Compared to...

Studio scene comparison (JPEG)

This is our standard studio scene comparison shot taken from exactly the same tripod position. Lighting: daylight simulation, >98% CRI. Crops are 100%. Ambient temperature was approximately 22°C (~72°F).

Canon EOS 50D vs. Sony DSLR-A700

Camera settings:

• Canon EOS 50D: Canon EF 50 mm F1.4 lens, Aperture Priority, ISO 100
  JPEG Large/Fine, Manual WB, Default Parameters (Standard), Self-Timer (with MLU), ALO disabled
   
  
• Sony DSLR-A700: Minolta 50 mm F1.4 lens, Aperture Priority, ISO 200
  JPEG Large/Fine, Manual WB, Default Parameters (Natural), Self-Timer (auto MLU)
  

Canon EOS 50D	Sony DSLR-A700
4.4 MB JPEG (4752 x 3168)	3.5 MB JPEG (4272 x 2848)

Again, the Canon does not produce any visible extra amount of detail over the lower resolution A700 but the 50D images are cleaner, there are some visible sharpening artifacts in the Sony output. On the other hand the cameras' approach towards color is not too dissimilar, both produce fairly muted colors that leave some latitude for post processing.