The latest article at Bloomberg (Click here) about tha japanese digital camera market shares describes an ongoing and somewhat unexpected revolution. According to Bloomberg: “the world’s two biggest makers of high-end cameras (Cnaon and Nikon), may be missing out on the industry’s biggest technology shift since film rolls became obsolete. The two Tokyo-based companies use mirrors in all cameras with interchangeable lenses, a technique Sony Corp. is shifting away from. As a result, Canon and Nikon’s combined share of the Japanese market has fallen by 35 percent, while Sony’s share has doubled, according to estimates at research firm BCN Inc.”

Ryosuke Katsura (Mizuho Securities Equity Research analyst) wrote last year that the mirrorless technology: “may be the biggest “paradigm shift” in the SLR industry in six decades”

In general those are the interesting news for Sony (and generally about  camers):
– Sony’s share in the worldwide SLR market rised to about 15 percent in the year ended March 31 from 10 percent a year earlier.
– Mirrorless cameras accounted for 40.5 percent of SLR sales in July (in Japan), surging from 5 percent in early 2009, according to BCN.
– Globally, sales of mirrorless cameras surged fivefold to 2.1 million units in 2010, and their share of the overall SLR market may climb to 23 percent in 2011 from 16 percent, according to Macquarie Group Ltd. estimates last month.

My take on that: It is interesting to see that Sony is pushing the A77 with a lot of Marketing, but the most preordered cameras in USA are the NEX-7 and NEX-5n. Those are the only cameras that are constantly in the top 20 of the Amazon sales (Click here to see the rankings). I know from talks with my sources that Sony didn’t expect such a huge success for their NEX system. And I cannot imagine how much money they would make now if they would be fast enough to make decent NEX lenses! Hurry up Sony, we need pancakes, more Zeiss lenses, fast lenses and some video optimized lens! I am sure Canon will soon announce a strong mirrorless system and Sony have to be aware of that. At the moment things look good for Sony, but it’s time to “believe” in the NEX system and put a lot of effort into products development!
P.S.: If you ask me, Nikon’s mirrorless system will not be a serious NEX competitor (it uses a to small 2,7x crop sensor).

NEX Preorders (Click on the shop name and you will be directly land on the product page!):
NEX-5n:
Sonystore US, Amazon US, Adorama, Sonystore Canada, SonyStore DE, SonyStore FR, SonyStore IT, Amazon DE, Amazon UK, Digitalrev and [shoplink 8452 ebay]eBay[/shoplink].
NEX-7 body only:
Sonystore US, Amazon US, Adorama, Sonystore Canada and in Europe at Jessops and Computeruniverse.
NEX-7 with 18-55mm kit lens:
Sonystore US, Amazon US, Adorama, Sonystore Canada and in Europe at Jessops.
Zeiss 24mm f/1.8:
Sonystore US, Amazon US, Adorama, Sonystore Canada.
50mm f/1.8:
Sonystore US, Adorama.

At Nikkei.jp (Click here) Sony gave some hints about the new OLED viewfinder used for the new Sony A77/65 and NEX-7: “The OLED panel employed for the EVF has a screen size of 0.5 inches and a pixel count of about 2.4 million (1,024 x RGB x 768). The size of its sub-pixel is 3.3 x 9.9μm. Compared with the LCD panel used for the EVF of the “α55,” Sony’s former product, the contrast ratio of the OLED panel is about 10 times higher, the company said. Sony realized the color display by combining white organic light-emitting diodes (WOLEDs) and red, green and blue color filters. With a small molecular WOLED material, the company formed OLED elements by using an evaporation method. As a result, compared with the method in which red, green and blue OLED elements are formed, the resolution of the panel was enhanced. Sony formed driver elements, D-A converter, timing controller, etc on a silicon (Si) substrate. The panel is produced in volume at the Higashiura Office (Aichi Prefecture, Japan) of Sony Mobile Display Corp, which is Sony’s subsidiary.”

One of my sources told me weeks ago that the EVF is made by Samsung. Now, the press release says the exact opposite but fast is that the sources always gave me correct info. A second trusted source told me that there is a “secret” Sony-Samsung agreement to develop together some of the “mirrorless” technologies to be able to cut the costs which will allow them to fight against the Canon-Nikon dominance. According to the source nor Sony neither Samsung can unveil the content of the agreement and everybody can claim that the technology is made in house. As usual take the rumors with a grain of salt. All I can say here is that those are good sources.

I confess, I couldn’t resist and I didn’t manage to wait for the NEX-7. I just bought the NEX-5n. Why should that be a sin? Because I wanted the NEX-7, and I still want it! But I couldn’t resist to try out the superb NEX-5n.  So I may will end this year with two NEX cameras in my hands. I need some excuse to justify that in front of my girlfriend. Suggestions are appreciated :)

Something curious about the Sony store: 30minutes after having it purchased at the European Sony online store they (Sony) called me to confirm if the address where correct. I said yes and they told me they will now(!) ship the camera. Cool! That’s a service!

