moves out of the focusing screen, STUPID DESIGN!
I’m so happy with the sony cameras yet very frustrated with the lenses!
Zeiss needs to expand the Loxia line up too! give us 85mm 135mm and 100mm macro
and Sony Zeiss needs to stop using fly-by-wire focusing system SERIOUSLY! it’s so annoying for video shooting!
I assume they will make a mirrorless adapter for the a-mount lenses that uses the new camera’s focus system. Similar to the LA-EA1 / 3, only much faster.
16-50mm f2-2.8, 50-150mm f2.8, and a 300mm f2.8 ??? That for APS-C noob.
Wow wow wow awesome Sony!!!!
Way interested. Cannot wait to hear more.
Hey admin, any info on size/weight? I really hope they don’t increase the size and weight, I love that we can have FF in a tiny package.
I think this one will be a bit bigger with better ergonomics for PROs and weather sealing, more controls, even bigger and better EVF, battery grip options etc. And then there will be smaller ones similar to A7.
You’re probably right, although it would be quite the feat of engineering to integrate all those improvements into a similar size/weight body wouldn’t it? We want tougher, better ergonomics, but not larger/heavier just for the sake of it right?
14bit unabridged raw output with XQD to keep up with continuous shooting! D4s with sony’s new 400MB/s XQD can keep up with12bit raw in 11fps or 14bit raw with averge 7.5fps for1 minute. Dame good
How about a 150-600mm f 5 sony lens.
A long lens for this system is totally lacking..and producing one better than the Sigma sport would demonstrate a commitment to a more complete system.
Of course full high speed autofocus compatability via adaptor..to Canikon lenses would instantly create a complete system.
They would generate far more sales from Canikon users then they could ever possibly hope to gain by trying to force people to buy sony lenses they do not want to buy…plus most of them will buy Sigma or Tamron anyhow.
Andrea will this new senor be exclusive to Sony or will Nikon also be using it in a pro DSLR?
Given Nikon has just refreshed it’s hi-res model, I think it’s unlikely we’ll see a Nikon with this new sensor for a while.
bye bye alpha
What? Alpha is absolutely alive.
bye bye sony, bye bye my first dslt a55, i really enjoyed taking photo with it, I really wanna upgrade to full frame but I don’t see the future of a-mount
Please Sony – take care of your exisitng products first. Still a lot of issues with the A7R bugging me.
Or do both, how hard can it be to — for example — tweak the firmware on the A7R so it doesn’t always want to pick a 1/60th shutter speed on A mode? That has to be like a ten minute job, they don’t have to stop working on new tech to do that.
That’s not about the a7r but about at least all E-mount or even all Alpha bodies AFAIK.
Fair enough, but I think it’s particularly annoying in the A7r, because 1/60th is right in the shutter slap danger zone.
No it isn’t. Danger zone is from 1/125 to 1/250. I never saw any shutter shock with 1/60th
… ok?
http://blog.kasson.com/?p=4750
A fellow photographer has shutter issues with his 200mm lens at 1/20th. This is an exposure that we nature photographers easily get to a lot of times. I will try some more tests with that exposure later but would be annoyed if it happened.
Why not use S or M (with Auto ISO) modes for that purpose?
The question is which of these issues are fixable with firmware/software. E.g. the shutter vibration is hardly fixable by software alone.
Yes, but ducktape is rather cheap and works wonders. Sony should do a ducktape recall.
Sony bring PRO rangefinder styled FF cam for daily working photographers. I tried A7/7r but EVF is placed too close to right hand what is uncomfortable in fast and easy framing and seeing through VF – this is one of the main factor for me in street, reportage, action and photojournalism. There are many other issues that exclude A7/A7r for this kind of photography, they are known, but many photographers – also from Leica background – would gladly welcome Pro level FF rangenfinder mirrowless with 24/36MP and fast AF + great manual focusing tooll (improved focus peaking) and handling. Sorry to say that, but Sony A7/7r is everage/poor camera in most acpects apart from the great sensor and size of VF – handling, ergonomy, menu, slowness, loudness, battery, toy like feeling, etc.
So you are doing ‘street, reportage, action and photojournalism’ – where can we see your work? Do you have an internet portfolio, links?
Why saying competitive AF to DSLRs is A6000 AF system? A6000 AF system is NOT up to some good DSLRs. We need a reliable and fast AF to shoot sports. In fact, my major complain on A7 series is the weak AF system. If Sony gives us a high MP camera (36MP is enough) with sports-capable AF system and fast burst rate, I will definitely buy one to compensate for my current A7S. And of course, don’t repeat that shutter vibration issue on A7R or that would be a deal breaker for sure. And also, silent shutter mode is a must have too. A full pixel readout video shooting mode such as A7S would be great and hopefully giving us a higher bitrate and faster frame rate.
I think you’re already asking for too much in one body.
If they made a camera like that, then it would be the only one they´d need to produce, because no-one would buy anything else. The competing camera manufacturers could just shut up shop, because their customers would all defect.
What I want: 54mp, 10fps, IBIS, fastest AF on market, 8K internal recording, fully water, dust, explosion proof, ISO usable to 960,000,00, all in a package size of a phone. Wake me up when this arrives please…….
As long as the kit lens is a 14-400 2.8 and weights less than 35oz
!
Just make us a camera that can shoot M wides without smearing and you will be heroes.
You can have that already: Leica M…
bye bye a-mount
bye bye sony
I was really enjoyed using my first dslt a55, really want to upgrade to full frame
but i really can’t see the future of a-mount now.
Do I need a special sticker from the city to have my oversized Canon garbage picked up from the end of the driveway?
No you dont. Just call me, i’ll pick it up.
And recycle it?
yes, exactly………………..by selling it to canon fanboys.
