Walk into any shop in Sg. Wang and you will get much better prices than at an official Sony shop. Same original Malaysian stock, same warranty anyway.

I bought an A100 for the anti-shake. Also I can use it with the 50mm F1.4 for really dark conditions.

They have a 500mm F8 reflex lens that AUTOFOCUSES. With Super Steady Shot, you can shoot at 1/50s HANDHELD at F8! There is no other reflex lens that has VR/IS... which means you'd want 1/750s at F8. Where would you get that kind of lighting? (A very long studio room?)

They have Carl Zeiss lenses that AUTOFOCUS.

They have a 135mm F2.8 T4.5 Smooth Transition Focus lens that has very smooth, creamy bokeh (the out-of-focus areas).

Minolta lenses (and their Sony rebadges) were designed to have nice bokeh, which is why they were big with the Japanese.

They also have the excellent Minolta 70-210mm F4 beercan lens, a cheap, solid and lightweight tele lens that is brighter than all the 70-300mm F4-5.6 lenses that are in the market now. I dare say I will stick to this and skip the heavy 70-200mm F2.8.

It's not about the price; if I had a Canon I'd get the 70-200mm F4 IS instead of the F2.8 IS for practical reasons.

Sony has good service, they fixed my Minolta beercan for FREE even though it was 20 years old. How's that for after-warranty servicing? They always have 2-4 days turnaround. I have not paid a single cent to a Sony Service Center.

You won't have cases of high-pitched VR lenses (annoying Nikkor 18-200mm F3.5-5.6!) or deteriorating SWM or dropping your expensive VR/IS lens, losing alignment and thus killing VR/IS on your lens.

"Oh but if you drop your Sony/KM and your AS/SSS dies then all your lenses have no AS/SSS."

Find me someone who has killed Anti-shake on their Konica Minolta/Sony then.

You can also find more rare old lenses in the A-mount and Pentax K-mount. Why? Not much demand. I just picked up a Vivitar Series 1 28-105mm F2.8-3.8 in Bandung. If it was a Canon or Nikon it would not sit there.

Sony unfortunately only retained the higher-spec lenses from the Konica Minolta days. Carl Zeiss IS a great, great brand to pay for. The sharpness and OOF rendition is amazing. Having tried the 135mm F1.8 I am convinced, and am saving up for one.

Waiting is a standard procedure. How long did people wait for Nikon after the products were announced?

Do you buy an SLR, then 2 months later, have ENOUGH money to buy the next big lens? Are you just sitting around itching to buy the next lens?

Pentax is a good system, too. They've been bought by Hoya. So if mergers are a sign, and one day, Hoya Pentax is bought by Microsoft, will you NOT buy one? There is more to a system than just your systemic dislike towards a brand.

The KM 50mm F1.7 is around RM350 or less second-hand.

The Minolta 70-210mm F4.0 "beercan" is around RM750 or less second-hand.

Look out for these. There are always people selling it, you just have to look out for it on photo forums. Tell your friends you have a Sony, and they will tell you if they see such offers. Even if they have another brand.

I managed to get my 50mm F1.4 and beercan within one month of having the A100. Just keep an eye out, and look in those old camera shops.

The 50mm F1.7 on the Sony A100 will have SuperSteadyShot; the Canon and Nikon do not have such a thing. Pentax has Anti-Shake on the body, too, and a lot of great second-hand old lenses too.



As for noise on the A100, yes it is noisy, but still Photoshop-able, and you can set it to ISO 400 and leave the rest to SuperSteadyShot. Need to capture action? There are second-hand F1.4 lenses.

The Lo80 and Hi200 rocks, by the way. Lo80 also sets the camera curves to save the shadows, while Hi200 saves the highlights from being blown out.

A Canon 300D user will complain about his ISO1600 also. Like hello! Tak puas.



The Nikon 55-200mm VR is darker, ending at F5.6. This will hamper your action shots where you need shutter speed, and VR won't help. The Nikkor 70-210mm F4 is a very rare thing indeed.

The closest Canon has to the beercan is the Canon 70-200mm F4L IS USM, which goes for around RM4000 if I remember.

Point-and-shoot and digital SLRs of the same brand CANNOT be compared. Some people with Nikon dSLRs prefer Canon P&S or Fujifilm P&S.

