Thoughts on my new Nex C3

I know everyone’s fixated on the new Nex 7 and Nex 5n right now but I want to share my thoughts on my new Nex C3 (twin lens kit). I bought it whilst on holiday in Singapore in July…obviously no other new Nex’s about at that time. Hope this helps others looking for a camera.

I wanted to replace my Lumix LX3. It’s been a good camera, nice build, compact and can take some great photos (in good light) but wanted a camera with better picture quality that I can still take fishing (my main hobby where most of the time the photos are taken in low light) and a camera I will take everywhere with me.

I’ve been pretty happy with C3. What I like:

• Compact, portable.

• Great ISO range. A huge improvement on the LX3. I have not used the flash yet!

• Dynamic range and better control over depth of field.

• The pancake lens on the C3 makes a nice compact package. The 16mm lens is good for the confines of my boat. I also bought the UW converter.

• The kit zoom is versatile.

• The video is great…did not think I would use it but has come in handy.

• Image quality is better than the LX3 over a wider range of conditions.

• Tilty LCD is great especially for photos of the kids and candids.

• love the HDR mode, Toy camera, panoramic and the manual focus assist. Have found that this is the most foolproof method of focusing.

• I like the UI. I use mainly Aperture or Shutter priority and have customised the buttons as follows so most functions I use are one button access:

• Left key = shoot mode

• Right key = metering mode

• Soft key B =ISO (and the ISO icon is displayed at the bottom right of the LCD)

• Soft key C = Access to ‘custom’ buttons which are White Balance, Flash Mode, Drive Mode, AF/MF Mode, HDR and DRO

What I don’t like:

• Kit zoom is not smooth. Feels a bit wobbly/cheap. Not a huge problem. Seems to take pictures ok.

• No inbuilt flash. Would have accepted a slightly bigger body to accommodate a flash. Lucky the ISO range is so good.

• Autofocus is not always spot on. I have found manual focus better.

• Battery life is just ok.

• Can’t change many settings in macro mode? Could just be me.

The salesman threw in a camera bag which is bigger than I need and holds everything including my old Hoya 28mm lens and 50mm Nikon lens I had with my FM2. (yet to get an adapter). Fine for walking about to take photos but for throwing in the boat of just carrying in a backpack or my work bag I purchased a plastic water tight box from an outdoor store ($30). The inside has some foam but I added some more as dividers and to make it more snug. This box works great. I don’t have to worry about salt spray and water. I have drowned 2 other cameras in the past 10 years.

Heres some pics of the dry box and some pics from the C3. Constructive comments appreciated. Be kind I’m still learning : )

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