I was gonna say please may it be a9…but I already spent my budget on other crap…can’t hold on to that much money for that long.
Need adapter…. If Sony doesn’t release fast telephoto primes, at least give us the option to use a mount lenses. That le ae 4 is so crippled, it almost feels like a third party gadget
What exactly is “crippled”?
I don;t know about crippled but these Sony adapters and the A series cameras are from perfect. I use a Sony A7s with an LA EA3, and I shoot about 300-400 shots a day and the camera locks up with F– about four to five times a day. I constantly shoot in manual exposure, adjusting the shutter on every shot and the shutter wheel now sticks and skips on shutters speeds as the camera heats up towards the end of the day. The iso also jumps to a new setting sometimes when powering up. I think these cameras are great but as a pro I will welcome a heavy duty pro version of one of these for sure.
Hm, I never had that problem and shoot about 2000 pictures a week, so about the same amount, so maybe you just got a faulty unit?
They could have at least put the A99 AF module in it….
Ah you mean less AF points, ok you have a point there.
410 comments…did we get somewhere?
Did someone at Sony printed this and graphed the needs/wants of people here in a powerpoint presentation that will be shown at the next department meeting to make sure the new PRO cams feature all the things people ever wanted? (which are clearly organized for their convenience here)
Still no option to upgrade my A55. The A58 to low and A77 to high. The A-mount APC lenses are not that big and the A55 is not that big. But now the way is a small camera with big FE lenses again :(. No future yet for me with Sony. Can’t spend my money, thats a strange thing 🙂
If I was an A55 user with a couple of cheaper lenses then they would be on eBay and I’d be swapping to a CaNikon.
I simply can not recommend A-mount any more and that is coming from a huge A-mount supporter.
lenses, lenses and lenses. please Sony, don’t leave us in a great boat without a paddle or or a paddle that I have to tape together with adapters.
You forgot to mention lenses.
And of course lenses
Whilst Canon seems to be plodding along, Sony just drop it a cog and gave it a handful – I wonder how long until Canon falls back to 3rd place in the FF camera race?
Future will be Samsung vs Sony, followed ny Canon/Nikon.
Future out in time will be Apple vs Samsung. Cameras only will be just a niche product.
Canon is already in third place – behind Sony and Son-um I mean Nikon.
Sony, please, please, can you add a laser to it and can it have a noise making function?
On the video side, Advanced AF, body large enough to handle the heat, etc of internal 4k, no AF box burn when recording HDMI out, 10 bit–no more 8 bit anything. No additional pixels so the ones that are there can handle low light as well as the a7s, larger, fully flexible touch screen. NO OVF.
yes to 10bit!
Fuji X100S hybrid OVF/EVF please.
No way, not gonna happen, EVF > OVF.
Sony’s loss. It’s like the one thing diehard Canikon fans refuse to let go of- OVF. Slap a hybrid in their like the fuji…exactly like the fuji…instant fix.
Except that they would all fall over when they realized that the OVF in a mirrorless is nothing like an OVF in an SLR – in terms of WYSIWYG and focusing accuracy.
It’s a rangefinder-type OVF with some kind of parallax correction, right?
Hmmm…you got me on that one.
Yes. A hybrid would be nice. Still need ovf to shoot at night, but other then that, an evf gives you a better rendition of what the camera is seeing which is nice.
Either you or Sony got something wrong. The meaning of a system is one body and many lenses, not one lens and many bodies like Sony does. Sony apparently produces 3 times the number of bodies than the number of lenses. Now producing another body will not appeal to any pro photographer. Pro photographers demand a plethora of special and capable lenses and lens types. I can’t see that with the E-mount portfolio.
If they would design a body that is able to mount both A-mount and E-mount lenses, that would bring them a lot closer to the desired pro market.
as an a-mount user. Sony pretty much covered the areas where most Pros need.
For example as for a wedding photographer, this is all I need….
16mm 2.8
35mm 1.4 G
50mm 1.4 zeiss
85mm 1.4 zeiss
135mm 1.8 zeiss
100mm 2.8 macro
16-35mm 2.8 zeiss
24-70mm 2.8 zeiss
70-200mm 2.8 zeiss
there’s also 400mm lenses there too
what new lenses do you need for a pro? That lineup of lenses was just an example. Those are pretty much main lenses…
That’s A-mount, look at E-mount: Two primes and three zooms…..
Okay then a new body like this would do. All Sony needs to do is create one with IBIS and everyone will stop complaining about lenses.
FE mount w/ IBIS plus LA-EA4 and we’re all set
Yeah, IBIS would solve the whole thing. Not sure if it’s possible to do on sensor PDAF and IBIS at the same time though. If they solve that, their golden.
we need better adapter. laea4 is garbage. the focusing is so tiny like the A99
Thank you
16mm 2.8, 85mm 1.4, 135mm 1.8, 100mm macro, 200mm, 300mm, 400mm but for this rumored camera, in E mount not A mount.
Lets just hope that this new FE mount has IBIS for use with the LA-EA4
I’ll take back my need for the 16mm. The Rokinon is a fine FE 14mm and we don’t really need AF at 14mm or 16mm. A lot of folks also don’t care about AF for Macro (though I do). AF is not particularly useful for title-shift, so the system already has tilt-shift options. It’s primes of 85mm and up that seem to be missing for E and FE.
Many Pros NEVER shoot weddings. Where are the Long Lenses seen along the sidelines at the World Cup ?? Where are the Tilt & Shift lenses used by Advertising and Architectural Pros ??
that’s why I said just an example 🙂 lol
500mm F4, 300mm F2.8. A patent for a tilt & shift lens was leaked ages ago, but hasn’t been released yet.
I agree on the long lenses, but tilt-shift lenses on adaptors are just fine.
