The Amazing Sony A1/A7/A9/APS-C & Anything else welcome Mega Thread!

Masked Bandit said:
I've been looking at the reviews of the A7r ii, after discounting a Leica M because of price/performance reviews. I keep coming across "lossy raw files" Can someone kindly explain what is meant in simple terms, and weather it really matters in the real world.

Thanks...Philip
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Sony drop a couple of bits from the raw files possibly to speed up throughput. Some commentators make a big thing of this and produce evidence some of which is arguably of little worry in the real world, for example they bost the exposure by 5 stops and examine the files at 200%.

There's a review at Luminous Landscape here where they touch on it in the write up and in the little vid...

https://luminous-landscape.com/sony-a7rii-review-and-hands-on-report/

Steve Huff also includes this in his review here...

http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2015/08/31/the-sony-a7rii-camera-review-a-real-world-look/

Neither of these reviewers think the lossy raw issue is much of a real world issue.

I've never worried about this issue with my A7 and it wouldn't put me off buying another A7 series camera. A top Sony guy (I forget who he was...) said in an interview that they're aware of the issue and are looking at it, there's some talk of a possible firmware update but we'll have to wait and see. Personally I think the lossy raw issue is a pixel peeper issue and will possibly rarely if ever be a real world issue. Just my opinion.
 
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Good info Alan. I'm now into about 10k photos with A7 cameras and I've never spotted an issue. That being said, I'd still prefer to have the option of lossless compression but not having it doesn't put me off Sony cameras.
 
At least if Sony do add the ability to save non lossy raws the detractors will have to move on to another topic.

I had my first few hours away for the first time since I got back from holiday on 19th August and as luck would have it there was complete cloud cover and the light was completely flat. I did consider just giving up and not taking any pictures but I ended up shooting just for something to do. Time away to myself and good light seem to coincide very infrequently :(




The 35mm f2.8 continues to impress me :D
 
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woof woof said:
That write up and the one linked in the article have been widely criticised and pulled apart on the net.

I suppose these represent one view and the ones I linked represent the other and with all these things I suppose it's best to gather info, take a pinch of salt with some of it and then make your own mind up.
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OR just go out and shoot like i did
luxembourg trip-474.jpg by Jonathan Richards, on Flickr

luxembourg trip-364.jpg by Jonathan Richards, on Flickr

see no raw compression issues.
 
jonneymendoza said:
OR just go out and shoot like i did...

see no raw compression issues.
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Not that I know what I'm looking for... but I've not seen anything in my A7 files that have made me go "Oh Er..."

I do push files but I don't remember ever pushing them 5 stops and I do pixel peep but usually only to between 100 and 200%. I occasionally crop to 100 or more too and my pictures may have compression artefacts but I've never recognised anything as such and no one who's seen my pictures has ever pointed them out.

I do hope that Sony introduce lossless raws if for no other reason than we can then talk about something else but I suspect that if lossless raws come it'll lead to other debates... "we don't like the implementation," "these lossless raws make the camera too slow..."

It'll never end.
 
Pictures from a depressingly miserable day.







I got better pictures today with my phone. Didn't someone once say there's no such thing as bad light? For me there is.
 
woof woof said:
That write up and the one linked in the article have been widely criticised and pulled apart on the net.

I suppose these represent one view and the ones I linked represent the other and with all these things I suppose it's best to gather info, take a pinch of salt with some of it and then make your own mind up.
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Totally agree.
 
woof woof said:
Sony drop a couple of bits from the raw files possibly to speed up throughput. Some commentators make a big thing of this and produce evidence some of which is arguably of little worry in the real world, for example they bost the exposure by 5 stops and examine the files at 200%.

There's a review at Luminous Landscape here where they touch on it in the write up and in the little vid...

https://luminous-landscape.com/sony-a7rii-review-and-hands-on-report/

Steve Huff also includes this in his review here...

http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2015/08/31/the-sony-a7rii-camera-review-a-real-world-look/

Neither of these reviewers think the lossy raw issue is much of a real world issue.

I've never worried about this issue with my A7 and it wouldn't put me off buying another A7 series camera. A top Sony guy (I forget who he was...) said in an interview that they're aware of the issue and are looking at it, there's some talk of a possible firmware update but we'll have to wait and see. Personally I think the lossy raw issue is a pixel peeper issue and will possibly rarely if ever be a real world issue. Just my opinion.
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Thanks for the information, and you hands on opinion, Alan.
 
So, the A7SII is announced.

Looks to be the perfect camera for anyone into video or low light. All the new benefits of the A7RII with an updated version of the A7S sensor, and a ton of new video features on top of that.
 
Right yeah, seems no BSI or all those on chip PDAF points so only real benefit over the original is the IBIS. Wonder what the price is?
 
New in.... Sony announce the Sony A7S II.

Key features.....
  • Ultra-high sensitivity up to 409600i with low noise across the whole range
  • Wide dynamic range across entire ISO range delivering smooth tonal gradation from dark to bright conditions
  • In-camera 5-axis optical image stabilisation for expanded shooting possibilities
  • Internal 4K movie recording featuring full pixel readout without pixel binning in full-frame format
  • Wide range of professional movie functionality including S-Gamut3.Cine/S-Log3, new Gamma Assist Display, enhanced Zebra Function, Full HD 120fps recording and 4x/5x slow motion recording and full pixel readout without pixel binning in full-frame format
  • High-speed AF with enhanced accuracy in wide ranging scenes and advanced shooting functions
Full Press Release here.....

http://presscentre.sony.eu/pressrel...-launch-of-the-ultra-sensitive-a7s-ii-1216386


Lets hope Sony announce the A6100/A7000 body along with the 6-7 new FE lenses. :)

 
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That's nice but no new lenses yet? I thought they were supposed to be announcing some?

