Sony Cyber-shot F707: 22 YEARS later! RETRO review
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- Опубликовано: 6 авг 2023
- Trying out the Sony Cyber-shot F707 from 2001, 22 YEARS later!
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With the fact that the lens was internal zooming, this camera actually found a place for digitial microscopy. You could screw on an adapter to the filter threads, then slip it onto a microscope objective tube. You then had digital microscopy!
Im so impressed by the images produced. The low distortion CZ lens, the distinctive CCD image characteristic. I'll be excited to bring this out. I remember contemplating a 828 back then but the cost was prohibiting high. Ironically i settled on a Canon 300D which was even more expensive if i remember correctly.
Always a highly pleasurable, nostalgia-inducing watch Gordon, thanks for making these videos! Cheers
Thanks! More to come!
Dino Bytes I love your content. You have helped me out in the past with buying a card reader for my Camedia and I would just like to thank you for the amazing content you give us!
You're welcome! Thanks for watching!
Another great video! Love watching videos about retro cameras, keep it up.
Always loved these, but they were too expensive for me back in the day. But you've inspired me to finally pick one up!
Hi Gordon, I didn't know this channel, but it was a pleasant discovery. I am a lover of old digital cameras. So I love to see this kind of video. Greetings from Italy.
Grazia Mille! Glad you found it, and many more videos to come!
I had one and it was an amazing camera. Still have it in the garage but haven’t messed with it in a while. Thanks Gordon! I may have to upgrade the battery and give it some love. Great video! Lots of wonderful memories using this camera that I had forgotten. Thanks again.
You're welcome! I bet it still works, but you will almost certainly need a new battery
Thank you very much for these videos. The early digital camera era is really a forgotten period of photography,
I agree, it's my favourite period
@@DinoBytes I wouldn't call it my favorite period but it was fun nonetheless. Coming from a big SLR I was fascinated by the miniaturization of the cameras back then. The new point and shoots were so small that they could easily fit in the front pocket of your pants (eg Konica Revio C2). I still have a few of those cameras flying around somewhere.
Night Shot and Night Framing…mind blowing! Brilliant camera.
Was waiting for this one...this was my first digital camera and its colors are some of my favorites of all time. The reds in particular were insane. They muted them some on the F717, but I always liked the 707's colors better.
Glad you enjoyed it, I'll be doing the 717 soon
I have a F707 and an F828 that I use occasionally. It still amazes me that they still work over 20 years later.
Nice one! It seems to be the 717 which is problematic
Your reviews and way of speaking are some of the best on RUclips!
Thankyou!
This was an awesome camera, it was so fun to use, and the photos looked great
The Night Shot/Framing modes are bananas, I can’t believe they had that back in 2001
They had it on their camcorders in the 90s!
Gordon always such great retro camera content! Camera had design, functionality and great ergonomics! One of my favorites is the Pentax MX and MX4. Mx4 being the better of the cameras. Very Buck Rogers gun style gun. Thanks for sharing!
I have a Pentax MX film SLR
Hey Gordon, another great video! I just got my F717 from Ebay a few days ago. I had one back in the day that I bought new when I was buying and selling digitals like it was my job ;-) and I forgot how much I loved the form factor of these cameras. And the images hold up really well even today. My G9 is the "vintage" digital that I've been using most but I think the F717 might just replace it in that role. Keep these great videos coming and when is the E10 coming out?! I loved my E20 and would love to see your take on the E10.
Glad you found a working 717, they can be fussy... the E10 is in the to-do queue!
I have the 717which is absolutely brilliant, love the look and the images it produces.
Hope it still works, they're notoriously good at breaking
That was my first camera! Brings back memories. I was 21 when I bought that.
I just bought a F717 cant wait for your next video
Does it work?
I loved this camera. It was way ahead of it’s time. I made big prints with just five megapixel files.
It was surprising how far you could push them. What size did you print?
The biggest print I did was 24 by 36 of a unset over the harbor here in Vancouver, and it turned out really well. If you got within a foot of the photo, it was slightly blurry but if you were for feedback, it look perfect. It was a great camera for sure.
Wow, the stills are amazing.
