The Chris

Great post, thanks for the update.

If you're looking at that expensive Satchler system, why not just go arca-Swiss or the cheap Manfrotto QR Andy linked? Seems like they'd do the same job.

That looks nice, but a number of cameras can do the same thing sitting on a tripod with the subject perfectly framed, not the most challenging scenario. From watching The Camera Store (I think that was the one) review, it struggles in walk-and-talk scenarios, where the subject is moving and the camera op is tracking them.

M Carter's post is great. I've found 4k to be a godsend when shooting interviews as well. Before 4k, I would punch in/out between questions, now its just one less thing to fuss with while shooting. If I can, I use a B cam for cutaways - but as mentioned 4k is invaluable for reframing or just creating movement. The a6000 has a hotshoe, Sony makes two XLR adapters that work with the MIS shoe.

How can you use dual cards to clear the buffer when the options are Standard, Auto Switch, Dual Independent, Dual Same? And only one of the card slots is UHS-II, my guess is that's going to be the only one you can do the 60fps burst. I'm going to be traveling for a few months starting in December, this could be the ultimate travel camera, just won't be out in time for me.

Lets slow the 4k/60 raw roll a bit. The em5mkII with its 14MB raws can do 50 before the buffer fills, the Pen F's raws are just over 17MB - even if they doubled the buffer size we're still only talking about ~80 frames before it fills. 4, 5 or 8 seconds isn't going to happen. And it's only S-AF, so you're only guaranteed to get one frame in focus. Thankfully its with the E-shutter, so less wear on the mechanical shutter. Still the 24/30p bitrates are pretty nice. Everyone is talking about the 4k stuff, but the 1080p does 202mbps. Since RS on all the current 4k cameras is significantly better in HD, this could be one badass handheld cam when you just need HD as well.

Sony is the best at fattening the spec sheet, but little details like 10-bit don't grab headlines because it doesn't resonate with the average consumer. I think we may see it in the A7sIII because its more of a video-centric body than the others, but given how long it took them to let go of 24mbps AVCHD, I'm not holding my breath. Seems like they're going to protect the FS5/7 instead of seeing the light - these cameras perfectly compliment the cine line - except for video IQ.

If video AF only works in P mode, its not amazing, its unusable - or more to the point, its horseshit. I'm skeptical on a number of features, need to wait for real testers to get past the Sony hype. There's a video of the 12fps burst that clogs after a couple seconds just shooting jpeg's, which means the buffer/write speed really sucks. I loved watching the guy squirm in the Cinema5d video, he clearly didn't want to talk about the shitty video AF. Live view AF is supposed to be an advantage of the SLT, after all these years I find it amazing that Sony and its vast engineering resources hasn't been able to figure out how to make it fully functional. Some say its the BionzX can't keep up, its been around for a few years too, if that's the bottleneck it needs to be replaced ASAP. This camera feels just as half-assed as the original a99, just a bunch of pieces from other cameras cobbled together. UHS-II isn't anything new since its been spec'd on other cameras for a couple years now. If this camera is supposed to be the A-mount flagship for the next four years, it should have it. The d500's write speeds will completely crush this with some pretty amazing write speeds. You would think Sony would introduce faster hardware with the flagship, but that's just not the case. Its not even out yet and its already slow/outdated. People love to bash Canon here, but dual pixel works really well, and it works all the time. Canon also understands the benefit of a touchscreen to pull focus, something else Sony can't seem to figure out. Outside of A-mount users that want a new sensor, this camera is shaping up to be as much of a dud as the original a99.

Good to see others jumping into the ILC realm. I hope this is a huge success so we'll see a second generation that addresses all of the issues any 1st effort will certainly have.

Cheers, man. Got burned at the stake for simply posting samples, I actually exchanged my camera because I thought I had a dud, it was so bad. And this one doesn't AF in video unless you're in P mode, because most video pros shoot in P. And because the IBIS doesn't seem to involve a floating sensor, I'm curious if there's a crop with steady shot in video, like the a9. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

+1 How I wish we could get a EM1mkGH5, Olympus' 5-axis kills it. Can't wait for SOOC video samples. Want.

A couple "my menu" options would help immensely if they want to just dump everything under a couple tabs. The Fn and custom buttons doesn't cover enough if you're shooting stills and video - the way the camera is intended. The C1/2 settings on the dial don't cut it either.

12 pages on one ambiguous "camera" tab. SMH. How about breaking things up - still image parameters, AF settings, video functions and so on? What about a my menu 1 & 2 so you can group all the most used functions when shooting stills or video since even with all the button customization and the Fn menu, Sony still forces you to menu dive. Nah, that would be too complicated, unless you're Canon, Nikon, Panasonic, Olympus, Fuji...

I have an external card reader that I plug into the keyboard, that message doesn't come up for me. I always reformat in cam. Running El Cap.

The 16-35/4 is sharper than the previous 2.8's, IIRC its much better on the long end. And its stabilized. If you can live without the extra stop they can be found for less than $800 if you're patient. I would buy one over the new 16-35 since its also a bit lighter and the stabilization is handy when shooting video.

