I can't justify purchasing an a77 right now, but I couldn't resist a chance to take one for an extended spin. Borrow Lenses had a good deal on a rental, so I pulled the trigger to get my hands on one for a little winter trip up to Whistler, BC next week.
I've only played with it a tiny bit so far, but... So far so good... My primary camera is the a900, and I started the DSLR ride with an a100, then a700, a850 & now just my a900... So, that's where I'm coming from..
I must say, the EVF isn't so bad, and in many cases, is quite nice... Definitely a treat for really low light work as even with the biggest OVF, if the light is dim, it's dim...
It still has v1.03 firmware so I was going to see if I could do the movie "trick" to get it to AF at wider apertures than f3.5... However, I do plan to use it mostly for still. I'll also be playing with a GoPro for catching some video while snowboarding...
The trick for me is trying to decide what lenses to take on the slopes with me... Unfortunately I don't have a good riding pack for camera gear, so I'll use a small Lowe Off-trail hip pack for the camera, and toss a lens or two in my regular daypack in a good softcase and wrapped in an extra down jacket.. Not the most convenient, but... What'ev...
So, primary ride-around lens will depend on the weather.. ;) If it's looking stormy all day, I'll just use my old 50mm f1.7... Otherwise, my 18-250mm Tamron... Basically the same as the Sony super-zoom... Not great, but it's flexible... Just have to decide what to toss in the backpack.... 12-24mm Sigma maybe? 80-200mm f2.8 or 70-400mm G? Both are just about the same size and weight... AKA, big and heavy... Dunno... I'll have 4 days on the hill to shoot, so I'll pick and choose depending on the weather and who I'm likely to spend my day riding with...
Anyway, I'm looking forward to taking this thing for a spin....
Greg, or anyone else with one have any tips or "must knows" about the a77 camera to shorten any learning curve? I've read all the reviews and know all the basics... I'll be shooting primarily in RAW so I'm not too concerned about jpeg settings.. I know I'll need to switch back and forth to play with some of the in-camera settings like HDR, stacked low-light, pano's, etc... But, I'll probably stick with my normal shoot raw, then use Photomatix and PTGui for those types of images...
Anything else I need to be thinking about with the a77?