Sony A900 Full-Frame: Hands-On Preview
by Wesley Fink on September 12, 2008 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Digital Camera
A900 Specifications
Convenience
- Burst Mode: 5 fps
- Color Mode(s): Standard, Vivid, Neutral, Clear, Deep, Light, Portrait, Landscape, Sunset, Night view, Autumn, B/W, Sepia (All other color modes use the sRGB color space)
- Red-Eye Reduction: N/A
- Self Timer: Yes (10 seconds, 2 seconds with mirror-up function)
- White Balance: Auto plus 6 Modes (Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Flash); +/- 3-step adjustable Kelvin temperature control (2500-9900k w/19-step Magenta/Green compensation)
Hardware
- LCD: 3.0" TFT Xtra Fine (921k pixels) LCD
- Microphone: N/A
- Viewfinder: Optical: TTL, 0.74 x, Diopter -1m-1 100% coverage of 35mm Full-frame area
Power
- Battery Capacity: 7.2V, CIPA standard; approx. 650 pictures
- Battery Type: NP-FM500H Lithium-ion rechargeable battery
General
- Imaging Device: 24.6MP (effective) 35mm full-frame Exmor CMOS image sensor; RGB primary color filter
- Megapixels: 24.6MP
Convenience Features
- AF Illuminator Light: Yes (Built-in LED)
- Movie Mode(s): N/A
- Multi-Pattern Measuring: Switchable; 40 segment honeycomb pattern, Center Weighted, Spot
- Scene Mode(s): Standard, Vivid, Neutral, Clear, Deep, Light, Portrait, Landscape, Sunset, Night view, Autumn, B/W, Sepia
Optics/Lens
- Focus: Autofocus: TTL Phase Detection, Dual-cross 9-point AF w/ 10 assist focus points for Wide AF
- Focus Mode: Single-shot AF, Automatic AF, Continuous AF, Direct Manual Focus, Manual focus
- Focus Area: Wide focus (Auto - 9 areas), Spot focus, Local focus (9 local areas selection with the multi-selector)
- Lens Type: Interchangeable A-mount
- Shutter Speed: 1/8000 second - 30 seconds, bulb
Software
- Operating System Compatibility: Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, XP Home and Professional, Vista; Macintosh OS X (v 10.1.3 or later) OS must be installed at the factory.
- Supplied Software: Image Data Converter SR (Windows & Macintosh), Image Data Lightbox SR (Windows & Macintosh), Remote Camera Control (Windows & Macintosh), Picture Motion Browser (Windows only)
Operating Conditions
- Flash Effective Range: No Built-in Flash (Compatible with Sony System Flash)
- Flash Mode(s): Auto, Fill-flash, Rear flash sync, High Speed Sync, Wireless off camera flash (with Flash HVL-F56AM, F36AM)
Inputs and Outputs
- HD Output: Yes (w/ optional HDMI cable)
- Output(s): Video and HMDI: NTSC/PAL Selectable
- USB Port(s): Yes, Supports USB 2.0 Hi-speed
Weights and Measurements
- Dimensions (Approx.): (WHD) 6 1/8" x 4 5/8" x 3 1/4" (156.3x116.9x81.9mm) (excl. protrusions)
Accessories Supplied
- M-series Lithium-Ion Battery (NP-FM500H)
- Battery Charger w/cord (BC-VM10)
- Wireless Remote Commander (RMT-DSLR1)
- Video Cable
- USB Cable
- Shoulder strap with eyepiece cap and Remote Commander clip
- Body cap
- Accessory shoe cap
- Software/USB Driver CD-ROM
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
53 Comments
View All Comments
Wesley Fink - Friday, September 12, 2008 - link
That is the EN-EL4(a) battery for the Nikon Pro cameras and the Sony capacity is specified as 1650mAh and not 16500. We do need an edit function here!dr4gon - Friday, September 12, 2008 - link
The memory stick is so that you have the ability to shoot RAW+JPG. It's just for redundancy in case your compact flash card dies for whatever reason. All is not lost since the JPEGs can be saved on the MS like the a700.VirtualMirage - Friday, September 12, 2008 - link
On the a700 you can only shoot to one memory card or the other at any given time. When set to RAW+JPEG, it doesn't send one file to one card and the other file to the other card (that option is not even available). It would be neat if it did, though, since I could have used that feature with my a700 when doing a wedding shoot back in June. The camera also doesn't automatically switch over to the other card when the first card is full, you have to go into the menu and switch it over manually. The a900, from reading a preview on another site, does the exact same thing in regards to memory card management as the a700 (which is a bit of a shame).As for the use of a memory stick and CF, I can understand the con with this since if you want to have a fall back memory card you have to deal with two different memory card formats. But the advantage to it, though, is a smaller camera profile since two CF card slots would require a little more room.
Below are some features I wish my a700 did (as well as the new a900) in regards to its two memory card slots:
-Automatic switchover when the first card is full.
-Option to have RAW files go to one card and a JPEG version go to the other card.
-Backup mode where ever picture shot is copied (in the same file format) to both cards.
Shame they don't do this. But oh well, the a700 is still a great camera. And with the new firmware that got leaked out earlier this week (v.4), it's an even better camera since they added some features to the a700 that are in the a900. Some of these improvements are: High ISO NR can now be turned off (used to be you can go no further than LOW), Image quality algorithms have been improved with NR on and off (finer grain pattern in high ISO shots, no more watercolor NR), EV bracketing now has a +/- 2 option for HDR shooting, and some people are reporting WB has improved in certain lighting. Their maybe more improvements, but since it was leaked with no update readme (and was quickly removed from the site too when it was discovered), the only improvements mentioned are what people have found after installing it. Supposedly, the official release of the firmware update is sometime next week (the 16th is what I am hearing). Probably so as to not steal the a900's thunder.
~Paul