# Sony DSLR-A65 and A77



## dxqcanada

Sony A77, A65: Duo of 24 megapixel Translucent Mirror cameras launched

Finally a replacement for the A700


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## christian.rudman

Did you just arrive on this planet? Sony has been hyping these along with the 24mp NEX-7 for a long ass time now trying to boost their launch sales numbers. Impressive cameras by all means, but no FF release? Even more pitiful is Nikon's release of, yet again, a whole slew of crappy consumer p&s. I'm really beginning to hate digital...

Try sonyalpharumors.com for some updated info.


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## dxqcanada

I have been on this planet for a while ... (I think since birth). 
I thought I would post this for those that have *not* been watching sonyalpharumors.com (or aware of information on the new cameras, including the NEX).

I think Sony wants to get a feel for the reactions to the 6+7 models, before making a full frame SLT.


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## rgregory1965

Amazon.com: Sony A77 24.3 MP Translucent Mirror Digital SLR With 16-50mm F2.8 lens: Camera & Photo

1999.99 can you say OUCH


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## dxqcanada

Ah, note that package is with a 16-50mm f/2.8 lens that sells for $700.00.

Body is only $1400 MSRP ... though I was expecting about $1200.

The A65 is only $900


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## rgregory1965

I love my A55.....getting one of the ownuser grips for it....gonna stick with this one for now....love the 10fps....just love it


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## dxqcanada

My wife and I find the A55 a great camera also ... though there are some physical aspects of the A77 that I would like (ie two control dials, taller body, weather sealed ...) but I don't want to drop more than $1000 for it ... too bad they did not put both control dials on the A65.

I was looking at those grips ... but I could not justify paying that much for a shutter button and battery holder.
If it was $50.00, I would grab one.


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## rgregory1965

Just wanted something more to hang onto......the extra battery holder is nice if your out walking , i dont like to have stuff in my pockets....lol

We went out Dove hunting this morn and I took the camera.....got some really cool pics of the dove flying....10 fps really catches alot.


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## Zess

What do you think of using an electronic viewfinder?


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## rgregory1965

Im loving the EVF.......it has great color and works great.....also just got the grip today and love it.....feels like a different camera


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## dxqcanada

Zess said:


> What do you think of using an electronic viewfinder?



I have been using cameras with a pentaprism for a couple of decades now ... when I switched from a Canon new F-1 with the AE head to an APS-C Sony DSL I was surprised by how small the viewfinder was. I thought it was just this camera, then I learned that this is common for APS-C. When I got the A55 I was surprised again as the view as as large as my old film camera. 
Initially I was aware of the EVF ... after a day of usage I have forgotten that it is an EVF. The only time that it really makes itself known is under lower lighting. The best thing that I find with an EVF is seeing the changes to exposure in the viewfinder (as opposed to the rear LCD) ... makes for faster shooting.


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## smilesyota

I returned a sony A65 and tried a cannon 60D to compare, and i miss the quick shooting and being able to shoot from live view at the same speed!  the cannon live view is a joke in my opinion only uses one focus point and it's slooooow. I take alot of dog pictures and motor sport. 
 I love the quality of the pictures but i think i might go for the sony and return the 60D.


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## dxqcanada

smilesyota said:


> I returned a sony A65 and tried a cannon 60D to compare, and i miss the quick shooting and being able to shoot from live view at the same speed!  the cannon live view is a joke in my opinion only uses one focus point and it's slooooow. I take alot of dog pictures and motor sport.
> I love the quality of the pictures but i think i might go for the sony and return the 60D.



What made you return the A65 ?


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## smilesyota

Nothing other than curiosity to try the cannon.  I've always had cannons but,  the sony does better for the price range.  I'm no pro and the sonys speed and focus works great with my dog.


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## o hey tyler

smilesyota said:


> I returned a sony A65 and tried a cannon 60D to compare, and i miss the quick shooting and being able to shoot from live view at the same speed!  the cannon live view is a joke in my opinion only uses one focus point and it's slooooow. I take alot of dog pictures and motor sport.
> I love the quality of the pictures but i think i might go for the sony and return the 60D.



Using Live View for focusing on a non-SLT camera is basically designed for fine tuning manual focus... Not for tracking fast action. Which is where SLT cameras have an edge, if you like live view a lot. The reason that it only uses one focus point is because when the mirror is down in live view, it can only use contrast detect AF. This is the same for all DSLR's. When the mirror is up and you're using the viewfinder, you can use the 9-cross type focus points which are the most accurate and fast when it comes to focus acquisition.  

If you want to use live view all the time, than a DSLR isn't really what you're after. You'd want a consumer grade SLT like the A65, so that seems like it would work better for you overall. 

If you were going to shoot fast motor sports, you'd want to use the OVF on a DSLR which will keep up with the action better than an EVF... Especially in low light. Because there's no refresh rate in an Optical Viewfinder. 

Canon's live view is the best when it comes to actual DSLR's. Sony's is the best when it comes to SLT's, no denying that. You have to understand that they are fundamentally different and work in very different ways. 

I'm sure you'll get some nice motor sports shots during the day though, I'm glad you found which camera was right for your needs! Keep shooting! :thumbup:


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## gsgary

Auto Focus Testing - Sony Alpha 77 vs the Canon 5D Mark II in low light | SonyAlphaLab.com


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## argieramos

gsgary said:
			
		

> Auto Focus Testing - Sony Alpha 77 vs the Canon 5D Mark II in low light | SonyAlphaLab.com



Okay, so the guy place the subject too close so the a77 advantage for low-light focusing (af beam) wouldn't work and make the 5dMKII looks like it can actually focus in extreme darkness? You're trying too hard Gary. lol

Anyway, why comparing an APS-C to a FF camera? As one of the commenter said,  that test was silly..