So how many pros shoot at the world cup? Ah, when is the next world cup? 2018 in Russia.. Tilt shift, my bet is the Canon 17mm tilt shift is working even better on the Sony A7r with the right adapter than on a Canon cam.
Now I am not a pro, but I have a nice cheap old Nikkor AIS 300mm f2.8 for my A7. Really nice. But you know how many times I used it outside? Once, carried it just outside the street to shoot the moon, that was it… So thanks, but no thanks. I am not waiting for a Sony 400mm f2.8.
I heartily agree. The constant bleating for bigger/faster lenses come from those who would blanch at the price of a Nikon/Canon competitive 300mm lens made for the small FE mount market. Nikon announced recently they’d sold 90 million lenses. I’d be surprised if Sony has shipped 500,000 E/FE mount cameras in total.
All talk.
If you need T/S lenses just by the Schneider Kreuznach ones with A-mount.
“For example as for a wedding photographer, this is all I need…”
*Lists 10 lenses*
For 4 years I shot everything I needed to with just one body and two lenses. It wasn’t until recently that I went all the way up to 3 lenses.
I guess we have very different philosophies on how to get the job done.
not saying that we need all of those. Just naming some very common lenses that are available through Sony.
A rectilinear ultra wide prime is lacking. The 16mm is a fisheye and the 20mm prime is a re-badged film-era minolta lens. If Sony wants to engender trust and reassure consumers of a-mount’s a future, they should release: updated 85mm & 135mm lenses with SSM/weather sealing, release a sony zeiss 15mm, release a budget-friendly 24-105mm/f4, reduce the price of the 70-200/2.8, and get Zeiss to release a-mount versions of Otus (if only for the prestige / PR). An update to the f60 flash that makes it work would be nice too.
But only a few of them got SSM and weather-sealing !
And of course… this describes ALL “pros”. Plenty of folks out there that work with just a couple of bodies and a couple of lenses to do all their work.
Uhm, this is a misconception. Cameras are MUCH more similar to each other than lenses. You see for example a NEX-5N was not a complete new camera but it was an updated NEX-5. So I would never count that as a seperate camera, as it takes FAR less time to develop it. Only a 70-200 to 70-200 II for example is comparable to that.
Lens development costs MUCH MORE time, for EACH and EVERY single one of them you need to start from scratch. However, and that is the good thing: the life cycle of a lens is MUCH longer. Both how long one specific lens you buy is usable – as well as how long it is produced and sold.
Oh, a body that can do both A and E mount would need to be able to shift its sensor and/or the lens about 3 cm back and forth. I would rather package the LA-EA adapter with a pro adapter so that you don’t have to buy it seperately.
I’m ok with a two body system as long as the form factor stays small. 7s = events etc, 7r more commercial and landscape.
>Sony apparently produces 3 times the number of bodies than the number of lenses.
FE has 3 bodies and 10 lenses. You’ve got it backwards, it seems…
I only see 5 current lenses on Sony’s website and 1 pre order camera lenses.
The 95mm filter size, 28-135mm lens is still preorder and its for videography.
Count all announced lenses.
What nonsense. Even with the current announced lenses. That will happily cover 99.9% of any shooters requirements…with more lenses announced every few months it’s such a non argument…
Does this mean that the Sony a7 was a mistake ?? Soon to be abandoned ??
Pros like stability, a concept that Sony doesn’t seem too understand.
Since when was expansion a sign of instability?
Very well put :)… Dear “a-traveler”, I have not the faintest idea, how you could misinterpret it this way. In that way a D800 would be “a mistake” because there is also a D4s.
On the contrary Sony is even much more honest: the model number itself shows the customer: there is room above for an even more advanced model.
Tell that to all the guys who bought a D3s or D4s the day they came out even though they were basically the exact same cameras as their predecessors except for $1000 price increases.
For a Pro, ROI is important. If it makes economic sense to them, they do it. If the incremental up-grade doesn’t make economic sense, they don’t. Different kinds of Pros have different criteria for what does or does not make economic sense. Simple as that.
One PRO job can just about pay for an A7. ROI is not an issue.
Exactly!!! Buying camera gear is just a business expense….
Hope this leads to a price drop with the A7s going on sale! 😉
I think that this is very good news as an A7r owner I have to say that while it is capable of great results it is very obviously in use a first gen product. I think they put perhaps a little too much effort on getting its price low than rounding the camera. I will happily pay for a better built betetr performing higher end camera. As it is other than a couple of areas I have gone back to using my Nikon d810 almost exclusivly
This camera should have a IP/JIS rating for its weather sealing. The fastest and most accurate AF available covering the widest possible area. Dual card slots. A thoroughly tested button layout. Either the same W series battery with higher mAH or the H series battery.
I am reading these wish lists/complains from posters and it logically come back to me with question. What the hell are you doing with these cameras … you buy them and complain pretending to know more about making cams then qualified engineers who makes them.
At least for me this A6000 and A7s and A7r made a lot of $$$ and I can tell you, that I am not alone. I know of at least two other guys who use this gear making very serious money.
Therefore this upcoming cam ( which is coming ) is gonna be cherry on cake … at least. Not looking left or right that gear will go to work not on display in living room …
I’d love to have an A7 built like a tank, but honestly if they just gave it a vastly better (like 2x-3x the life, to be usable by pros) battery and 14-bit raw that’d be enough.
yes, and a pro Canon or Nikon quality weather sealing at the least.
My main concern is that this looks like it will be both larger and heavier – which moves me right back into the DSLR size/weight arena I thought I’d left. The new electronics features suggest larger/new batteries, too. I could justify an A7r + $500 price, but not a lot more.
Sony will inevitably need to release A99-sized E-Mount bodies, if they indend to replace A-Mount with mirrorless. Compactness is not a good thing for everybody.
