Sony A9: Is Canon doomed ?

I really like the way they designed that 400mm lens, moving the weight center back farther towards the camera has to help almost as much as the lower weight.

This is great, thanks for sharing!

From all the test that have been done on the lens already. Just because it was just announced doesn't mean people haven't had access to the lens. Just google a bit. For example one test was done was to see what the impact of the lens was on FPS speed. Everyone know that a cameras claimed FPS is just a relative number - the speed of the focus of the lens plays a huge role. When tested the Canon and Nikon came in at between 80% and 90% of their claimed fps speed when mated with their respective 400s. The Sony A9 mated with the Sony 400 came in nearly at 100% of the cameras rated 20 fps. The reasoning given was that new design of the focus mechanism has far less travel in it.

And this is completely reasonable. When the Canon and Nikon variants were designed there were two factors. No one expected a lens like this would need to focus at films 24 frames per second. No one was thinking of using a Canon 1D for video when the lenses were first designed. Second, when those lenses were born no thought was given to need to resolve to 42 mpx. I remember debates here on this sight that over 20 mpx on a 35mm format sensor was impossible. We now know most of those assumptions were way wrong. Current design specs for Sony I have read say that glass needs to be designed to support and resolve to support over 80 mpx, and support video modes of at least 60 fps.

When Canon and Nikon's variants were designed there were no specs demanding they support these numbers. The engineers did what they needed to do - and no more - to keep cost down. Hence why the Sony is 2 grand more.

Most shooters will not be trying to shoot 20 fps at 42 mpx. They will most likely not have that requirement. But the Sony was built to support those requirements... you just pay for it. It is not a bash against Canon nor Nikon. And you can rest assured that future release from these two will support those numbers. They just don't now.... which is ok because most shooters don't need that - yet.

I am new to photography but have been in Information Technology and networking for 30 years. The one thing about Sony that concerns me is that I have seen them move into various markets like laptops and desktop PC’s where they built some really nice equipment. It was not the absolute best or quickest, but it ran good and did the job. Then they seem to disappear and then show up again in the cell phone market, where again they build some of the best phones out there and become major players, then over time they disappear only to show up again somewhere else, like now it seems to be cameras. They are building some extremely nice cameras while also selling their top of the line sensors to everyone from drone maker Autel to DJI. My question is this, for how long? I believe that is why DJI purchased a major stake in Hasselblad cameras. Now they own a company where they don’t have to depend on Sony. I don’t know why Sony does this, look at the gaming market, they come out with the PS4 which is outstanding, but since it’s release there has not been a lot done. Meanwhile Microsoft has applied updates to the X-Box and even Nintendo came out with the Switch. My big concern is that Sony will draw a huge amount of clients to their excellent cameras, build a few nice lenses and then move on to something else and the cameras become “just another Sony product”. That’s why I like Canon and Nikon, yes they do other things as well, like medical imaging, etc. but the bulk of their business is cameras. I’ve called Sony on a handheld gaming unit I had from them for service and also on a top end laptop, the support was “blah” at best. I had my 70D and dropped it at a sporting event. One phone call and it was squared away, and no I am not one of those paying for their top end service tier. I almost purchased the Sony camera, but I just want some reassurance that they will still be there in 5 years, or will their be another shift inside the company where they start to focus more of their energies on televisions or surround systems. Cameras at the level of what they’re doing right now are targeted at a limited audience. For most people, their cameras in the Apple IPhone or Samsung phone is more then enough. We shall see.

Hook1230 wrote in post #18667437
I am new to photography but have been in Information Technology and networking for 30 years. The one thing about Sony that concerns me is that I have seen them move into various markets like laptops and desktop PC’s where they built some really nice equipment. It was not the absolute best or quickest, but it ran good and did the job. Then they seem to disappear and then show up again in the cell phone market, where again they build some of the best phones out there and become major players, then over time they disappear only to show up again somewhere else, like now it seems to be cameras. They are building some extremely nice cameras while also selling their top of the line sensors to everyone from drone maker Autel to DJI. My question is this, for how long? I believe that is why DJI purchased a major stake in Hasselblad cameras. Now they own a company where they don’t have to depend on Sony. I don’t know why Sony does this, look at the gaming market, they come out with the PS4 which is outstanding, but since it’s release there has not been a lot done. Meanwhile Microsoft has applied updates to the X-Box and even Nintendo came out with the Switch. My big concern is that Sony will draw a huge amount of clients to their excellent cameras, build a few nice lenses and then move on to something else and the cameras become “just another Sony product”. That’s why I like Canon and Nikon, yes they do other things as well, like medical imaging, etc. but the bulk of their business is cameras. I’ve called Sony on a handheld gaming unit I had from them for service and also on a top end laptop, the support was “blah” at best. I had my 70D and dropped it at a sporting event. One phone call and it was squared away, and no I am not one of those paying for their top end service tier. I almost purchased the Sony camera, but I just want some reassurance that they will still be there in 5 years, or will their be another shift inside the company where they start to focus more of their energies on televisions or surround systems. Cameras at the level of what they’re doing right now are targeted at a limited audience. For most people, their cameras in the Apple IPhone or Samsung phone is more then enough. We shall see.

