Image stabilization

low light

I love this camera. I have a minolta 35 mm and enjoyed the pictures it took so I decided to move over to Sony since I had some lenses. The pictures are great. I did my daughters dance recital at 1600 ISO and got rave reviews at the quality of the photos. The photo place where I have my pictures developed would not release the pictures to me until I could prove they were mine. I am having so much fun with this camera I have enrolled in classes. I get great pictures using the 300 mm lens. I almost prefer using it to a smaller lens. The ease of the controls makes it a delight. I haven't mastered using shutter priority or apature priority but I am working on it. I find that lighting in some gyms produce poor pictures. I would recommend this product to my friends.

Customer Service

Haven't had to deal with

Super Steady shot
Maxxum compatability
Sharp images from 100-400 ISO
Long battery life

Noise at 800 or more ISO is bad
Could use an ISO button
Customer service

At work I shot with the Cannon XT for 2 years and wasn't happy with hand held shooting. Anything below 1/60 was soft so I looked into the a100. I used the a100 at a shoot and saw an immediate difference. With the super steady shot I was easily able to get 1/25. With practice watching the camera shake bars I am able to get quarter second shots.

The body is well built. The mount is reinforced with metal for those heavy lenses. Its bigger then the XTI so it feels more stable. I also picked up the VG-1 vertical grip for it.

The controls are pretty solid. It was a no brainer to transition from my Maxxun 7 film camera. It could use a button for ISO. The auto white balance is extremely accurate. Unless your shooting under hot studio lights you'll never need to change it.

The metering tends to over expose but is easily corrected by stopping down. I haven't seen any noticeable difference when using the dynamic range optimizer. Auto focus is ok. I turned of the eye piece sensors. I usually go manual anyway. It could use an AF assist light like the Nikon D80. ISO is good from 100-400. 800, even shooting RAW is bad. 1600 is unusable, even in grayscale

Battery life is fantastic. Even with flash use. I have a spare but hardly ever use it.

Shutter is loud. No stealth shooting. I don't notice it anymore. The frame rate is slower then I'd like. But in fine mode you can shoot until the card is full.

The 18 - 70 lens is ok. I use the old Minolta lenses. Stopping down produces amazing photos.

Over all its a great camera especially if your shooting on the go. The compatibility with Maxxum lenses and accessories is a definite plus.

Customer Service

Used once. Be prepared for atleast a month without your camera. Follow up calls do speed up the process

Similar Products Used:

Maxxum 7
Canon XT
Nikon D80
Sony F717

Image stabilization
Many older quality Minolta/ Konica-minolta lenses that will work & can be bought cheaply of ebay
Wireless flash system (not that I have tried it yet, but what I have seen I have liked)

Noise at High ISO
Not the quickest Auto Focus

This is my first Digital SLR & my 3rd A mount Camera, having owned a 303si super & a 7000i in the past.
I like the feel of this camera. Others have said that it seems a bit toy like, but I have never been a fan of huge grips, etc & I found that the camera sits well in my hands & most controls are intuitive enough for me. I am still learning with this camera & most of its features, once you get the basics down pat, I find navigating the menu's & getting to where I want reasonably easy.

I know that others have commented on the lack of LCD screen on top of the camera. Well to be honest, Its not something that I miss at all.

I might be easily impressed, but image quality is fine to me, EXCEPT at ISO800 or higher. Yes, it is effected by High noise. This can be overcome to a degree by slightly over exposing, but this is the camera's biggest issue. But, realistically, I dont shoot higher then ISO200 most of the time & if I do go higher, the noise can be produced in post processing.

Predominantly, I use this camera for general "home" photography, but I do use it for motor sport photography. At times I do find that the auto focus is a little slow. This is not helped by the older Minolta 75-300 lens that I use (& focus would probably be better with modern lenses), but its worthy of note. That being said, with a bit of practice & learning how the camera works, this can be overcome.

for general photography, I cannot see any fault & would recommend it. The in body Image stabilization is well worth the effort & is very commendable. This is worth looking at this camera alone! I have this turned on at all times & have taken hand held shots of up to 1 second without seeing much camera shake.

I am not disappointed with the camera & knowing what I know now, would still buy it.

Customer Service

none needed

Similar Products Used:

first DSLR

10.2 MP
Antishake (AS)
Price
Great Color rendition

No battery grip (normal)

The Sony Alpha is definitely an outstanding camera for the new DSLR users.

There is no doubt that more professional grade machines will come out (see PMA reviews). This machine is not a weathersealed powerhorse and so it makes sense for it not to have a powergrip (especially since you can shoot 700+ pics on one charge).

