# Off Brand: Sony Announces the A9



## 3kramd5 (Apr 19, 2017)

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<em>Groundbreaking Full-frame Mirrorless Camera Delivers Unmatched Speed, Versatility and Usability</em></p>
<ul>
<li><em>World’s First<span class="green"><sup>1</sup></span> full-frame stacked CMOS sensor, 24.2 MP<span class="green"><sup>2 </sup></span>resolution</em></li>
<li><em>Blackout-Free Continuous Shooting</em><span class="green"><em><sup>3</sup></em></span><em> at up to 20fp</em><em>s<span class="green"><sup>4</sup></span></em><em> for up to 241 RAW</em><span class="green"><em><sup>5</sup></em></span><em>/ 362 JPEG</em><span class="green"><em><sup>6</sup></em></span><em> images</em></li>
<li><em>Silent</em><span class="green"><em><sup>7</sup></em></span><em>, Vibration-free shooting at speeds up to 1/32,000 sec</em><span class="green"><em><sup>8</sup></em></span></li>
<li><em>693 point focal plane phase detection AF points with 60 AF/AE tracking calculations per second</em></li>
<li><em>Extensive professional features including Ethernet port for file transfer, Dual SD card slots and extended battery life</em></li>
<li><em>5-Axis in-body image stabilization with a 5.0 step</em><span class="green"><em><sup>9 </sup></em></span><em>shutter speed advantage</em></li>
</ul>
<p><strong>NEW YORK, Apr. 19, 2017 – </strong>Sony Electronics, a worldwide leader in digital imaging and the world’s largest image sensor manufacturer, has today introduced their new revolutionary digital camera, the α9 (model ILCE-9).</p>
<p>The most technologically advanced, innovative digital camera that Sony has ever created, the new α9 offers a level of imaging performance that is simply unmatched by any camera ever created – mirrorless, SLR or otherwise.</p>
<p>The new camera offers many impressive capabilities that are simply not possible with a modern digital SLR camera including high-speed, blackout-free continuous shooting<span class="green"><em><sup>3</sup></em></span> at up to 20fps<span class="green"><em><sup>4</sup></em></span>, 60 AF/AE tracking calculations per second<span class="green"><em><sup> 10</sup></em></span>, a maximum shutter speed of up to 1/32,000 second<span class="green"><em><sup>8</sup></em></span> and much more. These are made possible thanks to its 35mm full-frame stacked Exmor RS™ CMOS sensor – the world’s first of its kind – which enables data speed processing at up to 20x faster than previous Sony full-frame mirrorless cameras<span class="green"><em><sup>11</sup></em></span>. This unique sensor is paired with a brand new, upgraded BIONZ X processing engine and front end LSI that maximizes overall performance.</p>
<p>This industry-leading speed and innovative silent shooting<span class="green"><em><sup>7</sup></em></span> is combined with a focusing system that features an incredible 693 phase detection AF points. Covering approximately 93% of the frame, the focusing system ensures that even the fasting moving subjects are reliably captured and tracked across the frame.</p>
<p>The new α9 also features a vibration free, fully electronic, completely silent anti-distortion shutter<span class="green"><em><sup>7</sup></em></span> with absolutely no mechanical mirror or shutter noise, making it an extremely powerful photographic tool for any shooting situation that demands quiet operation. To ensure maximum usability and reliability, the camera features a new Z battery with approximately 2.2x the capacity of W batteries, as well as dual SD media card slots, including one that supports UHS-II cards. An Ethernet port (wired LAN terminal) is available as well, and there is a wide variety of new settings, controls and customizability options that are essential for working pros.</p>
<p>“This camera breaks through all barriers and limitations of today’s professional digital cameras, with an overall feature set that simply cannot be matched considering the restrictions of mechanical SLR cameras” said Neal Manowitz, Vice President of Digital Imaging at Sony Electronics. “But what excites us most about the α9 – more than its extensive product specs – is that it allows professionals to see, follow and capture the action in ways that were never before possible, unlocking an endless amount of new creative potential.”</p>
<p><!--more--></p>
<p><strong>A New Standard of Speed and Focusing Accuracy</strong></p>
<p>Critical to the record-breaking speed of the new α9 is the combination of the new stacked 24.2 MP<span class="green"><em><sup>2</sup></em></span> Exmor RS image sensor, new BIONZ X processor and front end LSI.</p>
<p>The immense processing power from these new components allows for faster AF/AE calculation while also reducing EVF display latency. The processor and front end LSI are also responsible for the larger continuous shooting buffer, enabling photographers to shoot at a blazing 20 fps<span class="green"><em><sup>4</sup></em></span> with continuous AF/AE tracking for up to 362 JPEG<span class="green"><em><sup>6</sup></em></span> or 241 RAW<span class="green"><em><sup>5</sup></em></span> images.</p>
<p>The camera’s innovative AF system tracks complex, erratic motion with higher accuracy than ever before, with the ability to calculate AF/AE at up to 60 times per second<span class="green"><em><sup>10</sup></em></span>, regardless of shutter release and frame capture. Further, when the shutter is released while shooting stills, the electronic viewfinder functions with absolutely no blackout, giving the user a seamless live view of their subject at all times<span class="green"><em><sup> 12</sup></em></span>. This feature truly combines all of the benefits of an electronic viewfinder with the immediacy and “in the moment” advantages that not even the finest optical viewfinders can match, and is available in all still image modes including high speed 20 fps<span class="green"><em><sup>4</sup></em></span> continuous shooting.</p>
<p>With 693 focal plane phase detection AF points covering approximately 93% of the frame, the camera ensures improved precision and unfailing focus in scenes where focus might otherwise be difficult to achieve. The Fast Hybrid AF system – pairing the speed and excellent tracking performance of phase detection AF with the precision of contrast AF – achieves approximately 25% faster performance when compared with α7R II, ensuring all fast-moving subjects are captured.</p>
<p><strong>Professional Capabilities in a Compact Body</strong></p>
<p>Sony’s new full-frame camera is equipped with a variety of enhanced capabilities that give it a true professional operational style.</p>
<p>The α9 features an all-new, high-resolution, high-luminance Quad-VGA OLED Tru-Finder with approximately 3,686k dots for extremely accurate, true-to-life detail reproduction. The new Tru-Finder, which is the highest resolution viewfinder ever for a Sony α camera, incorporates an optical design that includes a double-sided aspherical element, helping it to achieve 0.78x magnification and a level of corner to corner sharpness that is simply outstanding. The EVF also utilizes a ZEISS® T* Coating to greatly reduce reflections, and has a fluorine coating on the outer lens that repels dirt.</p>
