Sony Alpha A700 12.24MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)
I came to the a700 from the Sony a100. I never did shoot with the Minolta 5D or 7D. Prior to my a100 purchase, I had owned several Sony and Minolta digital p&s cameras, so moving to the a100 made sense to me. Given that all my film SLR cameras were fully manual, I started my journey into the DSLR world without being tied to any current lens system.
I’ve been shooting with the a700 for about 2 years now. Somewhere between 30,000 and 40,000 shutter actuation’s later, it’s still going strong. I live in the Midwest of the United States and this camera has gotten use in four real seasons. It has been used in the 100 degree heat of our summers and in the negative temps of our worse winter weather. It’s a semi-pro body with all the durability you’d expect in this class. The body feels very solid in your hands and well constructed.
Picking up the a700 for the first time, you’ll immediately notice the 3″ 640×480 display that dominates the back. It’s the same Sony made display you’ll see on Nikon’s D300. This screen makes reviewing images and checking focus a breeze. It is usable in direct sunlight, however it does get somewhat washed out like all LCD displays.
Grip the camera in your hand and you’ll find two scroll wheels and numerous dedicated buttons at your finger tips. Dedicated buttons for Drive settings, ISO, WB, EV compensation, Metering, AEL and Instant MF are all within a thumbs reach. Don’t like menu diving to change common settings? Hit the Fn button button on the back to change many settings without ever leaving the main display. Want to alter your JPEG settings? Hit the “C” button on the back of the camera for instant fine tuning of JPEG processing.
On the grip of the camera you’ll find the memory card slot door. Slide this back and you’re presented with one MS PRO DUO card slot and one CF card slot. You can have a memory card in each slot all of the time. Unfortunately, you have to switch between cards manually from the menu system. It would have been preferrable if the camera automatically switched between cards when one filled up. It is nice to be able to have a backup card in the camera though.
Menus can be navigated either using the dual scroll wheels or the dedicated joystick on the back of the camera. Depressing the joystick or the shutter button will confirm a setting change. Pressing the shutter button while in any menu will cause the camera to a ready to shoot state.
Ergonomics were obviously of great importance to the designers of this camera. The majority of shooting related settings can be changed without taking your eye off of the viewfinder. The design is very logical and you’ll be able to quickly memorize the button layout. The display within the viewfinder will allow you to see what settings you’re changing. It’s s design intended for speedy and easy settings changes, so you can get busy taking photos rather than hunting through an endless assortment of redundant menus.
Since were talking about speed, it should be noted that this is a very speedy and responsive camera. If you’re coming from an a100, prepare to be blown away. It’s not just a matter of 5fps vs. 3fps or the much faster AF module, it’s just a far more responsive camera overall. It is immediately noticeable when changing settings or reviewing photos even. There is no lag when doing anything. The camera will never slow you down.
One of the single biggest improvements the a700 carries over its predecessors is AF speed and accuracy. It’s finally equal or better than the competition in this class. Whereas the a100 had difficulty tracking fast moving objects, the a700 keeps up with ease. I often resorted to manual focus when shooting hummingbirds with my a100. The AF of the a700 is good enough that I don’t bother with MF for quick moving subjects like hummingbirds anymore. You get the typical AF settings that are offered with bodies in this class, but I wouldn’t have minded if Sony had tossed in a bit more control. My body did intitially suffer from back focus issues when used with wide angle lenses. Sony fixed this under warranty and it has been fine since. Back focus issues are the single biggest complaint I have heard about a700 bodies, so it’s something to be weary of. Sony service can take care of it, but it would have been better if the problem never existed. Sony is far from the only manfucaturer to prodeuce a camera with BF or FF issues.
