A55 or A33 or A580 (but where to buy?)

[justme77]

where in jb can i buy the a580? what is the price? is there a gst refund in jb?

There is no refund of gst in Msia as gst in Msia have not been implanted yet (and i hope it wont/delayed as long as possible).

On a price, not sure about JB but i believe u can get it at around RM24xx for body only in KL (generally under $1,100 equivalent).

 

[Chiacj]

Thanks ppl!
Midway down the line, I narrowed down my choice to NEX and A55, and chose A55! With the considerations below:

1) no need to buy adaptor to use my A-mount lens
2) no need to keep 2 more SEL lens for nex
3) small and also quite friendly for my wife to use
4) love the 10fps and more silent shutter sound
5) Love the AF in video mode, simple to use -fun factor
6) In built GPS tagging! nice geo tags when uploading to sites supporting geo taggings.
7) Plenty of features!
8) Focussing is very very accurate compared to A550! usually the assist AF will caught other objects beside in wide angle view, but A55 will get it right!
9) 100% TRU VIEW! and TRUE COLORS! colors is superb, really bring out the potential of my lens or at least felt that way =)

Well , after owning A55, like to share a few negatives too:
1) really small grip for my big hands- still acceptable to hold though
2) battery life is better than A33, but not as good as A550
3) Flash photography at dark/low light is difficult, as cannot see via EVF or liveview, miss the optical VF in this case.
4) panaroma sweep needs practice to shift sideways and not around the center, need to get used to
5) tilting screen not suitable for large tripod base mount
6) Shooting movie and zooming tends to be very susceptible to shake, will need monopod or tripod for stabilization, if it is A580 I think even moving the focus ring will shake all the way!
Of cos there is ZACUTO if there is depth in the pocket, not my option at all. Any other ways?

Enjoy shooting! Everyone! Cheers!



I will be bring this baby to my honeymoon!

 

[Ghostfit]

Congrates on your purchase and welcome to the SLT club.

My 2cts below :bsmilie:

3) Flash photography at dark/low light is difficult, as cannot see via EVF or liveview, miss the optical VF in this case.

You need to set your LCD and EVF brightness to auto, I can see and compose clearly in the dark (abet with a grainy picture) on my A55 whereas it's total darkness in the OVF and LCD on my A500.
You need to set the A55 such that it'll ramp up the EVF/LCD gain if the picture is too dark.

5) tilting screen not suitable for large tripod base mount

Why not ? ...Just fold it back into the camera's back and use it like any other DSLR, when mounted on a tripod, why do you need it at an angle ?

Alls not rosy thought, ...I have however found something that bugs me from time to time.

It the AF speed ! ...under optimum lighting conditions, the AF is blazingly fast and you kinda get used to the speed. When the lighting is less than ideal and you need to resort to using flash, the AF slows down and with a quiet lens the camera seems like it's faulty when it releases the shutter seemingly with a delay.
Shooting the same scene with an A500 has an even longer delay but seem normal as during the 'delay' the flash is strobing for the AF.
Switching to a 500d, it couldn't even focus unless you use the IR beam AF system.

 

[Chiacj]

Thanks, Friend.

But regarding the OVF part, when you are at low light situation and u set something like F8 1/125 setting for flash set up shot, you will still be able to see your subject clearly via OVF.
something which is not going to happen with EVF - this is what I mean.

And ya,I just found out that we can pop up the built in flash, and the EVF/LV will show the scene in proper lighting- this is more like turning on the video mode (exposing the sensor thru the lens) than "amplifying" the scene as it seems to me in A55.

I do not know about A500, but if it is a very dark scene, you can actually use MF check LV, you will see what you can see in the dark! And MF... shoot! Thats what I did with A550. Totally a great feature not only for macro ! =) maybe just me.