I don’t like the current NEX lenses, I don’t need zooms and the only pancake (the [shoplink 2998]16mm f/2.8[/shoplink]) is not as fast as I need. That’s why I bought a [shoplink 7984 ebay]Leica M to NEX adapter[/shoplink] to use my [shoplink 8725 ebay]Nokton 35mm f/1.4[/shoplink]. I still don’t know if I will buy the external viewfinder which is very expensive here in Europe. I am not going to write a technical review, but I will try to make some real world comparisons with other mirrorless cameras. And I will use the cam for my next documentary work of a dying city in Belgium (I will be there from September 16 to 25). Anyway, I confess, the NEX-7 is still on my dream list. Cannot wait to see the first reviews of that camera soon!

The NEX-5n is available at (Click on store names):
USA&Canada: Amazon (in Stock!), Sonystore US (in Stock!), Sonystore Canada (in Stock!) and [shoplink 8452 ebay]eBay (in Stock!)[/shoplink].
Europe: SonyStore DE (in Stock), SonyStore FR (in Stock), SonyStore IT (in Stock), Amazon DE (preorder), Amazon UK (preorder) and [shoplink 8452 ebay]eBay (in Stock!)[/shoplink].
Asia: Digitalrev (in Stock), [shoplink 8452 ebay]eBay (in Stock!)[/shoplink].

All other camera preorder links:
Sony NEX-7 body only at Amazon, Adorama, Jessops UK and Sonystore.
Sony NEX-7 with 18-55mm lens at Amazon, BHphoto (notification only) and Sonystore.
Zeiss 24mm f/1.8 E-mount at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto (notification only) and Sonystore.
Sony A77 with 16-50mm lens at Amazon, Adorama, Jessops UK and Sonystore.
Sony A77 body only at Amazon, Adorama, Jessops UK and Sonystore.
Sony A65 with 18-55mm lens at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto (notification only), Jessops UK and Sonystore.
Sony A65 body only at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto (notification only), Jessops UK and Sonystore.
Sony 50mm f/1.8 at BHphoto (notification only), Adorama and Sonystore.
Sony 55-210mm E-mount at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto (notification only) and Sonystore.

Dear readers!

Yasuyuki Nagata (Sony Imaging Division Deputy Senior General Manager) said that Sony is “seriously considering a professional-level SLT camera“, however, “the company will listen to what its customers demand” before it can reveal its next step (Source Techradar). And now it’s time to collect your ideas about the next fullframe camera features. Please comment this post to suggest your features/idea list. After a couple of days I will write a poll adding all your options.

I will show you an example by disclosing my idea/features list for the next FF cameras:
– FF NEX (I want that!)
– removable sensor (to have the freedom to use different sensors like it works for [shoplink 8776 ebay]medium format digital backs[/shoplink]).
– Capability to move up the semitransparent mirror to avoid the small light loss.
– APP store for Sony cameras. let users create applications for Sony cameras (See the amazing list of iPhone-iPad applications!)
– B&W sensor with extremely high dynamic range.
– Hybrid viewfinder system a la [shoplink 8775 ebay]Contax G2 (Click here to see tha camera)[/shoplink]. The Contax viewfinder zooms as you change lenses! By the way, Contax is from Zeiss :)

Your idea matters! Let’s start!!!

P.S.: Please do not suggest lenses for now. I will write a new post soon to ask you for you fullframe lens suggestions.

This is not an Alpha camera news but it’s nice to hear what Sony releases for the professional market. It gives you an idea of where the technology is going. Sony just announced that the new Cine Alta F65 will be launched in January 2012. Let’s look at the terrific specs. It has a 8K CMOS sensor that shoots 4K2K video. Now what really makes me crazy is that it has a 16-bit Linear RAW File output capability!!! RAW video recording is something that I would love ot see on professional fullframe SLT cameras! Below you can read the full press release. One more thing, the F65 costs $65,000 USD.

PRESS RELEASE:

Sony announces a monstrous Cine Alta camera

Sony Electronics officially raised the curtain on its F65 CineAlta™ digital motion picture camera system, ushering in a new era of digital cinematography. Before a select audience of American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) members, press and high-profile industry professionals, Sony screened new F65 footage shot by leading DPs, demonstrated new features and announced its roll-out plan for the revolutionary camera, including availability and a surprisingly accessible price of just $65,000 (with viewfinder).

Announced here only days before the F65 will be shown to a worldwide audience at the IBC conference in Amsterdam, the new camera clearly signals Sony’s commitment to the Hollywood community and to developing the production technologies content creators need.
The F65 derives true 4K resolution – and beyond – at the point of image capture. “4K” resolution is 4096 x 2160, which is more than four times greater than the full HD (1920×1080) spec. Its unique 8K image sensor, with approximately 20 total megapixels, offers higher image fidelity than any other digital cinema production camera. With 16-bit Linear RAW File output capability, the F65 creates the gateway to an end-to-end 4K file-based mastering workflow.
“This is the camera Hollywood has asked for, designed specifically for filmmakers,” said Alec Shapiro, senior vice president of Sony’s Professional Solutions of America group. “The ability to shoot content in true native 4K resolution lets filmmakers capture more of what they’re seeing through the lens to fully realize their vision. The F65′s incredible imager captures more data, which translates to more information that can be put up on the screen. And access to an open and inclusive platform enables the integration of an F65 file-based workflow into other systems, creating truly exciting, and limitless, production opportunities.”