Sony A100 - shortcomings

While of course glad that the camera is in the birthing process and that
it is somewhat up to date in sensor pixel count, I can't help but see
what's missing from it: (Please correct any errors I may have made).
Lacks:
-Dedicated shutter speed and aperture wheels (only
has one wheel)
-Dedicated exposure compensation and flash compensation wheels
-Exp comp is still limited to two stops
-no dedicated meter control switch
-no dedicated ISO control button
-no dedicated WB/Kelvin switch
-no dedicated shutter button mode switch
-reduction in AF modes (or buried the modes in menus)
(I'm mainly a MF shooter, but ...)
-Flash sync terminal
-Flash sync is limited to 1/160 s (1/120 with A/S activated)
-Shutter delay not spec'd, but probably as slow as the 7D/5D
(Note, on Maxxum 7/9, shutter dealy is on the order of 50-60ms,
whereas on the 7D it is an abysmal 150 - 200 ms making
sports and action shooting esp. difficult).
-fastest ISO is 1600 (no really big deal)
-Some will note the lack of a really fast frame rate, but
this, to me, would only matter to a very few shooters.
-Composition Priority (TM)
KUDOS: (in no particular order)
-flash mount (Minolta)
-Dust "shaker" a la Olympus (not sure if it is the same
technology or something different.
-Compact Flash as primary (not Memory stick)
-Menus are basically the Minolta menus which are reasonably
well designed.
-DOF preview
-VF Diopter control
-40 segment spot meter. (14 was "fine enough", will
40 be better?)
-2.5" 230,000 pixel display (similar to the 7D 207k-pix)
-Carl Zeiss lens designs to follow.
85mm and 135mm sound delicious; 16-80 sounds suspicious.
(probably fab'ed by Sony on CZ design)
Uncertainties: I've seen one claim it's "plastic" and one claim it's
plastic over a metal body frame.
The lack of external controls reveals my worst nightmare: they've buried
everything in menus. What made cameras like the Maxxum 9 and 7 great
has been totally erased from the A100. I hope this is due to the use of
the Maxxum 5 "template" they appear to have settled on and that it is
not indicative of their future bodies.
In summary it appears to me that the camera is engineered for a price
point aimed at amateurs meant to increase sales volume and margins. IOW
a pure business decision approach rather than a photography approach
(which is what they're trying to push on the alpha website).
Cheers,
Alan.
--
-- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm
-- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm
-- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin
-- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch.
--
-- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm
-- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm
-- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin
-- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch.

Alan Browne

Re: Sony A100 - shortcomings

I've been preaching the same line for ever since DSLR's came on the
market. Maxxum 9 + sensor = Fantastic digital camera.
I agree with the IR focus assist (I missed that in my rant), OTOH, I
don't use AF very much, so not that big of a deal.
I wrote a letter to Sony, no reply on this issue in March:
http://www.aliasimages.com/SonyReadThis.htm The Canadian Sony support
people claimed they passed on the note to Japan ... we can only hope
that it's read there and hope even harder that they catch the fever...
I too bought a Sony-Ericson phone hoping it would be better than the
Eriksom disaster I bought in 2000 ... real crap ... back to Nokia every
time.
I'm encouraged in the sense that it's at least a 10 Mpix camera, so
keeping up with the Jonses in that sense. Now just need a _camera_ not
a glorified P&S.
Cheers,
Alan
--
-- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm
-- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm
-- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin
-- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch.


Alan Browne

Re: Sony A100 - shortcomings

Makes sense to me. Why go after a true professional market dominated by
Canon and Nikon, and somewhat low volume at that. Enthusiasts want the
feeling of a professional product, but not true professional functions,
nor true professional price points. That does not mean some professional
would not use a Sony D-SLR, but I don't see many dumping Canon or Nikon
to do so.
Digital cameras are consumer electronics, with short product cycles,
lifespan not much past the warranty, and largely sold on "features" and
marketing speak. Sony could make a good profit at this, where Minolta
and then KonicaMinolta largely "failed" in this market. Target consumer
enthusiasts, update the products often, and hit a reasonable price range.
Take a look at a printed brochure for the Canon 1Ds Mark II, or the
Nikon D2X. Both barely use marketing speak, but do list information a
professional might actually find useful. When someone is paying as much
as these cameras cost, there is not much point in glorifying anything.
These two cameras sell on capability and potential for profits, and like
a Ferrari or Bentley, you won't find that many ads for them as for
lesser gear.
Ciao!
Gordon Moat
A G Studio
<http://www.allgstudio.com>


Gordon Moat

Re: Sony A100 - shortcomings

Alan Browne <alan.browne@FreelunchVideotron.ca> writes:
I agree with Alan that while this camera may be an excellent general
consumer model, it does not satisfy the advanced amateur or professional
photographer. The 10 MegaPixel CCD, CCD Cleaning, 40-segment metering and
increased anti-shake range are all great features, but we have already
been waiting a couple of years for a pro-level digital camera from
Konica-Minolta and if Sony isn't quick to announce something like a 9D
camera soon, I may have to jump ship. My short list of requirements are:
- Rugged Metal Body
- Dust/Water Seals Everywhere
- External Controls like the 7D
- Infrared Auto Focus Assist
- 1/12,000 shutter speed & 1/300 x-sync ala. Maxxum 9
- 100% Viewfinder
- Continued Compatibility with CF Cards, Maxxum Flash & Flash Mount
- Extended accessory and lens options
So basically, take the existing state-of-the-art technology and stick it
into a Maxxum 9 body and you have a winner in my book. The real strength
of Minolta was that they combined some great engineering with the best
ergonomic design in the industry. Sony is notorious for its inferior
ergonomic design (sorry I bought that Sony-Ericsson Phone!) and I hope
that they don't toss out what has made Minolta so great in the past. I'm
willing to wait a bit longer to see what develops, but I'm not encouraged
by this first announcement.
I don't think Sony can win this battle if they don't quickly satisfy the
existing customer base (which will be their best source of free advertising
while also providing free external customer support for new users) while
they try to expand into new market segments.
--
Jeff


Jeff@cjsa.com (Jeffery Small)

Re: Sony A100 - shortcomings

Sure enough, but I would hope they would exceed the 7D and do a "9D".
_that_ would be something. (I have the 7D and I'm not totally thrilled
with it wrt to functionality).
Cheers,
Alan
--
-- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm
-- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm
-- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin
-- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch.


Alan Browne

Re: Sony A100 - shortcomings

...
.. . .
"Lightweight and durable magnesium alloy body" according to the review at
Steve's Digicams.
http://www.steves-digicams.com/2006_reviews/alpha100.html
The A100 is just a somewhat modified Maxxum 5D. So I'd say it is a
transitional model between Konica Minolta and Sony, and no reason to think
it tells you anything about where Sony will go from here with their new SLR
line, any more than you could have predicted the Maxxum 7 from the original
7000 of two decades ago.
I have a Maxxum 5D and I like it a lot -- partly because it lets me keep
using my cupboardful of older Maxxum lenses (and flash units and other
Maxxum accessories), partly because its camera-body Anti-Shake really works
great with all those lenses, and partly because I just really like
everything about the camera. So I think Sony's on the right track using this
as the basis for their new line.
I suspect they just want to establish Sony in the dSLR marketplace and
decided that this was the best price point to do it at, rather than the more
expensive Maxxum 7D. I would not be surprised to see another Sony model come
along later, based on the 7D.
Neil


Neil Harrington

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