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Sony A77 Digital SLT

Reviews	Views	Date of last review
1	3161	Fri November 4, 2011

Recommended By	Average Price	Average Rating
100% of reviewers	None indicated	9.0

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Find the lowest price for the Sony A77 Digital SLT

Description:

The Sony Alpha A77 Digital SLT is aimed at the serious enthusiasts and builds upon the success of the popular Sony A700. This revolutionary camera features Sony’s new BIONZ processor and Translucent Mirror Technology to offer lightning-quick and precise auto-focus for both still-photo and Full HD 1080p movie recording, via either the OLED viewfinder or LCD monitor.

Packed inside the magnesium alloy body is a 24.3 megapixel APS-C size sensor capable of recording still photos at a rate of 12 frames per second, as well as featuring an impressive 19 auto focus points with 11 cross sensors, ISO from 50-16000, Smart Teleconverter and GPS. The newly developed OLED viewfinder delivers incredible contrast and colour accuracy, with five different display modes to ensure you get the perfect image from start to finish without removing your eye from the viewfinder.

With new technology and features combined, the A77 is particularly responsive and accurate to ensure high performance in all shooting conditions.

Features of the Sony Alpha A77 SLT
• 24.3 effective megapixels - Ultra-high resolution Exmor™ APS HD CMOS Sensor plus 2-step noise reduction for flawless, low noise still images and HD video
• Revised BIONZ processor - Enhanced processing engine handles enormous amounts of sensor data to allow very high-speed shooting of superb, low-noise images
• Translucent Mirror Technology - Replaces DSLR moving mirror with fixed translucent mirror: enables ultra-fast shooting with speedy, accurate phase detection AF
• Class-leading shutter lag time - Ultra-fast shutter lag of just 50msec rivals the performance of high-end professional cameras: ideal for high-speed action shots
• Ultra high-speed continuous shooting - Capture fast-moving action at up to 12fps with Full-time Continuous Autofocus for razor-sharp tracking of moving subjects
• Quick AF Full HD movie - Shoot 1920x1080 video with full-time AF tracking of moving subjects: now with 24p/50p progressive shooting for cinematic results
• Creative Full HD movie functions - Manual focus allows beautiful defocus effects (bokeh) during HD video shooting; PASM exposure modes offer total creative control
• Advanced Quick AF Live View - Real-time full-resolution image display from main sensor on LCD or in viewfinder with fast, accurate phase-detection autofocus
• Object Tracking AF - Keeps faces or other selected objects in sharp focus, even if the target is obscured momentarily by another passing object
• Sweep Panorama with 3D Sweep Panorama - Press the shutter and sweep the camera to capture extra-wide panoramic images: also capture 3D panoramas to view on 3D TV
• Wide sensitivity range from ISO 50-16000 - High maximum sensitivity allows natural, low-noise images, even in low light: expansion mode extends sensitivity down to ISO 50
• 19-point phase-detection AF system - Newly developed AF system with 11 cross sensors for accurate, non-stop autofocusing - effective with Viewfinder or live view on LCD
• 3-way tilt 7.5 cm (3.0"

Xtra Fine LCD - Freely-adjustable high resolution (921k dot) widescreen LCD: with TruBlack technology for superb detail and contrast
• XGA OLED TruFinder™ - Precision electronic viewfinder with 2.36 million dot resolution, high contrast and 100% frame coverage for precision framing, manual focus and shot review
• High-resolution information display - Select from a choice of digital leveling gauge, shooting parameters, grid lines and graphic exposure display options
• Smart Teleconverter - Digitally zooms centre portion of image for high-resolution 12 megapixel images with 1.4x or 2x magnification
• Shot Result Preview - Touch a button to preview effects of adjusting aperture, shutter and DRO settings on depth of field, motion blur and dynamic range
• AUTO+ Mode - Automatically analyses scene and shooting conditions, adjusting camera parameters for excellent results with any scene
• Face Detection with Face Registration - Recognises up to 8 faces in a scene, optimising optimum exposure, white balance, flash and other settings for beautiful portraits
• Smile Shutter - Automatically fires shutter when subject smiles with an adjustable smile detection sensitivity
• Picture Effect Modes - Produce impressive creative effects with no PC needed - including Posterise, Partial Colour, HDR Painting, Soft Focus, Miniature
• Enhanced HDR Auto - Automatically merges three successive exposures to create a single image with an effective dynamic range even wider than film
• Multi-Frame Noise Reduction - Automatically combines a burst of six exposures to create a single ultra-low noise image
• Handheld Twilight Mode - Automatically combines a burst of six exposures to create a single image with supressed blur and reduced noise in low light
• GPS for easy geotagging - Automatically tags images with location information: enjoy map views with PMB software or on BRAVIA TV with Photo Map function
• Creative Styles - 6 selectable image finishing options to suit range of shooting situations - can be customised for even greater creative control
• D-Range Optimiser - Analyses image in real time, adjusting brightness and contrast for more natural, evenly exposed backlit scenes
• Rugged magnesium body - Tough, rigid chassis and body panels withstand heavy usage; key buttons and controls are protected against dust and moisture

