# Sony a6000 for a beginner?



## torret (Nov 20, 2016)

Hello all,

I really wanted to upgrade my DSLR to a mirrorless.  Brought a Sony a6000 for the market price, which is over $600.  I am wondering if it is worth the price or if there is better out there for the money?  Thoughts?

I was working with a Nikon D7000, which I didn't love honestly.  I can get great pictures with it but I found aspects of the autofocus and other features annoying.  (I know everyone raves about them.)  Before that, I had a Nikon D3200.  It was what it was and no complaints.

I have only had the a6000 for a day and have not really had much of a chance to play around with it yet.  The pictures from today seem soft and low light seems to be a problem.  I love the size of the camera and the viewfinder with the ability to view the LCD screen inside it. 

Can you recommend a better mirrorless camera in the same price range?

TIA!


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## janetduncan (Nov 20, 2016)

I have the A6300, and I use the LA-EA4 adapter on it to continue using my a-mount lens.  I LOVE IT.  I had to get used to back-button focusing on it, because it's so small, but I'm enjoying the results.   The 6300 was an big upgrade from the a6000, and I hear the a6500 is even better. 
See attached pic. Used with adapter and Sony 50mm SAM


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## photo1x1.com (Nov 21, 2016)

torret said:


> Hello all,
> 
> I really wanted to upgrade my DSLR to a mirrorless.  Brought a Sony a6000 for the market price, which is over $600.  I am wondering if it is worth the price or if there is better out there for the money?  Thoughts?
> 
> ...



Hi and welcome to the forum. Janet sure is right, but the a6300 and a6500 have a much higher price tag. The a6000 is definitely the best bang for the bug in its pricerange. I do own the a6000 and the a7rII and I´m still impressed about the a6000 considering it costs so much less.
And at the moment I don´t think any other manufacturer get´s anywhere near to sony in the mirrorless market in every regard.


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## Braineack (Nov 21, 2016)

the a6000 is a performer for sure, but I'm still not entirely thrilled with the controls and menu.


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## torret (Nov 21, 2016)

janetduncan said:


> I have the A6300, and I use the LA-EA4 adapter on it to continue using my a-mount lens.  I LOVE IT.  I had to get used to back-button focusing on it, because it's so small, but I'm enjoying the results.   The 6300 was an big upgrade from the a6000, and I hear the a6500 is even better.
> See attached pic. Used with adapter and Sony 50mm SAMView attachment 130606



Janet,

The pup is a cutie!  Thanks for the info and the pic.  I was wondering about the 6300 and 6500.  Good to hear they are worth the investment.  In terms of lenses, I guess they are one of the big drawbacks with this camera series.  The adapter and a-mount lenses seem to work well from the pics I have seen.  I am curious if the adapter adds a lot of bulk?  Guessing it's not major.


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## torret (Nov 21, 2016)

photo1x1.com said:


> torret said:
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> > Hello all,
> ...



Thank you for the welcome and the information!  When I chose the a6000, I considered the quality of pictures that I liked on photo sharing sites such as Flickr as well as what I could afford to spend.  Especially with all of the post editing re: PS and the like, I am unsure this was a solid method but agree that the pictures taken with the a6000 that I viewed seemed among the best in their class.

Reviews of the a6000 mention there are better mirrorless cameras re: low light conditions but do not specify the models they feel are superior?


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## torret (Nov 21, 2016)

Braineack said:


> the a6000 is a performer for sure, but I'm still not entirely thrilled with the controls and menu.



Thanks for the response!  This is my first Sony camera and I have only had it for a day or so.  I am still working my way through them.  Guess it may take awhile?


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## photo1x1.com (Nov 21, 2016)

torret said:


> photo1x1.com said:
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The best low light camera is the a7s (II). But first it only has 12 mpix, which is just very little compared to others, and second it costs substantially more. I think one has to be fair when comparing cameras and do it within the same price range.