<p>This all adds up to a luminance that is 2x higher than the XGA OLED Tru-Finder from the α7R II, creating a viewfinder image with a brightness level that is nearly identical to the actual scene being framed, ensuring the most natural shooting experience. The frame rate of the Tru-Finder is even customizable, with options to set it for 60 fps or 120 fps<span class="green"><em><sup>13 </sup></em></span>to best match the action.</p>
<p>The α9 is equipped with an innovative 5-axis image stabilization system that provides a shutter speed advantage of 5.0 steps<span class="green"><em><sup> 9</sup></em></span>, ensuring the full resolving power of the new sensor can be realized, even in challenging lighting. Also, with a simple half press of the shutter button, the effect of the image stabilization can be monitored in the viewfinder or on the LCD screen, allowing framing and focus to be accurately checked and continually monitored.</p>
<p>The α9 also offers an Ethernet port (wired LAN terminal), allowing convenient transfer of still image files to a specified FTP server at high-speed, making it an ideal choice for studio photography, high-profile news and sporting events and more. There is a sync terminal as well, enabling external flash units and cables to be connected directly for convenient flash sync.</p>
<p><strong>New Features for Fast Operation</strong></p>
<p>Sony’s new α9 has several new and updated focus functions that support faster, easier focusing in a variety of situations. The camera features a multi-selector joystick on the back of the camera, allowing shooters to easily shift focus point within the frame by pressing the multi-selector in any direction up, down, left or right when shooting in Zone, Flexible Spot or Expanded Flexible Spot focus area modes. The new model also offers touch focusing on the rear LCD screen for easily selecting of and shifting focus towards a desired focus point or subject.</p>
<p>New for Sony E-mount cameras, the α9 includes the addition of separate drive mode and focus mode dials, plus a new “AF ON” button that can be pressed to activate autofocus directly when shooting still images or movies.</p>
<p>Additional new capabilities include the “AF Area Registration”, which allows frequently used focus area to be memorized and recalled via custom button assignments. There is also the ability to assign specific settings (exposure, shutter speed, drive mode, etc) to a custom button to be instantly recalled when needed. The camera can memorize and automatically recall the last focus point used in a vertical or horizontal orientation as well, instantly switching back to it when that specific orientation is used again.</p>
<p>For enhanced customization, a “My Menu” feature is available, allowing up to 30 menu items to be registered in a custom menu for instant recall when needed.</p>
<p><strong>Double Battery Life, Double Memory</strong></p>
<p>The innovative α9 camera features an all-new Sony battery (model NP-FZ100) with 2.2x the capacity of previous Sony full-frame models, allowing for much longer shooting performance.</p>
<p>Also, based on extensive customer feedback, the new camera offers two separate media card slots, including one for UHS-II media. The same data can simultaneously be recorded to both cards, or the user can choose to separate RAW / JPEG or still images / movies. Movies can also simultaneously be recorded to two cards for backup and more efficient data management.</p>
<p><strong>High Sensitivity and Wide Dynamic Range</strong></p>
<p>The unique design of the α9 image sensor represents the pinnacle of Sony device technology. The 24.2 MP<span class="green"><em><sup> 2</sup></em> </span>full-frame stacked CMOS sensor is back-illuminated, allowing to capture maximum light and produce outstanding, true-to-life image quality. The sensor also enables the diverse ISO range of 100 – 51200, expandable to 50 – 204800<span class="green"><em><sup>14</sup></em></span>, ensuring optimum image quality with minimum noise at all settings.</p>
<p>The enhanced BIONZ X processor plays a large part in image quality as well, as it helps to minimize noise in the higher sensitivity range while also reducing the need to limit ISO sensitivity in situations where the highest quality image is required.</p>
<p>The new α9 also supports uncompressed 14-bit RAW, ensuring users can get the most out of the wide dynamic range of the sensor.</p>
<p><strong>4K Video Capture</strong></p>
<p>The new α9 is very capable as a video camera as well, as it offers 4K (3840x2160p) video recording across the full width of the full-frame image sensor<span class="green"><em><sup>15, 16</sup></em></span>. When shooting in this format, the camera uses full pixel readout without pixel binning to collect 6K of information, oversampling it to produce high quality 4K footage with exceptional detail and depth. Recording is also available in the popular Super 35mm size.</p>
<p>Additionally, the camera can record Full HD at 120 fps at up to 100 Mbps, which allows footage to be reviewed and eventually edited into 4x or 5x slow motion video files in Full HD resolution with AF tracking<span class="green"><em><sup>17</sup></em></span>.</p>
<p><strong>New Accessories</strong></p>
<p>Sony has released a variety of new accessories to compliment the new α9 camera, including:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong><em>NP-FZ100 Rechargeable Battery – </em></strong>high-capacity battery with approximately 2.2x the capacity of the NP-FW50 W-series battery. It also supports InfoLITHIUM® technology, making it possible to view the remaining battery power as both a percentage display and five step icon on the camera’s LCD screen.</li>
<li><strong><em>VG-C3EM Vertical Grip</em></strong> – provides same operation, handling and design as theα9 camera, doubles battery life and allows USB battery-charging via the camera body.</li>
<li><strong><em>NPA-MQZ1K Multi-Battery Adaptor Kit</em></strong> – External multi-battery adaptor kit capable of functioning as an external power supply for four Z series batteries and as a quick charger. Kit comes with two packs of NP-FZ100 rechargeable batteries.</li>
<li><strong><em>GP-X1EM Grip Extension</em></strong> – Grip extender with same look, feel and design as α9 body. Enables more solid hold on camera.</li>
<li><strong><em>FDA-EP18 Eyepiece Cup</em></strong> –eye piece cup with locking mechanism</li>
<li><strong><em>BC-QZ1 Battery Charger</em></strong> –quick-charging battery charger. Charges one new Z series battery in approximately 2.5 hours.</li>
<li><strong><em>PCK</em></strong>–<strong><em>LG1 Screen Protect Glass Sheet – </em></strong>hard, shatterproof glass screen protector with anti-stain coating to prevent fingerprints. Compatible with touch operation and tilting LCD screen</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Pricing and Availability</strong></p>
<p>The Sony α9 Full-frame Interchangeable Lens Camera will ship this May for about $4,500 US and $6,000 CA. It will be sold at a variety of Sony authorized dealers throughout North America.</p>

