Sample video footage from Sony DSC-HX90

Описание: For the last three years my main 'travel zoom' camera has been the Sony DSC-HX60, an earlier version of this HX95 camera and I was keen to test the upgrades this newer model brings. My first observations were the light weight, compact size (the small HX60 feels chunky in comparison), flip-up monitor, electronic viewfinder and Carl Zeiss lens which produces even cleaner and sharper images.

The 3" screen gives a clear, bright image and is one of the camera's strengths. For selfies it flips up and there's even a selfie-timer mode allowing 3 seconds after firing the shutter to perfect a smile, pout or cheesy grin. It works well for lower level photos too allowing the camera to be held low to gain a better angle for certain shots, eg animals, flowers without having to crouch or bend. In bright weather these screens become notoriously difficult to see but Sony has added a neat pop-up electronic viewfinder complete with dioptic adjustment for short/long sight. On bringing it to the user's eye, the monitor automatically switches to the viewfinder and vice-versa.

The 30x 24-720mm optical zoom is excellent giving good, clear focus throughout its range for both still images and video. With Sony's SteadyShot image stabilisation, it is possible to hand-hold the camera, with no need for a tripod, making it good for zooming in on distant subjects such as wildlife - one of my main reasons for choosing a travel zoom camera.

Photo clarity is extremely good and focusing is very fast and normally accurate with accurate colour reproduction in photos. For people shots, a new 'Eye AF' feature focuses on the subject's eyes and there's a 'smile shutter' which releases the shutter when the subject smiles. For landscapes or group scenes, the panorama mode now has a wide-angle option and images are joined together seamlessly making it one of the best I've used.

A range of modes are offered eg sports, sunset, portrait, night scene, macro (5cm) along with a very good and highly reliable ''auto' mode which optimises settings making the camera easy to use quickly or by a complete novice straight from the box. For those who prefer to experiment with settings, there are some manual controls including shutter or aperture priority or both in the 'manual' mode. These are good for adjusting depth of field, exposure or shutter speed, eg to capture the movement in a waterfall, but have limits and don't offer the same degree of control or flexibility as a D-SLR - but nor does it have the weight or bulk of a D-SLR either.

I expected the video mode to be one of the best features of this camera and I have not been disappointed. It is absolutely superb both in terms of image and audio with sound recorded via stereo mics on the top of the camera giving a wide stereo effect. Unlike many other cameras, it has the huge benefit of not recording the noise of the motor when zooming during filming which ruins and renders unusable so many clips from other-brand cameras. Focus wander is minimal and video quality from this compact camera matches that from a camcorder and the camera also features SteadyShot image stabilisation as used on Sony camcorders. Video can be filmed in up to 4K resolution but I don't yet have a 4K TV or monitor so haven't been able to test this.

Battery life is excellent. On my first day of using the camera, I obtained 518 photos, many of which used the zoom, plus 24 video clips then transferred all the still images to my phone using the Sony Play Memories Android-version 'app' ready for emailing and sharing, and there was still one bar showing on the camera battery. Charging is via USB with the battery inserted in the camera or it can be removed for external charging (charger not supplied) if/when the camera is in use. I use a cheap non-Sony charger together with NP-BX1 battery equivalents - all available from Amazon.

I feel this camera is an excellent all-rounder, ideal for snapshots, travel, hobby photography, sports, wildlife and for amateur or semi-professional work. Its ease of use will appeal to a novice while the scene modes and albeit-limited manual settings will appeal to the amateur enthusiast or become a second camera for the professional while the image quality and superior video should appeal to all users. I would confidently recommend it without hesitation and it is a worthy upgrade for anyone with an earlier Sony DSC-HX superzoon camera.

Available from: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...