(SR4) Sounds like we will see two new Fullframe cameras in 2012 (Low and High resolution)
The current Sony Fullframe Flagship camera: The A900.
I am still waiting to get some news about the delayed NEX-C3 and A35. But in the meanwhile I got first good news about the next Fullframe camera…oh wait cameras! Yes I have been told that Sony is now planning to release two FF cameras in 2012!
One camera will have a low resolution sensor that can beat the ISO performance of the current Canon 5D markII and Nikon D3x cameras.
The second camera will have a high resolution sensor to come very close to medium format cameras like the Pentax 645D and Leica S2.
Very important: Both cameras will be SLT (translucent). And both will be announced in 2012. They will certainly feature the same (if not better) 3 million dots OLED Viewfinder as the A77. We should expect a mockup to be displayed at the Cliq (PMA) show in September.
I got the info from very good sources, but 2012 is still far away and I hope Sony will not change that roadmap! Sony is going to let us painfully wait a long time before we can get our hands on it!
Links to the current Sony FF cameras:
Sony A900 at Amazon, Adorama, B&H, J&R, eBay.
Sony A850 at Amazon, Adorama, B&H, J&R, eBay.
Other cameras discussed in the article:
Canon 5D markII at Amazon, Adorama, B&H, J&R, eBay
Nikon D3x at Amazon, Adorama, B&H, J&R, eBay.
Pentax 645D at Amazon, Adorama, B&H, J&R, eBay.
Leica S2 at Amazon, Adorama, B&H, J&R, eBay.
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Comment from Arthur: Get a Vertical grip.
Or wait for Sony t...
Comment from jb: @SonyA77,
borrowlenses.com rents Sony l...
Comment from Daniel: I couldn't agree more with YorkshireLad....
Comment from Valentine: I have been longing for a full frame 35m...
00aeiou00
2 years ago |Here´s to hoping!! I would go with the high iso full frame…ah whom Im kidding I would buy both just to compare!!
Cheers, J
Red
2 years ago |you are so rich :O :O :O
pancanikonpus
2 years ago |It is too far, too beyond talking about FF on 2012. Sony has already struggling to ‘make annouce’ on an already delayed A77. Yet to touch about A77 availability.
No way Sony without resolve all A77 productivity can focus into FF. FF will consume more sensors.
Althought is is tradegy and disaster caused, believe many already loosing patience
lol…
Ben Torode
2 years ago |Some may be losing patience, but I am grateful for the time between releases to save up the dough. I think Sony is gonna make it worth the wait.
b shaw
2 years ago |Sounds great – hope it comes to fruition.
Regarding the high-resolution version: Will it still use a FF sensor or will it use a larger sensor like the Pentax (44×33) or Leica (45×30)?
Regarding the high-iso version: Will it provide resolution in the 8 to 12 MPixel range?
admin
2 years ago |FF!
The low reolsution camera will have a bit more than 20 Megapixels.
Steve Jones
2 years ago |If it’s to use A-Mount then the sensor size will have to fit within the image circle of the lens, so it can’t really be bigger than a 24 x 36mm (although it would be technically possible to put a large square sensor in – say 40mm x 40mm and provide for a set of different aspect rations that would still fit within the image circle (say something like 20mm x 40mm or a 32mm x 32mm square) in addition to the standard 24 x 36mm. Indeed such a design would allow portrait and landscape modes without rotating the camera. It would require a larger shutter, but is technically feasible. This would fit very well with an EVF as the formats can be represented directly to the eyepiece.
Unfortunately I don’t see such a thing happening, but there is not reason, cost aside, which it couldn’t be done.
b shaw
2 years ago |@Steve Jones
I know their current A-mount wouldn’t afford the larger dimension sensor, but I was speculating that they wouldn’t let something like a pesky ole’ mount stop them from making a new camera … (à la E-mount)…
pnpbios
2 years ago |Yes! Even if I won’t be able to afford a Sony A8x/A9x right away, it will be nice to know they still have interest in the high end SLR market.
FMJ
2 years ago |beating 5Dii in ISO is not hard at all. aim at nikon rather
Mike L
2 years ago |Breaking news: Another big quake just hit Japan.
hahaha
2 years ago |a 2012 flagship product that can beat some 2008 products? uh…… @@
how much patience have we left for sony……..
