Sony has been in the spotlight recently for its NEX E-mount cameras for their unique design, features and primarily its good image quality. Fundamentally, the NEX-5 and NEX-3 cameras were like point and shoot cameras with large sensors had no viewfinder.
The first of the translucent mirror cameras from Sony - the SLT-A55Sony’s SLT-A55 falls in the A-mount category and it has a viewfinder like any DSLR would, but they’ve gone with an electronic one like the ones on a superzoom camera. If that’s the case and if the A55 is just a DSLR with an electronic viewfinder, should you bother buying one?
Features
The A55 uses a translucent mirror that allows light to pass through it which means the mirror need not move out of the way when a photo is to be clicked. This should technically speed up focusing and reduce noise since the mirror doesn’t have to move every time you click a photo. Currently, there are two models in this family – the A33 and the A55. The A55 is the one we’re reviewing today. The A55 is a 16.2 MP camera that uses a standard APS-C type CMOS sensor. The ISO range spans from 100 to 12,800 which is very similar to the Sony NEX-5 we reviewed a week back. Most of the similarities end here – the A55 uses the standard A-mount, which was inherited from minotla. This means that there’s a wider range of lenses to choose from.
The NEX cameras used a new E-mount but it’s also interesting to note that companies such as Sigma have committed to making lenses for the new mount. The camera comes with a stock 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM lens kit.
The camera has a foldable LCD screen which can be turned around on its back if required. It’s used to operate the camera – both the settings and also for focusing. The screen displays colours well, perhaps a little too vibrantly. The electronic viewfinder is designed in the same way as you would find it on any other camera. The quality of the EVF as with other cameras is bad. It’s not crisp and it’s no replacement to an optical viewfinder. This is quite probably one of the poor points of this camera.
The first of the translucent mirror cameras from Sony - the SLT-A55
Features
The A55 uses a translucent mirror that allows light to pass through it which means the mirror need not move out of the way when a photo is to be clicked. This should technically speed up focusing and reduce noise since the mirror doesn’t have to move every time you click a photo. Currently, there are two models in this family – the A33 and the A55. The A55 is the one we’re reviewing today. The A55 is a 16.2 MP camera that uses a standard APS-C type CMOS sensor. The ISO range spans from 100 to 12,800 which is very similar to the Sony NEX-5 we reviewed a week back. Most of the similarities end here – the A55 uses the standard A-mount, which was inherited from minotla. This means that there’s a wider range of lenses to choose from.
The NEX cameras used a new E-mount but it’s also interesting to note that companies such as Sigma have committed to making lenses for the new mount. The camera comes with a stock 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM lens kit.
The camera has a foldable LCD screen which can be turned around on its back if required. It’s used to operate the camera – both the settings and also for focusing. The screen displays colours well, perhaps a little too vibrantly. The electronic viewfinder is designed in the same way as you would find it on any other camera. The quality of the EVF as with other cameras is bad. It’s not crisp and it’s no replacement to an optical viewfinder. This is quite probably one of the poor points of this camera.
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