Camera Labs

Well, as always, the DSLR landscape is changing at a rapid pace. Both Canon and Nikon seem to be pulling out all the stops (more so Canon, in my humble opinion) in order to gain your hard earned dollar. Exciting times indeed!

I really like the overall "direction" of the market (at least from my vantage point), with increasing value for money. I like the 7D and the Mark IV, and although I will probably never hold, let alone own any one of these cameras, I think they are the kind of cameras (from a purely technology standpoint) that will have a great influence on market direction in 2010.

Both Sony and Nikon have their work cut out for them, but as it has happened many times in the past, they are well up to the challenge and the big three seem to have a very hard time separating themselves from each other for more than a month or two (technology wise).

Which makes brand switching a very odd activity. I mean, if something about your existing system offends you in a deep and profound way (like price gouging), by all means, do what's best for YOU. But, most people switch on features that they "might" need or perceive to be better. The recent releases only show that the day you switch to say Nikon from Canon, Canon will come out with something "better". Same thing for Sony. You just will never win with brand switching because different companies have different release cycles and every brand has their 15 minutes of fame.

I think the 7D, Mark IV and the D3s are really really great pieces of machinery that deserve our appreciation, even if we have no intentions of switching or buying any...and I wouldn't worry about Sony, they finally seem to be getting their act together.

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I wish there was a way to randomly cycle through click-able thumbnails of my most recent images :'(

http://www.laroygreen.com (under construction)

I think there is enough difference between even the big 3, however small they may be it can make the difference for certain shooting styles.

Sony still are unique in having body stabilised FF which is a half of what's stopping me from completely jumping to Canon. Stick a bright prime on it, and see what available light there is. Coupled with their unique fast AF live view system they remain my choice for random indoor shooting. The true A700 replacement, when it eventaully comes, should be really interesting given what they've done already with the A5xx.

With Canon and Nikon it is a little harder to separate, but there is a noticeable difference in their directions. Canon have more options if you want higher resolution, whereas Nikon have their niche with a high speed FF in the D700. I don't feel Canon have really been leading in technology though, where Nikon has had some useful features for longer.

Until then, I still feel if you do want specific features now, you're still likely to end up going into more than one camp.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Forgot to mention. Just got my brand, spanking new A850, and I can tell you ... it's a hell of an upgrade to the A300.

@Popo: Yep, you're correct. I guess Sony is kinda the odd man out. Where Nikon and Canon try to best each other in similar ways, I think Sony realizes it can't compete on the "pro" (don't blast me yet!) level like the others, and has more or less created a whole new playing field for itself, a niche not suitable for everyone, but works.

I say "pro" as in, Sony just doesn't have the facilities to cope with the demands of full time photographers. They don't have a CPS or any other professional service. They probably don't have much relationships with newspapers and other print media.

On the camera and lens front, I don't think Nikon and Canon are that much better (unless u want niche things like a 600mm f4). I think Sony realizes that it would be disastrous to market themselves as a "pro" brand without having the infrastructure that most pros rely on (might be in the works). I've heard stories of people in conflict areas getting a complete kit to use on assignment within 2 days when their gear was stolen or was damaged. Sony just doesn't have this network AFAIK.

But you do bring up an interesting point. Having multiple systems for a specific need. But, I guess in this way, you pretty much have to have a clear idea of what work you'd be doing and it is kinda expensive .

Anyways, out to shoot, although in typical fashion...anytime I get a new piece of gear, it rains !

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I wish there was a way to randomly cycle through click-able thumbnails of my most recent images :'(

http://www.laroygreen.com (under construction)

I'm not sure what to think of this 'overall direction'. It looks like that the recent models are aimed to overclass the competition in every possible way and less aimed to please the photographer practically. I think the 7D is pretty good example of that. Perhaps most sales are made purely based on comparison of specifications, rather than overall performance and handling. 'This camera has 18 megapixels and 19 focus points so it is a better camera'. How exactly is the enthousiast served with 10 more focus points and tons of zone selection options (without denying that it could be 'nice' to have)?

