Sony A99 roundup (with High ISO samples and Cameradiner presentation)
The video on top has been made by Paul Genge and introduces all the new Sony stuff like the A99, RX1 , VG900 and NEX-6. What’s also interesting to check out is the A99 High ISO samples that have been posted on Lenstip. As usual keep in mind that you are analyzing images shot on a preproduction camera with non finalized firmware! There is another German first impression review by Photoscala (Translation here).
Somre more A99 news: Image samples at ePhoto and on Facebook. Sony Canada dropped the price from $2999 to $2799 (via Dyxum). Sony Japan also said that most A mount lenses will get a firmware update this winter to be able to use the new A99 Dual Focus system.
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Sony preorder list:
A99 body Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Jessops, Wex UK, Wex Germany, Sonystore DE-UK-FR-IT-ES-NL-SE-FI-CH and more links at Alphacameradeals.
A99 with kit lens links Alphacameradeals.
RX1 Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Wex UK ,Wex Germany and more links at Alphacameradeals.
NEX-6 body Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Wex UK, Wex Germany Sonystore DE-UK-FR-IT-ES-NL-SE-FI-CH and more links at Alphacameradeals.
NEX-6 with kit lens Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Jessops, Wex Uk ,Wex Germany and more links at Alphacameradeals.
NEX-VG900 Amazon, BHphoto, Sonystore DE-UK-FR-IT-ES-NL-SE-FI-CH, Wex Uk and more links at Alphacameradeals.
NEX-VG30 Adorama, Amazon, BHphoto, Wex UK, Sonystore DE-UK-FR-IT-ES-NL-SE-FI-CH, and more links at Alphacameradeals.
Sony E-mount 16-50mm Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Wex UK, Sonystore DE-UK-FR-IT-ES-NL-SE-FI-CH, and more links at Alphacameradeals .
Sony E-mount 35mm Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Wex UK, Sonystore DE-UK-FR-IT-ES-NL-SE-FI-CH, and more links at Alphacameradeals.
Sony E-mount 10-18mm Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Wex UK, Sonystore DE-UK-FR-IT-ES-NL-SE-FI-CH, and more links at Alphacameradeals.
Sony A-mount 300mm f/2.8 Amazon, BHphoto, Sonystore DE-UK-FR-IT-ES-NL-SE-FI-CH.
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Roke
9 months ago |.
Tanglefoot
9 months ago |‘dropped the price from $2999 to $27999′ That sure aint no price drop in my books!!!
Kalpurush :)
9 months ago |Ha! Ha!! Witty one!!!
Well, a good new for the Canadians indeed. $200 drop is not that bad at all!
emopunk
9 months ago |Andrea, do you have any hint about when a final sample of the A99 will be in the hands of say DPR or IR to review?
Art
9 months ago |I heard from SteveHuff he is getting in two weeks
emopunk
9 months ago |THX
admin
9 months ago |nope
Yong
9 months ago |$27999 is a lot if money u know? Lol
gamma
9 months ago |46.1mp Canon DSLR and sony will die
Dave Cox
9 months ago |Canon sheep. Baaaaaa
emopunk
9 months ago |Go buy it. Good luck!
Steve
9 months ago |Canon needs to step-up; it looks like the a99 as a camera body will kick the 5dIII ass as far as performance.
Nikon is pushing hard and using the best sensors currently available, even though they may be made by or with the help of Sony.
Best cameras – D800, a99, 5DIII
Best Lens system – Canon, Nikon, Sony
Competition is good, a 46MP Canon if IQ and ISO performance is strong would force Nikon to do even better and maybe, just maybe push Sony to go head to head with the best the Canon and Nikon system has to offer.
Sony has a long way to go, but can do it if it wants to.
Mike
9 months ago |46MP Canon would certainly suck at ISO 1600 or higher, probably even already at 800.
lollo
9 months ago |Absolutely!
C
9 months ago |Yup, with 9 stops of dynamic range and shadow banding at ISO100. I’m sure it will be awesome.
Denis
9 months ago |46.1Mp FF looks exactly like 18Mp Canon’s APS-C sensor covering FF area. So, still that <12 stops of DR, about the 5d3 high ISO performance (that is worse than one of D800), banding at shadows, etc
No reason for Sony/Nikon/etc to worry.
Almazar80
9 months ago |Sony could have implemented a 36mp FF without the 60p video – at least that is what they are saying. Seems to me that this camera is aimed squarely at the 5DMkIII. If it works well, it could take significant market share from Canon. Sony’s video offerings are quite strong and the synergy of the Alpha and the pro video division augers well for the future.
marald
9 months ago |Paul Genge’s video is awfull quality and just repeating specs we can already read. You would think they could do a bit better..