_1. The Canon has over 300% of the amount of light hitting the AF sensors on the Sony due to the translucent mirror setup. Only 30% of the total light is passed onto the AF sensor on A77.

2. Further to this the AF sensor size is relative to the image sensor physically, so more total light passes through the lens onto the AF sensor (what it does with this light is up to the sensor obviously). Comparing full frame to APS-C isn&rsquo;t really fair in this regard.

3. The sheer number of focus points are not relative to how sensitive they are to light. The more sensors can mean more accurate focusing and focus trackin -- but not low light capability.

4. AF can be more difficult at lower apertures (due to shallow dof causing hunting) and thus why systems need those sub f2.8 sensors for low light. Try comparing them at f4. Also stopping the lens down will not help as the lens is left wide open until taking the shot. Further to this different lenses are better or worse at AF on the same camera &ndash; in this instance there are too many variables, the same lens should have been tested on both bodies to make a proper comparison between the AF systems of two very different cameras.

This is enough to show that this is a rather silly test -- unless someone was specifically considering either an APS-C A77 with 16-50 2.8 or a Full Frame 5D Mk II with a 24-105 f4 and wanted to know what the low light focus speed of each was like to make their final decision. Which seems rather specific.
_
Why not compare it to same level camera from Canon? The 7D..
http://www.popphoto.com/gear/2011/09/lab-test-sony-a77-new-king-aps-c-dslrs
_Despite the likelihood that most people will pay more attention to the A77's other features, its autofocus is what really stood out the most in our lab tests. It focused in a mere 0.24 sec at the brightest part of the test and remained under 0.3 sec down to EV 8. At EV 2, which is dimmer than most people's living rooms, the A77 focus in 0.51 sec. And at EV -1, the lowest light level for which the AF system is rated, the camera was able to focus in 0.98 sec.
How does that compare? The EOS 7D was able to focus at EV -2, but at all other light levels in our test, it was slower than the Sony. Nikon's D300s was able to focus in 0.93 sec at EV -1, but as with the Canon, *Sony's A77 proved faster at all other light levels.*
_





This proves that 7D AF is really slow in low light.

*Correct me if I'm wrong, isn't 7D AF is superior to the 5D MkII?*


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## o hey tyler

argieramos said:


> gsgary said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Auto Focus Testing - Sony Alpha 77 vs the Canon 5D Mark II in low light | SonyAlphaLab.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Okay, so *the guy place the subject too close so the a77 advantage for low-light focusing* (af beam) wouldn't work and make the 5dMKII looks like it can actually focus in extreme darkness?
Click to expand...


How do you place something "too close" for a light to NOT adequately illuminate it? That doesn't even make sense.


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## gsgary

o hey tyler said:


> argieramos said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> gsgary said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Auto Focus Testing - Sony Alpha 77 vs the Canon 5D Mark II in low light | SonyAlphaLab.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Okay, so *the guy place the subject too close so the a77 advantage for low-light focusing* (af beam) wouldn't work and make the 5dMKII looks like it can actually focus in extreme darkness?
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> How do you place something "too close" for a light to NOT adequately illuminate it? That doesn't even make sense.
Click to expand...


He is full of excuses


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## Kolia

o hey tyler said:
			
		

> How do you place something "too close" for a light to NOT adequately illuminate it? That doesn't even make sense.



You can see the beam hitting the top of the box while the tester say's he's aiming below at the pencil mark. 

We could argue that the AF doesn't even see that beam. 

The results are still the same. One camera did focus while the other had a hard time...


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## argieramos

o hey tyler said:
			
		

> How do you place something "too close" for a light to NOT adequately illuminate it? That doesn't even make sense.



Pay attention to the video and what the tester is saying..  

"It&rsquo;s basically focusing with no assist lamp."... So it was a handicap match. lol

7D af is better than the 5D MkII
a77 af is better than the 7D.

It's a fact


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## argieramos

gsgary said:
			
		

> He is full of excuses



Which part is the excuse? You are trying too hard. Relax. it's just a camera.  nyehehehe!!


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## gsgary

argieramos said:


> o hey tyler said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> How do you place something "too close" for a light to NOT adequately illuminate it? That doesn't even make sense.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Pay attention to the video and what the tester is saying..
> 
> "It&rsquo;s basically focusing with no assist lamp."... So it was a handicap match. lol
> 
> 7D af is better than the 5D MkII
> a77 af is better than the 7D.
> 
> It's a fact
Click to expand...



Bacause the assist lamp did not shine on the subject  don't you think that is a design fault


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## Kolia

It a design choice to angle the beam in a way that focusing in the dark at a subject 3 feet away will be compromised. 

Why is it compared to the 5D Mk2 anyways ?  The price difference is significant !!!


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## argieramos

gsgary said:
			
		

> Bacause the assist lamp did not shine on the subject  don't you think that is a design fault



With the beam assist, the camera will rely heavily on that to AF. If the tester turned the AF illuminator off, the a77 wouldn't have that issue. Of course you didn't know that. You don't know anything, actually... nyahaha!!
Sorry but no matter what you say , 5D MkII AF will always be inferior to the a77. Not even the superior af of 7D couldn't compete with a77. It's a proven fact....


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