My rating reflects the camera as a whole. I bought it, use it and love it, but I'm going to take a different approach here and review one aspect of this camera: the viewfinder.
Most of the professional reviews I've found for the Sony a77 (dpreview, etc) are entirely missing the point. The electronic viewfinder alone is reason enough to consider this camera a step up from a traditional DSLR, even if the DSLR you were comparing an a77 with had identical specs. I'd say the a77's viewfinder is a pleasure to use (and it is), but even that is missing the point.
This viewfinder will change the way you use your camera. It'll change it for the better because it gives you greater control over the camera than you've ever had before.
Because the viewfinder is an OLED video screen in the eyepiece instead of being a typical piece of glass, you're seeing something entirely different. Something more useful.
An optical viewfinder shows you what the lens is seeing. An electronic viewfinder shows you what the sensor is doing. Think about that for a moment. Let's say you own a Nikon D7000 and you boost exposure compensation. Do you see any change in the viewfinder? Of course not. You'll see that change in the photo you take. That's how SLRs have always worked, even back in the days before digital. Ah, but with the electronic viewfinder in a Sony a77, when you boost exposure compensation, you'll see the image in the viewfinder become brighter, just as the shot you take will be brighter.
An even simpler example: Look through the viewfinder of a DSLR and choose an exposure point. Pick a dark spot. Nothing changes in your viewfinder, right? Pick a bright spot. Do you see any change in the viewfinder? Of course not. But, in the a77 viewfinder, you see the exposure change because the viewfinder is showing you what the camera is doing rather than only showing you what the lens is seeing.
Here's how most of us probably used our DSLRs: You pick the camera up to your eye. You look through the viewfinder to frame your shot, etc. You take the shot and then pull the camera away from your eye so you can review the shot you just took, using the LCD screen on the back of your camera "Ah, shoot. Blown highlights." You lower exposure compensation, put the camera viewfinder to your eye, frame up the shot again and take it again. Then check it again on the LCD screen on the back of the camera.
In other words, it's a game of switching from viewfinder to LCD, LCD to viewfinder, etc etc etc. Back and forth.
With the electronic viewfinder in the Sony a77, you don't have to do that anymore. You can literally see the changes you're making in the viewfinder. And, better still, you can set up your viewfinder to review the shot you just took for 2 seconds (or 5, though I find 2 to be enough). So, you take the shot and immediately see the shot you just took without moving the camera.
This electronic viewfinder is an absolute pleasure to view, and it can do some amazing things.
Want a level laid over the shot you're about to take? Put it in your viewfinder.
There's an excellent tele/crop feature in the a77 that drops the 24 megapixel sensor down to 12 and doubles the length of your lens' reach. Thus, a 50mm lens becomes a 100mm lens, and you're seeing this change perfectly in the electronic viewfinder.
There's also an option to check your focus. Click a button and the viewfinder will show you a super-zoomed in view so you can check the precision of your focus. There is absolutely no way this sort of thing can be done with an optical viewfinder.
I've seen so many reviews talking about the weaknesses of electronic viewfinders in comparison to optical viewfinders, but they fail to mention the weaknesses of optical viewfinders. Now that I've made the switch to an EVF, I'd really hate to have to switch back. After using the viewfinder in this Sony a77 for a day or two, you'll realize just how limiting an old fashioned optical viewfinder really is.
Specs only tell you what a camera is capable of, but as we all know, photography isn't about the camera. It's about the photographer and the photo taken. The viewfinder in this camera will give you, as a photographer, more control over your camera than you've ever known. The buttons and dials give you control over the camera, but the EVF literally puts you inside the camera. It's an awesome experience. I suspect that, ten years from now, most DSLRs will be this way too (they'll be SLTs instead of SLRs, in other words).
I've only owned my a77 for a week, but I love it. The first time I took it out shooting, I was nervous. $1400 is a heck of a lot of money for me, so I worried I might have made a huge mistake buying this thing... but as I used my new a77 that day, I just kept saying "Wow."
