Sony Nex Discussion

I picked myself up a Sony Nex 5 with other day and thought I would share my thoughts.

So far I have been really impressed with the camera, there are some little niggles that have been mentioned in the reviews, the interface can be a little annoying due to the lack of manual buttons but I found it ok to use once I got the hang of it and think that the reviews are exaggerating, it certainly isnt so bad that it is a deal breaker. At the end of the day its only software so it could easily be added to, like some people they could do with just adding an option of changing the menu from say basic to pro mode. The other thing is attaching the flash is a bit time consuming but with the good ISO performance I dont feel I will be using it much, and if I do take the camera out and feel I might need it then I will just attach it beforehand and leave it on the camera. I suppose the only problem that will arise is when you want to use a flash and say an optical or electronic viewfinder.

I am really pleased with the picture quality the kit zoom lens is producing, I wasnt impressed at first when I started taking pics in Fine Jpeg mode but then I switched it to RAW and then I was much more satisfied.

I have switched to the NEX from a Sony A200 and I was worried about the change being a fan of DSLR's, and that a lot of the press said that the NEX is aimed at compact users wanting better picture quality. But I have to say now that I dont think I will look back, it is a much easier camera to carry around and much less inconspicious, not that im into taking sneaky pics! But its nice to be able to take a good camera to say a meal out, or other places where a full sized dslr would really make you stand out.

Im looking forward to trying some other lenses with all the adapters that are coming out now, and I would be interested if anyone else here has already tried this out. I am going to look into getting a good prime lens but not decided what to go for yet, maybe an old Zeiss contax or something like that. I am not worried about having to manually focus the camera as the digital zoom confirmation is excellent giving up to 14x magnification and the LCD display is stunning good resolution compared to my A200. The only thing at the moment is I have to stop shoving the camera in my face every time I pick it up trying to look through a viewfinder thats not there!

Anyway would be interested to hear other peoples thoughts or if anyone is looking at buying this camera and has any questions let me know. Though bear in mind im not a pro just a consumer.

You will notice a big difference between the Nex and a normal point and shoot in image quality and low light performance.

I wasnt happy with the Jpeg output myself, but then I have to say I didnt really test it that much I just switched to RAW because thats what I normally use and noticed a big difference in quality. I might do some test shots to see what difference there really is between the RAW compressed to Jpeg on the computer and the Jpeg straight out the camera and post them on here.

I could also do some comparison shots with a sony compact camera and the Nex if that would interest you?

It really depends on what your photographing as to what zoom of lens you want. I had an 18-250mm lens on my A200, which was a good all round lens but unless your photographing wildlife or airshows, stuff like that you dont really use the full telephoto.

The menu system and tips on the nex is very good if you want to take your photography further from a point and shoot and also it has some very useful modes for shooting twilight pictures and panoramic.

Heres an example of the difference between raw and jpgeg, with no alteration except slight cropping and resizing:

Heres a jpeg:




and Raw:




Jpeg crop:




Raw Crop:




My fiance has the point and shoot so might not be able to get that comparison up until tomorrow night.

Heres an example of low light, this was taken indoors in the evening without a flash and ISO 1600

Comparison agaisnt Sony cybershot 12.1 MP Carl Zeiss lens compact
with flash and without

TheMechanic said:

Regarding your sample shots. First of all thanks for that!
I can't really tell the difference between the raw and the jpeg file. Maybe the raw is a bit better but if I hadn't known there were different I wouldn't have noticed it.
On the other hand I can see a difference between the p&s and the NEX. The NEX pics seem to have a lot less noise and overall better quality and colors. Most I like the pic of your dog! It's a really good shot.

What lens do you use? Is it the 18-55mm? And what do you think about the pancake lens? Would it be useful as the only lens for this camera?

Click to expand...

Look at the crops of the guitar, if you look closely at the scratchplate with the tortoise finish there is a lot more detail in the RAW, the JPEG has a kind of hazy look overall in comparison. Its quite noticeable if you look at the top left hand corner of each crop.

I was a little unsure about the camera until I switched to RAW and took the dog pic then I was really impressed, I have never used ISO 1600 before on my DSLR, I would hardly ever venture over 400 but now with the Nex I am completely confident with using 1600 and even higher.

I am using the 18-55mm kit lens for the moment, will probably replace it when something better comes out, im hoping for a Carl Zeiss that will be made specifically for it and think there is a good chance that they will produce one.

Im not sure about the pancake as I haven't tried it, I certainly wouldnt want it as my only lens as 16mm is just for taking landscapes, the 18-55mm is the best choice as a walkaround lens. I have read comments that people dont really rate the 16mm pancake at all and are hoping for some better primes later in the year.


Heres an example of macro:

I have been quite happy with the kit lens, after reading the reviews myself I found it to be a lot better than I expected.

Although there arent many E-Mount lenses at the moment im sure there will be quite a few in the pipeline, especially due to the fact the nex has been selling out everywhere.

Also bear in mind there are alot more compact camera users than DSLR so if you have a lot of those users upgrading to the Nex and you have a lot DSLR users buying the Nex as a secondary camera they can use their lenses on (with adapters) there could end up with more people owning Nex's than Sony DSLR's. Then 3rd party lens companies like Sigma and Tamron will probably start making lenses for E mount. The main thing im waiting for is a Carl Zeiss lens for it, and i would be suprised if thats not already in the pipeline.

I heard the rumours about Nikon but figured it probably wouldn't be as good as the Sony as they have more experience with compacts. If Canon make one then that would be interesting.