The Olympus 4/3rds lenses are very nice; they have a 7-14mm F4 (14-28mm equivalent) rectilinear lens which goes wider than everybody else except the Sigma 12-24mm on a Canon full-frame. They have F2.0 ZOOM lenses but those are way expensive, and you can be sure they will not be cheap or sold second-hand because 4/3rds is very new.

5) and 10) ROCK! Tap the AEL button to immediately take a spot metering for perfect exposure in confusing lighting.

3) is very handy also because the joystick is 8-directional with a center AF button to choose the center point at any point. You won't be going up-left-left. The diagonal AF points are placed along the rule of thirds while the center five are shaped in a cross (which can be used to align landscapes). I never quite understood the Canon 350D's AF points.

I'd like to add:

18) custom white balance in Kelvin, and adjustable Green to Magenta (the Nikon D200 only has Kelvin but not Green/Magenta)
19) Wireless Pre-flash TTL (which Nikon copied and called the Creative Lighting System)
20) Auto ISO
21) Super Steady Shot meter tells you how steady you are. I call it a confidence/anti-chimp meter. 5-6 stops of SSS are possible if you can get it down to one bar.

The upcoming Sony will have more knobs and buttons like the Konica Minolta 7D, including the very handy AF/MF toggle button at your right thumb in addition to one in front ala Nikon.

Actually, if you look at a F3.5-4.5 lens it can be read as averaging F4 aperture. That makes the 24-105mm F3.5-4.5 very versatile, and I often feel that 105mm is good enough on a walkaround.

The CZ 16-80mm has its merits for being very sharp wide open. If you want to shoot in low light, the 17-50mm F2.8 might not be bright enough, which is where a Sony 50mm F1.4, Sony 35mm F1.4G, Sigma 30mm F1.4 or Sigma 20mm F1.8 comes in.

However, given a choice between the 18-200mm and 18-250mm I'd choose the 18-250mm. Both are quite slow to focus and have darker apertures.

tom_k3nt: Next time say hi! (Though I wonder how you recognized me.)

I had two small bags la. The Lowepro Mini is one of the smallest camera bags for SLRs I see around. I like to split the load between two bags instead of one big bag.

Yeah I was using the wireless flash on top of the Transformer exhibits at Robotcon 2007 on the lower ground floor.

The 350D has a horribly small grip, which I never realized until I tried a Canon 70-200mm F4L IS on it. My friend needed to get the battery grip to quickly flip to portrait orientation.

The A100, however, has no problem with the Minolta 70-210mm F4 beercan. Same weight also! I can quickly tilt it left OR right (which the battery grip won't let you do) with no strain. Frankly, you don't need a vertical grip unless you intend to put a 70-200mm F2.8 on it.

Don't know about you guys, but I think the Sony has the best AF point layout, with diagonal sensors on the rule-of-thirds.

Shooting along the rule-of-thirds also helps a lot with hyperfocal focusing, but that's quite hard to understand unless you shot landscapes with manual focus cameras.

Don't forget that the Sony 50mm F1.4 at RM1300 or less is helped by SuperSteadyShot. The combination of bright lens, high ISO and SSS lets you shoot in darker places. Roadside mamaks. Theater performances. Gigs. Dinners (without flash!) Slow shutter night scenes with flash (with less motion blur in the background).

The people who say you don't need image stabilization are the same people who say "let's go to the zoo, so we can bring out our cameras!" and then keep them away in the evening because it's too dark for them to shoot anything.

I bring my camera everywhere. SSS helps me out a lot. Pop the kit lens on and shoot a evening scene without a tripod at 1/4s. No problem! Crispy details ensured.

How about room lighting? For those with a point-and-shoot with manual control, or a dSLR, try to shoot a newspaper at full wide, F3.5 ISO400 without flash. You might find you get a shutter speed of 1/4s. Without stabilization you'd get smudged text. The immediate "I can pick up my camera and shoot this!" feeling of having stabilization is great!

nairud: All focused in the middle? I don't get what you mean. Note that the AF points look different; the center square is a cross-type sensor, while the four arranged in a cross-shape are horizontal line-type sensors. The diagonal ones, on the intersection of rule-of-thirds, also indicate how the line-type sensors are oriented.

The big rectangle emcompassing everything shows where wide AF would focus on. The small circle shows where the spot meter is.

The diagonal sensors are placed in the same position as the 400D's rectangle of AF points. That's a major improvement over the 350D. I've never needed to AF on something in the frame in the outer 4 sensors of the 400D. A bit too far out.

...of course, even a D200 user craves the Pentax K10D's many cross-type sensors.