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## torret (Nov 21, 2016)

photo1x1.com said:


> torret said:
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> > photo1x1.com said:
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A full frame Sony camera - my dream but it would be more than double the cost of an a6000.  Agree re: consideration of cost in comparisons.


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## Braineack (Nov 21, 2016)

torret said:


> Braineack said:
> 
> 
> > the a6000 is a performer for sure, but I'm still not entirely thrilled with the controls and menu.
> ...



I'm just so used to SLR controls and the nikon menus.  I think the Sony controls leave little to be desired.  Changing settings and making on the fly adjustments is difficult imho.


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## janetduncan (Nov 21, 2016)

When I get home this evening, I'll post a pic with the adapter on it. It's not a major bulk at all.  Of course, I'd love to have all native lenses, but that will take some time.
I've also taken active soccer pics with the a6300, and e-mount 55-210mm sony lens. Worked like a charm after I turned the "auto review" setting off. I'll try to get one of those on here tonight, too.

By the way, on the pic of my puppy Zigg, there is a window with closed blinds behind me. Only natural light... that is not a flash.



torret said:


> janetduncan said:
> 
> 
> > I have the A6300, and I use the LA-EA4 adapter on it to continue using my a-mount lens.  I LOVE IT.  I had to get used to back-button focusing on it, because it's so small, but I'm enjoying the results.   The 6300 was an big upgrade from the a6000, and I hear the a6500 is even better.
> ...


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## janetduncan (Nov 21, 2016)

Just ask questions... once you get the hang of it, you'll never go back.  But whatever you do, turn off that auto-review.  That drives me nuts! lol



torret said:


> Braineack said:
> 
> 
> > the a6000 is a performer for sure, but I'm still not entirely thrilled with the controls and menu.
> ...


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## Ido (Nov 21, 2016)

I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but … this is your third modern and very capable interchangeable-lens camera. If you're not getting the sort of quality you wish or see in others' photos, clearly it's not the camera to fault here. Work on your technique and honing your skills.


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## torret (Nov 24, 2016)

Ido said:


> I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but … this is your third modern and very capable interchangeable-lens camera. If you're not getting the sort of quality you wish or see in others' photos, clearly it's not the camera to fault here. Work on your technique and honing your skills.



As a lurker, I was annoyed by posts like these, which seem frequent on this message board.  To whatever question a newbie asks, the response from the trolls is always, 'You're just not a good enough photographer!'

Can I ask where I said that I was not getting the quality I wanted?

It was just time for an upgrade and I wanted a smaller, lighter mirrorless.  ::shrugs::


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## torret (Nov 24, 2016)

janetduncan said:


> When I get home this evening, I'll post a pic with the adapter on it. It's not a major bulk at all.  Of course, I'd love to have all native lenses, but that will take some time.
> I've also taken active soccer pics with the a6300, and e-mount 55-210mm sony lens. Worked like a charm after I turned the "auto review" setting off. I'll try to get one of those on here tonight, too.
> 
> By the way, on the pic of my puppy Zigg, there is a window with closed blinds behind me. Only natural light... that is not a flash.
> ...



Zigg is such a cutie!  The light in that shot is perfect.

I didn't have much time yesterday because finals are coming but I used what little time I had to putter.  You are right!  I am already in love with the camera!

I am so used to having to do all kinds of things to compensate for harsh light.  One of the many things this camera does well is automatically just for it.

A shot from yesterday:


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## photo1x1.com (Nov 24, 2016)

Great! That little thing is just awesome and blows so many bigger, more expensive cameras away. I recommend it to all my friends and family members. Three have bought it already and are totally happy.
The weird thing is: most people dislike the sony menu style and controls. I love them. The only thing I'd change is the focus point setting. Sony should give us an option to adjust the focus point by clicking on the thumbwheel without clicking any button before. Sure that would take away some of the thumbwheel functions, but it would speed up the workflow extremely. Especially for my way of shooting.


