All pictures on this photo blog were taken with my Sony A700 ($1,100 retail). Most of them were also taken with the Tamron 300 mm zoom lens ($175.00 retail through Dell.com).
Occasionally, I receive questions about why I chose to purchase a Sony A700 instead of a similar Nikon or Canon DSLR. Anyone that knows me understands that I am not one to blindly follow the crowd. The last thing I would do is purchase a particular brand because it's what everyone else expects me to do. But, the single biggest reason I purchased a Sony...the stabilized lenses for Nikon and Canon cost an arm and a leg.
I originally planned to purchase the entry level Olympus DSLR, but after holding one in my hands at the camera shop a few times, I ruled it out. Some of the Zuiko lenses made for the Olympus are class leaders, but the Olympus felt tiny in my hands. I found it uncomfortable to operate the controls on the Olympus E510.
After holding the Sony A300 and A350 in my hands, I had my answer. Plus, all the Sony's have in camera stablization, which makes the lenses less expensive. (I don't own any yet, but some of the popular Minolta lenses will fit the Sony as well.) I chose the A700 over the A300 and A350 based on reviews I read on several camera discussion boards and reviews of the products by other camera owners.
I recently upgraded the Firmware from version 1.0 to 4.0 and the results are even better. Version 4.0 allows me to take better advantage of the Photoshop editing capabilities for RAW image files.
I'm also very happy with the photos taken with the Tamron zoom lens. For $175, it does a great job. I'm not sure $5,000 for a Canon or Nikon stablized lens would make the same amount of difference in my end results.
Based on this CNET article, it looks like I made a pretty good choice.
Occasionally, I receive questions about why I chose to purchase a Sony A700 instead of a similar Nikon or Canon DSLR. Anyone that knows me understands that I am not one to blindly follow the crowd. The last thing I would do is purchase a particular brand because it's what everyone else expects me to do. But, the single biggest reason I purchased a Sony...the stabilized lenses for Nikon and Canon cost an arm and a leg.
I originally planned to purchase the entry level Olympus DSLR, but after holding one in my hands at the camera shop a few times, I ruled it out. Some of the Zuiko lenses made for the Olympus are class leaders, but the Olympus felt tiny in my hands. I found it uncomfortable to operate the controls on the Olympus E510.
After holding the Sony A300 and A350 in my hands, I had my answer. Plus, all the Sony's have in camera stablization, which makes the lenses less expensive. (I don't own any yet, but some of the popular Minolta lenses will fit the Sony as well.) I chose the A700 over the A300 and A350 based on reviews I read on several camera discussion boards and reviews of the products by other camera owners.
I recently upgraded the Firmware from version 1.0 to 4.0 and the results are even better. Version 4.0 allows me to take better advantage of the Photoshop editing capabilities for RAW image files.
I'm also very happy with the photos taken with the Tamron zoom lens. For $175, it does a great job. I'm not sure $5,000 for a Canon or Nikon stablized lens would make the same amount of difference in my end results.
Based on this CNET article, it looks like I made a pretty good choice.
