A77 - Nearly here

[bossel]

I was debating with myself wether I should get the 16mm or not. Now, as part of the double kit, it cost me 90Euro effectively. A no-brainer!!

[supernovak]

Hi David,
Thanks for your opinion: it is funny that I have access to Heliar (one for sale near me), but no to 16mm, back ordered at SonyStyle.
Everything you say makes sense and I will probably go with Sony - hopefully I will be able to get it in time.
Brad at DPR had cornerfix update their product to support NEX as well - though the edges look a bit overtreated:
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readf ... d=36464819.
Another good thing with heliar is possible future compatibility with FF Nex, if that thing ever happens.
Back to picesl peeping!

Hi Novak. I would say the Sony any day. It's cheaper, it does not require an additional $50 adaptor. and it gives perfect colours across the frame - the 15mm Heliar must be processed from raw, and the colour shifts to the corners must be corrected using special software. The Heliar is no sharper centrally, and may not necessarily be sharper at the edges unless you work around f/11.

The NEX 16mm can be used in all modes, and allows you to use the panorama functions with perfect results as the camera can map the distortion - you can't guarantee equally clean sweep panoramas with the Heliar, as the camera has no idea which focal length is being used. The 16mm is f/2.8 and although the corners are blurred, the centre is dead sharp even wide open. The Heliar is only f/4.5 wide open, and needs stopping down to f/5.6 to tidy up the image. By f/5.6 the NEX lens is already pretty good, with better illumination/colour.

The E-lens will autofocus, and its 49mm filter thread accepts any good wide-angle polarizer or slimline pol, only 49mm thread so not expensive, and fitting a filter does not cut off the corners. The Heliar does not accept filters and has a built-in petal hood which is designed for full frame (and therefore almost useless on APS-C). In contrast, Sony designed the 16mm with exactly the same bayonet as the 18-55mm zoom, and you can just fit the hood from the 18-55mm on the 16mm when the light is tricky. It does not cut off, it gives perfect protection.

Finally, the 16mm will accept the 12mm converter lens when this is available, and you can also get an optical finder for city/street photography, and you can make full use of the auto-ISO program/aperture/shutter priority combinations on the NEX for rapid shooting but always getting the best ISO.

David

[douglasf13]

FWIW, I recently asked Klaus about testing some of the Voigtlander lenses on NEX at infinity, and he said it wasn't all that necessary, since one should use hyperfocal rather than infinity focusing. Don't tell Merklinger that.

[kombizz]

What would be the difference between A55 & A77?

[KevinBarrett]

What would be the difference between A55 & A77?

Without getting into entirely new functionality:

► Max shutter speed increase from 1/4000 to 1/8000
► Sync speed increase from 1/160 to 1/250 (if you're using studio strobes, this speed is your fastest shutter speed)
► Dedicated AF assist lamp
► Quick Navi interface and customizable buttons
► Front and rear command wheels
► Increased bracketing ranges and drive mode customizations
► 1/3 stops in ISO settings (ISO 100, 125, 160, 200...)
► Rugged metal body with weather-sealed controls and interfaces
► Availability of a vertical grip

[bakubo]

What would be the difference between A55 & A77?

Without getting into entirely new functionality:

► Max shutter speed increase from 1/4000 to 1/8000
► Sync speed increase from 1/160 to 1/250 (if you're using studio strobes, this speed is your fastest shutter speed)
► Dedicated AF assist lamp
► Quick Navi interface and customizable buttons
► Front and rear command wheels
► Increased bracketing ranges and drive mode customizations
► 1/3 stops in ISO settings (ISO 100, 125, 160, 200...)
► Rugged metal body with weather-sealed controls and interfaces
► Availability of a vertical grip

I was gone for a month in Vietnam so missed the Sony announcement about this. Can someone provide a link with the A77 announcement? Has the release date also been announced? What is the U.S. price? Last I heard about 7 weeks ago the A77 was just a rumor.

By the way, I finally saw the A33 today at Best Buy and wrote some about it in the A55 thread.

[Dusty]

It's still just a rumor, Henry. Or, a bit more than one. It's been talked about by Sony staffers, but solid details are still lacking.

Dusty

[bakubo]

It's still just a rumor, Henry. Or, a bit more than one. It's been talked about by Sony staffers, but solid details are still lacking.

Shoot. With all that detail I thought it was something that had been announced.

[KevinBarrett]

Sorry, just conjecture...I had worded it in such a way as to make it clear that it was speculation, but then I edited it.
I basically just listed the specs that have differentiated (and still differentiate) the a700 from other APS-C Alphas.

[Greg Beetham]

I know where you're coming from there KB, I've done the same thing myself, cut and paste, backspace etc. and ah, that's it, I've got it! ....err no, sometimes there's important bits that have gone missing without you realizing.....
Greg

[bfitzgerald]

Interesting to read some folks taking the SLT mirror out and saying how much sharper their images are and how it's better for low light! I would have thought Sony would have designed the mirror so you could lift it and keep it up if wanted. Maybe one for the A77 if and when it turns up

[twm47099]

Interesting to read some folks taking the SLT mirror out and saying how much sharper their images are and how it's better for low light! I would have thought Sony would have designed the mirror so you could lift it and keep it up if wanted. Maybe one for the A77 if and when it turns up

Yeah. And then they could try to figure out how to automate that. You know something novel like:
mirror down = PDAF
press shutter release -- mirror raises -- exposure is taken
mirror drops ready to PDAF for the next shot. Maybe I'll try to patent the idea.

tom

[alphaomega]

Great idea twm47099. I wish I had thought about that earlier. Just discovered that at company called Sony released a camera called A580 at the same time as the new SLT models. On reading the specification sheet it appears to have such a mirror that flips up to expose the sensor when you press the shutter release and comes back down after. I have resolved to purchase one and I hope that I will get greater sharpness and less loss of light compared with the A77. Regrettably the video is not as capable as I understand I won't get AF. Then as I have discovered with buying cars, if I want to compete in Le Mans I should not turn up in a people carrier. Apparently there is something called the right tool for the job. Somebody apparently wants a tool that can do everything for little money.

[twm47099]

Great idea twm47099. I wish I had thought about that earlier. Just discovered that at company called Sony released a camera called A580 at the same time as the new SLT models. On reading the specification sheet it appears to have such a mirror that flips up to expose the sensor when you press the shutter release and comes back down after. I have resolved to purchase one and I hope that I will get greater sharpness and less loss of light compared with the A77. Regrettably the video is not as capable as I understand I won't get AF. Then as I have discovered with buying cars, if I want to compete in Le Mans I should not turn up in a people carrier. Apparently there is something called the right tool for the job. Somebody apparently wants a tool that can do everything for little money.

And since I am willing to pay ~$1600 for it I can't wait.

tom

[Greg Beetham]

Interesting to read some folks taking the SLT mirror out and saying how much sharper their images are and how it's better for low light! I would have thought Sony would have designed the mirror so you could lift it and keep it up if wanted. Maybe one for the A77 if and when it turns up

Yeah. And then they could try to figure out how to automate that. You know something novel like:
mirror down = PDAF
press shutter release -- mirror raises -- exposure is taken
mirror drops ready to PDAF for the next shot. Maybe I'll try to patent the idea.

tom

Well gee, what a novel idea, I wonder why nobody thought of that before? You mean moving the mirror completely out of the way before the shot....amazing....it'd be a bit chancy though; you know, tooling up to make such a design, and then whether or not it would actually sell well enough too cover costs.
Greg