Crash – FS700 SLOG2 test from TobyLoc on Vimeo.

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There is a NEX camera only a very few here on SAR own. But it’s a camera that can do things no other NEX can do. It’s the NEX-FS700 camcorder. Toby Lockerbie had the chance to preview of the new firmware upgrade for the Sony FS-700 and you can read more about it at Redsharknews (Click here). In short he says that “ISO2000 now looks like ISO640”! Now that’s the kind of firmware upgrade we would love to see on all Sony cameras…Obviously without that 500 Euro extra to pay :)

UPDATE: Our reader Peter Prevec (Click here) did some tests on FS700 with the new 3.0 firmware last week. High ISO noise and S-LOG2 vs. CINE4.

From late July until mid August I will be on vacation to my girlfriends family in France. But bad for me (and good for you) this will be a very busy rumor time with plenty of leaks to come. But between one rumor and another I will try to get some rest and enjoy some time with my family and friends by tasting the mysterious red drink the Frenchman call “vin” :)

And I thought it could be an idea to schedule some articles written by SAR readers so that they can be posted on SAR while I am lying under the sun. So you feel free to send me your articles you want to be posted here at sonyalpharumors@gmail.com. Please send full text and pictures and the credit you want me to add. You are obviously allowed to link back to your personal blog and it may help some of you to become famous :)

So what kind of article are welcome on SAR? First of all want I don’t need are reviews of cameras and lenses that are already well know and out for a long time. I am more interested in real field work narrations (travel stories, fashion photography, extreme conditions reportages). I also like to read curious and funny stories. Small tips and tricks reports are also welcome. In short, stories that usually don’t get posted on classic photography review sites :)

One more idea to save me time: Use DealsRunner.com to submit the SOny deals you find on web. Doing so displays the deals on the right sidebar on SAR and you will help other readers to see and grab the deal. It works without my moderation..instantaneously!

This may turn out to be a good deal for us, I can get some couple of hours per day offline and you can promote yourself. Thanks you!

Andrea
sonyalpharumors@gmail.com

As you may know Fotodiox launched the Vizelex Cannon Nikon G to E-mount adapter which is in Stock at Amazon US (Click here). But from first testings at personal-view we know that the quality is inferior compared to the (more expensive) Metabones.

The company reacted on the critics and announced on Personal-View that they are working on a new version:

Thank you to everyone that bought the Light Cannon. Fotodiox Pro realizes there are issues with the optical quality of the results, and is working hard to fix the problem.
If you are unhappy with the Light Cannon you may return the merchandise for refund of the product cost or exchange, if the return is made within 14 days of receipt. Refunds will exclude any return shipping charges.
However, if you decide to keep this first generation product, you will have the opportunity to receive the Light Cannon Mark II for FREE, when it becomes available in 3 to 4 months. The Mark II will address the optical quality of the glass with an upgraded optical element. The optical element will be completely redesigned to correct the color shift and to keep sharp focus across the image. There will be two versions of the Mark II: 0.5x (created for full-frame lens to open the aperture up 2 extra stops) and 0.7x (created for APS-C Sensors which will open the aperture up 1 more stop). As a Fotodiox Pro customer that tried our first version of the Light Cannon you will get your choice between the two. With the higher quality optics, the Mark II will retail around $199.95, but the optical quality will be better. In order to get the free Mark II, please contact info@fotodiox.com to request the code for a free Light Cannon Mark II when it becomes available for purchase. Please include your name, email, what website you ordered from, and your order number so we can reference your order. Thank you for your continued support for Fotodiox Pro.

More adapter news:
The High Quality (and more expensive) Metabones Speed Booster are now for sale via BHphoto too. And next month the new A to E-mount Speed Booster will be released!

Like the Vizelex also Chinese companies are selling a cheaper Speed Booster clone named “Lens Turbo”:
[shoplink 18692 ebay]Pentax K (here one Bay)[/shoplink] and [shoplink 22693 ebay]Minolta MD/MC (here one Bay)[/shoplink].
[shoplink 18694 ebay]Contax C/Y (here one Bay)[/shoplink].
[shoplink 18695 ebay]M42 (here one Bay)[/shoplink].
[shoplink 18696 ebay]Canon FD (out of stock out) (here one Bay)[/shoplink].
[shoplink 18697 ebay]Nikon Ai-s (out of stock out) (here one Bay)[/shoplink].
Leica R will be released on 1st or 2nd week of July. Save this search in Slidoo to get notified when there will be an auction.

Mitakon M42 Lens Turbo Adapter + Helios 44-2 Lens Test Video on the NEX-6.

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An article worth to read has been posted at The.me (Click here). There are some interestings info. For example:

In May, the average price of Sony’s compact digital cameras rose up 15% from the same month last year. The prices of products from other camera makers fell slightly over the same period. Sony camera prices were, on average, 6,000 yen ($60) more than those of other companies in May.
The electronics maker estimates that sales of high-end compact digital cameras equipped with large image sensors will rise 1.5 times in 2013 compared with the previous year.

Yes, Sony RX series is yet unmatched by other companies. And it’s a success that could help to raise the “image” of the full Alpha camera line!

More Sony news:
Sony extends range of PlayMemories Camera Apps™ with the addition of Portrait Lighting (Sony).
Update to Sony RX100 II Samples Gallery at Dpreview.
More new RX100MII sample photos at ePhotozine.
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX10V Review at Photographyblog.
RX100 image samples by Joshsouzaphotos.
“What’s in the Bag” (NEX-6 gear in Turkey) at Blogarithms

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If you are waiting to get your superb Sigma f/1.8 zoom than we have some good news. In a couple of weeks the lens will ship to your homes. In USA it will ship on July 31 at BHphoto (Click here). Also in Europe a couple of stores set “August” as shipping month (Example: Camertools.nl).

Reminder:
You  save $200 on the NEX-7 with Zeiss lens kit at Amazon US (Click here).
Up to $200 off on Sigma A-mount lenses at Amazon (Click here).
P.S.: All other Sony deals on DealsRunner.com.

Sometimes patents discloses quite weird things. Egami spotted that double new sensor design with hexagonal and triangle pixel design. The aim of the design is to increase the color fidelity by using a RGBCMY instead of the classic RGB pixel design. I doubt this kind of sensor design will ever make it into a real camera…

Zeiss officially dropped the “Carl” from their lenses. This is both, an insignificant but also historical news for a company that used the “Carl Zeiss” mark for a century. On Zeiss Blog you can find the explanation why they did it:

“ZEISS is now taking this development into account in its decision to create consistency across its brand communications.”

All future lenses will have the “Zeiss” mark. Now let’s hope we can see these new A and E-mount Zeiss lenses soon! :)

Zeiss Touit links:
32mm f/1.8 at BHphoto, Adorama and Uniquephoto. In Europe at [shoplink 18498 ebay]CameraCenter UK[/shoplink] and FotoMundus.
12mm f/2.8 at BHphoto, Adorama and Uniquephoto. In Europe at [shoplink 18497 ebay]CameraCenter UK[/shoplink] and FotoMundus.