On the subject of cameras, digital SLRs are a breed all their very own. Many DSLR owners don’t upgrade their bodies often — if in any respect — or even fewer would consider a switch to a competing camera system, especially after investing in a handful of high-end lenses. Manufacturers must push innovation even further to focus on this segment of the market — when some cameras cost thousands of bucks and already offer excellent performance, simply releasing a body with more megapixels and HD shooting options won’t prompt photographers to drag out their bank cards. With its excellent 24.3 megapixel sensor and high-res OLED electronic viewfinder, however, Sony’s $1,399 Alpha A77 may be the DSLR upgrade you have been looking ahead to. We spent several days with a pre-production A77 paired with Sony’s modern 16-50mm f/2.8 lens ($1,999 in an A77 kit), and were very impressed with what’s going to undoubtedly be a worthy successor to the well-received A700. Jump past the break for our initial impressions, at the side of tons of still photo and HD video samples.
At the beginning glance, the A77 appears like every other DSLR. There don’t appear like any special dials, unique design features, or other markings which can reveal the beast within — besides the A77 logo to the left of the lens mount. Your perception will change after picking it up, however. The magnesium alloy camera is surprisingly light (inspite of Sony’s new 16-50mm f/2.8 lens), though still solid-feeling and quite durable. Its dual displays — one tilt- and swivel-enabled 3-inch LCD, and that gorgeous XGA-resolution OLED EVF — are unassuming initially, but their power and performance become immediately apparent after you turn the facility dial. We like the 24.3 megapixel sensor, however the camera’s OLED viewfinder is the star of the show.
Not just is the EVF bright and colourful, but its 1024 x 768-pixel resolution means images will appear incredibly sharp, with lots of room left over to display complex settings. While it won’t provide as natural of a glance, the tiny eye-level display is otherwise on-par with some optical viewfinders, with the additional benefit of adjustable brightness and a heads-up display-like settings readout. The key LCD is adequate besides. We found ourselves splitting our time fairly evenly between both displays — specializing in the EVF in bright sunlight, however the principle display was still visible, and using the key display after we had to shoot at unusual angles, or to capture images without alerting our subjects (the near-silent shutter helps on that front to boot). Full articulation provides easy viewing from above, below, to the side — even from in front of the lens, letting you shoot self-portraits with a DSLR — while the horizon indicator (also present with the EVF) helps you be sure that you’re holding the camera level. There’s also a dedicated LCD data display, located at the top right of the body.
While having a great display is essential to the whole user experience, image quality is way more critical — inspite of the world’s strongest EVF, the A77 will be a dud with no top-notch sensor. The camera’s images are one of several gold standard we have seen, however. As expected, photos shot in ideal lighting conditions were superb. On the gold standard JPEG setting, images zoomed to 100% look tremendous — details don’t appear as sharp as when zoomed out, but we’d haven’t any qualms with cropping a picture significantly for web use. Elements are noticeably sharper on the center of the picture, and have a tendency to degrade gradually (though not significantly) as you progress toward the sting of the frame. Images shot side-by-side at f/10 with a Canon 5D Mark II are noticeably sharper with the Canon when viewed at 100% (see our gallery for an example), however the 5D is a far pricier DSLR with a coveted full-frame sensor — the Alpha offers excellent performance for an APS-C.
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2 The A77 also offers a wide range of video shooting modes, including 1080 / 60p AVCHD. We spent more time shooting video at 1080i in MPEG4 format, however, as a way to conserve space for storing and bring samples for the internet. Video appeared sharp and smooth, due to the optical image stabilization. In continuous focus mode, the camera adjusted seamlessly and almost instantaneously when panning from incredibly close subjects to these within the distance, as you will see within the first sample below.