Obviously, this is a great camera, but the real story is the viewfinder. All I can say is wow. I certainly wouldn't want to go back to an optical viewfinder after using this thing. No way.
The Camera Fairy blessed my porch last Friday and handed me an Amazon box which upon opening, disgorged a familiar black and orange Alpha box with my A77 body inside, safely cushioned in bubble-wrap. In addition to the charger, manuals and ads, software CD, neck strap and USB cable, there was an empty space (sadly) for the kit lens. Since I already own a very nice Minolta 28-75 f/2.8 standard zoom, I passed on ordering the A77 with the new 16-50 f/2.8 SSM "kit" lens. I put quotes around "kit" because the new 16-50 is anything but a standard starter lens. It has a constant f/2.8 maximum aperture, solid build and is weather-sealed to match the A77. Though not designated as a "G" or "CZ" lens, in tests it approaches the performance of Sony's excellent 24-70 f/2.8 Zeiss and is actually designed to fill the same effective focal length range on the APS-C cameras that the 24-70 does on full-frame. I planned on replacing my Minolta lens with the Zeiss next year but this new "kit" entry seems to be a serious alternative and since it is designed for the smaller APS-C sensor, manufacturing cost savings make it a heck of a bargain at half the price.
Look and Feel
If you have never handled a pro or semi-pro camera body, the tactile difference between a polycarbonate and magnesium alloy shell is immediately noticeable. Even though the body only weighs a little over 1½ lbs (without lens), it feels solid. It has a rubber grip that extends around the back on the right to cover the thumb rest area. The grip itself is deep and fits my medium-wide hands comfortably with a secure feel when holding it one-handed. The body is a little taller than the A700 but more rounded with a matte finish that gives it a no-nonsense appearance. I wouldn't base a camera purchase on how pretty it was, but I appreciate the look of a well-made tool whether it is a Kitchen-Ad mixer, a drill press or a tripod. The A77 is a well-made tool and that makes it pretty to me!
It's What's Outside That Counts
The control layout is a bit different than the A700 but the main controls are similar enough that I was comfortable with it after only a few minutes of fiddling with them. Sony's Quick-Navi menu system from the A700 is gone but the replacement is not a step backward. All of the main functions except stabilization on/off can be accessed either with a dedicated button or on the LCD with a press of the function button. the The stabilization on/off being relegated to the menu instead of having a dedicated button was surprising at first, but after thinking it over, I decided that I really never switched it off unless it was for one of the rare times I was using a tripod (or by accident) and all too often I forgot to turn It back on. Having it on by default and being able to set the menu to come on in the same position that you left it is a workable alternative to having a dedicated switch. One addition is the movie button. Yes, movie. The A77 is the first DSLR I've owned that can do movies and in addition to a full movie mode on the mode dial, there is a record-it-now movie button that lets you start a recording of that unexpected UFO encounter with your default settings at a moment's notice. Now I just have to remember that my DSLR takes movies!
The LCD screen is the same size as the one on the A700 and has the same extremely high resolution but with improved brightness and contrast making it easier to see in bright light. Unlike the A700 the A77's LCD is articulated. Very articulated! The mechanism is very sturdy and can be tilted or swiveled into almost any forward, rearward or sideward position. It even allows you to flip the screen inward in the collapsed position for protection.
The top of the body includes the aforementioned dedicated function buttons plus a monochrome LCD with it own dedicated backlight button that displays the basic camera settings at a glance. The selection on the mode dial is a little different from the ones on the A700. The multiple scene modes are replaced with a single scene mode position and the various modes are now chosen on the rear screen using the joystick control. The additional scene modes have been replaced with settings for Movie mode, 12 fps shooting mode, Sweep Panorama and 3D Sweep Panorama.