Hasselblads latest mirror less uses Sony sensors so I'm thinking DJI did not acquire Hasselblad to escape from Sony.

Big problem with large corporations where most of the corporations revenue come from cameras is the photography market has been shrinking by lots the last 5 years...we've seen signs of money issues within the Nikon corporation already.

Canonuser123 wrote in post #18656649
I really like the way they designed that 400mm lens, moving the weight center back farther towards the camera has to help almost as much as the lower weight.

Same, plus they are 2lbs lighter than Canon or Nikon on top of it which is a HUGE difference on this type of lens!

I hope the tech makes it down into some more affordable lenses, but this is one well designed super tele

Rumors are talking about a 200-600 as well as a pair of 500 and 600 f/5.6 primes, I'm really hoping the 200-600 is like the Nikon 200-500 or Sigma 150-600 in price, if so it will be a top priority for me...

Right now im falling so in love with my A7 I AM really considering getting rid of my Canon setup..the only hold off is the MC-11 performance at the moment...

Some people have been incorrectly predicting the demise of Canon for how many years now? They just celebrated their 15th consecutive year of the most ILCs sold and they just passed Sony to take 2nd place for most mirrorless sales in Japan. Once they release their FF mirrorless camera and better APS-C version, they should easily blow past the competition in sales and rather quickly. Canon isn't going anywhere. If I had to bet on one of the major players being out of the business in the next 3-5 years, it would be Sony. They were getting slaughtered in DSLR sales by Canon and Nikon and were smart to go all in on mirrorless, especially FF because they had no competition and cornered that market by default. Once Canon and Nikon get into it, Sony will be done but thats ok, they are far more successful making video games anyways.

Mbell1975 wrote in post #18667800
Some people have been incorrectly predicting the demise of Canon for how many years now? They just celebrated their 15th consecutive year of the most ILCs sold and they just passed Sony to take 2nd place for most mirrorless sales in Japan. Once they release their FF mirrorless camera and better APS-C version, they should easily blow past the competition in sales and rather quickly. Canon isn't going anywhere. If I had to bet on one of the major players being out of the business in the next 3-5 years, it would be Sony. They were getting slaughtered in DSLR sales by Canon and Nikon and were smart to go all in on mirrorless, especially FF because they had no competition and cornered that market by default. Once Canon and Nikon get into it, Sony will be done but thats ok, they are far more successful making video games anyways.

I highly doubt Sony will be gone. Very highly doubt it.

KenjiS wrote in post #18667758
Same, plus they are 2lbs lighter than Canon or Nikon on top of it which is a HUGE difference on this type of lens!

I hope the tech makes it down into some more affordable lenses, but this is one well designed super tele

Rumors are talking about a 200-600 as well as a pair of 500 and 600 f/5.6 primes, I'm really hoping the 200-600 is like the Nikon 200-500 or Sigma 150-600 in price, if so it will be a top priority for me...

Right now im falling so in love with my A7 I AM really considering getting rid of my Canon setup..the only hold off is the MC-11 performance at the moment...

The weight savings would be great if it were not so expensive, I would love to find a lighter setup than I have now, my 7D mark II and my 5D mark III both have battery grips and are pretty heavy even without a lens attached. I am just an old retired guy playing so there is no way I am spending $12K for a camera lens.

Canonuser123 wrote in post #18667848
The weight savings would be great if it were not so expensive, I would love to find a lighter setup than I have now, my 7D mark II and my 5D mark III both have battery grips and are pretty heavy even without a lens attached. I am just an old retired guy playing so there is no way I am spending $12K for a camera lens.

