The New Sony Alpha 700!
The new Sony Alpha, called the A700, was just sneaked out through certain Sony sites, and promptly taken down. However, I managed to watch the intro flash, and grab a screenshot!
It feels like Sony is hitting on the trend done by Michael Bay with Transformers. Release little, bit by bit.
I absolutely love:
- AF/MF switch on the back! No other brand has this. They may have an AF On button, but not a toggle to go into MF when in AF, for all lenses, whether they support full-time manual focusing (called Direct Manual Focus on Minolta/Sony systems.)
- 12.24 megapixel ExMor CMOS sensor with ISO3200 and extra ISO6400, much cleaner than their noisy ol' CCD.
- Sony Ericsson-style AF-point selector joystick. You can also navigate menus and shooting settings with this (note the screenshot at ISO400? I reckon it will allow you to jump from panel to panel.)
- vertical grip has everything, including the AF-point selector joystick!
- front and rear dials.
- changeable focusing screens. I might get a split-prism manual focus screen!
- separate AF illuminator.
- PC Sync terminal for studio light compatibility. This also means I can hook it to an adapter to bring it into a regular ISO hotshoe!
- kit lens is a 16-105mm F3.5-5.6 DT. After the APS-C crop, I love 24mm. I also felt that 70mm on APS-C wasn't far enough, but 105mm was just nice. This would have all my favorite focal lengths!
This deserves special mention:
- double cross-type sensors in the middle, and a stronger AF motor. Honestly, this means a greater deal than 9 or more cross-type sensors because you get so much more accuracy and speed in one AF point. My Minolta Dynax 7 had double cross-type sensors and it was claimed to be the fastest AF film body of its time. The Sony A100 tended to hunt; it would overshoot the subject, focus back to close focus and then focus on the subject. The Dynax 7 didn't hesitate; it went straight onto the subject and stayed there.
Rear view, not a screenshot, but stolen from another site.
Stuff that is worth mentioning, though I'm not rancid about it:
- 921,000 pixel 3" LCD screen, just like the Nikon D300's.
- weather sealing.
- dual slots for Compact Flash and Sony Memory Stick cards.
- HDMI output ready for High-Definition displays.
- supplied infrared remote controller for wireless control. This also controls HD slideshows!
- new mirror/shutter mechanism. Maybe I'm hopeful but I hope it's as quiet as the Minolta Dynax 7.
- last five images can show as a strip above the current picture, for comparing and chimping easy.
- separate red/green/blue histograms (though I've honestly never bothered with them, like I don't bother with RAW.)
- proper Sony Infolithium battery support - note the 95% charge bar in the screenshot!
This is a screenshot of the menu that shows after the flash animation; however, clicking of any of the links wouldn't load anything. They removed all the files!
Anyway, back to what I have. I found fungus in my beloved Minolta 70-210mm F4.0 beercan lens, and I sent it for servicing. It also meant that it was time for me to get a dry cabinet!
One tray for cameras (the white box is a DIY 24mm pinhole camera, not documented yet, and you could spot my Minolta Dynax 7 there, the interchangeable-lens-mount infrared-modded Fujifilm Digital Q1, the Pentax P30t, Minolta X300 and Olympus OM-2000.)
One tray for lenses not attached to a body.
In the style of Sony I'm gonna keep all the specifications secret, and let you conclude it yourself. That's 4 items in the Olympus Zuiko OM-mount (including a 2x teleconverter), 2 items in the Pentax K-mount, an old lens in the Minolta MD-mount, while there are three Minolta/Sony A-mount lenses.
The rest of the A-mount lenses travel with me in my camera bag.
Don't say I don't have anything Canon or Nikon; my trusty Canon Powershot A520 still follows me sometimes, and the Nikon SB-28 makes a good second flash when paired with an optical slave (also not documented.)
There is also this, which I have not blogged about because it's just an entire blog entry. No specifications will be revealed at the moment, but you can Google lenses and find out which one matches.
More details here:
http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.phtml/9979/11003/Sony-Alpha-700-DSLR-revealed.phtml
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/pocketli/20070905/ttc-sony-s-new-dslr-the-alpha-700-is-rev-57dbc65_1.html
http://a700.ic.cz/ (with a Flash animation saved from the site)
It feels like Sony is hitting on the trend done by Michael Bay with Transformers. Release little, bit by bit.
