Calling all Sony Alpha users! (Part 5)

[stan the man]

All things considered I don't think that's to bad a price but from your point of view hardly worth claiming for through the insurance so it hurts. Still you'll soon have it back in A1 condition

yes john,you're right mate...can't wait to have it back now

 

[George7]

Managed to give an a65 a decentish go a few days ago. They also had an A57 which had a flat battery, but from what I could gather by holding them, they seemed pretty much identical in build and I can't imagine general usage would be too different either. Overall I'm quite impressed though. The camera itself feels excellent, the screen mechanism feels solid, and whilst I'm still not 100% sure about the EVF from my short go, I feel it's something I could get used to and I can definitely see the advantages of it. The 10FPS is very impressive and the other features like sweep panorama seem quite nice. The real buying points of this (or indeed the A57) are the tiltable live view screen and 1080P video. It's still a toss up between the 2. The good deal on the A65 has now gone and the 65 has returned to being more expensive than the A57, so at the moment it's looking like the A57 is the more likely buy at around £599 body only. I would wait for them to drop more, but I'm going away to Rome next month, and want a shiny new camera to play with there Any thoughts & has anyone seen any good A65/A57 deals?

 

[billybob99]

im pretty sure the a57 has the older style evf though

 

[Johnd2000]

im pretty sure the a57 has the older style evf though

The a57 EVF is an improvement on the previous, a33/55, but it's not an OLED like the a65/77. I've tried all 3 versions of EVF in the last few days and frankly there's very little difference between them, in actual use. Going from the a57 to the NEX7 at workshops last Sunday I barely noticed the difference.

 

[andya700]

I still have my A700, and am pretty content with it, and have not reached the point where I should ask for more - except one area - ISO performance at 800 and above. Is there any way I can improve this, for example, what is the latest Firmware I should be using?
I love this camera, because of the size, the ergonomics and the quality of the images - I think that I would have to go FF to improve.

 

[onomatopoeia]

The latest firmware for the a700 is 1.04 from what I remember. The camera firmware will only affect the in-camera jpg conversion though, if you shoot raw the quality will depend on whatever you use to convert on your computer.

At least that's how I remember it, been a goodly while since I picked up my a700.

 

[George7]

The fact the A57 doesn't have an OLED one is slightly concerning, as I wasn't able to try the 2 side by side, but the comments about how there's not much difference ease my mind slightly. I think I'll just wait for a good deal on either. Around 600 body only is currently what I'm aiming for.

 

[Marc]

The latest firmware for the a700 is 1.04 from what I remember. The camera firmware will only affect the in-camera jpg conversion though, if you shoot raw the quality will depend on whatever you use to convert on your computer.

At least that's how I remember it, been a goodly while since I picked up my a700.

Latest version of firmware that know of is version 4 I think, don't think there's been any since.

 

[TurnipFarmer]

As we are on the subject of the A700, I am really thinking of upgrading but in the Sony range is it only the A77 I should really think about as a viable upgrade?

 

[billybob99]

Of the available, the 77 is probably the next step, Was tempted myself as an upgrade from my 580 but decided to wait for the a99 as aledgedy it's going to be quite a bit under £2k

 

[heidfirst]

but decided to wait for the a99 as aledgedy it's going to be quite a bit under £2k

we'll see but I wouldn't hold my breath.
Atm it seems to be more people saying what they would like it to be at rather than any info. coming out of Sony.

 

[Johnd2000]

The fact the A57 doesn't have an OLED one is slightly concerning, as I wasn't able to try the 2 side by side, but the comments about how there's not much difference ease my mind slightly. I think I'll just wait for a good deal on either. Around 600 body only is currently what I'm aiming for.

Bristol cameras have the a57 for £599, body only. That's the best I've seen from a UK supplier. Digi Rev are asking £499 for a grey import.

 

[George7]

Bristol cameras have the a57 for £599, body only. That's the best I've seen from a UK supplier. Digi Rev are asking £499 for a grey import.

Yeah I saw it for about the same price at Cardiff Camera Centre (their ebay page) which coincidentally is the same place I bought my A200 almost exactly 3 years ago However, with something this pricey, I think I'd rather see if I can get one for about the same locally first as I hate sending things away for repair, especially if they're worth so much money. Unfortunately Jessops don't do it without the kit lens, but they do give away a free camera rucksack and 8gb extreme card with it which they say are worth around 80 quid together (yeah, right). As for grey imports, despite how tempting the price is and how it'd probably all work out just fine, I'd be very scared it'd break, and then have an inevitable ordeal returning it, and I'd probably get hit with import fees as well to make it less of a good deal.

