I really have a lot of respect for Sigma. They are a small “family company” doing great lenses without outsourcing anything of their production process. And some of the best A-mount lenses we have so far are from Sigma:

– The 50mm f/1.4 ART lens which is almost as good as the 4 times more expensive Otus: The lens can be preordered in USA Amazon at BHphoto and Adorama. And in Europe at WexUK and WexDe.

– The 18-35mm f/1.8 fastest zoom of the world (here on Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.).

And Sigma promises a lot more exciting product releases in 2015. Sigma CEO MR.Kazuto Yamaki have been interviewed at Reviewed and at Cnet. And those are some of they key info he released:

1) Sigma said they are working on unique zoom and prime lenses and they hope they can release them both in 2015.

2) Interesting story about the 18-35mm f/1.8 lens: “When I started the project I told the engineer, “You don’t need to care about the quality, because it’s the world’s first. It’s really challenging. Your mission is just to make the lens f/1.8 zoom, period.” And I did not expect, actually, that high quality!”

3) When asked if Sigma will make lenses for the FE system the answer is: “I can’t comment on any specific product, but in general we would like to expand our product lineup for compact system mirrorless cameras.”

[shoplink 28570 ebay]Panasonic’s new FZ1000[/shoplink] is forcing Sony to react quickly. I am not surprised to have received that rumor from an anonymous source:

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX20, mid Oct 2014, Same Sensor (20,1 MP, 1″), Same lens (24-200 F2.8), little ergonomical upgrade, 4K video Recording, XAVC-S Codec just like at AX100, 1080p frame rates remains the same, but at 720p @ 120fps will be possibile. S-LOG2 will not be available. Price 1300 USD/1050 GBP, Predecessor remains in the market, with a 100-200 USD price drop.

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Sources can send me anonymous messages here:

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Reminder (SR = Sonyrumor):
SR1=probably fake rumor
SR2=rumor from unknown sources
SR3=50% chance it is correct
SR4=rumor from known sources
SR5=almost certainly correct!

Sony Manager Shigeki Ishizuka have been interview ad Dpreview and let’s start right now with one big mistake they made…again! When asked about the future of A and E-mount systems Sony answered:

“We have one system – the Alpha system” and “They are fully compatible with one another using adapters. I don’t want to separate those mounts into two ‘systems’. That’s why we stopped using ‘NEX’ in favor of using a single family name – ‘Alpha’.”

Fully compatible?  So A77II or A99 camera owners can buy those new FE lenses? Really, they are not fully compatible Sony! You are confusing the customers…again! :(

That said let’s move forward to the other highlights of the interview:

1) One of the reason why they moved all camera to “Alpha” name is that the “NEX” brand seemed to be more cheap than the “Alpha”.

2) Sony is focusing on serious high end cameras “to earn a good reputation among professionals and higher-level amateurs”

3) Full Frame E-mount roadmap: One consistent request from customers is macro lenses and wide-aperture lenses.

4) Next generation of FE cameras will obviously have faster autofocus

5) Interesting part about sensor business: “When we make sensors we put them in several categories. [At any given time] one category of sensors is reserved purely for Sony cameras – we don’t sell them to other companies. Like the sensor in the A7S. But once we’ve enjoyed this advantage we might sell them on later, after some time has passed. This is the second category. The third category of sensors is completely generic – the sensors are created for use internally and to sell externally, to anybody. China or Taiwan or wherever.”

6) When asked about a possible Sony medium format camera Mr. Ischizuka said: “there may be room to explore this opportunity [in the future].”

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If Sony and Mr.Shigeki Ishizuka: I am not mad at you but it just need a little bit more of effort to clear out the confusion: Just say there is and “Alpha” system with two camera lines: A and E-mount. Make it clear on your website and in your interviews. Thanks :)

Mark my words guys. Early 2015 will be very exciting for the whole photographic industry with many new cameras and what’s more important new sensors and advanced features. I already told you there is something big from Sony on the horizon (coming January). The Megapixel war is restarting and Canon will likely try to fight back Sony too. There is finally going to be a big battle on the Full Frame Mirrorless and on the sensor ground. These are the reasons:

1) Canon is seriously considering to launch a complete new mount system (Source: MirrorlessRumors). Likely a Full Frame mirrorless system to fight back the A7 series

2) At Dpreview Canon said “In the very near future you can expect us to show something in terms of mirrorless and also a higher resolution sensor.”

It’s going to be strong battle. If Canon gets “serious” with the new FF mirrorless mount system Sony will have to fight against a very strong PR machine. Sony really has to do things right in 2015 to not lose their current advantage. And it’s certainly a good news for us to know they have finally some competition!