ZM 50mm versus NEX 50mm by Björn Utpott.

[shoplink 10220 ebay][/shoplink]

Our reader Björn Utpott just sent me the link to his latest 50mm lens comparison (Click here to read it). The big question is: Is the new [shoplink 8448]50mm lens[/shoplink] for NEX better than the “older” [shoplink 10220 ebay]Zeiss ZM 50mm f/1.4[/shoplink] lens? The answer is pretty easy, the lenses have been designed for completely different kind if use. The Sonnar ZM has a more old creamy look with sharp center and less sharper borders. The new Sony 50mm is sharp through all the frame.


Sony 50mm f/1.8 for NEX at [shoplist 8448].
Zeiss ZM Sonnar f/1.5 links at [shopcountry 10220]
M to NEX mount adapter on [shoplink 8850 ebay]eBay[/shoplink]

Full 50mm f/1.8 E-mount review by Kurt Munger

While the [shoplink 8450]Zeiss 24mm f/1.8[/shoplink] is certainly the highest quality lens for the NEX system the 50mm f/1.8 is the real must have lens if you want a good and fast lens for less than a thirds of the price you pay for the Zeiss. And to see how good the lens is switch over to Kurt Munger (Click here) that just posted the full 50mm review.

If you are on the waiting list than you might be happy to know that first stores are already shipping the lens and most will do so within the next 2-3 weeks. Here is my usual full preorder list I check to see what’s going on with Sony stuff. Click on the shop name to see if they have the 50mm lens:
[shoplist 8448]

Sony A57 hands-on and preorder roundup.

Image courtesy Quesabesde

Quesabesde (Click here to read the google english translation) wrote a new Sony A57 hands-on. And David K. from Photoclubalpha (Click here) shared his thoughts about the A57: “Everyone has been saying – we’d love an A77 or even an A65 with the 16 megapixel sensor. Or we’d love an A55 upgraded with the better viewfinder. So what do Sony deliver? Neither…“. And a first impression post has been written at Photocomment (Click here).

On SonyAlphaRumors 51% of the readers like the new A57 while other 25% said they cannot judge yet and the rest said that they didn’t like the camera at all (Click here to see the full A57 news coverage and the poll at the bottom of that post).

If you think you need that camera here are some USA preorder links:
A57 Body Only: Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), SonyStoreUSA (Click here), BHphoto (Click here).
A57+18-55mm lens: Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), SonyStoreUSA (Click here), BHphoto (Click here).

 

(SR4) NEX-7 firmware udpate is on his way (NEX-7 EVF better than the X PRO 1 hybrid VF)

Image courtesy: Andrew Reid.

NEX-7 firmware
A trusted sources just told me that after the NX100 and A77 firmware also the new NEX-7 firmware upgrade is almost ready to be released. He didn’t share any details yet but I hope to get them soon. I hope Sony did read the NEX-7 firmware suggestion list from Björn Utpott (Click here). If only half of them would really be fulfilled I would be extremely happy!

Electronic versus Hybrid viewfinder
And while the DSLR versus SLT debate is still ongoing on SAR but also on many other forums you might read the following article written by Andrew Reid (Click here). He is right now testing the Fuji X PRO 1 and his sentences are quite radically in favour of the main competitor, the Sony NEX-7: “In my opinion, the optical viewfinder is superseded by the OLED EVF and no amount of hybrid niceness can save it. 5 years ago, it was preferable to have an optical viewfinder because EVFs were rubbish. Now, it is the opposite. The hybrid viewfinder in the X-Pro 1 is barely any different from the X100 and doesn’t particularly suit the interchangeable lens format it is now paired with. The larger lenses get in the way for a start, as does your hand.

NEX-7 terrific sales:
The NEX-7 body is in Stock at Amazon US (Click here). And even if you have to pay a $100 extra for it the camera sells like hotcakes! It is on top of the Amazon US mirrorless ranking (Click here). And it is also on top at Amazon UK (Click here) and on second place at Amazon Deutschland (Click here) and Amazon France (Click here).

This could soon become the most sold camera of Sony’s history!
Check more order options at [shopcountry 8454] (Those are search links! Sometimes stores sold out or do not list the camera anymore).

 

50mm and 30mm for NEX tested at Photozone!


