Reading mode: Light Dark

NEX-5R vs NEX-6

Go to last post
J

joshnewdad

New member
Messages
4
Reaction score
0
Hi All,

I'm a new Dad looking at both the NEX-5R and NEX-6. I'm considering both the 16-50/3.5-5.6 and 35/1.8. I'm looking to shoot great protraits of my baby girl, take video of her first steps, and have the perfomance of a DSLR with the portability these cameras offer to make traveling easy. Would you recommend one camera over another? The key differences I can see is that the 6 offers a build-in flast, EVF, and different controls. I see it has a hot shoe, but I don't know if I would use that since it already has a built-in flash. The 5R screen flips up 180* vs 90* on the 6. Am I missing anything else?

A few questions: How important is a flash with these types of cameras? Given the ISO is pretty good from what I understand will I be using a flash often? We have a relatively dark home, without a lot of direct natural light so use a flash quite a bit with my crappy point and shoot. Will I need to shoot often with a flash with these cameras? If so, I am tempted to get the 6 just to have it built in and not have to think about if I should attach/bring the accessory flash.

What about the EVF? Besides having a preference to shoot through the screen or EVF, what is the main benefit. I am only aware of stability being increased when you have the EVF balanced close to your face/body.

Are the controls more user friendly on one camera or the other? I'd like to get into all of the different modes in the future, but right now I (along with my wife) would be a beginer.

Is there anything else I should be considering? Your advice is much appreciated! Thank you in advance.
 
I was new to photography a couple years ago when the NEX 5 first came out. I bought that and have since accumulated several emount and Canon FD manual lenses. I've been an enthusiastic amateur since then. When I've compared my NEX 5 to my friends with their DSLR's (Nikon D90, etc.), there are exactly five features that I wish my NEX 5 had, but didn't.

1. built in flash - mostly used for backlit shots to brighten up a face. Not a big deal to keep the flash attached, but it adds bulk.

2. viewfinder (electronic or optical) - Usually not necessary, but I've missed bright daylight shots when I've had manual lenses on and just couldn't see enough to focus

3. more direct controls, eg. pasm dial - short cuts on the soft menus help, but I've missed shots from not getting to preferred mode (aperture priority, shutter priority, etc.) quick enough.

4. phase detect auto focus - I've missed shots with my 18-200 lens from too much hunting for focus, especially in darker conditions. pdaf is faster.

5. exposure lock separated from focus lock - there are times when I've wanted to meter off the sky, but then refocus on a different subject. Can't do it with the NEX 5.

The NEX 6 seems to address all of these issues, so might be on my christmas list. The 5R doesn't, so hasn't been interesting to me.

Things like the pancake kit zoom and apps are nice, but not big selling points for me. I mostly shoot with my primes. The app could be good for an intervalometer.
 
I'm a new dad too! My baby was born in April and I got the NEX-5N the following month. TLDR version: Get the NEX-6. But read on...
joshnewdad said:
The key differences I can see is that the 6 offers a build-in flast, EVF, and different controls. I see it has a hot shoe, but I don't know if I would use that since it already has a built-in flash. The 5R screen flips up 180* vs 90* on the 6. Am I missing anything else?
Click to expand...
Touchscreen apparently missing on the 6. But since I'm assuming you haven't had a touchscreen camera before, you won't miss what you haven't tried. So really no big deal. Personally, I find it really helpful for touch focus and browsing photos, but if you are an EVF user, you probably won't use touch focus at all - clearly Sony designed the 6 for the EVF user and the 5R for the more casual shooter.
joshnewdad said:
A few questions: How important is a flash with these types of cameras? Given the ISO is pretty good from what I understand will I be using a flash often? We have a relatively dark home, without a lot of direct natural light so use a flash quite a bit with my crappy point and shoot. Will I need to shoot often with a flash with these cameras? If so, I am tempted to get the 6 just to have it built in and not have to think about if I should attach/bring the accessory flash.
Click to expand...
For most things, pretty important. However for snapping pictures of your baby, please spare him/her from the flash! I have stopped using flash on my camera altogether, and even turned off the AF-assist light. It just makes the baby squint, distracts the baby from the mood you were trying to capture, badly spoiling any photo, and who knows what it does to their eyes. I am buying a quick lens instead. My house is also pretty dark but I can shoot most things in ISO3200 on the 5N with very good results. I've even taken pictures in near total darkness on a tripod of my baby - the results can often be quite endearing (motion blur, but if the baby is calm enough so only the limbs are moving, it has a really sweet effect).

