The new Sony A9 - What are your thoughts

[lindsayperezphotography]

So the new Sony A9 has been announced for release jn may and the specs on this thing are crazy.

20fps no black out
Internal 4K
600+ af points
1/32000 shutter speed
5 stop Sensor stabilisation
Dual card slots
Stacked cmos sensors

Just to name a few key specs.

What do you guys think of this, rekom this could be what makes everyone jump ship to their system base. I know nikon need to up their game. Priced at around $4500.

Thoughts? I'd you want to see a full overview and more specs click here



http://lindsayperezphoto.squarespace.com/blog/2017/4/20/sonya9releasedthoughtsandimpressions

 

[johnnypanic]

This could be a game changer. But we'll have to wait, until it's out, before making any real judgements.

One thing is for sure, both Nikon and Canon, need to up their game.

 

[Riz_Guru]

This could be a game changer. But we'll have to wait, until it's out, before making any real judgements.

One thing is for sure, both Nikon and Canon, need to up their game.

I agree, its definitely priced for the professional niche sports market.... easy £8-10k for a basic kit!

 

[Alastair]

What do you guys think of this, rekom this could be what makes everyone jump ship to their system base. I know nikon need to up their game. Priced at around $4500.

It's a Sony. So wait for the mk ii, because you know there will be no firmware upgrades to fix the issues with the first version.

 

[littleted]

like the 400mm more LOL, I would have preferred the A9 to be in an A99II body for more girth but hats off to Sony its just blown the d5 and MK11 away in its speed, id like to see how good the focus is compared to my D500 if its as good or better I'm sold....

 

[woof woof]

It's a Sony. So wait for the mk ii, because you know there will be no firmware upgrades to fix the issues with the first version.

Apart from when they do but don't let the odd once in a while update get in the way of a sweeping generalisation.

 

[stevelmx5]

like the 400mm more LOL, I would have preferred the A9 to be in an A99II body for more girth but hats off to Sony its just blown the d5 and MK11 away in its speed, id like to see how good the focus is compared to my D500 if its as good or better I'm sold....

What is it you think the A9 is going to do that neither of your current high end systems do for your photography?

 

[chris malcolm]

The A9 is an EF mount camera. Before jumping ship I'd wait to see what the next A-mount development is. What has hobbled the development of Sony's A-mount SLT models (their replacement of their DSLR models) is the pellicle mirror which was necessary in order to get DSLR-like high performance AF. The pellicle mirror is an inelegant bodge whose only virtue is that it is less of bodge than the flapping mirror of the DSLR.

The A9 specs suggest that Sony has managed to find a mirrorless AF technology which can surpass the current best AF performance of DSLR AF. If so, then Sony will be able to remove the pellicle mirror from their A-mount cameras. That will release the mirror space for new technology. It would also be a good time to update the A-mount into a backwards compatible B-mount, new electronic connections to allow for such modernisations as electronically controlled aperture.

What new technology could be put in the freed-up mirror space? Sony of course won't tell us. I'm sure they have a number of ideas, but they won't know if they can make them work well enough at an affordable price until they've done some experimental development. My favourite notion is importing tilt-shift technology from the lens into the camera body, i.e. instead of tilting and shifting the lens, tilt and shift the sensor. With the mirror gone there's space to do that, and their new 5-axis image stabilisation has already put a toe in that pool.

You wouldn't want to jump ship to the EF-mount and then four years later find yourself wanting to jump ship again to the new B-mount, would you?

 

[twist]

Wrong body for a sports camera.

 

[Tobers]

Wrong body for a sports camera.

More like wrong lenses. I'd be looking for a 400 2.8 and/or a constant aperture 200-400 f4 zoom like the Canon one (even better with a built in extender).

I can see sports shooters preferring the more intuitive layout and buttons of the 1D and D5 to the fiddly and horrible Sony buttons and menus too. Plus the jury is out on weatherproofing of Sony Axx bodies so it will be interesting to see how this one fares.