I absolutely love:
- AF/MF switch on the back! No other brand has this. They may have an AF On button, but not a toggle to go into MF when in AF, for all lenses, whether they support full-time manual focusing (called Direct Manual Focus on Minolta/Sony systems.)
- 12.24 megapixel ExMor CMOS sensor with ISO3200 and extra ISO6400, much cleaner than their noisy ol' CCD.
- Sony Ericsson-style AF-point selector joystick. You can also navigate menus and shooting settings with this (note the screenshot at ISO400? I reckon it will allow you to jump from panel to panel.)
- vertical grip has everything, including the AF-point selector joystick!
- front and rear dials.
- changeable focusing screens. I might get a split-prism manual focus screen!
- separate AF illuminator.
- PC Sync terminal for studio light compatibility. This also means I can hook it to an adapter to bring it into a regular ISO hotshoe!
- kit lens is a 16-105mm F3.5-5.6 DT. After the APS-C crop, I love 24mm. I also felt that 70mm on APS-C wasn't far enough, but 105mm was just nice. This would have all my favorite focal lengths!
This deserves special mention:
- double cross-type sensors in the middle, and a stronger AF motor. Honestly, this means a greater deal than 9 or more cross-type sensors because you get so much more accuracy and speed in one AF point. My Minolta Dynax 7 had double cross-type sensors and it was claimed to be the fastest AF film body of its time. The Sony A100 tended to hunt; it would overshoot the subject, focus back to close focus and then focus on the subject. The Dynax 7 didn't hesitate; it went straight onto the subject and stayed there.
Rear view, not a screenshot, but stolen from another site.
Stuff that is worth mentioning, though I'm not rancid about it:
- 921,000 pixel 3" LCD screen, just like the Nikon D300's.
- weather sealing.
- dual slots for Compact Flash and Sony Memory Stick cards.
- HDMI output ready for High-Definition displays.
- supplied infrared remote controller for wireless control. This also controls HD slideshows!
- new mirror/shutter mechanism. Maybe I'm hopeful but I hope it's as quiet as the Minolta Dynax 7.
- last five images can show as a strip above the current picture, for comparing and chimping easy.
- separate red/green/blue histograms (though I've honestly never bothered with them, like I don't bother with RAW.)
- proper Sony Infolithium battery support - note the 95% charge bar in the screenshot!
This is a screenshot of the menu that shows after the flash animation; however, clicking of any of the links wouldn't load anything. They removed all the files!
Anyway, back to what I have. I found fungus in my beloved Minolta 70-210mm F4.0 beercan lens, and I sent it for servicing. It also meant that it was time for me to get a dry cabinet!
One tray for cameras (the white box is a DIY 24mm pinhole camera, not documented yet, and you could spot my Minolta Dynax 7 there, the interchangeable-lens-mount infrared-modded Fujifilm Digital Q1, the Pentax P30t, Minolta X300 and Olympus OM-2000.)
One tray for lenses not attached to a body.
In the style of Sony I'm gonna keep all the specifications secret, and let you conclude it yourself. That's 4 items in the Olympus Zuiko OM-mount (including a 2x teleconverter), 2 items in the Pentax K-mount, an old lens in the Minolta MD-mount, while there are three Minolta/Sony A-mount lenses.
The rest of the A-mount lenses travel with me in my camera bag.
Don't say I don't have anything Canon or Nikon; my trusty Canon Powershot A520 still follows me sometimes, and the Nikon SB-28 makes a good second flash when paired with an optical slave (also not documented.)
There is also this, which I have not blogged about because it's just an entire blog entry. No specifications will be revealed at the moment, but you can Google lenses and find out which one matches.
More details here:
http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.phtml/9979/11003/Sony-Alpha-700-DSLR-revealed.phtml
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/pocketli/20070905/ttc-sony-s-new-dslr-the-alpha-700-is-rev-57dbc65_1.html
http://a700.ic.cz/ (with a Flash animation saved from the site)
Replies: 9
