Saturday, September 12, 2015

CAMERA SPECIAL.... Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 IV


Now in its fourth generation, the mighty RX100 is as much an engineering marvel
as it is one of the most desirable compact cameras around. Previous generations
 have won numerous accolades and Sony has stuck to the same recipe.

 The recipe? It's simple: take a large sensor (1-inch in this case, slightly smaller
than a traditional DSLR but vastly larger than the average compact cam),
 a high-quality all-metal body, add a phenomenal Carl Zeiss lens with  A
f1.8 aperture, throw in some of the best image processing hardware &
software and finally , impossibly include numerous extras in the pocketable
 form factor (a customisable lens ring, pop up flash, NFC, WiFi, a high-res
 screen that tilts up & down) and an excellent electronic viewfinder.

From the mark 2 to 3 was a big jump in terms of performance.
In our review of the mark 3, we had said: “it is small, attractive, delivers
 high-quality results and suits almost anyone with a penchant for photography.
“ The mark IV builds on the same concept and gives you some improvements.
 Visually , they are nearly identical, but the mark 4 now includes 4k video
recording (up to 5 minutes of recording in 4k at a time), a higher resolution
 LCD monitor, higher resolution EVF (electronic viewfinder), faster continuous
 shooting (because of improvements at how the sensor handles data), faster
 shutter speeds and faster & more accurate autofocus.

When you first pick up the camera, you realise that it's different because of
 the considerable heft. Sony has packed in a lot of technology into a fairly
small body and it feels `dense'. There's a power toggle, zoom levershutter,
mode dial and flash release on top. There's a collection of 5 buttons and a
 rotating D-pad on the back and a small trigger to pop up the electronic
viewfinder on the left side. The control lens around the lens controls a
 combination of shutter speed & aperture as pre-configured. But you can
change it to control overall exposure, ISO, white balance, switch between
 creative styles or picture effects, zoom, shutter speed, aperture or disable
 it completely . The display is not touch, but it does articulate -moving down
 to allow you to take overhead shots or perpendicular, to allow waist-level
 shooting. Handily, the screen also flips up completely for selfies
(and shooting this way also enables a 3-second timer). Three more
things to note: popping up the EVF starts the camera as well -and it
automatically turns off the primary dis play when you hold it your the flash
 will nev eye. Second, the flash will never pop up and auto-fire, even in full
 auto mode -this prevents the less-than-flattering, harshly lit flash photos
 in the hands of a novice. And finally, 4k video requires that you use a class
10 micro SD card or better. If you use a slower card, those options will not be
 visible in the menu. Coming to the performance, it is spectacular, to say the
 least.Sony's recipe works efficiently and precisely to deliver the sort of results
 that will consistently wow you. The wide f1.8 aperture combined with the
 amazing sensor and optical stabilisation can deliver super shallow depth of
field, sharp low light photos and accurate colours. We tested it out under a
variety of conditions and even at ISO 6400, the results are very impressive
 -surpassing most mid-range DSLRs in noise levels, accuracy and speed.
The 4k video and 1000 fps slow motion video is just icing on the cake.

The execution and brilliance of the RX100 series has to be experienced to be
 believed. The price is most obvious deterrent for most people. Sure, it's as
 expensive as two mid-range DSLRs, but this is not a camera for someone
who is looking to buy a bulky DSLR (or even a fiddly micro four thirds,
interchangeable lens camera). It all boils down to this: whether you're a
complete novice, a photography enthusiast, prosumer or an experienced
 professional, the camera steps up to meet your skill levels and rewards you
 with exceptional results, every time. In fact, the mark 4 is the world's best
 compact camera in our opinion.
hitesh bhagat

ET9SEP15

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