Image courtesy: Photozone.

Klaus from Photozone just posted two new NEX lens reviews. This is actually the first time he is posting tests made on his new [shoplink 8454]Sony NEX-7[/shoplink]. This is going to be interesting to read because he is struggling with the corner issues of the 24 Megapixel sensor. Let’s start:

1) Sony 30mm f/3.5 macro lens (Click here to read the review)
The performance of that lens on the NEX-7 is disappointing: “The Sony E 30mm f/3.5 macro lens delivered a rather disappointing performance on the Sony NEX 7. The center image quality is absolutely great but the border- and especially corner-quality is sub-standard. The rather high amount of lateral CAs isn’t helpful either.” I hope Klaus can soon do the same test on the [shoplink 8452]Sony NEX-5n[/shoplink] to see if the poor corner quality depends from the 24 Megapixel sensor of the NEX-7 or not!

2) Sony 50mm f/1.8 lens (Click here to read the review)
In that case Klaus is much more satisfied with the lens performance. A part of the not so good corner performance (which doesn’t matter a lot for a portrait lens) he says: “The image quality is very impressive if you stop down to f/4-f/8 where the lens is almost capable of exploiting the potential of the 24 megapixel Sony sensor.” But this is a protrait lens and the real point that matters is the bokeh quality. And hee is were the lens shines: “A real highlight of the Sony lens is the quality of the bokeh which is among the very best that we’ve seen in this class so far.”

Again Thanks Klaus for making these detailed reviews!

The real “issue” of the 50mm lens is his non-availability. You can find some of them on [shoplink 8448 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink] but not in “normal” Sony or other known stores. You can only preorder them at:
[shoplist 8448]

(UPDATED) New Sony NEX-7 reviews and corner issues discussions.

The video on top shows the NEX-7 on the [shoplink 11747 ebay]Vivicam Slider (available here on eBay)[/shoplink].

There is a new full NEX-7 review at ePhotozine (Click here) and of course it gets Highly Recommended. But no camera is 100% perfect and Klaus from Photozone says there are some corner issues on the NEX-7. Links:
http://forum.photozone.de/index.php?/topic/1904-sony-nex-7/
http://forum.photozone.de/index.php?/topic/1992-sony-nex-7-2nd-sample-results/
http://forum.photozone.de/index.php?/topic/2009-nex-7-vs-nex-5/
I know Klaus very well and I know he absolutely likes the Sony NEX system. The NEX-7 corner issue doesn’t change the fact that the NEX-7 is a damn good camera. Just like any camera be aware of the limitations!

UDPATE: There is one more hands-on review at SonyAlphaLab (Click here).

Another reader sent me this: “Still waiting for my NEX 7, but in the meantime my Hawk’s Factory Close Focus Leica M – Sony E adapter arrived.  Lets you mount Leica M lenses, just like any other adapter, but it also has a focusing helicoid built in to let you focus 50-80% closer than usual with any M lens.  Here’s my review, though you might be interested as it’s exclusively a Sony E mount product right now: http://jbhildebrand.com/2012/gear/hawks-factory-close-focus-adapter-review/“.
The in Stock status of the NEX-7 is changing every day. So feel free to use these linsk to check if and where it is in Stock: [shoplist 8454]

New NEX-7 review by Kurt Munger. Great A77 pics in Mongolia!


Today I am happy to link to articles and reviews of three of the friends I met through the work on SAR.

1) Remy shot his very first fine-art work with the A77 in Mongolia. Here are three links where you can check out his work (same fotos just different websites): Fubiz.netFstoppers.com and Behance.net. Great portraits!!!

2) It’s always a pleasure to link to a new Sony review from Kurt Munger. And today it’s even more interesting to check his website because of his final NEX-7 review (Click here to read it).

3) My friend Mike Kobal (Click here) is shooting model stuff with the NEX-7. He will post one model NEX-7 video per month :)

Especially the great pictures of Maxime makes me remind that I have to post more of such stuff on SAR. We should know what pros can do with our cameras! So if you find some wort to mention work please feel free to send me a message and I will post it here!

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Search links to the two cameras:
Sony A77 [shopcountry 8461].
Sony NEX-7 [shopcountry 8454].