Sony has never been at the top of the list for having the best menu system. Most of it is workable and the core features you’ll end up finding fairly quickly. On the other hand, poor wording and little explanation of how some options work does mean that there are some brilliant hidden features that many people just don’t know about – like Power Zoom on the FX3.
This feature is a super specific video option on Sony cameras that’s nice to have with power zoom lenses, but did you know that it can be used with prime lenses? If you want an ultra-quick rundown of what the setting can do and how to access it yourself you should watch this video by Armando Ferreira.
The FX3 is a cinema camera and compared to mirrorless cameras it actually has a physical zoom rocker on the front for controlling certain lenses. Due to some interesting logic, you can actually use this to access another zoom feature even with primes.
How to do it:
- Shooting > 9 Zoom
- Zoom Range > Clear Image Zoom
Image Credit: Sony
Now, you can zoom with any lens with practically no loss in image quality. You can also change it to Digital Zoom and you will get up to 4x magnification. Supposedly doing it in-camera can produce slightly cleaner imagery than doing it in post.
If you just need a little room to adjust and you only have primes or only want to work with a prime for that shot this is a useful setting you should check out.
Any other hidden features you want to share?
[source: Armando Ferreira]
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