Mod-Blog Review: Sony DSC-N1

Mod-Blog readers know (if you have been paying attention) that QuizWedge got married this past weekend. What you may NOT know, is that obsessive Mod-Blogger Nomad is also an obsessive photographer at events like this. I have a Canon Digital Rebel (which I *highly* recommend!) which I use for the vast majority of my shutter-bugging. However, being a real SLR with long lenses, it is not ideal for bringing along when I need to fly. Putting it into the carry-on means there would be little to no room for anything else. Putting it into checked luggage means risking theft. Plus, of course, in this wedding I was a groomsman and the SLR would have stuck out badly during the ceremony, even if I tried to hide it under my tux.

Enter the world of the micro-mini-digicams. I have previously owned the U20 (a 2 megapixel the size of a pack of gum), the L1 (a 4 megapixel the size of a large pack of gum), and briefly owned the new T9 (6 megapixel and thinner than a deck of cards). The U20 was great but 2 megapixels is just not good enough. The L1 was fine but the tiny lens made it hard to do anything in low light. The T9 was better in low light, but... well... I learned too late that you can NOT update the japanese model to show English menus, and red eye was much worse than the L1.

So, I decided to try the the Sony DSC-N1. The N1 is a monster 8 megapixels (more than the Canon Digital Rebel) machine. It is slightly thicker and larger than the T9, but still tiny compared to vast majority of digital cameras. It has a 3x optical zoom, plus additional digital zoom (I never use digital zoom, since the crop function in iPhoto works at least as well). And it has one revolutionary change over other digicams - a 3 inch wide touchscreen LCD! This means all of the controls on this thing (aside from the zoom, shutter, and a "bring up menu" button) are on the screen itself. This means for easy and quick changes to settings, and even on-screen editing! Nice. The camea also does MPEG video, including zooms during recording. The battery can last for about 300 pictures, and can be easily and quickly swapped out for extended shooting. It uses Sony's proprietary memory stick format (up to 2 GB in a cost-effective form, up to 4 GB for a huge cost increase). Another nice feature of the N1 is the "album". Internal memory holds VGA versions of up to 500 pictures for replay later alone or with music as a slideshow on the beautiful LCD.

My own experience with the N1 was GREAT. Shooting speed was good enough to capture most of the shots I wanted, even in action. (Though it should be noted that I was shooting a WEDDING and not a sporting event.) Color was surprisingly true outdoors and indoors, artificial and natural lighting. With a 2 GB memory stick in the unit, I captured about 500 photos from the weekend and most were keepers. The camera itself was small enough to be easily hidden in the tuxedo breast pocket with no visible bulge, and was tough enough to survive the bachelor party night in my hip jeans pocket with no damage. The battery truly did survive almost 300 pictures, plus a few minutes of video. The problems? As with most minicams, red eye was a problem, though less than on the U20, L1, or T9. And I never did use red eye reduction (due to the need to be as inconspicuous as possible, and not mess up the shots of the professional protographer). And, I still got blur under some conditions without flash... but that was to be expected.

Overall, I am THRILLED with the results of the N1. It may be my favorite minicam so far (which is saying a LOT, I loved the U20). And the large LCD had an unexpected advantage - beautiful women were coming up to me all weekend to see pictures on the hug screen and to ooh and aah over the touchscreen. I didn't get any phone numbers or e-mail addresses from it, but I am pretty sure that is due to my shyness more than due to the lack of power on the part of the N1. :-)