People also forget that Nikon etc uses Sony CCDs, so to say that the Sony machine is not outstanding or somehow made by a novice in the market is a mistake (DSLR bodies are more CCD than anything else).

What is more, the idea that there is more noise in the pics at iso800 and iso1600 is a falacy. It is true when you shoot JPGS, but not when you shoot raw, since you do the postprocessing yourself. If you want to shoot in low light you should use RAW and if not you should use a flash to use normal ISO values (any "pro" would accept this).

The ease of use is outstanding, you don't need to read the manual, because all ISO, flash settings, DR/DR+, white balance etc are accessible from one rotating bezel (this is how it should be for a consumer DSLR, the pro versions are yet to come, "with more buttons").

To say that there are not enough lenses for the Sony Alpha is also ridiculous. There are many many lenses on the market made by Minolta (bought by Sony), so there is a lot of very good and cheap glass for this machine. Who would say that the 80-200 APO HS and 70-200 APO SSM lenses are somehow inferior to the Canon and Nikon versions? Same with the 300 F2.8 SSM. There are also many many lenses by Sigma, Tamron and Carl Zeiss lenses.

This machine is also perfect for the DLSR newbie, because of the Anti-Shake (AS) system. This is wonderful at reducing the price of lenses for the normal user and at being able to use lower F-stops in low light.

This machine is very complete, it does not suffer from missing options that a new DSLR user would need. If you are a pro then wait a little bit. You cannot expect Sony to launch everything at once. New pro glass is on the way and it is reasonable not to release this glass for a DSLR aimed at the amateur.

Customer Service

Not needed up to now

Similar Products Used:

Maxxum 5D/7D
Nikon D80

See above

None at this price.

Excellent image quality.
Super Steady Shot works.
Explosure spot on. Works faultlessly with my Sony 56 flash.
DR function.
Advanced feature available : Wireless flash, central light meter, DOF button.
Long battery life.
Kit lens is good enough for daily use.

Better price/performance to Canon/Nikon. C/N doesn't has Anit-shake !

Good !

The price is with 1 kit lens

Customer Service

Good. Office open until 8:00p.m. at a shopping area.

Similar Products Used:

Minolta 7D (loudsy quality control)
Film camera :
Minolta Dynax 7
Minolta Dynax 5

Super steady shot
resolution
anti dust feature

None so far, considering the price/class.

I've had the camera for only a few days, but have used it a good bit. Many people say it's just a rebaged KM5D, myself included, but after a busy week of putting it through a multitude of subjects/situations, my mind has changed. The cmera feels better built, and honestly just feels all around better in my hands.

The main complaint seems to be noise, so to really see for myself I shot some photos at ISO 800, and printed them at 8X10. The noise was not bad at all, hardly noticeable at this size. Of course very fine detail started to drop, and you likely couldn't get a great 16x20, but still it was not as bad as most people make it to be. We printed another photo at ISO 400 at 11x14 with no problem. The colors were spot on, vibrant, and noise was not noticeable.

Sony's Super Steady Shot is indeed an improvement. I stated before that it was the same as KM, but Sony has improved it by much. I couldn't get the 3-3.5 stops Sony claims, but was able to get sharp photos that I would not have gotten without SSS. At 27mm f/16 ISO100, I was able to get 1/4 second exposures without softness. I tested the SSS on a waterfall, and was able to blur water while handholding. Something I couldn't do with the KM5D.

The Jpegs look good, even when we printed at 11X14. Sony didn't include an Extra fine setting, which some will miss, however RAW can be used to avoid the compression. Even though the files are highly compressed they still exhibit good detail, and show no signs of artifacts. On a 1GB card, I can get about 220 photos, with the KM5D I could get about 150, the 5D had a little more than half the resolution (5MP).

To really see what DRO (dynamic range optimizer) really was all about, I took the camera to a church. Metering (matrix) a scene which included bright stained glass, the photos came through with detail in thedarker areas. The glass was well exposed, with well exposed pews, ceiling, and floor. No blown highlights, or blocked up shadows to be found. To give it another test, I used it while shooting backlit birds. It came through yet again, allowing detail in the shaded areas of the subjects, without loosing detail in the highlights. It's a nice feature, but is not a save all, and you should check after using it to see if you really got what you wanted.

One thing I would have liked is a faster FPS rate. If you are careful, three is plenty, but more can be useful. However, the camera does allow shooting until you fill the card (in jpeg fine).

True, I haven't had the camera long, but I tested it heavily in varied situations. My goal being to see for myself the "issues" with the camera, and get a feel for it's features and what they do. Certiainly there will be something people won't like about ANY camera, but for the money you can't complain with this one too much.

