Adaptor vid-cast

[David Kilpatrick]

It ain't perfect, but I work unscripted and up against the time limit of the Alpha 55 video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orqSoZ4MHxk

David

[emarsh72]

Hello Mr. Kilpatrick and thank you for your video. I was wondering about the a55 7 minute video overheat issue you had. Did you have the steady shot turned on when this happened? I've heard of the overheat issue if the steady shot is on, but was under the impression that if you turn the steady shot off and use a tripod, the a55/33 will shoot video for 29 minutes without issues. Thank you.

[bakubo]

Good work. Also, it is cool to actually see you after all these years -- other than just a little photo. Also, interesting to see all the various adaptors and lenses. I can see how, especially for macro and in a studio, the NEX would be very useful.

By the way, was the A55 on MF? I noticed that when you were showing the tilt adaptor and Zenit lens you held the camera and lens closer to the A55 and in the center of the frame, but it was out of focus.

[David Kilpatrick]

That was the Canon 60D doing the out of focus stuff NOT the Alpha 55. And the answer is that Steady Shot was on and should not have been. However, the camera was on a tripod, and the video shows no signs of the sensor stabilisation causing judder (which would be expected if the SS was actually operating during the shot). I had assumed that if you were not hand-holding the camera, the SS would not cause the system to overheat because it would not be active.

Next time I'll disable SS.

David

[Birma]

Excellent video David - I hope we'll see more of your reviews complimented in this way in the future. Also, very cool t-shirt .

[Greg Beetham]

Yeah I liked that, good demo of how versatile the camera is. I think I would have bought one right away if Sony had given it a better user interface. A few dedicated buttons and a settings screen for example.
Greg

ps. A nice thin rubber or vinyl mat on the table might have been good too, the sound system and wooden table emphasized the clunking sounds a little.

[UrsaMajor]

Thanks for the video, David. I found it very interesting and informative- and was also interested in how you chose to light the scene.

I have been toying with the thought of acquiring a NEX, but only if I find myself with unexpected excess funds, as I am only interested in using it with my old Rokkor lenses for non-serious purposes - which may be symptomatic of tunnel vision on my part. For me, one of the attractive aspects of the NEX is the possibility of getting an adapter that would give me tilt capability with an existing lens, and I really appreciate you pointing out the need for caution with the adapter you have. That is something I might have found out the hard way, but now I'll be alert and cautious about that hazard if I ever get a NEX. Thanks again.

With best wishes,
- Tom -

[Eric Webb]

It ain't perfect, but I work unscripted and up against the time limit of the Alpha 55 video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orqSoZ4MHxk

David

David, seemingly some glitch with the forum at present & I can only respond on 'quote'. Great video, very useful, but how do I set the NEX to work with 'dumb' adapters? Do I need to tell it to open the shutter even if there's 'no lens' attached? And using the - very expensive - LA-EA1, will I get auto-aperture with older A-mount lenses?

Thanks,

Eric

[Lonnie Utah]

Just posted your vid on my FB page.

Edit: and now the Canikon boys are grumbling! lol..

I did bait them just a little bit..

"The NEX 5. The world smallest interchangeable lens camera. It's game changer. With the NEX and the A55, Sony is establishing itself as the leader in digital camera innovation."

[David Kilpatrick]

Yes, you get auto aperture with the expensive adaptor, and AF with SSM and SAM lenses (or third party lenses with built in motors, it varies in effectiveness from unusable to OK). With the dumb adaptors there is nothing to do; Sony has set the camera up to work with them from the outset, A or M mode works fine (even P does not throw up mistakes, but just becomes A in effect).

David

It ain't perfect, but I work unscripted and up against the time limit of the Alpha 55 video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orqSoZ4MHxk

David

David, seemingly some glitch with the forum at present & I can only respond on 'quote'. Great video, very useful, but how do I set the NEX to work with 'dumb' adapters? Do I need to tell it to open the shutter even if there's 'no lens' attached? And using the - very expensive - LA-EA1, will I get auto-aperture with older A-mount lenses?

Thanks,

Eric

[pakodominguez]

Nice video -but you need to "invest" a little on prod . And 100% into the Sony strategy.

Yesterday I went to a Workshop at Adorama, sponsored by Sony, with Sony Artisan Me Ra Koh. I spent 5 minutes chatting with the Sony REP for NYC and he told me that the day before he met the people from Novoflex (Mac Group) and they confirm the imminent launch of a battery of adapters for the "most popular" mounts -no, Minolta MD is not included :-l

I think Sony's idea of selling NEX kits to people that want to give a digital life to their "old" lenses is great because, sooner than latter, this new user will buy another E-mount lens just because the convenience on the AF (and the full AF while video). I resisted the temptation of buying the 18-55 lens (I got the NEX + 16mm) but I know next year I'll get a couple of SEL primes...

Regards

[pakodominguez]

I have been toying with the thought of acquiring a NEX, but only if I find myself with unexpected excess funds, as I am only interested in using it with my old Rokkor lenses for non-serious purposes - which may be symptomatic of tunnel vision on my part.

Hi Tom

What do you mean by "non serious purposes"?

[UrsaMajor]

I have been toying with the thought of acquiring a NEX, but only if I find myself with unexpected excess funds, as I am only interested in using it with my old Rokkor lenses for non-serious purposes - which may be symptomatic of tunnel vision on my part.

What do you mean by "non serious purposes"?

Pictures that I take entirely for my own enjoyment, or to experiment. Typically these will be landscapes, or images of buildings, or vacation snapshots for my own memories, or perhaps images at automobile shows after I think I have enough conventional shots to make our car club newsletter editor happy.

I do not attempt to earn money with my photography, but on most occasions I have non-paying "customers". For example, my wife is one of my "customers" for images of our children and grandchildren, as are other family members on some occasions. Those photos fall into the category of "serious" for me, even though there is no money involved.

With best wishes,
- Tom -

[UrsaMajor]

That was the Canon 60D doing the out of focus stuff NOT the Alpha 55. And the answer is that Steady Shot was on and should not have been. However, the camera was on a tripod, and the video shows no signs of the sensor stabilisation causing judder (which would be expected if the SS was actually operating during the shot). I had assumed that if you were not hand-holding the camera, the SS would not cause the system to overheat because it would not be active.

Next time I'll disable SS.

It appears that overheating of a DSLR used for video is not unique to Sony.

Yesterday I went to a photo trade show and inadvertently heard something on that subject that I do not recall reading in the media. The show had a series of one-hour talks scheduled by "name" photographers, with 15-minute breaks between presentations. I was particularly interested in one speaker's talk on landscape photography, and arrived at the meeting room early to make sure I could get a good seat. As it turned out, the previous speaker - who was talking about using a DSLR for cinematography - ran well past his allotted time, so I was treated to almost 20 minutes of information on this subject. Since the speaker is one of Canon's "Explorers of Light", it was hardly surprising that his talk revolved around how he uses Canon DSLR cameras for professional video work.

What WAS surprising was some of his advice. For example, he went through his recommended menu settings of the camera options, and one of them was to set the camera to turn off after 8 minutes. He actually said, "After all, this camera does not have a cooling fan for the sensor and processor like the RED, so it overheats, and I alternate my filming between two cameras that are set to shut down after 8 minutes."

Another "tip" was to turn off all noise reduction in the camera. In this case, he said, "I do all noise reduction in post-production. This is just a $2500 still camera, so you can't expect it to deliver good video from in-camera noise reduction."

After those remarks, I found the subsequent talk on landscape photography somewhat anti-climatic.

With best wishes,
- Tom -