Sony Alpha DSLR-A200W Digital Camera with 75-300mm lens
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- Camera Type: SLR/Professional
- Weight: 1.19 lb.
- LCD Screen Size: 2.7 in.
- Resolution: 10.2 Megapixel
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Great for those upgrading from point and shoots
Pros
Picture quality, non-existent shutter lag, handling, features and price.
Cons
High ISO noise, slightly above-average build quality and LCD protector should have been included.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Highly recommended.
I just purchased this bundle which includes the kit lens (18-70) and the telephoto lens (75-300). The numbers can be a little deceiving as you have to multiply them by 1.5 which is the lens/sensor factor for these cameras. So in essence, the kit lens is actually 27-105 and the telephoto is 112-450 relative to 35mm. The price of this bundle found in some locations is unbeatable ($599).
I compared the camera to the Canon Rebel XTi and Nikon D40x and the D60. The three things that sold me on this camera as opposed to the entry level Canon or Nikons are handling, price and features.
I have large hands so it was very difficult to grip the Canons and Nikons comfortably as they seem to have tiny grip areas. I had to look at the mid-range Canon (40D) and Nikon (D300) before I was getting a comfortable handle. Unfortunately, the mid-range cameras are very large to carry around and also somewhat expensive.
The a200 in comparison felt very comfortable in my hands and that's very important as it will dictate your hand-shake amount and arm fatigue after a lengthy shoot.
I found the controls to be very well laid out and the overall design to be quite ergonomic. The menus are easy to navigate through speedily.
The features of this camera are quite astonishing for a camera in this price range, let alone a DSLR. 1 year ago you had to pay quite a premium for the features in this thing.
Sony is taking the dust problem with interchangeable lens cameras very seriously as it has a built-in automatic dust reduction system where the sensor shakes off the dust briefly on every shut-down. The sensor also has an anti-static filter preventing dust from being attracted to the sensor. There's also a cleaning mode on the camera whereby it vigourously shakes the sensor and locks the mirror in front of the sensor into the UP position so that you can blow any remaining dust away with a good quality hand blower.
This is quite handy as it's common to find yourself changing lenses on the go in places that may be dusty.
The alpha series has a feature very few other DSLR cameras have which is the built-in body image stabilizer. This effectively makes every lens you attach to the camera stabilized. It does this by counter-motion of the sensor to the actual motion of the camera. Although I have read that this stabilization system is less effective than the in-lens systems, I found it to work as advertised.
Looking through the view-finder you also find a small 5-level camera-shake meter that displays the amount of compensation the Stabilization system is doing. In other words, you can visually tell how much camera shake you're exerting on the camera. This is a very under-rated feature as it easily allows the photographer to time the shutter release with the moment of least camera shake. Out of my first 150 or so indoor pictures with this camera, only one shot was visually blurred. That's pretty impressive for me as typically I would see a lot more blurred shots in the first hundred or so indoor pictures using a new camera.
The built-in pop-up flash is automatically activated in auto mode but requires manual activation in most camera modes. This is done by simply pressing a button near the flash on the left side of the camera, in exactly the location where your thumb would rest when holding the lens with the left hand. Again, very ergonomic and easy to operate.
The LCD display shows a lot of information. It can be set to show minimal information for basic photography to just about every setting. It's large enough to view the settings comfortably. Sony should have included the LCD protector free of charge but instead it's an optional extra (I paid $20 for it), however it's highly recommended as it clips snugly on the back of the LCD and gives it complete protection from scratches and minor bumps (Protector model is PCK-LH2AM).
Another thing about the LCD is that the information displayed is oriented to match the orientation of the camera. So when you turn the camera on its side to shoot in portrait orientation the LCD display turns accordingly. It's very handy and I don't recall seeing this feature in many other DSLR cameras.
The 10.2 mega-pixel sensor has a sensitivity ranging from ISO 100 to 3200. I found that ISO 100-400 are very low in noise. From ISO 800 upwards, noise starts to appear but very easy to remove in post processing through software. ISO 3200 is not very usable as the built-in noise-reduction removes a lot of the image detail.
The camera has a 9 point, with a centre cross auto focus system and it's superb. In medium to good lighting the AF is super fast. In low light it does take a little longer but it achieves it even in difficult to focus situations. I am very impressed with the AF system of this camera.
The nice thing about the AF is the eye-start AF. Just beneath the view finder is a set of sensors that activate the AF system and turn off the LCD display automatically as your eye approaches the view finder. It's very impressive and the feature can be disabled if one prefers.