 

[littleted]

What is it you think the A9 is going to do that neither of your current high end systems do for your photography?

nothing to be honest but I moved to Nikon for sport for the exact reason my A7Rii wants fast enough, but now this comes, it would if anything make me concentrate on one eco system, rather than Nikon for Sport Sony for Landscapes.

 

[lindsayperezphotography]

like the 400mm more LOL, I would have preferred the A9 to be in an A99II body for more girth but hats off to Sony its just blown the d5 and MK11 away in its speed, id like to see how good the focus is compared to my D500 if its as good or better I'm sold....

Well song have crushed the AF in past and it only seem to be getting better this year so I'm looking forward to seeing it's speed

 

[littleted]

Well song have crushed the AF in past and it only seem to be getting better this year so I'm looking forward to seeing it's speed

yeah agreed, my A7rii is no slouch.

 

[odd jim]

The A9 is an EF mount camera. Before jumping ship I'd wait to see what the next A-mount development is. What has hobbled the development of Sony's A-mount SLT models (their replacement of their DSLR models) is the pellicle mirror which was necessary in order to get DSLR-like high performance AF. The pellicle mirror is an inelegant bodge whose only virtue is that it is less of bodge than the flapping mirror of the DSLR.

The A9 specs suggest that Sony has managed to find a mirrorless AF technology which can surpass the current best AF performance of DSLR AF. If so, then Sony will be able to remove the pellicle mirror from their A-mount cameras. That will release the mirror space for new technology. It would also be a good time to update the A-mount into a backwards compatible B-mount, new electronic connections to allow for such modernisations as electronically controlled aperture.

What new technology could be put in the freed-up mirror space? Sony of course won't tell us. I'm sure they have a number of ideas, but they won't know if they can make them work well enough at an affordable price until they've done some experimental development. My favourite notion is importing tilt-shift technology from the lens into the camera body, i.e. instead of tilting and shifting the lens, tilt and shift the sensor. With the mirror gone there's space to do that, and their new 5-axis image stabilisation has already put a toe in that pool.

You wouldn't want to jump ship to the EF-mount and then four years later find yourself wanting to jump ship again to the new B-mount, would you?

EF mount? It takes Canon lenses?!

 

[lindsayperezphotography]

More like wrong lenses. I'd be looking for a 400 2.8 and/or a constant aperture 200-400 f4 zoom like the Canon one (even better with a built in extender).

I can see sports shooters preferring the more intuitive layout and buttons of the 1D and D5 to the fiddly and horrible Sony buttons and menus too. Plus the jury is out on weatherproofing of Sony Axx bodies so it will be interesting to see how this one fares.

Yes I agree I think a huge problem for Sony and photographers who are considering jumping shoot is thay fact that their lens lineup is Lacking and expensive

 

[stevelmx5]

EF mount? It takes Canon lenses?!

That's a typo, he means FE

 

[lindsayperezphotography]

yeah agreed, my A7rii is no slouch.

Whys the eye auto focus like beacuse they have now improved it with 4D focusing

 

[littleted]

if you use Native lens its fine, if you use an adapted lens its terrible, I just recently bought the 24-70 GM and its spot on now...

 

[odd jim]

That's a typo, he means FE

Oh. No longer excited

 

[lindsayperezphotography]

Jks many of you guys shoot Sony what made you move over. As they have only been bug for the last two years and their a7ii's made a huge impact in pushing them forward in the market

 

[stevelmx5]

Oh. No longer excited

You can still use Canon EF lenses on an A7 with an adaptor but they're still native FE mount.

 

[odd jim]

You can still use Canon EF lenses on an A7 with an adaptor but they're still native FE mount.

Do they AF ok? The FE mount is the main issue with Sony for me.

 

[stevelmx5]

Do they AF ok? The FE mount is the main issue with Sony for me.

I take it you mean the limited lineup of FE mount lenses rather than the mount itself? If you search on the forum there are loads of posts about AF performance with adapted EF lenses. The latest Metabones and Sigma adaptors seem to be getting good reports although none of them are as fast as native or as good in lower light.