No, but Sony doesn’t have to service everybody. There are still people working with huge technical camera’s, and look: Sony doesn’t give a damn. Besides that: it’s not size that matters, it’s how you use it. My Nex7 and -5 are big enough for me, and I’ve got giant size hands. Long telelenses? Grab the lens instead of the camera body. Works for me.
Well put. I also don’t understand why the A7 or higher A/NEX E-mount bodies should not be usable with large lenses. After all even a D4s looks tiny behind a 500mm (non-mirror) lens and noone would hold just the D4s camera which such a lens.
Sure. Maybe, my next camera will be an A7000, using as well the 20 manual Contax lenses, I own, as well, as the new FE ones, I bought during last year.
Some will appreciate such a E-Mount “monster” and Sony maybe really will respond the needs of sports and nature photographer’s needs. For me it is enough, to have the possibility to add a battery grip every now an than, if I have a longer lens on the A7 and want to use it handheld. I am really satisfied with the A7 model and can wait for a more sophisticated model. In anyway I do not intend to buy every now and then a new camera body, but keep control over investments. So, for my opinion, Sony is free to serve pros first. If they add more value to a pro model, than just big and heavy and advanced AF, it could become a succes. E.g. they could shock CaNikon with a changable sensor. It is Sony’s marketing management decission how to generate business, not mine. Considering the rumors, there is presently nothing in sight, that could make me decide to release further budget for E-Mount investment. Budget freeze decision taken (for the moment) until there will be announced new advanced compact, attractive consumer products – for my personal need. These would be much closer to an A7 than to an A99, considering compactness and price. Same for lenses: compact and not so much overprized. For average income households, most lenses are too expensive in anyway and will not really challenge dominating camera manufacturers in early 2015.
Highly unlikely to be as large as a DSLR due to the lack of a mirror box and the short lens registration distance. I’m sure it will be larger than the A7, for ergonomic reasons at least, but I think it will still be a lot smaller than the A99.
It will be larger and it will be heavier, but it will come with a dedicated fanny pack to store all those extra small batteries you’ll need for it.
After what i read this morning. I am a little dissapointed, that there is nothing else on SR 5 rumours than this rumour. Even if i really want a pro a9 eventually. If this rumour is corrrect. Then i want one. But i´m afraid that there is not enough lenses that will fit a possible A9 camera. But what the heck. There is a-mount lenses that i can use with a adapter. Amongst L lenses from Canon, and lenses from Nikon and other brands
There are coming more and more lenses :)… End of 2015 20 FE are planned additional to maybe 5 manual Zeiss ones.
After the all-E-Mount Photokina, January was supposed to be all-A-Mount.
It’s obvious now Sony has put all eggs in one basket.
They really believe they can somehow replace DSLR with mirorrless.
Mirrorless A-Mount won’t ever happen, and Sony won’t continue to develop A-Mount if they succeed in making a DSLR-quality mirrorless.
Now, it pretty much boils down to AF, specifically AF-C and low-light. Let’s see if Sony really have some breakthrough technology in their sleeve, not just the superficial notions of “compactness” or “versatility”; the real advantage over SLT would be the abscence of light-loss.
If Sony produces a mirrorless camera that can AF as good as a DSLR, all SLR mounts would be dead.
If not, then Sony simply gave up trying to compete with Canikon.
I have nothing against the death of A-Mount. SR mount had to die to give place for A-Mount anyway.
But I don’t want to trade DLSR performance for “versatility” (I don’t intend to use adapters) or “compactness” (I’d like a bigger camera, not a smaller one).
The FE mount still has to few lenses to tempt the D4/1DX buyers, even via adapted A-mount lenses, there is still a gap to Nikon and Canon.
Then you just get so called pro body from Nikon that will soon go out of business.
Seriously Nikon has no future that easily seen in its share price
But who needs the ancient Minolta legacy mount that designed with silly noisy mirrorbox in mind when there are great mirrorless mount systems like Samsung NX and Sony FE?
You do realize that a “mount” is nothing more than a hunk of metal. It’s not a technology- it doesn’t grow old, get wrinkles and die. Connectors can come and go, stuff added and subtracted- but at the end of the day…it’s still just a mount. Sony did away with mirror’s long ago and samsung’s NX line has yet to be proven. The NX1 is a few features up with a total system that’s about 10 notches down- no third party support, forget about adapters and it has the looks of a refrigerator. By the time suckers buy it Sony will have quantum leaped it again…both in E and A mount. It’s a blip on the radar.
You make an interesting point about the mount… What Sony should offer to keep their A-mount user base happy is a service to change the mounts on their A-mount lenses to E-mount when/if they switch systems. That would silence the “I don’t wanna use an adapter” crowd, and allow them to still use what they consider their top-notch lenses. We know it can be done, as Sigma is now offering this service with all their new Art lenses for anyone who switches between Nikon/Canon/Sony.
Well you do know that this mirrorbox serves a purpose, right?
You, again, talking nonsense. Give it a think before you write something here E-boy, your opinions are too much biased towards E-mount and mirrorless.
A mount is dead…….just kidding haha
….but E mount sure is dominating and at least is Sony’s current focus…..interested to see how much of a step up this “A9 pro” camera will be compared to the A7’s
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will this camera cost twice a A7R or A99? I would prefer the price of A7 with pro specs because we ll spend a lot on lenses;)… It’d be a fair compromise :))
f2.8 zoom lens alap (as lightweight as possible)
~24mm-100mm
so I can replace my RX10 with its
too-lightweight-equals-image-stabilization-inertia issues…
OK for this “A9” + zoom to be ~25% heavier than RX10…
what about sony rx2?