Erm. To be fair, so are the Canon and Nikon 400mm f/2.8 lenses. So their pricing is completely fair for the market. Really Sony has put the A9 and its first pro lens in a good spot overall pricing wise

As for cost. Well, The A7III is a bargain for what you get. I dont know vs the 5D Mark III, I havnt used one, But its a lot lighter and smaller than the pictures would have you believe versus the 7D Mark II, and the sensor has almost rediculous sharpness its not funny

Like I bought the thing to be my second lightweight easy to carry body and im ending up seriously at this point about to sell off all my Canon glass and everything and just go all onto Sony because its easier on my body to work with

Only real complaint i have is that i wear glasses, and frequently sunglasses (light sensitivity) and you cant shoot it with the sunglasses on, they have to come off which is painful for me. I also suck at using a camera with my glasses on in general lol

But I'm also not knocking Canon or anything, I just happen to be having an absolute blast with the A7III and im finding it just works better for me personally as an imaging tool, and i loved my 7DII

Yeah, I am not buying those expensive Canon lenses either, but I do have the Sigma 150-600mm that works great with my Canon cameras so I do have an affordable option that is not yet available with Sony as a native mount option.

It Would be nice if Sony could build something like the Sigma 150-600mm with its less front heavy and weight savings designs. For me it does not matter much how lighter 10-12K lenses weigh as I will never be in the market for one.

I had a Sony α6000 for awhile, it was a great little camera but my adapted Canon mount lenses did not work all that well with it and I did not feel like investing a lot of money on all new native Sony lenses. I ended up trading my Sony α6000 and a few old Contax lenses for my 5D mark III, that gave me better low light capability than either my Sony or 7D mark II were capable of. The latest A7 versions seem like fantastic cameras and great value for what you get but unless there is cheaper native mount long lens options coming, I will not be likely to switch brands.

There are rumours of a Sony 200-600 in the works.

Hook1230 wrote in post #18667437
I am new to photography but have been in Information Technology and networking for 30 years. The one thing about Sony that concerns me is that I have seen them move into various markets like laptops and desktop PC’s where they built some really nice equipment. It was not the absolute best or quickest, but it ran good and did the job. Then they seem to disappear and then show up again in the cell phone market, where again they build some of the best phones out there and become major players, then over time they disappear only to show up again somewhere else, like now it seems to be cameras. They are building some extremely nice cameras while also selling their top of the line sensors to everyone from drone maker Autel to DJI. My question is this, for how long? I believe that is why DJI purchased a major stake in Hasselblad cameras. Now they own a company where they don’t have to depend on Sony. I don’t know why Sony does this, look at the gaming market, they come out with the PS4 which is outstanding, but since it’s release there has not been a lot done. Meanwhile Microsoft has applied updates to the X-Box and even Nintendo came out with the Switch. My big concern is that Sony will draw a huge amount of clients to their excellent cameras, build a few nice lenses and then move on to something else and the cameras become “just another Sony product”. That’s why I like Canon and Nikon, yes they do other things as well, like medical imaging, etc. but the bulk of their business is cameras. I’ve called Sony on a handheld gaming unit I had from them for service and also on a top end laptop, the support was “blah” at best. I had my 70D and dropped it at a sporting event. One phone call and it was squared away, and no I am not one of those paying for their top end service tier. I almost purchased the Sony camera, but I just want some reassurance that they will still be there in 5 years, or will their be another shift inside the company where they start to focus more of their energies on televisions or surround systems. Cameras at the level of what they’re doing right now are targeted at a limited audience. For most people, their cameras in the Apple IPhone or Samsung phone is more then enough. We shall see.

Pulling out of the PC market was a smart move. PC's are a low margin, commoditized, shrinking market, and even microsoft doesn't have a clear vision about where consumer PC's are headed in the future.

But interchangeable lens cameras have a been extremely lucrative for Sony since the inception of the a7 cameras, and Sony has rather lofty goals for the imaging products division. The big restructure that killed the Vaio line is done, and imaging products are a very important part of Sony's current and future business portfolio:

https://www.sonyalphar​umors.com …alue-product-development/

With regards to the PS4...I happen to own the Xbox onex, switch, and PS4 pro, and whlie the xbox onex is the most powerful in terms of hardware, it sits on my shelf as the most expensive 4k blu-ray player ever because there is a serious lack of quality first party content on the xbox. I even cancelled my xbox live membership because that thing seriously goes untouched. Despite having less powerful consoles, Sony won this generation handedly by leveraging its first party developers, and getting exclusive contracts with quality third party developers.

Hogloff wrote in post #18668029
There are rumours of a Sony 200-600 in the works.

Any rumors on size and price range being targeted? If they can make a smaller, lighter lens than the Sigma 150-600mm and keep the cost reasonable then that would be worth looking at for me. My idea of reasonable pricing would be no more than 2K.

Canonuser123 wrote in post #18668197
Any rumors on size and price range being targeted? If they can make a smaller, lighter lens than the Sigma 150-600mm and keep the cost reasonable then that would be worth looking at for me. My idea of reasonable pricing would be no more than 2K.

No haven't heard anything about weight or price.