Another more informative review I found this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DeQuvjAEDA
Sadly ,it’s only in dutch available…
admin
9 months ago |yeah, it’s dutch
Jakob Røjel
9 months ago |Dutch is not that hard to understand (a mixture og German, English and funny sounds). I think that I got the main points, eventhough I’m Danish.
The vaterpas (spirit level) was a feature I haven’t seen before
/Jakob
Z-man
9 months ago |Thank you, I’m one of the few dutchies around.
Paul Genge (CameraDiner)
9 months ago |You are not wrong. There is a great deal of repeated tech specs, but hopefully you found some of the hands on demos for the NEX-6 and VG900 interesting?
Of course in the environment of a trade show its hard to get any degree of product testing completed. But, we will get all these products into the Diner as soon as possible for a complete review and analysis.
Keep checking out my website and the LIVE shows as we progress. Every Thursday 7PM (UK) / 8PM (CET)
gustav
9 months ago |wel i`m dutch
Abit77
9 months ago |hahhaha ok A99 is nice! But new lenses for A-mount???
gustav
9 months ago |yes
BigP
9 months ago |***************************
??? Sony Japan also said that most A mount lenses will get a firmware update this winter to be able to use the new A99 Dual Focus system. ???
****************************
A mount lense and Sigma or Tamron also? or only support a Sony lenses for Dual Focus System for future?
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR FUTURE PURCHASE!
Currently there are no accurate information …..
Steve
9 months ago |Ask, Sigma & Tamron about firmware on those lenses.
Third-party compatability problems has been a issue forever, and one of the main reason many people don’t invest in them.
If the lens works on the camera you own today, and you don’t care if it works on a camera released by Sony next month fine, go for it but if you plan on building a system over time, compatability has been a problem.
Mike
9 months ago |“Most A mount lenses” is vague
Just Sony lenses?
Sony+Minolta?
Or even Sigma/Tamron?
Si
9 months ago |as far as I can tell the current lens range that will take advantage of the 102 focus points on the A99 are 16-35mm F2.8 ZA, 24-70mm F2.8 ZA, 135mm F1.8 ZA, 300mm F2.8 G and 70-400mm G, not sure why the 70-200mm F2.8 is not included but I cannot guarantee my sources so. Good news, well for me, is that all my lenses appear to be included, now only need to find the money to purchase lol.
Si
Steve
9 months ago |You seem to know something so please help me………
Let’s talk about one lens, the Sony Zeiss 24-70/2.8
Does the current release already support the new features of the a99 or does it need to be update first or replace?
BigP
9 months ago |Sony Zeiss 24-70/2.8 now supports without changing the firmware.
)
You’re a lucky man
Bard
9 months ago |Will my Minolta 24-85 and KM 75-300 “new” work on this camera or will Sony stick to only newer Sony lens? They work great on my A65.
dagump
9 months ago |same question, other lens: Minolta 400mm F4
and how about the Sony 300mm F2.8 ?? What is the new version good for?
Confused
9 months ago |Perhaps a stupid question, but how does one add a firmware update to a lens (as opposed to the camera)? Or do they in fact mean that the camera will have the firmware update to extend the list of compatible lenses?
Steve
9 months ago |Old lenses would need to be sent back to the factory or a service center…….Old Minolta lenses, just forget about it!
Old third-party, maybe but not likely if no longer in production.
Sony is talking about new lenses as they leave the factory and not about fixing old product.
Lenses don’t have a USB or serial port to load new code into it’s located in a chip on a circuit board inside the lens.
Mojoe
9 months ago |Well, the new sigma 120-300 2.8, actually has an adapter,that you can use to tweak the lens (autofocus, af-limiting-switch…) via USB and I think other sigmas will follow, maybe they will even have upgradeable Firmware.
who knows?? (;
J
9 months ago |You can update individual lens firmware when attached to the camera body.
lollo
9 months ago |Maybe…
I would not count on it.
zstan
9 months ago |a77 firmware 2.0 please
ArtoS
9 months ago |Here is video from Sigma press conference
http://betterphotography.in/2012/09/18/sigma-future-vision-press-conference-2/
See also leaking of new 300mm f2.8 OS HSM in that video;-)
http://www.janneheimonen.net/blog/
Mike
9 months ago |The samples at ephoto.sk are a disappointment.
georgcrismed
9 months ago |En mi alpha 77 van muy bien los C Zeiss, los Sony, Los Minoltas y ya le probé un sigma50mm 1,4 y va de maravilla, y en última el uso manual de los lentes que PRUEBO SOLO POR DIVERTIRME, con el resalte de color para mostrar areas enfocada es muy fácil y ninguna otra marca lo hace.
