Sony TCSTV RX1 Test

I always like his reviews. He just seems like a regular dude who likes to play with cameras and make photos.

And he tests $3,000 cameras by shooting cats :D

Seeing him handle the camera reminds me a bit of my old friend the gf1 with the 20m attached.....just a bit beefier. There is a 50% chance I will own this camera 2 years from now. Man.....$200 for a lens hood, though. Jeepers.
 
I wasn't tempted before - I'm not tempted now. But it was a very enjoyable review. I can definitely see the charms of this camera - the image quality is pretty spectacular. But for the kind of stuff I do and the way I shoot, I'd get frustrated with it pretty quickly. Glad to see Sony or anyone really pushing the envelope though - its good for all of us in the long run.

-Ray
 
Chris, you can turn off all the audio signals. ;)

Nice review. Yup, the accessories are expensive, but you don't need them either. As for an OVF, that is about $200--made by Voightlander. And a screw in rubber hood for $10.

I bought this as a second camera. And it is a great second camera.

BTW, I always love your reviews--thanks for taking the time to post here and think of us. And congratulation on your new apartment--you did not even wait to hang your pictures before getting back to work. ;)
 
LOL. Exactly. That is why not photojournalism was ever done before the invention of AF. We just had landscape cameras like Leica Ms and Nikon Fs.

Yeah, lots of great photojournalism before auto focus, but they had real mechanical manual lenses where you could set the distance in anticipation and set the aperture for enough DOF. Lots of folks still shoot like that today. But without some kind, ANY kind of distance scale, whether mechanical or electronic, auto-focus becomes pretty much your only option for this kind of shot and, at that point, AF speed becomes an issue. So I see slow AF as a bigger issue with this camera than something like the Fuji X100 or X-Pro or the Ricoh GXR, which all have zone focussing tools easily at hand. Sony just hasn't seen fit to do that. I could have probably gotten on with the RX100 a lot better if it'd had ANY sort of distance scale or even manual focus memory so you could set your distance and then know the camera would come back to it. That's not the market they seem to be after - I don't blame them, its probably VERY small. But AF performance is probably more critical on a camera without more MF tools at hand than this one has...

-Ray
 
But without some kind, ANY kind of distance scale, whether mechanical or electronic, auto-focus becomes pretty much your only option for this kind of shot and, at that point, AF speed becomes an issue.

Ray, I prefocus my RX1 very easily and quickly by a quick press of a button in MF. Simply use something in the scene to set the distance. It takes no longer than looking at the lens barrel and guessing a distance. No need for a distance scale. Zone focusing is no more difficult with an RX1 than any other MF camera. Just a different method.

BTW, there is a distance scale in the RX1, although not a really useful one.
 
Chris, you can turn off all the audio signals. ;)

Yes, the confirmation beeps didn't bother us, but the noise of the AF motor working. We actually stopped shooting for 10 minutes, because I thought my wireless mic was getting interference. Turns out it was the AF noise from the RX1.
 
I love the RX1. But even if I could somehow stretch just this one time to buy it for $2,800 U.S., it really has a few too many quirks to be worth it for me. I'll wait to see if these are around on close-out in, say, 24 months. In the meantme, a Fuji X100s at $1,299 (or slightly less if there's a sale) is much more likely for me.
 
Ray, I prefocus my RX1 very easily and quickly by a quick press of a button in MF. Simply use something in the scene to set the distance. It takes no longer than looking at the lens barrel and guessing a distance. No need for a distance scale. Zone focusing is no more difficult with an RX1 than any other MF camera. Just a different method.

BTW, there is a distance scale in the RX1, although not a really useful one.

Believe me, I've used enough cameras that I've had to focus like that to know its not for me. Its possible, yeah, and if the distance is about five feet, that's easy enough - put the camera at my chin and focus on the ground. But as light gets lower and the zones change and the DOF is reduced, the distances get harder to estimate and the tolerances are a lot tighter and I just find it to be an enormous pain in the butt. I've done it - way more than I'd have chosen to, but as long as there are cameras around with decent distance scales and that can remember a manual focus setting when you turn the camera off and then back on, or that return to it when you switch from manual to auto-focus and then go back to manual, I'm always going to choose those cameras. I used your method with m43 cameras before the 12mm with the manual focus clutch came out, I tried it again with the RX100. Its doable if its your only option, but I hate the process and as long as there's a camera with a better option, I'm going to use that. I'd love to play around with an RX1 for non-street types of work just to get a taste of it, but ultimately I'm not gonna spend much time carrying a camera that I'm not comfortable using for street shoot also, so I wouldn't spend those kinds of bucks on something that required that much of a workaround. Looks like an awesome camera, but not for me... That's OK, there are a whole lot more cameras I'll never own than those I will own, so I'm ok with letting some get away..... :D

-Ray
 
Hey all,

Here's the RX1 test I shot.


I was really impressed how much better the RX1 was when compared to a D600 with the Zeiss ZF 35mm F2.

Nice apartment.
Nice socks.
Nice cat.
This review sponsored by Wendy's
Nice Noguchi coffee table!

And you're right about cats LOL. I've taken so many test shots of my cats that I wrote a book about it!

[shameless self promotion]
‎Ten Tips: Cat Photos
[/shameless self promotion]

Seriously, I always enjoy your video reviews...
 
Yes, the confirmation beeps didn't bother us, but the noise of the AF motor working. We actually stopped shooting for 10 minutes, because I thought my wireless mic was getting interference. Turns out it was the AF noise from the RX1.

so was your mic picking up the af noise?
 
Believe me, I've used enough cameras that I've had to focus like that to know its not for me. Its possible, yeah, and if the distance is about five feet, that's easy enough - put the camera at my chin and focus on the ground. But as light gets lower and the zones change and the DOF is reduced, the distances get harder to estimate and the tolerances are a lot tighter and I just find it to be an enormous pain in the butt. I've done it - way more than I'd have chosen to, but as long as there are cameras around with decent distance scales and that can remember a manual focus setting when you turn the camera off and then back on, or that return to it when you switch from manual to auto-focus and then go back to manual, I'm always going to choose those cameras. I used your method with m43 cameras before the 12mm with the manual focus clutch came out, I tried it again with the RX100. Its doable if its your only option, but I hate the process and as long as there's a camera with a better option, I'm going to use that. I'd love to play around with an RX1 for non-street types of work just to get a taste of it, but ultimately I'm not gonna spend much time carrying a camera that I'm not comfortable using for street shoot also, so I wouldn't spend those kinds of bucks on something that required that much of a workaround. Looks like an awesome camera, but not for me... That's OK, there are a whole lot more cameras I'll never own than those I will own, so I'm ok with letting some get away..... :D

-Ray

Ray, we are talking about two different things. You are talking about your personal preference, and that is fine. I am talking in general terms that technology is not the limiting factor in any kind of photography.
 
Ray, we are talking about two different things. You are talking about your personal preference, and that is fine. I am talking in general terms that technology is not the limiting factor in any kind of photography.

Agreed. There's the old saying that the camera shouldn't get in your way. A camera with that kind of manual focus interface gets in MY way. But yeah, it's all personal preference. Glad you're enjoying it and look forward to seeing lots of results.

-Ray
 
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