The Em1mkII has 121 cross type PADF points and a touch screen, should be able to pull focus in a manner similar to Canon's dual pixel - something Panasonic's DFD cannot achieve. Olympus claims a much faster readout for less rolling shutter. For handheld work I'd much prefer IBIS and PADF over a gimbal. The tracking on the a6300 absolutely blows anything DFD out of the water, its just a PITA to move the focus point if your subject isn't a person. YMMV. 10-bit external out of the GH4 wasn't a dramatic improvement for basic corrections, we'll see what the new cam brings. I'm not buying 1+ stop improvement claims, since no m43 camera has come close to that and we've already seen what the sensors are capable of in current cameras. Its nice to have options though.

Updated SSM motors on the 24-70 and 70-200 to make them more PADF friendly, and a slightly revised 70-300. Three minor updates since 2013. Nothing new though. Half the current lineup is Minolta leftovers, most aren't that great on a 24mp sensor, the flaws will be more pronounced with 42mp. Again, the best lenses Sony has ever produced are all E-mount, if you're paying $2000+ for a 24-70/2.8 zoom, the GM is much better. Same for the 70-200 and the 85/1.4. And there's nothing like the Cine lenses anywhere else, I seriously doubt we'll see A-mount versions of those either.

Thank you for the history lesson. I actually bought the original A99 when it was released, but the video was so bad I returned it. Been using E-mount cameras since the original Nex5. Sony's best lenses are all E-mount - the GM zooms/primes, the 90mm macro, the new Zeiss primes and the Cine zooms - none of which can be used on the antiquated A-mount. Then there's the outdated lens AF systems - like the noisy/slow screw drive on the 135/1.8. Great, lets put a 20-year-old AF system on a modern camera. So YAY! There's a new body, but you still have the same old lens lineup and many of the most common FL's are in need of a refresh, plus the long flange distance limits adapting other quality glass. Its been three years since Sony released a new A-mount lens, the Zeiss 50/1.4, and many of the lenses are holdovers from Minolta, so they're over 10 years old and in need of a modern refresh. It would be different if they actually gave a damn and updated the A-mount lenses and responded to a decade of users asking for a 24-105/4 or something similar. Then you have spotty support from 3rd party manufacturers like Sigma and Tamron. So the best non-native lenses are not even showing up in A-mount anymore.

IBIS and PADF, Panasonic why did you leave them off the GH5? Olympus colors, the new uber fast (allegedly) processor and all of the user friendly smart little things that Olympus puts into their high end bodies. I like it a lot. This combined the GH5 for 60p may pull me into m43 land. Sony will counter, question for me is how aggressive. The a99ii doesn't make me want to part with the a7rii/a6300 combo, but the new m43 flagships definitely have my interest.

Just yesterday he said nothing would be announced today. That rumor is nothing more than clickbait, its a A7rII, duh. Agreed. A larger, deal card A7rII would have been a better move. It doesn't look like this camera uses a floating sensor like the A7's either, they call it 5-axis optical steady shot, so I'd guess there's a crop with stabilization. See the brochure here: http://sonyglobal.scene7.com/is/content/gwtvid/pdf/2016/A916/1e06f5296792e980.pdf Same s35 full readout, but slog3 and 120fps, along with a mount few care about and virtually nothing can be adapted to. No damn touchscreen either. Meh...

I'm not panicking, the camera is 6 months or more from being released, but its a feature that would have certainly been highlighted at the presentation or the presser. If its in there, it would have been a part of the presentation. None of the Panny's have PADF, no surprise that the GH5 doesn't either. It still looks like a great mockup/specsheet. Like I said, looking for to samples, whenever they actually surface.

Just read the press release on DPreview, this is essentially a A-mount A7rII with a better buffer. Full pixel readout is only in s35 mode. Hmmm...

Damn! Count me as someone that never thought a A99II would ever become a reality. FF4k, 12fps, and Sony's best sensor. 1dxII - who? The SAR guy - as usual - had no clue this was coming. $3199 makes me want to dump all my E-mount stuff, the A99 had the best egos of any camera I've ever used. Damn!

No IBIS. No PADF. Does a nice job of filling the spec sheet though, looking forward to footage ... sometime next year. Despite the impressive spec, leaving out IBIS and PADF may make this a non-starter for me. Lets see what Olympus drops with the EM1mmkII

10 years ago I was shooting lots of SD and occasionally 720/1080i to HDV tapes. Because the cost of upgrading the broadcast pipeline is significant and declining revenues are an annual blight on broadcasters balance sheets, I'd be surprised if most broadcasts even hit true 1080p in 10 years (most right now are 720p or 1080i), much less 4k. TV sales are collapsing, 1080 isn't getting replaced anytime soon. I can still edit old SD from an old drive. A good 10-bit 4k image should easily look good in 10 years, as mentioned use a high quality prores. I'd be more worried about the integrity of your storage.