oh, then it can swivel, its written on the spec, 90° leftward and 180° rightward

DPreview are idiots and always try to mislead people and will boost any company that pays them to market.

and milkyway cam be shot even with 15sec @ F2.8... in fact, try avoid 30sec... earth rotation in 30sec is obvious, instead of dots of stars, u get lines(dash) of starts.

and even my first generation nex3 has bulb mode.

This post has been edited by edpaul: Sep 18 2014, 05:04 PM

no matter short or long zoom length, big or small aperture... the question is actually direct back to you, do you need AF? can you cope with MF?

some event shooter rely on AF... some event shooter rather shoot MF. so its a personal thing. if you shoot wide(12mm) for like wedding, if you do not know how to operate MF well, then u definitely will need AF....

my own 2 cent is always good to have AF, since u can switch to MF anytime..... if u get a MF lens, u cant mod it to AF.

photo from Malaysia day



edit: added *spoiler* so it wont directly display for mobile users.

This post has been edited by edpaul: Sep 18 2014, 06:03 PM

star trails are diff story ma~ milky way another diff thing also hahahaa

i also got star trails



This post has been edited by edpaul: Sep 18 2014, 06:31 PM

1) i dont understand this part.

2) face detection. for all the people saying very weird and funny stuff. the face detection metering was introduced in A550 (i uses it) and YES, it will overwrite watever metering mode you are on, and replace with Face-zone metering (no written facts bout it) but thats how it behave since A550, about 4 years back. and it only works best if you did not have many stuff overwritten, eg, exposure compensation.

Face metering will set the face exposure to 15%(or up to 20%)grey... that is when human face has prefect exposure. (thats how you use spot-AEL mode available in most camera that most people dont know) but the face detection doest that automatically for you.

and i also hope sony will comeout with a new menu to OFF metering overwrite during face detection. anyway i leave it off all the time, only on it during video mode and in videomode the face-metering doesnt overwrite the selected metering.... mmmm

you mention you are not a professional photographer, but i really advise you to seek some professional teaching (a proper one, not an idiot which will mislead u even worst)

from the sample photo you posted, shows your subject are in shadow area... so the face detection will brighten the whole image to cope with the face exposure.
i) set flash mode to slowsync flash and fire it... it will turn out really really nice. (i leave my camera in slowsync mode all the time, it doesnt matter when u use daytime,coz it will work like normal flash when there too much light)
ii) activate DRO to level5, some might not like it... remember to set it back to normal.
iii) turn on to HDR mode, but control the ev stop, 2-4stop is gentle for human skin(i stick with 3eV). 5ev is a little too much.

iv) how professional ppl does it, use a reflector.

3,4) due to sensor size. its a very technical thing as many company is still working around this. due to the DOF cause by large sensor, most of the time the sensor itself cant see the faces to even 50% detectable, unlike smaller sensor camera, which can detect face from 3 meter to infinity due to the large DOF...

the best way to cope with it is to understand how(behavior) the camera face detection works and learn to cope with it.

and softskin works best when the face area is large enough, if its just a small face in the photo, the face itself its not really that sharp that requires more softskin rite? jkjk

5) i think you can define shortcut keys for that

6) i agree with you, i hope they come out with new firmware to address this and add in a new function to set this sleep timer in remote mode.

7) due to new system getting bigger and bigger and more shit is added in.. soon it will be like nikon menu . but try the '"FN'"' key, most of the used and important feature are there.

8) like what newbie mention, your comparison of photo is not fair due to backlighting. i doubt any camera in the world can fix that issue either.

Guys guys control a bit... yok and valentino did a little bashing on the camera but its fine rite? i believe all of us once twice meet some funny issue cant be solve yet too. noone is rite or wrong.... we just trying to express or vent some dissatisfaction only... some more this thread is for us to ask and share knowledge to improve our photography rite? lets share with kindness

give me time to reply everyone's question.

Yok70: at some point, i agree with you that Sony face detection is a little annoying messing up the exposure, but i wont call it stupid because at times, its very useful for portrait purpose as it keep a prefect exposure for the face. you win some, you lose some... only way is for us to understand how it really works and we work around it.

but for Valentino case, is a little special, he wanted to use the smoothskin feature, so the facedetection is a must On feature.

leinnz: have you attended any Sony Workshop? try to join one, they explain a little more on there.

it really depends, but usually, multi-segment metering mode is recommend, i use this fulltime anyway. center-metering is used when your subject exposure might be affected by surround, eg heavy backlight etc. Spot is used when your subject is covered by a small are of the whole frame. but also it still depends on a lot other factor that affect your metering.

Eiraku you got snap the pic of the hotshoe leg? i wan see the connector~ hahahaha

vincentlee90:cool it down a little. we try help first. who know they really really need help? stay cool.

Valentino46: (long explanation)

my 3 years old xz-1 and even my nex-3n does not do this,
the nex3N does that too. because my first gen nex3 does that too. its a way sony introduce the face detection, they trying to create a prefect programming to make the detected face to have proper exposure rather then just plain face detection for focusing purpose. (refer bottom for more winded explanation)

with panasonic,olympus, u can half press the shutter,the camera will lock on to the object very reliably
not sure if you owned them, but those are much smaller sensor, its full of DOF, simply shoot anything also sharp.... thats the downside of FF, everything you shoot also blur. hahahaha....

