Just got the 5n, my thoughts and sell the 7D?

I found this website and thought I must join it to join in on the discussion of the NEX camera's.

My background is all DSLR. I started with crop sensor bodies but moved up to full frame. I am now on my second full frame, the Canon 5D mark 3. I also own a Canon 7D. It was always difficult for me to use the Canon 7D indoors because the full frame sensor worked much better and spoiled me with it's low light high ISO performance over the cropped sensor. Yet, now I'm with another crop sensor...

My reason for getting this camera is because I miss a ton of good shots because I never want to lug my Canon 5D around with my L series glass. Even if I just carry one lens and the DSLR it's still a bit heavy to carry around and if it's a day where there are no special shots scheduled to be taken, I just simply don't bring it. This led me to the compact world. I got a Canon 300hs, I never was that satisfied with it. I shoot RAW and that compact would not shoot RAW. I was about to buy a compact that would shoot RAW when I decided on going with the mirror less NEX system instead.

So far I have found it a lot more difficult to shoot in M mode. I do have my custom button selections but I have to hit the down button twice to scroll between shutter and aperture. I'm able to do this much faster on a DSLR so I can imagine when wanting to take a picture of something on the fly with this camera, it may be in P mode. Which is something that never happens with my DSLR. I shoot in M mode exclusively.

I haven't been super impressed with the low lighting ISO performance that a lot of people love about this camera. But I think that is due to me being used to the low light ISO performance of the full frame 5D mark iii. It does look comparable to the 7D for the low light ISO performance. I am looking forward to taking more pictures with it and posting them here.

I bought the Sony messenger bag along with it, I also bought every lens for it except the 16mm pancake lens. I do not plan on connecting my Canon lenses to this camera. To me that destroy's the purpose of why I got it. My Canon lenses are big and heavy, my reason for the NEX-5N was sole based on it being light. If I used my EOS ef lenses, it just wouldn't make much sense. So, I did not buy any sort of adapters.

I was impressed with the video. I shoot in 24FPS in the high quality mode. Although it tells you it must be burnt to blu ray, of course you can convert the file. I convert the file to .mp4 and therefore I have a better video than just using the camera's Mp4 setting. The video honestly looks very close to my DSLR's from what I have tried with it so far.

My dilemma I am facing now is, should I sell my 7D? My 7D rarely gets used because my main camera is my 5Dmark3. The 7D is simply a backup. But, I am tempted to sell the 7D to pay off the purchase of this NEX-5n and use the NEX-5n as my crop sensor. The 7D mostly sits in the camera bag. It's very rare that it gets taken out. Although with video shoots I do use the 7D as an alternate angle camera sometimes but it's not something I have to have. I also have held on to the 7D due to the fact that it has the crop sensor and can zoom further with my zoom lenses. I would love to simply pay off this purchase though and I can't say that I'd miss the 7D but there might be some situations where I would have used it and no longer have it.

Has anyone else gotten rid of their crop sensor DSLR's since going mirror less that has a full frame as a main DSLR camera?

 

Yeah, this is true. The 7D no doubt will out perform the NEX-5N with it's AF and many other features. The issue is, I don't really ever use the 7D. I use the 5D, yet I hang on to the 7D for a backup or a "just incase," situation. But now that I have the NEX-5N I feel like it could handle that. Plus I charged the NEX-5N and the 7D would pay it and some of the lenses off easily. It is hard to let the 7D go but I can't hang on to everything!

I am hoping Sony really keeps up with this NEX series as I have invested in it. Not only the camera, but almost every lens. I was going to go with the nex-7 but it looked like the 5n was just as good and some say even better with lower ISO and going with the cheaper body allowed me to get those lenses. The NEX-7 seems far over priced for what it is.

I am hoping Canon doesn't release their mirrorless camera's and blow away what Sony is doing. Sony has a chance to be the leader in this next generation of camera's. Because I can see mirrorless killing the DSLR 5 years from now.

 

Yeah, it really is changing the game when it comes to being able to take more photo's. Honestly with just DSLR's I was hardly ever taking photo's unless I was specifically going somewhere to take a photo. So, I never got to catch an, "in the moment," photo. If I did it would be on an iphone or on a compact camera that didn't even shoot RAW. So, usually I wouldn't even bother with it.

