Sony HX5 - canceling the wind noise

2010-7-16 2.36 

...by now you have seen that funky "hat" my HX5 has.

Let me tell you about that. I did some research with different materials to check what works easy and effective on my Sony HX1. See my post: SONY HX1 - Silence, I kill you

I read a bit around how other people tackle that problem. I want an eye pleasing - but worst case - a not too disturbing look.

Sony HX5 vs Samsung WP10 / AQ100 - PICTURES

post moved to it´s own blog @ samsung-wp10

Sony HX5 vs Samsung WP10 / AQ100 - VIDEO

post moved to it´s own blog @ samsung-wp10

Samsung WP10 / AQ100 - submerged

post moved to it´s own blog @ samsung-wp10

Sony HX5 - Photo Samples

2010-6-8 10.7

Here you will find fotos who impressed me, straight out of the camera.
Due to the 1600 pixel limitation of Picasa (the way Blogger saves the images), I will upload the original fotos to Image Shack. The link will be below the fotos.
If I post a crop, it will be lossless so you can see the original quality.
No post processing will be done on any picture if not stated.

4 kids on a float in traditional cloth

original here
I tried several time to improve the picture above, but even a slight sharpening takes away from the mood the picture is setting. For my taste this came out perfect.

Sony HX5 vs Sony HX1

2010-6-1 17.10
The battle of the Xes

macro close up both in AI mode, the HX5 (always the left picture) used the macro sweet spot at 2.4 x.
The sweet spot from the HX1 is 1.5 x, what does not give you more magnification on the contrary to the HX5 but gives you some more distance from the object what otherwise nearly would touch the lens (see more details on my HX1 blog also with the skeleton watch close ups).
The crops are lossless, that means you see the original quality.
As you can see the HX5 has a wider depth of field (DOF).
Cameras were sitting on the table.

Sony HX5 - advanced Image manipulation

2010-5-28 15.13

I guess by now a few of you have read my post under Tips and Tricks how with the free Faststone Image Viewer it is easy and fast to improve your fotos.

I would like to take you a step further today.
The main problem with a lot of pictures it the things that lurk lost in the shadow.
How to enhance these hidden parts without messing up the picture.

Let´s get a copy of LightBox Free Image Editor and I show you how you can easy and fast get results like this.

Download the before foto from below and open in LightBox.

Sony HX5 - HDR mode

2010-5-27 23.28

When I took these 3 shots to see how good HDR would work out, I noticed that the HDR mode takes brilliance and contrast away.
I love that blue sky in HDR mode but the little stone wall on the left, what happened to the contrast?

If you want to get the most range out of your HDR shot, aim to the brightest area and lock the exposure (half press the shutter and hold) and then frame what you want to capture.

IAuto

Sony HX5 - Battery test

2010-5-26 15.15


How long does the HX5 battery last?

How much faster will the activated GPS drain the battery?

Let´s find out.

We start with a freshly charged battery,
The display is set to bright, GPS is off.
The test cycle is:

Sony HX5 - Macro Zoom

2010-5-21 16.16

To get close to an object you just leave the camera on wide angle  and this is the closest you can get, right?
Let´s find out.

25 mm no zoom

Sony HX5 - Audio

I had the pleasure to video a rehearsal for a concert and was not too happy with the dynamic of the sound and clever as I was I left my new wind filter at home. The active mode image stabilisation worked very well with the 10 x zoom and holding the camera still for several minutes.

Sony HX5 - Street Shooting

2010-5-6 21.14

Welcome to the fascinating world of Street Photography. There are different techniques from big equipment in your face photography to the hidden spycam approach. To get an idea, read here, here and here. You are also welcome to see my approach to street shooting with the HX1


self portrait in my usual street shooting position.

In a time where most people are highly sensitive of photography and you get into trouble just snapping some shots of buildings I think it is the easiest way to just be casual and unobtrusive.

The camera on the left sure would get you into trouble these days.
(was thinking of Stephen McDonald´s HX1 gun when I took this shot)

Sony HX5 - Mode Comparison

So what is the difference between the scene modes and IAuto, P and HDR?

