Photo news: Everything on Alpha and Fuji's medium format filmmakers

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Instead of looking back, here's a look ahead: Sony is planning an event in Japan next week. So much for the facts. The rest of what is currently being pushed through the Internet rumor mills is speculation. This should be borne in mind below.

What is certain is that Sony has announced the event. Although there is nothing on the website about products to be announced at the event, the YouTube stream already set up for next Tuesday states that the Alpha 1 II will be unveiled. This is in line with numerous leaks that claim to know about a new lens and a camera. The unconfirmed information about the camera is quite credible. This is because the previous Alpha 1 will be four years old next January. This is the usual lifespan for a professional flagship in the camera market.

The Alpha 9 III, which was released this year, cannot serve as a replacement, as it is trimmed for maximum speed via global shutter, i.e. sports and action, but remains at the 24 megapixel resolution of its predecessor. Sony therefore lacks a model with a higher resolution; Canon and Nikon have already updated their corresponding models. An Alpha 1 II with, as the leaks report, still 50 megapixels fits very well into the picture. The surprise, however, would be if the rumors prove to be true that this camera will fit into the housing of the Alpha 9 III.

Uniform platform for housing?

This could make sense because it would save costs for Sony. Just last week, our column wrote about standardized platforms because Nikon had given its Z50 II the Expeed processor of the flagship Z9. In terms of standardized chips and software, the idea of a uniform platform is obvious, as it saves development and support costs. The platform concept is less visible to the customer when it comes to mechanics and housings, as this is where the manufacturer has the main advantages: A die-cast housing, one more hole here, mill off a little more or less there: the body for a completely different camera is finished. In practice, the target group of professionals with several bodies hardly need to worry about any haptic confusion, as they already know which camera is attached to which strap.

Lightweight 28-70mm lens in prospect

The lens that Sony is also supposedly planning to present next week is also likely to be a professional tool: a 28-70mm f/2.0, a particularly compact and therefore lightweight device. The universal wide-angle zoom with high light intensity for all manufacturers is a 24-70mm f/2.8, i.e. with four millimeters more focal length. It is possible that the Sony engineers have managed to achieve a wider aperture without sacrificing a little wide-angle performance. If this proves to be the case, the lens is likely to be quite expensive – as is the Alpha 1 II.

Fuji's real cine camera

The Fujifilm GFX Eterna is no bargain either. Even if Fuji has not yet announced the price, it is obvious, because it is the company's first fully professional cine camera, i.e. a tool for film production. Fujifilm has packed the sensor of the GFX 100 II medium format camera into a housing that has the many connections for this area of application. The 102-megapixel sensor is of course still at the heart of the camera, but it is not nearly fully utilized when filming in standard formats. However, there are various 8K formats in 16:9 as well as a 5.8K resolution in a 2:35:1 aspect ratio suitable for cinema. And there is also a 4K format with a crop factor of just 1:1.01, which uses almost the entire sensor with oversampling.

A little confusing when you start with 102 megapixels, but the aim is always to achieve the best possible image quality. DPreview has prepared easy-to-understand graphics showing how the large image circle of 55 millimetres affects the rectangular video formats.

So far there is only one image of the front left side of the camera in Fuji's announcement, and that too in very low resolution. That's why the cover picture of this article looks like this. Fuji is still keeping a lot to itself, but not the bayonet, which for the time being remains with the G-mount of the company's medium format cameras. However, an adapter for the PL mount, a standard in film production, has been announced. This is also mandatory so that the Premista lenses with film equipment, which were already successful in the analog era and have long been suitable for digital, will also fit. A new motorized zoom with a focal length of 32-90 millimetres and otherwise unknown data is being developed. The Eterna and the zoom are due to be launched in 2025. ¶

Leica's LUX app can now do more ¶

The new versions of the Leica LUX App are already available. Still only available for iPhones, they are designed to recreate the look of photos from a real Leica using the smartphone's cameras. In versions 1.1 and 1.2, which are available in the App Store depending on the model of the Apple device, it is now possible to simulate a 90mm and a 120mm Summilux, among other things. The prerequisite is an iPhone with a 3x or 5x telephoto camera. Another new feature: The strength of the "Leica Looks", which also digitally simulate the more recent Leica cameras based on analog models, can now also be set in the app using a slider. What remains unchanged is that the app uses a freemium model. The download is free, for most manual functions you have to pay 8 euros per month or 80 euros for an annual subscription.

What makes a real cine camera? ¶

If you are now interested in cine cameras, perhaps because of Fuji's Eterna, you may want to learn more about the basics and operation of these heavyweights. Fortunately, our colleagues at c't have just visited the industry leader: Arri in Munich. In a great video, they explain what makes a cine camera different from what can be done with DSLRs or mirrorless system cameras. Just a little spoiler: Among other things, it's the ability to attach lots of accessories and have the camera operated by multiple people, including wirelessly. This is not overkill or a gimmick, but, as Arri also explains, a necessity in film: when a day's shooting costs several hundred thousand euros, nothing can go wrong due to operating errors. This is why, for example, the tasks of image composition and sharpness – and therefore depth of field – are often spread over several shoulders. The video is our recommendation for a long watch at the weekend.

(nie)