The Ultimate 50mm Lens Comparison at Lens Rentals

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Chase Reynolds did a pretty extensive lens comparison between 13 lenses for his Sony a7RII, a7SII, a6300 and out of all the lenses tested the Sony FE 55mm f/1.8 and the Zeiss Loxia 50mm f/2 Planar rose to the top for Chase. My personal favorites for an autofocus lens and manual focus lens are the Sony Planar T* FE 50mm f/1.4 ZA and Leica 50mm f/1.4 Summilux-M ASPH, but everyone has their own preference. There are so many great lenses today. Be sure to check out The Ultimate 50mm Lens Comparison at Lens Rentals and pick your favorites.

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Watch the Sony a6500/RX100 V Announcement and More

I haven’t had a lot of time to digest the surprise early refresh of two of Sony’s most popular lines of cameras thank’s to the hurricane, but the cameras do seem to be a substantial improvement over the previous generation camera. We are used to Sony launching cameras on a 12-18 month cycle, but 8 months?

Sony a6500
B&H Photo, Amazon, Adorama

Sony RX100 V
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Hands-on DPReviewAdorama learning centerMirrorlesscomparisonPatrick Murphy-Racey, B&H Photo Explora
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Sony a6500 Press Release

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Preorders (Start on October 9 at 11am NYC time):
B&H Photo, Amazon, Adorama

New Flagship APS-C Sensor Camera Combines World’s Fastest AF speed and Highest Number of AF points with In-camera 5-axis optical image stabilization, Touchscreen AF Operation, 24.2 MP Exmor® CMOS sensor and more

NEW YORK, Oct. 6, 2016 – Sony Electronics, a worldwide leader in digital imaging and the world’s largest image sensor manufacturer, has today introduced their new flagship APS-C sensor camera, the α6500 (model ILCE-6500).

As the latest addition to Sony’s lineup of award winning mirrorless cameras, the new α6500 shares the same unrivaled 4D FOCUS™ system as the α6300 camera, which can lock focus on a subject in as little as 0.05 seconds, the world’s fastest AF acquisition time. Also shared with the α6300, the new α6500 features 425 phase detection AF points that are densely positioned over nearly the entire image area – the world’s highest number of AF points on any interchangeable lens camera. The new model can shoot images at up to 11 frames per second with continuous autofocus and exposure tracking and up to 8 frames per second in a live-view shooting mode that makes it easy to track fast moving subjects, as it combines all of the benefits of an electronic viewfinder with the immediacy of an optical viewfinder.

The camera can shoot at these high speeds for up to 307 frames thanks to its expanded buffer, which, along with the fast response speeds described above, are all achieved with the support of a new front-end LSI chip that has been added to the camera. This new front-end LSI also serves to enhance both still and video image quality.

Additionally, the new α6500 features Sony’s acclaimed in-camera 5-axis optical image stabilization, making it the first Sony APS-C sensor camera to offer all of the benefits of advanced in-body stabilization, which include a shutter speed advantage of approximately 5 steps. It also offers touchscreen AF capabilities for focus point selection and adjustment.

“We are continuing to push the boundaries of modern innovation in digital imaging, in particular within the mirrorless space,” said Neal Manowitz, Vice President of Digital Imaging at Sony Electronics. “By equipping the α6500 with 5-axis image stabilization and touchscreen AF, we’re offering photographers and videographers more control than ever before and a seemingly endless amount of creative possibilities. As our flagship APS-C camera, it far exceeds the performance threshold of any camera in its class, and many above its class as well.” Read More »

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Sony RX100 V Press Release

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Preorders (Start on October 9 at 11am NYC time):
B&H Photo, Amazon, Adorama

NEW YORK, Oct. 6, 2016 – Sony – a worldwide leader in digital imaging and the world’s largest image sensor manufacturer – has today announced a new flagship model for their popular Cyber-shot RX100 series of compact cameras, the RX100 V (model DSC-RX100M5).

The exciting new camera brings a new level of AF performance and speed to today’s compact camera market. It is equipped with a Fast Hybrid AF system with the world’s fastest AF acquisition at 0.05 seconds and world’s highest number of AF points on sensor 1 with 315 points covering approximately 65% of the frame. The camera can also shoot continuously at speeds of up to 24 fps – the world’s fastest for a compact camera – at full 20.1 MP (approx. effective) resolution with AF/AE tracking for up to 150 continuous shots.

The RX100 V is equipped with a newly developed 1.0-type stacked Exmor RS™ CMOS sensor with a DRAM chip, a ZEISS® Vario-Sonnar T* 24-70 mm F1.8–2.8 large aperture lens and an enhanced image processing system with a new front-end LSI chip that maximizes processing speed, expands the memory buffer and optimizes image quality, in particular at high ISO settings. The camera also features 4K video recording with full pixel readout and no pixel binning, super slow motion recording at up to 960 fps with extended recording time and more.

“Featuring a level of power and performance that has never before been achieved in a compact, the new RX100 V redefines what it means to be a ‘pocket camera’,” said Neal Manowitz, Vice President of Digital Imaging at Sony Electronics. “This camera is yet another example of Sony innovating to a level far beyond what exists in the conventional marketplace.” Read More »

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Lensbaby Trio 28 Ultra Compact 28mm F3.5 Lens with 3 Focus Selectives

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Trio 28 – where convenience meets creativity. Designed specifically for mirrorless* camera users, the Trio 28 features three selective focus optics in one compact lens design. Trio 28’s wide 28mm focal length uniquely captures the soul of street scenes, landscapes, environmental portraits, and more. Simply rotate a dial to choose your inspiration from our most popular creative optical effects.

  • Twist gives you a large sharp central area of focus surrounded by twisty, swirling bokeh
  • Velvet has a sharp yet dreamy central area of focus with delicate glow from edge-to-edge
  • Sweet creates a sharp central sweet spot of focus surrounded by gradually increasing blur

Whether you’re exploring your neighborhood or traveling afar, Trio 28 helps you shape your vision in the moment –  in unexpected and surprising ways.

  • Sony E-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
  • Fixed Aperture: f/3.5
  • Rotating Front with Three Optics
  • Selectable Twist, Velvet & Sweet Effects
  • Multi-Coated Glass Elements
  • Manual Focusing Ring
  • Minimum Focus Distance: 8″
  • Pancake-Shaped Design
  • Filter Thread: 46mm

Effects Gallery

Lensbaby Trio 28 Pre-orders
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Phase One IQ3

The Sony developed IQ3 has been well reviewed by the likes of luminous-landscapepdnonlinefstoppers and now imaging-resource and dpreview. It should come as no surprised that everyone comes away impressed by it’s impressive 15 stops of dynamic range, but it’s unbelievable that they have managed to pull off usable 12,800 ISO on this size sensor. The Luminous Landscape review is probably the best if you’re really interested in this camera, but the DPReview comparison tool is great for comparing the sensors ISO capabilities.

With the Fujifilm GFX 50S coming in early 2017 and Sony so close to refreshing many of their cameras maybe we will see a mirrorless medium format competitor from Sony in the near future. The 53.7×40.4mm sensor in the Phase One XF probably doesn’t cost much more than the 43.8×32.9mm sensor in the Fujifilm GFX 50S(which you can see in my printable comparison), so maybe Sony can make a knockout mirrorless medium format camera in the $10k range that will shake up the market. We know they do not have to compete at the same price point as Fujifilm to sell their cameras and $10k is within reach of many serious photographers, compared to $47,500-$50,000 for a Phase One XF 100MP.

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