Like you, I will probably decide to sell the 7D to fund the NEX. I'm not in much dept I had all my stuff paid off so I allowed myself to charge the NEX. Although, since then I have had recent things happen all at once that have cost me quite a bit of money. So, paying off the NEX would be a huge deal for me right now. But parting with the 7D would be a very difficult thing to do! I am just now getting myself in professional video situations where I am being hired to shoot music video's and live performances and having that 7D for an alternate angle is useful but I could get away without it also.

I hope Sony does keep it up! I hope they release better lenses. I don't like the idea of adapting my Canon lenses. It just takes the point out of it like I said before. Why get the smaller camera only to adapt the big lens? Unless it's someone's only camera. It destroys the purpose of the camera for me. I want small lenses.

 

Is that one of their really expensive lens options for it? How well is it working? I'm looking forward to getting good glass for the NEX someday. I have L series lenses on my DSLR so I'm used to very high quality expensive glass. I have been tempted to get the canon adapter but like I said it doesn't make sense when my purpose was to get a smaller camera. Yet, I would like to see what it would do with good glass. But the good adapters I hear cost a good bit. The cheap ones I've read reviews on, always have problems.

I have only really gotten to try this camera out indoors and during sunset. So I have been high ISO the whole time I've had the NEX. I can't wait to see how it looks once I get a good picture at a lower ISO.

Do you have any pictures you can post here? And what lenses you used along with settings for the photo's. I'd like to see more of what this thing can do with e mount lenses.

 

The 5D mark 3 is what got me spoiled on ignoring ISO's. You can't see grain on that thing in hardly any situation. I think with the NEX it depends on the type of lighting because I see some people's shots outside at 3200 and it don't look bad. But if I take a shot in my apartment at 3200, no matter what the f stop or shutter speed is I get a grainy looking picture. But, then again, the 7D does the same thing.

With the 5Dmk3 I will usually go 400 ISO on a sunny day or sometimes even 800 iso for a sharp fast shutter speed. Because you can't see any difference. Even at 3200 ISO can't even notice it. They made it even better than the mark 2 was. So I got really spoiled with that thing.

 

Yeah, I've decided not to sell my 7D because my job might require it in some situations. I get hired to do music videos, record concerts with the 5D. That sort of thing. Mostly video, although I try to get hired to do photography, the photography business isn't going that well these days.

I'm hired to record a famous artist tonight who wants me to do handheld 5Dmk3 on the stage! Usually I'm all tripod. I do have a rig but holding those things steady with L series lenses with no IS so a difficult thing to do. He wants me to walk around him, etc, while he's doing his thing on stage. In doing a film I mostly do it all on a tripod. But now that I've gotten into this music video/concert business it's changing. The music video's I'm still able to do via tripod. A video tripod of course which will pan smooth up and down, left and right. Can't get it done with a photography tripod for sure!

The 7D came out on my last concert as an alternate angle because I did it with a tripod. Yet, I barely used any footage from it. Photography wise the only reason I'd ever use the 7D is with my zoom lenses.

I know every one should have a back up, but with video that kind of doesn't work with the 7D. If my 5D was to mess up, having the 7D as a back up isn't going to matter much because these guys know what they want and they want full frame video, at least for the main takes. For alternate angels they don't mind an asp-c chip.

I do wish the focusing system was better on the 5n. Is it possible to keep it in a mode where I can tap something and then focus on it? Because I have tried different modes and I found one mode like that but after I got out of that screen it too me back to normal.

I took this the other day.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/justinloganproductions/7213926072/" title="Blue Hole 1 5-16-12 by nagol5178, on Flickr">

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"1024" height="683" alt="Blue Hole 1 5-16-12"></a>

 

I took these with the NEX5n today. Both with the 50mm 1.8 Sony E mount lens made for the NEX. I use Adobe Lightroom 4. Of course I shoot Raw.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/justinloganproductions/7315016578/" title="Rusty NEX5n 1-1-12 by nagol5178, on Flickr">

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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/justinloganproductions/7315033668/" title="Basketball Goal NEX5n 1-1-12 by nagol5178, on Flickr">

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"1024" height="680" alt="Basketball Goal NEX5n 1-1-12"></a>

 

yeah, but they are going to have to upgrade the firmware and get the AF system down before it can officially compete with the DSLR. Although outside I got comparable results to my 7D shooting on a sunny day as you can see in the pictures above. The 7D photos would have looked pretty much the same. Although the bokeh would have been better around the basketball goal. That would be due to my L series lenses.