a700 is a great camera

Well guys or girls, I went out for about 2 and a half hours shooting with it and again it was great. Many people have said, including my brother that there are way to many buttons on it. This is true there are loads of buttons but there very practical. The only button I didn’t use much was the WB but I noticed I was switching with ease from af to mf and changing important settings on the fly without having to dive into annoying menus. Its sooo easy and smooth. Anyways I started this thread to post some pics I took with this camera.
All were taken using 18-70mm lens. I noticed that this particular lens does well in macro. I should shoot macro more often because it seems good. Didn’t have many examples here though.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/miniheli/3098843965/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/miniheli/3098297409/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/miniheli/3099125746/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/miniheli/3099118320/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/miniheli/3098280623/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/miniheli/3098273571/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/miniheli/3099087368/

Looking good! You are getting some nice images already. Are you shooting JPEG or RAW? Doing any PP?

Yeah, all the buttons and such can be overwhelming at first, but after getting used to them I wouldn't give them up for anything. I'm usually always shooting with friends, and while they are busy menu diving I'm done changing settings and shooting already. That's what makes the a700 such a pleasure to use, none of this "go menu diving, hold this button while you throw this switch, click your heels together three times" non-sense.

Im shooting in JPEG and the only PP I’m doing is cropping. Im not really a fan of Post. Im one of those people who’d rather try to fix the pic next time by shooting it a 2nd time to reduce PP. It doesn’t get the best results but I like the old limited film feel. Im not quite sure how I would fix a image up in RAW. Shooting in RAW and PP the photos are something I don’t mind doing. Basically developing your own film in a sense. Any tips for fixing up RAW images?

True true. Settings that need to be changed quickly should have a dedicated button.

Yeah, you've got the right idea. PP work on digital images is pretty much like developing and printing your own work in a dark room. Except without the chemicals, the waiting, the test strips, etc. However, I do feel that it's easy to go too far with PP, so I agree that I'd rather re-shoot an image instead of doing a lot of PP work to it.

For me, I shoot cRAW with the a700 and Lightroom 2 is my modern day "darkroom" of choice. It takes the hassle out of dealing with RAW files. Adobe gives free 30 day trials, so you may want to check it out to see if it's right for you.

I prefer Jpegs because they don't make the workflow ridiculously strenuous. If I had a Mac Pro or a quad core machine with massive hard drive space, I would certainly do Raw more often.

As far as post processing, its important, at the very least, to tweak levels. I shoot in the forethought of how it will work in workflow - doing this I think produces better quality images in the end. Of course, it is also of the utmost importance to shoot it right, post processing should not be used as a safety net for sloppy shooting, and it doesn't really work that way either (at least, not very well)

Anyway, I constantly use the WB button! I bet you will start using it more and more as you go, custom WB is an important feature, and its great to not have to dig into a deep menu system to access it... WB-up-over-over-click, shoot white - perfect white balance. The various WB modes I rarely use, just flash, auto, and custom.

As I tell everybody new to the Sony system, you must get the beercan, the 70-210 f4. It is a spectacular quality for a bargain price, a legend amongst minolta shooters.

Heh heh. The White Balance button is very useful. I was chasing my little brother back and forth through the house and the light conditions in all the rooms were different. Very useful.

As for PP and programs. Ill try a few and see how I like them. :thumbsup:

I was so afraid that the a700 will be discontinued after reading some threads on the internet stating that the Sony a700 will be very soon. Luckily those threads were very old and as we all know that this cam is still here. Im wondering if people are afraid to go with the 700 cause they think its being discontinued. There are quite allot of threads about this and nun of them really have any counter that says that it will not be discontinued. In the world of digital this and that, technology comes and goes very quickly but luckily the 700 is here to stay for at least another year lol. That’s what I hope:)

Yes, unfortunately the market lifespan of modern electronics is relatively short. However, just because something is discontinued by a manufacturer doesn't mean it is obsolete. I know people that still shoot with the first generation digital Rebel, and producing award winning images with it.

The trick I think is finding the camera that will best fit you for the foreseeable future. A camera may be in the manufacturers line-up for a year or two, but if you find the right camera for you then you will be set for several years. I think the a700 successor is coming next year, but honestly I don't think I'll be "upgrading" until at least another generation or two after that.

Same here. A "upgrade" isnt always one. I only had my cam for a short time and see me using it every day like I am now years from now. I was just concerned that dslr's lifespan are generally very low.

Heh at least leneses last awhile :thumbsup: