Sony NEX-EA50M NXCAM Camcorder with 18-105mm f/4 Servo NEX-EA50M

it says it has a new sensor, but in what way. I ended up not getting the EA50 and now I only rent one when I need it, but how come this isn't in any of the news sites?

Hi Chris

Nope same sensor and same body ..just a different lens. It also has the new firmware so you can set the top record button to record to the FMU and the normal one to record to the card.

Chris

Just wondering how good is that new kit lens? Is it better than the one we got with our EA50?

Hey Aaron

I guess if you use big zoom is will be good and need autofocus at 105mm. Bear in mind at the wide end it's only F4 not F3.5 like the 18-200 ... I still like to have F2.8 at 70mm for weddings! so the 24-70 or 28-75 manual is a better bet for me for ceremonies and speeches where we have low light.

The Church I did on the weekend would have been great as it was very well lit ..On the Tamron F2.8 I was running at 1/50th and only 3db gain at 50mm but most Churches are pretty dark !

I guess the major attraction for guys like Randy would be autofocus and autoiris but I still prefer a lens with F2.8 throughout the range and it a lot cheaper too. The new Sony is still quite pricey!!

Hi Chris

Nope same sensor and same body ..just a different lens. It also has the new firmware so you can set the top record button to record to the FMU and the normal one to record to the card.

Chris

but the description on B&H says very clearly...

"It inherits the same versatile semi-shoulder mount design from its predecessor--the NEX-EA50UH--but adds an updated Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor and replaces the 18-200mm E-mount lens with an 18-105mm f/4 constant aperture Servo Zoom G lens."

so something is up here.

if possible, may I have a link to your wedding demo reel? would love to see your work you've done with the ea50

Hi Chris

Yep you could be quite correct there! It does say that the new sensor is optimised for HD video so you get less artifacts ... I wonder if you get less moire? I doubt it! It would have been nice if they said the new sensor has an anti-aliasing filter on the sensor ... I really don't like the "open to the elements" sensor. Mine got debris inside at the weekend when I had to change lenses outdoors so I have to be really careful.

Probably the best place to see footage would be on my youtube page ... anything after December 2012 would have been shot on the EA-50's

softweigh's channel - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/softweigh/)

I wonder if they will have the new EA-50 in a body only version?? That would be good as it's a pain having to sell the stock lenses as I don't use them

Chris

Nice videos Chris!!!

You Tube doesn't do the format any justice as I upload in SD ... 640x360 so the quality drops off big time but brides still are happy with them. I would rather a bride watched a clip that played quickly with no buffering than have an HD clip that stops halfway and buffers or takes ages to start!

EA50 in action in Austin, TX...

Shooting Video on the NEX-EA50: The Broken Spoke on Vimeo

God I love that accent:)

Here is one using the kit lens and a LED light mounted on the cam:


Keri’s – At Last | ILE Videos (http://www.ilevideos.com/?p=2918)

God I love that accent:)

I'm in definite agreement...!

What I don't get is the sensor change. I have always had at least two and usually three cameras of the exact same model, primarily for image matching. What did they do here? Will the new model not match? I am NOT a fix it in post guy. I have not picked up a second EA50 yet but it is still up for consideration. But not now if it has a completely different sensor in it.

Steve

Hi Steve

It seems that they have scrapped the original EA-50 sensor which was the same chip used in the A99 still camera and replaced it with a more HD friendly one that has less aliasing and maybe moire??

The way the world is going it seems that very soon our next camera will be a tenth of the size of what we have and also cost less too.

I have a buddy in Belgium already looking at the 3 axis stabiliser with a GoPro Hero 4 mounted on it....perfect stedicam footage that you can pickup in one hand, no lens changing, no focussing you simply pick it up and shoot and it produces 4K footage too!!

Maybe my next set of cameras won't be EA-50's at all and instead of taking up the entire back seat and trunk of the car my entire kit will soon be able to sit in a small bag on the passenger seat!

Chris

Hey guys! Here's what I'm hoping. My Canon 60d got stolen so I picked up a Sony a6000. It has a "Exmor APS HD CMOS Sensor" which is an "updated" sensor from what I gather. The good thing... it has way way less moire and aliasing than anything I've used in large sensor cameras (60d, EA50, etc.). In fact, unless I need audio, I use the a6000 for gathering most of my b-roll now.
Here's a recent video with both the a6000 & EA50UH.
Blackbird Bakery Bristol - 2014 on Vimeo (Please keep technical comments to this thread and not on the video... It's pretty apparent which is which in terms of moire and aliasing.)

HOPEFULLY the EA50M has the same sensor as the a6000 and that will make the EA50 a much better camera in my opinion. BTW, I also have that lens that will be coming with it too (18-105 f4) its a nice little lens but the only thing I don't like on it is using it manually for zooms, its servo and not mechanical. Its ok, as I use zooms for reframing a shot but on a concert shoot, I'll stick with the 18-200 as I can do those fast zooms on fast beats ;-) Oh, there's severe pin-cushioning if using on say a FS100 or the like. The a6000 and EA50 fixes that in camera and you never see the issues (in case you read that anywhere that it has distortion.)

Nice shooting Jerome. Your client should be very happy with that product.

Steve

Jerome is back in da house! :) Great bakery promo, how is the a6000 low light performance compared to the ea50? I have received footage from the a6000 from a guy that also uses it as b-cam to his ea50, I hired him to shoot a wedding when I was not able to and when I saw his footage (I"ll be doing the editing) the a6000 footage was very underepxosed, especially at a dark venue where many shots are barely usable which makes me think he used a much to slow lens.

Nice shooting Jerome. Your client should be very happy with that product.

Steve
Thanks Steven! They LOVE that video! There's also 5 variations of a :30 TV commercial made from that too. (You could probably see them if you go to my vimeo videos...) The "Kingsport" one features my Mother and my kids :-)

Jerome is back in da house! :) Great bakery promo, how is the a6000 low light performance compared to the ea50? I have received footage from the a6000 from a guy that also uses it as b-cam to his ea50, I hired him to shoot a wedding when I was not able to and when I saw his footage (I"ll be doing the editing) the a6000 footage was very underepxosed, especially at a dark venue where many shots are barely usable which makes me think he used a much to slow lens.
Hey Noa!!! I was actually thinking about you the other day... hope you're doing well.

The a6000 is pretty decent in low light. I do find that I can shoot at a higher ISO on the EA50 though. One thing I've noticed is IF there is a bit of ambient light, I can shoot up to 4000 ISO on EA50, but if very dim light, I won't go over 2500 ISO (f2 or so.) The a6000, I find over 1600 ISO gets fairly noisy, HOWEVER, using a fast lens and playing with its DRO (Dynamic Range Optimizer) function, that helps without having to bump into higher ISO ranges. I helped a friend with a wedding and used the a6000 for a few test/not important shots, with a Rokinon Cine 12mm f2.2 and at 1600 ISO it was really nice. (I don't have the footage to show as I shot on his memory card...)

In decent light and controlled environment filming, its a great little camera and especially to combat the moire and aliasing! The three main things I HATE about it: NO/ZERO/ZILCH audio inputs, it WILL overheat filming in 60p outside on a warm day, and it drinks the battery juice! I have 4 batteries and might get another 2.