Maybe this indeed leads to better camera's for our $$, but I wonder what would happen if the companies weren't so focussed on squeezing out their sensors to the max, adding video functionality with known issues, just to even out with, or outclassing competition. People respond to this in a strange way. The D3s is announced, the 1D mk IV is announced: Sony community reacts in annoyance: where is the 950! In short: the consumer is being spoiled and it is getting harder and harder to get him pleased.

Anyway: congratulations on your new A850 primitive! I hope you will find time to tell us your experiences with this camera.

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Fujifilm X-E1 - XF 18-55mm - XF 14mm - Lowepro Rover AW II - Think Tank Retrospective 5

The features of a system matter if you need them. The 7D is geared very much towards fast action situations with challenging AF. If that doesn't describe what you do, then of course it the features in it may seem rather pointless. Canon needed that, as they didn't have anything similar without paying massively for the pro bodies, which could lose them sales in that area to Nikon. Certainly the D300/D700 were getting rather tempting for that reason.

The question for Sony is are they going to fight for that area or pass for now? The A700 replacement will be a good indicator of high end direction.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Agree on that Popo. I'm just no too convinced that there is a general idea behind the concept of new models other than topping the competition on features.

Afterwards one can say it is geared to one or other situation, like sport photography and that the improvements are also for the good in the end.

How will the 'smaller' players on the market be able to cope with this development speed in the long term is what I'm wondering...

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Fujifilm X-E1 - XF 18-55mm - XF 14mm - Lowepro Rover AW II - Think Tank Retrospective 5

They can't which is why they find a niche. Pentax appear to have conquered the cheap weather sealed bodies segment. Sony with the A850/A900 appear to have established themselves in the cheap low ISO studio photography segment. Having a niche is not always a bad thing, just look at how Apple are doing.

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PhilipGoh.com

Well, I also think I'm not giving Sony much credit. The new A5xx seem to be (from samples I've seen and feature sheets only) an incredible value for the price, and if it where not for the video (which reviewers make a meal of, unjustly, convincing people they need it in some cases, but that is a fight for another day ) I think it would be a serious contender (might still be) for entry level dollars.

As for my A850...If you own an A300/A350 or A200, DO NOT TOUCH or even LOOK AT A850. You will buy it, even if you have to sell a few organs.

As is obligatory, I'll give my first impressions:

- Really solid. Nothing to compare it to (I own an A300 and it would obviously be better).
- Very comfortable to hold (Important cus it is heavy, and I have broken 2 fingers on both hands and had surgery on both wrists ( football ), so clearly, ergonomics means a lot to me).
- Viewfinder...no way to describe it really other than GOD LIKE .
- LCD looks fabulous.
- The shutter just flies into action. I accidentally took several frames today as the A300 does require quite a bit of pressure to fire. But the A850 just goes for it.
- It is loud! I mean, if I had my A300 go off beside the A850, you wouldn't hear the A300. Not a big deal for me.
- So far, I like the intelligent preview.

I did realize that my Minolta 35-105 isn't gonna cut it (nor did I expect it to) as the corner darkness is pretty extreme and highly visible even at 25%. I hadn't tried my other lenses yet since this is probably going to be the lens that stays on this camera until I upgrade. But, it works for now, and since the printing I do is pretty low end, I doubt it will reproduce (plus I crop like a mad man ).

My next purchase will be an alienbees 2 light kit+portable power (around $800.00), so the lenses will have to wait a while. After that, I might spring for the Epson R2800 ($600.00) to do some large prints for weddings.

When I do decide to upgrade lenses, I'll probably get the Zeiss 24-70 and the 70-200 G. I might also consider the Zeiss 135 over the 70-200, but that is probably going to be around march next yr.

Did some shooting today (about 300 frames), but I hope to get some real shooting done tomorrow (if the weather holds).

*** Edit ***

Oops, forgot to mention that today while shooting the A850, someone came up to me and wanted to know if I was interested in shooting an event and if he could view my portfolio.

The first thing he said, WOW, that's a really big camera, must be expensive!

So, if this works out, the A850 might actually pay for itself pretty soon

*** End Edit ***

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I wish there was a way to randomly cycle through click-able thumbnails of my most recent images :'(

http://www.laroygreen.com (under construction)

Your first impressions of the 850 are the same reasons I chose the 700 over the 500.

No doubt the “clout” of the 850 will give you a professional edge over your competitors.