Nex 6

[bwcolor]

My wife just received her NEX-6 last night and I can say that I see where the NEX-7 is going next iteration. It is a bit faster to autofocus than my "7" and the wifi has potential if they ever support uploading to a network drive. My wife is an auto everything and so I set it up that way. I didn't even realize that the NEX-7 had the same feature. Used 'P' a few times, but that was about it. The intelligent auto seems to work nicely. Also, picked up a Vello NEX-5 glass LCD cover.. works great and the Sony leather case. The case is really nice. I think the smaller kit lens is a real winner, except that the front element of the lens is right up front .. ready to be scratched. I'm hoping that the video can go thirty minutes without overheating. My NEX-7 is unpredictable with regards to overheating. No microphone input. Also, needed to pickup a Sony hotshoe adapter to use the camera with my Metz 50 AF-1, which is a very nice and flexible flash unit. So far, the '6' looks like a very nice camera. My wife is coming from a Canon DSLR.. which she never used because she had to learn how to use it... and then a Canon G7, which she liked. So, point and shoot all the way for her.

I have one criticism and if I'm off-base then let me know. I can't understand providing WiFi connectivity and not being able to upload manually, or automatically to a network drive. I just want to have the files uploaded so that I can process the raws for my wife. It would be nice to just have them sitting on the drive without any intervention from me. My wife will never and I mean never upload a memory card.. Her shots would stay on her G7 until I managed to transfer the JPGs.

 

[kxl]

I would think that Sony should be able to remedy that with a simple firmware upgrade. Until then, you can use the Sony PlayMemories app.

With the Sony PlayMemories app loaded on a compatible Apple iOS or Android device, you can connect to the NEX-6 via Wi-Fi and send selected images and videos to the mobile device.

I have one criticism and if I'm off-base then let me know. I can't understand providing WiFi connectivity and not being able to upload manually, or automatically to a network drive. I just want to have the files uploaded so that I can process the raws for my wife. It would be nice to just have them sitting on the drive without any intervention from me. My wife will never and I mean never upload a memory card.. Her shots would stay on her G7 until I managed to transfer the JPGs.

 

[bwcolor]

With the Sony PlayMemories app loaded on a compatible Apple iOS or Android device, you can connect to the NEX-6 via Wi-Fi and send selected images and videos to the mobile device.

That isn't where I want the files sent. I don't use low powered devices to process raw files.

 

[peter_n]

Also, picked up a Vello NEX-5 glass LCD cover.

Terrific cover, recommended to all NEX owners.

 

[kai.zorki]

It is too small for my liking, but i think a 5d has just the right size, so i might not be in the maket group. The xe-1 is better in terms of handling.

 

[Monochrom]

Hi, for a a few months i had a nex plain 5....impressive camera...let it go ´cos the propietary sony lenses were not so great optically...and the camera shaked just too much when using it as movie cam.

Any way the movie files were excellent..

The nex 5n, 6 and 7 has better movie capabilities and a EVF...hope the 35 1.8 lens si good enough to buy another one...

 

[viboons]

I got my NEX 6 last Friday and did some practice on 50mm ZM Sonnar and 90mm Elmarit-M. It's a lot easier to focus than XP-1.

 

[peter_n]

It's a lot easier to focus than XP-1.

That was also my final choice and I had the same reaction in the store. A lot easier to focus with manual lenses, which is what I use on mine.

 

[kxl]

Very nice - I love Sonnars.

I got my NEX 6 last Friday and did some practice on 50mm ZM Sonnar and 90mm Elmarit-M. It's a lot easier to focus than XP-1.

 

[rdeleskie]

Purchased a Sony NEX-6 last Friday. I had a 5N with the EVF before that but never bonded with it, although the sensor seemed to produce very good images.

The NEX-6 seems so much more useable to me. The grip is a little tight (to the extent where it may be a problem for people with above-average fingers), but the additional buttons and integrated EVF make it, frankly, a pleasure to use. I've worked my way through the EPL1, EPL2, GF3, GH2 and NEX5N, and this is the best handling "small" interchangeable lens digital camera I've laid hands on. The ISO hotshoe and built in flash (which I use for outdoor fill, and which can be bounced like the EPL1 and 2) make the camera an excellent package for me.

I haven't had a chance to do anything with my M mount lenses other than shoot a few tests, but performance seems identical to the 5N, which was that camera's saving grace for me.

The 16-50mm lens seems serviceable. The breakthrough here is its size: it actually makes the NEX-6 about as big as I remember my EPL1 being. I can carry the camera in a winter coat pocket, or in the courier bag I sling around everywhere. I found the old 18-55 made the 5N just a little too big for my purposes. I'll probably hang on to the 16-50 just for conveniences' sake. Images look fine in jpeg mode, but there is significant distortion that needs to be corrected in RAW. Fine, it will be my jpeg/walk around/hand it to friends and family for a snapshot lens.

I also picked up the SEL 35mm 1.8. This is an interesting lens. It's not a pancake, but is reasonably proportioned to the body. Construction seems good. Early going is positive, and the images appear crisp and competent. I feel it's over-priced at $500 CDN though. I *think* it's focused a little in front of my target in low-light conditions -- more testing required -- but seems to focus quickly and accurately in good light.

Video is of little interest to most members on this board I realize. But I have done some testing for myself. I find the camera produces moire and aliasing with alarming frequency, certainly compared to my GH2, and more than I noticed with my 5N (which I no longer have to accurately compare). However, shooting in portrait mode at -3 sharpness, -3 contrast and -3 saturation helps a little. 60p/28Mbps also seems to help, as does the usual trick of slightly defocusing the background. Used for narrow DOF video images, the camera is excellent. Long wide shots of telephone wires and brick buildings? Not so much. No mic input, though I'm sure Sony won't let that fancy *new* hotshoe go without accessories for long.

In short I am very pleased with this camera. Handling for me is better than what I got from my m4/3 outfits (the built in EVF makes all the difference), and I find it an excellent backup to my M8. It's fun to shoot with adapted glass. I know it's not a rangefinder, and the Fuji cameras offer a more "authentic" retro experience (no disrespect intended), but the NEX-6 really feels like a 21st century take on rangefinder-style shooting, in terms of size, simplified controls vs a SLR, handling, ease of manual focusing, and camera-to-eye experience.

The big hurdle is native lens selection, but that is slowly improving. For me, NEX has arrived, and I have no qualms about investing in more lenses *when* they become available. (I was never completely convinced by the 5N, and so didn't pick up any lenses other than the kit, though I foolishly purchased several of the "accessory port" add-ons, which I now have to dispense with).

A new camera purchase can be a little like a new romance, and the bloom may fade. But the fundamentals of this camera are very good IMO. My biggest qualm has to do with the video, which I don't think will be an issue for the majority of members here.

 

[z.bruce.li]

Like rdeleski, I really appreciate the EVF for manual focus lenses using focus peaking. I was not a big believer of EVF for framing purpose and it was not one of the main reasons I went for NEX-6. But after trying the EVF for using manual focus lenses, I'm sold! And it surely helps to steady the camera by using EVF.

In addition, the DMF (Dynamic Manual Focus) function works very well on PZ 16-50 pancake lens. Very useful for critical focus in macro photography, and it is magnified automatically when you start to turn the ring on the pancake.