The camera arrived with Russian language characters in it and it took awhile to figure out how to change the language to English. The instruction book pretty well outlines all the functions, but it can be confusing in parts. My suggestion is that if you are going to get this camera and pay the price for it, get the training DVDs that are available so you can learn all the nifty functions.

It is a superb camera, well worth the price just for the incredible lens.

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High quality for a semi pro, February 26, 2006
Reviewer: Guillermo Salinas Pliego "GSP"
This is a great product for anyone. However it lacks certain features that will be demanded by pro's such as a better multi shot feature.
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Another legend from SONY, February 15, 2006
Reviewer: Rocky "rakish"
After I owned and satisfied using Sony's F717, I decided to buy DSC-R1. It is absolutely a legend. It's all function users friendly and easy to care. (little bit heavy particularly while using with ext. flash and ext. lanes) The shot taken by DSC-R1 look you as professional photographer even you are new born. You don't have to be pro to use this camera, just need to afford one grand.

This is truly a great camera in the range. Only thing, you feel stretch when you need to buy its accessory like ext. flash which I recommended must. The wide conversion lanes and filters also the great choice to attach with this monster.
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The Best, February 13, 2006
Reviewer: TLHoss
This has to be one of the BEST digital cameras. I received it Friday, and immediately removed it from the shipping material and began snapping shots. One of the Easiest cameras I have ever used, I've owned approximately 7 other digital cameras, from the NIKON 8700 down. This is the best of the lot. The only fault I can find to complain about, I need someway to attach the lens cap to the carrying strap/camera. I've been know to lose many lens covers. Now the good parts, EXCELLENT manual, EXCELLENT location for each button. You will need to read the manual to find out how each of the buttons work. Love the quick start up, the quickness you can snap photos. The software that comes with it, is GOOD but I use other software, which I am more use to. The focus ring is quick and easy to use, the AUTO FOCUS is also excellent. The detail of the photos I've taken is EXCELLENT, the various shutter speeds, what more could a person want.
If I could rate this camera higher I would.
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I would Love to own.... but, February 9, 2006
Reviewer: S. Prince "photofreak"
This a great cam. No doubt. I would buy one today, but there is no support for this cam in the area of camera raw opening software. I use photoshop, but ps won't open the raw files of this cam. I use Raw Shooter Premium '06, but no support for this Sony cam. Bummmer.
If support arrives I will buy instantly. No support at the above companies, and no reasons why there is no support.
If you can live with the Sony software included you will be very happy with this cam. Else..... wait.
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What A Camera!!!, February 4, 2006
Reviewer: C. Matthews

I did my research before I bought this camera. I have a Canon 20D camera and the R1 is better as far as image and color. It's feels solid. I also use it in the studio and it's amazing how the detail of the pics are. So if anyone looking for a camera with high detail images and don't need interchangable lens and shoot sports. It's a great choice!
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An unfair comparison (my other camera is a Hasselblad 501c), January 24, 2006
Reviewer: Donal B. Botkin "View[ + ]Finder"

Many other users and serious reviewers have provided sufficient background on Sony's "top of the line" digital DSC-R1, so I'll steer clear of needless repetition and get right to my point: this is not just a great digital camera, it's a great camera by any standard. {credibility break, sorry} My background? 2,500 pictures in the R1, about the same in a Minolta A1 and another 3,000 or so in an older Sony (I forgot the model--it had a rotating lens) that spent 5 years on a boat with me in the South Pacific. Before that, over 40 years of serious photography with everything from pinhole cameras to the Hassey.

Here's the bottom line: the R1 is about the size of the 501c but less than half the weight with just the 'standard' lens. If I include all the extra lenses (I use a wide-angle and a moderate tele) plus the spare backs and film, the bag tips the scales at over 25lbs. Are the pictures as good? (trick question) Technically, no; there will be no razor sharp poster-sized prints from the R1. The truth is that many of the really great shots with the Hassey are still in my head: too much fussing with lenses, changing film, worrying about exposure and poof! The shot is gone. Of the thousands of digital images I've captured, there are many that would match the best from the medium format in terms of qualities that matter to me.

What's the best feature of the R1? Coming from the 501c, I really like the top-mounted LCD! It is much easier to use than even a tilting, back-mounted LCD (like the Minolta A1), particularly for candid shots. Plus when it's vertical, it's like a "sports" finder in that you can easily see both what's in the picture and what's not. Second best is the lens: I checked the Carl Zeiss site for info on their lens designs to compare to the 501c, but they haven't posted the specifics of the Vario-Sonnar in the R1. There are a few very good testing-oriented site on the `net that have uniformly lauded the lens design. As might be imagined, (or maybe not, judging from some uninformed whining about "features" elsewhere) designing and building lenses is not easy. To get a zoom lens that goes from 24mm to 120mm with a flat field and good color performance is nearly impossible, hence the almost unnoticeable barrel distortion at the wide end.

My third favorite feature is the CMOS sensor: it truly makes a difference in the quality of the mega-pixels not just the fact that there are over 10 million of them.

What's not to like? Well, several users have commented on the lack of interchangeable lenses, true, but to what end? To get a higher quality lens? Not likely. A larger aperture? Yes, you can, but not in a zoom. To get a really long telephoto or mirror lens? The only valid complaint, IMHO. So, there is the option of the 1.7 tele-extender that get's you something between 200mm and 400mm depending on how aggressively you manage the digital smart zoom feature. (Don't even think of complaining about the "extra" lens! This is about the lack of replacement lenses, remember.) I have one on order, so I'll save my comments for later.

There has been a lot of carping about the "noise" at high ISO (1600 and above) and it is true: if you try to hand-hold when you should use a tripod and fudge the ISO to overcome the shake, you will get noise. Mount your R1 on a tripod and shoot at 160 and the problem goes away because the built-in noise reduction kicks in. Even is you must shoot at higher speeds, using a tripod and setting exposure to take advantage of the noise-reduction program will make a big difference, from my informal testing. Photography is all about working with limitations, so consider it an advantage to own such an imperfect camera!

The only thing that I've found less than desirable is a compression of dynamic range when shooting Adobe RGB. It shows up as a right-skewed histogram, but post-processing in Aperture fixes it. The image is "muddy" but clears when the white slider is moved to the left in setting luminance. This could be due to several factors, so I'll do some testing and report back.

My summary is that this camera will not make you a better photographer, but taking lots of pictures and not showing the bad ones will help, and believe me, you will be able to take them with greater ease and enjoyment with the Sony DSC-R1 than with anything else on the market for the same price. If your excuse for not taking pictures is that there is either too much equipment or not enough, this one my dear Goldilocks, is "just right".

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