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The first full frame fixed lens compact camera... Well besides the hundreds that existed back in the film days ;-)[/caption]
Recently Sony Alpha Rumors and Photo Rumors confirmed that Sony will soon be releasing a FULL FRAME, fixed lens, compact camera, the RX1. Over the past several months, I have tried to shy away from rumors because let's face it, there is already a ton of coverage out there. However this story is such a whopper that I had to chime in. For years, hobbyists have spent hours on message forums and comment sections beckoning camera manufacturers to create a truly compact full frame camera. For years this specific request has fallen on deaf ears, but we've still seen all sorts of bizarre cameras such as the Nikon 1 series, the Canon G1X, and the Pentax Q. The rumored price point is $2,700, which is quite high for a compact camera. Fuji took the imaging world by storm with the X100, which was priced accordingly and met with high praise from well respected photographers. So will the Sony RX1 do the same? Or will it simply be thrown atop the massive pile of expensive/impressive, but poorly received Sony baubles. Let's take a look at the specs and I'll throw in my two cents.
Specs (via photorumors)
- 24MP full frame CMOS sensor (same as in the Sony a99)
- ISO range: 100-25,600
- 14 bit RAW processing
- Magnesium body
- AVCHD 2.0 video processing
- 3 in. LCD screen
- Optional optical and electronic viewfinders will be available
- 5 fps
- Zeiss Sonnar 35mm f/2 lens with 49mm filter thread (obviously)
- Price: $2799
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Does this lens make me look fat?[/caption]
This is a camera exclusively for the extreme hobbyist who can't afford a Leica. You could purchase the world beating APS-C Fuji X-Pro1 AND all of the current Fuji X lenses for around the same price that the Sony RX1 is rumored to intro at. When you put it like that, the whole idea just seems stupid. Personally I am obsessed with using a 35mm lens on a full format camera. Since my early days shooting 35mm film, the slightly wider perspective has always seemed more natural to me than the standard 50mm lens. I guess Sony, Fuji, and a whole bunch of other photographers agree with me, but I'm not so sure I'd want to commit $2,700 to only being able to use a 35mm lens. When someone spends this kind of money on a camera, they are investing it into a full fledged and highly expandable imaging system. Meaning they probably already own a few lenses or plan to build their system down the line. When you buy a fixed lens compact camera you have none of that to look forward to. The grand future of the Sony RX1 is well... Selling it on eBay for $800 in a few years. I appreciate the innovation from Sony, they really do a lot of things that the two complacent giants won't. Yet the camera looks very lens-heavy because of the image circle required to cover the area of the full frame sensor. Unless Sony has secretly designed an entirely new interface for their menus, then expect that to be crap as is the status quo for Sony cameras. When it comes to menus, itseems that Sony either expects you to be a programmer or assumes that you are a total moron. Somewhere in between would be nice.
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When you look at it this way, it is clear that the RX1 body is small... Around the same size as the Panasonic GX1. However the lens looks huge for a non-interchangeable 35mm f/2[/caption]
I don't want to sound overly negative, but I am being realistic. While I think Sony really has the wrong price on this full frame beast, the idea itself is wonderful. Like I mentioned, 35mm is indeed my favorite focal length. An aperture of f/2 is plenty fast on a light-thirsty full format sensor and should provide smooth shallow depth of field. This really is something that hardcore enthusiasts have been begging for, but it remains to be seen if it will catch on like the X100. Honestly I think image quality will be supreme, especially at higher sensitivity settings where many mirrorless cameras with smaller sensors tend to struggle. I would love to see more attempts at this type of camera and perhaps it would be best to try the unit itself before continuing to spit my vitriol!