Let's steer the conversation back to full frame...
I had a chance to play with the a9 at the launch in NYC and found it to be a remarkable camera. The one caveat being that I have not been able to view any files yet, but from a technology and operational perspective it ticks almost all my boxes.
The good
1. More physical controls
2. Incredibly responsive handling
3. 24mp is a sweet spot for my personal needs
4. Improved battery
5. AF has reached a new level of performance, unseen previously on mirrorless. I haven't used the 1DX or D5 so I can't compare but I also can't imagine needing much else in terms of speed, accuracy and tracking capability.
6. Improved bright, large EVF with very natural color - better than SL
The unknown
1. Is there an AA filter? Sony has been silent, my guess is yes but I want the answer to be no.
2. Weather sealing. I've used my a7RII uncovered in the steady cold Iceland rain with zero ill effects and I understand the a9 improves on the sealing so not really concerned, but it would be nice if Sony would convey the camera's weather sealing capability with more clarity.
The a9 is so much more than a sports camera, it is a low limits camera. The camera is the closest thing to a frictionless shooting experience in the digital world. Abundant physical knobs, dials and buttons provide quick access to the key controls that effect the direct shooting experience while the stacked sensor and Bionz processor bring speed and responsiveness to the image processing. This is what many of us have been waiting for, that marriage of traditional control with the performance of a high speed image processing engine in a smaller mirrorless FF body. This is not a sports camera, it is an everything camera.
While the 20fps with no blackout is impressive, I think it is the AF tracking that is going to have the most impact on composition and capture. Today I regularly use lock-on flexible point to track my subjects, even in low light scenarios and while it works well (maybe 70% success), I know the system limitations and work around them. With the a9, my short time with the camera tells me that Sony has dramatically improved the system and I'm now closer to 90+% effectiveness using AF tracking. Most impressive is the tracking of subjects moving towards the camera - this was a weak point in the previous system. It's amusing to me that Sony succumbed to demands for the addition of a joystick when the AF tracking makes it nearly obsolete.
The only question for many will be the price. $4500 is a lot of bananas. Let's remember though, that the a7RII was not a cheap camera either and you could argue that it was the model that propelled Sony popularity and success during this last product cycle. Still, I would love to see the AF speed, battery and physical controls soon make their way to a more affordable lower end model - a7III.
Chad