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Apr. 3rd, 2008 11:07 pmToday, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
damashita and i bought combined birthday-anniversary gifts. Sony α100 digital cameras.
I'm not particularly a Sony fan. In fact, that's understatement by a few degrees- i loathe many of Sony's business practices, so buying something with their nameplate on it makes a bit of a statement right there. Here's why- Sony bought the SLR division of Konica Minolta, and did some rebranding with what was essentially the top prosumer model in the Minolta Maxxum line. I/we love Minolta. Oddly enough, when we first got together, our primary cameras matched- Minolta X700s. Unlike the other digital SLRs on the market, the lenses are interchangeable from even the first generation Maxxums (which date back to, oh, 1987 or so)- so versatility is definitely possible, and some of the older lenses should be available in good condition second-hand. Better yet, Minolta used to have a contract with Leica for their upper end lenses; and Sony has a similar agreement with Carl Zeiss- so there is some exceptional glass available which will be fully compatible with the camera body.
We'd headed to the camera store intending to look at the Canon Digital Rebel XT and the Nikon D40 series. These were in the 8 megapixel range, and seemed very similar . Both come in kits with 18-55mm lenses. These were very much comparing Braeburns to Fujis. At a slightly higher pricepoint, but kitted with both an 18-70mm and a 75-300mm lens was theSony Minolta- and it's 10.2 megapixels- and reviews in the class with the Canon EOS 30D and the Nikon D50 and D80. The backwards compatibility combined with the expanded offering was the deal maker. We now have a matched set of them.
damashita and i bought combined birthday-anniversary gifts. Sony α100 digital cameras.I'm not particularly a Sony fan. In fact, that's understatement by a few degrees- i loathe many of Sony's business practices, so buying something with their nameplate on it makes a bit of a statement right there. Here's why- Sony bought the SLR division of Konica Minolta, and did some rebranding with what was essentially the top prosumer model in the Minolta Maxxum line. I/we love Minolta. Oddly enough, when we first got together, our primary cameras matched- Minolta X700s. Unlike the other digital SLRs on the market, the lenses are interchangeable from even the first generation Maxxums (which date back to, oh, 1987 or so)- so versatility is definitely possible, and some of the older lenses should be available in good condition second-hand. Better yet, Minolta used to have a contract with Leica for their upper end lenses; and Sony has a similar agreement with Carl Zeiss- so there is some exceptional glass available which will be fully compatible with the camera body.
We'd headed to the camera store intending to look at the Canon Digital Rebel XT and the Nikon D40 series. These were in the 8 megapixel range, and seemed very similar . Both come in kits with 18-55mm lenses. These were very much comparing Braeburns to Fujis. At a slightly higher pricepoint, but kitted with both an 18-70mm and a 75-300mm lens was the