I would like to see the hybrid EVF/OVF, especially if I can toggle to just use the OVF capabilities. The reason for this is that EVFs hurt my eyes and give me headaches. Anyone else ever have this problem? (I know that switching from E mount cameras to traditional DSLRs or Leica rangefinders would solve this problem, but I don’t want to use large cameras and can’t afford Leicas…).
Its people like you that give me headaches.
Take a Tylenol 😉
Fuji X-Pro.
And no, never had that problem.
Fuji is doomed because of the lousy sensor
Nonsense.
I think this thread is doomed.
I think professional cameras are doomed. Gonna sell my gear and buy an iPhone lens kit. Hope they have a 500mm reflex in it.
I had the 500mm reflex and sold it- wish I didn’t. Why doesn’t Sony update it? I can only imagine today that they advance catadioptic design and make a stellar, compact 500mm…dare I say, F4? Sharpness was great, just needed more contrast. How awesome would that be.
Sony as always had it’s head stuck at it’s butt when they discontinued SAL500F80. Come on, the only catadioptric lens IN THE WORLD with AF!!! Luckily i got one at very good condition for US$700 (we gotta pay the price if we want something special right?) I can’t wait to use it with A77II… Well, they have SAL500F40g now but it’s not catadioptric anymore (and costs US$13k) YAY WAY TO GO SONY!!!
Sony as always had it’s head stuck at it’s butt when they discontinued SAL500F80. Come on, the only catadioptric lens IN THE WORLD with AF!!! Luckily i got one at very good condition for US$700 (we gotta pay the price if we want something special right?) I can’t wait to use it with A77II… Well, they have SAL500F40g now but it’s not catadioptric anymore (and costs US$13k) YAY WAY TO GO SONY!
Yeah that crummy pos madeand used by sony…
No need lousy ovf , it is a thing of the past already. There is no practical real life merit having it over the excellent evf of Sony or Samsung cameras.
Speak for yourself. EVF leaves a blind eye when shooting dark environments. EVF is lousy for studio work with white background. EVF is terrible for high contrast bright outdoors. EVF is terrible for multi shot action photos. EVF is a battery drain down nearly half of OVF cameras.
Can’t agree more!
Give me A900II!
Or A900r
With the 36MP sensor and a few more cross type AF points.
That’s all it’d need to have. SONY is too pig headed to admit that a camera like that would sell, but it would sell.
Maybe they should sell the patent to the A-Mount (again). Perhaps Hasselblad would buy it? I’d love to see Hasselblad make us OVF fans the A-Mount camera that SONY decided long ago wouldn’t differentiate them enough from Canon or Nikon in the DSLR market.
Hasselblad doesn’t care about low sales because they charge more for their cameras. Give me a Hasselblad branded (or Hasselblad engineered from the ground up) full frame DSLR with a SONY sensor and a best in class OVF from the mind of Minolta.
I’d pay $8000 for it if it was as good or better than the D4s and the 1Dx. Though I’d prefer to see it undercut those two cameras and come in at $5000.
If A-mount would be sold for Hasselblad, i would sell my gear ASAP. Hasselblad cameras are so ugly that it should be a felony to cary them in public. Then felony would be someone’s involving in murder, arson, rape, wounding, robbering, wielding a Hasselblad.
The H5D, H4D, XPan, and of course the 501CM, are all perfectly good looking cameras. And honestly. A camera’s looks don’t matter nearly as much as the camera’s functionality matters.
Easy holmes, i’m just joking about it. Even though Hasselblad design sucks (IMO) they make great cameras. At least it’s what i hear at bus stop talkings.
Good rumors but I honestly do not need anything bigger and heavier than my 7r and the 7r is already strong enough, it has poor object tracking af, but superb lowlight and single shot AF.
So unless you are interested in wildlife, sports, etc, there is no advantage of having nine body over the already superb seven bodies.
Personally I want a true nex7 successor withh better sensor plus a6000 AF.
Same as you!
A7 body is too small for pro, it is a great travel camera
but it feel uncomfortable if you attach a 70-200 2.8 lens on it.
Thread still didn’t beat A mount announcement back at Photokina…which was that there was no A mount announcement. 513 comments and counting…it’ll have to hit 700 or more I think.
Sorry but no rational people see any future in the old Minolta mount with the loud noisy mirror.
The A900II is coming. Advanced OVF/EVF, no SLT- full on state of the art mirror technology with 25FPS minimum. Sony H-series QD-H32 XQD card in the D4? Chump change…think more like quadruple the buffer performance pushing 50MP’s. Return to traditional 7000 styled body- both slim and light.
Shutter dial will be advanced, located at the top of the deck and again in the grip under the middle finger. This will allow rapid fire while simultaneously freeing your index finger to change both ISO, shutter or aperture with index WHILE shooting. 98 percent AF coverage with over 70 cross sensors, back lit with A7S performance with advanced high end resolution. It’s no longer a dream, it’s soon to be reality.
LOL. Nice. 🙂
…and a partridge in a pear treeeee…
I’ll buy you a 6-pack if this comes true. Heck, i’ll buy you two 6-pack!
Replace that Maxxum 7000 body with something more A77-ish and BAM! We got a winner! If something like that comes up I’ll buy you a 6-pack. Heck make it two 😀
So “no rational people see any future” in an old mount and the loud mirror sound? Oh my, so that’s why Canon’s 1987 EF mount and DSLR cameras are so lame and are considered trash by the market then! After all, a 27-year old mount is totally obsolete and the mirror sound… Man, that thing is louder than a thunder from a lightning struck 100ft away. Get a grip E-boy, you’re talking nonsense.
