<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"I recently went to a Sony press event at the Ambassador Theater for a private viewing of a rehearsal of the Broadway Show Chicago. Everyone from the press was outfitted with one of Sony&amp;#039;s new cameras and given free rein to photograph the space and the performers. I was thrilled to try out the NEX-C3, which aims at offering a Single Lens Reflex (SLR)-quality experience in the body of a compact camera. Since Sony&amp;#039;s been claiming the camera is super easy for even for the most trepid novice to use, I brought along my not-so-techy mother to put it to the test. At the Good Housekeeping Research Institute we tested the predecessor to the NEX-C3, the NEX-3, and were impressed enough to feature it in our &amp;quot;Gadget Guide&amp;quot; in last December&amp;#039;s holiday issue. This new iteration seems to be a definite improvement: it&amp;#039;s lighter, has a longer-lasting battery, and has an improved sensor for better images. Photo quality and convenience aside, what impressed me the most was the improved usability and functionality.  To make the camera more approachable, even for beginners, Sony&amp;#039;s added a new &amp;quot;Photo Creativity&amp;quot; interface that replaces technical jargon like aperture and white balance with user-friendly words like background defocus and color. This helps you make highly customized photos without understanding the technicalities required to operate traditional SLRs. The interface also allows multiple creative effects to be laid on top of each other like a retro look over a monochromatic color scheme (See image below). With the NEX-C3, there&amp;#039;s no need to upload to your computer and use photo editing software to make fun changes to your snapshots.    My mom particularly liked the 3D Sweep Panorama (which she found herself!), that allows you to capture extra-wide images for viewing on a 3D-enabled TV (See image of this feature below). While we weren&amp;#039;t able to test the 3D capability in the theater, my mom imagined loads of opportunities for family shots like ones of all of us gathered around the dinner table. And she was rather impressed with the imaging focus since she has a slight tremor that usually makes her reluctant to take photographs because they come out blurry. With the auto-focusing on, she didn&amp;#039;t have any problem getting crisp clear images. When I went back through the photographs we took, I couldn&amp;#039;t tell which were taken by my mom and which were taken by me!    The Sony NEX-C3 will be available in August in silver, black, and pink with an 18-55mm kit zoom lens for $650 or in black with a 16mm lens kit for $600. And if you already have the NEX-3 or NEX-5, fear not, as a firmware upgrade is available that adds the new picture effects and enables more precise focusing.  If you&amp;#039;re on the market for a camera or camcorder, check out our tips for buying a digital camera. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/institute/a23497/sony-nex-c3-camera/?src=shelter_footer>