 

[odd jim]

I take it you mean the limited lineup of FE mount lenses rather than the mount itself? If you search on the forum there are loads of posts about AF performance with adapted EF lenses. The latest Metabones and Sigma adaptors seem to be getting good reports although none of them are as fast as native or as good in lower light.

Yes the native lenses, they are expensive, heavy (considering they're built for a mirrorless body) and fairly underwhelming, and very limited in their line up.

 

[Riz_Guru]

I have had probably the best Sony setup (at the time) but have it up and moved to Fuji.

Sony A7
Sony A7II
Sony A7RII
Sony A7RII
Sony Grips
Zeiss Batis 25mm f2.0
Zeiss Batis 85mm f1.8
Sony Zeiss 35mm f2.8
Sony Zeiss 55mm f1.8
Sony Zeiss 24-70mm f4
Sony 70-200 G f4
Sony 24-70mm GM f2.8
Sony 70-200mm GM f2.8
Sony 85mm GM f1.4

 

[twist]

More like wrong lenses. I'd be looking for a 400 2.8 and/or a constant aperture 200-400 f4 zoom like the Canon one (even better with a built in extender).

I can see sports shooters preferring the more intuitive layout and buttons of the 1D and D5 to the fiddly and horrible Sony buttons and menus too. Plus the jury is out on weatherproofing of Sony Axx bodies so it will be interesting to see how this one fares.

More like both. Size, ergonomics, build quality, weather proofing etc.

 

[twist]

600 af points isn't really a big deal. It's just a number. There's more to af than amount of points.

 

[ukaskew]

Yes I agree I think a huge problem for Sony and photographers who are considering jumping shoot is thay fact that their lens lineup is Lacking and expensive

That will come with time, the entire system is barely 3 years old. A year ago they never had a 24-70 2.8, 85mm 1.4, 70-200 2.8 or any TCs. They now have all of those.

That's a pretty staggering development rate, even if they do have A mount tech they can draw from.

 

[Kiwi Paul]

That will come with time, the entire system is barely 3 years old. A year ago they never had a 24-70 2.8, 85mm 1.4, 70-200 2.8 or any TCs. They now have all of those.

That's a pretty staggering development rate, even if they do have A mount tech they can draw from.

Yes I remember when m43 came out and everyone was moaning the lack of lenses etc, look at that system now.

 

[lindsayperezphotography]

That will come with time, the entire system is barely 3 years old. A year ago they never had a 24-70 2.8, 85mm 1.4, 70-200 2.8 or any TCs. They now have all of those.

That's a pretty staggering development rate, even if they do have A mount tech they can draw from.

Yeah good point they are developing very quickly

 

[RJ Bradbury]

No real interest in Sony but it's good so see tech developing.

They better of fixed the over heating issues in video mode or people will be p***ed.

693 AF points.. that's nuts. Imagine having to scroll through that lot.

Also time will tell if their bodies will last and take punishment like a DSLR will.

 

[ABTog]

I think the size of body will be good for some professionals who are tired of big bulky 1D and D5 bodies for sports.
To attract those users they will need more long lenses, but they were stuck in the situation of what do you bring out first; pro/sports body or high quality long lenses?
Bringing out the body first gets serious users looking at the Sony brand, then when they release the new lenses over the next year, they'll get more users moving over.
If they brought out the lenses first, they'd be like, "ok, fine a long lens, but where's the body I can use?"
Don't forget that they do have a load of good quality AF lenses already. The G Master ones are meant to be great and you can already get your basics covered with 16-35mm f4, 24-70mm f2.8 and 70-200mm f2.8, plus 35mm f1.4, 50mm f1.4 and 100mm macro.

Lens wise you can also use any of Sigma's Art and Contemporary series lenses with E-mount as Sigma make their own adaptor for their lenses, which probably works better with their lenses.