Friend had this camera, was the first person I knew that was into digital photography and he did street shooting with it. I loved his images and while I never owned it, his work motivated me and started my photography journey. Maybe I should grab one for nostalgia.
My best mate had one too, never forgot it!
Looked so cool. Wanted one.
The pictures were surprisingly good. Very nice, punchy colours.
Thanks for this video. Just got mine out and am charging the battery. Great information!
Excellent, hope it still works! It's possible the old battery might not charge, so you may need to buy a replacement.
Yes, two of them were close to dead but I had a "live" one from an a99, so I powered it up and it works perfectly, even the night shots.
@@Lizerator nice one!
I have the ugly member of the family, the R-1. My first digital camera. I don't use it much today, but I have been going back through my files and making calendars for friends the past five years. A surprising number of photos came from the R-1. It still holds up well today. Great image quality from the F707. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
You're welcome, I'll be making my video on the R1 soon
Great review, as always!
Please do more reviews, as well with the larger-sensor, but still quirky, R1, or how it's called, and the premium successor to the F707, that are both waiting for you on your sofa. :)
Hah, exactly! I only need to turn round and grab them! Coming soon, hopefully. .
You always take a picture of that donut. I think it would be really interesting to do a video of all the still of that donut from each different digi camera to see the variations
I used to love this camera. Would also allow you to see through clothing (if they had light colors on).
I love the old school video you get with some of these dinos. It's like a time machine.
Yeah, the photos look fine, but the video was something else!
The F-707 was the end of a string of digital cams bought to explore digital snapshots after moving from film in the early 90's. I remember finally upgrading to a Nikon D70 right after it became available and was immediately disappointed because it wasn't as sharp or easy to use as the Sony. Obviously going to a DSLR was a learning curve. And then, after 20 years of shooting Nikon, I'm right back where I started with, Sony and the A7iv and A7Siii.
I still have the F-707, it still works, and while I had never used it for video, seeing your sample clips reminds me very much of a more modern 8mm film presentation and now that I make films, could be in my bag of tools for interesting capture.
The video files do look really interesting today!
It's goofy comically large lens and very strange design choice makes this camera exceptionally unique. I took mine to the park to do some photos with it and got people asking about it. It feels like being in 1956 and people think you're a spaceman with a ray gun
I can't wait for the 717 video! My mom just gave me hers from back in the day and I adore it.
Coming soon! Hope your 717 works, I had to buy 4 before I got one which did! Ps glad you're enjoying them!
@@DinoBytes oh wow! Mine thankfully works perfectly. My mom likes to remind me that she spent $1000 on it so I’m sure she treated it with kid gloves. 😜
Cool! :)
Keep up the good work!
Thanks!
I have the F717 myself, love it!
does it still work?
@@DinoBytes it does! Just needed to have battery charged and I found a 1 TB Memory Stick for it!
@@jasmachugh4222 fantastic! I'll be making my 717 video soon
Man, I so lusted after that camera when it first came out. By the time I could afford it though, it was gone, and I've since moved on to much larger sensor cameras.
Great review Gordon - well worth the wait 🙂im still hunting for another battery for mine locally in NZ. I think Steven the Seagull didnt know whether to run or hide - he clearly didnt know that it 'was' actually a camera pointing at him. I need to get those filters too, for IR photography. Ka Pai mate 🏅
Thanks Phil, have you tried importing the one I got, or is it a lithium ion problem?
@@DinoBytes ah not yet, am keeping an eye out ad hoc here for any other variants, to see if anything else comes up. Otherwise I'll pick one of those up when I'm back up there next year 🙂
Such a fun time for cameras! They just don't make them like this anymore. Would love to see a brand start getting more experimental, I feel like there is a big enough market of people that just want to have fun with photography! Great video :)
New retro review lets goooo
Thanks for the video! Fantastic cameras from the days when this industry was TRULY EXCITING and when new bold designs, ideas and improved capabilities literally seemed to pop-up to market almost day after day. Those were really fun days and over 20 years on, these cameras are still capable of taking lovely photos. What we have left today is unmitigated boredom worth of recycling of old formulas while the speed of true innovation and progress has crawled down to a near halt that makes any turtle seem faster than a sports car. And excitement? Bold ideas? Breakthrough designs? That's all been replaced with a stalemate lack of new ideas and complete depletion of imagination with just about every new release being nearly the same thing as any one from years past. In 20 years we went from thrills to humdrum and 20 years on there will not even be an industry left anymore.. actually, make that 10. The smartphone/AI tsunamis will leave nothing and nowhere standing. Remember Super 8? VHS? CDs/DVDs? Camcorders? Those are given names of the same last family name: Wipeout.