This post has been edited by albnok: Jul 5 2007, 12:57 PM

Cool! A guide number of 50m is great for this price.

You can pull out the diffuser almost all the way out, so it sticks upwards but does not fold. I find that this works for giving a little fill. Also try it turned around 180 degrees, so the diffuser panel faces the subject. I actually prefer this to the Stofen Omnibounce and Lightsphere, and it sucks less battery too!

Unfortunately the EF-500 DG ST does not have wireless or HSS support. The Sony HVL-36AM has... but it doesn't have a built-in wide panel diffuser, swiveling head or strobe/manual power control.

HSS (High Speed Sync) means you can use the flash at a shutter speed faster than 1/160s, useful for fill flash in bright daylight. However, you can work around this by stopping down the aperture.

If the Sigma EF-500 DG Super is significantly cheaper than the Sony HVL-F56AM (RM1200 around Sg. Wang) it could be considered, though the Metz 54 MZ-4i does look far more interesting.

tom_k3nt: Congratulations!

cityfish: Whoa, 9 meters. I haven't measured how far my AF assist light goes. It's not infrared, though, just red. But yes, I do see how many more practical things it has.

No, it won't spoil your CCD because the metering already will choose a very fast shutter speed. Unless, of course, you overexpose it.

However, looking at the sun through the viewfinder will spoil your eyes! What I've done when I needed to shoot the sun is choose Aperture Priority, roll down to F22, and hold down the Depth Of Field Preview button (circle button at the front, below the lens mount, near the right handgrip). The view will darken significantly so you can frame the picture with the sun. You can then shoot.

No, the CCD will not be exposed to the sun when you are looking through the lens.

Let's see how light comes in; it comes in through the lens, passes the open aperture blades, reflects off the mirror, bounces about in the pentaprism and comes to your eye.

The mirror is slightly transparent so light can go to a hidden mirror and go to light sensors at the bottom, which do metering.

The meter detects that there is SO MUCH BRIGHT LIGHT and so it chooses a very fast shutter speed, maybe 1/2000th of a second.

When you press the shutter, it closes the aperture blades to the aperture chosen, flips up the mirror and opens the shutter for the shutter speed chosen. Only THEN does the CCD get the sunlight. Because the mirror is up, you cannot see anything. In 1/2000th of a second, the shutter closes back and the mirror returns down.

Therefore, the CCD is only exposed for 1/2000th of a second so it's okay.

Comparing A100 and E510:

A100 plus points:
- bigger viewfinder (1.5x crop)
- less depth of field because of bigger sensor
- SuperSteadyShot for 3.5 stops of stabilization
- cheap second-hand Minolta lenses (not so easy, but not hard to find)
- wireless flash since the Minolta days
- ALL lenses, even DT lenses, can be used on Minolta film bodies for wider angles (18-70mm at 22mm, 11-18mm at 13mm)
- Popular Tamron and Sigma lenses come common in the Alpha mount
- future Alpha body has excellent layout

E510 plus points:
- more depth of field because of smaller sensor
- better key layout (I have to admit, I like being able to see all the settings in the viewfinder)
- SuperSonic Wave Filter that actually works (this is the only anti-dust solution that really works at the moment)
- Live View (recommended to use manual focus)
- about any brand lens can mount on the E510 because it has the most lens mount adapters and is the easiest to adapt

E510 minus points:
- almost no second-hand lenses other than the cheap lenses (because FourThirds mount is very new)
- Image Stabilization only seems to work up to 2.5 stops or so I tried
- very few F1.4 lenses. New FourThirds ones would be expensive and not quite... around, just yet.
- no wireless flash
- pressing halfway down on the shutter in Live View will not auto-focus; instead, when you full-press, it will take anywhere up to 3 seconds to auto-focus before shooting. You'd certainly lose the moment and point of having a SLR.
- the dial is at the back instead of the front. I personally prefer it in front of the shutter.
- Popular Tamron and Sigma lenses are NOT common and sometimes NOT produced in the FourThirds mount

I use a Lowepro Nova Mini AW, but that's quickly becoming very cramped the more stuff I get. I'm thinking of bringing my Sony HVL-F56AM pouch to a cobbler to add a belt clip (the Nikon SB-800's pouch has it, but the Sony's doesn't). That way I can carry one tele in the bag and have a flash outside.

zaimwfv: Go register at http://www.clubalpha.net. You need to have a Sony Malaysia registered unit to join, though. They have contests monthly, with prizes like flashes, macro lenses, wide lenses, macro ring flashes, etc. Very cool stuff.