So, who is this for? As stated by others, if you already have good KM glass, or are new to the game, it will serve you well. If you need weather seals, and high FPS rate, you may have to look elsewhere. I don't like to say anything is for beginner or pro because cameras are only a tool, if it's got the features you need/want, that's what is important.

Customer Service

n/a

Similar Products Used:

Konical Minolta 5D
Canon Rebel XT

-Well priced for what you get. This camera is loaded with great features.
-Easy to use.
-Fabulous pictures
-The rear display is well lit, easy to see and the playback picture is large enough that you can easily detect errors quickly, no surprises when you actually get it to the computer.

The software that comes with the camera takes a little getting used to.
The manual (which I haven't seen a great one yet) is a little vague and doesn't always answer the question I need answered.

I ended up with this camera somewhat by default. I had gone into the camera store to look at new lenses for my Nikon D70. I've had that camera for about three years, but I've never really been pleased with it. Partly because of operater errors and partly because it just never gave me back what I thought I should be getting out of a camera that advanced. I've owned three other Sony cameras and have been happy with the ease of use and picture quality.

I noticed the Sony Alpha on display and the salesman took it out and showed me some of the great features and even had a book of pictures he had himself taken with the camera. I was amazed at the photo quality. I was hooked! Merry Christmas to me!

I have been amazed at how good my pictures have been. The anti-shake feature is a big help to me; my pictures have been beautiful. The camera has been easy to learn for the most part. I purchased a couple of books about the Sony Alpha 100 and that combined with just getting out and practicing has improved my pictures tremendously. I'm currently taking a photography class at a local college and even the instructor has been impressed with how vivid the colors of my pictures are. I can't wait until I get really familiar with all the things this camera has to offer. One other big plus is that the additional lenses to be used with this camera are not stupidly priced. I intend to use this camera for years.

Customer Service

Haven't had to use.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon D70

The strengths of the Sony are the Super Steady Shot image stabilizing which really does work, the image quality which is outstanding and the layout of the controls and menu are first class.
The screen is clear and easy to use, it even rotates when you take a portrait image. The view finder is bright and very easy to use.
The software supplied is very easy to use.

The only weakness I have found id ISO1600 is noisy, but this can be tamed with post processing on a pc.

The Sony A100 is an excellent camera. I have old Minolta lenses, but would have sold these to jump ship to Canon etc, so this was the natural choice. I looked at the Canon 400D and Nikon D80, the Canon was too small and compared to the Sony the Nikon didn't seem good value. The Nikon seemed to be slightly better at handling noise at ISO1600, other than that the camera's are very similar. The Sony has more features Super Steady Shot etc and is cheaper. This is why I got the Sony over the others.

Similar Products Used:

Minolta Dynax 5 Film SLR
Nikon 65 Film Camera
FujiFilm S602 Zoom

Virtually seamless integration between the Minolta lenses and the 14mm Sigma. I was especially pleased to discover that I could use the 5400 xi flash without the electronic hassle that I've faced with other digitals.
Simply stated, all lenses that worked on my 9xi work equally well on the A-100

While my Tamron 2x teleconverter produces great results with manual lenses such as the Tamron 500mm mirror lens, it won't perform with the xi lenses, but I'm working on it.

This review is directed to others like me who retained their Minolta lenses and accessories in the hopes that they could be used somewhere down the road, and are considering the purchase of a D-100.

Your wait is over. All you asked for is here.

I am a retired pro photographer with over 35 years in the business and over 50 years of making images and now own an affordable digital camera that truly yields the image quality that I have been looking for.

-10Megapixel
-anti-shake
-great selection of lenses
-RAW ; RAW-JPEG ; and JPEG formats

The photographer.

I previously shot with a Minolta Maxum 70 film camera so picking up the Sony A100 was a no-brainer for me since all of my lenses would be compatible. This is my first foray into digital photography and after such a short time with this camera I know that I'll probably never go back to film, unless just for the nostalgia. The transition to digital seemed almost intuitive since the controls on the A100 were very similar to the Maxum 70. I had a similar problem out of the box as another reviewer in so much that the camera was in a constant focusing mode. 15 minutes of looking through the manual solved that problem. I knew right off that it was a camera setting, since the Maxum 70 has a similar mode of operation, just needed that manual to tell me where it was. I do agree with the poster that stated that the manual has room for improvement, but I also agree with others that have stated that theres little need for the manual since the camera is relatively easy to use. I have read the manual...yep...every word of it...because its something that I like to do for any piece of gear that I buy.

Overall I have to rate my experience as a very positive one, and I doubt that I'd personally ever need any more camera than this, though that does nothing to preclude my obsession for getting the latest and greatest! I would recommend this camera to anyone...but again..its a no-brainer for anyone that has Minolta
A-mount lenses.

Customer Service

Haven't had to deal with customer service.