The DSC-717 was my second digital camera after a Sony Cybershot 3.2 Megapixel compact.
I upgraded to a Canon 350D after going on a movie shoot and seeing the DP using a new DSLR to pre-grade footage prior to sending film to Kodak labs in 2006
Once I bought a 300D, that was it for me and these fixed cameras but I miss them way more!
Great video as alsways! I really enjoy these camera history lessons from you.
5 bucks is a bargain for sure. Have looked in my country on ebay but unfortunately all the F-series are selling for overexpensive prices, if not, they are defective for real.
Keep looking, you may find one. I always take my chances with untested
Hehe...I try to be optimistic as you. Maybe one day I get lucky. Unfortunately many sellers think if they put "vintage" in the headline old tech is weighted in gold.
I already nearly got scammed when buying some of my old phone models for nostalgic and collection reasons.
Well, maybe one day...
Just picked one up from the Sally Ann for $24. What a find!
Nice one! Does it work? You'll be very lucky if the battery is still ok! Good luck!
@@DinoBytes Yup, still works and seems to be in good condition!
@@pirhan excellent, have fun with it!
I still have the Sony F828, in a very good condition and I still use it. A very nice camera with a well thought-out ergonomic design. The lens is the strong side of the device, but also the weak side. The lens is bright, but sometimes suffers from purple fringing, now easy to remove. A great device to use, take out and not have to worry about your device being stolen.
I'll be doing the 828 soon!
I wait for the 828!!!!!!@@DinoBytes
DINO BYTES!!!!! I was wondering when we would see a new video. Awesome.
Thanks, I'll try to make them more often!
I still have my F-707 and it works. This was my main camera after sell my Nikon film equipment on eBay at the end of 2001. I also have a F717 but the CCD is dead, Sony was famous for this.
Yeah, I had to buy 4 717s before I got one that worked
hey just wondering how did you extract videos? I have mine and I can drag pictures videos don't seem to load. Any suggestions?
The video format uses a type of MPEG compression that most computers can't play anymore, so you'll need to copy the files onto your computer and use software to convert them into something else. I use Handbrake which is a free converter program, and converts them into MP4 files which you can play.
@@DinoBytes thankn you so much for your help!
Hey Gordon I need your advice, i bought a Fujifilm Finepix F610, it was untested, said battery ddn't have a charger, so i charged the battery to see the LCD showing images as purple and black lines across the screen, when i move and expose the lens to light it does move like it is detecting movement, is it dead?
It doesn't sound good I'm afraid. Probably a damaged sensor or screen. It's the luck of the draw when buying untested.
@@DinoBytes thank you Gordon. Great review I’m on the lookout for one of these 707s
Hello! What filter did you use on this camera?
You mean the infra red one? I used this one amzn.to/4cpyjKo
I've always wanted one of these. I always wanted the 828 as well. My favorite camera growing up was a camera I got when I was in high school-- The DSC-P50. My sister broke it on me. I later got the DSC-P52 and I still take it out from time to time but it DESTROYS AA batteries. I would use my Fujifilm E510 more, as well, if batteries didn't only last a total of 10 minutes.. I love my Lumix S5, GX85, and Samsung NX3000, but those old little compacts hold a special place in my heard.
You should try and pick up an 828!
I have one, and I'm thinking about buying a recorder and external monitor (Desview R5II Camera Field Monitor 5.5) because the recorder records in 1920x1080 and I'd like to make the most of the camera's censor
You would need a recorder with an analogue composite video input, and it would only be in standard definition. Most modern recorders are HMDI only.