In my alpha 77 go great the C Zeiss, the Sony, Los Minoltas and sigma50mm already tried a 1.4 and going great, and ultimately the use manual lenses I try just for fun, with the highlight color to show areas focused is easy and no other brand does.
Steve
9 months ago |As the camera moves more and more “electronic “ and less mechanical manufactures will need to better deal with the integration between the lens and the body itself. Sony is facing this first because of the EVF, but Nikon and Sony will need to follow a similar path. Sony is in better shape being a distant third in the number of lens and customers using the manufactures system.
All new lenses need to have as part of the design the needed electronics and interface between the body and lens to accept changes in the cameras electronics easy.
Sony is about to ship the a99, a camera body few current lenses can take advantage of.If Sony is to succeed in selling cameras to photographers that see the camera body as just a component and not the whole, Sony will need to replace/upgrade almost all of its 19 or so full-frame lenses currently in its catalog. As most of these are old Minolta designs or now 4 to 8 year-old Sony lens; I would think that its more likely going to require many of the lenses to be totally replaced and updated to be compatible with the a99.
Tom
9 months ago |Aweful audio quality. VTR playback was still being mixed into program when it should have been cut. VTR also kept coming in when operator was trying to cue next playback point, very annoying and took away from the professionalism of the clip. Something should be done to fix these problems in future episodes. I was interested in the RX-1 preview and kept watching until the end. I think the VG900 and RX1 will do very well. A99 will struggle with its price and the photographers who are invested in Canon or Nikon glass, even though the A99 is quite an impressive platform from all appearances.
Paul Genge (CameraDiner)
9 months ago |Tom, thanks for your feedback. All points taken on board and we promise to get them sorted with our next shows from the Diner studio. Believe me, I am as disappointed as anybody with the lack of professionalism. We will improve, its a promise!
Keep checking out my website and the LIVE shows as we progress. Every Thursday 7PM (UK) / 8PM (CET)
IntentionallyGiveWrongInfo?
9 months ago |Please don’t provide wrong information nor mislead others!
Even you don’t read Japanese, google translate tells you that Sony jp only says 6 additional lenses will support AF-D In 2013 spring! Not really “most A mount lenses” will support it “this winter”
Steve
9 months ago |Don’t get me wrong I agree with your point about information……….
But, if you look and the current full-frame Sony lens catalog there are not that many lenses worth updating or maybe even could be updating, so six additional lenses is just about all that is left after the 500mm, 300mm, a new 50mm and the rumored 70-200/f2.8 and 70-400.
The question is will I need to replace or can I send them to Sony and will Sony update the lens with a chip?
I bet I’ll need to buy new
lollo
9 months ago |Very likely that almost all the Sony lenses worth having will get the upgrade.
ageha
9 months ago |Good luck with that!
Andy
9 months ago |Hmm rx1 is still listed as £2799 at wex uk.
We always get ripped off here in the UK but hopefully the price will come down when it is released.
Kevin Alpha
9 months ago |This video audio sucks.
Paul Genge (CameraDiner)
9 months ago |Yes it does. We will get it fixed for later shows.
Thanks for your feedback.
)
aaron
9 months ago |I concur. What was wrong with it that you are going to fix? Is this hardware limitations or user error?
BigP
9 months ago |compatibility with dual AF system:
Then it’s bad …. Sigma or Tamron will do not extra update for x their lenses just for one model of camera from Sony (A99) for Dual AF system 
Big disappointment for me and I have to sell my Tamron 28-75 mm f2.8
ageha
9 months ago |No wonder he isn’t working for Sony anymore…
Paul Genge (CameraDiner)
9 months ago |Thanks for your comment, we will improve – the whole week as been a frantic learning curve. But if you like the principle of the show and the new approach I am trying to take then great. Tech stuff can be fixed, and production quality will be learnt by those controlling the switches. Keep tuned and you will watch the improvements as we grow. Cheers.
SensorZ
9 months ago |Every way I look at it the a99 is a better video camera than the vg900 except for the quad mic. Do other videographers agree?
Stef.
9 months ago |Re compatible lenses:
http://store.sony.ca/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=100803&storeId=20153&langId=200&productId=8198552921666485827#footNotes
See at the bottom of the page:
“Note that at the time of launch the following lenses support AF-D: SAL2470Z, SAL2875, SAL50F14, SAL300F28GII, SAL70400G, SAL50050F4G.”