 

[Faldrax]

I still have my A700, and am pretty content with it, and have not reached the point where I should ask for more - except one area - ISO performance at 800 and above. Is there any way I can improve this, for example, what is the latest Firmware I should be using?
I love this camera, because of the size, the ergonomics and the quality of the images - I think that I would have to go FF to improve.

As we are on the subject of the A700, I am really thinking of upgrading but in the Sony range is it only the A77 I should really think about as a viable upgrade?

I have recently upgrade from the A700 to a s/h A900 - having been seduced by one when a friend lent me his for the day last year.

Usage wise, everything is exactly where you expect it to be, switching from one to the other is very easy.

The viewfinder is bigger and brighter, but the difference is less than between the A200 and A700 (IE the A200 VF seems small when you are used to the A700, the A700 seems smaller, but still good, if that makes sense!).

The big difference is the images.

The added dynamic range of the A900 is very obvious once you have used it for a days shooting - images need much less pp to recover highlights and shadows.

The larger sensor also means that you have more scope to crop for composition if needed. It actually has a very similar pixel density to the A700,
so if you crop heavily in pp you will get the same results as you would from an A700 - IE Take a pair of shots with the A900 & A700 using the same lens (and focal length, if a zoom). Crop down to 800x600 from both, and the images will be very similar in terms of FOV, etc. So going FF in this way looses nothing in terms of 'reach', but gains in terms of wider FOV when that is what you want.

Only problem is you find an irresistible urge to buy FF lenses to match the A900's quality

 

[PDub]

Best way to get better ISO handling out of an A700 is get Lightroom 4.

Im using up to ISO1600 now because of the way i can recover it so well in LR4 where previously 800 was my max.

As much as the lure of a FF camera is there, the cost of the upgrade for me just isnt justifiable at the moment.

 

[andya700]

I have recently upgrade from the A700 to a s/h A900 - having been seduced by one when a friend lent me his for the day last year.

Usage wise, everything is exactly where you expect it to be, switching from one to the other is very easy.

The viewfinder is bigger and brighter, but the difference is less than between the A200 and A700 (IE the A200 VF seems small when you are used to the A700, the A700 seems smaller, but still good, if that makes sense!).

The big difference is the images.

The added dynamic range of the A900 is very obvious once you have used it for a days shooting - images need much less pp to recover highlights and shadows.

The larger sensor also means that you have more scope to crop for composition if needed. It actually has a very similar pixel density to the A700,
so if you crop heavily in pp you will get the same results as you would from an A700 - IE Take a pair of shots with the A900 & A700 using the same lens (and focal length, if a zoom). Crop down to 800x600 from both, and the images will be very similar in terms of FOV, etc. So going FF in this way looses nothing in terms of 'reach', but gains in terms of wider FOV when that is what you want.

Only problem is you find an irresistible urge to buy FF lenses to match the A900's quality

You shouldn't have told me all this
I have quite a few Minolta lenses (from the beercan era) which would come in useful on an A900, along with a few manual primes.

 

[andya700]

Latest version of firmware that know of is version 4 I think, don't think there's been any since.

Cheers Marc, I am running version4, so it is up to me to deliver now - no where to hide, no excuses to make

 

[George7]

Bought a brand new shiny A57 this afternoon! Haven't had a chance to play with it yet though. I just have a couple of questions: I'm after a decent SD card for it, 64gb in capacity. I was just wondering if 30MB/s would be enough to record the full whack 1080p video or if I'd need to go for one of the fancier 45MB/s cards? I've worked out 30MB/s should be enough, but I just want to make sure as I don't really fully understand all the bit rates. Also, can anyone recommend a good camera insurance company? I now have enough kit that I want to be protected if any gets smashed/nicked/whatever.

 

[Johnd2000]

Congrats, George. Hope you enjoy it.

My advice would be to avoid 30mbs cards. I used one for my a57 test and it was hideously slow when writing bursts of frames. Video recording seemed okay but the wait to review stills was driving me mad.

When you get time, could you have a look to see if the cam has the live histogram? For the life of me, I couldn't seem to enable it, so I'm not sure if it's been removed (the a55 has it).