While I was looking for a F717, I purchased a V1, thinking the smaller size might be more practical (as I have an obsession with their T series digi cam), but as soon as I start playing with it, I regret not getting a F717. The oddly looking camera is just so much more fun and capable compare to the V1. Which now, you guess it, I am looking for a F828
I loved this camera. Sold it to fund a Canon 300D. I regretted that decision then and I still regret it now. It took awesome images and the shape inspired creative photography. It actively aided surreal photography somehow.
I did much the same thing, and feel much happier having it back on my collection again! Try and grab a used one!
Great video Gordon. I remember those cameras existed but have never seen any details about them. Learned something. Are the photos shown, straight out of camera, or have they been "Lightroomed"?
I only ever show OOC JPEGs unless otherwise stated. The IR ones have been tweaked as described
@@DinoBytes Then the quality is actually quite good. I remember my experiments with Canon's "enthusiast" small G series cameras (I owned all from G1-G5) and the photos straight out of camera, never looked quite right.
My first digital camera❤❤❤
hi i have this camera as well but my video seems to be an awfully lot less quality than what youve shown, is there a program i need to truely export the video? thank you for any help
I just used Handbrake to convert them into something I could use today. Be sure to match the frame rate in the video settings. And use the best quality mode on the camera to start with.
Thank you I realized i was using the lowest quality available and now it looks a lot better!@@DinoBytes
@@dogbagel5255 note the better quality modes will burn through your memory quicker, but I think it's worth it.
Hello. Can I have a question about pretty similar camera f717? Im completelly new to all camera stuf and just found this in my basement. I have one problem where the display is slightly green ( probably night vision or something) and I cant find a way to turn it off. Thanks for help. Anyways amazing video, i really enjoyed it.
I'll be making a 717 video soon! Yes, if nightshot or nightframing are on, the display will look green. Make sure the switch on the top is in the middle
@@DinoBytes yes, it is in the middle. Also the display is green even when i trun he camera on ( the starting logo) and everything and everything in the menu is also green.
@@Elias.Sedivy hmm, that doesn't sound good. If the menus are ok, but the picture isn't, then the senior is at fault, but if EVERYTHING including the menu screens are greenish, then there's a problem with the screen. Is the viewfinder also green?
@@DinoBytes yes, everything is green. even the viewfinder is
@@Elias.Sedivy what about when you turn the dial to SETUP? Is that menu screen also green tinted?
Can you also show us sony cyber shot dsc f828, i have one but i don't have much of a knowledge about it
I have an 828 and will be making a video about it next year! I'm working through that series in order, so it's the 717 next.
I had the similar 717 model. I loved this camera but the sensor stopped working correctly and pictures become just a lot of strange streaks of colour.
Yeah, the 717 famously had sensor problems. I had to buy 3 before I got a working one, and I know it's like a ticking clock waiting to fail! I'll be making a video all about the 717 soon.
I'm still rocking an F828, they're a darn cool little camera that should be revived by Sony.
I love the F828. I'm doing these in order, so the 717 next, then the 828, so keep an eye open! Tell me what you like - and don't like about it, and do you use it for IR at all?
hmm Brighton... I was there attending EMPC microelectronic conference in september 2011 with my (at that time new) Pentax K5. Paired with travel combo of DA18-135/3.5-5.6WR and FA35/2 lenses .. :) There was a really beautiful and kind babe in Kings hotel reception, if I remember it correctly, she was from Romania, just working there.
Ah those university times.. :D But I haven't seen any Gordon testing camera around the beach, donut or Pier, just bunch of asian guys with Pentax DSLRs and of course many canikons. It was still the era before smartphone boom, so people were still using cameras a lot.
But speaking about Pentax.. you did a nice K20D review back in 2008.. ;) And I already had that camera at home while watching the review :D
I remember reviewing the K20D, while I was in NZ, and was sad it was maybe the last Pentax I reviewed- due to daft supply and PR issues.
try make some colour IR images by holding red, blue and green film over the lens (taking a photo with each film), and then stack them to make up the RGB channels in photoshop!
Cool idea! But by using the magnet trick, you can already capture colour IR, I'll talk about it in my next video...