I think that takes us to image quality! The a700 will not dissapoint. Images are vibrant and sharp. Minolta colors are still there a bit, but there is also a bit of Sony colors there as well. Metering is consistent and startingly accurate at times. I don’t find myself ever second guessing this cameras metering system. Image noise is well controlled up to ISO 1600. Image quality is virtually identical to Nikons pricier and highly regarded D300. This is not a huge surprise considering they share the same Sony made 12MP image sensor. Using Sony’s Dynamic Range Optimization abilities, you can create some amazing images that would be very hard to impossible to duplicate in a RAW developer. I have tried and failed numerous times to duplicate what DRO does. Dynamic range is good for this class of camera. APS-C sized sensors still leave something to be desired when it comes to dynamic range, but that’s life(for now).
Pair this body with a good lens and I am sure you’ll be extremely pleased with the results. It’s nice that every lens you attach to this body will be stabilized.
Battery life has been very good. The original battery is still going strong after lots of use. You can use 3rd party batteries in this body.
If you buy one, make sure to upgrade the firmware to v1.04 asap. This firmware revsion improved JPEG image quality and added new features to the camera.
All in all I have been very pleased with his camera and would definitely buy one again.
Overview
The Sony a (alpha) DSLR-A700 is the perfect DSLR for serious amateurs — with 12.24 MP resolution to capture the full imaging precision of Sony zoom lenses, precision Carl Zeiss® lenses and legacy Minolta a-mount lenses. Quick response, creative style modes and high-speed shooting helps you capture your creative vision, Super SteadyShot® image stabilization works with every lens, and the Eye-Start® Autofocus system uses an 11-point center twin-cross AF sensor to improve precision. All this, plus Sony Anti-Dust Technology and a rugged magnesium alloy body.
Feature
- 12.24-megapixel Exmor CMOS sensor captures enough detail for poster-size prints
- Body only; lenses sold separately
- In-camera image stabilization and anti-dust vibration systems; Eye-Start Autofocus system
- 3-inch LCD display; 11-point autofocus system; 40-segment multi-pattern honeycomb metering
- Powered by lithium-ion battery; stores images on CF I/II and Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo cards
Customer Reviews
Felt Like Second Nature – Anna Nguyen –
I purchased this camera as an upgrade to my sony A100, because I was building my photography business, and WOW was I impressed. I hit limits with the A100 and was looking for a great upgrade. I spent days, DAYS looking around, reading, researching cameras in the sony lineup and this one hit everything on the mark (I had a collection of old minolta lens and sony lens already). It’s definitely something I can grow with for the next two years.
Pros:
+ being a sony user – it felt so intuitive, I knew what I was doing after 5 minutes of use
+ ISO handling is awesome
+ the 16-105 Sony lens is amazing for the price
+ its size is impressive and the body is built wonderfully with the magnesium alloy body
+ comes with a wireless remote
+ the 3″ LCD screen spoiled me rotten 
+ the AF/MF back button – I can quickly go between the two – it’s simple awesome
Cons:
+ the joystick is annoying for quick navigation through photos but you can scroll thru it all (also its the “enter” button pretty annoying there too)
+ weight – its pretty heavy around your neck, you might want to get the hand grip
+ the eye start focus was annoying now its really helpful once you get use to it. (you can turn this off)
+ the RAW files are Bigger than I’m use too (18mb
Good dslr packed with features for semi pros. – Daniel Cardoso – San Diego,CA
I bought this cam from J&R through amazon and it came on time and intact.This camera is just what you would expect from a Sony product the best,feels like a mini tank but the lens kit is it not all that, still does the job though for simple shots. I had been thinking about getting a Nikon or Canon, but i thought that their getting old and since this is my first dslr i would go with the NEW! sony has about a 14 percent share in the dslr market now and you bet their gonna grow fast. Sony is always very innovative, making their mark on any platform they get into. on top of that its just an overall cheaper system to be married to at the moment.
Great camera – Ron Moore – La Verne, CA USA
My present camera is an A100 Sony.I waited quite a while before I decided on this camera as an upgrade. I reviewed several Sony models on CNET Reviews and this cameras filled my needs and was extremely well priced. Newer models did not offer anything I needed to do the job for me. I am a semi advanced armature photographer.
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