All that said, get the NEX-6. :)
joshnewdad said:
What about the EVF? Besides having a preference to shoot through the screen or EVF, what is the main benefit. I am only aware of stability being increased when you have the EVF balanced close to your face/body.
Click to expand...
I love my EVF for outdoors, but I hardly use it indoors when snapping my baby. Baby photos are for memories, and it's nice to be able to see the context of the scene you're taking so you capture that mood just right. Despite some old naysayers, framing artfully is actually possible(wow!) on a display screen and the tiny percent difference from being able to shoot from your screen and from an EVF really doesn't mean much, especially indoors in your own home (assuming your house is not some horrible ruckus of commotion) :)
joshnewdad said:
joshnewdad said:
Are the controls more user friendly on one camera or the other? I'd like to get into all of the different modes in the future, but right now I (along with my wife) would be a beginer.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
I was a beginner when I got my 5N, and the controls more than sufficed for a beginner. All that changed when I invested in my first expensive lens (the 18-200 LE) and made it a point to get the best out of this lens - which was not a natural point-and-shoot lens. After going mostly manual, I did find navigating the menus a little bit troublesome, and even the discovery of custom buttons didn't quite solve every problem. So when I saw the controls on the 6, I was green with envy. But now is just too soon for me to upgrade my 4-month old camera.
joshnewdad said:
Is there anything else I should be considering? Your advice is much appreciated! Thank you in advance.
Click to expand...
Fast lens is a priority. 35/f1.8 or 50/f1.8 should both be great. While you might think you need a wider angle for more versatility, I have personally come to really like the portrait-style field of view (shooting with my kit lens at 55mm) for shooting my girl, so get the zoom and practice at both angles and decide which you feel more comfortable in before getting one. Or if your budget allows, get both (beware, new baby = half what you thought was your budget goes into diapers, baby gear, toys, clothes, spoiling mom to say thank-you, etc) ;)
 
In your shoes, I'd go for the NEX 6 over the 5R, for the reasons stated by quezra.
quezra said:
Get the NEX-6. But read on...
Click to expand...
A great post, quezra!

I wondered if you could comment on whether you'd recommend the NEX-7 or NEX-6 for me, coming from an NEX-C3.

These are the lenses I use:

Sony E 16mm pancake & wide angle convertor
Sony E 18-55mm kit (but don't use this much at all)
Sony E 30mm Macro (rarely used but handy)

Sony E 18-200mm LE (brand new and putting it through its paces this week during my work trip to Okinawa)
Voigtländer Nokton Classic 35mm F1.4

--
PHOTOS : http://martindesu.tumblr.com
 
I own a NEX 7 and I think I prefer the control scheme Of the recently announced NEX 6 a little better.

PASM dial so when my wife uses it she doesn't have to fish with menus or hunt that information heavy display. Wifi capability is drool worthy for me. Hybrid AF may be a lot better. We'll see.

http://www.lucarossini.it/portfolio/into-alaska-nex-6-sony/

If the shots of the plane taking off were done with AF, then the new system is amazing.

-

The NEX 6 and 7 are both better than the 5R (for me) for the following reasons:

I almost always use the EVF over the LCD to shoot, though I generally review shots on the LCD. The flash (which flips back for bounce) is incredibly useful and superior to direct flash 90% of the time indoors, and of course outdoors for fill flash in backlit situations.

Based in that I'd choose 6 or 7 over 5r in a nanosecond.

-

Please also note that even though the LCD on the 6 doesn't do 180 degrees, that there will likely be a remote viewfinder app that will allow you to use your smartphone for self portraits.

Finally, on the lens: that pancake zoom is designed for video. The zoom knob is perfect for smooth zoom (I had a Panasonic MFT with pancake zoom and similar zoom knob and it made smooth video really easy)
Ronbeau said:
I was new to photography a couple years ago when the NEX 5 first came out. I bought that and have since accumulated several emount and Canon FD manual lenses. I've been an enthusiastic amateur since then. When I've compared my NEX 5 to my friends with their DSLR's (Nikon D90, etc.), there are exactly five features that I wish my NEX 5 had, but didn't.