During our test period, we were capable of capture 858 photos and greater than half-hour of HD video on a single charge, despite spending a vital period of time flipping through camera settings, reviewing images and videos with friends, and shooting with the built-in flash. The A77 uses a regular NP-FM500H InfoLithium 1650 mAh battery, so backups and replacements can be easy to locate. The camera also incorporates a combination SDHC / Memory Stick slot at the right side — there is no CompactFlash compatibility.
We only had an opportunity to scratch the skin of Sony’s very capable flagship DSLR, and are watching for spending more time with the A77, testing out its 12 fps full-resolution continuous shooting, object-tracking autofocus, GPS tagging, automatic distortion correction, and 3D still and video modes. From our initial impressions, we were very impressed — the camera offers good performance in all situations, and that top-res OLED EVF is a smart addition. We’re also longing for testing Sony’s NEX-7, which features the identical 24.3 megapixel sensor, 1080p video capture, and OLED viewfinder — with an only slightly more cost-effective price ticket.
α77 and α65 Models Expand Translucent Mirror Technology Line; Deliver 24.3 megapixels with as much as 12- and 10- fps AF-enabled continuous shooting
SAN DIEGO, Aug. 24, 2011 – Blazing speed, enhanced image quality, high resolution and incredible performance are only most of the features advanced amateurs and photo enthusiasts will find in Sony’s newest alpha cameras, models SLT-A77 (α77) and SLT-A65 (α65).
Sony’s latest refinements to its Translucent Mirror Technology make these new cameras the fastest, most responsive interchangeable lens cameras of their class, in addition to set new performance benchmarks that even professional DSLRs haven’t begun to gain. The α77 and α65 both feature a newly developed Exmor™ APS HD CMOS sensor with 24.3 effective megapixel resolution, in addition to the world’s first XGA OLED Tru-Finder™ viewfinder.
The sensor teams with the following generation of Sony’s BIONZ® image processing engine to address huge amounts of high speed data from the camera sensor, enabling unprecedented response times and flawless image quality with ultra-low noise when shooting still images or Full HD video.
“We feel that these cameras aren’t just a significant evolution of our breakthrough Translucent Mirror Technology,” said Mike Kahn, director of the alpha camera business group for Sony Electronics. “They’re also a revolution when it comes to redefining how this unique technology could be put to make use of by enthusiasts.”
The much anticipated successor to Sony’s acclaimed α700 DSLR, the α77 boasts the world’s fastest continuous autofocus (AF) shooting performance (among DSLRs in Aug 2011), capturing a burst of full resolution, 24 megapixel images at 12 frames per second with full-time phase-detection AF. The α65 achieves a similarly impressive 10fps shooting speed.
Precision AF tracking of moving subjects is more precise with the α77 as a result of a brand new 19-point autofocus system with 11 cross sensors. The α65 boasts 15-point AF with three cross sensors. Tracking Focus maintains accurate focus lock on a moving subject – even supposing the objective is momentarily obscured. Additionally, a brand new electronic front shutter curtain achieves a minimum release time lag of roughly 50 milliseconds, corresponding to a lot more expensive professional-class DSLRs.
The α77 and α65 further refine Sony’s acclaimed Fast Continuous AF Full HD Movie shooting, already featured on previous Sony Translucent Mirror cameras. Phase Detection maintains accurate focus during video shooting of portrait subjects, even if they’re moving at fast speeds.
Unprecedented image quality and artistic options
A broad sensitivity range of ISO 100-16000 expands (α77 only) all the way down to ISO 50. On the highest sensitivities, both cameras can freeze fast action or capture atmospheric low-noise shots without flash. Low ISO settings are ideal when used with a protracted exposure to create expressive shots, akin to splashing water.
Both cameras showcase a remarkably crisp OLED Tru-Finder™ viewfinder, the world’s first of its kind. With a 2359k dot (XGA) resolution, this precision electronic viewfinder offers a bright, highly detailed, high contrast image with 100 pc frame coverage and a large field of view akin to the main advanced class optical viewfinders.