Sony’s financial troubles make it clear we’ll be seeing new bodies sooner than later- gotta get that money and run. All the while A mount starves. Two mounts is like two fat chicks fighting over a cheeseburger. Even if they both walk away with a pickle, neither is ever really satisfied. Now you can multiply the number of cheeseburgers, but Sony has no more buns…no more meat…I’m pretty sure after their 2B profit loss they only have pickles. One day these two rather large chicks (mounts) will realize they are no longer fighting for even a mediocre cheeseburger. In a bloody storm of ketchup and mustard I envision a death match. It won’t be pretty, buy pickles just won’t cut the mustard forever.
Sony’s imaging division is making plenty of money….They are the world’s biggest sensor manufacture. Not a chicken in sight….running or otherwise…
What’s interesting to me is how incongruent Sony’s words are to their actions. They say they haven’t abandoned the A mount, but, if this rumor is true and the A9 is an FE mount, then their actions show they’ve (solely?) focused on FE mount. Does “maximum resources” mean developing FE mount to the exclusion of developing A mount products?
To me, it would have been more honest if they said, “We needed to sell more lenses to make our business model work; we couldn’t do that if we made our new technology natively compatible with A mount.” It makes me wonder when will they abandon FE mount? Would my FE lens investment last for 2 years? Would my FE lens investment last for 5 years?
For the record, I love my A7s, but I’m worried about buying Sony lenses. On the other hand, since they’ve been pushing the adapters as a path for compatibility, it’s freed up my thinking to consider buying adapters for other mounts altogether, including non-Sony mounts. Right now I think I’m gonna’ skip the Sony wide angle lenses and I’m leaning towards the Nikon 14-24 F2.8 G lens using an adapter. …. Hmmmm …. So, maybe Sony trying to force its customers to repeatedly buy the same lenses (but for a new mount) isn’t a bad thing after all.
“Would my FE lens investment last for 2 years? Would my FE lens investment last for 5 years?”
If Sony is going in the direction of mirrorless, why would they abandon FE mount in 2 to 5 years? Unless technology takes camera development in a different direction in that time, that’s not going to happen. And if it does, well, you just have to get with the times.
In any case, it’s not like your camera or lenses will spontaneously stop working when new technology becomes available. So I don’t understand how your investment will only last as long as company X continues to manufacture the product Y system.
If can read them carefully, the reason why Sony said they haven’t abandoned the A mount, because all A-mount lens can still be use on E-mount camera though adapter.
They never make any promise that they are going to launch any new product in A-mount.
Lots of alpha mount owners (myself included) were disappointed by Photokina’s lack of love for the a-mount. The rumours of a big deal to be announced in 2015 placated me momentarily, thinking, “Oh, they are doing something for A-mount, maybe it will be the big thing”.
But no.
This is a further slap in the face, rubbing exclusive FE pro focus / development salt in the wound of the Photokina a-mount silence wound.
Having spent quite a bit of money on A-mount lenses and preferring a real camera in terms of size and weight to balance real lenses, I guess an adpator for this FE to my A-mount lenses would be some sort of compromise, but I am disheartened to say the least.
I hope they eliminate the flare on A7/A7r due to sensor reflection. It’s very annoying.
I am yet to see it. In any situation backlit or otherwise…..
I hope they get it right this time. So after all the bewildered reviews I can make another A7R mistake and buy it. Then my wife can divorce me!
I’m happy with my a7r body. Sony makes bodies so fast it nuts, and the a7s just came out! Now this? Yikes’
In all likelyhood this will be priced much higher. A real ‘Pro’ price to match the label.
Probably something with blazing fast AF, bigger body, bigger battery, faster fps, buffer etc etc retailing for $2.7k.
Complete guess on my part but I don’t believe Sony will simply replace the A7 and A7r so early.
There seem to be a lot of people who don’t know what the difference between mirrorless and DSLT is.
They don’t know what purpose mirror serves, and in their mind an A7R is a competitor to 5D3 / D800.
Perhaps this is the public Sony has been targeting?
Anyway, it seems with this A9 thing they want to boraden their audience.
main problem with A7R is not lack of mirror, but that’s lenses are few but prices are high 😀
A7R with lower prices and all kind of lenses – still no competitor to DSLRs. Must be enough for some types of photography though.
From day to day, I see more and more Canon users shooting via Liveview
Once again, fine for the types of photography that don’t require fast AF (or even AF at all).
at the moment
Well yes, at the moment. Let’s see if Sony presents some kind of breakthrough technology in A9 that would change it.
Let me guess. It is more big, more black than A7R? 😀
oh, A6000 AF probably also implies A6000 pixel pitch so it’s 54 MP?
In other news…people complain that a camera manufacturer is making another camera…..this and the lens comments are 5years old. Oh my gosh…BMW made another car…..clearly they don’t care about there existing customers.
Sony needs to have a proper flash system to be considered as PRO.
I wouldn’t dare to shoot at any event with Sony’s flashes unless 2 accompanied to substitute from one to the other over heated.
Sony had a chance to redo their iso hot shoe over, yet dumb founded another proprietorship multi hot shoe.
I always felt handicapped by Sony one way or the other by obvious little things.
The Sony MIS has the exact dimensions and pins of the ISO-518 standard. If your trigger/device does not fit properly then it does not meet the ISO-518 standards, so go and complain to that manufacturer.
Some triggers need the front edge of their foot shaving down so that they meet the ISO-518 standard, that is NOT Sony’s fault.
Yes, you can fit any standard ISO trigger (or whatever) in the hotshoe of the camear. However, there is the issue of the Sony flash fitting in the shoe of many (most) wireless receivers, though, as most have a hard stop at the front of the ISO shoe, and Sony’s MIS contacts extension makes it so that it won’t fit into those devices. So even when they go “standard”, they don’t really go standard and screw us. So personally, I’ve gone with off-brand flashes so I have that compatibility. That shouldn’t have to be the solution, though. Can you imagine Nikon or Canon saying, “Well, don’t use our flashes then; just go with someone else.”?