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## privatebydesign (Apr 19, 2017)

Should we start a go fund me for AvTvM?


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 19, 2017)

privatebydesign said:


> Should we start a go fund me for AvTvM?



Nope, the lenses have mechanical apertures and manual focus = non starter.


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## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

Yowza. More details as it comes in...

- A


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## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

Here you go. $4500 according to DPR.

*Not* integrally gripped as many had presumed. I'm interested to hear the battery life with something like this.

- A


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## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

Press release here (with a lot of detail):

https://www.dpreview.com/news/1308959313/sony-announces-a9-24mp-20fps-high-end-full-frame-sports-camera

- A


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 19, 2017)

Infomercial on the stacked sensor:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=87&v=y9Ui4Z7RAqc


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## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

Idiots. They finally step up to a high fps super rig _and they kept the A7R II general footprint_. Though a grip 'extender' is being sold alongside this rig, the basic grip is both too small and too close to the mount for the larger glass that people buying $4500 cameras will surely use. 

A terrible decision. Who the hell buys a $4500 20 fps professional rig and frets about the overall camera footprint?

Superimposed shot below and a reminder of why that sucks.

- A


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## drjlo (Apr 19, 2017)

If I were a pro requiring high frame rates, this would be veeryy interesting. 
As things stand with me and I suspect most others, the question is Price, and final image/sensor quality when compared to previous A7xxx series when shooting non-moving objects...


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## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

drjlo said:


> If I were a pro requiring high frame rates, this would be veeryy interesting.
> As things stand with me and I suspect most others, the question is Price, and final image/sensor quality when compared to previous A7xxx series when shooting non-moving objects...



If I shoot...

Sports / wildlife = I would consider it. _...after Sony puts out more glass._ I also legitimately question whether that dainty grip so close to the mount will p--- off folks who principally hook huge / fast lenses on there.

Weddings/events = I would consider it. It's now possible to shoot fully silent, but 20 fps is clearly overkill. But surely a $2500-3500 5D4 or D810 is the better move for them unless I make a living off of older adapted glass.

Reportage / photojourno = I would consider it. Small footprint + FPS = a weirdly useful place for that bunch of folks.

Landscape = no. This is not the droid they are looking for.

Portraiture = no. Ditto.

Macro / Product = no. Ditto.

Hybrid stills/video = I want to say _sure_ (full frame 4K w/o crop!) but with all things video, the devil's in the details and we don't know the details yet.

Curious to see what camps of interested parties surface for this thing. In some cases, it's a monster. In others, it's clear that they haven't learned much from the A7 experience and they still haven't bulked up the lens portfolio enough to woo CaNikon folks.

- A


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## Dylan777 (Apr 19, 2017)

Sold my a7s ii. Can't wait to order a9


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## Chaitanya (Apr 19, 2017)

Where are super tele lenses? Where is improved UI? Where is good quality tracking AF(even EOS XXXD do decent job of tracking subjects)? Yeah forgot about lockups of Sony cameras when buffer is being cleared.
Atleast they have increased the size of battery and added Dual UHS-II SD slots.


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## SUNDOG04 (Apr 19, 2017)

I own a 6D and am fine with that (I don't do sports). If I were to have a high end Nikon or Canon and still did not get excellent photos, then I doubt a Sony A9 would be helpful.


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 19, 2017)

Chaitanya said:


> Where are super tele lenses?
> *Good question*
> Where is good quality tracking AF(even EOS XXXD do decent job of tracking subjects)
> *in this camera, presumably, with nearly edge to edge sensors and the processor integrated into the sensor, but the proof will be in the pudding*
> ...


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## xps (Apr 19, 2017)

Maybe an fine addition to use on my 600mm lens. 20fps for birding. Maybe an fast AF and maybe an superb trackingability paired with more than 200 Raw shots.
And this in the range of the 5DIV.

Interesting body, maybe not for carrying and using it with big lenses. But if the IQ will be superb and all adapters work fine, an competitor to some other bodies.


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## H. Jones (Apr 19, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> drjlo said:
> 
> 
> > If I were a pro requiring high frame rates, this would be veeryy interesting.
> ...




As a photojournalist that shoots with a 1DX mark II, this definitely has my attention, but I really don't think this camera will start a revolution or anything yet. 

If there's anything I need as a photojournalist, it's battery life and professional support. 

I'll be interested in hearing how much battery life they can get out of this camera in a typical shoot, but photojournalists didn't go digital to end up having to change batteries as much as we changed film. Missing critical moments is not on the table, and this past weekend I shot a 9-hour wedding on the side with around 5,000+ images with a single battery from my 1DX mark II and still had battery life leftover. 

That said, battery life or not, I doubt Sony will suddenly fix its professional supports problems I consistently hear about from people working with them. 

Ultimately though, size really doesn't matter to most PJs who often use supertelephoto lenses, and to the ones that it does, they typically don't need high FPS anyway and shoot with a 5D mark III/IV. 

As pointed out by other posts, the grip-lens mount distance just looks terrible with bigger lenses as well. I've never found anything about Sony cameras I've tried like the A7R to be ergonomic, and this hasn't changed from that design. 

Another thing that I don't see in the press release is the option for voice memos on images. Maybe I'm wrong, but if it doesn't have that, a lot of the professional sports photogs I know won't make the jump simply for that. When you have voice memos, you can quickly say the play and player and result and tag that to the image, so then when you're editing captions you can get the details immediately. I know that's a bit of a niche feature, however.


EDIT: Just found out from DPReview that the CIPA battery life for the A9 is 650 shots. So.. you can shoot 20 fps for 30 seconds then? Not inspiring confidence. Two batteries would put it up to the CIPA for the 1DX mark II, but the 1DX mark II has consistently been much higher for me than CIPA since I almost never chimp or use life-view, while the A9 would be constantly using the EVF when shooting, especially if it's at 120 fps refresh for sports.


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## rfdesigner (Apr 19, 2017)

H. Jones said:


> EDIT: Just found out from DPReview that the CIPA battery life for the A9 is 650 shots. So.. you can shoot 20 fps for 30 seconds then? Not inspiring confidence. Two batteries would put it up to the CIPA for the 1DX mark II, but the 1DX mark II has consistently been much higher for me than CIPA since I almost never chimp or use life-view, while the A9 would be constantly using the EVF when shooting, especially if it's at 120 fps refresh for sports.



Take a look at the comments, it seems high speed shooting depleates the battery less per shot (no shutter to power & the setup time per shot is minimal).

I suspect the "CIPA" method is something like, AF, check your light levels.. all over several seconds, then take one shot... someone else may know.


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## PureClassA (Apr 19, 2017)

Certainly this is quite the amazing product if we go straight off the specs sheet, but I have to wonder, who the heck is this camera built for? I'm with ahsanford on that one. This is a ton of meat slapped on what appears to be some frail bones. Shooters who require that level of speed are generally wanting a more robust body to fit bigger/faster glass (that sony doesn't really produce). I'm sure that the Sony fans will buy it nonetheless. I'm still quite happy with my DX2 and all the glass available for it. 

