Review
In this Sony Alpha A77 Review I will cover everything you need to know about this incredibly powerful SLT (Single-Lens Translucent) Camera. I got the Alpha A77 kit which comes with the Sony 16-50mm f/2.8 lens for ~$2000, or you can grab just the camera body for ~$1400. Not a bad price considering the features and quality in my opinion. Lets go over the a77 briefly so you know what all the hype is about this highly anticipated camera.
The Sony Alpha A77 is not an SLR like the a580 or a900 for ex.. The Sony Alpha a77 like the Alpha 55 are both SLT’s and have a fixed translucent mirror inside. As opposed to a mirror that flips up and down every time your shoot like a traditional SLR. This fixed translucent mirror allows for a few things to happen which are incredibly fast 12 frames per second shooting, incredibly short release lag time of .005 sec, Auto Focus while recording video, and it is much quieter. The downside of the fixed mirror technology, at this point in time, is about 1/3rd of a stop of light lost and some possible glaring issues. Only in certain conditions but I never noticed any. The 1/3rd stop loss of light results in a little more noise as you might expect.
Special notes for this review:
I also want to note that I used the firmware ver.1.03 for most of time, and just updated the A77 to ver.1.04 a few days ago. So please keep that in mind as that may pertain to some negatives here and there in my review.
Get the latest Firmware Here >>
I also used Lightroom 3 to work with my images and develop the a77 Raw files. The Mac version of the Sony Image Software is terrible and crashes constantly. Sony really needs to step up their game for Mac users when it comes to their software!!
My Pics of the Sony Alpha A77 taken with the Sony Nex-5N:
I normally use the Canon 5D Mark II for my product shots, but it was gorgeous outside and the fall leaves were still hanging on. Luckily the A77 came a bit early and I still had the Nex-5n with the new 55-210mm f/4.5-6.3 lens.
Check out these high res pics I took using the awesome Sony Nex-5N. More on “Product Photography with the Nex-5N” over here if your interested >>. Full review of the Nex-5N over here >>.
Also be sure to click on these photos and a really nice crisp 1200px version will pop up for your viewing pleasure. You can then use the left and right navigation to go through the pics in a nice Gallery style view.
Sony Alpha 77
Sony Alpha 77
Sony Alpha a77 review
Sony Alpha 77
- Sony Alpha 77
The Sony Alpha A77 Articulating and Rotating LCD Screen
Sony Alpha 77 |
Sony Alpha 77 |
Sony Alpha 77 |
Sony Alpha 77 – Great for protecting the screen!! |
Check out the Sony Alpha A77 with the 16-50mm f/2.8 Kit lens Mounted:
Sony Alpha 77 w/ 16-50mm f/2.8 Kit Lens @ 16mm
Sony Alpha 77 w/ 16-50mm f/2.8 Kit Lens
A closer look at the 16-50mm f/2.8 kit lens:
Sony 16-50mm f/2.8 Kit lens for a77
Sony 16-50mm f/2.8 Kit lens for a77
Sony 16-50mm f/2.8 Kit lens for a77
Sony 16-50mm f/2.8 Kit lens for a77
I also got the 85mm f/1.4 Carl Zeiss lens that came with the a580, so I took a photo with that lens mounted on the a77 as well. I had a weird focus issue with the 85mm f/1.4 and ended up having to make a lens adjustment inside the camera itself. It fixed the issue and more on that Back Focusing issue over Here>>
Sony Alpha 77 w/ 85mm f/1.4 Carl Ziess Lens
About the Author
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When taking video can you view through the eye port or must you use the LCD screen? I’m thinking the the a65 will be my next Sony body if you can view through the eye port V the LCD screen.
Hi Mark,
Thanks for your comments and Yes, you can use either the OLED viewfinder or LCD screen for any function on the A77 and A65 thanks to the translucent Mirror Technology.
Best,
Jay
If you want similar noise levels to the 5n then down-sample the 24mpix images to 16mpix and you’ll get very close to it.
The noise profiles of the A77 and 5n sensors are very similar at the SAME resolution. But with the A77 you get the advantage of having 24mpix when you want it for cropping.
