There's no end to what professional cameras can do to a picture. A lowdown on the latest in the market.
It has been some time since we last looked at professional cameras. This is a mature market and innovation is not as rapid as in the mobile phones segment. Nikon and Canon are the two dominant players and most professional photographers are in one of these camps. However, since last year, Sony has been attempting to break the duopoly with its digital single-lens translucent (DSLT) cameras. In the meantime, Canon and Nikon have launched digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras with WiFi connectivity. Here is how they performed.
Sony A99 is the company's first full-frame DSLT camera. It is sturdy and well-designed. DSLT cameras are generally on the heavier side and anyone upgrading from a compact camera will take some time to get used to the weight. The A99 body weighs 730 g, but it felt heavy after attaching the lens that came with the review unit: Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 24-70 mm F2.8. The lens weighs almost 1kg, taking the total weight of the A99 to 1.7kg.
The controls are well-placed on the A99. The two dials — one near the shutter button and the other on the back panel — help you quickly adjust shutter speed, aperture or ISO (light sensitivity). The back panel has a 3-inch LCD screen that can tilt and swivel, making it useful for low-angle photographs. A joystick next to the screen allows you to scroll between options and pictures, which is far better than the scroll buttons in most cameras.
Sony's DSLT cameras have an electronic viewfinder (EVF), which cannot be used when the camera is switched off. But the advantage is that the EVF shows you aperture, shutter speed and exposure values and informs you if the photo is tilting. The EVF is a major step forward in the full-frame camera market.
The image quality on the 24-megapixel A99 was very good, especially when shooting in low light. If you are comfortable with its weight, the camera is good for almost all kinds of professional photography and for shooting short films too.
EOS 6D is among Canon's full-frame DSLR cameras. A full-frame sensor is usually seen in far more expensive cameras, but the fact that Canon and Sony have fit these in cameras under Rs 2 lakh is great news for photographers. The EOS 6D is a 20.2-megapixel camera with WiFi and GPS connectivity. WiFi is built-in, unlike some cameras which have an optional WiFi dongle.
Canon camera users will notice that the controls on the back panel have changed a little. All of EOS 6D's controls are on the right side, with the static LCD screen on the left. The top panel has an LCD that shows all your picture settings and the dial near the shutter button lets you tweak them. The body is sturdy and feels polished. The material used gives you a good grip on the camera and the weight is just right with a 24-105mm f/4 lens.
Users will have to download Canon's iOS or Android apps to make the best of the camera's WiFi features. You can use your phone as a remote to control the camera.
Clicking pictures was a great experience with the Canon EOS 6D. The camera isn't too heavy and the controls are fairly intuitive. The images were sharp, vivid and loss of details was minimal even in JPEG mode. Low-light performance was good as images were not grainy at ISO levels of 3,200. Video recording is not the best, and you need to look elsewhere if you are planning to shoot films on this camera.
Nikon D5200 is an entry-level DSLR, compared to the other two cameras reviewed in this article. The camera comes with an 18-55 mm kit lens, but most users will buy it with a better lens. The D5200 has an excellent image processing technology, EXPEED 3. This was used in Nikon's high-end D4 camera. Its 3-inch LCD screen flips out on the left side and it can be rotated or tilted. This gives photographers the freedom to compose creative shots.
The D5200 supports WiFi through wireless adapter WU-1a. Users can connect the camera to smartphones or tablets and control it remotely. While the dongle is portable, most users will find it difficult to use. Few have the patience to figure out how it is supposed to work.
While some might refer to the D5200 as a consumer DSLR, its performance suggests that even professional photographers can use the camera. All camera settings are shown on the LCD screen. Move a dial on the back panel to change the shutter speed. Rotate the ring on the lens to change aperture. But when you move the ring on the lens, zoom and aperture values change at the same time. An easy fix is to use the shutter speed priority mode. It takes a while to figure out the controls, but once that is done, it is smooth going.
The kit lens was a little disappointing as auto focus was not fast at times. However, this problem was not seen when shooting in good light. Low-light photographs were fairly noise-free (pictures were not grainy). Colour reproduction was pretty good too.