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## Ido (Nov 24, 2016)

torret said:


> Ido said:
> 
> 
> > I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but … this is your third modern and very capable interchangeable-lens camera. If you're not getting the sort of quality you wish or see in others' photos, clearly it's not the camera to fault here. Work on your technique and honing your skills.
> ...


I am sorry that you took it this way. I only thought of what seemed to me was your best interest, as I took from your post that you're scrambling between different cameras to find the one that gives you the images you want. Not only that, but you seem to criticize the a6000 for its image quality and low light performance, and you're looking for a different mirrorless camera because of it, even though its ceiling is higher than the D7000's with comparable lenses. You also say you're a beginner, yet this is your third perfectly capable interchangeable-lens camera already; that doesn't seem like a good situation to me, and might spiral into more G.A.S.

I don't really understand the "time to upgrade" notion. The time to upgrade, as I see it, is when there are things you know you don't like about the camera, and you can afford a camera that fixes those without causing new problems. You do say you're looking for a smaller and lighter setup; is that all? You also said about the D7000 that you "found aspects of the autofocus and other features annoying," even though reviewers and other users tend to rave about them. So is this another part of the camera you wish to "fix" with an upgrade?


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## torret (Nov 25, 2016)

Ido said:


> torret said:
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Notice how that smaller, lighter part was not even touched?


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## Ido (Nov 25, 2016)

torret said:


> Ido said:
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No, I don't notice that, because I did touch on it. I asked if that's all you're looking to change from the D7000, considering you also criticized its autofocus system and whatnot, even though I don't understand what you find wrong with it. 

It's obvious you don't want my help, so I will not comment further. Unless you're willing to change this attitude, and answer the guiding questions.


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## torret (Dec 1, 2016)

Ido said:


> torret said:
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The subject here is not the D7000 so how are you being helpful?

Re: "change in attitude".  Read your earlier posts and then you first.


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## Donde (Dec 1, 2016)

I am very happy with my a6000. The  6300 and 6500 look impressive don't move me to spend the money to move up. I highly recommend you take advantage of what the camera offers by adding a top of the line lens. I bought the Sony Zeiss 24 1.8 to go with it and am extremely pleased. Another lens that looks like a great option is the Sony Zeiss 55 1.8.


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## greybeard (Dec 2, 2016)

I have the A6000 and it is an amazing camera.  It takes a lot of getting use to as the controls and menus are not the most user friendly (imho).  It will however, do things I've never been able to do with any other camera, like mounting (with the appropriate adapter)  my old Minolta and Nikon lenses and focusing them manually and it will fit in your coat pocket.  I also have the D7000 and it had some focus issues until I fine tuned it and found it needed a -17 adjustment.  Now it is spot on.


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## cherylynne1 (Dec 2, 2016)

I also have the a6000 and I love it. I won't hesitate to say that it's the best mirrorless camera in that price range. As mentioned, there are better mirrorless cameras (a6500, a7 series, etc) but those are far more expensive, and there are DSLRs in the price range that are probably pretty close if not better in low light situations because of the a6000's age (Nikon d3400 comes to mind.) But if you're looking for reassurance on your purchase, it's definitely one of the best bang for your buck purchases you can make. 

I also agree with the advice that you should look at getting a lens that really lets it shine. If all you're using is the kit lens, that might be where some of your dissatisfaction is coming from. I would look trying one of the prime lenses, like the superb 24 1.8 that has been mentioned, or the 35 1.8 or 50 1.8. I really think you'll see a drastic change in quality.


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## fmw (Dec 3, 2016)

I think the poster above was simply saying that the equipment used to make images is less important than the photographer at the controls.  I believe this too.  My advice to photographers about equipment is that one should choose the equipment that makes you happy.  If the Sony mirrorless makes you happy you have a better chance of making better images with it and certainly no less of a chance.  What makes other people happy is immaterial.


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## Gert1985 (Dec 4, 2016)

It is a great camera by Sony and i mostly use it for my photography purposes.


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