Behind the Scenes With Sony…
Posted on July 8, 2010 - Filed Under NB Recommends, Nigel Barker's Beauty Equation, Sony
About a month ago, I was sent a bunch of new equipment from Sony, most of which was not on the market yet and some of which still is not. Of course I felt like a kid in a candy store and promptly sported the new gear everywhere I went to oohs and ahhs from folks in-the-know. There was serious purpose to my possession of the new merchandise – I am to be featured in the new ‘How To’ videos for Sony. As many of you know, I shoot with Sony’s A900 DSLR, which is an outstanding camera (all the international ad campaigns I shot this year featured in magazines such as Harper’s Bazaar, ELLE and Town & Country were shot on the A900). So, I was sent the new gear to familiarize myself with the product and give real advice on how best to use the new gadgets. I was sent the new NEX-5, the TX-7, the Bloggie and the latest Camcorder the HDR-XR550. Well, needless to say, the NEX-5, which is a hybrid of the classic compact point-and-shoot yet with the lenses and capability of a top of the line DSLR, was the showstopper. I was actually with Patrick Demarchelier and Matthew Rolston (two of the worlds most ‘Noted’ photographers!), and neither could keep their hands off it. You know it’s rare for a camera to be actually new. Sure they may have a new feature or a bigger sensor etc., but what the NEX does is pretty much bring the quality and finesse of a top-notch DSLR to the hands of an amateur. When you look at the back of the camera, it looks just like a point-and-shoot, except less intimidating, as there are almost no visible bells and whistles (they are all neatly accessible once the camera is turned on). The NEX has interchangeable lenses that are also auto or manual focus at the flick of a switch. So no more blurry point-and-shoot shots in low light where the camera automatically focuses on the bright light source and not the subject you are trying to light! It is also super small and lightweight, making it the perfect travel companion. Another great ‘new’ feature is on the TX-7, it has a touch screen where you tap the screen to direct the focus wherever you want the camera to focus. So if you want the camera to focus on the bottom left hand corner, so be it! You simply touch the screen on the back, and that is where the camera focuses. It also can take up to 10 frames a second in a burst, which is extraordinary and basically makes it impossible to miss the shot in those blink-of-an-eye moments… The TX-7 is a compact point-and-shoot that is approximately wallet sized – need I say more? The camcorder XR550, is super sleek and comes with 240 GB of internal disk space!!!!! But for me, the part that I couldn’t get over is the internal editor. What am I talking about? Good question. The guys at Sony have installed a tiny little man into every camera who… just kidding! But honestly, they have developed algorithms that help edit your footage so you can play back your rough unedited film on your TV and actually look good to the family by just pressing a button. You have choices too, like action, nostalgic and simple, and the editing software looks for the clips that represent the selection and then pieces them together on camera for you – this stuff is serious! And last, but by no means least, is the Bloggie. The simple, take-anywhere, cheap yet sleek, so easy-to-use my 4-year-old was shooting with it camera and camcorder all in one. When you upload it to your computer, you can send the video directly to your social networking sites, blog, etc. all in one action. It’s the kind of camera that you just grab and take with you no matter where or what you are doing. I personally love to switch it on and record the room as a second camera to get great behind the scenes, and it comes with a 360-degree lens attachment so you really can have eyes in the back of your head.
Much more to come shortly when the videos come out and of course any one of these cameras will be the perfect addition when reading my new book, which will be released this September, called The Beauty Equation. Self-portraits anyone???
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