1) to illustrate this problem,try lock on focus (its a feature,i use it for "quick focus then recompose" technique) with sony at a moderate busy place,then try on olympus or panasonic,you'll know what i mean
something wrong with my A6000, i cant find the setting or did u say it wrongly? did u mean focus-lock? then recompose. if u are talking about how it refocus on other stuff instead of staying on what u lock on. then its the Focus-Mode issue. set it to AF-A should solve your problem i guess (just guessing la, coz i still dont quiet catch the lock on focus)

2) my problem is not dealing with backlighting, my beef with this camera is it force u to use spot metering if face detect,that's what my main problem,let me re-iterate
as long as BG is 2eV stronger then subject face, its called backlighting. your friend face is under heavy shadow(about 3ev) from her hair
and yea, its part of sony face detection algorithm to also 'fix' the exposure. as long as you are in any automation mode, it will overwrite to exposure the face (btw its not spot metering) to reach a nice 15% grey.

and there is a solution to it for overwriting back that damn face-detection metering...

Manual mode(it will force your exposure setting over the face detection metering). and the A6000(i assume you using A6000) has an evf, use it to determine the exposure you wanted. if the face is detected, it will still attain smoothskin(or was it softskin) feature.

it should able to solve the issue.

4) face detection lock on face 50% of the time if i'm lucky. camera phone does this better
to explain further... to prove sensor size issue, the sony xperia Z1 face detection is better then my A99

i think he set the AFmode (by default from sony) to AF-C... thats when the sony fully uses the 192(or something, i never bother to remember the full spec) af point... so when u lock on subject (face detection) recompose, it will jump to focus on other things.... and i think A6000 was the first E mount with AF-C?

btw, he needs the face detection to work, so the smoothskin would work.

eh i was wrong, i think A6000 was first with AF-A* not AF-C... myself also confused liao T.T

saigetsu: camera back facing your, turn focus ring "clock-wise".... but turning 'finish' doesnt means its infinity, u need to turn back a little. because the lens designed to go over infinity. its best to find a landscape/bright spot, use focus assist zoom in to check if its sharp at 'distanced'

ii) to shoot star, u need minimum light polution, and a clear sky. from the photo, there is massive light polution from everywhere, and the sky is not clear. thats why u couldnt get a good photo of stars

yea, u asked bout what camera like once a year... i've been in this thread for 5 years >.< since A100 days

every PRO is once a noob, once a poor student, once a rebel because family denial everything we wanted. , once kena kaokao from PRO like albnok.... i know exactly how you feel.

but i planned a little more well, my initial budget was 3k, back then(5 years ago), 450D was 3xxx.... procrastinate for another year(working year) i manage to save another 2k, total up to 5k, thats when i saw the advert for A200 in newspaper, rm1999, and got me started research on Sony... brought A300 twin kit, with extra 2.5k then so on with F58 and a 50F1.4.

its not easy to part with the money or gain new responsibility to take care of it...

if you very very very confirm u going to get serious, then definitely interchangeable lens system is way to go. is not A, definitely E mount (or other brand mounts)

i would avoid Sigma lens, because the phase detect will not work with sigma lenses... so its like end up using AF perfomance of nex7... but that come later, coz u dont have to think so much first, all new user, all PRO here will advise the same thing, please use your kitlens first, use until you REALLY understand it only then u start thinking what you NEED next.

hahahaha... my mistake then XD

anyway, you have two choice... pack A6000 once you have enough, or, save a little more extra, that way wont feel so pain coz u will have leftover when u pack the A6000 XD then who knows 2 week later feel like wallop the F43m also~ hehehehe

removed

This post has been edited by edpaul: Sep 22 2014, 04:50 PM

its the same sensor, but build differently for different market mass.

grab the one with EVF, u never know how useful that EVF is when u are sniping chicks... review in EVF then in LCD where the whole public looking at you.

vincentlee, try post handphone friendly size... too big, nose bleeding liao ~~~

my nose got cut by the sharpness when i reach closer to look

DO NOT (i repeat) DO NOT let your company abuse you for task unless the task has PAY that used to FUND the 'said' task. nuff said.

else company continue to 'uses' you, and u will continue to invest more without returns. but if the company does pay you... then no issue.

if given enough light, 55-210 can work with no problem with F3. people pause for group shooting, even compact and handphone have enough time to focus and snap. dont worry bout F3. But for dances show etc, if the lighting is limited, you may need to pump a lot higher iso to meet 1/200ss for 'dance' shot.

but one thing... if you are not getting paid, dont put too much pressure on yourself that must grab prefect shot on every moment. understand the point 'you win some, you lose some'... happy shooting.

======================================================

i tot the eye detection feature from Sony is for eye blink prevention? if it detects eye blink, it auto snap 2nd image or it delays the shutter split secound so enough time for the eye to open up for snap or something? its just focusing feature. gimme 5 minute to google information on it... lol... i might be wrong

and to be fair....

DOF of F2.8 on APS-C will always be SAME as DOF of F2.8 on FF.
DOF of F5.6 on APS-C will always be SAME as DOF of F5.6 on FF.
DOF of F8 on APS-C will always be SAME as DOF of F8 on FF and so on...

its due to working distance, you move back, causing changes in 'out of focus area'(bokeh) by Focusing, that cause the area to compression to look smaller that seem like sharper.(like taking a 24mp blur photo and resize to 2.4mp and it looked tack sharp)

do not mix the DOF with out of focus area compression (Bokeh) up as the same thing, they are totally different thing, but have a very very complex relationship.

not sure if albert still keep the article on this misconception.

This post has been edited by edpaul: Sep 25 2014, 07:48 PM

ok. Eye detection Auto Focus, yea, it focus on the eye via contrast detect. no 'anti blink' feature (no links founded) although the feature was introduce in recent cybershots DSC-HX9/HX9V and WX1 (or could be earlier, and i may misread it thinking E mount uses it too) my mistake

no la... its a misconcept and a generalization.

you will be surprise that the out of focus DOF from a 24mm F2.8 is same as out of focus DOF from 100mm F2.8 (as shown on one article, sorry i didnt save the link) lets wait see if albert can find the article back...