The only thing about this to be seen is how well the servo AF works in REAL LIFE (off the specs page). 20FPS isn't worth a damn if the AF can't actually keep up with that.

I'll hold my breath and wait for user feedback before I come to any final conclusions on this one


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## PureClassA (Apr 19, 2017)

Yup, continuous shooting is VERY different. I've previously posted a picture of my 1DX2 screen showing over 10,000 shots fired on ONE battery (LP-E19) with about 7% remaining. This was over about 10 hour period on one day. But yes, I imagine having EVF constantly as you would on MILC would skew the numbers closer together. 



rfdesigner said:


> H. Jones said:
> 
> 
> > EDIT: Just found out from DPReview that the CIPA battery life for the A9 is 650 shots. So.. you can shoot 20 fps for 30 seconds then? Not inspiring confidence. Two batteries would put it up to the CIPA for the 1DX mark II, but the 1DX mark II has consistently been much higher for me than CIPA since I almost never chimp or use life-view, while the A9 would be constantly using the EVF when shooting, especially if it's at 120 fps refresh for sports.
> ...


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## Dylan777 (Apr 19, 2017)

PureClassA said:


> Certainly this is quite the amazing product if we go straight off the specs sheet, but I have to wonder, who the heck is this camera built for? I'm with ahsanford on that one. This is a ton of meat slapped on what appears to be some frail bones. Shooters who require that level of speed are generally wanting a more robust body to fit bigger/faster glass (that sony doesn't really produce). I'm sure that the Sony fans will buy it nonetheless. I'm still quite happy with my DX2 and all the glass available for it.
> 
> The only thing about this to be seen is how well the servo AF works in REAL LIFE (off the specs page). 20FPS isn't worth a damn if the AF can't actually keep up with that.
> 
> I'll hold my breath and wait for user feedback before I come to any final conclusions on this one



From a7r II stand point, AF is excellent for tracking. A9 seems to be even more superior.

I'll put my preorder this Friday. Will let you guys know real user feedback.


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## Hflm (Apr 19, 2017)

Dylan777 said:


> PureClassA said:
> 
> 
> > Certainly this is quite the amazing product if we go straight off the specs sheet, but I have to wonder, who the heck is this camera built for? I'm with ahsanford on that one. This is a ton of meat slapped on what appears to be some frail bones. Shooters who require that level of speed are generally wanting a more robust body to fit bigger/faster glass (that sony doesn't really produce). I'm sure that the Sony fans will buy it nonetheless. I'm still quite happy with my DX2 and all the glass available for it.
> ...


Not really. If the subject approaches you a little too fast the AF can't keep up at all, esp. if you stop down. I use the A7rii and 5div and there is no contest in my experience.

The A9 has some interesting specs. I don't need 20fps (and I doubt most do besides sport pros). But reliable tracking and AF in bad light would be interesting, as I have quite a few excellent Sony FE lenses and would like a silent mode with better capabilities (flicker problems) compared to the A7rii. It is a bit too early to give an opinion. Every time a new Sony A7x camera was introduced, people predicted the doom of Canon based on specs etc. This didn't happen at all, Canon increased market share. So it would be wise to wait and get some important questions answered (e.g. at what point the camera switches from phase detect to contrast detect only (imagine a long lens with TC), what about future long lenses, weather sealing?).


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## privatebydesign (Apr 19, 2017)

Hmm, now they have introduced the 100-400 f4.5-5.6 for $2,500 the $4,500 a9 looks to make a bargain combo of 400mm @ f5.6 for a mere $7,000.

And where is the hate for the fact that there is no 60fps in 4k?


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## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

I'm just amazed that Sony thinks _*yet another body*_ is the missing piece they need to flip all the pros. 

Don't get me wrong, these specs are giggleworthy compared to just about anything else out there. But another new body isn't going to improve their customer service or make pro quality _non-focus-by-wire_ lenses at competitive prices happen.

I wish them well, but they are firehose-blasting 'TECHNOLOGY' at photographers when perhaps they'd like a more robust/reliable/intuitive/flexible/comprehensive system.

- A


----------



## Dylan777 (Apr 19, 2017)

Hflm said:


> Dylan777 said:
> 
> 
> > PureClassA said:
> ...



I don't have any issue with tracking moving subject with a7r II:
https://dylannguyen.smugmug.com/Events/2016-08-02-Sony-FE-70-200-f28/

My last DSLR was Canon 1Dx. I'm now 100% FF mirrorless. The chance of me going back to DSLR is .001%


----------



## Sharlin (Apr 19, 2017)

I'm amused at the number of footnotes. For completeness's sake, missing from the original post:



> 1. As of April 19th, 2017
> 2. Approx. effective
> 3. Electronic shutter mode. At apertures smaller than F11 (F-numbers higher than F11), focus will not track the subject and focus points will be fixed on the first frame. Display updating will be slower at slow shutter speeds.
> 4. “Hi” continuous shooting mode. The maximum frame rate will depend on the shooting mode and lens used. Visit Sony’s support web page for lens compatibility information.
> ...


----------



## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

Sharlin said:


> I'm amused at the number of footnotes. For completeness's sake, missing from the original post:
> 
> 3. Electronic shutter mode. At apertures smaller than F11 (F-numbers higher than F11), focus will not track the subject and focus points will be fixed on the first frame. Display updating will be slower at slow shutter speeds.
> 4. “Hi” continuous shooting mode. The maximum frame rate will depend on the shooting mode and lens used. Visit Sony’s support web page for lens compatibility information.
> 5. “Hi” continuous shooting mode, compressed RAW, UHS-II memory card. Sony tests.



Yep. Fine print on compressed RAW, 'your AF mileage might vary' and 'framerates are dependent on X, Y, Z...' are common with the A7 rigs and the recent A99 II. 

I had to dig eight levels deep in the A99 II manual to piece together that 12 fps + AF constantly working/tracking only works if you can live with compressed RAW files and you are using specific lenses. 

Sony is not out to mislead us, but some sexy launch-day specs are only realized in specific circumstances.

- A


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## NorbR (Apr 19, 2017)

The key is really going to be about the readout speed on that new sensor. If it really is as fast as they claim, and therefore if there's no problem using the electronic shutter for fast action, then it does look like a contender for serious sports shooting. But that's still a big if, imho. 

And if there's any issue with this, then it's a non-starter. The mechanical shutter is not a viable fall back, as it apparently tops out at 5 fps. 

In any case, interesting release, and good to see Sony hunting on Canon's turf. Although I would prefer to see Canon start hunting on Sony's turf, and get going on that mirrorless full frame unicorn 8)


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## Otara (Apr 19, 2017)

"I also legitimately question whether that dainty grip so close to the mount will p--- off folks who principally hook huge / fast lenses on there."

