Photo sharing: Sony Alpha

[havoc315]

Seagull in Flight by Adam Brown, on Flickr

 

[zackiedawg]

Wow - it's been over 2 months since I posted BIF shots in this thread!? I have been enjoying some nice wintering birding and breeding season going into spring, so lots of bird activity down here in Florida, and the A6000 and FE70-200mm lens combo has been getting a workout. Here are some BIF varieties:

So how close do the birds fly to people? This wood stork can give you an example - and how impressed the tourists can be seeing a 5-foot-wingspan fly by at head-level:

 

[fractal]

How about that; Sony FE finally gets a "cheap" 50mm 1.8. Also a 70-300 f/4.5 to f/5.6 zoom.

http://www.sonyalpharumors.com/sony-announces-new-fe-lenses-and-a-new-rx10m3/

 

[havoc315]

How about that; Sony FE finally gets a "cheap" 50mm 1.8. Also a 70-300 f/4.5 to f/5.6 zoom.

http://www.sonyalpharumors.com/sony-announces-new-fe-lenses-and-a-new-rx10m3/

If the 70-300 reviews really well, I might trade my 70-200/4 for it. For the A6300, it's more about sports/wildlife reach with those lenses. For top IQ, I'm sticking to my D750 for now regardless.

 

[fractal]

and the new RX10iii looks freakin' amazing. As close as you can get to an all in one camera with higher quality IQ.

24-600mm f/2.4-f/4.

I can't seem to find the info on the aperture to focal length specs however.

Back to the 50mm 1.8; The sample photos from the FE 50 1.8 show promise. Looks sharp enough at 1.8 and the bokeh from the photos on the Sony site are pleasant.

 

[havoc315]

and the new RX10iii looks freakin' amazing. As close as you can get to an all in one camera with higher quality IQ.

24-600mm f/2.4-f/4.

I can't seem to find the info on the aperture to focal length specs however.

Back to the 50mm 1.8; The sample photos from the FE 50 1.8 show promise. Looks sharp enough at 1.8 and the bokeh from the photos on the Sony site are pleasant.

You can find the aperture info on dpreview.

Whether it's a potential true all-in-one will depend on the focus speed. The focal length is long enough for sports and wildlife, but the contrast-detect AF system has to be able to keep up.

 

[fractal]

azalea by Chris Dikos, on Flickr

 

[havoc315]

Sony thread or Nikon?
Nikon 300mm/f4 pf on Sony A6300 with commlite adapter.

Birding with Sony + Nikon combo by Adam Brown, on Flickr

 

[fractal]

 

[DisneyBabies]

Question guys: the Sony a68 is available in the UK and is supposed to be coming to the US "in April", but the only place I've seen it is on amazon which says it will be available May 19, 2016. Can't even find it on the Sony site. Can anyone else find an April release date? My trip is May 20th, so amazon is not an option.

Thanks for your help everyone!

 

[zackiedawg]

The A68 is DEFINITELY not going to be in the US until May 19th. I think those news alerts of it coming 'in April' were early guesses - it first went on pre-order on March 11th - and I pre-ordered it then - I got my notice from B&H that it was due to ship May 19th. I was hoping to get it sooner myself - but no-go!

 

[DisneyBabies]

The A68 is DEFINITELY not going to be in the US until May 19th. I think those news alerts of it coming 'in April' were early guesses - it first went on pre-order on March 11th - and I pre-ordered it then - I got my notice from B&H that it was due to ship May 19th. I was hoping to get it sooner myself - but no-go!

Well crap! Any way to find out in advance which local stores may have it? Do I just call and ask? A week before? Two weeks?

Also, why the huge price difference from the a77 and a99? The a68 is almost half the cost of the a77.

Thanks for your help.

 

[havoc315]

Well crap! Any way to find out in advance which local stores may have it? Do I just call and ask? A week before? Two weeks?

Also, why the huge price difference from the a77 and a99? The a68 is almost half the cost of the a77.

Thanks for your help.

Very few stores will actually carry the a68. Very hard to find stores that still carry a-mount. They now mostly just carry e-mount for Sony. Regardless, they won't have it any earlier than Amazon.

The a99 is full frame, though pretty dated now. The a77ii is their enthusiast/pro aps-c camera, and has better build quality and some other advantages over the a68. The new price for the a68 is $600... The a77ii has retailed as low as $900. The a68 is basically a cheapened version of the a77ii-- smaller viewfinder with lower resolution, smaller tilt LCD vs larger full swivel, slower burst shooting and likely smaller buffer, no second control dial, not sure if it has wifi, no weather sealing etc.

Any particular reason you're holding out for the a68?
Unless you are deeply tied to a-mount lenses, there are lots of great cameras in that price range, from the Canon Rebel and 70d, Nikon d5500, Sony a6000, just to name a few.

