To me it seems like every feature Sony brings forth in their cameras seems to be replacing the skill or dedication that used to be needed to make a good photograph.
Can’t be arsed to time your shots? Don’t worry global shutter will basically let you shoot video. Don’t want to bother getting focus right? No worries, it’ll track the eye of a peregrine falcon mid flight.
I can’t help but think certain things are intrinsic to actually being a photographer and the over production of these cameras features takes away from the skills required to be good.
My 2 cents.
You might as well blame Minolta for targeting prosumers and making photography more accessible back in the day. They had the first integrated light meter in an SLR (Sr-7), the first multi cell light meter in an SLR (Sr-T 101), the first SLR with TTL aperture and shutter priority modes (XD), first fully-integrated autofocus system in an SLR (7000), and the first sensor based motion stabilization in a DSLR (Konica-Minolta 7D). (Someone correct me if I’m wrong on any of those)
Am I bias toward the brand? Yes. But that’s beside the point. None of these features do any good if the user doesn’t know how to use them. Some of these features can make a photographer lazy and they could actually take worse photos. The fact is still that some photos wouldn’t be possible without these features without a ton of luck. Plus, a lot of these features are inspiring, because a photographer can be surprised by what they can do when they have just a little help, whether that be eye-tracking or simply a flash.
A global shutter won’t do me any good. At most, I can use it for straight power poles when shooting from a moving car. But all the other intelligent features, they can help me because a bird will land on a branch and be gone in less than a second.