However, unlike optical viewfinders, users have expansive customization capabilities during the XGA OLED Tru-Finder™ viewfinder and will preview the results of fixing exposure, white balance and other settings in real-time. Photographers may additionally make fine focus adjustments via a zoomed-in part of the picture.
The Smart Teleconverter displays an enlarged central part of the picture sensor, allowing compositions to be displayed clearly at the OLED viewfinder and captured as 12 megapixel images with a digital zoom factor of one.4x or 2x.
In another first for DSLR cameras, both new models can capture Full HD video at 60p (progressive) frame rates – incorporating the recently introduced AVCHD™ Progressive (Ver. 2.0) format. Also, 24p shooting is on the market for capturing beautiful cinematic video footage. Manual focusing and P/A/S/M exposure modes, familiar to creative filmmakers, can also provide enhanced control during video shooting.
Shooters can compose and review stills and video at the adjustable-angle three-inch Xtra Fine LCD™ display that gives high resolution (921k dot) and TruBlack™ technology for superb detail and contrast. As yet another refinement, the α77 introduces the world’s first three-way adjustable screen that tilts and pivots freely for effortless framing at any angle (α65: two-way adjust LCD).
Revised ergonomics on both cameras include a comfortably contoured new grip design and tactile new button layout for ‘eyes off’ operation while viewing via the high-resolution XGA OLED Tru-Finder™ viewfinder.
The α77 adds front and rear control dials for intuitive fingertip operation and a separate top-mounted LCD data display. The durable body features magnesium alloy panels for strength and lightness. Key controls are sealed against the consequences of dust and moisture, complementing similar levels of protection offered by the hot SAL1650 lens, VG-C77AM Vertical Grip for α77 and HVL-F43AM flash unit.
a brand new shutter unit at the α77 is tested as much as 150,000 cycles and supports an ultra-fast minimum 1/8000 sec shutter speed (1/250 sec flash sync). On-board GPS allows automatic geo-tagging of photos and videos with location data.
New DT 16-50mm F2.8 SSM zoom lens and accessories
The growing range of compatible A-mount lenses for both cameras now includes the quiet, bright DT 16-50mm F2.8 SSM standard zoom with 16mm wide angle coverage that’s ideal for both portrait and everyday shooting.
The high-performance lens includes a dust- and moisture-resistant design, and provides a zoom range of roughly 3x range at constant wide F2.8 aperture. Optical performance is assured by aspherical glass and 3 ED (Extra Low Dispersion) lens elements to reduce aberration in any respect focal lengths. An internal Super Sonic wave Motor (SSM) drive enables fast, quiet autofocus.
An optional dust- and moisture-resistant VG-C77AM Vertical Grip for α77 assures comfortable handling in vertical shooting positions. It might house as much as two NP-FM500H InfoLITHIUM® batteries, doubling shooting stamina as much as approximately 1060 shots (via LCD monitor)/940 shots (via Tru-Finder™ viewfinder) when using Memory Stick PRO Duo™ media. Other new A-mount system accessories include a back pack (LCS-BP2), soft carrying cases (LCS-SC21 and LCS-SC8), LCD protectors and eyepiece cups.
Pricing and Availability
The recent α77 Translucent Mirror interchangeable lens camera could be available in a kit with the hot SAL1650 f2.8 lens for approximately $2000, and offered as body-just for about $1400. The SAL1650 lens may also be sold separately for roughly $700.
The recent VG-C77AM vertical grip, designed for the α77 camera, might be available in October for roughly $300.
The brand new α65 Translucent Mirror interchangeable lens camera shall be available in a kit with a typical 18-55mm lens (SAL1855) for roughly $1000, and offered as body-just for about $900.
Both the α77 and α65 cameras kits and the recent SAL1650 lens can be available this October at Sony retail stores (www.store.sony.com) in addition to other authorized retailers during the Sony dealer network.
For “sneak peak” videos of the hot products, please visit www.sony.com/cameravideos.
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