It might, but for the benefits I suspect many will be happy to make the tradeoff, I certainly would if I had the cash, with a tripod and a 500mm+ lens, the grip isnt quite so vital as in other situations and mods would appear in a matter of seconds. I suspect this isnt a 'pro' camera, its a camera for cash rich amateurs, and to make a splash.

And in that regard its going to make waves. Im sticking with Canon for a variety of reasons, but this is the first release thats made me think Sony is really trying.


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 19, 2017)

Sharlin said:


> I'm amused at the number of footnotes. For completeness's sake, missing from the original post:



I *think* I had them in the original post before it was edited to change the title and add the photos. Maybe not, but I intended to.


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## Hflm (Apr 19, 2017)

Dylan777 said:


> Hflm said:
> 
> 
> > Dylan777 said:
> ...


I am not talking about slowly moving subjects at a non-irregular pace. This is quite easy. There are enough reports about this camera's AF in combination with the lenses in keeping up with faster subjects, where the A7rii shows its weakness (esp. from people having switched to A99ii). The A6500 is in a different ballpark and the new A9 probably, too.


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## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

Best Canon burn off of this thread at PP...


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## Jopa (Apr 19, 2017)

Looks decent on paper. IRL - we shall see  Sony is always full of surprises...

Seems like they follow Canon's steps by throwing out S-log from this camera.
I'm also wondering if it just made the A99II obsolete? IMHO it would be more logical to make a sports camera in a standard size body, but assuming they don't have any large telephotos for the E-mount it may actually work for now. The A9II is coming in 6 months anyway.


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 19, 2017)

Jopa said:


> I'm also wondering if it just made the A99II obsolete?



No more than a 1Dxii makes 5DSr obsolete.

If you need the speed, buy A9. If you need the resolution, buy the A99ii.


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## ahsanford (Apr 19, 2017)

3kramd5 said:


> Jopa said:
> 
> 
> > I'm also wondering if it just made the A99II obsolete?
> ...



Side factoid: The A99 II and A9 have about the same MP throughput. 12 fps x 42 MP is not far off from 20 fps x 24 MP.

But why someone who is a detail obsessive would choose a [12 fps rig] + [a pellicle mirror eating a stop of light] + [getting shackled to the A-mount _ad infinitum_] is utterly beyond me. 

I think those who need detail in FF are going to do so with the least strings attached -- they'll either shoot with a 5DS to get the EF portfolio or the A7R II to adapt whatever they want.

- A


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## Jopa (Apr 20, 2017)

3kramd5 said:


> Jopa said:
> 
> 
> > I'm also wondering if it just made the A99II obsolete?
> ...



Well, not quite. The A99II shoots 12fps which is the same as the 1dx (1). It also has better ergonomics, more suitable for large lenses, plus a huge potential to crop. Real PDAF capable EV-4. Now we back to the same tiny A7-style body but extra FPS. I'm really confused...


----------



## Dylan777 (Apr 20, 2017)

Hflm said:


> Dylan777 said:
> 
> 
> > Hflm said:
> ...



Would bird in flight be considered as easy moving subject? I can share another link BIF with a7r II if you interested.

Sports photographers are more likely NOT going to pick 5ds R to shoot sports. That doesn't mean 5ds R can't track moving subject = for a7r II.


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## ahsanford (Apr 20, 2017)

Dylan777 said:


> Sports photographers are more likely NOT going to pick 5ds R to shoot sports. That doesn't mean 5ds R can't track moving subject = for a7r II.



+1. People ought to consider decoupling [frame rate] and [ability to track moving objects] and considering them as separate aspects of performance.

1DX2 = both fps and tracking AF are stellar

My 5D3 = very good AF but at a rather pedestrian 6 fps

A99 II = 12 fps but in some cases the AF is locked after the first frame!

The devil's in the details, but if you are aware of them, you can use your camera to do just about anything. 

- A


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## kaptainkatsu (Apr 20, 2017)

Chaitanya said:


> Where are super tele lenses? Where is improved UI? Where is good quality tracking AF(even EOS XXXD do decent job of tracking subjects)? Yeah forgot about lockups of Sony cameras when buffer is being cleared.
> Atleast they have increased the size of battery and added Dual UHS-II SD slots.



Two slots but only one is UHS-II


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## expatinasia (Apr 20, 2017)

Wow, amazing stats on paper.

I agree with what others have said about the small grip. When you hold the camera for hours at a time with a 400 f/2.8 ii on it you appreciate the large form, grip and easy to rotate from horizontal to vertical with duplicate buttons - even when it is mounted on a monopod.

I am not going to sell my gear for this, but maybe Canon is not targeting me. I am middle aged, so maybe Sony is targeting the newer, younger pros who have not got so much gear. If I were younger and starting out or in my 20s or even 30s I would definitely be looking at this and the glass available.


----------



## ScottyP (Apr 20, 2017)

Wonder what is the max flash sync speed. They don't mention it in the press release, so do we assume it must be in the normal 1/200 to 1/250 range?


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## ahsanford (Apr 20, 2017)

expatinasia said:


> Wow, amazing stats on paper.
> 
> I agree with what others have said about the small grip. When you hold the camera for hours at a time with a 400 f/2.8 ii on it you appreciate the large form, grip and easy to rotate from horizontal to vertical with duplicate buttons - even when it is mounted on a monopod.
> 
> I am not going to sell my gear for this, but maybe Canon is not targeting me. I am middle aged, so maybe Sony is targeting the newer, younger pros who have not got so much gear. If I were younger and starting out or in my 20s or even 30s I would definitely be looking at this and the glass available.



In fairness, Sony is selling a 'grip extender' to get you more finger grip _vertically_, something in the past I've thought of making out of sugru for my 5D3 if it didn't block battery cover, but that isn't going to solve either the big/heavy lens burden or the tight finger-to-lens space I previously spoke of.

- A


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 20, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> expatinasia said:
> 
> 
> > Wow, amazing stats on paper.
> ...



And in fairness that's an embarrassing kludge. They should have made the body bigger.


----------



## ahsanford (Apr 20, 2017)

3kramd5 said:


> And in fairness that's an embarrassing kludge. They should have made the body bigger.



+1000. My point from the beginning. I'm just trying to give an F letter grade on the body decision a kind D- grading based on the extender.

The 'have cake and eat it too' line is the A7 line -- small but loaded with tech. But the A9 specs and pricing seem aimed at people that will only put f/1.4 primes and f/2.8 zooms on it. Give them a body to wield that big glass appropriately!

- A


----------



## 3kramd5 (Apr 20, 2017)

It's kinda like the apple iPhone antenna attenuation death grip. Arbitrary allegiance to a form factor requires an add on for comfortable use.

