Photoclubalpha

Yesterday I was out at Giza to see the awesome pyramids and the Sphinx. Later in the day I went to Saqqara to see the first pyramid and oldest stone monument in the world, the step pyramid. One thing that surprised me is that I saw more Sony Alpha DSLRs than Canons, Nikons, etc. I would say I probably saw about a dozen. I didn't get a good look at any of them, but none were an A900 or A850. They appeared to all be A200/A300/A350 models although one might have been an A700.

Glad to hear that, Henry, and really hope you're having a nice time there insha'Allah.
I think this thread should be moved to the section "Alpha spotting".
Oh, and beware from the cold nights there, it gets in your bones.

"Giza"

Man, I thought you where in Japan

Can't wait to see your photos

I was camera spotting at a function a couple of weeks ago. Luckily (cynically?) Nikon and Canon have taken to putting the camera model number on their straps, so you can see the D300s and 5DmkIIs with minimal effort. I didn't see any Sonys but I see them pretty often. Always women or non-gearhead types. On the few occasions I've spoken to the Nikon and Canon bods they usually completely dismiss Sony/A mount. It really isn't taken seriously by Nikon and Canon users. I once owned a Canon A1 and a Nikon FM and a Nikonos V. The wind on lever used to stick in my eye on the Nikon and the Canon was very fiddly, although well balanced. I had no trouble moving onto Pentax and Minolta. I nearly bought a secondhand Nikon F5 a few years back but luckily the madness passed. Things might change if Sony carry on the way their going with their latest cameras - ie pinch bits of styling from other makes, such as the rotating shutter collar lock. Sony have always had nervous copycat styling on their products. Their laptops religiously copy Apple for example. I can see them throwing away all of the Minolta styling over time - in fact I'll be amazed if they don't.

Unwise to dump all of the Minolta styling. Don't expect carbon copies, but Sony have tended to have a history of simplification, and not always for the better.

My Km5d has better thought out controls than the A200, though not perfect, I get fast access to WB, which I don't on the A200, I can set flash exp comp faster, as the Km has a memory on the Fn menu..A200 forces you into the main menu. Change for the sake of it, is not to be encouraged. Same with dumping the dual dials, and drive mode switch under the main exposure dial, steps backwards, not forward. Nothing is more uncomfortable than a company copying other inferior designs, yet failing to come up with their own ideas.

The card eject button is better on the KM cameras and the A100 - wider and knurled. Sony made it tiny and awkward to press for no apparent reason.

I'm really afraid of their design - they're much more Microsoft than Apple. Off the top of my head the only really nice piece of Sony design I can think of is the PS3 - which is beautiful, but the previous two weren't.

I think the repositioning of the front dial on the a5XX is here to stay (along with the new on/off switch) and will be on all future Alpha cameras. The a850 will be the last camera with the Minolta style grip and dial assembly.