Sony Alpha NEX5K/B Digital Camera with 18-55mm Interchangeable Lens - Black

People, I LOVE this camera. I bought it thinking there was an 85% chance I was going to return it, but am happy to tell you that as soon as I uploaded my first pictures, I was smitten. I was most worried about picture quality, because I had previously owned a Sony a200 and a700, and ended up selling both for a Canon and Nikon, because the picture quality just wasn't up to snuff. My most recent camera was a D300s and I would say that the nex5 performs almost as well as it in most situations and even better in a few. And the nex5 video blows the D300s out of the water! Obviously everyone has different needs and preferences from their camera so all I can do is tell you what my needs were and why the nex5 is so great for them.

The picture quality was the most important thing for me, which was more than adequate so the next most important criteria was the LCD. The LCD on my D300s was a complete joke, as I couldn't see squat on that thing in even moderate sunlight. This was extremely frustrating but since it was based on an OVF anyway, I just dealt with it. But I started my photography in this digital age on a Canon S2IS which had a swivelling screen and full-time live-view, and honestly, I've missed that method of taking pictures ever since I moved up to dSLR's. The two things that I wanted most out of the LCD on the nex5 were adequate visibility in bright sunlight, and real-time exposure compensation, so that you know EXACTLY what your picture would look like before you take it. It passed both of these tests with flying colors. The second day I had it, my wife and I went fishing on the river, in the afternoon sun. Live view photography would have been impossible on my D300s but I had no problems with the nex5. Understand that it will get a little washed out, but I was still able to compose as well as I needed and set exposure almost spot on. When I got home and uploaded my pics, this was confirmed for me as they just looked amazing. The best part about it was knowing that I wouldn't have gotten any of those shots with my D300s, simply because I wouldn't have brought the dang thing because I already had a bunch of stuff to carry. The sony just fit in my pocket (cargo pocket, with 18-55) and was out of the way until needed.

The other great things about this little guy are the ISO performance, which is ridiculous (better than D300s) and the high-speed continuous mode. Just to be straight on this, it will take 7, full-resolution photos a second, but locks exposure and focus. If you want it to refocus and adjust exposure, the best it can do is about 2 1/2. Of course there's the panoramic mode (haven't tried it), HDR mode (don't like it), and twilight mode (don't like it). Oh yeah, and I love the detachable flash which is solid as a rock when attached, but since I hardly ever do flash-photography, I love to be able to get it out of the way for the majority of the time.

For me this is the best camera on the market right now. I tested it against the Lumix G2 and thought the picture quality is noticeably better on the Sony (I do think focus is faster on the G2 though certainly a great camera too), not to mention the form factor is so much smaller! But, with all that said, I fully plan on selling it in the fall when the new batch of cameras come out because there are a few things that the nex5 doesn't have that I desperately want.

First of all, the menu sucks. There's no way around it if you ever try to change the settings, you are going to be frustrated by it. I could live with that, but there are other things missing. As good as the LCD is, I really want an EVF, even if I have to have a slightly larger body. I also really need just a few more buttons, namely: ISO, Focus lock, AE lock, but I do like the minimalist approach, because I absolutely hate the millions of buttons that Canon and Nikon throw on their cameras. As I mentioned, the video is very good, and although it does have an exposure control, so you can increase or decrease the brightness by two stops at any time (kind of neat), I need full manual control over video. The only other things that I don't really like are just nagging things that I could live with, but I'm hoping will improve in my next purchase, they are: battery life, screen blackout, and shutter noise. Battery life goes really fast on this camera and spares are ridiculously priced at $70, but I can understand that it takes a lot of juice to run that screen, so I could live with it. The screen does black out when you take pictures for what seems just a hair too long. It's not terrible, and for a $700 camera it's actually very good, but it's just something that would bother me in the long run. The shutter is surprisingly loud. The first day I got it I took a picture of my wife taking a nap on the couch and it actually woke her up! I'm not saying it sounds like a freight train, but unfortunately, I love taking incognito pictures in crowded places and would definitely have to be a little more careful with this little guy.

So, all in all, this is my favorite camera I've ever owned. I mention that I plan on selling it only because I know that the evolution will be to bring more and more functions to this small sized, mirrorless style camera, otherwise I wouldn't. If I had to choose between every camera out there right now, I'd choose this one every time. But I'm keeping a keen eye out for the nex7 and gh2 that should be coming out this fall, and guess that one of those cameras will be pretty much perfect for me.

UPDATE

Now that they've started manufacturing adapters for the NEX, I got myself a Canon FD lens adapter which has really taken the camera to a whole new level. Understand that you will only have manual focus with any adapter but Sony makes it very easy by dedicating the bottom button to MF Assist which zooms in so you can make sure that your focus is sharp! Even though some of the lenses dwarf the tiny little NEX, it still handles very comfortably and efficiently. If you love this camera but are frustrated with the selection (or lack of) of lenses, check out the options on ebay those old lenses are a real bargain now.

I figured I'd share my thoughts for the vast majority of people who most likely purchase some things like I do. We have a 10-month old and my wife and I wanted a camera that would allow us to take awesome pictures. DSLRs were too big to lug around and after reading the specs and seeing the Olympus and Panasonic I decided to hold off until this Sony came out. Very happy that we did. This camera makes you feel like a professional photographer. Don't worry about trying to get that one shot, I just hold the button down and grab tons of photos hoping to get the kid posed with the right facial expressions. We've taken it to the beach, outside in the yard, in the house, etc. and the photos are stunning.

Then there is the absolutely undeniable "coolness factor" of having this camera in your hand as you are snapping photos. It is so small compared to anything else that you are just amazed as to how it feels perfect in your hands. I held the NEX-3 and it's garbage compared to this one. It's not just the difference in movie quality, the NEX-5 has superior quality to the NEX-3 when you play around with them. They shouldn't even sell the NEX-3 when you compare how much worse it feels in your hand. You still hold the lens like a professional would and I love the LCD compared to a viewfinder. Since you can bend it all over the place even in crazy light you can still see the image. Cannot wait to take this on vacation.

The videos are breathtaking. Yes they are amazing. The camera does it's best job trying to auto-focus and there is an occasional time where the video might go out of focus, but even with manually zooming in and out the quality and focus seem to stay extremely well. Keep in mind that since the LCD is your viewing option you may notice your breathing over the audio of the video depending on how you hold it. Didn't bother me though once I corrected for it.

Don't open the box and just expect to start taking amazing photos if you've never had a camera like this before. But it doesn't take long to get adjusted and make your wife wonder why you ever wasted money on a professional photographer. It'll pay for itself within a few years.

As far as I am concerned the target audience for this camera is families or individuals who are sick of crappy photos with a point and shoot. If you want to be a camera snob and dissect the features it has or doesn't has, that's your choice. But I'll never use half the stuff on here and if I do figure it all out, then I'll probably be obsessed with a really nice DSLR and photography as a whole. But I'll always love this camera.

The panoramic mode is really nice too and this camera has taken it from gimmick feature to legitimate. Haven't had a chance to play with 3D yet but that's a gimmick right now and I really could care less.

If you want a small, really cool, well built camera that takes unbelievably awesome pictures and 1080p video...buy the NEX-5!

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Years ago I was a serious amateur photographer using the best SLR gear available. I've been point-and-shoot for the last decade, largely because professional quality DSLRs were quite expensive and too big & heavy to take along on hikes and trips. The Sony NEX5 enticed me to upgrade from my Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ5 (a very good point and shoot). Based on the specs and the initial reviews, the NEX5 seemed to have everything I wanted and needed: small size and weight, interchangeable lenses including lenses from other cameras with adapters, manual control of aperture/ISO/shutter speed when desired as well as sophisticated automatic controls, big CMOS sensor, reasonable price, and SONY reputation for quality. HD video is a nice feature as well.

I've used the camera for the last month. If I had it to do all over again I would wait for the next version or the next offerings from other companies. It isn't that I don't like the camera -it is fun and I'm still likely to string it around my neck when I go out for walk. But it falls short of what I want in several areas:

1) No viewfinder. The LCD display is big and bright, but if you're outdoors with a bright sun on the display you simply cannot see what you're shooting. If you're in automatic mode, you can shoot a bunch of shots and probably will find what you want somewhere in there, but if you're making any manual adjustments or using a lens from another camera, forget it. For me this is a fatal flaw.

2) Useability with other lenses. I have a large collection of high quality Pentax k-mount lenses from my serious amateur phase. How great, I thought, to be able to mount these on the NEX -I'll have great glass and I won't need to buy more lenses. So I bought a K to NEX adapter (about $25 on eBay). I knew would have to manually focus my old lenses on the NEX body, but I had to manually focus them when they were on my Pentax film camera, so I thought that would be fine. In fact, this works well with a short lens and a stationary object. Thus with a 55mm f1.4 Pentax lens and flowers as the subject, I can get some wonderful pictures with the NEX. But I'm mostly a wildlife and landscape photographer where a longer lens is necessary. Slap a 200mm telephoto lens or a big zoom on the NEX and you've got problems of two types. First there is blur because SONY builds its image stabilization system into the lens rather than into the NEX body. So with a 3rd party long lens there is no compensation for hand shake, and your hand will shake with a long lens. Second, you have to manually focus using the LCD display, but see my first point. The only way the NEX will work well with a long lens from another camera system is if you use a tripod, have a stationary subject, and can shield the LCD display from bright sun. This means that if you want to use your NEX for anything that requires a lot of magnification, e.g., sports, birds, many types of landscape, you'll have to pay $800 for the NEX 18-200mm zoom, which isn't available anyhow. When you add $800 for a usable long zoom lens to $700 for the NEX5 kit, you've moved into a price point where you may be better off buying a Pentax or Canon system camera where used lenses and 3rd party lenses are readily available.

3) Menu system. Yes, Sony has improved the menu system with a firmware upgrade, but you still have to click your way through menus on the LCD screen to set anything manually, whereas on other digital SLRs and many high end point-and-shoots there are buttons on the camera body devoted to particular functions. This is a killer on the NEX because there isn't a viewfinder. So you've got a nice shot composed on the LCD screen of the NEX and you would like to increase the exposure -stop, open the menu system on the LCD screen, switch to aperture priority mode, recompose your picture if your subject is still there, stop again, adjust the aperture using the dial on the NEX body and get the readout on the LCD screen, recompose your picture and if the subject is still there: shoot. On a SLR digital camera with a viewfinder and a dedicated button for aperture control you would compose the picture, adjust the aperture with your thumb, and shoot. The menu system won't get in the way of your use of the NEX if you're going to use it only in automatic mode. But if you want to treat it like a real DSLR, forget it.

4) Service. The battery charger that came with my NEX-5 kit, died after the first use. I've spent maybe 3 hours on the phone with various SONY support people and after nearly a month of waiting have been promised that a replacement unit is in the mail to me. Here is a more or less verbatim version of one of my interactions with SONY support:

Me: I was told a week ago that a replacement was being mailed but I've check online with the order number I was given and can't find a record of it.

SONY: We were having problems with our system a while back and maybe your order was lost

Me: Then please place a new order

SONY: Okay, but I'm technical support. You'll need to speak to customer support to get that done.

Me: Can you transfer me.

SONY: You'll have to phone them during regular business hours.

Me: When are regular business hours

SONY: M-F

Me: (It's Saturday morning). Given that you've lost my order and I'm sitting here with a new camera I can't use because the battery has run down, you'll have to do better than telling me to start over on Monday. I would like to speak to a supervisor.

SONY: I understand your concern. It will be best if we move this up to the next level -SONY customer relations.

Me: Great. Can you transfer me.

SONY: I can't because they're only open during regular business hours.

I gave up and ordered a third party battery charger from Amazon that arrived in two days.

The bottomline: If you want the nicest and coolest point-and-shoot our there and don't need a lot of magnification for distant scenes or sports, buy the NEX. You'll like it. If you want a light DSLR for serious photography, wait until SONY or another company gets it right.

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I've had the Sony NEX-5 for a little over a week now. I have it with both the 18-55mm and the 16mm. I chose the black body which I think contrasts well with the silver lens. I prefer the 16mm because it has a nice 2.8 aperture which gives me better low light performance.

The camera is fantastic. It feels solid in your hand and the sound of the shutter and vibration of the camera make you want to shoot photos with it. Overall build quality is great. (The body is metal with a plastic grip.)

The controls on the camera are good, but not great. The dedicated video button is nice and I like the location of the playback and power buttons on top. The LCD screen on the back tilts but I haven't had a need to use it much.

The LCD menu controls are probably the biggest limitation on this camera. It is not easy to work with this camera in manual mode and getting to a particular feature can take a lot of scrolling and clicking.

The photos I produce with this camera are excellent. The video is also quite good.

Low light performance is good and I've never had a need for the supplied flash.

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Let me start by saying that I LOVE this camera... as a still camera. The photos it shoots are very impressive. The lenses, though currently limited in range, are very nice (I have them all.) I love the small, compact size, the progressive engineering and innovative technology. As a still camera, I think the NEX 5 is a thing of beauty.

...The problem is that they also promise that it shoots video and it does in short bursts that aren't too close together. The Sony spec states that you can shoot 29 minutes of video at a time. What they don't say is that the reason you can only shoot in limited amounts is because the camera is prone to overheating. They also don't tell you that to get 29 minutes of shooting time out of it you have to shoot in a refrigerator.

I took it to a Mardi Gras Indian Jazz Funeral Second Line in New Orleans yesterday to try out the video feature. I chose this camera over my NEX VG10 because the NEX 5 is smaller, more discreet and easier to manage in a crowd. It's summer in New Orleans and about 100 degrees so I made sure I kept my shots short under 5 minutes and I tried to give the camera some cooling time in between shots. I thought my conscientious method of shooting would prevent the camera from even coming close to overheating, but I was so wrong. After about an hour of shooting on and off, the procession stalled and I found a perch on top of some stairs with a great vantage and waited in the direct sun for the procession to start up again. I had been waiting about 10 minutes with the camera on standby when the procession started rolling. I shot for about 6 minutes, getting the best footage I had gotten all day. I hit the record button to turn off the recording and I got a message that the camera had overheated. It lost my footage!

I took the lens off so it would cool down faster and ran five blocks to get ahead of the procession again and to try to find another high vantage point. Finally I found a pick up truck and jumped up on the back bumper, reattached the lens and hoped for the best when I turned the camera back on. I shot for about three minutes, but the moment was lost it was so hot that the crowd had dwindled considerably.

I'm sure that under better conditions the results would be much better, but I would never try to push 29 minutes of video out of this camera I'd be afraid it would melt the sensor! If you're considering this camera because you want a high quality still camera that you can also use for HD video, be forewarned that you'll have to manage your video shooting very carefully and it may crash in the middle of your video shot. I certainly wouldn't use it to shoot video for anything important.

I would only consider it usable for video in optimum conditions cool weather conditions or indoors and only for very, very short bursts with plenty of cooling time in between with the lens off the body to help dissipate the heat.

I've attached the video that I shot yesterday. The quality is very nice: good saturation, adequate auto white balance and decent audio if you buy the Sony ECMSST1 mic that fits on the smart shoe. Though the NEX lenses have image stabilization, for video it's minimal at best.