Dumb.


----------



## NancyP (Apr 20, 2017)

L Bracket!


----------



## Sator (Apr 20, 2017)

NorbR said:


> And if there's any issue with this, then it's a non-starter. The mechanical shutter is not a viable fall back, as it apparently tops out at 5 fps.



If this is true and the mechanical shutter limits you to shooting at 5fps, it could be a problem shooting action because the electronic shutter can introduce motion artefact. Isn't the point of this camera to shoot sports and wildlife? It's not meant to do macro or architectural photography of still life subjects at 20fps after all. 

Next, mirrorless cameras are still exhibiting autofocus performance fall off with longer apertures. It's all very well conducting an AF test shooting your dog running towards you with a 100mm lens, but if what you intend to use this for is shooting sports and wildlife at 300-600mm then you could find your hit rate falling off dramatically. 

Perhaps by the time the a9II comes out next year they will have fixed these issues.


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 20, 2017)

Presumably their story is that the stacked sensor allows readouts fast enough to avoid artifacts from full electric shutter.


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## Woody (Apr 20, 2017)

Very very impressive specs!

PS: Hopefully the A9 does not go down the same path as the Minolta 7D, another camera with high specification (at that point of release), innovative feature set and a very high price tag... before Konica-Minolta exited the camera business and was subsequently acquired by Sony.


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## Dylan777 (Apr 20, 2017)

From off to on ready to shoot needs to be fast for sport cam. Current a7 is not that great. Hope a9 has solved that problem. Fuji xt2 is as fast as dslr.


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## weixing (Apr 20, 2017)

Hi,
Good for Sony user.

Also, Sony not using XQD card on their high speed sports camera?? Hmm... did Sony give up on XQD card??

Have a nice day.


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## rwvaughn (Apr 20, 2017)

Not interested in the least...

1). The mount is too small and too weak to support long lenses/large glass. A number of cases of failed lens mounts support this.
2). The body is too small for large sports lenses.
3). Lack of sufficient native lenses.
4). Poor professional support and product service.


----------



## 3kramd5 (Apr 20, 2017)

^^

I'm not interested in buying; my 1Dx is more appealing to me. Technologically it's very interesting.

But what are you doing, holding your long lenses from the body? Hold the lens. The body and mount are just fine.


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## H. Jones (Apr 20, 2017)

3kramd5 said:


> ^^
> 
> I'm not interested in buying; my 1Dx is more appealing to me. Technologically it's very interesting.
> 
> But what are you doing, holding your long lenses from the body? Hold the lens. The body and mount are just fine.



I own both a 5D3 and a 1DX mark II and have used supertelephotos as well as my 100-400IS II with both, I vastly prefer the 1DX mark II for either. Being able to balance the weight of the 100-400 between two arms vastly improves the handling, but having the taller grip really helps spread your grip out when maneuvering these lenses.

Obviously with a supertelephoto you would break your wrists if you held them by just the body, but even at the extreme of that, it's far more comfortable using them with a bigger body; you want all the support you can get with those things.


--

On another note: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbMBgpktaJs

In this video, the battery is at 48% at 3:25 and goes to 42% by 20:20 while just browsing through the menus. That would work out to about, 5 hours of power on a single battery. Obviously it will probably depend on the uses, but as I said before, using a 120 refresh 3.6 megapixel viewfinder is going to be a drain on a battery, nevertheless moving 20 FPS of 24mp data. Sony also stated the viewfinder is brighter than any other camera, and I can't imagine that doesn't increase the battery draw.


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## Hflm (Apr 20, 2017)

3kramd5 said:


> Presumably their story is that the stacked sensor allows readouts fast enough to avoid artifacts from full electric shutter.


It better should. MY present A7rii is hardly usable in churches during weddings because of banding.


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## 9VIII (Apr 20, 2017)

If I had all the money in the world I would definitely get one of these, it sounds like a lot of fun regardless of what inherent downsides it may have (which probably aren't many).

The biggest question in my mind is still about the ecosystem as a whole, do all the advertised features actually work? Does it suffer any build quality problems?
Why on earth does it still only have one UHS-II slot? Is everyone just supposed to buy two cameras if they want redundant video recording?

I'm betting there's a 90% chance that Full Frame is still not the best way to shoot 4K on the A9.


----------



## Woody (Apr 20, 2017)

9VIII said:


> Why on earth does it still only have one UHS-II slot? Is everyone just supposed to buy two cameras if they want redundant video recording?



From http://www.sansmirror.com/newsviews/sony-goes-further-upscale.html

"Sony set a new record today in their announcement of the new A9 mirrorless camera. Oh, not the shutter speed, frame rate, or other stuff you might be thinking of; the record they set is in the number of footnotes needed in the first 88 words: 9 (actually 10, since they later footnote something that appeared in those first 88 words)...

... while the buffer and frame per second calculations are correct for one card slot, the second card slot is not UHS-II. Why camera makers think this is a good thing to have differing slots when they are constantly performing integrity checks on the disk tables on cards, I don’t know. Basically you’re always limited by the slowest card in the camera. So shooting to both cards at the extremes of what the camera is designed to do is likely to have some downgrading effect, probably mostly on buffer...

So despite all the buzz from Sony that the A9 is a sports-shooter camera, we need to verify that it really does have the necessary focus performance, and Sony needs more lenses for that market ASAP. 

I find plenty that’s very appealing in the A9 specs. But I have to wonder from all the footnotes and all the still small-and-hard-to-find buttons whether Sony has fully dialed in a DSLR-killer yet. Testing will tell. Until then, we can all just drool over the plethora of interesting spec points."


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## serenaur (Apr 20, 2017)

expatinasia said:


> I am not going to sell my gear for this, but maybe Canon is not targeting me. I am middle aged, so maybe Sony is targeting the newer, younger pros who have not got so much gear. If I were younger and starting out or in my 20s or even 30s I would definitely be looking at this and the glass available.



As a 30 year old who's had an A7Sii and Metabones adapter with Canon glass (for my job) for well over a year now - I just bought a 1DXii. Literally placed the order yesterday. This rumoured Sony was sort of on my radar but the 1DXii is everything I need in one package and I'm confident it will be my main camera for years to come.

Using the A7Sii has left me cold since I got it. I mainly use it for video and while some of the features are really amazing (high ISO performance, file sizes vs quality etc), there are just too many problems with it in the field in day to day use *in my personal experience.* Trotting out the old colour science complaint would be easy but other things such as the diabolical battery life, the menu system being a chore to use, having to use adapters (which is a pain in itself) for my lenses, terrible "working" photo performance (likely down to adapter use) etc just mean that I find it very difficult to get excited about this A9 or Sony stuff in general at the moment. I very much welcome this challenge to the camera marketplace though as competition is good for every brand to keep innovating. 