It has been some time since we last looked at professional cameras. This is a mature market and innovation is not as rapid as in the mobile phones segment. Nikon and Canon are the two dominant players and most professional photographers are in one of these camps. However, since last year, Sony has been attempting to break the duopoly with its digital single-lens translucent (DSLT) cameras. In the meantime, Canon and Nikon have launched digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras with WiFi connectivity. Here is how they performed.
Sony A99 is the company's first full-frame DSLT camera. It is sturdy and well-designed. DSLT cameras are generally on the heavier side and anyone upgrading from a compact camera will take some time to get used to the weight. The A99 body weighs 730 g, but it felt heavy after attaching the lens that came with the review unit: Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 24-70 mm F2.8. The lens weighs almost 1kg, taking the total weight of the A99 to 1.7kg.
The controls are well-placed on the A99. The two dials — one near the shutter button and the other on the back panel — help you quickly adjust shutter speed, aperture or ISO (light sensitivity). The back panel has a 3-inch LCD screen that can tilt and swivel, making it useful for low-angle photographs. A joystick next to the screen allows you to scroll between options and pictures, which is far better than the scroll buttons in most cameras.
Sony's DSLT cameras have an electronic viewfinder (EVF), which cannot be used when the camera is switched off. But the advantage is that the EVF shows you aperture, shutter speed and exposure values and informs you if the photo is tilting. The EVF is a major step forward in the full-frame camera market.
The image quality on the 24-megapixel A99 was very good, especially when shooting in low light. If you are comfortable with its weight, the camera is good for almost all kinds of professional photography and for shooting short films too.
Canon EOS 6D
Rs 1.66 lakhEOS 6D is among Canon's full-frame DSLR cameras. A full-frame sensor is usually seen in far more expensive cameras, but the fact that Canon and Sony have fit these in cameras under Rs 2 lakh is great news for photographers. The EOS 6D is a 20.2-megapixel camera with WiFi and GPS connectivity. WiFi is built-in, unlike some cameras which have an optional WiFi dongle.
Canon camera users will notice that the controls on the back panel have changed a little. All of EOS 6D's controls are on the right side, with the static LCD screen on the left. The top panel has an LCD that shows all your picture settings and the dial near the shutter button lets you tweak them. The body is sturdy and feels polished. The material used gives you a good grip on the camera and the weight is just right with a 24-105mm f/4 lens.
Users will have to download Canon's iOS or Android apps to make the best of the camera's WiFi features. You can use your phone as a remote to control the camera.
Clicking pictures was a great experience with the Canon EOS 6D. The camera isn't too heavy and the controls are fairly intuitive. The images were sharp, vivid and loss of details was minimal even in JPEG mode. Low-light performance was good as images were not grainy at ISO levels of 3,200. Video recording is not the best, and you need to look elsewhere if you are planning to shoot films on this camera.
Nikon D5200
Rs 46,950Nikon D5200 is an entry-level DSLR, compared to the other two cameras reviewed in this article. The camera comes with an 18-55 mm kit lens, but most users will buy it with a better lens. The D5200 has an excellent image processing technology, EXPEED 3. This was used in Nikon's high-end D4 camera. Its 3-inch LCD screen flips out on the left side and it can be rotated or tilted. This gives photographers the freedom to compose creative shots.
The D5200 supports WiFi through wireless adapter WU-1a. Users can connect the camera to smartphones or tablets and control it remotely. While the dongle is portable, most users will find it difficult to use. Few have the patience to figure out how it is supposed to work.
While some might refer to the D5200 as a consumer DSLR, its performance suggests that even professional photographers can use the camera. All camera settings are shown on the LCD screen. Move a dial on the back panel to change the shutter speed. Rotate the ring on the lens to change aperture. But when you move the ring on the lens, zoom and aperture values change at the same time. An easy fix is to use the shutter speed priority mode. It takes a while to figure out the controls, but once that is done, it is smooth going.
The kit lens was a little disappointing as auto focus was not fast at times. However, this problem was not seen when shooting in good light. Low-light photographs were fairly noise-free (pictures were not grainy). Colour reproduction was pretty good too.
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