Sony announces 3 new dSLRs, 2 new lenses

[Roger]

Sony has released the A850, a full frame 24mp camera that is the kid brother to the A900.

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Also released the A500 and A550. ; 12 and 14 mp each, they have the new Exmor CMOS sensors, go up ISO 12800, and in the Live View[nb]Remember, Sony uses a switch for live view so it uses the regular AF sensor rather than imaging AF.[/nb] mode you can use Smile Shutter - it will take the picture when your subject smiles.

These two also have a built in HDR mode that will process an HDR in less than 2 seconds, including accounting for slight moving during the picture taking (no tripod needed according to the press release).

The A550 will go up to 7fps, making it the fastest dSLR in it's class.[nb]Class is sub-$1000 dSLRs released between August 25 and August 28, 2009[/nb]

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New lenses:

28-75/2.8 SAM ; (the other 2.8 is a Zeiss, this one is cheaper. ; BTW, if you need any other evidence that Tamron is making Sony glass, go ahead and look at the Tamron 28-75/2.8)

DT 30/2.8 Macro (only for APS-C alphas)

[attachimg=3] the Tamron: [attachimg=4]



http://news.sel.sony.com/en/press_room/ ... 41559.html


http://news.sel.sony.com/en/press_room/ ... 41555.html


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[zackiedawg]

Hey...if the A550 comes even close to living up to its initial promise for better high ISO performance than the A700, which is already very clean to 3200 and usable at 6400 after some processing help...it will be my next likely upgrade path. ; It would mean Sony finally gets a D300-type machine, that will be better for high ISO use. ; Paired with the Sigma 30 F1.4, it would be quite a nice machine on dark rides, with usable ISO 6400 and 12800 in a pinch.

Also of note - two Live View modes - one as before with secondary sensor making it easily the fastest focusing and shooting Live View camera (tied with all other Sony Live View cams), but also adding a Manual Focus assist mode that allows 7x to 14x zooming for accurate focus off the main sensor, in the style of Canon and Nikon. ; Best of both worlds.

And another of-note...the first 920K pixel 3" LCD screen that also articulates 90 degrees up or down. ; And a 980 shot CIPA standard on the beefy battery (which I can attest to the battery's beefiness, since it is the same as in my camera now).

A550 really looks pretty nice. ; Now we just have to wait and see samples to see how it does at ISO3200 and 6400.

 

[zackiedawg]

I gotta say WOW - ISO12800 looking surprisingly good!

The samples are flying on the new spate of Sony cams. ; Of primary interest to me is the A550, which is a mid-line enthusiast cam...so one hopes for improvements over entry-level DSLRs. ; From the samples I've seen, Sony really has gone to work on high ISO noise and noise control, and are for the first time stepping on Nikon turf with the clean results at very high ISO (comparing APS-C to APS-C, of course!).

Check out this sample taken in Poland...I believe the kit lens was involved here. ; The following parameters were used: ; Camera was in JPEG Fine, sharpness was set to 'soft', EV to 0. ; ISO set to 12,800. ; Aperture priority mode. ; Aperture F5.6. ; Shutter 1/1250.

Here's the shot downsized to 1024 longside for posting:

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(BTW - this is already many leagues better than my cam can do at ISO3200!).

Here's a 100% crop from near center on the original:

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Now, that's impressive to me! ; And I'd think that this output from a JPEG straight from camera is quite impressive. ; Consider what one might do with a RAW file and some good post-processing for noise reduction...wow.

This is actually competitive with D300 territory! ; Finally, Sony gets in the high ISO game. ; Super-dark rides, beware the A550 with Sigma 30mm F1.4. ; If the early reviews and more tests keep panning out that this performance is what to expect from this cam, and for only $950 retail...I'm looking at my next body upgrade.

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[Dan]

Meh.. count me in as a skeptic.

Not that I won't accept it if it really lives up to its promise, but.. ; There are a few questions to be asked. ; Specific comparisons I want to see. ; My source will probably be dpreview, I've followed their reviews for long enough that I know their methodology. ; Although actually I want to see something they don't seem to typically do. ; I want a RAW file image analysis with no noise reduction AT ALL performed on the images. ; I want to know what the sensor is returning, not what the clever algorithms are doing. ; That full crop 12,800 image looks heavily noise reduced to the point of image degradation.


My expectation is that this will lead to, at most, a one stop advantage in terms of equivalent noise levels. ; Sony's initial press releases were claiming a doubling in light sensitivity, that would mean you could use, say, ISO 1600 instead of 800 for the same noise levels. ; However it looks like Sony's previous offerings weren't up to Canon and Nikon in terms of noise levels, so they've got some ground to make up first.

 

[zackiedawg]

Not that I won't accept it if it really lives up to its promise, but.. ; There are a few questions to be asked. ; Specific comparisons I want to see. ; My source will probably be dpreview, I've followed their reviews for long enough that I know their methodology. ; Although actually I want to see something they don't seem to typically do. ; I want a RAW file image analysis with no noise reduction AT ALL performed on the images. ; I want to know what the sensor is returning, not what the clever algorithms are doing.

