Sony MILCs' operational response speed

[lunaticitizen]

I got my first Sony full-frame camera a while ago, and one of the first things I noticed is that its response speed to regular operations such as changing lens aperture etc. is very laggy compared to the Nikon DSLR I used to have. I can absolutely notice the lag when I rotate the dial to change aperture.

My guess is that Sony cameras don't have a specialized CPU for real-time operations, unlike their competitors' DSLR counterparts.

Probably not a big deal for the majority of people, but I'm just wondering about their engineering decisions when they designed the camera.

What do you think?

[rpcrowe]

I haven't noticed that with my A7iii or either the A6400 or A6500... However, I was not a Nikon shooter before I shifted to Sony...

[dje]

I hadn't noticed anything in particular in the past however I just had a look at the speed of changing aperture on my Sony a7 compared to my Nikon DSLR. The a7 probably is a little slower but I would attribute this to the different way in which mirrorless cameras operate. On a DSLR, the aperture normally sits wide open. When you change the aperture setting, the aperture doesn't actually change to that setting until after focus and metering just before the shutter starts opening. On a mirrorless camera, the aperture actually changes every time you change the setting. I also suspect that the new aperture is reported back from the lens to the camera before the new setting is displayed thus introducing another small delay.

Dave

[lunaticitizen]

I hadn't noticed anything in particular in the past however I just had a look at the speed of changing aperture on my Sony a7 compared to my Nikon DSLR. The a7 probably is a little slower but I would attribute this to the different way in which mirrorless cameras operate. On a DSLR, the aperture normally sits wide open. When you change the aperture setting, the aperture doesn't actually change to that setting until after focus and metering just before the shutter starts opening. On a mirrorless camera, the aperture actually changes every time you change the setting. I also suspect that the new aperture is reported back from the lens to the camera before the new setting is displayed thus introducing another small delay.

Dave

Hello Dave,

What you're saying makes sense. I'm not sure whether this difference between DSLR and mirrorless camera also apply to operation such as changing shutter speed, though? This lag also happen when I do that.

Changing ISO values does not appear to produce any perceptible lag, though.

[lunaticitizen]

I haven't noticed that with my A7iii or either the A6400 or A6500... However, I was not a Nikon shooter before I shifted to Sony...

My first DSLR was a Canon 60D and I'm sure I couldn't feel any perceptible lag when using it!

I've got no complain at all about the Sony's image quality, though.

[dje]

Hello Dave,

What you're saying makes sense. I'm not sure whether this difference between DSLR and mirrorless camera also apply to operation such as changing shutter speed, though? This lag also happen when I do that.

Changing ISO values does not appear to produce any perceptible lag, though.

Quite right Leo, I think you've just shot down my theory

I wonder is it something as simple as the way Sony have implemented their "sliding bar" display that occurs when you change aperture or shutter speed?

Dave

[Manfred M]

It seems to me that this might be a Sony issue. My (now getting long in the tooth) Panasonic GX-7 performs these functions just as quickly as my Nikon D810.

[lunaticitizen]

Yes, it could be as simple as inefficient programming by Sony. I'd venture a guess most digital cameras also only have a single, general-purpose CPU for every task, yet they don't feel laggy unlike my Sony.

[Shadowman]

Leo,

How important is it to your shooting style?

[lunaticitizen]

Leo,

How important is it to your shooting style?

To my shooting style? I guess it's not important at all because it's not very often that I change my lens aperture when shooting. Usually it's either wide open or f/11. I seldom change my shutter speed either because 99% of the time I use aperture priority mode.

I was just wondering because it's new to me.