As someone mentioned previously, if you can't take a good photo with any of the existing cameras in this price range then an A9 isn't going to magically improve your photography. In my personal situation this camera would be too much of a compromise out in the field and that is a huge factor in my purchasing decisions.


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## JohanCruyff (Apr 20, 2017)

"Canon is *******".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Various_authors


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## expatinasia (Apr 20, 2017)

serenaur said:


> As a 30 year old who's had an A7Sii and Metabones adapter with Canon glass (for my job) for well over a year now - I just bought a 1DXii. Literally placed the order yesterday. This rumoured Sony was sort of on my radar but the 1DXii is everything I need in one package and I'm confident it will be my main camera for years to come.



You won't be disappointed. My 1DX Mark I is still going strong and I have put it through hell and back on quite a few occasions! Plus there are so many advantages to being with Canon that it's not just about the camera or glass that's available, although granted they are the primary reasons.


----------



## 3kramd5 (Apr 20, 2017)

Hflm said:


> 3kramd5 said:
> 
> 
> > Presumably their story is that the stacked sensor allows readouts fast enough to avoid artifacts from full electric shutter.
> ...



I'll have to check that out. Other than one time to hear if it's really silent, I've never used it due to one of sony's design choices to drop precision by a bit in that mode.


----------



## Hflm (Apr 20, 2017)

3kramd5 said:


> Hflm said:
> 
> 
> > 3kramd5 said:
> ...


If ISO is higher (like in chruches), it doesn't matter whether it is 12bit or 14bit, as one will hardly see a difference. But banding is the bigger issue to me at least.


----------



## PureClassA (Apr 20, 2017)

I was really expecting to see this camera hit with something that looked more like the phoroshopped rumor designs (more akin to a 1DX) with a bigger body designed to balance out against bigger glass, just as you said. I really find it disappointing they decided somewhere along the line to try to offer a full featured "Pro" competitive camera, but still seemingly shove it all inside a compact body.



ahsanford said:


> 3kramd5 said:
> 
> 
> > And in fairness that's an embarrassing kludge. They should have made the body bigger.
> ...


----------



## neuroanatomist (Apr 20, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> But the A9 specs and pricing seem aimed at people that will only put f/1.4 primes and f/2.8 zooms on it. Give them a body to wield that big glass appropriately!



Except that Sony has stated repeatedly* that the main advantage of MILCs is the smaller size and lighter weight. 



*Note that stating something repeatedly doesn't make it true.


----------



## ahsanford (Apr 20, 2017)

neuroanatomist said:


> ahsanford said:
> 
> 
> > But the A9 specs and pricing seem aimed at people that will only put f/1.4 primes and f/2.8 zooms on it. Give them a body to wield that big glass appropriately!
> ...



...and now they've released a sports/wildlife rig that has the grip smaller than 77D that will be asked to wield heavy glass all day. I await the smaller and lighter lenses for such demanding applications.  :

- A


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## neuroanatomist (Apr 20, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> ...and now they've released a sports/wildlife rig that has the grip smaller than 77D that will be asked to wield heavy glass all day. I await the smaller and lighter lenses for such demanding applications.



Sony has this all thought out, they're poised to take over the market as soon as POTUS signs the executive order that no one can have hands larger than his.


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 20, 2017)

I gotta say, the no blackout high frame rate shooting with continuous AF looks slick.

https://youtu.be/_ZXFI-eIXk8



neuroanatomist said:


> ahsanford said:
> 
> 
> > But the A9 specs and pricing seem aimed at people that will only put f/1.4 primes and f/2.8 zooms on it. Give them a body to wield that big glass appropriately!
> ...




They have? I'm not saying you're wrong, and I haven't paid much attention to their campaigns, but usually it's Sony evangelists who make that incorrect case. Smaller form factor is an option, but it's not the main advantage (and in many cases it's not an advantage at all. 

That sounds like something a marketing department farted out without conferring with engineering.


----------



## neuroanatomist (Apr 20, 2017)

3kramd5 said:


> neuroanatomist said:
> 
> 
> > Except that Sony has stated repeatedly* that the main advantage of MILCs is the smaller size and lighter weight.
> ...



For example, in an Amateur Photographer interview with Kimio Maki (Sony's Senior General Manager of the Digital Imaging Business Group):



> AP: Can you summarise the benefit of choosing an Alpha 7-series camera over a DSLR in a single sentence?
> *KM: Size. It’s all about size – it’s smaller and lighter. That’s the main reason of choosing our products.*
> 
> AP: There are still some who prefer the feel of a DSLR and in their hands opposed to a Sony Alpha 7-series camera. What would you say to these photographers?
> ...


(full transcript of interview)


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 20, 2017)

Carry on? Like don't buy our shit?

Again, this is a crazy allegiance to form factor. It's like they don't care to let consumers know about their technological achievements.


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## ahsanford (Apr 20, 2017)

neuroanatomist said:


> KM: If you don’t mind the feel of a camera that’s bigger and heavier please carry on. *If you want to take a lighter and smaller camera, the Sony Alpha 7-series might be preferred.* As long as the quality is the same, smaller and lighter is better I think. That is our policy.



And that's the key phrase. A9 is a new platform 'level'/trimline. An A9 is not an A7 like a 1DX is not a 5D.

Announcing the A9 line was a chance to _shape that product line's identity differently._ Imagine an alternate narrative to this rig:


"We made it bigger and tougher for the demands of professional photographers."


"Fast full-frame lenses need to be larger and heavier than slower lenses, so we gave you a more solid grip to hold the camera."


"We change the control layout to give professionals more dedicated knobs/switches/buttons to make real-time changes more intuitive and faster to perform. This lets you maximize your time looking through the viewfinder to not miss that decisive moment."

You get the idea. The A9 could have been a different animal with a different marketing story that would have resonated better with professionals. Instead, Sony stuck to its guns and put an A7 on steroids. I think that was a bad call.

- A


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## neuroanatomist (Apr 20, 2017)

Sony: "World, if you want bigger, heavier cameras then buy from someone else."

World: "Ok, we will."


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## Jopa (Apr 20, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> You get the idea. The A9 could have been a different animal with a different marketing story that would have resonated better with professionals. Instead, Sony stuck to its guns and put an A7 on steroids. I think that was a bad call.
> 
> - A



That's why I thought the A9 would look much more logical in an A99 style body (even keeping E-mount). So now the A99II looks more suitable for large lenses than the "sports" A9. 
I hope when Canon is ready for a pro mirroless they won't put it into an M-style body


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## Sator (Apr 20, 2017)

More exactly, this 24MP stacked sensor would have made more sense in A mount because they already have decent long telephoto primes for A mount. It would also balance between ergonomically with large telephoto lenses. You would have gotten 20fps shooting with the mechanical shutter and all the advantages that confers. The a9 seems a bit of a waste of an interesting sensor.


