Hands-On: Sony WX1 And Photo Competition
Sony has recently release their new DSC-WX1 compact camera which according to Sony has unparalleled low-light capabilities (we’ll put that to the test). This camera has lots of goodies (dive deeper into later in the article) one of which is the Sweep Panorama feature. With very little effort this feature puts a panoramic image together as you “Sweep” in a 256 degree angle.
Technorati and WeSay has partnered up to launch a photo competition based on the Sweep Panorama feature. They provided us with a WX1 to review and help promote the competition. Sony and WeSay is doing a great services and is going to allow the winner of this competition to donate in their name 10 Sony WX1’s to the school of their choice. Will be awesome for the journalism department!
Review and Specifications
The technology behind the “Intelligent Auto Adjustment” feature is as easy as it gets. Simply point and shoot and more likely then not you are going to get the perfect picture you are looking for. For those who want a little more control over the shots you take their is the “Program Auto” feature.
Sweep Panorama Mode
It doesn’t get much easier then to hit the shutter button and begin sweeping. That’s exactly all you have to do. Below are a few examples of the Panorama feature around the southern California area. This feature does it best in still scenes and if there is any objects in the scene they are not moving too fast. If you are not moving in a steady motion the camera will stop and let you know to retake the photo.
The Richardson Thanksgiving
Just before I started chowing down on some thanksgiving goodness I told my little friend there to say SPAM!. As you can see with grandma on the right, her sleeve is a bit jittery. That happens if there is any fast movement going on as you shoot in panorama mode, you will get a bit of that. Click the image to view full size.
The Ford Fiesta Movement
During the Ford Fiesta event in Los Angeles about a week ago i was able to snap a very wide photo of the entire show floor and stage. There was a band playing on stage so most of the people were somewhat still and I was able to get a great photo. Unlike the photo above you can’t see the waves from people moving like you do with grandma’s sleeve above. Click the image to view full size.
The Orange Circle
Another cool way to use the panorama mode is take your photos vertically. I was in the city of Orange in Orange County for this shot. They have this really cool round island in the middle of town and all the traffic circles around it. Click the image to view full size.
High-Def Movie mode
It’s always great to be able to fit a high definition video shooting device in your pocket. The WX1 does just that. It has a high definition (720p) video mode where it can record HD movies in MPEG4 format.
10.2 megapixel “Exmor R” CMOS image sensor
This helps with the low-light shooting capabilities of the WX1. In the books: “The WX1 features an image sensor that brings out the full resolving power of the camera’s G lens to deliver extremely fast speed, high resolution, and stunning low-light sensitivity with improved image clarity and drastically reduced grain – 2x better than traditional sensors of equivalent size and pixel count.”
Alright, so the specs says it can take some amazing low-light photos but what does it look like? Click image to view full size.
Not to shabby eh? A very high quality shot in a very low-light setting. All in all this a great camera you can bring with you anywhere you go. The Sony WX1 goes for around $349 retail but you can get it through amazon for $299 with free shipping.
