p.1 #1 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
Roger at lensrentals.com just posted an article on the Sony A7/A7R light leak issue.
Here is summary of his finding:
We tested several A7rs and several A7s and all were the same, so it’s simply a design issue, not a batch of defective cameras.
The light leak occurs with the body cap in place, but is more severe with a 35 f/2.8 Sony lens mounted instead of the body cap.
The leak is worst when the light is shined onto the lens-release button area. It is also bad when the light shines onto the lower left quadrant of the lens mount, and directly above the lens mount. Other areas either didn’t leak or showed only a thin line that was far less pronounced than these areas.
Wrapping something around the lens mount stopped the left side leaks, but not the leaks around the lens-release button.
p.1 #3 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
EB-1 wrote:
What idiots do they have designing cameras at Sony?
EBH
Hmm, you should have read to the final paragraph of Roger's piece:
"And for you Fanboys who just can’t wait to Sony bash over this odd little issue, let he whose camera is without light leak cast the first stone. Because, so far the same problem has been found with Canon, Nikon, and Fuji cameras. I assume a similar solution will work just fine for those, too."
p.1 #6 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
I guess the Pentax K5 nor K3 have light leaks, nor the Olympus EM-1 or even Sony NEX-6 (according to Imaging-Resource) so I guess it's not like it's impossible to properly design a light tight, interchangeable lens camera.
I'm sure it doesn't matter to most users (practically) but for a few, it does...and it really should not exist on any high end, modern camera. Folks should not have to worry about putting hair ties and tape on their expensive $2K+ bodies to "bubble gum" fix them imo.
p.1 #7 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
I guess this means you guys don't think I'm going to make a fortune selling my patented self-adhesive lens-release button light seals?? Come on, only $19.95
p.1 #8 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
RCicala wrote:
I guess this means you guys don't think I'm going to make a fortune selling my patented self-adhesive lens-release button light seals?? Come on, only $19.95
I think Sony should just include a roll of electrical tape and pack of hair ties in the box with the A7's. Yet another thing they left out... like the battery charger! Hey, you wanted Sony bashing right. Ha ha.
p.1 #9 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
snapsy wrote:
]EB-1 wrote:
What idiots do they have designing cameras at Sony?
Hmm, you should have read to the final paragraph of Roger's piece:
"And for you Fanboys who just can’t wait to Sony bash over this odd little issue, let he whose camera is without light leak cast the first stone. Because, so far the same problem has been found with Canon, Nikon, and Fuji cameras. I assume a similar solution will work just fine for those, too."
p.1 #10 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
RCicala wrote:
I guess this means you guys don't think I'm going to make a fortune selling my patented self-adhesive lens-release button light seals?? Come on, only $19.95
Tell people it also fixes the A7r's shutter vibration and you'll have yourself a homerun.
p.1 #14 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
itai195 wrote:
This reminds of peanut allergies. Did older cameras not have light leaks, or were consumers just not hyper-obsessive about finding them?
I assume you're not actually familiar with peanut allergies then... considering peanuts are responsible for more food-allergy deaths in the U.S. than all other food-allergy deaths combined.
As a society we might be grossly over-stating, and treating, the number of folks with allergies, ADHD, gluten intolerance, and a host of things, but it's just as foolish to pretend that the serious forms of these pathologies are the result of obsessive searching behavior.
People who die as a result of eating/inhaling a part of a peanut are not making it up.
A better analogy are wear-and-tear pathologies, like in joints: If you scan the general population you'll find tons of pathological findings in totally non-symptomatic people. For many of these findings you don't have to do anything; treat the symptomatic cases or the cases where empirical findings suggest early treatment has better outcomes than waiting and watching. There's a reason why full-body MRI isn't part of an annual check-up for healthy people... and it's not just the cost/time involved.
Sorry to go so far off topic, but I think it's a canard in popular society to push back so hard against the rise in allergies/auto-immune conditions that we start repeating that they're simply a result of "hyper-obsessive" searching behavior.
The whole issue surrounding peanuts in public places isn't about the folks who think they're allergic (and perhaps are not allergic), or for whom a peanut or two in food will cause minor discomfort-- it's for the kids who die when they're exposed.
As for the light leaks, I agree that it's just not a big issue if it doesn't impact your shooting. A little tape if you must. At the same time-- it's unfortunate to pay thousands of dollars on a camera that you find out has this problem when you're out shooting that long-exposure night scene with light hitting the gap in just the right spot.
p.1 #15 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
Thanks Roger. I tested my copy of the A7 and couldn't find any light leaks. 30 second exposures at ISO1600 while shining all around the mount and camera with a very bright LED light. Every photo was black, without any trace of light leaks. If it only shows at very high ISO it's a non-issue for me.
p.1 #16 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
Oh lord.
The world is becoming so damn uptight. I wanna go back to my childhood in the 80's when kids were actually allowed to do things. These days you have to carry out a risk assessment to push them on a swing, well it's certainly getting that way!
Since I've never EVER had a light leak issue with any of my cameras over the years I'm assuming there's very specific circumstances where this issue reveals itself. Clearly I'm not shooting under such specific circumstances so for me it's a non issue, and I'm guessing those who are affected are few and far between. But, I can see that if you were one of those affected it would be an annoyance. One that is easily dealt with though. If my new shoes are rubbing, I try thicker socks or put a plaster on the affected area. I'm just saying.
p.1 #20 · Roger at Lensrentals tested Sony A7R Light Leak
itai195 wrote:
This reminds of peanut allergies. Did older cameras not have light leaks, or were consumers just not hyper-obsessive about finding them?
Wrong analogy. My kids have nut allergies. I've seen them choke up, I've taken them to the ER. I've seen the full ER staff scrambling around my daughter to get her right. Nut allergies have nothing to do with hyper-obsessivity or any imagined behavior. It's very real and extremely scary.
Ha ha.