Sony A7/A7R mirrorless full frames
- Thread starter Mr.Stu
- Start date
hmm yeah and lens selection is a bit limited for FF to start with which is understandable. Other E-mounts fit and work in crop mode though. I'll probably pass on these first gen versions and see what happens in a couple of years, the nex6 doesn't really have any issues for me anyway 
hmm yeah and lens selection is a bit limited for FF to start with which is understandable. Other E-mounts fit and work in crop mode though. I'll probably pass on these first gen versions and see what happens in a couple of years, the nex6 doesn't really have any issues for me anyway
There is also the LA- EA4 adaptor which mean you can use all of the existing Sony / Minolta A-Mount FF lenses and get full phase detect AF though the SLT system.
The question is with what kind of performance? The alpha-em punt adapter for the APS-c NEX gives very slow autofocus, most adapters to. The only system that seems to maintain close to original performance is the Nikon F-mount to C-mount adapter.
I know some people will love this kind of camera but Sony has predictably failed to break the laws of physics so making a FF mirrorless camera still requires using the bulk of FF lenses. Sony's attemp at mitigating this factis to simply use slower lenses with shorter zoom range.
I mean the 28-70mm f/5.6 is pretty pathetic (a 24-85mm f5.6 would at least be acceptable as a kit). The 35mm at f/2.8 won't make the street people happy. Want a nice wide to short tele fats zoom, nope, have to accept f/4.0.
Alternatively one could buy an APS-C DSLR or mirrorless and use faster lenses. I would take a tamron 17-50mm f2.8 on a Nikon d3200 over an expensive NEX FF. The D3200 is a mere 40g heavier.
Still, for certain uses it will be pretty awesome if you can get the glass. And that would be my worry. The only mirrorless system to see a fully fledged lens line up is the M43 system due to 2 main supporting developers and plenty of 3rd party support. Sony has failed to fill out the APS-C e-mount line up, so will they really get everything right with a 3rd new system?
Leica lenses don't autofocus. As I showed in an earlier thread on the same topic, Nikon's manual focus solid steel lenses were the same weight as Leica, adding autofocus elements and motors produces the lenses we have today.
And leica's lenses aren't that magical, the small lenses are mostly close to the focal length of the sensor diagonal (e.g. Normal primes), going longer or wider would massively increase the size and weight. Leica's tele lenses are kept small because they get quite slow, the Summarit 90mm is only f2.5 compared to the 85mm f1.2/1.4 of Canon and Nikon, the 90mm summicron is still only f/2.0 and weighs 500g. The faster Nikon 85mm f1.8G weighs only 350g in comparison.
And when you go to longer lenses you quickly realize not even Leica can break the laws of physics.
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The point is Leica lenses aren't any smaller or lighter than any other lenses when built to the same spec. Adding autofocus and other techniques employed in modern lenses deign will therefore lead to large or slow lenses, as already witnessed for the A7.
I own the LA-EA2 for my NEX 5 and the AF performance is blisteringly quick, equally as quick as my A77 or D7000, I cant see the LA-EA4 being any different. It also works superbly for video.
I cant comment on the metabones system though as I've never used it but at least the option is there.
And how is the continuous AF?
TBH,things might have changed from when I looked in the spring but the combos I played with were simply not usable and the difference between the Nikon 1 and F-adapter and the NEX with alpha adapter were night and day, completely different ballpark.
The way the lens line up look I would except the next lenses to be things like a 28-200mm f/4.5-5.6, a 70-300mm f4.5-5.6 and a few nice mid-aperture zooms, maybe a 50-150mm f/4.0 etc. To keep lenses small they will balance focus lengths, zoom ranges and apertures. With a 35mm f/2.8 already announced I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a 35mm f/1.4.
Best bet would be hope Sigma releases their Art series on this platform.
Continuous isn't bad at all, not fantastic but not un-usable either.
You wouldn't want to use it for pro-level stuff but for general kids / pets / landscapes it's perfect and you at least don't have the horrendous 2.7x crop factor and poxy sensor to deal with like on the Nikon 1.
Though I suppose for wildlife that could be seen as an advantage.
The smaller sensor is what makes the Nikon 1 great, small light lenses and plenty of reach. Sensor design has reached the point where even smaller sensors give excellent image quality f most peoples needs, e.g. The Nikon 1 exceeds the image quality of the earlier DSLRs. Put a 70-300mm on a Nikon 1 and you have the best budget wildlife setup there is.
Well they don't really directly compare apart from they are made by the same company.
These are based on completely different technology with different lens mounts and larger sensors.