Sony NEX-5N Pro Review Is Live!

[Photo-John]

My full review for the Sony NEX-5N is complete and live:

Sony Alpha NEX-5N Review >>

I knew it was going to be good but the image quality of the 5N really caught me by surprise. It's way better than I expected. My only real issue with the NEX-5N is the size of the lenses. Personally, I think I still prefer the Olympus Pen cameras because the lenses are so much smaller, making the whole system smaller. But the NEX-5N really is a great camera. I even like the touchscreen

[Greg McCary]

John if you are disappointed with the FPS and continuos focus of the 5n I am sure you will be on the 7 as well. I could have told you you would have had problems shooting sports. But you did an amazing job considering you had no viewfinder. This isn't a camera for a wildlife shooter either.
I actually think the NEX 7 has a slight advantage in image quality over my a77. No much but noticable. If you really want to see a NEX shine you should try the Carl Zeiss 24mm, amazing.

[ELS]

Hello,

I am looking forward to reading the review...

Thanks,

Have a nice day,

Ed

[Photo-John]

I'm not sure disappointed is the right word. It's about what I expected. It's on par with the Olympus Pen cameras, which I'm more used to. I can absolutely get good action photos with the Sony NEX-5N. But it's not a total replacement for a digital SLR. Not for me, anyway. I still need a camera with great continuous auto focus and a really fast burst rate. But with proper technique (plan and pre-focus), it's not a problem to get a good action shot with the NEX-5N.

[N0BOX]

I can get my NEX-5N to run off 10 or 11 shots in a second with the proper settings and the radically overpriced Sandisk 16GB SDHC Class 10 UHS-1 card. With RAW, it's more like 7 shots. After the initial burst, you can only shoot as fast as the flash card can be written. The image buffer is definitely not as large as a pro DSLR's would be.

I don't believe any of the NEX cameras are a replacement for all DSLRs, but they certainly present a modular system that can come very close. Adding the LA-EA2 brings wildlife and sports into the realm of possibility, though you don't get as many focus or metering areas as a modern Nikon. I like being able to choose a small package for a daily walkabout camera or a big, fast zoom with the LA-EA2 for situations that require that sort of size in order to get the job done (along with the speed of PDAF).

[SmartWombat]

I still need a camera with great continuous auto focus and a really fast burst rate.

What did you think of the OM-D E5 then?
I was astonished in RAW mode it was shooting like a machine gun and showed no sign of slowing before the battery went flat
On the Olympus stand at FoI when I pressed them on the "fastest AF" claim they said it should be as good AF as my old 1DmkII bodies, that is a bold claim!

[armando_m]

For landscapes and low light photography is a great camera
Low light photography may need manual focus.
And I love the ability to use an adapter and mount my nikon lenses

[Photo-John]

I can get my NEX-5N to run off 10 or 11 shots in a second with the proper settings and the radically overpriced Sandisk 16GB SDHC Class 10 UHS-1 card. With RAW, it's more like 7 shots.

That's true. That's with using the Speed Priority mode. However, if you want manual control of exposure - and I always do - then the camera drops down to three FPS. That's ok for slow action but not for fast mountain biking, snowboarding or skiing. For those sports, I'd still have to rely on perfect timing.

[Photo-John]

What did you think of the OM-D E5 then?
I was astonished in RAW mode it was shooting like a machine gun and showed no sign of slowing before the battery went flat
On the Olympus stand at FoI when I pressed them on the "fastest AF" claim they said it should be as good AF as my old 1DmkII bodies, that is a bold claim!

That's good news, Paul! The OM-D I had didn't have a battery. I'm looking forward to getting a working model so I can really test it out