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Sony Cyber-shot DSC-R1 Announced
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-R1 digital camera is announced. The Sony DSC-R1 is a 10.3 megapixel compact camera with an APS-C sized sensor that allows for a “live” preview, making it unique. The Sony DSC-R1 has a 24mm - 120mm lens, 2 inch LCD screen and electronic viewfinder. The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-R1 will retail for $999 / approx £699.
Sony Press Release
SAN DIEGO, Sept. 8, 2005 - Sony intends to create a new benchmark in digital photography with the introduction of its high-end Cyber-shot® DSC-R1 camera.
The Cyber-shot® R1 camera is the world’s first integrated lens digital still camera to combine a professional-grade, 10.3-megapixel image sensor and the flexibility of live preview while shooting. With its ultra-wide Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* zoom lens (24mm - 120mm) and free-angle, two-inch LCD, the Cyber-shot R1 brings professional level imaging performance to mainstream consumers.
“The R1 represents a breakthrough in digital camera technology and construction,” said James Neal, director for digital imaging products at Sony Electronics. “You can grab this camera and go, confident that you will be prepared for a wide range of shooting situations. Its many convenience features and exceptional performance can not easily be matched with a typical consumer-level digital SLR.”
A Class of Its Own
Photo enthusiasts know that image sensor size is one of the most important influences on picture quality. Professional-grade image sensors, sometimes referred to as advanced photo system (APS) or APS-class, are many times the size of compact sensors used in point-and-shoot cameras; large sensors deliver extraordinary resolution, high sensitivity to light, and lower image noise or graininess for exceptional pictures. At 10.3 megapixels, the R1’s sensor offers one of the highest resolutions available in the APS class.
Unlike digital SLRs, the Cyber-shot R1 unit’s sensor allows for a “live” preview thanks to Sony Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) technology. Until now, the extraordinary power consumption of these large sensors has limited their operation to image capture only - unable to support the benefit of a live preview. Sony’s distinctive design is employed to reduce power consumption, as well as increase image processing speeds.
The camera’s electronic viewfinder or two-inch LCD lets you evaluate scene conditions, such as exposure and how color is rendered before taking a shot. Because the R1 camera can preview electronically, using the image sensor itself in real-time, framing is always 100% accurate.
Built Digital from the Ground Up
The R1’s integrated Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar lens was carefully crafted to take full advantage of the resolution, clarity and color performance of its APS-class CMOS image sensor. Because of the sensor’s live preview capability, there is no need for the camera to have a traditional “mirror and prism” construction common to digital SLRs. This allows a lens-to-sensor distance of as little as 2 mm, optimizing image quality and color accuracy.
Another benefit of this structure is the ability to incorporate an extraordinary wide field of view and zoom range. The 24 mm wide end of the lens is particularly suited for architectural photography, landscapes and large-group portraits, while the 120 mm telephoto end is perfect for filling the frame with distant subjects. This is a range not easily matched by any other lens for use with cameras using large-scale image sensors.
Furthermore, no mirror and prism construction means that the R1 is a quiet camera, perfect for shooting at a tennis match or in nature without disturbing wildlife.
Get the Shot without the Backache
The Cyber-shot R1 sports a two-inch, LCD screen that folds flat and swivels so you can shoot from nearly any position. This flexibility allows you to get the shots that other cameras miss. For example, you can hold the camera low - down to the ground - for eye-level view shots of kids and pets without having to bend yourself into a pretzel or crawling on the ground.
The Power of Optimal Image Processing
A 10.3-megapixel camera needs a fast processor. Sony harnessed the power of it Real Imaging Processor™ LSI to achieve fast response times, low power consumption and clear images.
The new camera features a one-second shot-to-shot time, three frame-per-second burst shooting, and a shutter release time of only 7.5 milliseconds. Because it consumes 70 percent less power than Sony’s previous processing circuitry, the camera has a battery life of up to 500 shots per charge, which can vary according to use and camera settings.
For enhanced versatility, Cyber-shot R1 offers three different modes of color reproduction: Adobe RGB used for professional graphics and offset color printing, Standard sRGB for most computer-based uses, and Vivid sRGB for more intense primary colors.
The camera’s user selectable Advanced Gradation Control System (AGCS) optimizes image contrast, in order to avoid “blown out” highlights in high-contrast scenes and “crushed” blacks in low-contrast ones. AGCS evaluates the distribution of brightness and then automatically applies the appropriate gamma curve to achieve better pictures.
Users will also enjoy the added convenience of storing images onto Memory Stick PRO™ media, as well as CompactFlash® Type I and Type II media or Microdrive® media. The camera supports both JPEG and RAW formats, which can then be manipulated on a PC using the supplied Sony Image Data Converter SR software.
