REVIEWS / DSLRS / SONY

Sony Alpha SLT-A55: Translucent Mirror Inside

10 Feb, 2011, 4:53 pm IST | by Rossi Fernandes | DSLRs DSLRs

The Sony SLT-A55 body next to the 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM lens

The Sony SLT-A55 body next to the 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM lens
The A55 with the lens removed
Battery compartment
The standard 18-55mm lens is an average performer
Shooting modes selector on the left top of the A55
The Finder/LCD button switches view between the EVF and the screen
A dedicated movie recording button makes shooting easy
Shooting controls at the back of the A55
Connectivity options hidden behind protective flaps on the
The folding screen is built very well
The Sony A55 looks like any other DSLR on the outside

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Sony

Sony has been in the spotlight recently for its NEX E-mount cameras for their unique design, features and primarily its good image quality. Fundamentally, the NEX-5 and NEX-3 cameras were like point and shoot cameras with large sensors had no viewfinder.

Sony's new SLT-A55 DSLT

Sony's new SLT-A55 DSLT

 

 

Sony’s SLT-A55 falls in the A-mount category and it has a viewfinder like any DSLR would, but they’ve gone with an electronic one like the ones on a superzoom camera.  If that’s the case and if the A55 is just a DSLR with an electronic viewfinder, should you bother buying one? 


Features
The A55 uses a translucent mirror that allows light to pass through it which means the mirror need not move out of the way when a photo is to be clicked. This should technically speed up focusing and reduce noise since the mirror doesn’t have to move every time you click a photo. Currently, there are two models in this family – the A33 and the A55. The A55 is the one we’re reviewing today. The A55 is a 16.2 MP camera that uses a standard APS-C type CMOS sensor. The ISO range spans from 100 to 12,800 which is very similar to the Sony NEX-5 we reviewed a week back. Most of the similarities end here – the A55 uses the standard A-mount, which was inherited from Minolta. This means that there’s a wider range of lenses to choose from.

The Sony SLT-A55 body next to the 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM lens

The Sony SLT-A55 body next to the 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM lens

 

The NEX cameras used a new E-mount but it’s also interesting to note that companies such as Sigma have committed to making lenses for the new mount. The camera comes with a stock 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM lens kit.

The folding screen is built very well

The folding screen is built very well

 


The camera has a foldable LCD screen which can be turned around on its back if required. It’s used to operate the camera – both the settings and also for focusing. The screen displays colours well, perhaps a little too vibrantly. The electronic viewfinder is designed in the same way as you would find it on any other camera. The quality of the EVF as with other cameras is bad. It’s not crisp and it’s no replacement to an optical viewfinder. This is quite probably one of the poor points of this camera. 

Tags: Sony Alpha SLT-A55 , Sony , SLT , A55 , Alpha , DSLR , DSLT , 18-55mm , lens , interchangeable , APS-C , camera , translucent , mirror , 16.2 Megapixel

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