 

[DisneyBabies]

Very few stores will actually carry the a68. Very hard to find stores that still carry a-mount. They now mostly just carry e-mount for Sony. Regardless, they won't have it any earlier than Amazon.

The a99 is full frame, though pretty dated now. The a77ii is their enthusiast/pro aps-c camera, and has better build quality and some other advantages over the a68. The new price for the a68 is $600... The a77ii has retailed as low as $900. The a68 is basically a cheapened version of the a77ii-- smaller viewfinder with lower resolution, smaller tilt LCD vs larger full swivel, slower burst shooting and likely smaller buffer, no second control dial, not sure if it has wifi, no weather sealing etc.

Any particular reason you're holding out for the a68?
Unless you are deeply tied to a-mount lenses, there are lots of great cameras in that price range, from the Canon Rebel and 70d, Nikon d5500, Sony a6000, just to name a few.

I have a Sony a200 that I have had for years and am now having issues with, so I want to get a new camera body (my lenses are fine, so I don't need to replace them). I am not a professional by any means, but I do well enough playing with settings and using auto with good light to get pictures I like. I want something easy to use and when I was first looking years ago, the Sony was right up my alley for that. I also have 3 kids, so paying $900 for the a77 is not something I am willing to do; I can get a bunch of new clothes for my kiddos with that extra $300. I guess I could go with the a55, but I really wanted something newer.

I guess I don't really have to stick with Sony, but I have the lenses already and I'm not sure where to even begin looking with another brand.

 

[havoc315]

I have a Sony a200 that I have had for years and am now having issues with, so I want to get a new camera body (my lenses are fine, so I don't need to replace them). I am not a professional by any means, but I do well enough playing with settings and using auto with good light to get pictures I like. I want something easy to use and when I was first looking years ago, the Sony was right up my alley for that. I also have 3 kids, so paying $900 for the a77 is not something I am willing to do; I can get a bunch of new clothes for my kiddos with that extra $300. I guess I could go with the a55, but I really wanted something newer.

I guess I don't really have to stick with Sony, but I have the lenses already and I'm not sure where to even begin looking with another brand.

Ahhh, the a200 is rather ancient in camera terms. You had the 18-70 lens it came with at the time? That lens is actually very dated as well. It will operate on a newer camera, but it was really designed for lower resolution cameras. Your a200 was a 10mp camera -- you're looking at jumping to 24mp... The high resolution will expose all the flaws in that old lens.
Now, if you're invested in the expensive premium Sony and Minolta lenses, it's a good reason to stick around.
Otherwise, starting from scratch won't matter. And the a200 has very little in common with the a68... Almost like comparing a 1955 Ford to a 2016 Ford. Other than the brand, everything else will be different. Ironically, a Canon or Nikon will be more similar to the a200 than the a68. Since the a200 is a dslr, like current Canon and Nikon cameras. But the a68 is a dslt, not a dslr.

 

[fractal]

next hole by Chris Dikos, on Flickr

 

[zackiedawg]

Well crap! Any way to find out in advance which local stores may have it? Do I just call and ask? A week before? Two weeks?

As Havoc mentioned, it's not likely to be in most stores any quicker than it will be in stock at the big camera places like B&H or Amazon - so pre-ordering with them and paying for expedited shipping might be the best bet...you'll probably end up getting it within 1-2 days from them, if that's in time for you. The only other retailer that might have one in stock would be Best Buy that has a fairly large Sony collection - they do emphasize E-mount more, but you might run into a local store here or there that gets one when it comes out - I recall seeing a few A77IIs in a local store back when they came out too.

Also, why the huge price difference from the a77 and a99? The a68 is almost half the cost of the a77.

The A68 is a price-leader - it's an attempt to get the fairly recent technology from the A77II down in price so more people can buy into it. The A77II has a full magnesium, weather-sealed body, an additional control wheel, higher-res EVF and LCD...the A68 essentially takes the same guts - 24MP sensor, excellent focus system - and crams them into a lighter plastic body without the weather sealing, and lowers the EVF and LCD resolution - that lets them put it out at a very approachable cost.

The A99 as mentioned is a whole different type of camera - despite being long-in-the-tooth, it's still a full-frame sensor which plays to a different demographic and market. If you've been shooting with Aps-C sensor cameras this long (A200), then you probably don't have a need for full frame and can stick with newer APS-C cameras.

