Some thoughts about my new A77

[johnstra]

David has already given us a superb review of the A77 but here are a few observations.

Why did I buy the A77? Although there are other features that I fancied the main thing was the 24 MP. This is contrary to what some others say but look at it this way. Is there anything wrong with the low light performance of the A77? Not as far as I am concerned. I rarely use anything above 1600 iso. Not so long ago the fastest usable slide film was 400 iso. I managed ok then. I usually shoot in raw and using Adobe Camera Raw I have got good results at 3200 and superb ones at 400. Now I can print at 11 x 16 inches at 360 dpi (the optimum for the Epson R2400) without upscaling - bliss. Not only that but cropping and getting good quality is much easier. The dynamic range equals or betters the competition so that is not a problem.

Now for the details. First, what about the viewfinder? I was downhearted when I read that the A77 had an EVF until I looked through one. It is not perfect but then few viewfinders are. What I would say is that if you are used to the small viewfinders of the A200 et al, you will find the big 100% A77 viewfinder is much better. If however you have an A850 or 900 you may be dissapointed but that is not a fair comparison. My A700 probably has one of the best APSC viewfinders around but I still prefer the A77 to it. It does take a bit of getting used to though. Its weaknesses are the low brightness which is noticeable in bright sunshine and the limited dynamic range which is noticeable in landscapes with bright skies. Either the shadows block up or the highlights burn out (this is in the viewfinder of course, not the file). Surprisingly you soon get used to it. Not only that but, apart from the range problem, it shows you what you will get. The stop-down button gives a much truer impression of the depth of field or the positioning of a grad filter and the viewfinder does not go dark in the process. I was amazed recently when trying my 9 stop ND that I could not only see the subject but the camera would autofocus through it as well. Then there is the focus peaking and the fact that it shows 100% of what will be recorded. With my engineers hat on I would guess that it is much easier to make a camera with an EVF and that the next generation will be so good that OVFs will become a thing of the past. Sony are paying the price for being the first just as Minolta did with many of their firsts - like autofocus. Iwill say some more in my next post.

[Dr. Harout]

Bob, push the Fn button and from the Creative Styles pick Portrait mode and lower its contrast to its maximum and then look through the viewfinder even under bright sunlight...
Then you tell me how's the EVF

[johnstra]

Thanks Dr. Harout, I will try that.