Calling all Sony Alpha users!

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Anybody here got a lens that they wouldn't mind hiring out to me for a couple of weeks in late July into August? A good portrait/wedding lens qould be ideal. I have the Minolta 50mm f1.7 but would like something with a wider angle. Bit cheeky asking I know. ;)
 
Welcome fellow Alpha users :wave: :clap:

Chewy, looking forward to hearing about your new lens :thumbs:
 
Just bought myself the a200 to go with the Minolts AF lenses that I already have. Not had much chance to play with it yet but I'm pretty impressed with the results so far!
 
GavSt said:
i'm an a100 owner and i'm pretty pleased with the camera so far..

My reason for buying it over canon/nikon was because i already had a couple of lenses for my old minolta dynax 300si and i thought it would be a good stepping stone into the world of digital slr's....

The fact that there are literally millions of quality second hand lenses available is also a bonus :)

Still trying to get a decent beercan for cheap though :)
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I have a Sony DSC-R1 which has a Carl Zeis 35-120 lens (not interchangable), and I am looking at the A350. I also have a couple of Minolta lenses for my old Dynax 35mm camera.
An Alpha thread is a good idea.
Bill
 
Great to hear from all you Alpha users!
So, are we ready to take over the world yet??!!!

:lol:
 
If the rumoured A900 comes out before I get a D-SLR, I'll be joining you.
 
Just had an Alpha 200 for 2 weeks, having used Minolta 35mm cameras before. Have to say I love the Sony, and for around 280 quid its a sweet bit of kit. . I do have a few minor improvements I would make if I could.

Liveview would be nice for the odd occasion when the viewfinder is inaccessible, but I find in 99% of situations I love the information display, and as an old school photographer I instinctively go for the viewfinder anyway.

As I enjoy HDR, I would have liked the auto bracketing to be wider than +/-0.7 and would like to take more than 3 exposures.

The real niggle for me is that the software is not compatible with 64bit vista, and that there are no 64bit codecs available so you can view your camera raw files in windows. Given that 64bit processors are practically the norm now, this is a major oversight by Sony, and I hope their software department are working on it as we speak.

These are only minor points, and have not put me off the A200 at all, as the positives really drown out the niggles.

The camera is really comfortable in the hand, and all the controls are ergonomically placed. The camera is full of advanced features and they all work well. I love the Sony infolithium batteries, nothing worse for me than a camera that takes AA batteries.

I know you didnt ask for a camera review, but thought I would add my first impressions of the camera. I wouldnt hesitate in buying the same camera again.:)
 
satansoft said:
Just had an Alpha 200 for 2 weeks, having used Minolta 35mm cameras before. Have to say I love the Sony, and for around 280 quid its a sweet bit of kit. . I do have a few minor improvements I would make if I could.

Liveview would be nice for the odd occasion when the viewfinder is inaccessible, but I find in 99% of situations I love the information display, and as an old school photographer I instinctively go for the viewfinder anyway.

As I enjoy HDR, I would have liked the auto bracketing to be wider than +/-0.7 and would like to take more than 3 exposures.

The real niggle for me is that the software is not compatible with 64bit vista, and that there are no 64bit codecs available so you can view your camera raw files in windows. Given that 64bit processors are practically the norm now, this is a major oversight by Sony, and I hope their software department are working on it as we speak.

These are only minor points, and have not put me off the A200 at all, as the positives really drown out the niggles.

The camera is really comfortable in the hand, and all the controls are ergonomically placed. The camera is full of advanced features and they all work well. I love the Sony infolithium batteries, nothing worse for me than a camera that takes AA batteries.

I know you didnt ask for a camera review, but thought I would add my first impressions of the camera. I wouldnt hesitate in buying the same camera again.:)
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As far as I'm concerned, your views are very welcome :thumbs:
You've raised a few good points there.
 
ShawWellPete said:
Hi guys, I've got an A700, having had a Minolta 7D before that.

I've just put some stuff on Flickr it is here.
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Good to hear from you mate.
You have some superb pics, and if I may say, the story about Christian is very moving. He must be real tough little guy.
(If I've stepped out of line by mentioning this, please tell me.)
 
I am currently using a SanDisk 4GB Extreme III Compact Flash Card with my a200 and am looking for a suitable card reader for downloading my pics off camera. I have seen plenty of options but they all appear to only be quoting suitability for CF I & II cards. Can I use my CF III cards with those? If not, can anybody please point me in the direction of one suitable for my requirements?
Many thanks!
 
i'm now thinking about upgrading from my A100 to the A350,as i like the look of the live view facility...so,how much do you think an A100 would be worth in excellent condition,with kit lens (18-70),1GB CF card..and i'll throw in a jessops TP323 tripod for free :shrug:
 
stan the man said:
i'm now thinking about upgrading from my A100 to the A350,as i like the look of the live view facility...so,how much do you think an A100 would be worth in excellent condition,with kit lens (18-70),1GB CF card..and i'll throw in a jessops TP323 tripod for free :shrug:
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Gotta be worth £200-£250 surely.......
 
Well I'm a convert. I used to have a canon 400D and became so confused with all the new stuff I had to learn, I got rid of it. I stuck with my Sony Bridge DSC H9 for a while but decided to try DSLR again. Sticking with Sony, I bought the a200 and I am much happier with it than I ever was with the Canon. The built in IS meant that I could look to using any lens that would fit, and already have Image Stability at my finger tips. I know that the lens are expensive if you buy top of the range, but Sigma and Tamron etc do some very good equivalent for use on the Sony. I will use the a200 to improve my understanding of DSLR, and when I'm ready and finances allow move up to the 300 or 700, depending on the cost at the time.