The pop-up flash has a new mechanism that slides the flash forward and up to reduce the chance of the lens/shade blocking it. There is also a button to pop the flash up rather than the manual flip-up on earlier 7-series models. On top of the flash is another new thing for me...there's a microphone on my camera! Maybe I'll have to try this movie thing after all. The autofocus mode switch near the lens hasn't changed but the depth-of-field preview can now be programmed to show either depth of field or a preview of scene settings.
Inside counts too
The first "inside" part that I checked out was the viewfinder. After reading all of the doomsaying from the fear, uncertainty and doubt threads on the forums followed by nearly unanimous praise from people who had actually used the camera, I had to see for myself. I have had cameras with EVFs that were considered good. My Minolta D7i was hopelessly outclassed by the full VGA EVF on my Minolta A2 (yes, full VGA on a digicam bridge camera back in 2004!) and I was impressed by the A55 that I tried at a local store. About the new OLED viewfinder on the A77, all I can say is....wow! I imagine if you had 20-10 vision and were college-trained to pick flyspecks out of ground pepper, you might be able to see pixels in the image. I certainly can't. It's like looking at a good 17" XVGA monitor from about 2'-3' away. The image is sharp and contrasty with nicely saturated color. The only clear reminder that it is an electronic image is in areas of very bright highlights or deep shadows where the dynamic range of the display cuts off before you eye would through an OVF. If you pan quickly, there is a faint fuzzing of vertical edges, but no serious degradation and no color tearing at all. Following a moving object is no more difficult than it was with my A700. As light gets lower the image grains up and gives you video noise sparkle which worsens as available light decreases. but still lets you see to compose down past where it would be practical or even possible with an OVF. Those are the basics. The initial plusses and minuses, so to speak. Now for the cool stuff! The list of add-ons in the menu includes options for showing all info (OCD mode), no info (just basic shooting info at the top and bottom), graphic mode (like the NEX LCD info display), Histogram overlay and electronic level. On top of any of these you can add a grid with a choice of a 4x6 square grid, rule of thirds or diagonal lines. The real value is something I missed when I went from my Minolta A2 to the 7D DSLR, namely that the viewfinder can be set to display exactly what the sensor is set to capture. This is really helpful when you are working in mixed light or mixed shade where auto white balance will often fail. Too blue? You see it. A little green from fluorescents? You see it. You can tweak settings until it is corrected and check the results in real-time. Another plus is that you can review the image for critical focus or exposure directly in the viewfinder in the brightest light and see it perfectly. Speaking of critical focus... Most of the better DSLRs can magnify the live-view image for critical focus, but in the field it is often difficult to see clearly. Being able to look through the viewfinder and see a magnified image centered on any point in the frame is a real winner. Another great tool is focus peaking. This is a tool used in videography to highlight the parts of the frame that have the highest contrast (sharpest focus) so the cameraman can quickly determine where the focal point is while filming. What it does is create a colored halo (choice of red, yellow or white) on the edges of objects in the in-focus area that is very easy to see even if you are looking at a washed out LCD with the camera at an angle that makes using the viewfinder difficult or impossible. My bottom line? The A77 EVF exceeded my expectations. It offers a razor-sharp image that displays a larger, brighter view than any APS-C camera (the A700 is one of the best) and nearly as good as the full frame cameras. It also has some technological tricks up its sleeve that are more than marketing gimmicks and offer real functional value.
Deeper Inside
Really deep inside is a somewhat controversial Exmor sensor. It is 24MP which is far and away the highest pixel count of any APS-C camera on the market today. Why controversial? If you have been following the build-up to the release of the A77 and the initial reviews, you have surely seen endless threads on whether Sony should have put so many pixels on an APS-C sensor or spent their efforts on making a lower pixel-count sensor with stellar high-ISO performance. There are also thousands of images with accompanying text declaring its image quality is anywhere from better than medium-format to worse than a cheap compact. In truth, it is neither. Rather it is an advancement in sensor technology that trades some high-ISO performance for some pretty remarkable low-ISO resolution. It also makes a couple of steps ahead in color accuracy and dynamic range.