Rob
2 years ago |Umm, and how has Nikon and Canon done with exceeding their high end product? Well, Nikon’s uses a Sony sensor, so…… how much patience do you have with them? Has Canon come out with a new high end sensor in the last several years?
EE
2 years ago |Disappointing that the second version is not RANGEFINDER-style (not a compact FF).
The announcement-timeline doesn’t make sense here: Sony wants to heavily advertise the A77/NEX77 through the end of the holiday season at the very least. And announcing new FF product(s) this year–especially if the product wont even be released until one full year later (2012)–would just take the shine away.
Sky_walker
2 years ago |Not really. It’d reassure clients that it’s worth to buy A77 cause Sony system HAS a future in pro market (despite of what Canikon fanboys say) and that there will be a step-up for them.
It’s very good marketing tactic, IMO.
lol
2 years ago |2012? Maybe end of 2012 or maybe we will see first mockup then. That means around 2015 Sony might make real announcment and it has a chance to hit stores before end of 2016….
Lol.
They can release tens of entry level cameras per year and nothing above a700 in four years? The day company finishes development of camera and sends in to production should be first day of planning new camera. Sony lost few years after a700/a900 for crap DSLRs only – most of them with same technology.
mwl
2 years ago |Oh gee, we were all waiting for a hilarious comment about a projected roadmap that spans 10 years. It’s not funny anymore. People make this stupid joke all the time with the a77 and it was only funny the first time.
Dulaney Ward
2 years ago |balderdash!
pancanikonpus
2 years ago |Magnitude 7.4 earthquake hits off Japan coast
admin
2 years ago |That’s a terrible news. Don’t know what to say. I hope nobody has been hurt. 7.4 is a lot less powerful than the 9.0 we had in March.
pancanikonpus
2 years ago |Amen!
Sky_walker
2 years ago |7.4 is still damn powerful Earthquake. It’s enough to destroy entire concrete buildings, cause landslides, destroy infrastructure (water pipes, electricity, roads) making humanitarian aid much more difficult.
I wouldn’t be so happy that it’s less than 9 – this one was a threat, and a huge one.
JB
2 years ago |I love this plan! I would buy both in a heart beat!
Sony, give me more lens please!
mwl
2 years ago |It would be really sweet if Sony released a FF low Mpixel body that I can afford. Make a consumer price-friendly FF Sony!
Tom L.
2 years ago |I have a feeling they are referring to 24MP as low mp and the medium format FF MP level(48MP or similar level) as a high MP level.
Dulaney Ward
2 years ago |I agree
admin
2 years ago |48 is definitely to high!
Dulaney Ward
2 years ago |40? that’s what the Pentax has
albin
2 years ago |yep but it has a larger sensor
Steve
2 years ago |That’s good news, if it really happens……….
At least it gives me hope that Sony will supply me with an update path from my two A850 that will keep my investment in the A mount relevant. I had hoped to replace one of them it 2012.
Sony: Expand the professional lenses!
emopunk
2 years ago |Andrea didn’t they say anything about upcoming a-mount lenses? new 35 or 50mm primes on the horizon? Wish it was true they’d make a mid-res low-noise ff SLT. That would be the breakthrough for Sony in photography market.
admin
2 years ago |I only heard that there are quite a few lenses. There should be 5 new Zeiss lenses only this year….
Dulaney Ward
2 years ago |five new Zeiss A-mount lenses this year alone?
admin
2 years ago |Between 4 and 5 to be exact.
Sky_walker
2 years ago |4 and a half? Hm…. I guess I could buy a Zeiss lens cross-section, guess it’d look really neat on my bookshelf. B)
Fredrik
2 years ago |The D3x and 5D II are not “low resolution cameras”. They are as high as they come.
I don’t believe this rumour. I’ll settle for an updated A850 with a new shutter which doesn’t break every 3 months.
/F
admin
2 years ago |By end of 2011 Canon (and maybe Nikon too) will bring cameras with around 30 MPX. That’s the new limit Sony has to equal or overcome with the High-res sensor.
kmfan
2 years ago |If it’s Nikon, Sony will have an equivalent sensor. Although i wonder if Canon will also use Sony or … ?
Edgars
2 years ago |You are sure about 2012, not 2112?
admin
2 years ago |LOL! Sure about 2012.
Edgars
2 years ago |Georg
2 years ago |The Pro range with a translucent mirror? Nikon, here I come!
albin
2 years ago |I fear it too.