The Cyber-shot R1 camera will be available in mid-November for about $1,000 online at SonyStyle.com, at Sony Style retail stores (http://www.sonystyle.com/retail), and at select authorized dealers nationwide. Pre-orders begin online today at http://www.sony.com/r1.
The new camera is supplied with a NP-FM50 InfoLithium battery, an AC-L15 adaptor, a USB and video cables, shoulder strap, and CD-ROM software with PicturePackage and Image Data Converter SR for RAW. There are a variety of optional accessories (sold separately), including wide angle and telephoto conversion lenses, adaptors, filters, tripods, flashes, carry cases, a neck strap and a battery.
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Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX200V
#1 Dr Krishna Raman
The only thing I dont like about this is the lack of telephoto. The least that could have been done was to give a 24-200. I hope the conversion lenses are effective. Bring on the pics for evaluation.
12:34 pm - Thursday, September 8, 2005
#2 Zoltán Árva-Tóth
A 24-200mm equiv. (14.3-119mm in real terms) lens would be huge if they wanted to keep the maximum apertures at f/2.8-4.8. Of course, a 28-200mm equiv. f/4-5.6 lens (or someting like that) would be an option, but then people would moan about how "slow" the lens is. I guess those who want/need long telephoto reach will probably be better off buying an interchangeable-lens SLR. But for many people, an ultra-wide-angle-to-standard-telephoto zoom like the one built into this camera is all they need.
The big question mark about the R1 for me is AF speed and accuracy, as EVFs can be rather hostile to manual focussing, so a fast and accurate auto-focus system is a must. Low-light performance is also to be seen. Looks like they did away with their laser-beam-aided "Hologram AF" solution to keep the price below $1000.
1:19 pm - Thursday, September 8, 2005
#3 Dr Krishna Raman
I hope the teleconverter will render some help. I searched for the power of the converter but could not find details on the net.
2:44 pm - Thursday, September 8, 2005
#4 Zoltán Árva-Tóth
Seems like Fotopolis already have samples up at:
http://www.fotopolis.pl/index.php?gora=4&lewa=3&e=3342&p=7
...but it is a slow-loading site, to be sure.
5:04 pm - Thursday, September 8, 2005
#5 Jason
Even if it's not perfect, it's about time. i wondered how long it would take to create a bridge camera with SLR image sensors. This could be a wonderful travel camera, though.
6:05 pm - Thursday, September 8, 2005
#6 Zoltán Árva-Tóth
Dave Etchells has already carried out his usual Cycle Time & Shutter Lag Tests, reaching the conclusion that the R1 delivers "[o]nly average performance in most parameters, no competition for most d-SLRs in the speed arena." Which is not to say the camera isn't any good, of course, but it does answer the question I asked only a couple of hours ago in comment #2.
6:36 pm - Thursday, September 8, 2005
#7 calvin
its a good camera indeed, now i wish i waited for another 6 months before i got my camera..... too late, maybe next time i'lll buy a sony.
11:22 pm - Thursday, September 8, 2005
#8 Mark
Since this has "live" preview, and doesnt use the mirror and prism of an SLR. Wouldnt there be many problems with noise, or hot pixels?
1:53 am - Friday, September 9, 2005
#9 max meier
I bet in about 6 month you see this thing with a longer tele lens. this is marketing driven,they must sell their cameras and that needs new models every 6 month.
6:36 am - Friday, September 9, 2005
#10 Mark Goldstein
The teleconvertor has a magnification factor of 1.7x. Which means that the R1 will have a maximum focal length of 200mm when it is fitted.
9:12 am - Friday, September 9, 2005
#11 Black Box Photo
calvin wrote:
> now i wish i waited for another 6 months
> before i got my camera..... too late, maybe
> next time i’lll buy a sony.
You're going to be waiting a long time
if you don't want whatever you get to be
displaced by a cheaper/better option within
a few months (often way less than six).
Nurture your talent and the box of tricks
you use will become almost unimportant.
9:18 am - Friday, September 9, 2005
#12 Black Box Photo
Zoltán Árva-Tóth wrote:
> The big question mark about the R1 for me
> is AF speed and accuracy, as EVFs can be
> rather hostile to manual focussing, so a
> fast and accurate auto-focus system is a
> must.
Check the specs: already Sony's announced
partnership with Konica Minolta to develop
high quality imaging solutions (sic) has
obviously resulted in a whole bunch of KM
style programming behind the lens. When
they get to using a high definition EVF
like the KM A2 (which you really can focus
with: check it out yourself at any nearby
camera store) they'll have an ace combo (or
KM will....).
Six months? A year?
9:41 am - Friday, September 9, 2005
#13 Dr Krishna Raman
200mm with a teleconverter? Again we are back where F 828 was albeit a better sensor. If I need to take distant shots on vacation I need to carry another camera of go DSLR? Sony I hope you are listening? why dont these guys ask customers before making a camera? They assume they know everything!
