An opportunity to get an Sony A77

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I currently have a Sony A57 and recently got the 18-135 lens for it - I like the camera.....the other day a friend of mine used it for a day as he has been thinking of getting a modern (d)SLR and afterwards he said if I'm ever thinking of selling to let him know.

So this got me looking at possible replacements and I have seen in a few places that I can get an A77 with the 16-50 SSM Lens for £999. I would sell my camera and lens for around £500 to my friend.

I suppose my question is (for the people in the know) is the A77 and lens a good buy at £999 (bearing in mind it is now a couple of years old) and is it £499 better than my current set-up? (£999-£500).

I guess I'd be ok with staying as I am but this is an opportunity to upgrade and give my mate a good deal and we can shoot together too

your thoughts would be helpful
 
A couple of things:
1) only you really know your needs/wants & whether something is worth the extra cost to you
2) if you can get a non-grey A77+16-50 for £999 it looks like you are doing better than my quick googling which is coming in about £70 worse.

Having said that what does an A77 get you over an A57?
A bigger heavier camera but one that is easier to operate (2nd control wheel etc.) with a slightly better EVF, better AF & weather sealing. It has more MP on target for better cropping ability & when normalised high ISO noise levels are very similar to an A57 (still slightly behind CaNikon due to the SLT light loss).
It's also rumoured to be replaced shortly (it should have been at the start of the summer but Sony scrapped that supposedly to go full mirrorless) albeit I would expect the new body to have an MSRP over £1000 at release.

What does the 16-50 get you over the 18-135?
A weatherproofed lens with faster, quieter focus, a wider aperture for low light/better subject isolation & an extra 2mm at the wide end. Against that it's heavier & you lose 85mm at the long end.
I have both & the 18-135 gets used as a walkabout with the 16-50 used really only where I need the extra aperture.

As for your mate a new A57 with 18-55 is ~£430, with the 18-135 it's just over £700. Assuming that you did decide to upgrade perhaps he could buy just your body & an 18-55 if you have one?
 
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I did think about waiting for the new one but then I guess with a similar lens it is going to be £1400+.....an A77 would be fine for me - I can look a new body in 2-3 years time.

I did think about a Canon or Nikon but I do really like the EVF and fast shutter. I'm not going to be printing out to large sizes so the IQ of the A77 will be more than good enough for my needs.......unless I'm missing something the Sony seems to have alot for the price

I am very open to listening to opinions on the above.....on which camera others would choose over the A77 at this price bracket

cheers again
 
I used to have the A77.

The main things you'd gain from the upgrade are:

1) LCD to OLED viewfinder
2) Constant f2.8 aperture throughout the range (albeit only 16-50 rather than 18-135)
3) More physical buttons
4) Weather sealing

So let me try to break it down for you.

The OLED viewfinder is amazing and much better quality than the LCD. But is it hundreds of pounds better?

How often do you think "Damn...i wish i had the ability to change xyz using a single button" on your A57? As a semi-pro wedding photographer I used to love the extra buttons. As an amateur....i could live with a few secs delay.

Do you often shoot in low light situations or portraits? If so then the f2.8 lens would be better for you. The SSM is also useful if you are shooting video.

Lastly do you want to be able to shoot in the rain, sleet, snow?


For me the A77 was very useful for me when shooting weddings mainly due to the button layout. But then I managed to get a refurb. I don't think I'd have paid full price because when compared with the equivalent Nikon/Canon it's looking a bit pricey.

Bear in mind too that you will probably find the 'noise' better on the A57 given it's only 16MP versus the 24MP on the A77. Sadly I found the Sony quite poor at low light and ultimately that's what drove me to defect to Nikon.

There is a lot I do miss on the Sony though. If I was going back to shooting for fun then I'd deffo get the Sony A77. Don't think I'd pay a grand though.
 
Other advantages of a77 include iso50 setting, micro focus adjust(can be very useful), much better swivel and movement on rear screen, ability to use battery grip, pc flash socket, 1/8000 top shutter speed.

Check the Sony refurb store as the a77 and 16-50 goes for 690 if you can get one!
 
gadgeteer said:
Bear in mind too that you will probably find the 'noise' better on the A57 given it's only 16MP versus the 24MP on the A77. Sadly I found the Sony quite poor at low light and ultimately that's what drove me to defect to Nikon.
Click to expand...
If you normalise the 2 then I dare you to tell the difference.
No APS-C from any manufacturer is going to compete with a D700 for low light.
 
thanks for the replies

for the people that would choose a different camera - which ones have similar features and a comparable lens (quality and reach) for £1k

In terms of the price of the A77 I cannot find it anywhere for less than £999 and the one I'm looking at is a UK one that somebody won as a prize and has yet to be used or registered with Sony
 
A77's viewfinder is big as in practically full frame big, Evf vs Ovf well that's another thread ;)
 
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