I need to wait for the a77 to see if I still dislike EVF.
for now I would not trust the EVF on th a55 to focus manually on a fast prime.
however the screen is sharp enough for that but a EVIL cam it isn’t.
wait and see, they might surprise us.
I would hate to switch to a 7D or K5 if Sony and Sony releases the messiah of photography.
buzz
2 years ago |“Very important: Both cameras will be SLT (translucent).”
Profi translucent camera? No way!
That should be a joke…
PhotoNut
2 years ago |Actually, *I* have been told that sony will release *three* fullframe cameras in 2012 and perhaps a fourth one in 2014 to 2015 summer.
MF
2 years ago |I was told by Sony that Alpha cameras are always released in the second half of the year… so really after june 2012 it will look like… arghhh i dont know if my a900 will last that long!
Dulaney Ward
2 years ago |These may come in the second half of the year, of course, but Sony has announced many cameras in the first half.
Sky_walker
2 years ago |Statistically the middle of the year is most rich in camera releases.
Jerry_R
2 years ago |Any info for FF EVIL?
The reason I ask is ability to attach “M” lenses.
ChenAlan
2 years ago |Sony should release an FF camera that has both excellent ISO performance and high resolution sensor!
EE
2 years ago |I second that question.
But, couldn’t one just as easily attach leica M lenses to any FF camera? Any problems attaching it to the A900 (assuming you had m-mount attachment)?
Philip Warrender
2 years ago |The Sony A mount has a flange to sensor distance of 44.5mm but the Leica M mount has a flange to sensor distance of only 27.8mm.
You could adapt a Sony lens to an M mount but not the other way around. An M lens would need to be mounted right in the middle of the A900 mirror box. A Sony FF Evil could have a flange distance that would allow for mounting an M lens.
hanugro
2 years ago |Can’t we use Leica lens as macro lens in alpha mount? It is kind of having a free tube extension for free.
Sky_walker
2 years ago |flange distance is a problem.
explorer76
2 years ago |I have been hoping for a while that Sony will release a lower resolution FF camera, and hopefully in a lighter and smaller body. Looks like that wish might come true (EVF should take care of the lighter and smaller part, and most probably reduce the cost as well). Though I am somewhat disappointed that the “low” resolution would still be more than 20MP. I was thinking of something in the 16-18MP range, so that the noise remains under control and also because I personally have no use for 24MPs and hate the huge raw files that result from such high pixel counts
simon
2 years ago |No EE- the m-mount lenses have a short registration distance as they are made for rangefinder camers and will not adapt to alpha bodies, although they work well on nex, so a FF nex please!
hanugro
2 years ago |It is a dream to have 24MP FF that cost around $1500 body only. If Sony a77 has comparable noise profile as current A580/a55 then the 24MP FF will be much better than a77 in high ISO noise.
kmfan
2 years ago |That’s what i’m hoping for also. I’m not 5’10″ or taller, my hands are not large enough that an A850/900 fits comfortably. The A700 grip on the other hand fits very nicely. I hated that the so called A77 mockup lost the A700′s grip. A big reason that i won’t get the camera, even if it’s a top APS-C performer and a good value.
If you’re reading this Sony, release smaller FF body with A700′s grip. Not all foreigners are 5’10″ or taller (Come out to California and see for your self). I’d take either NEX9 or A9x body as long as it’s more compact, with a good grip.
Carl
2 years ago |I have the opposite problem. My A900 is quite uncomfortable without the grip on, as my pinky and half my ring finger hang bellow the camera. As my index finger operates the shutter, that means I’m pretty much holding the camera (and often a heavy G telezoom and flash) using only my middle finger.
As you can imagine, cameras like the A33 are just horrible for me.
Arthur
12 months ago |Get a Vertical grip.
Or wait for Sony to release a brick.
Zstan
2 years ago |That’s if japan dies not get hit by more earthquakes. =\
Any Mouse
2 years ago |So sony’s aiming at the current 5DMarkII? Well, by the time they deliver, that camera will have been superceded by something else that sets a better low noise benchmark. Then we’ll have to drool and hanker after that again….sigh….
OK, I’m just throwing some spanners in the works.
Sky_walker
2 years ago |Sony already easily outruns nearly all Canon sensors, so I don’t see how Sony’s alternative to 5D series could be worse in image quality.
Ergonomics and additional features might be more problematic.
