This question has popped up on photo.net about small black dots appearing adjacent next to bright highlights.
It would seem that this is a real sensor issue that might be reasonnably easy to deal with at the raw converter level since it appears that the issue is well localized. Would it show in print? Not sure, but it is likely to be worsened by output sharpening.
Could it be fixed in firmware? Canon
must have seen this (there would be a serious issue with their validation matrix if they didn't) and/or:
- ruled that it was not an impacting issue (probably true for many users),
- figured that they could not fix it easily in firmware without introducing some other larger issue,
- found the issue too late to fix it before the release date of the camera (and might have a fix already in the works).
Either way, it shows once more that designing and validating high end imaging devices accross the board is a really tough job. What do you do as a Canon product manager discovering the issue in May 08?
Still, some guys must be drinking champain in Sony Imaging HQs. The A900 looks better every day that passes by. As of now, the most remarkable thing about the A900 is that it appears to be devoid of any noteworthy issues.
Cheers,
Bernard