ReasonOfThanatos: Of course you can have both face and background in focus; however you will have to work harder to making it work as both a "portrait" and a "scenery" picture.

vincyuee: The 18-70mm tends to get gear stripping these days - send it to Sony as it is spoiled. The plastic geartrain inside can get worn and so the teeth are catching on to a worn track, hence it is stuck in place. The 18-55mm SAM doesn't have this problem.

kmarc: Not true, Sony service is pretty good. If anything you can say there are more delays getting your stuff back from Nikon (I had a Coolpix 2200 sit with them over a year, and a common problem with the SB-600 is the flash head - one SB-600 was with Nikon for almost a year. And my SB-28 never got its battery cover.)

Cheap and decent FF kit sufficient for event coverage/weddings (not premium kit lah):

A850 = RM6000
HVL-F20AM = RM350
HVL-F58AM = RM1050
Konica Minolta 17-35mm F2.8-4 = RM1300
Konica Minolta 28-75mm F2.8 = RM1100
Minolta 70-210mm F4 beercan = RM900
Sony 50mm F1.4 = RM1100

Total = RM11800

Premium Zeiss/G kit sufficient for event coverage/weddings:

A900 = RM7300
HVL-F20AM = RM350
HVL-F58AM = RM1050
Sony Carl Zeiss 16-35mm F2.8 SSM = RM5400
Sony Carl Zeiss 24-70mm F2.8 SSM = RM5400
Sony 70-200mm F2.8G SSM = RM5400
Sony 50mm F1.4 = RM1100

Total = RM26000

kmarc: In flourescent light, you will want to use a slower shutter speed (at least 1/50s) to get even lighting - flourescent light flickers 50 times a second. AWB with flourescent light generally looks okay but if you're not sure, use the Flourescent WB or set the temperature in Kelvin WB while using Live View to get a very accurate WB.

All Sony/Minolta AF lenses will fit on the A550 (and any Alpha). There are only THREE types of batteries - the NP-FM55H for the A100, the NP-FH50 for the A230/A330/A380, and every other Alpha uses the NP-FM500H battery. The LCD protectors can fit on same-chassis bodies (A330/A380, A500/A550, A850/A900).

wha7ever: I do think so at times, though if you want a 16-35mm/70-200mm combo you'll probably be looking at 2 bodies.

braindead_fr3ak: I like #3 and #5.

bkwu: None of the current Alphas have video recording. The A550 has a bigger grip than the A380, and better noise control. And there is probably a A330 twin lens kit but I forgot to look out for it.

bkwu: Depends - there's a pretty good deal at Sony Style outlets (KLCC, Times Square, The Curve) where there's a free Survival Kit 2 (quite a nice bag, cap, bottle...) Can't remember which model though.

Uzumaki NaruTo: Comes with certain Alpha models sold at Sony Style outlets.

kmarc: Actually it should be fine lah. Just that flourescent light flickers so don't expect consistent color and light at faster shutter speeds. A bright prime lens would be best, e.g. 50mm F1.8 DT SAM on a budget.

Tips you can learn from Nigel Barker of America's Next Top Model:



In another video of him teaching how to shoot pets, he suggests the photographer get behind the shoulder of the pet owner. So the pet owner plays with the pet while you shoot from behind the shoulder - probably this would work for babies as well?

cplow1: Exactly! Though you know lah for the people here who think they need to have every focal length covered...

Yes that's right - the SAL5018 is the Sony 50mm F1.8 DT SAM. That is a good deal!

Kul | Mo0: There is a good reason to use ND filters in bright daylight! So you can use F1.4 at ISO200 on a 1/4000s body in bright daylight.

craziqbal: Wah! I thought he liked his 70-300mm F4.5-5.6G SSM and Sigma 300mm F4 a lot.

Seng_Kiat: They are thinking of ND filters in the traditional sense of shooting smooth waterfalls or making flowing traffic.

kmarc: The point of the 50mm is that it's F1.8 and lets you avoid using flash in low light. However it's not for group shots. You'll still need the kit lens at least.

noellee69: For the same price I ended up with the Hoya HD and B+W Brass MRC filters as those are scratch-proof and easy to clean (the Zeiss T*, not as easy.) However optically all 3 are top-notch.