Carl
2 years ago |Really, the only thing the A850 is lacking compared to the 5D2 is live view and autofocus speed an accuracy towards the edge of the frame.
It’s lens selection that is the major differentiator between the two systems, not camera bodies.
SonyA77
2 years ago |How many lenses do you need though, even as a pro? Do pro’s carry around a bag of twenty lenses? They’ll own a handful of top-end glass, if that. Most will have one lens that they use every day for work, with maybe one or two more for other stuff.
There is plenty of coverage in A mount from Sony/Minolta and third-party manufacturers. Yes you will be able to say “ah, but there is no X, Y and Z lens”, but really, does every pro need those lenses?
Where Sony fails as a pro brand (it isn’t) is in support. Canon and Nikon have professional support channels for their photographers. Oh and try to rent a Sony lens, good luck with that!!
Lenses actually has very little to do with it.
buzz
2 years ago |“Oh and try to rent a Sony lens, good luck with that!!”
In Poland it is possible => http://www.sony.pl/hub/sonystyle/12/2
Carl
2 years ago |Well for one thing, I’d like a high quality full frame lens wider than 24mm that isn’t huge. And a better (and preferably faster) ~50mm would be nice too. But that’s just me. There is a whole range of different usage models for cameras that it isn’t as simple as offering all the basics and expecting that no one will be limited by that. Some might mainly shoot wideangles, or macros, or fast supertelephotos, and offering a choice of only one or two lenses for each is potentially limiting.
Still, we have it better than, say, Pentax users, there are lenses all the way from 16-500 that are readily available so if you need a particular angle of view you should be able to make it work, but having said that there are gaps and poor showings that have existed since the 90s that should have been filled years ago.
SonyA77
2 years ago |Like I said, anybody can say lens “X” is missing from the Sony line-up, but in reality does it matter?
If you are a pro, all you’ll really care about is fast zooms that get the job done and money in your pocket.
It’s having the Nikon and Canon pro backup and service in place that matters.
Carl
2 years ago |Not everyone photographs solely as way of paying the bills. For some it’s also a means of artistic expression.
I have two f2.8 zooms, but they’re seldom on my camera. Wider and faster lenses paint a much more dramatic picture.
SonyA77
2 years ago |Then by definition they are not pros!
kmfan
2 years ago |Ok, short history lesson.
The A850/A900 was KM/Sony’s first generation FF camera. And it performed as good as the 5D MkII, Canon’s 2nd Gen affordable FF. The only spec that it lost on was low-light ISO. Which is about equal to the 5D MkI. And it still beats the 1D Mk IV specs which was released one year later!
Sony make their own sensors. Nikon use Sony sensors.
And you think Sony is creating a future product that ‘ONLY’ perform as good as current cameras?
jb
12 months ago |@SonyA77,
borrowlenses.com rents Sony lenses.
And I agree, they need pro support. I’m hoping that will come with the release of their new FF line in 2012.
Richard
2 years ago |Hope Sony design team don’t forget to put some thinking into:
-Battery life now that optical view inders are a thing of the Sony past;
-Separate WB settings for RAW & JPEG;
-Operating sound, operating sound, operating sound. So you can use your camera without embarassment during weddings, award ceremonies, graduation ceremonies, corporate meetings, tennis matches, musea, life actually!
G
2 years ago |+1 on the operating sound. A700 is a great camera but the shutter noise/mirror slap is way too loud.
SonyA77
2 years ago |Yeah, Sony really need to sort out the noise. Have a low performance quiet setting.
ChenAlan
2 years ago |Staker cam… LOL
SonyA77
2 years ago |LOL, it would be useful for me
Carl
2 years ago |Something like the Konica Hexar AF would be nice.
lorenzino
2 years ago |But if you are interested in good photography (let’s call you “high amateur”) and you are not a pro, you may be less interested in money coming to your pocket than in lenses you want for a specific creative idea you want to develope. Nikon and Canon have a current set of lenses that cover most of the possible “strange” ideas photographers may have. Sony does not have the same lens bonanza. It does not matter if you are never going to buy sixty 1000+$ lenses: what matters is that a priori you tend to opt for the option that gives you more theoretical possibilities.
It could be a mistake, but that is the way many photographers decide where to invest their money
lorenzino
2 years ago |I was replying to Sony A77. Dunno why it appeared here…
SonyA77
2 years ago |…and I said and will say again, yes there are gaps in the A mount range. But it is blown out of proportion.