I still have the Original R 1. Ccd With the lcd on top. Should take it out
It's a CMOS, not CCD. In fact, it was the very first use of a CMOS sensor in a camera that didn't have interchangeable lenses!
just found one for $20 at goodwill!
my parent's friend had one when it first came out and he tried to show the night vision to me seeing through clothing. unfortunately it didnt work for some reason.
Yeah, that capability was over-exaggerated by the media.
Спасибо за Ваши познавательные видео!!!
You're welcome!
£5 - love it !
I was lucky with this one
Just found a brand new one with the original box and manual. Original owner said he never used it. Idk what to do with it now
Why not just enjoy using it? Or sell it - you'll get about $50 for it if it works
@@DinoBytes Definitely worth more than that
@@jonathanalvarado9720 your mileage may vary. I've had alerts on all the cameras I'm interested in on places like eBay for several years now, and these typically sell for less than $50. If it's untested, closer to $20-30. But good luck getting more!
Where can i get the battery of these?
Just search for NP-FM50 replacement. I bought one made by DSTE as stated in the video,
After hours of searching for answers online, I finally found a Sony replacement battery that works for the F707. It’s the Sony FM-NP500 H. Works perfectly!
Great image quality for stills. And Gen-Z will no doubt be gathering these up when that early 2000s aesthetic becomes the next video nostalgia wave. I was following cameras then but was really put off by how many of these had no true wide angle in their zoom range. For me, even desiring a camera meant it had to start at a 28mm equivalent.
I agree. Anything wider than 35 was rare back then. I think it was maybe Olympus who did the first digital compact with a lens that went to 28
I had F707. The screen died in the cold and wet mountain trip. Then it was stolen. I still have photos from those mountain trips. My next camera was canon 400D.
I think a lot of people made the switch to a 300, 350 or 400D around that time
I remember a co-worker of mine back then was boasting a similar one not sure if it was this particular model, probably the older 2mp version, and she was boasting she bought it for over a thousand dollars. Good times.
That'll be the F505, I have a video about it
@@DinoBytes Best thing about getting this for 30 bucks here in the US, is I can go to my co-worker and boast I got it for 30 bucks 😂😂😂. Im thinking of getting this instead instead of the F505, since I have a couple of 2mp Canon point and shoot from that era. I might as well get a little variance in my collection.
拍照画质不错的
Those memory sticks always seemed like such a scam, though I remember once transferring some images onto a friend’s swanky Sony laptop, which had a built in memory stick input, and it felt a bit like I was in Blade Runner
Yeah I remember they had stick readers too
Price significantly higher on eBay now.. at least in my neck of the woods.
They vary, especially if you take a chance on untested models. Good luck
Old cameras were fun. No company did “safe” options
Exactly! Not in the v early days at least
I bought and resold this camera because it did not work for inafred photogrpahy. The hot mirror is part of the focusing mechanism
I showed a workaround for it in the video - use Nightshot mode with an ND filter and convert to monochrome. Not as good as if it would focus with the mirror / filter out of the path with a magnet, but neat anyway.
i have one
Universal camera
I miss the chewing gum cards.
I don't miss their price and max capacity!
How many of these f ooo. Series did they make 😂
They made a lot. They were pretty successful and popular cameras until people just started using it their cellphones.
@@shaananwalsh7513 still nicer color then most cellphones even now unless you got $1000 to drop.
I show all the models at the end
I know that location. We shot there together.
I remember our brief whirlwind tour with fondness!
I had one and enjoyed my time with it until it bit the dust.
the images look decent by today's standards
Shame that Smartphones killed this genre of cameras for good.
I agree, most dedicated cameras may have become very capable but quite boring in looks and control. PS - I'm just finishing my F717 retro review, hopefully posting in a few days.
No back dial or dual cards.... I Pass ;)
Hah, exactly! That said nothing much had dual slots then
@@DinoBytes lol, absolutely, just some ironi from todays comments on gear 😊
But that was fun times when cameras had so much different designs and solutions. Great job 👌
12:40 Is it possible to learn this power?
Just switch on nightshot and everyone's clothes fall off
@@DinoBytes Just don't get people thinking that Brighton's beach is a naturist one!