Yo Jin!

I sense you might get it in December, for the same reason I bought it that time.

Just in case anybody mobs me, for the record my Cosina is a 70-210mm F2.8-4 (which isn't completely F2.8 all the way...)

I have the big Sony bag, that's a bit too big I must admit. I got it for RM200 with extra battery back when I bought my camera at Boeing Sg. Wang.

ALL Minolta AF lenses work with the Sony A100. No need to rechip or anything. Same goes for Sigma, Tamron and Tokina lenses. As long as it says "Minolta AF" it will work.

If you're looking for Tamron lenses for Sony, Leos Trading, 1st floor, Ampang Park has ALL the Tamrons people like (18-250mm F3.5-6.3, 17-50mm F2.8, 28-75mm F2.8, 90mm F2.8 Macro) for Sony/Minolta mount.

Personally, I would prefer the top end for flash. The Sigma ST doesn't have wireless, and the Sony F36 doesn't have manual power/swivel head. Everybody will want to upgrade from a lower-end flash (no matter which brand) so you're better off getting the big flash first.

(RM1150 is the cheapest big flash among the big three.)

The RM10,888 price for the Sony 70-200mm F2.8G SSM is the Sony Recommended Retail Price. You can expect MUCH cheaper prices at Tarita Sg. Wang.

Try Leos Trading in first floor, Ampang Park, next to the escalator. They stock about all the popular Tamrons for Sony/Minolta.

Yes, Key Color may have it too, but not as sure as in Ampang Park. Besides, Ampang Park is on the Kelana Jaya PUTRA LRT line, very easy to get there! (If you're scared of bringing your camera on the LRT... you're not gonna get any nice street shots.)

The Tamron 18-200mm should be around RM1500. No idea about the Sigma.

I have a lot of lenses, but it's good discipline to have a small bag so you can only carry maybe 2 lenses a day. I doubt the small Sony bag can fit more than one lens unless both are small prime lenses, like the 50mm F1.4 and 28mm F2.8.

Sony to unveil A300 to press on September 6th

A picture, if you will click, is at the link.

I'll probably be selling mine to upgrade to this, so Lowyat.net watch out!

The vertical grip is aligned to the bottom, so you don't feel weird when you use it in portrait mode, like you gotta move your right hand higher or your left eye lower. It's one of those things Minolta did that was a lot smarter.

The future Sony vertical grip also has the 9-point AF selector. It's the most loaded of the vertical grips you'd ever see.

Also note the grip sensor; only when you hold it and put your eye to the viewfinder, Continuous AF starts.

This Sony is more of D200 level, as it replaces the Konica Minolta 7D. Wait till you see the back, it has a LOT MORE buttons for quicker access to everything. Something like the Pentax K10D.

When it comes out, and when I have enough money, which is in December, LOL. I think a lot of dSLRs will be shifting hands, I'm sure of that.

Oh, the Sony A700 has leaked out, first in some Russian site, with a flash, then on the UK site, and then they took it down. Fortunately I got to watch the flash file and snapped screenshots.


I LOVE:
- AF/MF switch on the back. No other brand has this. AF on, yes. But not a button to go into MF when you're in AF. For ALL lenses.
- 12.24 MP ExMor CMOS sensor with ISO3200 + 6400. Much cleaner than the old CCD.
- 921k 3" LCD screen. Like the Nikon D300
- Sony Ericsson-style AF point selector. Also lets you go through the shooting settings
- vertical grip has everything on it including the AF-selector dial!!!
- front and rear dials
- proper Sony Infolithium battery (notice the 95% bar?)
- kit lens is a 16-105mm F3.5-5.6!
- weathersealing
- double cross-type sensor in the middle. Every other dSLR has a normal cross-type sensor which is half as sensitive. This means that AF is as fast as the Minolta Dynax 7 film body, which claimed to have the fastest AF of its time.
- changeable focusing screens for manual focus and architecture
- supplied infrared remote controller (yes, wireless!)

I love 16mm on 1.5x crop, and I love 105mm. It's far enough zoom for me compared to 70mm on the old kit lens.


This was taken from another site.

This is a screenshot that has been brightened for those of you on dark CRT monitors. It has the superb Carl Zeiss 85mm F1.4 ZA lens.


More details here:
http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.pht...-revealed.phtml