10:06 am - Friday, September 9, 2005
#14 Bren Buenaluz
Are there in the works digital camera which incorporates front and back movement similar to view cameras?
12:45 pm - Friday, September 9, 2005
#15 Zoltán Árva-Tóth
Bren, you can use tilt/shift lenses on certain digital SLRs. They do a similar thing to what you are referring to but on a limited basis.
5:06 pm - Friday, September 9, 2005
#16 Bren D Buenaluz
How about software that could simulate the front and bact movement similar to view camera? There must be some software somewhere? I am sure there must be someone who did some programming along these lines with a simultaneous view of the effect of a certain movement.
8:10 pm - Friday, September 9, 2005
#17 Oleg
Bren, the software is called Adobe Photoshop. The plugin name is "Lens Blur". It can imitate tilt/shift, but software is limited, it will never give the same effect as real T/S.
8:46 pm - Friday, September 9, 2005
#18 Philippe
I onwn a 828 and Nikon bodies and lenses from the analog era...As today I've not found a replacement for the 828, The DCS-R1 is a good step ahead... but:
- free angle LCD might be fragile for intensive use.
- image stabilizer is not a luxury.
- 24 to 120 lens... ok, but with a f/2 aperture at least (with this sensor size you can focus on your subject and keep blurred background)
- 24 to 120 lens... ok, but with a good teleconverter @ 3.3 magnification so you get 80 to 400 lens
So what could be the specs of the Sony DSC-Rx ?
2:05 pm - Saturday, September 10, 2005
#19 Zoltán Árva-Tóth
Philippe, nobody has EVER made an f/2 zoom lens! Olympus are about to release the first ones in the world, for the FourThirds system, and they are going to be HUGE - nothing you would want to see on a camera like the R1.
7:24 pm - Saturday, September 10, 2005
#20 Black Box Photo
Bren D Buenaluz wrote:
> Are there in the works digital camera which
> incorporates front and back movement
> similar to view cameras?
New Caplio has electronic shift-simulation.
No tilt equivalent.
<http://www.photographyblog.com/index.php/weblog/comments/ricoh_caplio_r3_announced>
7:46 am - Sunday, September 11, 2005
#21 tope oyefeso
at last. i really hoped for an improvement to the f828 i bought early 2004. i hope this will be favourable to black skins, and hoping they took African skin colors into cosideration. in anyways, thumbs up.
8:05 pm - Monday, September 12, 2005
#22 Gerald Brimacombe
In no way will this new Sony camera replace the outstanding 828. The Carl Zeiss lens on the 828 is a super-sharp f2 - 2.8 28mm to 200mm, a far more useable range than the 24mm to 125mm on the new camera. I predict the R1 will be a precursor for an upgaded 828.
10:36 pm - Sunday, September 25, 2005
#23 Roger Provins
Why is there this obsession with long telephoto lenses? They are really of very limited use (wildlife excepted). Wideangle to standard lenses are far more useful in the majority of photographic situations. This camera having, what is rare for digital cameras, a 24mm will appeal to many.
Roger
7:12 pm - Monday, September 26, 2005
#24 Gerald Brimacombe
To: Phillipe! Are you not aware of the f2-2.8 lens on the Sony 828? It's certainly not huge! Don't forget that lenses that are designed strictly for digital capture hav fewer elements, and are much more compact and lighter than those designed for film capture.
12:20 am - Tuesday, September 27, 2005
#25 Zoltán Árva-Tóth
Gerald, I think you addressed that post to me, not to Philippe.
Firstly as yourself are saying, the Sony lens isn't a constant f/2 one. I reiterate no-one has ever made a zoom lens with a constant f/2 max aperture. The world's first ones are due to hit the shelves next month and they have been developed by Olympus.
Secondly, the size of the lenses has a lot to do with the focal lengths they cover, plus the max aperture they have. For a given focal length range, lens size increases rapidly with the increase of the max aperture. For a given max aperture, the lens size increases with the focal length it covers. The Sony DSC-F828 has a lens that covers the focal length range of 7.1-51mm. Since the R1 has a much bigger sensor, the same FOV range would be covered by a lens with an FL range of 16.7-119.2mm. Trust me, a constant f/2 lens of that FL range would be HUGE.
11:56 am - Tuesday, September 27, 2005
#26 Gerald Brimacombe
Sorry, my response was directed to Philippe.
You still don't seem to realize that lenses designed for digital capture require fewer elements, and are much more compact and thus lighter than the leviathans pros have been carrying around for years. The Zeiss 28 to 200mm f2-2.8 is testimony to that. I feel that it is totally unnecessary to make a zoom that is f2 throughout its range. F2.8 is more than adequate. I also feel the 28 to 200 range of the 828 is much more useful than that featured on the new R1.
12:18 pm - Tuesday, September 27, 2005