There are a lot of shooting modes ranging from the all-automatic point and shoot style to fully manual, and everything in between. You can even customize the in-camera image processing such as saturation, sharpness and contrast in order to minimize post processing. And you can of course shoot in RAW mode for the flexibility of detailed post image editing on PC/Mac.
There is even a setting for Dynamic Range Optimizer (DRO). This feature will (theoretically) increase dynamic range in high contrast shots to somewhat imitate high dynamic range photography. It can be disabled, be activated to Normal or Advanced. I have yet to compare shots using the various DRO settings to really judge whether this feature is good or not, but it certainly sounds good in theory as high Dynamic Range has been very difficult to achieve in-camera.
The battery life is exceptional. I have been continuously using this camera for the last week and have taken over 300 shots in various modes using a lot of flash and the battery is still over 50% full. I'm happy to say that a spare battery is definitely not a necessity with this camera.
The camera uses compact Flash (CF) memory cards as opposed to Memory Stick which I found pleasantly surprising for a Sony product. CF cards are relatively inexpensive, very robust (can handle extreme temperature fluctuations) and can be very fast. I purchased a Sandisk 8GB Ultra II rated at 15mb/sec read/write which is very well suited for this camera for $60. It can hold just over two thousand shots in the highest quality JPEG or about 700 in RAW.
The memory card slot is inside the handle on the right side of the camera behind a flip-out door. There you also find the micro-USB port for connecting the camera to a computer. While doing so, naturally, the door has to remain open.
The camera is fully compatible out-of-the-box with both Windows and Mac OS. For viewing RAW files, Sony includes the required software on a DVD.
One of the very few negatives of this camera is the build quality. While it's certainly above average, it's not excellent. It feels somewhat plasticy compared to the likes of the Sony a700 or Nikon D300 but certainly better than the Canon Rebel in my opinion. It's solid enough but you may feel some creaks in certain spots.
The other negative, as I briefly mentioned before, is the noise level at anything above ISO 400 is more pronounced than other DSLR cameras, such as the Canon Rebel XTi. The good thing here is that the noise in question is easily removed in software post processing, and also very difficult to see in normal sized prints (up to 8 by 10).
Overall, pictures produced by this camera are excellent and such a camera for this price is exceptional. I could not have imagined this much camera for this amount even as of late last year.
Sony appears to be very serious about the DSLR market by buying out Konica-Minolta, and their heavy investment in Carl Zeiss lenses and the manufacturing and R&D of camera CCDs (sensors). While many think it might be a wiser investment buying into a Canon or Nikon system, I think it's equally wise investing in a Sony alpha system especially for entry-mid level photographers.
I compared the camera to the Canon Rebel XTi and Nikon D40x and the D60. The three things that sold me on this camera as opposed to the entry level Canon or Nikons are handling, price and features.
I have large hands so it was very difficult to grip the Canons and Nikons comfortably as they seem to have tiny grip areas. I had to look at the mid-range Canon (40D) and Nikon (D300) before I was getting a comfortable handle. Unfortunately, the mid-range cameras are very large to carry around and also somewhat expensive.
The a200 in comparison felt very comfortable in my hands and that's very important as it will dictate your hand-shake amount and arm fatigue after a lengthy shoot.
I found the controls to be very well laid out and the overall design to be quite ergonomic. The menus are easy to navigate through speedily.
The features of this camera are quite astonishing for a camera in this price range, let alone a DSLR. 1 year ago you had to pay quite a premium for the features in this thing.
Sony is taking the dust problem with interchangeable lens cameras very seriously as it has a built-in automatic dust reduction system where the sensor shakes off the dust briefly on every shut-down. The sensor also has an anti-static filter preventing dust from being attracted to the sensor. There's also a cleaning mode on the camera whereby it vigourously shakes the sensor and locks the mirror in front of the sensor into the UP position so that you can blow any remaining dust away with a good quality hand blower.
This is quite handy as it's common to find yourself changing lenses on the go in places that may be dusty.
The alpha series has a feature very few other DSLR cameras have which is the built-in body image stabilizer. This effectively makes every lens you attach to the camera stabilized. It does this by counter-motion of the sensor to the actual motion of the camera. Although I have read that this stabilization system is less effective than the in-lens systems, I found it to work as advertised.
