Sony A65 or Canon 100d

Sony viewfinder .....good or not so good with it being digital . 3 camera shops give it thumbs down and only one give it thumbs up ......
 
chrisnjulie said:
Sony viewfinder .....good or not so good with it being digital . 3 camera shops give it thumbs down and only one give it thumbs up ......
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But what did you think of it when you used it? That's what matters :)
 
chrisnjulie said:
Sony viewfinder .....good or not so good with it being digital . 3 camera shops give it thumbs down and only one give it thumbs up ......
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depends ... (as you have discovered no black & white answers)
Pros
Bigger image than an APS-C OVF & you can magnify further
In low light it can gain up so that you will be able to see things (albeit it will be grainy) when you can't on an OVF - essentially a mini image intensifier
Better for manual focus (peaking/magnify)
Better representation of depth of field at apertures wider than f2.8
Better representation of resultant exposure
Better for video (you can't see anything in the OVF of an EOS when it's taking video)

Cons
Once you hit ~6 frames per second the EVF image will lag slightly - you can learn to cope with this but it's not as natural for tracking as with an OVF
Uses battery power
Some people with very sensitive eyes claim that for them it ruins night vision
 
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manualfocus-g said:
You can ask others and read reviews all you want, but it won't help you to make a subjective decision. You need to try both cameras both indoors and outdoors and decide what feels best.
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....I agree but the reviews are a good starting point to gain some knowledge before a 'road test'.

As for asking others, take note but don't let others make the final decision for you - We each have different requirements and there is no such thing as just one perfect camera (or lens).
 
chrisnjulie said:
Sony viewfinder .....good or not so good with it being digital . 3 camera shops give it thumbs down and only one give it thumbs up ......
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Yes evfs can be very divisive - some people hate them, others can happily use either an evf or an ovf and others swear they could never go back to using an ovf after using an evf.

I borrowed an A35 for a week before I got my own SLT camera and at first was "oh not sure about this evf thing at all" - but after about an hour or so I had gotten used to it and could appreciate the advantages. I have read similar comments on amazon reviews etc where others had the same experience. So even trying one in a camera shop for a short while may not be enough time to decide wether or not you would be happy with one.

I have since briefly used friends cameras with ovfs (decent sized 100% view pentaprism ones) and I really like them too - so I am in the middle ground where I could happily use either and like the advantages of an evf but can appreciate the disadvantages and advantages of both options. Some people say they hate evfs and could not use one (at least until the technology improves even further) and I think that's perfectly reasonable. Wether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages for you is what counts not what anybody else thinks (although their opinion is perfectly valid too of course it applies to their use not yours).

The A65 one is pretty good as evfs go (despite the camera being around 2 years old) but it is a different experience to an ovf.
 
I haven't bought it yet but I will be buying a Sony RX100 II with detachable EVF as my take everywhere compact and also to be my 'standard' DSLR lens. I have handled the camera but not the EVF yet but it is clearly Sony's latest-state-of-the-art EVF and is reported to be very impressive indeed.
 
Out of the FOUR shops (yes FOUR) none of them have had both models in stock to try out .....typical . A man in one shop today said that the A65 is being discontinued !!
In burst mode with the A65 , how long does it take to buffer after it has taken its 10fps (for example)
What are the lenses like on the Sony ? Are they robust or flimsy ?
 
depends upon the speed of the cards that you are using - if it's a concern use 95mbps Sandisk Extreme Pros.

As for lenses depends what you get & how much you pay - they run from quite plasticky to some that you could use as a hammer. Pretty much the same as Canon.
 
I like the evf, it seems way easier to tell what's in focus than my friends canons I've used, the a77 has a better grip, think a65 shares the same design.

and sony has a good lens range for a normal person too.

evf true colour is a giggle, as you can change and see white balance :-), so more useful
 
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pingu666 said:
I like the evf, it seems way easier to tell what's in focus than my friends canons I've used, the a77 has a better grip, think a65 shares the same design. and sony has a good lens range for a normal person too. evf true colour is a giggle, as you can change and see white balance :-), so more useful
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A65 is the same size as an a57 so smaller than the a77, i have medium sized hands and the a57 is a great fit for me plus the smaller size for me is an avantage.
 
The a65 won't be discontinued just yet. Though it is approaching end of life. I had this camera before getting the a77. Not a huge amount of difference in performance between the two of them to be honest, coupled with some good glass, you'll be hard pressed to tell the two apart in terms of image quality.

For me, the Sony is a much more comfortable camera to use than entry level Canon's. Next time you go into store, try not to look at the badge/writing on the front of the body, just spend time going through all the menus and controls. I find the menus easier to navigate on the Sony. And this is the only reason I bought into the system. The best camera in the world is the one you have with you at the time that you can use easily and quickly.

Any more questions then please ask. :)
 
I'd try harrison cameras in sheffield. http://www.harrisoncameras.co.uk/ They have canon and sony. Give them a bell first and see what they have in stock. Looks like they have the A65 and the A77. They're a bit of a (actually quite a lot of a ) trek but if they have all cameras to try out at once then you're laughing...or spoilt for choice ;)
 
Right folks .....we've been back to the camera shop and I've had a look at both cameras . I've held them , tried them out and I've decided that I'm definately going for the Canon 700D with a 18-135mm lens to start me off .
The reason I have gone for the 700D is because I just didn't like the evf ......my eyes must be quite sensitive as I could see distortion to the sides of the viewfinder and I couldn't stop looking at it because I knew it was there ! Yes I know I should be looking at whats in the centre of the viewfinder but you do tend to look at what else you're going to get in the photo before you take it (well I do anyway) Maybe distortion isn't the right term to use but I could see something and it caught my eye , so I'm going to stick with the Canon . Thank you all so much for your help and advice and I'm so glad I was able to compare the cameras in the one shop together ! The Canon just felt right . Its small and compact (as is the Sony) and the controls sat where I wanted them to be . Hopefully I'm picking it up at the weekend .......thank you once again . :-)
 
that's odd, never had that with my sonys, sometimes flicker. Maybe someone had stuck the diopter on something odd for your eyes
 
pingu666 said:
that's odd, never had that with my sonys, sometimes flicker. Maybe someone had stuck the diopter on something odd for your eyes
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Probably flicker is a better word to use than distortion !! It just wasn't for me .....
 
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