Birds, with a new camera (RX10 - 24-200mm F2.8)

Yep - I picked up another camera. ; Before any conclusions are jumped to...I happened by the Sony Store in my local mall which is closing, and found they were blowing out accessories and other goods for 50-90% off...they specifically noted that no cameras or lenses were part of that sale...however in fishing around I noticed one desk had an RX10 camera sitting in a box on a stool. ; I asked, and they initially said no - but when I noted they had said any 'boxed items' were supposed to be on sale, and this camera wasn't on display under glass like the others, they capitulated and since it was the only one in the store and they were closing, they rang it up at 50% off. ; Now I wasn't in the market for an RX10, or any camera at the moment, but for 50% off a camera that retails at $1300, it was hard to pass up. ; Well nigh impossible, actually. ; So I own it. ; Though I'll actually be selling it to my stepfather as a replacement for his NEX3 and kit lens - he's been wanting more lens reach, and doesn't really want to change lenses, so the camera really spoke to him - and at the 1/2 price, he's very happy to go with the RX10 instead. ; But before I sell it to him, I wanted to test drive it myself, and do a little birding with it just to see how it went.

The camera is built beautifully - full magnesium body, great controls, deep grip, lots of manual controls fall to hand. ; Aperture ring on the lens, EV dial on top, and tons of custom button settings (6 in fact). ; The lens is really gorgeous - if you have to have a fixed lens, the Zeiss 24-200mm F2.8 constant equivalent is close to perfect...the 1" sensor is much better than P&S level, if not quite up to APS-C or M4:3 level, but you'd really only notice a difference in low light.

Here are a few birds with the cam from this past weekend - it was unfortunately overcast and rainy...but still fun!:

Tricolor heron:


Great blue heron:


Cormorant taking off from the water:


Boat-tailed grackle:


Killer male egret (mentioned in another egret thread):


Cattle egret:


The nice thing was getting to play with a new camera, and try a few new features out - it somewhat lessened the pain of waiting for my new A6000 to come out in late April! ; A few of the features, and the menu structure and controls, were very similar to the coming A6000, and were a pleasure to use...the lock-on AF feature, 1/3 stop ISO settings, settable ISO floor and ceiling, wider EV range and bracketing range, etc are all features that the A6000 will have too.

Anyway, just thought I'd share some shots from a new camera - it won't be mine much longer, so it was fun to play with!

 

Thanks guys. ; It's quite nice for a P&S - the larger 1" sensor really does move it closer to the mirrorless/DSLR side of the equation, and I must say that lens is absolutely wonderful, and well paired to that sensor - the 24-200mm F2.8 constant equivalent is super sharp even wide open.


I know my stepfather will do well with this camera - compared to the NEX3 he was using, the APS-C sensor was a little better in low light, but he was using an F3.5-6.3 kit lens, whereas this camera has F2.8 throughout, which should make up some of the difference...plus the 20MP sensor gives a little more latitude to get decent results for small to average prints, where it will help hide the slight noise penalty. ; And having 200mm on the long end, rather than only 72.5mm, will really help him cover more ground.