Sony a9 Free Multi–Interface Shoe Repair Clarified

By Louis Ferreira | Published: January 29, 2018


We previously made you aware of Sony repairing broken Multi–Interface interfaces free here, but now it has been further clarified by Sony.

Notice of free repair for some units of Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera α9 (ILCE-9) – 16th Jan 2018
Thank you for your interest in Sony products.

Some units of the Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera a9 (ILCE-9) may experience the issue of rattling of the Multi Interface Shoe that may occur in rare cases when an optional large flash unit is attached and high pressure is applied on it.

To address this issue, we will repair your affected model free of charge until March 31, 2020. If you have an affected model, please contact your local Sony service centre.

Thank you for your understanding and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

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Dan and Sally Watson: Sony a7RIII vs Nikon D850 vs Canon 5D Mark IV

By Louis Ferreira | Published: January 29, 2018

Kind of an interesting comparison by Dan and Sally, because Dan likes the D850 for the photos they were shooting, but Sally picks the Sony a7RIII as having the best skin tones. The cameras are very back and forth, with the Canon being the most behind the times and the Nikon having the worst live view performance. Of course, the Sony is smaller and lighter than the Canon and Nikon, but it comes with disadvantages like it being easy to press buttons by accident. Sally picks the Sony a7RIII as her favorite to shoot with and her overall favorite thanks to the skin tones. On the other hand, Dan picks the Nikon D850 as being great overall for photography, but since he has hybrid shooting needs the Sony a7RIII is his winner.

It’s kind of interesting how the post-Sony a9 performance of Sony cameras is really shifting photographers to Sony. The Sony a9 was basically too much for most photographers, but the implementation of its technology in the a7 series of cameras and future a6xxx cameras will certainly make Sony the top pick for many photographers. Maybe in another generation or two Sony will fix their UI and handling issues, but AF, skin tones, video, etc… is all there today. Sony might even fix everything by the time they release a Sony a9R, who knows.

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Sony a9: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
Sony a7RIII: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama

Posted in Reviews, Sony a7RIII, Sony a9| Tagged , | 3 Comments

The Love/Hate Relationship With Sony Cameras From a Videographer’s Perspective

By Louis Ferreira | Published: January 28, 2018

Max Yuryev does a lot of great videos about videography so these videos are really more from a video perspective, but he throws a bone to photographers in his “camera issues” video. I made a list of the main points, but if you want to get into his reasoning watch the videos, you might even learn something if you don’t shoot video.

Love

  1. Custom button config for photo and video
  2. 4k 60Mbps
  3. Punch in while recording to check focus
  4. S&Q setting
  5. Clear image zoom

Few Hates (Camera Issues) For Photographers

  1. Dual card slots at different speeds
  2. Single RAW size

Hate (Camera Issues) Video

  1. Clip Info
  2. Autofocus
  3. Display Quality
  4. External Monitor
  5. Clip Titles

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Posted in Sony a6500, Sony a7 II, Sony a7R II, Sony a7RIII, Sony a7S II, Sony a9, Video| Leave a comment

TCSTV Live: Belated Sony a9 Review

By Louis Ferreira | Published: January 27, 2018

TCSTV had some trouble producing their Sony a9 review and they decided to cram a little mini-collaborative review into their video instead of doing a full blow one. Similarly, I did some mini-reviews of the Sony a9 a while ago, because diving deep into features and the reported “problems” with the camera was more relevant. The Sony a9 is kind of a strange camera and I largely agree with the points they make in there video:

  • Sony a9 first camera you can just pick up and use from them
  • I only really need a solid 10fps
  • The Sony a9 wears faster than the Canon, but it is working great
  • For the first time Sony is ready for the professional market
  • The a9 is a camera that can do everything for everyone
  • Sony is outpacing Canon
  • The next generation they will get even further ahead
  • It’s a more interesting comparison to the 5D and D810

I would go further though and say that much of what TCSTV love about the Sony a9 has made its way into the Sony a7RIII. Many tried to bring the Sony a9 down by making isolated problems into larger ones, but I am pretty sure today new a9’s are no longer overheating. I did everything I could to overheat my Sony a9 with zero luck and it has been a very hot year in Florida. I would easily take a Sony a7RIII or a9 over any camera in Canon or Nikon’s lineup, but Fujifilm vs Sony is a different story.

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Sony a9: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama
Sony a7RIII: B&H Photo / Amazon / Adorama

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Sony Unveils Manufacturing Process of DRAM-Embedded Image Sensor

By Louis Ferreira | Published: January 27, 2018

Nikkeibp wrote an article about the DRAM that Sony embedded in their sensor to make cameras like the Sony a9 possible and advancements necessary to make it happen are interesting. I was going to take the time to make bullet points of it, but Image-sensors-world beat me to it with a very concise list of the most important things:

The processing flow is:

  • The pixel, DRAM and logic wafers are manufactured using 90nm, 30nm and 40nm processes, respectively.
  • The DRAM wafer and the logic wafer are joined together, and the thickness of the DRAM wafer is reduced to 3μm
  • The DRAM and logic wafers are electrically connected with TSVs
  • The stacked wafers of the DRAM and logic are joined to the pixel wafer
  • The 3-layer wafer stack is thinned down to 130um and connected with TSVs

The numbers of TSVs connecting the pixel layer with DRAM is ~15,000 and DRAM with logic layer is ~20,000. Both of the TSVs have a diameter of 2.5μm and a pitch of 6.3μm. The 1/2.3-inch sensor has a resolution of 21.3MP and pixel size of 1.22um.

Via image-sensors-world and Nikkeibp
Posted in Editorial, Sony a9| Leave a comment

SHOTEN LM – SE Macro (L) Leica M to Sony E-mount Conversion With Helicoid

By Louis Ferreira | Published: January 26, 2018


A helicoid equipped with a payout amount of 5 mm. SHOTEN LM-SE M (L) Released

Manufacturer’s preferred price ¥ 14,000 (excluding tax)

For the range finder camera such as Leica, the M mount interchangeable lens has a relatively shortest shooting distance, but the shortest shooting distance can be shortened by using a helicoid equipped adapter. Since the extended width of SHOTEN LM – SE M (L) is 5 mm, it can be drastically shortened, making it possible to photograph “bouncing” with the Leica M mount lens.
LM – SE M (L), which is a cheap version of LM – SE M, is an affordable price so that more people can use it. In addition, it has been made lighter by setting the payout to 5 mm (extension of LM – SE M 6 mm).
Model numberLM-SE M (L)Corresponding lens mountLeica M mount
Corresponding camera mountSony E mountCharacteristicWith helicoid (extended amount: 5 mm)
MaterialBrass × stainless steelColorblack

The extension amount of the helicoid part is 5 mm.

via stkb

Posted in 3rd Party Lens, Accessories| Tagged , , , | Leave a comment