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Samsung NX10 hands on at Taronga Zoo

Samsung launched its not-a-Micro Four Thirds camera, the NX10, at Sydney's Taronga Zoo this week. We were there to give this small, interchangeable lens camera with an APS-C CMOS sensor a good going over.

Derek Fung
Derek loves nothing more than punching a remote location into a GPS, queuing up some music and heading out on a long drive, so it's a good thing he's in charge of CNET Australia's Car Tech channel.
Derek Fung
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1 of 28 Derek Fung/CNET Australia

Ready! Set! Go!

Samsung launched its not-a-Micro Four Thirds camera, the NX10, at Sydney's Taronga Zoo this week. We were there to give this small, interchangeable lens camera with an APS-C CMOS sensor a good going over.

A snake gets up close and personal with the NX10.

The now-on-sale NX10 is like the Olympus E-P1 and Panasonic G-series in that it uses interchangeable lenses like a full-size dSLR, but does so without the mirror box and pentaprism, meaning that it's smaller than a dSLR.

Unlike the Olympus and Panasonic cameras, the NX10 features an APS-C sensor — the same size sensor that's found in the leviathan Canon EOS 7D.

The APS-C sensor means that NX has to use proprietary Samsung lenses. At launch three will be available: an 18-55mm, a 30mm pancake and a 50-200mm zoom.

Editor's note: All photos in this gallery are shot with the Samsung NX10, with editing limited to cropping and shrinking. Colours, sharpness and all other settings have been left untouched.

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Burst mode comparison

The NX10 has a 30fps burst mode. Beware, though, that resolution drops from 14.6-megapixel (4592x3056) to 1.4 (1472x976).

The top image was shot at full resolution on superfine quality. The bottom shot was shot in burst mode, at the greatly reduced resolution and with a noticeable moire effect on the zookeeper's shirt.

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Burst mode

While image quality suffers in burst mode, it'll please those that never grew out of the flip-book craze at school.

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Stunning screen

The NX10's main marketing points may be its petite dimensions, interchangeable lenses and APS-C sensor, but the first thing that struck us was the unit's 3-inch AMOLED screen. Although resolution is just 640x480, it boasts brilliant brightness and contrast, excellent colour reproduction and 160-degree-plus viewing angles.

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Stick it to 'em

We were too busy getting ourselves familiar with the NX10 to catch the name of this insect; could one of

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Stick 'em Rex

By default the NX10 allows you to freely choose a focusing point in about 80 per cent of the shooting space. If that proves to be too slow for you, you can switch to the usual array of pre-defined focus points.

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Night safari

After dinner we embarked on Taronga Zoo's night safari. Here, a lion hides out behind a thicket of reeds and, of course, a bank of safety glass.

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The lion sleeps tonight

A full-size crop of the previous image.

Shot details: 4-second exposure; f/5.6; ISO 1600; 70mm on the 50-200mm lens.

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Goatee

A mountain goat grazes while trying to ignore the red lights being shone on it.

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Stay

We stayed overnight at Taronga Zoo as part of its Roar and Snore programme that allows patrons to stay in permanently erected tents on the zoo's grounds. The tents have a hardwood floor and can sleep up to four people.

This is the Roar and Snore area's central communal tent that's been temporarily transformed into a display and nibblies zone.

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What's that I hear?

Some of the Roar and Snore tents had a brilliant view of the Opera House.

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Hot in the city

A 100 per cent crop of the previous Opera House image.

Shot details: 10-second exposure; f/5.6; ISO 100; 200mm on the 70-200mm lens.

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My city of Sydney

What can we say? We love Sydney at night.

Shot details: 20-second exposure; f/5.6; ISO 100; 104mm on the 70-200mm lens.

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Focus hard

Move the focus ring and the screen/EVF will automatically zoom into the centre of the image to aid precise focussing. This feature works well during daylight, but at night the screen becomes a haze of noise. Even on brighter scenes, such as this shot of Woolloomooloo, sharpening points of light amongst the noise proves to be difficult.

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Morning safari

Waking up with the cockatoos gave us a chance to feed the giraffes carrots. Thanks to the NX10's shutter lag, shooting action shots like this is a matter of putting the camera into continuous shot mode (3fps for up to 10 shots) and hoping for the best.

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That's not a tongue

A 100 per cent crop of the previous shot. According to the zookeepers, one of the zoo's giraffes has a tongue that can stretch up to 40cm.

Shot details: 1/400-second exposure; f/4; ISO 400; 50mm on the 70-200mm lens.

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Hey there cutie pie

Aww, it's a cute little quokka. Seriously how could anyone bear to play quokka soccer with one of these little guys?

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Help!

The koala clings on for dear life as it gets stroked and patted by the admiring throng.

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Clinging on

Don't pat the koala on its head. That apparently will send it ballistic and it could possibly rip the poor zookeeper's arm off with its razor sharp claws.

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Sleepy time

Koalas love munching on eucalyptus leaves, which are unfortunately not a great source of energy. To compensate they sleep for up to 20 hours each day, have a thick coat to keep heat in and have teensy-weensy brains.

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So soft

A full-size crop of the previous image.

Shot details: 1/1250-second exposure; f/2; ISO 400; 30mm on the 30mm lens.

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I don't need no comb

One of the zoo's pelicans grooms itself.

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Up close and personal

A full-size crop of the previous image.

Shot details: 1/1500-second exposure; f/4; ISO 400; 50mm on the 50-200mm lens.

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You're on

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Only the best

As a reward for putting up with us, the sea lion gets a fishy treat.

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10/10

The sea lion does a hand stand.

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Cool break

After his exertions on land, the sea lion hops into the pool for a quick dip.

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Naming rights

The media and the public gather around to hear the announcement of the baby elephant's name. After its "miracle" birth, the baby elephant has been officially named Pathi Harn — Thai for miracle.

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