Do you have an a7 and a6000? Put Sony’s FVL-60M on them then tell me if they are the same hot shoe. Even Sony’s 60M flash is not compatible with its own camera.
60M’s AF assist works on a7? Do you see how the flash’s foot cheaply made of those newer “MIS” flash? The plastic can be easily broke off.
OH no, again to many MP !! again Full Frame E and A-mounts !! again for the wealthy people !! still not enough lenses !! we need more APS-C camera’s and lenses, A7000 weather sealed would be good and weather sealed lens !! not enough remaining A-mount camera’s !! and so on……
Boring, boring, boring. I’m waiting for A-mount camera for professional, not another FE-mount toy for fanboy.
Read this being a PRO FE body… but even so, calling those buying FE body are fanboy? Very mature…
You can wait until dead …
The only new camera I would like to buy would be A900 II with breakthrough sensor technology and updated autofocus system. A900 is that good that I bought recently another perfect exemplar as a backup. I definitely resigned from buying any A7 after comparison test hand to hand with A900, including picture quality. For me A7 series are step back from A900 in almost every photographic aspect despite new sensors.
There’s a software on Bravia TV’s, it’s called “Alpha Clock”. It shows pictures of very beautiful places at various moments of the day, accordingly with the time from the television. It also shows info from the camera used to take the picture. When I saw it for the 1st time i thought “well, it’s gonna have pics taken with A99, A7R, A7S etcetera” but ALL pictures were taken with A900. And the pics are new, less than 3 months. FOR ME it was the proof that the A900 was the best Sony professional camera ever made.
Or take the shoot that British fashion photographer, Nigel Barker did of Taylor Swift (Nigel was a one time Sony spokesperson but is better known from his America’s next top model fame). The images of Taylor Swift were used in ads for the launch of the Sony a99 and if you look at the metadata, most of them were shot with his a900! Only a few of them were actually captured with an a99.
Some of his current images he posted on his Facebook page is of him holding his a900! Actually he states that the A900 is the only camera he shoots with! https://www.facebook.com/NigelBarkerOfficial/photos/pb.227823917394939.-2207520000.1415874513./357268694450460/?type=3&theater He even recommends the A77m2 to a poster! I guess he has no need for those E-mount toys!
A co z mocowanie A czy są jakieś plotki potwierdzione na ten temat ???
Nie ma i pewnie nie będzie …. mocowanie A pozostanie zapewne tylko w obiektywach … które użyjesz z przejściówką
FE bodies all the way, with very minimum lens update…
I am a little bit disappointed.
Sony should to continue A mount body with ovf or evf. I bought 6 month ago the A7r just because I wanted to have a better image quality. But I loose finally because there is no sensor stab. , not really weather sealing , bad AF, bad ergonomic body, bad battery life, just better iso quality, more pixels, and I can adapt every brand lens. So I regret A mount. And some people complain about the end of A900 and I understand because translucent mirror are so weak and they make loosing 1/2 stop for camera. The solution is a99 with ovf/evf, good iso like A7s, 24mpix, a6000 AF, vertical grip include in the body like Niton d4s, very long battery life.
I’m sorry for my English! !
Another FE camera ? Sigh. At this read ill have to get rid of A mount and move to Nikon.
Come on Sony replace the A99 !
the a99 is only 2 years old! I don’t get why people expect a replacement already…
heck.. the Canon 5D mk3 is older and there’s no replacement yet. And same with the Nikon D800/800e… it was on the market for more than 2 years before the D810 came.
Oh and the Canon 6D too… been on the market longer than the a99
the a99 is already still incredible in the competition, why does it need to be replaced already??
That’s a good point. Judging by previous release cycles, the update would not come until this fall.
The A99 is a bit of a laggard in the FF world. The 5D mk 3 has much better AF, better high ISO performance, better video etc etc. Now with the Nikon D750 also launched the A99 looks like an expensive underachiever at its current MSRP.
I am not expecting much, maybe move the 79 point AF from the A77 II to the A99, improve the video by offering XAVCS codec and improve the buffer a bit then the new camera can be competitive again.
Currently the A99 needs to be priced at $1500 to be really competitive.
What I heard from someone I know who has the inside track at Sony, A-mount is pretty much in support mode now, and “e-mount is the future.” There *might* be an A99 replacement coming yet, but if so, it’s likely the last one. Personally, I wouldn’t hold my breath on even that one coming, though; more likely we get the “pro” e-mount body bundled w/ the a-mount adapter. It is what it is at this point; no point in people whining about it anymore. You can whine about it raining, but it won’t stop the rain…
As far as the people being worried about a replacement so early (because you’re right, it really hasn’t been that long yet since the last release), I think it’s because of what they see happening with the e-mount development, that it’s clearly starting to replace a-mount. I mean, why would any company continue on forever with redundant lines of cameras and lenses? It just doesn’t make any financial/strategic sense. People aren’t freaking out in the Canon/Nikon camps because those brands aren’t cannibalizing their own line-ups with a competing product.
If this is the case. Then lets hope the new FE mount body includes IBIS or the new LA-EA_ adapter enables IBIS for the new body.
Because this is a new “built from ground up FE mount camera” it could be an a99 style body with FE mount and IBIS. Then add in an LA-EA4 and it will be best of both worlds. E-mount and A-mount
Not laea4. Need a better adapter
An adapter is hardly a viable to solution to many people. An adapter adds 2 additional points of failure to your system. Not worth it for someone who uses his camera on a regular basis. OK if for just casual use. If Sony is going to discontinue the A mount then they should make an announcement so many A mount users can sell off their gear and jump ship.
Right now the waiting game isn’t very nice. I need to know if Sony will support the A mount for some more time at least as they keep saying.