The primary difference between the newer Sony A-mount cameras like the A77II and A68 is that they are 'SLT' models, compared to Pentax, Nikon, and Canon that make 'DSLR' models...Sony's SLT models have a fixed, semi-transparent mirror that provides continuous focus and video focus while shooting, and continuous live view at all times. Traditional DSLRs view through an optical viewfinder - it's pure glass looking out to what you're shooting vs the electronic viewfinder view that the Sony is using - some prefer the optical viewfinder for the natural unobstructed real-time view of the world - others prefer using the electronic viewfinder as they allow you to see your exposure, white balance, and all settings before you shoot and as you shoot. Your A200 is a regular DSLR. The A68 has an electronic viewfinder and would feel more like mirrorless cameras today when shooting - seeing your exposure on a screen, and continuous live view. Whether you like that more or less will help determine which option to look at. The positive point for me getting the A68 is that I do a lot of birding and wildlife shooting - and the focusing system in the A68 is significantly more advanced and has better coverage and control than most entry level DSLRs from other brands. They all offer more advanced autofocus cameras too - but they are mid-level models and at a much higher price point. So for me to be able to continue using my nice long A-mount lenses with a mid-level focusing system on an entry-level price was just too good to pass up.

 

[DisneyBabies]

Thank you so much @havoc315 and @zackiedawg for your help.

The lenses I have are the ones that came with the a200, so I may just look for a whole new kit.

As I said, I'm not a professional photographer, but I can play around a bit and get nice pictures. I really prefer to look through the optical viewfinder rather than at a screen; my big kiddos each have a "good" point-and-shoot that just has the screen and it drives me mad trying to use them. I hadn't really studied the a99 since it was way out of my price range to begin with, but that is definitely too much camera for me. So basically, the a68 is basic version of the a77?

I leave for Disney the night of May 19th and I really want to have a new one before then, so I think I'm going to have to go with something other than the a68.

 

[zackiedawg]

I really prefer to look through the optical viewfinder rather than at a screen; my big kiddos each have a "good" point-and-shoot that just has the screen and it drives me mad trying to use them.

And just to clarify so you don't mix the two up...most P&S cameras use an LCD screen, which pretty much all cameras have, even your A200...and all DSLRs too. The Sony SLT cameras have a viewfinder - but it's electronic rather than optical - so you still put your eye up to it and peer in, but you'll see an electronic picture with all the camera settings applied, rather than a pure glass view of the actual scene without any camera settings. Some folks mix up 'EVF' with 'LCD' and think they'll have to use the SLT held out at arms length to shoot off the LCD.

So basically, the a68 is basic version of the a77?

It would be more accurate to call it a budget version of the A77II. The A77 is an older model - the A77II upgraded the focus system significantly, and the A68 uses that same upgraded focus system...and sensor, and processor. Image-quality wise and focus performance wise there should be no difference between the A77II and the A68. All of the difference comes in budgeting down the body itself to lower the entry cost - more plastic, less magnesium...cheaper EVF and LCD, one fewer control wheel, etc. It's not really 'basic' per-se, because it does use the very same sensor and highly advanced focus system...it's just a cheaper build for a lot less money.

I leave for Disney the night of May 19th and I really want to have a new one before then, so I think I'm going to have to go with something other than the a68.

You definitely will - even if it technically debuts May 19, it's not going to be in anyone's hands until the following week - unless you live next to or work for B&H in New York. So sounds like another camera would be the way to go. There's not a bad camera you can get today - so no worries there - just check out the entry Canon and Nikon cameras to see how they price - most will probably be more capable than you'll honestly even need - and don't overlook some oddball choices like Pentax, which makes some excellent cameras for very good prices - traditional DSLRs often with features not found on other entry level models (like weather-sealing, built in stabilization like Sony). Since you don't sound like a serious gearhead who will be upgrading bodies every year or in need of dozens of specialized lenses, you'll most likely be able to get everything you need from any brand mount. And even consider checking out the mirrorless system cameras, which can allow you to get a much more compact overall kit and still get the same image quality.

 

[havoc315]

As Zackie said, you can't really go wrong with any system. They each have some different pros and cons but there is no one that is far superior to another. You are basically starting from scratch, regardless.
As he explained -- the A68 and most mirrorless cameras do have viewfinders. They are actually bigger than the viewfinder on your A200, but they show an electronic image, instead of an optical image. So you are kinda looking at a screen, but it's a high definition screen that you are holding up to your eye (and thus being shielded from sun glare, etc) .
In fact, on the really good EVFs, like on the A77ii, it's easy to forget you are looking at an electronic image.

Nikon, Canon and Pentax dSLRs still use the traditional optical viewfinder. Their overall experience will be a bit more similar to your A200. Especially when utilizing auto modes. Every dSLR and mirrorless camera on the market today will feel like a significant upgrade over your A200. They will all have more advanced autofocus systems, higher resolution, better low light performance, faster burst rates, and they will all have features the A200 lacked like video, live-view, most will have wifi.

My top recommendations in a similar price range for consideration would be:
Canon t6i ($750 with lens)
Nikon D5500 ($850 with lens)
Nikon D3300 ($450 with lens, $600 with 2 lenses)
Sony A6000 ($700 with lens)