I’d have the 24mpix A77 sensor over the 16mpix 5n sensor every time. Sometimes I wonder if people really understand ISO at all.
SonyGuy,
I compared the re-sized results from the excellent article over at Luminoius-landscape, and the a77 sensor is still clearly noisier.
I understand that most people will not even use such high ISO’s but the A77 is not as good as the nex-5n as far as High ISO in the real world. The facts are the facts, and my test results speak for themselves. I’m sorry you don’t like it, but it is what it is. Pixel Density makes a difference as well as the mirror. You don’t get something for nothing.
That being said the Sensor is still incredible and I would probably never go higher than ISO 3200 anyway. In the end it really doesn’t matter much. but if you are looking for a High ISO Camera , this is not the camera for you and you need to see accurate ISO comparisons. .
Thank you for taking the time to put together this review! Very helpful and some great pictures in there too! Cheers!
Thank you Jeff for taking the time to comment and your kind words
Best,
Jay
Thank you for this very well thought out review. I recently ran into the f3.5 limitation in 12fps mode and I thought I was doing something wrong. Thanks for explaining that this is a limitation of the a77. I’m still don’t fully understand the reason for this limitation and it is a little bit frustrating that I cannot open my lens to f2.8 when shooting sports in 12fps mode. But I agree fully with your overall conclusion. Quite an excellent camera even with the shortcomings you have identified.
Hey Brian,
Thanks a lot for your really nice comments and sharing your experience with the f/3.5 limitation. I don’t fully understand why either, but the bottom line is the engineers decided to lock it down. How’s your hit rate in the 12fps mode if you don’t mind me asking? I didn’t have the best hit rate when I tried it a few times. Maybe 3 out of 12 were sharp, but I was tracking a running dog, so….. it’s tuff
Thanks again,
Jay
Jay:
I’ve had really good experience with it so far. For example, I took 10 shots in a row at a soccer game of a goalie making a stop on a shot in less than optimal light last weekend. The a77 nailed every single one (RAW + JPEG). Sharp as a tack. (Then again, I wasn’t tracking . . .) The limitation of course was that I had to carry a little more ISO than I wanted in order to get the shutter speed I wanted.
Brian
Brian, That is awesome!! Great to hear and thanks for sharing your experience. I hear ya about the ISO and that is a bit annoying when your using an f/2.8 lens. Did you try and shoot in in just Aperture Priority mode at f/2.8?
A77 Continuous Shooting Speeds: Continuous (Hi: up to 8fps,Low: up to 3fps) Continuous Priority AE (12fps)
8fps isn’t to bad, and at f/2.8 it would definitely lower your ISO a bit.
Thanks again,
Jay
I have indeed and you are absolutely correct that 8fps is more than sufficient for most situations. You know how it is. If your car can go 100mph . . .
Thanks for the in depth review Jay. I’m interested in using this camera for making short films and video work as well as photos and I had some questions about the video mode. When you say the ISO is locked at 1600 in video mode does that mean that the user has no control over ISO in video at all, or that the user just cannot go over 1600 in video? And is that only in auto or is that limitation in manual as well? And in manual video mode can you change the aperture to the lens limitation or are you stuck to F3.5 and higher?
I work for Sony in one of their retail locations and I’m very interested in the camera but unfortunately we haven’t received it in. When we get it I plan on giving it a through stress test, but I was hoping you could answer some of these question for me in the mean time.
Matt,
Thanks for your comments and sediments on the review
Great questions by the way and I’ll do my best to clear up the confusion for you!
The ISO is adjustable when recording video but it “Tops Out” at 1600 (Sony Locked it down to max out at ISO 1600). I probably could have worded that better in the review, sorry about that. This ISO limitation is for all video in every mode including manual. Auto Focus only works in P Video Mode which stands for auto exposure mode. So in P Video Mode your adjustments are limited to exposure compensation and ISO 50-1600. In manual video mode you can change the aperture to the lens limits, shutter speed, and ISO 50-1600, but don’t forget it’s manual focus only
I hope this helps!