Oh well...

PS.

JYC said:
Right yeah, seems no BSI or all those on chip PDAF points so only real benefit over the original is the IBIS. Wonder what the price is?
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I thought they'd have kept the pressure on the competition and included the goodies from the rII? After the rII this seems a bit... mean :D
 
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JYC said:
Right yeah, seems no BSI or all those on chip PDAF points so only real benefit over the original is the IBIS. Wonder what the price is?
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Well, that plus internal 4K, S-Log3, improved AF system, a lot of the A7RII improvements such as the viewfinder, and a whole load of video-specific software improvements.

Price sounds like it will be in line with the A7RII, or slightly above.
 
Crossroads said:
Well, that plus internal 4K, S-Log3, improved AF system, a lot of the A7RII improvements such as the viewfinder, and a whole load of video-specific software improvements.

Price sounds like it will be in line with the A7RII, or slightly above.
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Video! Sacrilege :D

Not sure how improved the AF will be given the lack of on sensor PDAF points compared to the Rii
 
chrism_scotland said:
A7rii in stock at WEX...
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Yes, it's starting to be reliably in stock in a few places, and a couple of Koreans on ebay selling for about £1900. Admittedly you'd have to pay tax and customs on that, but it's hopefully a sign that the grey market prices will be heading south soon.

I'll probably jump in when I can pick one up for £2k which we'll probably start to see by November.
 
I read a review of the 55mm f1.8 on the rII on Ken Rockwell's site (proceed with caution...) :D

http://www.kenrockwell.com/sony/zeiss/55mm-f18.htm

The bit that caught my eye was the shot of the watch and the 6 foot file. That really is fantastic resolution.

He's now posted a review of the 35mm f2.8. He seems to like both lenses.
 
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Crossroads said:
Yes, it's starting to be reliably in stock in a few places, and a couple of Koreans on ebay selling for about £1900. Admittedly you'd have to pay tax and customs on that, but it's hopefully a sign that the grey market prices will be heading south soon.

I'll probably jump in when I can pick one up for £2k which we'll probably start to see by November.
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When first announced I had in my mind that this will probably be around 2k by Xmas (grey). Going to keep hold on my 55 Zeiss for when the day comes that I can get the a7rii.
 
Hmmm... A7Rii is £2,599 at Wex. Pentax 645D is £2,995 with 55mm lens. I'm tempted to give Pentax a bash. With any luck Twist will be along in a mo to talk me out of it.
 
paulcamcas said:
Hmmm... A7Rii is £2,599 at Wex. Pentax 645D is £2,995 with 55mm lens. I'm tempted to give Pentax a bash. With any luck Twist will be along in a mo to talk me out of it.
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If it were my money Id go for the A7rii, if it were the 645Z then Id say go go go!!!
 
A7r2 is just amazing plus I got amused when reading the Canon watch rumour site. Nearly every article takes a sly remark on Sony
 
twist said:
If it were my money Id go for the A7rii, if it were the 645Z then Id say go go go!!!
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Can't afford the 645Z so it's a no no no! So far the A7Rii isn't tempting me away from my A7R but the 645D's CCD sensor has its attractions.
 
paulcamcas said:
Thanks for that. I did come across it while idly searching and it (a) reassured me that the money spent on the A7R wasn't wasted and (b) made me want a 645D.
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I suppose if you use the A7r at low iso with MF the 645D may not be such a bad thing after all :sneaky:
 
There are two lenses that could temp me, reasonably priced and compact 85mm and 35mm f1.8.

Other than that I think I'm happy enough.
 
daugirdas said:
The last reason not to buy a camera is the lack of popup flash. They actually do you a favour, because all on camera light does is wrecking the shots. If the light sucks, use a proper flash (bounce or use off camera) or change the composition. /rant

.....

Anyway - the real message here is the new system, new direction. You could guess A-mount is replaced with this. That is the biggest news here.
This will be the first and perhaps flawed attempt. Look at first NEX and at first MS Surface. But they got a lot better. Even the lenses don't appeal to me yet. f/1.4 primes and 24-70/2.8 would be the first ones to release, and they put in 3.5-5.6 fail
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I use a Fujifilm X100 and Nikon D700 extensively. I rarely use the built-in flash, but when I do it enhances rather than detracts from the scene and end result. The lack of a built-in flash is one of the reasons stopping me buying an A7* or Olympus EM1/EM5. In case of the Oly, I'll probably more likely to consider the EM10mk2, which does have a flash.
 
woof woof said:
It's possibly a little on the larger size and a little on the expensive side too. I'm sure it's a nice lens though.
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You may struggle to get such quality optics much smaller. And I don't think this is a system that going to dish out cheap native glass too often.
 
addicknchips said:
You may struggle to get such quality optics much smaller. And I don't think this is a system that going to dish out cheap native glass too often.
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Indeed, Sony do largrly seem to be aiming for the higher end but having said that the 35mm f2.8 and 55mm f1.8 I own are reasonably priced as is the 28mm which tempts me a little. The Batis may well be a very good lens but as I've said many times on this issue personally I don't need lenses which are aiming at being amongst the best mass market lenses on sale and I'd possibly accept good lenses rather than very good and amongst the best ever lenses. But, the 35mm f2.8 and 55mm f1.8 aren't exactly poor lenses are they? And they're around the £500 mark.

I don't tbink it's impossible that we'll see an 85mm at about the £500 or so mark, it could happen.
 
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