Sony DSLR-A100 vs Canon XTi

[us131]

I am considering purchasing a DSLR and narrowed the choices down to the canon and sony. The majority of my photo's are of cars racing, large buildings, mountains, and city shots at night.

Some of my pics can be found on my site:
Http://www.journeykaizen.com

My major concern is that my hands are not very steady (poor genetics), and i dont have enough money to buy the IS lenses from cannon.

Below are the two packages I am considering with the Sony being $100 more.

Sony DSLR-A100 with Sony 18-70mm f/3.5-5.6/Sony 75-300mm f4-5.6

Canon EOS Rebel XTI with Canon EF 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 & Canon EF 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6

Which one would you recommend?

[Canuck935]

The perfect camera for one person isn't always the perfect camera for the next. I suggest finding these two camera's on display in a store and spend some time playing with both. Whichever one feels best in your hands and is most intuitive to operate is the one for you.

[Photo-John]

I've used both the XTi and the Sony Alpha extensively and I like both cameras very much. I think the built-in image stabilization on the Sony is excellent, although it will have diminishing returns at longer focal lengths. It works very, very well with the kit lens. To me, choosing between the two cameras comes down to the Canon system vs the Sony Super Steady Shot. If you want to buy into what is arguably the best auto focus camera system available, then you should go with Canon. If image stabilization is your primary concern and you aren't concerned with having access to everything Canon has to offer, then I think the Sony is a great alternative.

Here's a link to my Sony Alpha A100 review >>

By the way, for some of the stuff you're shooting, shaky hands shouldn't be an issue. You can use a tripod instead of handholding if your subject is relatively static. And for motorsports, your shutter speeds will likely be fast enough that camera shake won't be an issue. Camera shake is usually a big problem for casual, low-light shooting or outdoor photos where depth-of-field is critical and you don't have a tripod. A lot of these problems can be solved with technique rather than a different camera. That said, image stabilization is a wonderful invention and it does help people get photos in situations where they would otherwise be unable to.

Hope that helps!

[ItsaChris]

I never thought I would say this but go with the sony (I think i died a littel after typing that) but I just got my hands on the XTi and I hate it more than the sony my hand cramps up and I have no idea why they left out the top display. I know your not looking at it but i would rather the D70 or D80 over the sony, MP do not matter that much I print 20x30 out of my D1x and the D70 feels good but the D80 has a better AF system than the 5D (I own the D200 and Its not as fast as my D1x but much faster than the 5d and i would say almost on par with the 1d)

hope that helps

[Photo-John]

I never thought I would say this but go with the sony (I think i died a littel after typing that) but I just got my hands on the XTi and I hate it more than the sony my hand cramps up and I have no idea why they left out the top display.

Damn - that's funny! I would also recommend the Alpha before the Canon to us131. But because of the Super Steady Shot, not because of the size. It's a good thing there are a variety of cameras for a variety of people

I love small cameras and I love the back display on the XTi and the Sony. I like it a lot more than the top LCD. I have a 1D too and I'd much rather use the XTi most of the time. My XTi replaced a 10D, which is just about exactly the same size as the Alpha. I'm psyched to have a smaller camera that's easier to carry on my bike.