 

[heidfirst]

I just have a couple of questions: I'm after a decent SD card for it, 64gb in capacity. I was just wondering if 30MB/s would be enough to record the full whack 1080p video or if I'd need to go for one of the fancier 45MB/s cards?

do you really want a 64GB card? That's a lot of eggs in 1 basket ...
Someone like MyMemory (sorry, deleted email earlier so can't confirm) was doing Sandisk 45MB/s 16GB for £14 today on offer.

 

[George7]

Having thought about it some more, I don't think a 64gb is a good idea. I may get 2 32s or a 16 and a 32 instead. I'm having trouble finding a 45MB/s 32 though. I guess 30 is fine, but I want something that can easily deal with being blatted with full HD video and 12fps. Also, I've just read that SDXC is not backwards compatible with SDHC devices, which means it'd probably not work in either of my laptop's SD readers.

I had a little play with it last night with my 16gb Class 4 MicroSD from my phone in an adapter. The EVF is quite impressive, and whilst it'll take a bit of getting used to, the advantages of it are tremendous & I especially like the horizon stability thing (not sure what to call it, I guess it has an electronic spirit level type thing in it). The general feel of it is is high quality and solid (miles ahead of my A200 in that regard). Fits my hand perfectly and feels close to perfect with my 16-105mm on. The video at 1080 50p is silky smooth and very clear, and whilst the autofocus noise is intrusive (worth noting there's a jack for an external microphone) the sound quality is very good. I'll write a review at some point, probably once I've had more experience with the camera.

 

[SussexBlue]

Having thought about it some more, I don't think a 64gb is a good idea. I may get 2 32s or a 16 and a 32 instead. I'm having trouble finding a 45MB/s 32 though. I guess 30 is fine, but I want something that can easily deal with being blatted with full HD video and 12fps. Also, I've just read that SDXC is not backwards compatible with SDHC devices, which means it'd probably not work in either of my laptop's SD readers.

I had a little play with it last night with my 16gb Class 4 MicroSD from my phone in an adapter. The EVF is quite impressive, and whilst it'll take a bit of getting used to, the advantages of it are tremendous & I especially like the horizon stability thing (not sure what to call it, I guess it has an electronic spirit level type thing in it). The general feel of it is is high quality and solid (miles ahead of my A200 in that regard). Fits my hand perfectly and feels close to perfect with my 16-105mm on. The video at 1080 50p is silky smooth and very clear, and whilst the autofocus noise is intrusive (worth noting there's a jack for an external microphone) the sound quality is very good. I'll write a review at some point, probably once I've had more experience with the camera.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-Secure-Digital-Capacity-Extreme/dp/B0037FLUYU/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pdT3_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&coliid=I2LFGJC5VVM5YR&colid=1TYBWNGA21PKX
Sorry wrong link, this one lol. http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004Q3C98S/ref=noref?ie=UTF8&s=computers&psc=1

 

[George7]

Thanks, it looks decent. Can anyone vouch for the seller T-Setter? I always try to be careful when buying off individual sellers as I'm very aware that fakes are extremely common! Feedback looks good, but I thought I may as well check here. I would just go with Amazon, but they have delayed delivery (up to 2 extra days to deliver). I kinda want it by tomorrow

 

[stan the man]

yay..got my a900 back today

just need some decent weather/subjects to shoot now.....

 

[George7]

Congrats! Annoyingly in my area, the weather is rubbish the next few days

 

[stan the man]

Congrats! Annoyingly in my area, the weather is rubbish the next few days

well george,it's raining here at the moment,so may not get out with it afterall

 

[GoNz0]

anyone have an idea what it will cost me to upgrade my A55 to a A65 & the best place to do it ?

A55 is mint.

 

[Dom7]

Was playing around with the A77 yesterday. It does seem a wonderful piece of kit, just tossing it up between that or a Nikon D7000 at the moment. Either one I purchase will be a used model.

 

[George7]

Received my HDMI to Mini HDMI cable from Ebay for my A57, however, it seems to have a problem. I have to keep it at a certain angle, otherwise it cuts out. It was a cheap cable, so I'm hoping it is the cable that is the problem, rather than the connector! I closely inspected the input on the camera, and it does appear to have one pin slightly further back than the rest towards the right hand side. I've had trouble finding close up pictures of the sockets online, but of the couple I did find, (one was a fancy Nikon) it appeared to have the same pin slightly further back. Apart from this, the connector on the camera looks immaculate. Just wondering what other people think it's most likely to be? Fortunately I bought the camera locally, so if it is the connector, I can hopefully get it sorted fairly easily. For now, I've bought an HDMI to Mini HDMI coupler off ebay. Will see if that exhibits the same problem.