1. built in flash - mostly used for backlit shots to brighten up a face. Not a big deal to keep the flash attached, but it adds bulk.

2. viewfinder (electronic or optical) - Usually not necessary, but I've missed bright daylight shots when I've had manual lenses on and just couldn't see enough to focus

3. more direct controls, eg. pasm dial - short cuts on the soft menus help, but I've missed shots from not getting to preferred mode (aperture priority, shutter priority, etc.) quick enough.

4. phase detect auto focus - I've missed shots with my 18-200 lens from too much hunting for focus, especially in darker conditions. pdaf is faster.

5. exposure lock separated from focus lock - there are times when I've wanted to meter off the sky, but then refocus on a different subject. Can't do it with the NEX 5.

The NEX 6 seems to address all of these issues, so might be on my christmas list. The 5R doesn't, so hasn't been interesting to me.

Things like the pancake kit zoom and apps are nice, but not big selling points for me. I mostly shoot with my primes. The app could be good for an intervalometer.
Click to expand...
 
Thank you to everyone who posted and provided very valuable insight and advice. I am now heavily leaning towards the nex-6 for many of the reasons stated! Best Regards, Josh
 
joshnewdad said:
Hi All,

I'm a new Dad looking at both the NEX-5R and NEX-6.
Click to expand...
Congrats - to being a new Dad!
joshnewdad said:
I'm considering both the 16-50/3.5-5.6 and 35/1.8. I'm looking to shoot great protraits of my baby girl, take video of her first steps, and have the perfomance of a DSLR with the portability these cameras offer to make traveling easy. Would you recommend one camera over another?
Click to expand...
You are getting both lenses, I assume? If so, the 16-50 is a great all-around and compact zoom and the 35/1.8 is very useful at night or under low light conditions.

Nex-5R and Nex-6 is a personal taste.You can add the EVF to the Nex-5R (same cost as Nex-6 then), but then it will be a bit bulkier than the Nex-6 itself. Without the EVF, the 5R is smaller. The EVF on the 5R can then be tilted, which has nice benefits

The 5R has a 180degree flip and touch screen, the 6 has a more limited angle no touch screen, but adds an extra dial on top.

You may find touch to be very practical to select focus - the touch makes for an easier to use interface, e.g. when reviewing pics, not just AF point selection.
joshnewdad said:
The key differences I can see is that the 6 offers a build-in flast, EVF, and different controls. I see it has a hot shoe, but I don't know if I would use that since it already has a built-in flash.
Click to expand...
You will use flash as 'fill-in' (against lit background, rare) and if no light source on subject (otherwise they become too dark). The pop up flash is useful, but you will use it less frequent than you'd expect. However, for indoors, there are moments when you may get a nicer picture.
joshnewdad said:
The 5R screen flips up 180* vs 90* on the 6. Am I missing anything else?
Click to expand...
Metal versus polycarbonate casing, different controls, different sockets (5R has EVF, flash, microphone options, 6 has hot-shoe, but no mic-input).
joshnewdad said:
A few questions: How important is a flash with these types of cameras? Given the ISO is pretty good from what I understand will I be using a flash often?
Click to expand...
It is what you want. If you use the flash, in a bounce mode (not the build-in one), there is a very nice, cheap and small flash for the 5R, but it runs on the camera power. There is also a hot socket for the 5N/R now that allows a remote control flash (power only) to be used. The 6 is more friendly towards standard (larger, bulkier) flashes.

You will not use the flash often as long as you have a light source on your subject. HDR works to some extent, but unlit subjects in front of a lit window pane end up being very dark. It is up to you to compose so you do not need a flash. Generally, flash-less pictures are more impressive, but if light too low, they will get noisy.
joshnewdad said:
We have a relatively dark home, without a lot of direct natural light so use a flash quite a bit with my crappy point and shoot. Will I need to shoot often with a flash with these cameras? If so, I am tempted to get the 6 just to have it built in and not have to think about if I should attach/bring the accessory flash.
Click to expand...
No, you should consider adding a lamp as a light source. The built-in flash is fairly limited, think snapshots nearby, and the effect is not nearly as nice as the bounce flash would give you.