Looking through the view-finder you also find a small 5-level camera-shake meter that displays the amount of compensation the Stabilization system is doing. In other words, you can visually tell how much camera shake you're exerting on the camera. This is a very under-rated feature as it easily allows the photographer to time the shutter release with the moment of least camera shake. Out of my first 150 or so indoor pictures with this camera, only one shot was visually blurred. That's pretty impressive for me as typically I would see a lot more blurred shots in the first hundred or so indoor pictures using a new camera.
The built-in pop-up flash is automatically activated in auto mode but requires manual activation in most camera modes. This is done by simply pressing a button near the flash on the left side of the camera, in exactly the location where your thumb would rest when holding the lens with the left hand. Again, very ergonomic and easy to operate.
The LCD display shows a lot of information. It can be set to show minimal information for basic photography to just about every setting. It's large enough to view the settings comfortably. Sony should have included the LCD protector free of charge but instead it's an optional extra (I paid $20 for it), however it's highly recommended as it clips snugly on the back of the LCD and gives it complete protection from scratches and minor bumps (Protector model is PCK-LH2AM).
Another thing about the LCD is that the information displayed is oriented to match the orientation of the camera. So when you turn the camera on its side to shoot in portrait orientation the LCD display turns accordingly. It's very handy and I don't recall seeing this feature in many other DSLR cameras.
The 10.2 mega-pixel sensor has a sensitivity ranging from ISO 100 to 3200. I found that ISO 100-400 are very low in noise. From ISO 800 upwards, noise starts to appear but very easy to remove in post processing through software. ISO 3200 is not very usable as the built-in noise-reduction removes a lot of the image detail.
The camera has a 9 point, with a centre cross auto focus system and it's superb. In medium to good lighting the AF is super fast. In low light it does take a little longer but it achieves it even in difficult to focus situations. I am very impressed with the AF system of this camera.
The nice thing about the AF is the eye-start AF. Just beneath the view finder is a set of sensors that activate the AF system and turn off the LCD display automatically as your eye approaches the view finder. It's very impressive and the feature can be disabled if one prefers.
There are a lot of shooting modes ranging from the all-automatic point and shoot style to fully manual, and everything in between. You can even customize the in-camera image processing such as saturation, sharpness and contrast in order to minimize post processing. And you can of course shoot in RAW mode for the flexibility of detailed post image editing on PC/Mac.
There is even a setting for Dynamic Range Optimizer (DRO). This feature will (theoretically) increase dynamic range in high contrast shots to somewhat imitate high dynamic range photography. It can be disabled, be activated to Normal or Advanced. I have yet to compare shots using the various DRO settings to really judge whether this feature is good or not, but it certainly sounds good in theory as high Dynamic Range has been very difficult to achieve in-camera.
The battery life is exceptional. I have been continuously using this camera for the last week and have taken over 300 shots in various modes using a lot of flash and the battery is still over 50% full. I'm happy to say that a spare battery is definitely not a necessity with this camera.
The camera uses compact Flash (CF) memory cards as opposed to Memory Stick which I found pleasantly surprising for a Sony product. CF cards are relatively inexpensive, very robust (can handle extreme temperature fluctuations) and can be very fast. I purchased a Sandisk 8GB Ultra II rated at 15mb/sec read/write which is very well suited for this camera for $60. It can hold just over two thousand shots in the highest quality JPEG or about 700 in RAW.
The memory card slot is inside the handle on the right side of the camera behind a flip-out door. There you also find the micro-USB port for connecting the camera to a computer. While doing so, naturally, the door has to remain open.
The camera is fully compatible out-of-the-box with both Windows and Mac OS. For viewing RAW files, Sony includes the required software on a DVD.
One of the very few negatives of this camera is the build quality. While it's certainly above average, it's not excellent. It feels somewhat plasticy compared to the likes of the Sony a700 or Nikon D300 but certainly better than the Canon Rebel in my opinion. It's solid enough but you may feel some creaks in certain spots.
The other negative, as I briefly mentioned before, is the noise level at anything above ISO 400 is more pronounced than other DSLR cameras, such as the Canon Rebel XTi. The good thing here is that the noise in question is easily removed in software post processing, and also very difficult to see in normal sized prints (up to 8 by 10).
Overall, pictures produced by this camera are excellent and such a camera for this price is exceptional. I could not have imagined this much camera for this amount even as of late last year.
Sony appears to be very serious about the DSLR market by buying out Konica-Minolta, and their heavy investment in Carl Zeiss lenses and the manufacturing and R&D of camera CCDs (sensors). While many think it might be a wiser investment buying into a Canon or Nikon system, I think it's equally wise investing in a Sony alpha system especially for entry-mid level photographers.
