Sony Alpha33 / SLT-A33 Test

[Volker]

Hello,
I just wanted to share my first impressions and experiences that I made with the new Sony alpha33 DSLR camera.
I bought the camera body plus 2 lenses: Sony 3.5-5.6/18-55 and Tamron 70-300mm Tele-Macro

I never took photos/videos before with a DSLR camera, so it was completely new for me.
+ Price (compared to Canon EOS5,7,...)
+ Image Stabilizer
+ Big variety of lenses to choose from
+ Wide angle of the Sony lens
+ You can use SD, SDHC, Memorysticks, ...
+ Compatible with Bogart SE
+ Quality of the Stills (even in low light conditions)
+ Nice Colours
+ Easy handling in auto modes

- Only a few manual settings when shooting video
- The autofocus when shooting videos is not a big help
- No true interlaced video (progressive look, Twixtor can be used but results look awful)
- Video quality is a little bit too noisy in low light conditions

Sample video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeCZU6tYNDE

Sample photo:


I will post more photos, if anyone is interested.

Just my 2 cent, regards
Volker

[SYLRENAUD]

Beautiful footage Volker...Thank you for sharing this...I have not tried anything but Canon so its nice to see other SLR models.
- did you use any filters ? how high does the shutter speed go ?
- are you on a tripod or monopod ?

I have heard good things about Tamron... what is the f-stop on that lens ?

When you get a chance would love to see footage indoors

again thank you for sharing this & look forward to more !

Syl

[Volker]

More info about the Tamron lens I used can be found here:
http://www.amazon.de/Tamron-70-300mm-4- ... 638&sr=8-2

I have used a tiny tripod on some of the shots (taken in a short distance to the ground).
The other (higher above the ground) shots were taken without using a tripod or monopod at all.

All you see on the video was "produced" by the camera itself. No Casablanca image processing effects have been used.
On some shots I used an "evening" preset mode of the camera which enhanced the red color tones a little bit. That's it.

Shutter speed (for taking photos) goes from infinite to 1/4000 sec.

I missed to name one big advantage of this camera, maybe it was THE advantage that made me buy this camera and not one of the Canons:
+++ you can twist and tilt the display. So you can shoot video from all angles you can think of. You can hold the camera above your head or you can put it on the ground. You always will see what you are shooting on the large display.



More footage (indoors,...) will come later.

Volker

[SYLRENAUD]

Thanks for the info Volker,
Yes the fact that there is no flip out on my cameras can be limiting
Thats why I put my name for the Z-finder EVF when it comes out in early 2011

http://www.zacuto.com/zfinderevf

Keep posting !

Syl

[Franklinbencosme]

Hey Volker great information !!..What about the AUDIO features ?..Manual or atomatic ?
Any AGG,how long you record in the SD, SDHC, Memorysticks ?

Thanks..Franklin..

[Volker]

Hey Franklin,

Audio? Well, there is not much to talk about audio. You can use an external audio recorder (that's what I recommend) or you can attach an external microphone to the camera.
Forget the internal microphones.

The camera can record in Full-HD mode in AVCHD and in 1440x1080 mode. So far I just tried the Full-HD mode. With disabled steadyshot you can record sequences up to 29 minutes in one go. With enabled steadyshot it will be 11 minutes or so. But since I am not shooting weddings, it is ok for me
A 16 GB memory card will take 2-3 hours of video, I think.

More info : http://www.mhohner.de/sony-minolta/onebody/a33?lg=d

One more thing I like about the Sony is the great panorama photo feature. I will post some examples soon...

[Volker]

here is one (resized for the web):

[SYLRENAUD]

Beautiful picture Volker !
I haven't even tried to take pictures with mine lol
Are you taking picture with all manual settings ?
I will be going on a vacation in December so I will give it a try then.

Syl

[ASHampton]

Thats nice! I had my hands on the new Canon 60D a couple of weeks ago...it has the new flip out LCD as well. Great stuff!!