People, including pros, do not buy twenty lenses! Pros buy the best zoom lenses they can afford to cover the range they shoot.
Where Canon and Nikon win is in pro support, Sony do not have the level of support offered by Canikon.
What amuses me is that the vast majority of people will NEVER buy more than a 18-55mm and 55-200mm but are advised not to get Sony because of the supposed lack of lenses!
Carl
2 years ago |But there are also complete amateurs who have never sold a single print who have 10+ lenses.
Taking a one-size-fits-all mentality to something as varied and open as the artistic medium that is photography is a recipe for problems. And a camera company that only makes kit lenses for consumers and f2.8 zooms for professionals is going to find themselves missing out on a hefty chunk of the market.
Thankfully Sony are not like that, and offer lenses like the STF, 500/8 mirror, 16 fisheye and ZA135 as part of their lineup, but there are plenty of other valid lens types that a market exists for that aren’t yet covered.
So, if one happens to find all the lenses they’d be interested in buying currently available in a manufacturer’s lineup, then that’s wonderful and fortunate for them, but that certainly doesn’t mean there aren’t others who’d legitimately prefer to be able to use something else.
SonyA77
2 years ago |I never said there weren’t others. I said the majority, ergo there is also an minority.
YorkshireLad
2 years ago |As a ‘pro’ I was interested in reading your comments. I shoot canon, nikon and mamiya for money (or love / wine / gift vouchers) and I am here because the sony line interests me but not enough yet to pull the trigger and dump 15-20k into a full setup. So what do I want?
) is also a killer feature. Add in eye controlled focus and you have a serious piece of kit. One huge area of worry (possibly not justified) is auto focus coverage and performance. Canon and nikon have amazing AF systems in their ‘pro’ cameras. I guess I need to loan a sony to try it out!
Reliability – no idea how reliable these cameras are, I haven’t had a canikon or mamiya lens fail ever. Tamron, sigma etc I have had fail. I would like to think sony CZ lenses are just as reliable.
Support- You are dead right, I want great support, I want loaners to test or during repairs and servicing. I expect to pay for this one way or another. I want a rep to annoy. I would dearly love a roadmap for cameras and lenses to plan capex spend but I think we all know that isn’t happening.
Quality – I have yet to be disappointed with the sharpness or colour rendition of any L lens, nikon and mamiya also do a great job. Sigma tends to lack some contrast now and again.
Price – has to be sensible. If canon do an IS lens for X and sony does a non IS (as its in body) with the same focal range / f stop I expect the sony to be cheaper.
Lens Range – here I think we differ in opinion. Canon has a strong f4 line which delivers amazing performance at a great price and leaves space in the kit bag and cash for more speciality lenses.
Re taking only one or two lenses, this is neither right nor wrong. Some pros take a 28-300 on a 5d2, others take 20 lenses. If I am shooting an average wedding I might take 5-6 lenses if I am shooting digital and another 5 if I am shooting the mamiya as well. So what do I take… 17-40 f4, 24-105 f4IS, 50 1.4 or 85 1.8, 300 2.8 & 70-200 2.8, two bodies and two flashes. Thats not counting a backup set. I guess I fall in between the two camps.
Sony is interesting, the idea of being able to pickup a nex and my normal working lenses for personal use is very appealing and in body IS is also very interesting. The translucent mirror (pretty sure canon did that years ago
Please do not take the above as an attack / trolling. Just some honest thoughts and I welcome sensible replies
Daniel
2 years ago |I couldn’t agree more with YorkshireLad. I would also include:
- a better flash system, which could work in different groups and not just 2 channels.
- a better flash system, which could have not so big flashes as the HVL-F58AM but without the synchronization problems present on the HVL-F42AM.
- a better flash system, which could use the iISO or ISO flash shoe in order to avoid using an adapter.
- a better flash system, which could have it’s own triggering system.
Valentine
2 years ago |I have been longing for a full frame 35mm mirrorless camera body. Like my colleagues that wish to use Leica M lenses, I have a collection of Carl Zeiss T* lenses for the Contax G system that I would love to use on a digital body. The 21/2.8, 35/2 and 16/8 are among the sharpest you can buy, and are a deal on the used market. The NEX-7 is promising, but I live for wide angle lenses and the APS-C sensor does not quite cut it.