Sony Joined the ranks

olli

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Guangzhou
Name
olli
Having more or less abandoned the idea of acquiring more photographic equipment this Christmas I happened to be passing through Heathrow a few of days ago with four hours to kill. So naturally I stopped off at Dixon's to play with the NEX5. Yesterday I was back at Heathrow making the return journey and called in again. In the four days between my two visits the price had dropped from £440 to £388. (That works out at around $605 compared to the US price of $699.)

How could I resist?

The battery is charged, the new firmware is loaded, my custom functions are assigned and I'm ready to hit the town tomorrow. If I manage to take anything decent I'll post it here.
 
Uh oh!;) Congratulations, olli! Our NEX ranks are definitely beginning to swell here.:2thumbs: Can't wait to see your pictures. Now what sort of lenses do you have at your fingertips?
 
Oh, good news Olli. I haven't even updated my firmware and here you are, already set up and good to go! Which kit lens did you get, the 18-55? I recently acquired the other kit lens, the 16mm for £99 and have found it to be a whole lot better than I thought. I must admit that the real joy is in being able to use all kinds of third party lenses though!
 
prices and spec of these "compact mirror-less cams" are increasing

what is needed is a FF sensor cam with focus confirm and a good EVF, plus good metering options, high ISO performance and the "richness of the Nikon DSLR menus" PLUS a Leica M mount fitting

= £1,000 for the body that takes Leica, Zeiss, CV and other RF glass - it would sell hot cakes
 
Thanks all. Been playing around with it over the last couple of days getting it set up to my liking and learning where everything is and what everything does though I haven't actually managed to take a postable picture yet.

I got it with the 18-55 lens. I decided to skip the 16 in anticipation of the promised wide angle Zeiss.
 
Am still fiddling around with my new NEX 5 I had planned to take some pics on new years day but the weather was so bad grey wet and just downright horrible I didn't go to the beach; however did take a kinky one in house the next day see next picture.
 
Is that all there is!

5323186729_e46ae53ffe_z.jpg


Yes it is supposed to look lopsided; my friend and I had just celebrated new year; a day late owing to us both being out on New Years day.
 
Olli, very pleased to see you are happy with the NEX. I have neglected the NEX for the past few week while I learned about my latest purchase, Sony A33, which I love for its IBIS and lens selection. I was going to sell my NEX-3 but I just picked it up today and marvel at how much I still like it. For the first time in my life, I will be a multiple camera owner .. just don't tell my wife as I was supposed to sell it to fund the A33 :)
 
I understand. Somehow by accident I've joined the ranks of the multiple camera owners - A200, NEX5 and LX3. Though if Sony expand the NEX system over the next twelve months (and provide a wireless flash capability for NEX with alpha flashes) I might abandon the DSLR entirely. That is until Sony bring out their all singing all dancing A900 replacement at which point I will I hope have won the lottery since it's the only way I'll be able to afford it.

Just remembered I still have the Canon A520 in a box somewhere though the lens cover needs a bit of assistance now following two years of exposure to the dust and dirt of Tirana.
 
I have been looking at the Nex 5 for quite a while as i like the idea of a APS-C sized sensor but it's the image quality from the supplied lenses that put's me off. I have not used a NEX camera so don't know how good the images would be but looking at Flickr images & images on here it does look very good. The problem is that some reviews shower the NEX with praise regarding the image quality (IQ) and some think the IQ is poor compared to Micro 4/3.

As i am currently going from 2 serious compacts to just 1 I need/want a camera that is pocket able (Coat Pocket) so the 18-55 is out the question but i am prepared to go the 16mm only route. Having the ability to fit old manual focus lenses is a real must too which the Sony can do. hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
 
Andy, I haven't taken many pictures yet but from what I have done I have no problem with the image quality from either the sensor or the lens. 3200 iso is clean and 6400 is useable. I think the comparisons available on DPreview and Imaging Resources would confirm that. I don't have the 16 lens so can't comment on that. I know there has been some debate about it. The 18-55 is fine - not as good as my 17-50 Tamron for the DSLR but I wouldn't expect it to be. In the longer term there will be other options, though pancakes don't seem to feature in Sony's plans for now.
 
The sony a33 (summerkl) is a great cam, my daughter has one. As for the nex (and no offense) I originally picked one up but swaped for a LX5 (LX lovers are wierd anyways). I went for size. Both are great tools to use. Good luck all.

Cheers,
Pete
 
I Have been using the Nex5 since Christmas and am more than happy with this cam: although I do find the S95 so easy to carry in my pocket the photo's in comparison are definitely not as good as the NEX5 18-55mm lens which is not as good as the Lecia X1 nor would I expect it to be.
The Sony is also easier for me to hold because of the nice grip...the main reason I sold the Olly Pen, I had no trouble working out the operating buttons at all once I realised that some only become available when the camera not set to auto (which I rarely use anyway preferring AV.
Considering there wasn't much difference in price between the S95 and the Nex (about £60) the Sony is for me the better camera.
 
Thanks for the replies. I am really looking into this camera and it seems there will be more lenses available this year. The other good thing about the NEX is that i can use my Manual lenses and from what I have seen on the net they really make good use of the APS-C sensor! The images from the 16mm pancake lens to me look better than the 18-55mm ones. It's interesting that you say the images from the NEX are better than the s95. If that is the case then it's well worth a punt!!
 
Andy,

I have been looking hard and thinking of jumping in also. I saw the following on Camera Labs' forums that was posted by the site owner Gordon Laing (it was dated in Sept so it maybe a little dated)...

E-mount system cameras: NEX-5/NEX-3

The growing range of E-mount system cameras, lenses and accessories is on display at Photokina. The compact, beautifully styled NEX-5/NEX-3 feature an APS-C size sensor, allowing photographers to capture DSLR-quality stills and video with the creative freedom of interchangeable lenses. On show are prototypes of seven new E-mount lenses that will be available during 2011 and 2012.

Lenses
• Wide fixed focal length CZ available from 2011
• Telephoto zoom available from 2011
• Macro available from 2011
• Portrait available from 2011
• High performance standard zoom G available from 2012
• Wide zoom available from 2012
• Mid-telephoto available from 2012
 
John, for what it's worth Sony Alpha Rumors is reporting that the 2011 lenses will be a Zeiss 24 1.7, a 30 3.5 macro, a 50 1.8 and a 55-200 4-5.6. Whether this is accurate or not it does seem a reasonable set of possibilities. No rumours of dates though.
 
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