I am not one to snap a photo and peer endlessly at each pixel blown up to 100% on my monitor, searching for something to b1tch about. I prefer to look at the images as I expect to display them and determine if they will look good. So far, the A77 looks good. Real good.
Tools to Get Those Images
In the past, having "special" modes on a DSLR other than P-A-S-M (Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority and Manual) was pooh-poohed as a sure indicator of an entry-level camera that catered to photographers without a clear understanding of basic settings. Though this sounds a little snotty, it was generally true with helper modes like "Sunsets", "Sports" and "Landscapes" to preset the beginner's camera for best-bet shutter and aperture combinations for those subjects. I always thought that some of the more advanced cameras might benefit from some presets that would quickly get you near the optimal settings or add functionality that would be hard to set up manually. As I mentioned earlier, the A700 had a selection "special" settings on the mode dial for just that purpose and after checking them out when I got it, I never actually used any of them. That may change with the A77. While diving into the scene mode menu on the A77, it earned guaranteed return visits when it revealed a hidden gem in the Hand-Held Twilight mode. This first appeared on the higher end Sony compacts and is quite a useful feature. It fires off a series of shots in rapid succession then matches and stacks them to reduce noise and enhance detail in low-light situations. Image stacking has been available in Photoshop and other dedicated programs for years, but having it done for you in-camera is pretty cool. Some of the other features that have migrated from the compacts to the NEX and now to the DSLRs are Auto HDR and Sweep Panorama. The Auto HDR is similar to the Auto Bracket feature found on many DSLRs to trigger a series of exposures with ascending values to be used to create an HDR (High Dynamic Range) image. Auto HDR goes one step farther by actually combining and processing the images in the camera. Maybe not as "pro" as sitting in front of a computer and processing/tweaking the files in expensive software for an hour to get a natural-looking dynamic range enhancement, but Easy and Good trumps Hard and A Tiny Bit Better any day. If you want to do more than natural and create HDR art, the auto-bracketing covers up to a 6 EV span and there is always manual. The list goes on...
Shooting
Quite simply...I like it!
It is solid, well-balanced, easy to grip and has a control set that grows familiar very quickly. I originally chose the A700 for its control ergonomics and the A77 may end up being a bit better! There's the huge, bright viewfinder and an acrobatic LCD that makes low, high and odd angle shots easier than ever before.
The fastest autofocus I have ever had the pleasure to use and it is accurate too. If one of my lenses backor front-focuses, there is a menu to compensate with micro adjustments that registers and saves the adjustments for up to 30 lenses. Technological assist for critical manual focusing is very useful.
Fully metered, focus tracking continuous shooting at up to 8 fps is probably more than I will ever need and if it isn't, the more restricted 12 fps mode should cover it.
Image quality is pretty amazing. I haven't tried out the RAW files yet but the JPEGs are quite good. If they improve the JPEG engine with firmware like they did with the A700, I may never use RAW.
And then there is the movie mode...up to 28mbs 1080p60 recording with full-time autofocus or manual focus assisted with peaking...
The features and combination of features fills a 240 page manual and rather than plod through them here ad nauseum, I'm going to go enjoy the rush of photographic inspiration that always comes with a shiny new tool!
Down The Rabbit Hole...?
Is the SLT design with a high-quality electronic viewfinder the wave of the future? Maybe, maybe not. There is personal preference and user inertia involved as with any major change. Remember, it wasn't until digital capture surpassed the film in working quality the it was widely accepted by working photographers and it took years after that to pry film out of some of those cold, dead cameras. The usability of the A77 viewfinder certainly has captured my interest and the interest of a lot of people that would have (and did) scoff at the idea.
Is 24MP too much for APS-C? Some would say yes and I might have been one of them. Certainly the high-ISO performance would have been improved with fewer and larger pixels but for print sizes up to 12x18, the ISO 6400 images are pretty darn good and that places it at least two stops better than the A700 even with double the pixels. At ISO 100 to 400 in good light (which covers portraits and most landscapes) the level of detail is truly amazing and rivals the current crop of full-frame cameras. If you add the improved dynamic range and better color fidelity I might still say that 24MP is too much, but with a lot less conviction than before.