Keywords:

SLT Fixed Mirror A77 Sony

Author

jake
Loves the place

Registered: March 2008
Location: yorkshire
Posts: 6607

Review Date: Fri November 4, 2011

Would you recommend the product? Yes | Price you paid?: None indicated | Rating: 9

Pros:	Picture aquistion and quality
Cons:	Eyesight adjustment wheel

Well my relationship with this camera got off to a very bad start. After only a week the camera stopped working. Fortunately I purchased it from a good dealer, WEX, who had it picked up and returned to them by Fedex, at their cost, the next day. I had purchased just the body and a new one was supplied as soon as another one came into stock., no hassle.
This wasn't the first time and won't be the last that a new camera has failed and I hope I was just the unfortunate one.

By now several detailed reviews have been published by people with a lot more access to technical measuring equipment than I have so this is intended to be a practical review.

The first thing I did when I received the body was download the new firmware that had been posted after mine had broken down. Everything now seems to be fine.

Overall I am very pleased with the camera, the magnesium body has a very firm feel and the rubber grips are very comfortable.
The big concern before my purchase was how would the Translucent Mirror Technology work out and especially the Electronic Viewfinder. I'm pleased to report that in reasonable lighting ie down to normal domestic room lighting it is very similar to an optical finder, you don't see any dots. In VERY subdued room lighting noise begins to start in the viewfinder but having said that if I compare it with the view seen through an optical finder in the same situation (A350) it is a lot brighter.
Elsewhere it has been reported that both the A33 and A55 are lacking when tracking fast moving objects due to the viewer lag but make no mistake this camera is a different animal and I have no such problems when photographing motorcycle racing.

The live view screen is a lot brighter than on my A350 and I have no problems using it in bright sunlight, the level is adjusted automatically (manually if you wish). The image switches between the screen and the EVF automatically or can be switched manually via a button on the top.
One of the advantages of TMT is that you can view an enlarged image of the image BEFORE you take it which can prove very useful in macro work.
The screen will move to virtually any position you can think of including facing the photographer should you wish to photograph yourself.
One thing I find very annoying is the fact that when you adjust the eyepiece corrector it is very difficult to achieve this without turning on the video.
By the way the Sony eyesight correction lenses will not fit this camera but the correction range is such that I don't need one whereas I did with the A350
Looking through the viewfinder with all the information shown is a bit like overkill but you have the option of reducing the amount in various stages until only the image is shown. The electronic level is useful for some applications but rather intrusive if left on all the time.
The camera has a display panel on the top of the body that some have described as outdated but I find it very convenient to look at if I am not using live view.
As yet I have not used the GPS.
I have been using the camera with my 16-80 Zeiss, 90mm Tamron and 70-400 Sony and the results I have been getting with the 24mp sensor have been excellent – almost like a lens upgrade – however it is worth noting there are some lens incompatability issues with this camera . It will take Minolta mount lenses but not a lot of the Sigma lenses though Sigma state they will upgrade those lenses for free and the new lenses will be fully compatable. Having said that some users report no problems with the Sigma's. There is provision to correct for peripheral shading, chromatic aberration,and distortion should you wish to do so. You can also fine adjust the focus point.
The jpegs, extra fine, fine, and standard are very good but a little soft. This is easily corrected by tweaking the sharpness, I'm using +2
Sony seems to go a little on the soft side of the sharpness/noise balance even though this is frequently mentioned.
Elsewhere reviewers have stated that this cameras weak spot is noise at high ISO's this may or may not be the case after 1600 but I usually don't go that high, all I would say is that 800 ISO is similar to 400 ISO on my A350.
12 frames per second – but at maximum aperture- 8 frames per second with full control. More useful than I thought, gets the exact position you are looking for with things like birds taking off or vehicles on bends ect.. It focuses continually through the sequence – not just on the first shot- again one of the advantages of TMT. Just remember when holding on to the button you are using a lot of space at 24mp a frame and some time deleting those frames you don't want. It does this speed for a second then you have to wait for it to write it. In practice I tend to use it in 4 or 5 frame bursts. Turns a few heads in the local hides. As for the 2X digital converter, you can do just the same thing on the computer but it's handy to get a good idea what it's going to turn out like in the field as a 6mp jpeg.
If you like buttons and the ability to customise them you will be delighted, the combinations are too many to list here.
The autofocus is quick and accurate but just be realistic, a wide angle lens is always going to travel a far shorter distance than a telephoto lens and take less time. Objects can be defined and tracked and all the usual focus settings are available. If you wish you can highlight in the viewfinder exactly which areas of your image are being focussed on with various colours.
It does not seem long ago that people were asking why we needed video on a stills camera, now it's the norm however this camera, because of TMT, goes one step further and allows continual automatic focusing whilst shooting HD. However to record HD for the TV you will need to have Blue Ray Discs

Lots of “artistic” options which I never use.

To sum up am delighted with this camera as I take a lot of photographs in many different environments and of many different subjects and it suits my needs but for the casual photographer any camera at this level would really be an expensive overkill

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