Furthermore, this comment is from Phaelix, who works for Sony as a product trainer: read from page 18 onwards from this thread over at Dyxums, as a lot of questions will be answered:
http://www.dyxum.com/dforum/a99-announcement-details-and-short-preview_topic91320_page18.html
“* OSPDAF is being rolled out to more lenses. I’ve seen a list with a lot of additional lenses that have tentative release dates through the end of this year and into 2013. From memory it seemed like the bulk of full-frame lenses would be supported by mid 2013, and the 70-200G was on there. I’m sure it’s all a work in progress, but the intention is certainly to extend OSPDAF support.
* Focus Range control does not require AF-D or an AF-D compatible lens.”
According to his answers, third party lenses will NOT be supported by Sony. Nevertheless, they can be used with the traditionsl 19 point af system and the AF limiter.
Hope this clarifies some points?
Stef.
Clifton
9 months ago |has there been any word of how good the new Dual AF system actually works?
whistler
9 months ago |Andrea, any news about A77 firmvare? I was shooting over the weekend and it really seems that it much needed especially for higher ISO, AF improovements etc.
aaron
9 months ago |I dont think firmware will address the high iso performance of the a77. Frankly the sensor is just aweful for low light work. I dont think it will ever get unaweful or the algorithms in lightroom would be able to make that happen. I can’t wait to sell that camera as i think it is a POS for general photography because of that.
The only reason I am upgrading to the a99 is its low light dxo mark sensor rating will be around 2700 points. The a77 is sitting around 800. If you want a versatile camera its not the one.. God Its caused me so much stress at weddings because you have a real hairs width of tolerable exposure settings and even at 800 hundred your subjects can have lots of noise.
GregJ
9 months ago |The key takeaway here is, 3rd part lenses and not-updated lenses will still work as they have on previous Alpha cameras. People are acting as if their lenses will be useless, or rendered obsolete with this new camera, and that’s definitely not going to be the case from everything that has been documented thus far.
Sure, they may not be able to take advantage of Sony’s latest AF tricks, but new technology can’t be made backward compatible forever. Who knows, you might actually find that other AF system improvements (like range limiting on camera, not lens) still make using your old “unsupported” lenses more of a joy to use than ever.
I have mixed bag of supported and unsupported lenses and will hold off judgement until I see some real world testing by people who know their gear and how to use it.
Stef.
9 months ago |Greg- the way I see it: AF-D is a very good feature for particularly longer lenses. I think it is a feature such as “object tracking”, with some lenses this feature wil work and it might work very well and with others it does not work. So in other words, you have a very similar if not identical AF system to the A77 (which works quite well) and paired with the “right” lens you can switch over to AF-D and use the 102 AF assist points.
What I would love to know though, and I fear this is NOT possible, is whether you can turn the illumination of the 102 assist points in the viewfinder off. I find them distracting and as you can not choose which section of those assist points you want to use they might just make them invisible in th viewfinder.
Stef.
Purduedm
9 months ago |Check it out SONY A99 is making things interesting already $2,800 for either a Canon 5d Mark III or a Nikon D800 WOW!!!
http://www.rythercamera.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=42083&osCsid=d751a1e41159217959991b4f13ce2053
http://www.rythercamera.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=39370&osCsid=d751a1e41159217959991b4f13ce2053
I wonder if Sony will try to lower the price of the New A99…
aaron
9 months ago |This is an excellent point and it is the one area that the EVF in general is trumped by the OVF. Perceiving delicate gradations of light. A good OVF allows you to perceive the finest subtleties of light fall off as well as the true spectrum of colors. EVFs are still not quite there and miss a good portion of reality. It is still adequate though for most work when combined with using your eye outside away from the viewfinder.
However when you start polluting the image with 102 green + marks… it starts to obliterate the intimacy and connectedness to the image. Critical focus is important. Highly highly important but the origin and still core requirement of a good photo is in intimacy and composition.
The technology should support and augment this experience in a way that does not obscure it. I think this person has an excellent point. Whats worse is they are all clustered in the center of the screen around the APS-C focusing module they elected to use.
dealaddict
9 months ago |Wow, the noise is really bad comparing to Canon and Nikon. Is it? or just me? I remember the Canon and Nikon are so clean and definitely usable at 12800.
poke
9 months ago |Just you. Initial preproduction high iso images look good. We will see what the DXO scores show. They actually look really good. Not even close to bad and definitely not “really bad”.