If there are peeps out there who are still undecided about which camera to start off with, you cant go far wrong with the Sony range.

Come on in and join the party:nuts:
 
JPS said:
I didn't see that thread first time, don't know why/how I missed it. I'm looking for a longer lens than my standard 75-300 so just wondered how you got on with yours.
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Sorry about not replying sooner....i've still not had a sucessful outing with my 170-500mm yet:bang:. All i can say is that in terms of image quality from the few shots I have taken i'm am quite pleased. It is a heavy lens to carry and the limited f5/6.3 aperture means you need a lot of light for anything moving fast. I'm not sure I would have bought one new/full price but as I got it at a bargain price I am very happy. Will post some shots once I have something decent to show.
 
Gazbag said:
Well I'm a convert. I used to have a canon 400D and became so confused with all the new stuff I had to learn, I got rid of it. I stuck with my Sony Bridge DSC H9 for a while but decided to try DSLR again. Sticking with Sony, I bought the a200 and I am much happier with it than I ever was with the Canon. The built in IS meant that I could look to using any lens that would fit, and already have Image Stability at my finger tips. I know that the lens are expensive if you buy top of the range, but Sigma and Tamron etc do some very good equivalent for use on the Sony. I will use the a200 to improve my understanding of DSLR, and when I'm ready and finances allow move up to the 300 or 700, depending on the cost at the time.

If there are peeps out there who are still undecided about which camera to start off with, you cant go far wrong with the Sony range.

Come on in and join the party:nuts:
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Hey Gaz.
Nice post mate.
I too had the 400D for a bit, and I took a gamble and went for the a300. I'm glad I did! For once I feel as though I made the right decision!!
My reason were mainly for the built in IS, and also the live view screen for me is invaluable.

Bit of a bummer about len's being quite few and far between, but in all honesty, I never will have huge amounts of money to spend on len's anyway!
My (little) range of len's suits me down to the ground.

My next move may be to replace the kit lens, but as a budget kit lens, I think it's pretty good.
Other than that, I think I'm just about there now, lens wise!
 
stan the man said:
hopefully i will have the a350 in the next week or so....i assume all my lens will work okay(from my a100)?

are there any problem areas with sony's new alpha range i should be aware of?
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Have you sold your a100 then?
If your lenses worked on the 100, they'll work on your new 350, basically!

Not really any major issues that I'm aware of.
I'm sure you'll find 'niggles', but I haven't.
Yet :nuts:
 
Go for it!! I can only offer my own opinion but I cannot fault the Sony "a" range of camera. A good choice and a very user friendly camera. Have fun and happy snapping.
 
andy_fozzy said:
Have you sold your a100 then?
If your lenses worked on the 100, they'll work on your new 350, basically!

Not really any major issues that I'm aware of.
I'm sure you'll find 'niggles', but I haven't.
Yet :nuts:
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i've been offered £200 for it..so i'll probably accept,which means i will get the a350 ASAP :woot:

i've read a few reviews on it,and all seems pretty much well...
 
Hi guys, just picked up an A200. very impressed so far....but i do only have the kit lens. i need advice about lenses in general, where is best to post these?
 
ShawWellPete said:
What sort of photography are you planning to use your A200 for?
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well im into my motorsports, i love just taking random quirky photos, e.g. scenery, my dog, macro, people, etc

i have been looking on ebay.com (sorry) and there are Tamronm Maxxum and Sigma lenses and there are quite cheap. but the numbers comfuse me a little.

i would like to know about filters too.

can someone give me a bit of inclination about beercan lenses? good? what use for them?

cheers
 
have a look here for a nice simple guide. Play around with the kit lens until you have got your head around it and are ready to upgrade. The Beercan (Minolta 70-210mm F4) is a great lens and would be a great first buy for motorsport.

A good value upgrade for the kit lens is the Sigma 24-70 2.8, If you are looking for a wide and the Minolta 17-35 2.8-4 is not bad for the money. For really wide the Sigma 10-20mm is great. Another cheapo lens to get in your bag is the fixed 50mm 1.7, good for portraits.
 
would it be ok to but some lenses of ebay? they seem to be quite cheap in USA.
i think i really need to get snapping!

what are the benefits of a hood??
 
stan the man said:
i've been offered £200 for it..so i'll probably accept,which means i will get the a350 ASAP :woot:

i've read a few reviews on it,and all seems pretty much well...
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Hey, nice one mate :woot:

Go for it, you'll :love: the a350 if you liked the a100!
 
Hope someone can enlighten me as to the cause of this one.........

I have an a200, on which I have been using some of the lenses that I used to use with my Minolta Dynax 500si and have had no problems thus far. However, I tried using another lens, namely a "Sigma 1A-zoom, 70 - 210 power zoom" and get the message "shutter locked, no lens fitted" every time I try to take a picture. I tried the lens on my Dynax and it worked perfectly. Any ideas? I'm off on holiday this afternoon so if I don't get to reply, I apologise in advance.
 
How are you finding the A700 Pete? The shutter on my 5D has just packed up so it might be time to replace it depending on what the insurers say about repairs.

I can't get over the price of the grip though and I keep wondering whether I'll buy the 700 and wish I'd bought a D300 instead.
 
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