I did have a couple of Sony Alpha DSLRs before moving to Canon and quite liked them. Their live view AF was much better on the a350 than on the Canon 60D that I moved to.
Now that the E-mount full frame cameras have stepped up the game, it's getting very interesting. I could be tempted.... if the lenses weren't so expensive.

 

[Eloise]

I think the size of body will be good for some professionals who are tired of big bulky 1D and D5 bodies for sports.

Isn't the body size pretty irrelevant once you take lenses into account though?

Bringing out the body first gets serious users looking at the Sony brand, then when they release the new lenses over the next year, they'll get more users moving over.
If they brought out the lenses first, they'd be like, "ok, fine a long lens, but where's the body I can use?"

I do agree they have done it in the right way around.

Don't forget that they do have a load of good quality AF lenses already. The G Master ones are meant to be great and you can already get your basics covered with 16-35mm f4, 24-70mm f2.8 and 70-200mm f2.8, plus 35mm f1.4, 50mm f1.4 and 100mm macro.

I didn't think the 70-200 was considered anything special ... with the likes of the Tamron 70-200 G1 beating it quite comfortably. (I may be wrong in that impression I had got).

Overall its an interesting camera and one that Sony was bound to make sooner rather than later, but no one has yet used it in anger ... how will the promise of the spec* hold up to real world usage? And for professional use in the sports field: what support network will they put in place for professionals ... have you seen what Canon do for the Olympics?

* And looking at the "crazy" specs Linday posted ... what are actually important and what is marketing fluff?

20fps no black out
Internal 4K
600+ af points
1/32000 shutter speed
5 stop Sensor stabilisation
Dual card slots
Stacked cmos sensors

20fps - how many photographers are finding the 12 or 16 fps of the Nikon D5 / Canon 1DX II limiting?
600+ af points - thats just a number ... a lot more to AF ability than a number.
1/32,000 shutter speed - is 1/8,000 limiting?
5 stop stabilisation - maybe with short lenses ... but with long lenses? Sony put OSS in the 100-400 for a reason
Dual card slots - well not really an innovation.
Stacked CMOS sensors ... impressive technology ... but its techno-babble!

Just to demolish a few key specs.

What do you guys think of this, rekom this could be what makes everyone jump ship to their system base. I know nikon need to up their game. Priced at around $4500.

Which will be at least £4,500 GBP so inline with UK "street" prices of the Canon and Nikon so it will remain to see what the street price of the Sony becomes. Of course £1,000 or even £2,000 difference isn't much if you also have to invest in new lenses.

http://lindsayperezphoto.squarespace.com/blog/2017/4/20/sonya9releasedthoughtsandimpressions

Nice bit of click bait there... of course you have the price wrong at the bottom of your "thoughts"; which I think are based purely on "fan boy" talking up of a camera very few people have actually seen/used and none used outside of a controlled environment. Essentially what I'm saying is that its a nice sounding camera, but how it feels like to use and the support around the camera is much more important than the actual camera and the technology. The domination of Canon in the sports arena isn't because they have the best cameras now; its that they had the right cameras at the right time ... they built up the market by being the best in the emerging AF arena and then pushing their cameras and getting them used. Its going to take much more than impressive camera technology to get Sony into that market.

For people invested in the FE system of course, they will love it. For people invested in Nikon or Canon ... its nice ... but does it offer enough to jump ship - that remains to be seen.

 

[Durbs]

@lindsayperezphotography You mention about jumping ship, but I'm curious that you appear to shoot Canon, when the A7 line bodies arguably have many of the same benefits the A9 has, but you've not yet moved to Sony. Have you thought about going to Sony in the past, and if not - why not?

 

[ukaskew]

* And looking at the "crazy" specs Linday posted ... what are actually important and what is marketing fluff?