I don't disagree with that - I too would like to know more about what the sensor is producing versus what their algorithms and processing is doing. ; More for curiosity though, because the end result is still important to me above all...I don't care if they use voodoo, as long as the photo comes out good!

That full crop 12,800 image looks heavily noise reduced to the point of image degradation.

Unquestionably...and I'd consider it emergency use only. ; However, I don't know of many, if any, cameras from Canon or Nikon outside their fullframe monsters that can shoot ISO12800 that well. ; If they can even shoot it at all. ; Certainly Canon's 5000D is positively awful - many orders of magnitude worse than the above Sony effort. ; D300 can't go there unless pushed, and it's already at about this level of noise reduction and image degredation at ISO6400. ; And the newer D90 isn't that different from the D300 - Here's an ISO6400 jpeg from the D90 which to my eye seems to be about as heavily degredated and smeared as the A550's ISO12800:

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That's another $1,000 body camera, which the A550 is definitely competing with...and that's one stop ISO lower than the Sony.

Certainly Sony was behind both Canon and Nikon overall - at least one, maybe two full stops worse than Nikon certainly at equal price points. ; So far, though this is very early, it looks like they're getting somewhat competitive now. ; To compare to that D90 image at ISO6400, here's a shot from the A550 at 6400 which again to my eye looks better:

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Since the D90 is the same price range, and those are both jpegs from camera at the same ISO...to me it looks like Sony (for the first time ever) may actually be processing their jpegs in camera and doing nosie reduction in camera BETTER than Nikon.

RAW of course still tells the bigger story of what's going on behind the scenes. ; And since Sony makes Nikon's sensors, I wouldn't be surprised if they were somewhat similar. ; But Sony has long had the worst jpeg engines in the DSLR biz, and some of the most aggressive and smoothing noise reduction that still tended to leave horrible chroma blotches. ; They have apparently made some huge changes in their processing and noise reduction algorithms...and that's a good thing for everyone. ; Hopefully the sensor is a little cleaner too, which would benefit everyone - given Sony makes most sensors.

My expectation is that this will lead to, at most, a one stop advantage in terms of equivalent noise levels. ; Sony's initial press releases were claiming a doubling in light sensitivity, that would mean you could use, say, ISO 1600 instead of 800 for the same noise levels. ; However it looks like Sony's previous offerings weren't up to Canon and Nikon in terms of noise levels, so they've got some ground to make up first.

Agreed - though they appear at least initially to be making great strides in catching up, if not slightly passing, at least on the jpeg-from-camera side. ; Even equalling something like the D300 would be a great thing for Sony users, who would love to have something to upgrade to for all their legacy lenses that can perform as well as the class leaders in low light.

So far, just comparing to my A300, I'm actually seeing as much as a 2-stop advantage. ; ISO1600 on my cam is not as good as 3200 on the A550, but maybe a hair better than 6400. ; So it's maybe on the order of a 1.7 stop gain. ; Again, jpegs here. ; I definitely await more tests from Dpreview and others, controlled tests, and hopefully some RAWs to play with.

Those with Canon and Nikon can say 'ha, Sony is only just catching up now'...but if you're with Sony, it's a big step if we can get up to that level. ; There are certain reasons some of us bought the Sony, that we were willing to take compromises in high ISO versus Canon and Nikon - be it ergonomics, features, price, or in-body stabilization...or all of the above. ; I want to be able to keep those advantages, and at the same time, see those compromises fade or disappear. ; For me personally, if Canon, Nikon, and Sony were all equals in IQ at all ISOs, I would be very happy. ; I don't need them to be better - just as good and good enough. ; I would love a nice upgrade path, and it looks promising now.

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[Dan]

For me personally, if Canon, Nikon, and Sony were all equals in IQ at all ISOs, I would be very happy. ; I don't need them to be better - just as good and good enough. ; I would love a nice upgrade path, and it looks promising now.

That is ultimately how I feel too. ; Actually.. no, I want Sony to beat Canon in IQ and features.

As I've said frequently before, not because I'm looking to switch to Sony but because I want the pressure on Canon to continue improving their line. ; And every time I say that in an open forum I feel like I'm ruining the effect since I'm openly saying I'm looking to stay with Canon, I just want them to give me more for my money.

I'm going to avoid speculating too much on the IQ of the samples offered so far, I just don't know what to make of that sample image.

Time will tell. ; It's going to be an interesting unveiling.

 

[Tim]

funny you mention that, dan, because i think the canon 5dMk2 is revolutionary as far as quality vs. price. ; granted it is not the cheapest camera body in the world, but when you compare the 5d to the 5dMk2 and realize that the Mk2 is $300 less than the 5d cost, i think the upgrade was much more than incremental. ; i am all about the camera companies duking it out to retain market share.