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SONY α NEX-6

A mid-range camera that is not yet fully refined

SONY α NEX-6 Mirrorless Digital Camera Review and Photo Examples

Table of contents

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Gallery

  • The example photo was taken with the CONTAX-G BIOGON 28mm.
  • Since the camera sensor is APS-C size, the focal length is equivalent to 28mm*1.5=42mm.

Review

  1. Overview
  2. Usage
  3. Add info
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SONY NEX-6 +ELMARIT-R 35mm 1st
SONY NEX-6 +BIOGON-G28mm

1．Overview

The NEX-6 is a mirrorless camera with an APS-C size sensor that was released in November 2012 at the end of the α NEX brand (the final NEX brand camera was the NEX-5T in September 2013).

It was released after the NEX-7, and the model number is smaller because the pixel count has been reduced from 24 megapixels to 16 megapixels.

The main features are listed below.

  • The EVF performance is the same as the NEX-7, with a high resolution of 2.36 million dots.
  • The battery continues to use the NP-FW503.
  • The memory card is compatible with SDXC4, so there is no problem with availability.
  • The accessory shoe uses a multi-interface shoe.
  • It does not have in-body image stabilization, so you will have to wait until the α65005 released in 2016.

2．Usage

I feel that the NEX-6 is an evolution from the NEX-5, but it seems to have forgotten the good points of the NEX-7, which is a shame.

The biggest problem with the NEX-6 is that, even though it has two convenient ring-shaped dials, to adjust the exposure, you have to press the exposure compensation button on the back and then turn the ring.

Every time I use it, I think how much better it would have been if I could adjust the exposure directly with this ring, so it’s a really disappointing specification.

The NEX-7, which I used after the NEX-6, allows you to assign exposure compensation to the dial on the right shoulder, and I felt that it was completely different to use.

As for lens play caused by the mount adapter, if you assign the focus magnification to an easy-to-use button on the back, it makes it easier to focus when using manual focus (MF).
When I release the shutter thinking that the focus position is roughly correct on both the EVF and the rear monitor, the focus position is off when I view it on my PC, which is a sad result.

The accuracy of the autofocus (MF) is average and not excellent. It captures subjects with a high contrast to a certain extent, but I would like it to focus on close-up areas. However, when the subject has a noisy background, the background may be out of focus, so the preview and enlargement check process is necessary.

This is partly because I wear glasses, but the EVF can be difficult to see under sunny days. I know that the camera I bought second-hand did not have an eyecup, and that the light coming in from the side of the viewfinder makes it difficult to see, so attaching an optional eyecup should improve the situation.

The NEX-7, which I bought before giving up on the NEX-6, comes with an eyecup as standard, and the difficulty of viewing the EVF has been resolved, so cutting out the light from the side of the viewfinder has a big impact on usability.

I also purchased the power zoom EPZ 16-50 *1 at the same time as the camera, but as it was cheap, the distortion correction was poor and the peripheral image quality was not good.

The body is light and I don’t use heavy lenses, so I use it with a one-sided strap, but there is no excessive weight on the strap, so it doesn’t cause any particular problems in operation.
However, the strap attachment bracket is a cheap design that is made by simply drilling holes into a flat plate, reflecting the cost-cutting approach taken in cheaper models.

3．Add Info.

The NEX-6 is a mirrorless camera with an APS-C size sensor that was released at the end of the NEX brand (the final release of the NEX brand was the NEX-5T) before the α brand was introduced.

It was released after the NEX-7, and the model number is smaller because the pixel count was reduced from 24 megapixels to 16 megapixels.

If you assign the focus magnification to a button, it is easy to focus when using manual focus (MF). If you release the shutter thinking that the focus is roughly correct on both the EVF and the rear monitor, the focus position is often off when viewed on a PC, resulting in disappointing results.

The biggest problem with the NEX-6 is that although it has two convenient ring-shaped dials, the user interface requires you to press the exposure compensation button and then turn the ring to adjust the exposure compensation.

Every time I use it, I think it would be nice if I could make corrections directly with this ring, so it’s a really disappointing specification.
The NEX-7, which I used after the NEX-6 , allows you to assign exposure compensation to the dial on the right shoulder, and I felt that it was completely different in usability.

This is partly because I wear glasses, but the EVF can be difficult to see under sunny days. I know that this is because of the light entering from the side of the viewfinder, so I will try to improve it by attaching an eyecup (sold separately) at some point. When the EVF is difficult to see, the rear LCD is also difficult to see, so it can be difficult to use MF lenses.
At the same time, I purchased the power zoom EPZ 16-50, but as it is cheap, the distortion correction is weak and the peripheral image quality is not good.

This camera is useful for walking, and like the NEX-5, it looks good with the CONTAX-G lens attached via the Metabones mount adapter. The focal length is 1.5 times longer due to the sensor size, but I think it is a good body for enjoying manual lenses except during the day, thanks to the reliable viewfinder.

As the body is light and I don’t attach particularly heavy lenses, I use a one-sided strap, but there is no excessive load on the strap and it doesn’t pose any particular problems in use.
However, the strap attachment bracket is a cheaply made product made of just a flat plate with holes drilled into it, and I feel that it is in line with the price.

Specification

Model nameNEX-7NEX-6α6000α6500
Effective Pixel number24.2-Mega pixcels16.1-Mega pixels24.3-Mega pixels24.3-Mega linpixels
Sensor sizeAPS-C
23.5 x 15.6mm		←←←
Back LCD　Pixels3.0
92.1万ドット		←←←
EVFInclude
2.36 million dots		←Include
1.44 million dots		Include
2.36 million dots
Shake reducrtion×←←○
Max shutter speed1/4000←←←
BatteryNP-FW50←←←
Touch panel×←←○
WIFI○←←←
NFC×←○←
AFContrastContrast
Image phase difference		←←
accessory shoeAuto-locking accessory shoeMulti Interface Shoe←←
Recorded mediaMS-Pro-Duo
SDXC		←←←
Release date2011.82012.112014.32016.12
Size120 x 67 x 43←120 x 67 x 45120 x 67 x 53
Weight (body only)291287285410
ColorBlack←Black,White,Silver,Grafight grayBalck

Options

  • HVL-F20M(flash unit)
  • HVL-F28RM(flash unit)
  • HVL-F46RM(flash unit)
  • LA series mount adapter
  • Accessory kit
  • Strap
  • Case

Reference links

Update history

  • 2024.12.17
  • 2024.7.26
  • 2023.11.26:First draft

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