I hope this answered a few questions, I will add more images and perhaps some comments as I get more familiar with my new friend.
Happy shooting!
Buy Sony A77 24.3 MP Translucent Mirror Digital SLR With 16-50mm F2.8 lens Now
UPDATE 12-11-11
Last week we put our 2 SONY SLT-A77s through the ultimate test.
We were the official photographers on the Rock Legends Cruise and shot over 9,000 excellent photos over 3 days. I had to only reboot my A77 3 times but my wife did not have to reboot hers at all.
We shot about 65% of the concert photos with no flash in low natural stage light and got amazing results with very little ISO noise problems.
We also shot our 1st and 2nd rock videos with the A77 and were amazed at the results. I was set up about 15 feet from the main PA system right stack and the sound was not blown out even though I only used the on-board microphone. The stereo sound is crystal clear and other than some faint wind that was picked up the audio was perfect!
We've received hundreds of compliments on our concert photos and many are from Canon and Nikon users :D They have already been published on several online rock magazines and there are a lot more to come :D
ORIGINAL POST:
We were going to preorder one of these SONY A77s here on Amazon but my wife and I don't have enough patience ... plus we didn't want to risk the initial shipment from Sony being sold out before it arrives in the US... so we ordered 1 from a Hong Kong E seller Sunday night and received it this morning (Wednesday). (only $1329 delivered!)Wooohooo!
It's quite a bit bigger (than our A55s) but it's not too big for my wife's normal sized female hands. It's a lot heavier (than our A55s) but not too heavy for her to use(she's our top WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER). She's been shooting 5 straight hours with it now with 3 different lenses.
The new SONY A77 looks absolutely awesome! Sony has put all the buttons for everything nicely placed right on the body. There is very little need to go to the menu. The manual seems very comprehensive and since we already had 3 A55s it was very easy for us to breeze through and just highlight the new stuff.
As far as photo quality if you are upgrading from an A55 we didn't expect too much more than the size/definition you gain with a 50% increase in MPs. We were wrong, the photos are phenomenal! If you are upgrading from another camera brand you will be stunned! My recommendation to all you Nikon, Canon, Pentax, Olympus, and Fuji users... If you are thinking about upgrading your outfit, DO IT! Sell everything you have and grab one of these revolutionary new cameras and some legendary MINOLTA LENSES, or the SONY 16-50, "G" Lenses, or Carl Zeiss lenses. You will be opening up a whole new world of photography excellence!
The 1st 25 quick photos we shot with an APO Minny 100-300 look excellent on our 42" TV!
Update 10-14-11
We have now shot almost 5,000 great photos including 2 weddings. The 2nd wedding we shot was outdoors on a dreary, gray, rainy day and the photos came out fantastic. As a matter of fact they were so good that we sold our last 2 SONY A55s and ordered another SONY A77 with the 16-50 2.8 LENS which will arrive Wednesday-Thursday next week.
We shot the 1st 5,000 shots with version 1.02 and experienced none of the issues that others have seen. We updated to version 1.03 yesterday, but since we had no issues we really don't have a comparison.
Update 10-24-11
We now are the proud owners of 2 of these beauties plus the new SONY 16-50 2.8 lens. The camera and lens go together like peanut butter and jelly! They are so fast together that the finished photo has appeared on the screen before the subject has finished saying "cheese"!
We have shot our 3rd wedding, our 1st with good lighting. The photos that we took were nothing less than stunning. We are off today to shoot our 2nd engagement session and we are both like kids on Christmas Eve with every new opportunity to shoot. This camera grows on you every day and even though we have had the 1st one almost a month it is still exciting to use.
