This week on The Digital Story photography podcast: Sony drops the full frame bomb with the a7; The Nimbleosity Report - Panasonic's diminutive GM-1; From the Photo Help Desk - How can I repair a scratch on my camera's LCD screen? All of this and more on today's show with Derrick Story.
Story #1 - Sony's full frame a7 - Now you can have your compact system camera and full frame sensor too. As early as November, well-heeled shooters will be able to order the Sony Alpha a7 Mirrorless Digital Camera with FE 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS Lens for $1,998. More lenses are promised, although they will not be cheap.
Highlights from this remarkable camera include:
- 24.3MP full frame Exmor CMOS sensor
- 3" tiltable TFT LCD with 1,229K dots
- 2.4M-Dot OLED electronic viewfinder
- Fast hybrid AF; 5 fps burst rate
- Wi-Fi and NFC
- 1080/60p video with uncompressed output
- 14-bit RAW output
A few drawbacks to consider. Oddly enough the a7 does not ship with a battery charger. You have to recharge in-camera. The new FE lenses would be available for months, and when they are, they will be pricy: (FE 35mm F2.8 ZA $799.99, FE 55mm F1.8 ZA $999.99, FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS $1,199.99 (coming in early February), FE 28-70mm F3.5-5.6 ZA OSS $499.99, FE 70-200mm F4 OSS G (Pricing and release date TBA). And even though you can you existing E-mount lenses, they will only work in a crop mode on the A7/A7r, since they were not designed to cover a full-frame sensor.
Story #2 - Nimbleosity report on the tiny Panasonic GM1 mirrorless M 4/3 camera with 12-32mm Lens ($749). Amazing, roughly the size of the Sony RX100 compact camera, this little guy is the smallest micro four thirds camera to date.
But there are tradeoffs for this pint-sized wonder. Top shutter speed is 1/500th, no in-body image stabilization, no 1080p video, so-so battery life, no option for electronic viewfinder, and no hot shoe.
Personally, I'd much rather have the Panasonic GX7, even though it costs $250 more, the feature set is much more appealing.
Story #3 - From the Photo Help Desk: How do I mitigate a scratched LCD on my camera. I have a home brew recipe to help.
And don't forget, I have an Aperture Workshop coming up on Nov. 16 and 17. Write me at derrick@thedigitalstory.com for more details.
Listen to the Podcast
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Monthly Photo Assignment
The October 2013 photo assignment is "My House is My Castle."
More Ways to Participate
Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.
iPad for Digital Photographers
If you love mobile photography like I do, then you'll enjoy iPad for Digital Photographers
Podcast Sponsors
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