20fps - how many photographers are finding the 12 or 16 fps of the Nikon D5 / Canon 1DX II limiting?
600+ af points - thats just a number ... a lot more to AF ability than a number.
1/32,000 shutter speed - is 1/8,000 limiting?
5 stop stabilisation - maybe with short lenses ... but with long lenses? Sony put OSS in the 100-400 for a reason
Dual card slots - well not really an innovation.
Stacked CMOS sensors ... impressive technology ... but its techno-babble!

Just to demolish a few key specs.

- 20fps - I think the point is that it's without any blackout, a key thing to highlight as it's a fundamental change from DSLRs. Regardless of most of our needs, the option of more FPS is always welcome. Once upon a time people were saying that about 8fps.

- 1/32,000 - As a previous X-T1 owner with electronic shutter I'd never turn down ever faster shutter speeds, I found it genuinely useful even though it was quite limited on the Fuji. There are f0.95 lenses available for FE mount, wide open in bright sunshine will become an option without the need for filters.

- 5 stop stabilisation - Why not? I've used the a7ii enough to know it's very useful, the a9 isn't a dedicated long lens camera.

- Stacked CMOS - A crucial component that helps bring these things together, 1,32000 electronic shutter, 20fps, AF/AE calculations at 60fps with an uninterrupted live feed through the EVF. That's game-changing insane, techno-babble or not.

The technology could genuinely change the way people shoot, particularly the fact it's silent whilst doing all that. There are times when photographs simply cannot be taken that suddenly can with this, without any significant penalty from not using a DSLR.

I still think it's too early for this stuff to really take hold, Sony need to build up their Pro support and niche glass to really break through (and potentially even bigger weather sealed bodies). But that stuff just takes time, the tech is now here.

 

[ABTog]

I didn't think the 70-200 was considered anything special ... with the likes of the Tamron 70-200 G1 beating it quite comfortably.

I've not seen a review comparing it to anything, so I don't know. But it's a standard focal length for a professional, so they have that covered. Whether it's "special", I've no idea.
The Tamron 70-200 G2 is meant to be superb, but it's not available on E-mount

20fps - how many photographers are finding the 12 or 16 fps of the Nikon D5 / Canon 1DX II limiting?
600+ af points - thats just a number ... a lot more to AF ability than a number.
1/32,000 shutter speed - is 1/8,000 limiting?
5 stop stabilisation - maybe with short lenses ... but with long lenses? Sony put OSS in the 100-400 for a reason
Dual card slots - well not really an innovation.
Stacked CMOS sensors ... impressive technology ... but its techno-babble!

Just to demolish a few key specs.

Those specs are just numbers and for the average user won't matter. For sports/wildlife shooters it's a little different,
20fps without blackout - high fps is useful but it's the lack of blackout that's going to be useful for following/tracking action - no flapping mirror also means one less mechanical thing to break
600+ af points - AF speed and tracking ability will be more important than the number of AF points
1/32,000 shutter speed - I've hardly found 1/4000 limiting on my 6D, so I doubt it's of major concern to many
5 stop stabilisation - useful for those using the heavy primes like the Zeiss glass, particularly for video shooters
Dual card slots - nothing new but handy if you want it
Stacked CMOS sensors ...techno-babble - agreed

Isn't the body size pretty irrelevant once you take lenses into account though?

Kindof, but just bringing the weight of the body down will help with the overall weight you're lugging around.
Canon 1DX MkII = 1530 g
Nikon D5 = 1415 g
Sony A9 = 673 g

The lens weights across Sony/Canon/Nikon are pretty similar (some comparisons here) but saving 800-ish grams on the body weight will help if your photographing all day.

 

[lindsayperezphotography]

@lindsayperezphotography You mention about jumping ship, but I'm curious that you appear to shoot Canon, when the A7 line bodies arguably have many of the same benefits the A9 has, but you've not yet moved to Sony. Have you thought about going to Sony in the past, and if not - why not?

I've been a Canon shooter since the start and have never actually shot canon but this really intrests me. I would jump ship but it would be pricy and I cannot afford to. Maybe in the future!

 

[lindsayperezphotography]

Isn't the body size pretty irrelevant once you take lenses into account though?