Unfortunately I don't have ANYTHING else that uses Mini HDMI which I can test this cable with

 

[Johnd2000]

I bought an a57 yesterday. Just tried it with an HDMI cable and it seems a tight enough fit to me. There's no real play to the socket/plug and no loss of connection when I give it a wiggle.

Like you, I only have one mini HDMI cable, so can't tell whether other cables would be as tight.

 

[PDub]

Im really struggling to pick an ultra wide angle lens right now. Ive pretty much settled for the Sigma 10-20mm f4, read the newer F3.5 isnt as good as its older brother but in the back of my mind ive got the Tokina and more so the Sigma 8-16mm eating away at me. But to buy these i would have to get them from One Stop Digital as funds dont allow me to get from the UK (£100 cheaper!).

Ive pretty much discounted the cheapest Tamron 10-24 due to hit and miss reviews. The sony is over priced as far as i can see.

Any help would be awesome. Thanks.

 

[srichards]

I'd check on the classifieds here. There are a few siggy wide angle users.

Also check out dyxum for comparison images as there may not be that much between the two versions.

 

[debrito]

I got the tokina 11 - 16 and I love it I got it from kerso on here reasonable price too

 

[George7]

I bought an a57 yesterday. Just tried it with an HDMI cable and it seems a tight enough fit to me. There's no real play to the socket/plug and no loss of connection when I give it a wiggle.

Like you, I only have one mini HDMI cable, so can't tell whether other cables would be as tight.

Thanks for the reply. I received my coupler from ebay and that works fine, so it was just a faulty cable! Very relieved

 

[TurnipFarmer]

I'm really thinking about upgrading my a700. Is the a77 a worthy upgrade or should I go full frame and go for the a850 or a900?

 

[Beer_Stalker]

I'm really thinking about upgrading my a700. Is the a77 a worthy upgrade or should I go full frame and go for the a850 or a900?

The A77 is a worthy upgrade but try the EVF out in a shop to decide if you like it or not first. I went from the A700 to a A850 two years ago and I would do the same today as I find the EVF refresh rate too low.

 

[jonesy_ni]

I'm really thinking about upgrading my a700. Is the a77 a worthy upgrade or should I go full frame and go for the a850 or a900?

The A77 is a worthy upgrade but try the EVF out in a shop to decide if you like it or not first. I went from the A700 to a A850 two years ago and I would do the same today as I find the EVF refresh rate too low.

Agree with trying it out, I was very impressed with the EVF, I still awaiting something better with noise on high ISO. Apart from that I really like the A77

 

[phil-t]

Agree with trying it out, I was very impressed with the EVF, I still awaiting something better with noise on high ISO. Apart from that I really like the A77

I don't think any APS-C does superb high ISO, although obviously the SLT's aren't class leading.. they are still pretty decent. But I would take a D800 or presumably not too bad performing Sony A99 if I had the cash..

But on that front, even the current SLT range can perform well using MFNR, (multi-frame noise reduction) I have started using that a bit, it handles small movement pretty well, and despite being limited to JPG does a damn good job..

Here's some test samples I put up in another thread. ISO 4000/5000
http://photos.thetolsons.co.uk/p1011332932/h1408af62#h21223bb4

 

[jonesy_ni]

Hi Phil, I just mean in comparison to the likes of D7000, of Canon equiv

TBH if I didnt have so much Sony gear I would shift to Nikon.

But I still love my A700

Thanks for the test shots, they look good

 

[phil-t]

Hi Phil, I just mean in comparison to the likes of D7000, of Canon equiv

TBH if I didnt have so much Sony gear I would shift to Nikon.

But I still love my A700

Thanks for the test shots, they look good

I went from D5100 (very similar sensor to the D7000) to the A77, I was worried about 'noise' having seen DPReview forum gearheads complaints, but surprisingly found it way better then expected..

I like Nikon kit too, was very very very very tempted to just get the D7000, the A77 looked to have downsides according to many forumites, but I kept loving it when I picked it up in store and love the whole EVF/SLT flexibility, it's not for everyone, but it's obvious now why it's reviewed so well!