If not make an announcement like Olympus did so people can move to some other system instead.
No way I am going for an E mount system with its expensive slow zooms. So Nikon seems to be my most likely system of choice.
I don’t disagree with you, @BrendonF, but think this is the take-it-or-leave-it choice we’re going to be given regardless. I’m personally debating now whether to just keep rocking my A-mount cameras until they die (which probably wouldn’t be for quite a long time yet), or get out now (while I can perhaps still get some $$ for my A-mount gear) and switch to either E-mount or Nikon.
A99 was behind competition from the start. Sony didn’t bother to develop an AF module for it and just put the A77’s APS-C AF in there. 5D3 / D800 had proper FF AF.
If a pro A9 FE-mount camera is going to bulkier, then what is the advantage over a pro A-mount that already has a pretty solid lens line-up and legacy of lenses that spans decades? I’m still waiting for a Professional A-mount camera with built-in grip and AF that bests A77II, and I’d gladly pay $4,000 for one. Or maybe Sony can put a medium format sensor in an A99-size body, that by some engineering miracle, works with all A-mount lenses? One can only dream.
Lack of SLT light-loss, more precise autofocus, abscence of front-focus/back-focus issues, AF in video not limited to f/3.5 and so on.
The more I look at the current lens selection the more convinced I am that Sony cannot possibly appeal to the pro marked unless this camera is fully compatable with Canikon lenses.
E mount offers nothing but standard everyday lense..wa, normal, portrait.
Pros need the availability to shoot any assignment, not just snapshots.
The selection is so lacking that Sony cannot possibly fill the deficiet by the introduction of thos camera.
A mount lenses do not have OSS and so cannot fill the gap…plus there are big gaps in the A mount line-up.
Lastly of course pros will not give up thier Canikon glass for a new Sony camera.
For some reason I seem to be one of the few people talking about cross system compatability…. Am I the only one that realizes the importance of this?
what’s wrong with Zeiss/G glass compared to Canikon glass? Last time I checked reviews they were just as good or better.
What Sony did in JUST 9 years since they bought Minolta was amazing. Looking forward to the many years to come.
Nothing wrong if you never need anything but wa, tele, and portrait..anything else..forget about it
Fine for snapshots..uselss for pros that require versatility..useless for me to shoot wildlife.
Useless for sports shooters
Useless for architecture. .etc.
they will get there, my friend 🙂
9 years is just a short period. The e-mount is marketed towards a different target consumer and the a-mount is marketed towards someone else. lol
It is important indeed, but the thing is, Sony always (was/is/will be) very proprietary with their products. And IMHO if they make this cross-system compatibility they can stop their lens production the second after, because no one will buy their lenses anymore.
Not really…
Canikon users will keep thier glass and if one out of ten decide to buy one Sony native lens that will quadruple Sony lens sales.
Even though Canikon may be fully compatable via adapers they will eventually choose some native lenses.
Several commentors tell me that Sony/Ziess is the best glass…so why should they be afraid to compete.
Why do you think Sony is incapable of simply releasing all needed lenses for FE?
Will take several years, sure, but a much simpler solution than what you’re talking about.
No force on earth will get Canikon users to give up thier lenses and switch to sony glass
There’re new users appearing every day who don’t have any glass yet and start building their system from the ground up.
Besides, for a lot of use cases where AF is not important (architecture, landscape, macro, posed photography etc.) the lenses are compatible aldready via adapters.
Pros want to work with a complete system..so they can take any assighnment…not a completely inadequite system.
And if Sony is building a system to appeal to pros they cannot rely on new users who don’t have any glass yet.
What would you say if Sony released an FE 150-600mm G OSS in a couple of years?
I would be very happy if they did it in time to buy with the new camera they are coming out with and would probably buy the two items together.
However I just bought a pond that is a wildlife paradise and need it to photograph this winter.
A couple of years will be too late for me as I will already have made my purchase…I am currently leaning towards the Sigma sport version plus 1.4x…..which will only be made in Canon and Nikon mount.
No force on earth will get me to buy this half as@ed E-mount crap Sony! If I can’t mount my 13 A-mount lens on a New A- mount body without sony cutting features and holding back new sensors and tech so they can push this cheap e-mount stuff I won’t give Sony any more of my money! And Yes I have played with the A7 series and they are not better than the A-mount except for the sensor!
Shut up and take my kidneys!
I’d love to see an FE model with the AF from the a6000, better (bigger) battery, built in GPS, intervalometer, wireless remote control, more control of auto ISO, and a High res, non anti alias filter sensor. True weather sealing would be great too.
Like many others, I’d also love to see a few no-frills staples added to the lens lineup.
20mm
85mm
135mm
28mm f/2 is already on the way, as is the 35mm f/1.4 and 90
I understand all the concern from those invested in A Mount, but like many others, I have no use for any camera that puts a mirror in front of the sensor and believe that every advantage DSLRs have at this point have nothing to do with the mirrored design.
a6000 AF won’t cut it, if they really intend to compete with DSLR.
Some new breakthrough AF tech will be needed to make AF as good without the mirror.
The next body Sony released HAD to be an A-Mount. Since it is not, All Confidence in Sony is lost no matter what product your considering/own.
Hmmm FE is the future, why follow Nikon and Canon when you can lead. I am sure that SONY will release an A99 replacement at some point, but an A9 or A9R just makes too much sense.
Too much financial Success for Sony’s Pocket. Not Much sense to the loyal A-Mount Users.
Sony basically needs to produce a camera better than the Nikon D750. They’re almost there with the A7s. They need: faster AF; A7s style low-light performance; 24mp; more, faster, AF glass.
True, Philip Bloom can make a much better film with a Barbie camera(Look it up) than I could ever do with an A7S or F55.