I do agree they have done it in the right way around.

I didn't think the 70-200 was considered anything special ... with the likes of the Tamron 70-200 G1 beating it quite comfortably. (I may be wrong in that impression I had got).

Overall its an interesting camera and one that Sony was bound to make sooner rather than later, but no one has yet used it in anger ... how will the promise of the spec* hold up to real world usage? And for professional use in the sports field: what support network will they put in place for professionals ... have you seen what Canon do for the Olympics?

* And looking at the "crazy" specs Linday posted ... what are actually important and what is marketing fluff?

20fps - how many photographers are finding the 12 or 16 fps of the Nikon D5 / Canon 1DX II limiting?
600+ af points - thats just a number ... a lot more to AF ability than a number.
1/32,000 shutter speed - is 1/8,000 limiting?
5 stop stabilisation - maybe with short lenses ... but with long lenses? Sony put OSS in the 100-400 for a reason
Dual card slots - well not really an innovation.
Stacked CMOS sensors ... impressive technology ... but its techno-babble!

Just to demolish a few key specs.


Which will be at least £4,500 GBP so inline with UK "street" prices of the Canon and Nikon so it will remain to see what the street price of the Sony becomes. Of course £1,000 or even £2,000 difference isn't much if you also have to invest in new lenses.


Nice bit of click bait there... of course you have the price wrong at the bottom of your "thoughts"; which I think are based purely on "fan boy" talking up of a camera very few people have actually seen/used and none used outside of a controlled environment. Essentially what I'm saying is that its a nice sounding camera, but how it feels like to use and the support around the camera is much more important than the actual camera and the technology. The domination of Canon in the sports arena isn't because they have the best cameras now; its that they had the right cameras at the right time ... they built up the market by being the best in the emerging AF arena and then pushing their cameras and getting them used. Its going to take much more than impressive camera technology to get Sony into that market.

For people invested in the FE system of course, they will love it. For people invested in Nikon or Canon ... its nice ... but does it offer enough to jump ship - that remains to be seen.

Don't see how it's click bait, have out out thr blog post as it could help bring traffic to website as its a hot topic

 

[lindsayperezphotography]

- 20fps - I think the point is that it's without any blackout, a key thing to highlight as it's a fundamental change from DSLRs. Regardless of most of our needs, the option of more FPS is always welcome. Once upon a time people were saying that about 8fps.

- 1/32,000 - As a previous X-T1 owner with electronic shutter I'd never turn down ever faster shutter speeds, I found it genuinely useful even though it was quite limited on the Fuji. There are f0.95 lenses available for FE mount, wide open in bright sunshine will become an option without the need for filters.

- 5 stop stabilisation - Why not? I've used the a7ii enough to know it's very useful, the a9 isn't a dedicated long lens camera.

- Stacked CMOS - A crucial component that helps bring these things together, 1,32000 electronic shutter, 20fps, AF/AE calculations at 60fps with an uninterrupted live feed through the EVF. That's game-changing insane, techno-babble or not.

The technology could genuinely change the way people shoot, particularly the fact it's silent whilst doing all that. There are times when photographs simply cannot be taken that suddenly can with this, without any significant penalty from not using a DSLR.

I still think it's too early for this stuff to really take hold, Sony need to build up their Pro support and niche glass to really break through (and potentially even bigger weather sealed bodies). But that stuff just takes time, the tech is now here.

Could not have put it better myself, the market has been taken by Sony

 

[Eloise]

Could not have put it better myself, the market has been taken by Sony

You've missed my point... you're declaring a camera the best thing since sliced bread based on a few headline specs. You've not tried it, you've not considered what backup Sony may be offering professional users the camera is aimed at and not even questioned why some of those specs may be needed.

The "click bait" I referred to was linking to your own website which is little more than rehashing a press release. You talk up the AF system, but you say you've never used it (or any Sony camera?) so its little more than herseay and conjecture. But then I suppose that's what goes for informed reporting these days online.