With the E35/1.8 you can expect to get decent pictures with reasonable low light light sources.
joshnewdad said:
What about the EVF? Besides having a preference to shoot through the screen or EVF, what is the main benefit. I am only aware of stability being increased when you have the EVF balanced close to your face/body.
Click to expand...
That helps for the 5R more than for the 6 - due to the 'tri-point' it forms, the 6 just hangs besides your face.

The main benefit is composition in bright daylight - especially when using MF lenses. Depending where you live and what season, the LCD may not give you sufficient detail. The LCD does have a bright sunny mode, which alleviates a lot of the glare problem, and is ok for use with AF lenses.

If you like to review pics, the EVF is a better option, as it lets you see a higher dynamic range (shielded display) and has more details. It is probably the best EVF on the market, and despite rumors, I expect the two EVFs to be identical.
joshnewdad said:
Are the controls more user friendly on one camera or the other? I'd like to get into all of the different modes in the future, but right now I (along with my wife) would be a beginner.
Click to expand...
The 5R is more user friendly because of the touch interface. It is also less obvious to put it in the wrong mode. The 6 mode can be dialed in with the manual switch on top.

Both cameras lack certain dSLR functions (focus lock, AE lock - as provided in the 7).

Having traveled with a 5N and 7 side by side, I found novices being more comfortable with the 5N, for many reasons. The camera seems less intimidating, easier to use, is smaller, and lighter. They used iAuto mode only anyways (not even P or P* modes). The results were very good. The preferred mode was to use it without the EVF, the LCD screen was easier for compositions (take pictures from waist height).
joshnewdad said:
Is there anything else I should be considering? Your advice is much appreciated!
Click to expand...
The 5R and 6 are virtually identical in terms of IQ and they both add the same hybrid AF system.

5R is shipping now.
joshnewdad said:
Thank you in advance.
Click to expand...
--
Cheers,
Henry
 
"No, you should consider adding a lamp as a light source. The built-in flash is fairly limited, think snapshots nearby, and the effect is not nearly as nice as the bounce flash would give you. "

I was in the Sony Store the other day and noticed that their small video lights are reduced to half price. $39 as I recall.
 
I'd vote for saving the money and getting the touch screen with the 5R. Once you touch to focus and touch to magnify right where you touch then you'll find it hard to go back to the old way. Even Canon's latest APS-C DSLR just added the touch screen -- they're fully embracing the benefits of touch. If you really need the EVF then get the 6, but I shoot my kids all the time and I like being able to hold the camera lower to capture the kids without needing to bend down and look through an EVF -- just flip out the LCD and touch to focus. The touch screen on the 5R would allow you to touch the image of your child and also snap the photo, which is an improvement over the 5N, for example. If you really need more external controls then the 6 is better, but the 7 is even better yet.

The 5R is shipping now as Henry noted and provides the same image quality you'd get with the 6.

--

60 of my favorite shots from 2012: http://www.flickriver.com/photos/jayhawk/sets/72157630578089098/
 
I have the 7 and will be purchasing the NEX 5R on day one. :) Need a new toy.
 
I am a dad too and despite the choice to go for EVF or touch screen, I find the 180 degree self portratit screen is highly favorable for my family. I would buy 5r with the power zoom lens for travel and we could use the self portrait screen to take the family photo anytime anywhere without asking someone else to help. Furthermore, using the remote viewfinder would be a little troublesome for me as my eyes would tend to look at my phone instead of the camera when pressing the shutter button. Also, that 10 seconds hook up time would certainly be a spoiler during exciting moment.
 
Don't forget that for video shooting, Sony cheaped out on audio options for the NEX-6. It's offensive to pay $800 for an XLR interface which costs them a few pennies to make -- no complex circuitry in that, just impedance matching and standard connectors.

So for me, the NEX-5R is superior on that front. I'll be able to attach my boom microphone to the proprietary interface that's lacking on the NEX-6 to make room for an unnecessary flash.
 
blue_skies said:
Both cameras lack certain dSLR functions (focus lock, AE lock - as provided in the 7).
Click to expand...
Actually the 6 has an AE lock button as well.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Keyboard shortcuts

f
Forum
m
My threads
Mobile site
About
Editorial content
Cameras & Lenses
Community
All content, design, and layout are Copyright © 1998–2025 Digital Photography Review All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction in whole or part in any form or medium without specific written permission is prohibited.
When you use DPReview links to buy products, the site may earn a commission.
©GPS Media - Guides, Products, Services.
Back
Top