Sony A450 DSLR Announced

January 2010, Carl Garrard

Sony starts off the year early curiously announcing the Alpha A450 DSLR, which looks as though it won't be a model available to Canada, the United States, or the South American territories as it was not reported to the press as a model available in these countries (at least not yet). Unless there is a future press release, it appears as though this model will not be available in these regions at this time. So while the following isn't a review per se, we thought we'd talk a bit about it here instead.

Sony Alpha DSLR A500 Review

December 2009, Carl Garrard (*Update 1-18-2010 Price Increase), (*Update 12-20-2009 Price Drop)

Sony Alpha DSLR A500 Review- The Sony Alpha DSLR A500 is Sony's latest released DSLR this year, along with the Alpha A550. The Alpha A500 and A550 are so close in specifications (a common strategy with Sony DSLRS within the DSLR lineup) that there won't be too much new information to report here in terms of 'paper performance' when compared to the A550 review I prepared, yet I will report on various areas of difference in details that I think are truly worth reading and hit areas that I didn't cover for the A550 review. Together both reviews should give the reader a combined and informative article in total between both cameras, and clarify some key differences that you would experience had you bought both cameras and compared them yourself.

Sony Alpha DSLR A550 Review

November 2009, Carl Garrard

(Updated 1-18-2010 Price Increase), (*Updated 12-20-2009 Price Drop)

(*Updated 11-21-2009 User Interface and Conclusion)

Houston, our Alpha A550 Review has landed. Speed back a few months ago and I was still suffering from an entry level Alpha hangover. I have to admit here that I was still a tad disappointed with those cameras going into the A550 review, and brought some of that disdain with me. After spending just two days with the new Sony Alpha A550 DSLR however, pretty much most of that negativity went away and a fresh green view on this new camera began to emerge. My time spent with Sony and the A550 was brief initially, and left me with a lot of curiosity and questions as well as a pretty good first impression overall. The Sony Alpha A550 charmed away much of my lack luster feelings and thoughts about the new entry level lineup, yet it was vital for me to spend some real time with the A550 alone, to give it a real thorough evaluation. Read on if you please for futher thoughts on this new DSLR from Sony. *Price $950 body only, $1050 with the 18-55mm Kit lens.

Sony Releases New Alphas- A230, A330, A380 Preview (Update Specifications Added)

May 2009, Carl Garrard

Today Sony announced updates to all three of their very successful and popular entry level DSLRs the A200, A300, and A350, with the new Sony Alpha A230, A330, and A380. Our first look preview shows that all three have similar but radically changed exterior aesthetics over the DSLRs they succeed. There are many changes to the new Alphas despite seemingly similar spec sheets to the Alphas they replace. All three replacements keep the same sensor as their predecessors (10.2 and 14.2 Mega pixels respectively), Bionz Processors, and similar specifications with the optical viewfinder as well. Most everything else has been tweaked modified, simplified, or outright changed altogether. These new Alphas are the smallest and lightest DSLRs on the market currently that include built in image stabilization into the body.

Welcome to the first of AlphaMountWorld's on-line video tutorials, designed to help you get more from your Alpha camera and image editing software.

In the first of the series we show you how to process a RAW image using Sony's supplied Image Data Converter (IDC) and Image Data Lightbox software. By following the tutorial you'll learn how to process RAW images for better quality photos, and because the software used is supplied with your camera, it won't cost you a penny!

Sony has announced the official firmware and software upgrades to the Sony A700 and Image Data Converter(IDC). Improvements in white balance, Dynamic Range Optimization and High ISO performance are the key improvements to the A700 firmware upgrade. In addition, a high ISO NR OFF option has also been added, as well as bracketing to 2.0 E.V. (limited to 3 frames).

Sony A900 Image Sample Gallery
(Firmware Version 1.0, Production Copy A900)

This gallery contains images from a production sample Sony A900 with firmware Version 1.00. I wanted to have a separate gallery so that I could update images here while testing the camera and writing the final review. I will consider requests for images from a particular lens or with certain exposure values. However, please understand that I may not be able to honor all requests, as I am limited in my lens catalog and time with the A900 itself. I have used lenses from both Sony and Minolta for some images in this gallery, the images are noted when you mouse over them. Please request permission to reproduce our samples in any form. Thank you!