I've had the NEX-5 well over a week and I love it! NEX image quality at 1600 and even 3200 is amazing! This is great because I love to shoot in low light. I do wish that Auto ISO went all the way to 3200.
I like the flip-up and flip-down screen and use it both ways. Contrary to some I think the NEX is beautiful, though I admit I had to get used to it. I don't care at all that zoom lenses look big on it because I still get the weight benefit of the tiny body. The build of the body and the kit zoom are impressive without being heavy. Maybe I was just ready for ready for a tiny silver camera...
The shutter is really loud. It gets the attention of animals and would scare birds, I fear. I'm curious as to whether other Sonys have the loud shutter, esp. the A33/55?
I got a cheap Nikon adapter that works on both G and D lenses, so I can set aperture even on lenses that lack an aperture ring, which is fantastic. For me (YMMV) it's easier to manual focus than the EPL-1. So far I've used a Sigma 105 macro and a Nikon 50mm on it with good results, esp. the Sigma, but then I love macro. I do see better image quality with these lenses than the kit zoom, which is to be expected. I will try other lenses soon. The kit zoom is good for a kit lens, though as noted in reviews it has distortion on both ends. It focuses fast if there's any decent light at all. I tend to shoot wide or long, so I constantly bump up against its focal-length limits, but don't want to shell out for the 18-200. I don't have the 16mm yet. I would like to see a 12mm or 14mm prime, or a short ultrawide zoom, and something on the long end. Sadly, I'm not as excited as Ray and others about the upcoming 24mm because I don't shoot much at that focal length (36mm equivalent). But that's just me.
I would LOVE a viewfinder for manual focusing and because holding a camera at arms length means I need to set a higher shutter speed. My hands aren't as steady as they should be! It does help to hold the camera at waist level using the flip out screen, or to put it on a little Joby gorillapod and brace that against my body to steady the camera. But I would welcome a VF, esp. if it comes on when it senses my eye and reverts to the LCD when I take my eye away.
I would like to lock AF independent of the shutter button, but I'm not having much trouble doing without it so far. For me it would make sense for the camera to be a little taller and have room for a small popup flash and another programmable button (which I would set to AF lock). The little popup flash on the EPL-1, which can be bounced, is quite useful.
HDR, sweep pano, and handheld twilight are really useful and fun! As I think Olli said, it's a shame it's so cumbersome to get to HDR, esp. if you shoot RAW. You have to press Menu, go into Image Size and change to jpg, then go to Brightness/Color and select HDR. You also have to switch back to RAW when you stop shooting in HDR mode. That's a LOT of clicks and if it can possibly be changed in firmware, it really should be. None of that is necessary with AutoDRO or Scene modes or Pano, which automatically switch to jpg from RAW.
I don't care much about video and the few I've taken I haven't figured out to view on a Mac, despite some attempts in another thread to help me. I just haven't gotten around to figuring it out yet.
In the end it comes down to (still) image quality and I am really pleased with this camera! I'm more convinced than ever that I only need a bulky DSLR for birds, and maybe not even for that.
I was in a hurry definitely made a mistake in that first part of my sentence! Thank you!