UPDATE 10-31-11
We have now taken over 6,000 excellent photos with our 2 SONY SLT-A77s. So far zero problems with either camera. We went out yesterday and shot with a handful of MINOLTA lenses and they all performed wonderfully on the A77s! We also now had the opportunity to shoot a few hundred shots with some of the new in-camera special effects. The color extraction is amazing, and you'll really like the pop and vivid as well!
If you google our company name you will find our site with hands on reviews and photo samples under the SONY|MINOLTA tab of both the camera and lens.
Read Best Reviews of Sony A77 24.3 MP Translucent Mirror Digital SLR With 16-50mm F2.8 lens Here
What a stunning camera this A77 is.
Forget the dated Canons and Nikons(good though many are); tomorrow is here right now! Of course, if you are already bogged down with another manufacturer's lenses and kit, you'll almost certainly disagree.......we understand and sympathise!
Let us look at a few facts and leave nefarious comment to the bitter and twisted.
1. This camera does not have a big flappy mirror assembly....thank you,God...even my digital Hasselblad cannot negate the appalling vibrations from its mirror (and there is actually a dedicated program in the software to delay shutter activation by 50, 100, 200 ms...or whatever to cover the failing up). Yuk.
2. The A77 does have a super electronic viewfinder that even when wearing complex prescription specs,copes superbly.And you actually see what you are taking ALL the time. I have been using this sort of viewfinder for over ten years and always have preferred it to my Hasselblad....and optical viewfinders don't come much better than Hasselblad's.
3.The frame rate at 12fps is magical.....no one else comes near.
4. The image stabilisation is in the body...thank you again God...so even the G lenses are good value. The standard range is almost cheap!
5. As STANDARD the camera does 12fps, sweep panorama, video, HD,and 3D and GPS. No fuss, it's all there.
6. The artificial horizon feature,,,,as well as yaw sensing...is absolutely great. Who needs spirit levels now?
7. There is a HUGE, yes HUGE, supply of Minolta lenses stacked up on eBay and elsewhere, that make experimenting with this camera a real joy.....instead of seeking a mortgage everytime you decide to try a new lens combination!
8. AND....AND, this thing has over 24 Mpixels of sheer resolution.....cropping has never been such fun!
9. The body is a metal casting and is sealed against a goodly level of water intrusion.....tough as old boots, if my 10 year old predecessor is anything to go by.
10. It costs far less then you might think too. Buy the body and try some of the 'giveaway' used lenses before you commit to your final choice.Do try the 18-250mm superzoom.
All in all, an exciting major step forward.
Go and enjoy it!
Want Sony A77 24.3 MP Translucent Mirror Digital SLR With 16-50mm F2.8 lens Discount?
All I can say is wow....
The resolution with the 16-50 f2.8 is outstanding. The EVF is a joy to use, the camera handles very well and is easy to use. I love the fact that what you see with the EVF is what you get on the photo.
So far, of the couple of thousand shots its performance is great... Love the focus peaking (shows you what is in focus with a hi-light color) its great for tweaking the focus.
I have not used the focus tracking for sports yet, but my tests (with a dog) show that it seems to work pretty well I will leave others better qualified to answer that usage.
Pros:
Resolution !!!
Nice interface (most of the options are really close to hand and because of the EVF you don't even have to take your eye away from the viewfinder.
That EVF !!
Focus peeking and zoom functions allow you to nail the focus.
Cons:
Its not quite as good at handling noise at very high ISO (aka VERY low light) as say the Nikon D7000.
The focus square confirmation can be a bit hard to see sometimes.. It really should be configurable.
All in all = I highly recommend this camera. This is coming from a canon SLR->DSLR user for 25 something years..
I will try to add a couple of images taken with this camera to the page.
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Some months ago I purchased an "HDMI 3 to 1 Switch" from Amazon that has an all but identical design to this one. That one has worked wonderfully, and my attempt to buy a second one led directly to this one. However, the two are not the same. This one, with the red HDMI lettering is slightly bigger than the other and, more importantly, didn't work.
