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They were there to see the Sony A9 show and to find out what the new camera could do. It turned out that it could do a great deal for a specialist clientele - the people who need to shoot fast-moving subjects in poor light...and to shoot them silently.
Let's dispose of the silent thing first - the camera is equipped with two shutters - one mechanical and one electronic, but unlike other brands, Sony have configured this one to use the electronic shutter for most of the time. They reserve the mechanical one for in-studio shooting with studio flashes at 1/250 of second. The effect outside the studio of using electronic shooting is absolute silence. You can add extra tell-tale sounds from a menu, but if you choose to take pictures with no sound whatsoever, this camera will do it.
Fast? 20 frames per second. And a two-stage electronic juggling act with a new multi-level sensor that allows pretty well unlimited shooting into the buffer, RAW and all. As you shoot, the camera uses some of the signals from the juggling act to show you an uninterrupted view on the EVF - no blackout. This obviates one of the chief complaints about other EVF mirror-less systems during fast shooting. The Sony EVF also has such a high refresh rate that you can see what is happening and shoot it as it actually occurs - not a fraction of a second too late.
Targeting and focusing is massively assisted by a 693-point AF pattern which is virtually 93% of the viewfinder screen. Nothing leaks through your focus trapping. The high rate of calculation that the processor constantly does is the message of the poster on the wall - 60 calculations per second as you shoot.
The basic specs are up with modern mirror-less practice - 24 megapixels, 5-axis stabilisation, twin card slot, etc. A new high point is a fresh design for the Sony battery that doubles its electricity capacity ( and a new battery grip that can run two of the new batteries...) And a more detailed screen in the EVF. Yay!
The target clientele for this sort of camera - the sports shooter and events shooter - is also likely to be connected to the electronic and printed press. As these sorts of sports events demand instant coverage and publishing, this camera is equipped with the necessary electronic network coverage to enable it to pump out the files directly from the camera over wireless links to editorial desks around the world. Whether this is a good thing in terms of artistic integrity is neither here nor there - it is a thing that the industry demands. Olympic games and sports spectaculars are the driving mechanism.
But what drives this correspondent - a noted house body - out on a cold night to Northbridge? The cameras? The food? The beer? No.
It is the opportunity to see a national Sony trainer and one of the Camera Electronic bosses act like geese in front of the camera. And I am happy to say I wasn't disappointed. All you've gotta do is point them in the right direction and they will do the rest.
And everyone else who was there had a darned good time too...These events - cold nights notwithstanding - are a great way to network as well as see the latest gear. They are also an opportunity to score prizes and discounts on the gear featured.
