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September 25, 2008
[REVIEW—SONY A300 DSLR]
Price: $1000 with 18-70mm lens.
Interesting camera, poor kit lens
The low-down: This 10 megapixel DSLR is a sub-$1000 camera in basic kit form. Construction is acceptable with plain plastic much in evidence. It comes with the Sony 18-70mm kit lens and can also be bought in a two lens kit with a 55-200mm tele zoom. The lenses are slow and rough in operation as well as being optically unimpressive. However, they are cheap! There is effective in-body image stabilisation and dust removal. The LCD screen is articulated and will swivel through a front/back axis but not sideways. The viewfinder is cramped and dim, which is average for this level camera. Image storage is on expensive Memory Stick or inexpensive CF card. The implementation of live view is excellent.
Like: This camera has two stand-out features – the swivelling LCD screen and the live view function. Although the LCD is relatively small and only moves through limited angles it is wonderful for overhead and low level shooting. And this is the first DSLR with live view that works pretty much as it does on a compact. You just point and shoot. Focus is fast and fairly accurate and there is no double-clunk as on other SLRs with live view.
Dislike: JPEG images straight from the camera are soft. We suspect that this is not a camera fault but a lens issue. We would strongly recommend buying the body plus one of the excellent Zeiss lenses that Sony offer as an option – expensive but good.
Verdict: This camera will appeal to customers moving up from a compact because the live view arrangement will feel immediately familiar. But can anyone explain why holding a heavy DSLR at arm’s length makes more sense than using the optical viewfinder? We feel that image quality is not up to par, even shooting RAW, mainly because of the indifferent performance of the lenses. Compared with the Canon 1000D and the Nikon D60 the Sony stands out in features and falls behind in kit lens quality.
Posted by terry at September 25, 2008 01:32 AM
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Comments
"But can anyone explain why holding a heavy DSLR at arm’s length makes more sense than using the optical viewfinder? "
It doesn't really but it does have a lot of potential use in strange angle shots for example when the camera is down at ground level or way up high. It is also useful in shots where the camera is tripod mounted for landscape or macro shots.
Posted by: RichardR at September 25, 2008 01:18 PM
"It comes with the Sony 18-70mm kit lens (which is) optically unimpressive."
I think this statement requires some qualification; in what way is it optically unimpressive? And "fall behind in kit lens quality" compared with the Canon 1000D and the Nikon D60 kit lenses?
Posted by: Anonymous at September 26, 2008 02:27 AM