----------



## Dylan777 (Apr 20, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> neuroanatomist said:
> 
> 
> > ahsanford said:
> ...



You forgot to add front and back side 

I said before, going to say again. The option going small is there for a7/a9 + FE28, FE35f2.8, FE55, Batis and latest FE85f1.8. You do not need to add heavy f1.4 and 2.8 zoom on it.

Lack of weather sealed and big lenses could spell trouble for A9.


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## ahsanford (Apr 20, 2017)

Sator said:


> More exactly, this 24MP stacked sensor would have made more sense in A mount because they already have decent long telephoto primes for A mount. It would also balance between ergonomically with large telephoto lenses. You would have gotten 20fps shooting with the mechanical shutter and all the advantages that confers. The a9 seems a bit of a waste of an interesting sensor.



1) Nothing is stopping you from putting your A-mount glass on an A9. You can adapt it.

2) A-mount would not attract Canon and Nikon folks like E-mount does, as again, you can adapt your EF glass or FX glass on it.

3) Sony has never delivered more than a... 12 fps mechanical shutter, is that right? There is no 20 fps mechanical shutter ready to go.

4) Eventually a 20 fps setup like this could hit the A-mount someday (with an electronic shutter), but why they'd lead with that instead of E-mount is beyond me. Again: Trying A-mount is a full blown conversion, where E-mount is far less painful to try out.

- A


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 21, 2017)

Plus with a mechanical shutter they have OSPDAF interruption.


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## ERHP (Apr 21, 2017)

I see the comparison images of the A9 vs the 1D X II and D5 and chuckle a bit when I think of people who shoot portrait. Two of the units are quite comfortable to hold and use in that orientation. It kinda brings back memories of when the goal was make cell phones so small you could barely hold them and now we have people walking around with 7" tablets for their phone.


----------



## Cthulhu (Apr 23, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> Sator said:
> 
> 
> > More exactly, this 24MP stacked sensor would have made more sense in A mount because they already have decent long telephoto primes for A mount. It would also balance between ergonomically with large telephoto lenses. You would have gotten 20fps shooting with the mechanical shutter and all the advantages that confers. The a9 seems a bit of a waste of an interesting sensor.
> ...



Nothing except for more money, less performance, compromised weather sealing. Oh, less FPS too, like a quarter of it as of now and half with a rumored firmware upgrade.


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## kaptainkatsu (Apr 24, 2017)

ERHP said:


> I see the comparison images of the A9 vs the 1D X II and D5 and chuckle a bit when I think of people who shoot portrait. Two of the units are quite comfortable to hold and use in that orientation. It kinda brings back memories of when the goal was make cell phones so small you could barely hold them and now we have people walking around with 7" tablets for their phone.



I've been shooting a lot gymnastics lately and I pretty much exclusively shoot in portrait mode, as do most of the other photographers. Having identical ergonomics in both landscape and portrait mode is a huge deal for me.


----------



## photojoern.de (Apr 24, 2017)

As a Canon Shooter, I was tempted moving to Sony because of the sensor and the increasing availability of high quality glass. Until I went to the local camera store and equipped an a7 RII with the 70-200 f2.8 G-Master and the 24-70 f2.8. The camera body is simply too small! The ergonomics of the body together with a quality glass ("L" in terms of Canon, G-Master called at Sony) simply sucks. I have really small hands and fingers which could be of a piano player, but still the body is just too small and you can hardly grab the body at the right hand side. This looks to be the same with the A9, as far as I can see it from pictures.
Another interesting thing regarding the A9: I was very surprised when I realized that it was made for the e-Mount, not for the A-mount. *That means, implicitly, the A-Mount is dead.*


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## ahsanford (Apr 24, 2017)

photojoern.de said:


> Another interesting thing regarding the A9: I was very surprised when I realized that it was made for the e-Mount, not for the A-mount. *That means, implicitly, the A-Mount is dead.*



Everyone said the A-mount is dead after the A7R came out, the A7R II came out, etc. Then the A99-II surfaced.

The FE mount gets the hot stuff first because the mirrorless market is popular for them, and because it allows Sony to court CaNikon shooters (who can adapt the lenses they already own).

But Sony can always jam most of that same technology into a future A-mount rig. For instance, the A99-II is effectively an SLT with the A7R II sensor.

The A-mount is certainly Sony's _second_ most important (stills camera) mount, but I think it will live on. It will just have slower refresh timing than the FE mount.

- A


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 24, 2017)

Cthulhu said:


> Nothing except for more money, less performance, compromised weather sealing. Oh, less FPS too, like a quarter of it as of now and half with a rumored firmware upgrade.



There are already rumored firmware updates? Or is it just a wish list?

I imagine adapter companies can spoof a native sony lens ID to get electronic shutter with third party lenses, but it probably won't perform as well.


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## Dylan777 (Apr 24, 2017)

ahsanford said:


> photojoern.de said:
> 
> 
> > Another interesting thing regarding the A9: I was very surprised when I realized that it was made for the e-Mount, not for the A-mount. *That means, implicitly, the A-Mount is dead.*
> ...


 
Agree, It's hard for them to compete with two primary leaders Canon & Nikon in DSLR.


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## Cthulhu (Apr 25, 2017)

3kramd5 said:


> Cthulhu said:
> 
> 
> > Nothing except for more money, less performance, compromised weather sealing. Oh, less FPS too, like a quarter of it as of now and half with a rumored firmware upgrade.
> ...



What I've heard on interviews is a firmware is being worked on so that A mount lenses can use the electronic shutter. Adapted lenses have to use a 5fps mechanical shutter and don't have access to their continuous autofocus mode.


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## 3kramd5 (Apr 25, 2017)

Cthulhu said:


> 3kramd5 said:
> 
> 
> > Cthulhu said:
> ...



What I've heard on interviews is a firmware is being worked on so that A mount lenses can use the electronic shutter. 

I thought they already could, but only at 10 FPS.


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## LonelyBoy (May 27, 2017)

ERHP said:


> It kinda brings back memories of when the goal was make cell phones so small you could barely hold them and now we have people walking around with 7" tablets for their phone.



The goal was to make cell phones small when they were mainly used for calling or maaaaaaybe light text messaging. For a lot of us, the voice part is about the fifth most important thing a cell phone does these days. At best. And the other things are improved by being larger.


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