The image quality (at least up to ISO 400) for travel photography perfectly adequate and absolutely for this camera class in order for me. That a superzoom compact camera no DSLR-quality offer (thanks to large imager) is / ought to be clear anyway. The picture quality of Sony's in her class but certainly one of the best. The colors I find pleasantly neutral and unobtrusive. Who is a Canon usual, which is perhaps a little color saturation miss (but this can be adjusted individually in the manual modes PASM). Photos from ISO 400 (particularly at high zoom) can be quite forgotten by the so-called Painterly. The Auto ISO can fortunately be limited accordingly. A very interesting article for Painterly be found on the Web at "www storyal de / story -.. 2 0 1 2 / mega - zoom html." (Sorry for the space, but otherwise Amazon raises the link out)
I would particularly like to mention the auto-HDR mode. Some know the might: Photo of a picturesque alley in the old town. Alley in the shade (and correspondingly dark), bright blue sky (and correspondingly light). As a compact camera photographer you now have the choice between the devil and Beelzebub, ie "white sky - Gasse exposed normal" or between "sky blue - alley booze from the Black". The Auto HDR mode allows (fortunately without overdoing the HDR effect) to meet these very high-contrast shooting situations satisfactory with a superzoom compact camera. That is not the alley booze from black, but is normally exposed and the sky is blue (although not quite as bright).
The user interface (menu structure, etc.) is intended in my opinion for (Photo) technicians, but not made for laymen. Rarely have I seen such a catastrophic operating and menu navigation as the Sony (for example you have to in order to switch between the three modes can be stored manually, turn away the PASM control dial of MR and turn back again, and then with the rotary-clicks to wheel select one of three modes). The whole combined with a gruesome Fummel operation with tiny buttons on the camera back, which partly have to be operated with a finger nail, to avoid accidentally other functions with trigger (keyword: "rotary-click wheel"). And inflationary tiny symbols on the display. If you do not want to see the tiny symbols, you can view the display switch (and then sees almost no more symbols). A happy medium seems to be missing here Sony.
The non-existent manual (what the camera is attached, not worthy of the name!) Does the rest. Only the Help file, which can be downloaded from the Sony website as a PDF, replaced the nonexistent manual.
The hope that the disaster of Operation and menu navigation will be eliminated with a firmware update by Sony, you can safely describe as slight. The already criticized by the press operator guidance in the previous camera HX50 is not resolved by Sony to date through a firmware update.
The thing that ultimately the photo everyday is most lacking is a Stitchinghilfe for manual panorama shots (like the old Panasonic Lumix series possessed him), because the built-in "I'll expect your panorama along almost done" function is not to be used sensibly for demanding panoramas ,
The camera itself is comfortable to hold, the surface is slightly rubberized. The camera is very light, but feels a little "cheap" on. The folding press of a button flash frame looks very delicate from (long-term durability?). An advantage of this construction is undeniable All thing: The fact that is not always with charged when the camera is the flash that the Sony battery lasts a relatively long time by. The tripod mount is unfortunately placed so unfavorable that even when using a small tripod Joby GorillaPod Micro like this one 250 handy camera tripods blue, the battery / memory card compartment cover can not be opened. Tests for Sony cameras not before they go into production?
What some would perhaps be dismissed as nerd gimmick, I find great. Namely the possibility to connect the camera using a Sony mobile app with a mobile phone and then to use this as a screen (incl. Remote control of zoom camera) and remote release. This allows, for example, interesting camera angles and facilitates self-portraits (or group shots) immensely.
Also worth mentioning for a travel camera: The socket to recharge the battery in the camera is a standard micro-USB connector. So the same as that on the mobile phone (at least on the most current, other than egg-phones). This means that the charger chaos when traveling remains pleasantly manageable.
I had the disadvantages of the Sony previously known or had I researched this and I must again say that the image quality of the Sony is really okay. In addition, there was the camera from Amazon at an unbeatably attractive price (compared to competitive cameras). Also - I am technician! ;-) But still - what Sony delivers here is an indictment of this company!
Conclusion: Recommended camera if you look busy
Update 2014-09-03: In the meantime I've gotten used to the highly complex operation of the camera, which also opens up a lot of influence possibilities in return. What I like very well, the possibility of Sony is to change the settings for contrast, saturation and sharpness, and to give as example to flat images more color (in Menu / Camera Settings / Krativmodus).
Sony has released a firmware update to firmware 2.0! This adds the possibility with the Sony mobile app also take movies (and not only to take pictures) and does not include unspecified "general functions / stability improvements".
Update 2014-09-30: Freshly back from a photo safari in Africa I have to complete the following: The locking slide for the battery / memory card compartment cover is so unfavorable attached and smoothly that I inadvertently and unfortunately several times a day to cover when stowing the camera in my LowePro Lowepro Rezo 50 camera bag -Tasche have black opened. Only a piece of adhesive tape over the slide permanently solved the problem.
The camera will take in the sunshine even at maximum zoom (30 times optical and 10 times digital [with 10 megapixels reduced image size]) surprisingly good photos and to the wide zoom range I have many of my fellow travelers DSLR-ler Photo colleagues often envy.
Update 2015-02-17: As I just noted, Sony has end in October 2014 released a firmware update to firmware 2.1. Benefits and improvements: improving the on-time when you use the "Smart Remote" the PlayMemories Camera application. PS: Despite registration on the Sony website, I received no email communication about the firmware update, the "Newsletter" I get but regularly! The update go no personal settings are lost, everything is preserved (eg settings for contrast, sharpness and saturation; abgespecherte under "MR" program settings etc.).
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