Jay
Thank you for your review. I have had my a77 for a few weeks now, still learning. I have maybe a dumb question. My previous camera was a Sony A200. With it when i set AF on single, the green light would light when in focus and when subject moved light would go off. I would then know to refocus. My area was always set to local so I could choose my own focal point. With my A77 with same settings green focus light remains
on even if my subject moves. Will I need to switch to continuous Af for moving subject. I hope not, I am used to single AF. I am just a hobbyist, trying to get good photos of my moving grandbabies. Just wondering if I have something set wrong. Help me if you can.
Debbie,
Thanks for the comments and great question you have there!! I know what feature your talking about and I enabled it on something recently, but I can’t remember which camera it worked in manual focus only I think though. I’ll let you know when I find the info!!
Best,
Jay
Great and detailed review Jay.Had been pondering over which one to get as an upgrade over my A200. Now pretty sure A77. Was thinking of A850 then A580 (have to get it from the US as it is not sold in Dubai – risk of warranty if I got from the US ).After readin and seeing your images I think I opt A77 that is available here locally.
hi,
quick question,
I’ve had mostly Nikon’s. Recently sold my gear and got a A77.
I’ve used 70-200 for my son’s soccer. I’m thinking of the 70-400.
Is it as fast, as sharp?
Also, how’s continuous focusing for sports?
I tried an A77 out last year with a 70-200 and it was nice. I didn’t however like that the Sony A77 blocks the view inside the viewfinder by playing back previous images. This is problematic for high speed action photography.
What are your thoughts?
Thanks!
Andy
Hi Andy,
I have not used the 100-400mm yet, but plan to get it with the Next A-Mount Sony I review!! I have read a few reviews on it however, and it appears to be just as good as the 70-200mm pretty much from what I can tell. Same quality optics, build quality etc.. I Can’t wait to try it!!
As far as the images popping up when shooting sports etc.. it is a bit annoying, but believe it or not you can get used to it. I only did minimal high speed photography with the dogs running around, but the A77 performed quite well. The hit rate was not very good, but that was due to my poor tracking abilities, as the dogs are incredible fast!! When I did hit the mark though, most shots were sharp as you would expect. It’s much different then using an SLR for sure and takes some get used to for that type of photography. I prefer the Optical viewfinder for thisstye of shooting still but eh OLED is certainly usable.
Best,
Jay
Is nice review on Sony A77 however, you have indicated a Jpegs are over processed that are problems within hardware or software itself…Please advice…Thanks.
Thank you Toll,
The Camera itslef processes the images and is not a hardware related issue as far as quality goes. Shooting Raw is the way to go, this way you can develop the images yourself. That is my personal preference. When shooting in Jpeg mode the camera takes the photo, and then color corrects, sharpens, noise reduces etc… In my opinion the Sony A77 goes a bit to far in the Noise reduction department, and sharpening depending on the image. Keep in mind though, I am a raw shooter so I’m a little biased as far as that goes. The Jpeg quality overall is still very very good.
I hope that helps,
Jay
My reason has asked. Since, there are so many commentaries surrounding the web with Jpeg file on Sony A77 without explanation in details, just as you did. I do agree Raw format is the best ways to captures pictures comparing to Jpeg format as you said…thank you so much for replying my question Jay…9day.
Your very welcome and have a great day
Jay
thank you for your review Jay! Great work with depth. I own the A77 for 6 months now. Enjoying the camera. Everyday you learn something new to get the best output. It quite a complex camera and needs time to understand than the previous models.
Will you be doing an update soon once the new firmware comes out on March 29th?
cheers
Rui,
Thanks for the comments and it’s great to hear your having a time with the A77!! It really is an awesome camera for the money
I was not planning on doing an update, but now that you mention it I just might. I was planning on reviewing the Fuji X-Pro 1, and then the Olympus OM-D, before the new Sony A57 comes out.
Is their anything in particular you were looking for about the update?
I’ll see what I can do!!
Jay
Firmware Update Now Available!!
It’s been reported to me by some readers that the latest firmware update makes the Sony A77 focus much better and more accurately in extreme low light, low detail for focus testing. Check out the testing article over (Click Here) if your interested, but the bottom line is Update your Firmware ASAP A77 Owners!!
Best,
Jay