Opteka 85mm F1.4 spam, at F1.4.

kmarc, congratulations! Yeah sounds like a good deal. Remember not to put the F20AM on the body when putting it in the bag (it can break by sideways shearing; this is in the warning on the instruction manual.)

kfthoo: The 2 popular focal lengths, 85mm and 135mm on FF are also close to 60mm and 90mm on APS-C. So the 60mm F2.0 Macro or the 90mm F2.8 Macro would do great for portrait macro. Though you may want to put on a soft filter sometimes.

kfthoo: The benefit of F2.0 is in the dark, so it can be used as a low-light lens. The 60mm as I remember is a lot sharper than the 90mm (the 90mm can still be used to some extent for portraits but the 60mm is a bit too sharp.)

eddybeh: Best you send it to Cheah Repair in Mutiara Complex, Jalan Ipoh, or International Camera in Pertama Complex. There might be fungus also. Also, make sure it's Minolta AF and not Minolta SR manual focus (MC/MD mount). It should be able to mount on your A100 if so.

finejava: 70mm on FF is close to 50mm on APS-C, and 135mm on FF is close to 85mm on APS-C, you mean?

lugiamcg: Lens cap and strap comes with the box lah.

kmarc: Use the Pixel Mapping function in your A550 menu.

finejava: No, 70mm on APS-C is not anything like 85mm on FF. It's 105mm which is not wide enough for a head-and-shoulders shot at 1 meter distance (supposing both of you were seated down in a small 4-seater table.) 58mm or 60mm on APS-C gives 85mm on FF.

porkchop: The pixel mapping affects the Quick AF Live View sensor. It sounds like that is what is affected, not the rear LCD, since it does not appear in pictures, just in Quick AF Live View.

achew: It would cost/hurt more if you got a mark on your 135mm's front element... go get your filter already!

cjlai: Nice, I've never seen that split-prism before!

eddybeh: Fungus is contagious so yeah better you send it in.

y_owez: The A380 has 14 megapixels while the A330 has 10 megapixels. I'd say the A330 twin kit is the most value but I'm not sure how much it sells here (never asked.) It seems to be about the same price. So it's up to you if you need Malaysian or Australian warranty...

achew: It will take a long time, and a friend had that happen to his Zeiss 24-70mm. His AF/MF switch broke, and he sent it in. They changed the lens housing but realized that they'd made a mark on the glass - so it went back to Singapore and they replaced the entire lens glass assembly (Zeiss makes the glass and assembles it, then Sony puts the lens housing around it.) So in all it took 2.5-3 months with complaints. So yeah, a filter will save you all that trouble.

y_owez: As I understand it, International Warranty is where you get to choose one country where the warranty is valid. So the question is, where will you and your camera be for the next 1.5 years? Sony Style shops give more freebies - for example now in Malaysia they give the Survival Kit 2 which has a cap, bottle and a really nice waist bag.

y_owez: Oh yeah so it should be cheaper! The price won't drop much - at most a RM200-300 drop if they decide to revise their pricing structure.

None of the current Sony Alpha dSLRs have video recording yet. As it is currently all video dSLRs have very slow autofocus in video, or none at all, and it doesn't make sense without an articulated screen. So Sony is holding out until they can make a good video dSLR (none of the current ones are very practical for the average consumer.)

Yes, you can buy it in Malaysia but ask for an international warranty that will be valid in Australia.

Kul | Mo0: The Zeiss 135mm F1.8 is internal focusing, without SSM.

achew: It was under warranty - heck they extended his warranty!

Anyway, I'll quote something I read from Dyxum a long time ago - this guy used to work in Nikon in the repair department. A customer called up saying "hey I need my body back by this date... I'm a working professional." The people there just laughed because if he was really professional, he would have a backup body!

gizmo_pony: Cheap UV filters will cause loss of contrast and flare as well as reduction in light transmission.

mastering89: Sounds like Super SteadyShot failure. It 'parks' the sensor a bit off. Yes, you can bring your Singapore set to Malaysia but they will charge.

lugiamcg: On a budget, the A450 might be your best option. However the A500 would be better for Quick AF Live View alone.

cjlai: The Type-M focusing screen for the A700 if I remember was RM175, and the Type-M for A900 is RM285.

freddy manson: Source is me about the backlit sensor thing.

eddybeh: Should be under RM300.

cjlai: Yes, the Type-M doesn't have a split prism. I also ordered one online for my A700 but since my A700 sensor was not at the same focus plane as my AF sensors and viewfinder I could not use it. (The worst kind of backfocus.) It's lying in a box somewhere at home! There isn't a split-prism option offered for anything with a viewfinder as big as the A900 or Canon 1DsMkIII unfortunately.

Might be worth mentioning the cons of these screens;

- spot metering is going to be screwed up because our exposure meter is above the viewfinder screen
- if you're not using F1.4-F2.0 lenses there really is no point
- any lens F4.0 or even F2.8 will look visibly darker, like there is a polarizer on your lens all the time
- if your sensor is not at the same focus plane then you won't get pictures in focus based on the screen
- it will be much harder to tell if your shot is in focus in the dark if you have a darker lens (F3.5) so I got some OOF crowd shots that way. Thus for event coverage I use the Type-G
- the split prism is only in the center