Sony Alpha NEX-5

The NEX-5 looks like some kind of evil experiment where a mad scientist grafted an SLR lens onto a point and shoot camera. We won’t speculate on if Sony cackled evilly as they created it, but the result is an interesting camera that is the smallest interchangeable lens camera out there. It offers many of the advantages of an SLR without the bulk, but which produced disappointing performance.

Performance

The performance of the NEX-5 was a mixed bag. Although the APS-C sensor is bigger than Micro Four-Thirds cameras, we found that it had lackluster color performance, with some colors being inaccurately captured and oversaturated in all color modes. Sharpness was also disappointing, with slightly soft images especially at the edges of the frame and the widest and smallest apertures of the kit zoom lens. However, we did find that the images it captured had excellent dynamic range.

Video

The Sony NEX-5 did a decent job in our video tests, with the camera putting up particularly good numbers in video sharpness thanks to its Full HD record mode. Where the camera failed was in its lack of manual controls that can be set in video mode, but Sony made up for this fact by incorporating an excellent set of automatic controls on the NEX-5—including a terrific continual autofocus feature. The NEX-5 definitely isn’t the best video-capable DSLR for pros or people who want to use it for B-roll shooting, but it does offer impressive video quality in a compact body.

Hardware

The NEX-5 is available in two kit configurations; with a fixed length 16mm lens, and with the 18-55m zoom that we looked at. This zoom lens dominates the camera, but the other main feature of the camera is the gorgeous 3-inch LCD screen on the back of the camera. With an impressive 921k pixels, this screen provides an excellent preview of images. That’s good, because there is no other way to preview images: there is no viewfinder.

Controls

Although the on-camera controls of the NEX-5 are convenient and easy to use, we found that on-screen menus to be rather awkward, burying many options several layers deep beneath the main menu. Changing the shooting mode of the camera also involves accessing this on-screen menu, which makes it more awkward to switch modes that other cameras with a dedicated mode dial on the camera body. The NEX-5 does offer a good selection of modes, though, including the program, priority and manual modes that serious shooters rely on.

Sample Photos

In the following sample images, clicking on the larger image will download the full resolution original. Each photo is accompanied by four actual-size crops.

Landscape Sample
				Focal length: 18mm Aperture: f/7.1 Shutter: 1/125 ISO: 200 This photo was shot in program mode, with the landscape Creative Styles setting, using center-weighted metering and auto white balance. The intense blue of the water is indicative of the h

Close-Up Sample
				Focal length: 55mm Aperture: f/5.6 Shutter: 1/10 ISO: 400 The kit lens doesn’t allow close focus, so this was taken with the camera tripod-mounted at the full zoom setting, under indirect sunlight with a manual white balance. The outer edges are m

Color Sample
				Focal length: 51mm Aperture: f/6.3 Shutter: 1/8 ISO: 200 We used familiar grocery items to experiment with color reproduction, shooting in aperture priority mode with a custom white balance and standard Creative Style. The colors are certainly inten

Anti Motion Blur Sample
				Focal length: 42mm Aperture: f/4.5 Shutter: 1/10 ISO: 6400 Zelda was lounging in a dimly lit bedroom when this handheld shot was taken using the Anti Motion Blur mode, which combines the sharpest elements from half a dozen rapidfire exposures. Is th

High Dyamic Range Samples
	Focal length: 52mm Aperture: f/5.6 Shutter: 1/20 ISO: 400 Sony’s handheld in-camera high dynamic range capability has been improved with the NEX cameras, combining three images instead of two (as in the Sony A550). The examples here were shot at all
	HDR Off
	HDR 1 EV
	HDR 2 EV
	HDR 3 EV
	HDR 4 EV
	HDR 5 EV
	HDR 6 EV

Noise Reduction Sample (ISO 1600)
				Focal length: 40mm Aperture: f/13 Shutter: 1/3 ISO: 1600 We shot this engraving on a tripod, using aperture priority mode with an auto white balance and multisegment metering, first at ISO 1600 (left), then at ISO 12800 (below). In each pair of same

Noise Reduction Sample (ISO 12800)
				ISO 12800

Sony Alpha NEX-5 Specs
Type	Compact SLR / System
Focal Length Minimum	18.0 mm
Focal Length Maximum	55.0 mm
Still Pixel Count (gross)	14.6 megapixels
Still Pixel Count (effective)	14.2 megapixels
Sensor Size	APS-C
Sensor Type - New	CMOS
Aspect Ratios	3:2, 16:9
Frame Rate(s)	60i, 30p
Original Price	699.99 $
Height	60.452 mm
Width	111.252 mm
Depth	39.624 mm
Weight	286.33 g
Model Colors	silver, black
Display Type	LCD
Display Size	3.0 in.
Display Resolution	921600 pixels
Viewfinder Type	none
Media New	Memory Stick PRO Duo/Pro-HG Duo/PRO-HG HX Duo, SD, SDHC, SDXC
Connectivity Options	USB, miniHDMI, hot accessory shoe
Battery Type	removable lithium-ion
Battery Model Number	NP-FW50
Mirror Technology (Interchangeable Lens)	Mirrorless
Waterproof	No
Manual Controls	manual focus, aperture priority mode, shutter priority mode, full manual exposure, custom white balance, ISO control
ISO Options	200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800
Minimum ISO	200
Maximum ISO	12800