Ron Bioinformatics
New member
Good camera. At first I was in the market for a beginner SLR. I was willing to only spend some money, while attempting to match the image quality of my father's old Leica R4 - which can barely be done. At first I looked at the Nikon D40 and D40X, which are good, but they simply did not offer good enough images for their price tag. As well, they have a very limited number of AF-S lenses that can be mounted. Instead I looked at the Sony A100, and after much deliberation, I actually found it to be the best option. The key point which drew me to this camera is it's available Carl Zeiss 16-80 f3.5-4.5 lens which is spectacular. The lens coatings give images - even the viewfinder - a more artistic impression and a nice contrast. The main points that made this camera package so attractive, lens aside, were the excellent features for a very reasonable price. This camera can be purchased for the same amount as the Nikon D40X or Canon Rebel XTi, however this camera incorporates built-in image stabilization, which really makes a difference on telephoto or night shots. As well, the camera has a useful eye-start system that allows photographers to focus the camera simply by looking through the viewfinder and pointing it in that direction. Image processing is incredibly fast for a 10MP camera in this price category. Additional features and lenses aside, the body of this camera is simply in a class of it's own, between amateur consumer SLRs and semi-professional SLRs. The grip is larger, easier to hold and less "plastic-y" feeling than the D40X or Rebel XTi. The viewfinder is large and appears clearer than those of other SLRs in that price category. The image sensor in this camera is the same sensor used in the Nikon D200, and it's quality is comparable to that of the Canon 30D (Based on my own photos). In fact - with the 16-80mm Zeiss lens, image quality can be even better. And for an amateur photographer the features on this camera are plentiful and fairly straightforward. There's even a small depth-of-field button, for those who care.
Overall this is a good camera - but it's an even better bargain - with basic image quality comparable to the D200 and 30D, and in the price range of a D40X or Rebel XTi this camera cannot be beat. As well, this camera can be used with all the offered Sony lenses, unlike the D40X which is quite restricted to the cheaper (or much more expensive) AF-S lenses. This camera is by no means a professional camera - but for an average amateur photographer, this camera will produce vivid shots of almost any scene - night or day, inside or outside - for a more than reasonable price.
Problems:
One negative point concerning the eye-start focusing is that it just checks to see if something is behind the viewfinder. So if you lay the camera down against your chest with the strap around your neck, and you have eye-start enabled, it will continuously focus as you move around.
As well, the body could be a little less clunky looking - but it holds very nicely.
Overall this is a good camera - but it's an even better bargain - with basic image quality comparable to the D200 and 30D, and in the price range of a D40X or Rebel XTi this camera cannot be beat. As well, this camera can be used with all the offered Sony lenses, unlike the D40X which is quite restricted to the cheaper (or much more expensive) AF-S lenses. This camera is by no means a professional camera - but for an average amateur photographer, this camera will produce vivid shots of almost any scene - night or day, inside or outside - for a more than reasonable price.
Problems:
One negative point concerning the eye-start focusing is that it just checks to see if something is behind the viewfinder. So if you lay the camera down against your chest with the strap around your neck, and you have eye-start enabled, it will continuously focus as you move around.
As well, the body could be a little less clunky looking - but it holds very nicely.