I had the pleasure of going to Sesame Place last week on Vacation and I brought alone the Sony Alpha 57, Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM Lens, and the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II Lens!! Needless to say we had an absolute blast and the the Sony a57 performed off the charts awesome for Michele and I the entire time. We both took pics using the Superior iAuto mode and Aperture Priority Mode mostly, and of course some HD video footage 😉
I have a ton of pictures guys, so I apologize if your like “ok Jay we get it”, but I’m telling ya this camera is incredible and there are so many great pictures. I also asked my Dad take some photos with the camera and he had no issue at all getting good shots of Michele, Layla and I with the Sony A57. He has no idea how to use the camera just to let you know, so I put it on Superior iAuto Mode and told him to simple point and shoot!!
Our vacation ran the gamut as far as photography shooting conditions are concerned, as we had low light photography at the Crayola Factory,and we had bright sunny conditions at Sesame Place.The Sony A57 and both lenses did a fantastic job on all fronts, and I’ll explain in more detail as I go through the groups of photos below.
HD Video from the Vacation
In this video I used both lenses and let the Sony a57 do it’s thing for the most part. It really did a great job overall as you will see below. Be sure to select the 1080 video quality in the player window once the video starts. 1080 is available for this video, so Full Screen is the way to go!! It may take a minute to load at 1080 just to let you know.
Sony A57 Sample Pics From the Crayola Factory
These first few shots were at the Crayola Factory in Easton PA. The lighting was really poor and High ISO, or Flash photography was a must. I opted for High ISO, as on camera flash is not very flattering and the backgrounds usually end up really dark. Most of these images are at ISO 1000 or higher, and are just family snapshots from our vacation, and a few test shots here and there. I really want you guys to see what this camera can do for you in the real world!! 😉 I did adjust the white balance on these images as they had a yellow tint from the Incandescent lighting.
Be sure Click the photos for the 1200px Version!!
You can see in this image that the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 EX Di II Lens @ 17mm has a bit of distortion.
Here’s a few more test stye shots from inside the Crayola factory using the Tamron 17-50mm lens and the Sony A57.
On the way out of the Crayola factory heading back to the car, there was a colorful alley with some shops and art, so I grabbed a few pics along the way including a Pano of the whole scene using the AutoPano Mode on the A57.
Sony A57 Sample Pics From Sesame Place
And a few from the actual Sesame Street itself 😉 Oh yeah, did I mention the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 is incredible??
This next scene made for a killer test image!! Sony A57 and the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 EX Di II Lens.
Layla loved this slide!!
And lastly this is one of my favorite pics from the trip besides the family portrait of course 😉 The carousel was moving at full speed when I took the photo.
Closing Remarks
Well after extensive use with the Sony A57 I really cannot recommend this camera enough. Battery life is greatly improved over the A55 and I had no problem using the camera all day on one charge taking both video and photos throughout the day. I had over half the battery power left at the end of the day, but wanted a full charge for the next day as I only had the one Sony NP-FM500H Rechargeable Lithium-ion Battery.
Both lenses performed great and the versatility of the Tamron was preferred most of the time at the park, although I broke out the Sigma several times for certain images. The Sigma’s focus is really fast and quieter than the Tamron. High ISO performance is pretty good on the A57 and about the same as the Nex-5n in my opinion and the in camera Steadyshot works really well.
Overall I had a great time with the A57, Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM Lens, and the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II Lens during our vacation. I was so confident with the camera that I actually left all my Pro Canon Gear at home, and that is a first for me.
Stay tuned for my Full Hands on Review of the A57 coming soon!!
Jay