High Iso

SONY Cyber-shot DSC HX5V on the web

last edit 10-5-24 10:47

Pictures, Videos and Links of the SONY HX5v

If you want to compare the HX5 with the NEX5, some first impressions
Digital Photography Tutorial Index
You want all the bells and whistles from the HX5 but a much better picture quality? No problem take a look at the Sony NEX-5 (want also more knobs and dials how about the NEX-7)

Sony inside: Teardown of the Casio Exilim EX-FH100
HX5 gets scorched by H.Paul Moon: Pacaya Volcano, Guatemala
Miniatur Wunderland HX5 video in low light
Gordon from Camera Labs updated his HX5 review with comparison HHT and AMB vs. P mode. Well done Gordon!

Sony HX5 - Panorama Mode

2010-5-4 16.16
Start with my HX1 post: I can show you the world

Now that you have some basic understanding, let´s see what the HX5 can do.
You have 4 sizes to shoot panoramas:
2 landscape and 2 portrait sizes

my favorite mode is portrait large

5 x 2 k pixel gives you a nice 10 MP picture
This is like having a 180 degree fisheye lens all time with you!

Sony HX5 - Pluto explains the Super Magic Mirror

2010-5-1 11.11

Well, sure it protects the screen when closed but what else can it do?



use it as a tripod to shoot upwards

Sony HX5 - low light video

Is the HX5 video performance bad in low light? Let´s find out.

ISO 400 1/2 second NO TRIPOD!

Sony HX5v User Impressions

10-04-29 14:12

Over the past year, I have traded away a ZS3, sold an SX200, returned an SX210 (yes, the big news for today), and also returned a Samsung HZ30W. And the camera I'm actually keeping in this segment is the Sony HX5. Let me give you some thoughts about each of these cameras:

Sony HX5 - Video

Short breakdown of my tests so far.

• The simple 720p mode records roughly in the high 80% of the maximum possible resolution.
  
  original video screen grab (full size 720x1280)
  To better compare the quality as you see them on the big screen TV all clips have been resized with maximum quality to full HD resolution.
  

Sony HX5 - Screen Protector

Here you see a shot with the unprotected screen. I wish Sony would get rid of the high gloss screen and we all would go back to non glossy screens for notebooks and cameras (as the most HD tv´s are doing so already)

I had another screen protector foil laying around what I used on a 3.5" pocket PC and it worked quite well on my MIO 168 but the result on the Sony HX5 screen was less then satisfactory.

Sony HX5 - Flash

I read in a forum post that the HX5 would have some problems in throttling down the flash output.
So lets check the truth.

8 cm (3") distance no zoom

that is nearly as close as you can get and the flash did not blow out the white parts, the colors are right on target.

HX5 problems and solutions

moved to: HX5 - TIPS & TRICKS

HELP WANTED test your EXMOR against a CCD in low light video

10-4-19 15:45
I need your help in analysing a problem I stumbled over.

Well to be honest other people did the stumbling over , I just like to get to the bottom of it.

If I may play Devil´s Advocate

10-04-15 21:16
forum post for this entry also look here

For everybody who is not familiar with the meaning of the headline, you slip in the role of your opposite and argue from his point of view.

So far I have been quite impressed with the Sony Hx5. All the pictures, videos, information from users and reviews.
Every time something was a bit not so right I have looked for a solution or if no solution was possible for an excuse why this feature was not so important for me.

... if you already have a HX5 you might want to read no further ...

let´s compare the SONY HX5v with ...

last edit 10-03-30 21:12
You got to be kidding
Checking the reviews from the Canon SX210, Panasonic TZ10 and the Sony HX5V I stumbled over a couple head scratchers.

SONY HX5v Highlights

Let me give you an idea what the HX5v will be capable of.
last edit 10-3-13 19:02

How good is the Active Mode?

SONY HX5v Speculations

Questions and soon hopefully the answers
last edit 10-3-13 20:19

SONY HX5 understanding the specifications

last edit 10- 02-11 00:20

Backlight Correction HDR

Shooting high-contrast scenes can often lead to washed out backgrounds and details lost in shadow.