The Sony Alpha 100 (aka
DSLR-A100) is the first digital single lens reflex produced
by Sony, and is the result of the company's acquisition of the
digital imaging division of Konica Minolta; explaining the family
resemblance between the Alpha 100 and the Dynax 5D.
The shell of the Alpha 100 is entirely
made of lightly textured black polycarbonate over a metal
frame, and the only area covered by a non-slip surface is
the front-facing part of the grip, which provides a reasonably
secure hold on the camera.
In the front, on either side of the lens, are three controls:
The
Depth of Field Preview button on the lower left.
The Lens Release button, on the right.
And the AF/MF Switch to select Autofocus or Manual
Focus, below the Lens Release button.
Control Dial, positioned directly in front
of the Shutter Release.
The Control Dial serves to change
the shutter speed in the Shutter Priority mode, the aperture
in the Aperture Priority mode, or change the camera selected
aperture/shutter speed combination to other possible combinations
when the camera is set to the Program Shift mode. In addition,
the Control Dial can be used to go from one image to another
when the camera is set to the Playback mode.
As usual, the Shutter Release of the Alpha 100 is
a a two-stage system, locking the focus and the exposure when
held at the halfway point.
Behind it is the Drive button:
Pressing the Drive
button displays 6 options on the monitor:
Single Frame Advance: captures an image each
time the shutter release is pressed.
Continuous Advance: captures JPEG Fine images
as long as there is space on the memory card, at a
rate determined by the available shutter speed, and
captures up to 5 frames at 6 frames per second in
RAW format, while the combined RAW + JPEG format captures
up to 2 frames at 3 frames per second.
Self-Timer: provides a delay of either 2
or 10 seconds.
Continuous Bracketing: allows the camera
to capture a series of 3 exposures with a ±1/3
EV or ±2/3 EV increment.
Single Bracket: this option allows capturing
a bracketing sequence 1 image at a time, each time
the shutter release is pressed. The bracketing range
is ±1/3 EV or ±2/3 EV, same as Continuous
Bracketing, but allows the flash to recharge, which
makes flash bracketing possible.
White Balance Bracketing: allows the camera
to capture 3 frames varying the white balance over
a range of ±10 or ±20 Mireds.
To the left of the Drive button, the Mode Dial
offers 11 positions which represent all the shooting mode
of the Alpha 100:
The Auto mode puts
the Alpha 100 in charge of all photographic settings,
all the user has to do is frame the shot. All settings
remain modifiable by the user, however.
P
The Program mode allows
the camera to select the shutter speed and aperture, but
leaves all other choices up to the user. Moreover, using
the Control Dial, the user can modify the selected aperture/shutter
speed combination, so as to favour the shutter speed or
the depth of field (aperture).
A
Aperture Priority
mode makes it possible to select the aperture, and therefore
the depth of field, while the camera selects a corresponding
shutter speed. The aperture range available is dependent
on the lens used.
S
Shutter Priority
mode allows selecting the shutter speed and therefore
the way the camera records movement, while the camera
matches the selected shutter speed to an aperture. The
shutter speed range available covers from 1/4000 second
down to 30 seconds.
M
Manual provides complete
control over the aperture and shutter speed. By default,
the Control Dial serves to set the shutter speed, while
when the Exposure Compensation button is held down and
the Control Dial is turned, it allows setting the aperture.
The Manual mode also offers a B (Bulb) mode, which
can be as long as 4 hours with a fully charged battery
pack (the Remote Commander, optional, should be used).
Moreover, if the AEL button is held down, the Control
Dial can be used to choose alternate combinations of shutter
speed and aperture that would result in a comparable exposure.
The Scene Modes preset the Alpha 100 for different
types of subjects:
Night View/Portrait:
Night Portrait uses a long exposure to capture the background,
and the flash to capture the foreground. Night View captures
a night time scene without the flash — once it has
been closed...
Sunset uses a small
aperture to maximize the depth of field and enhances reds
to capture sunset scenes.
Sports Action sets
the autofocus mode to Continuous, allowing the camera
to focus continuously while the shutter release is held
at the halfway point. Similarly, the Drive mode is set
to Continuous, allowing the camera to record images as
long as the shutter release is held down.
Macro uses the fastest
shutter speed possible to avoid camera shake, while trying
to use the smallest aperture possible to maximize depth
of field.
Landscape uses the
smallest aperture possible to maximize depth of field.
Portrait uses a wide
aperture to capture the subject in sharp focus while the
background is blurred. Focus is selected using the centre
AF point.
The Function Dial is
on the other side of the viewfinder, with at its centre a
button labelled Fn. Turning the dial to any of its
positions and pressing the button at its centre presents the
options available for that particular setting on the monitor:
The first position serves
to select the Metering modes :
The second position serves
to select the Flash modes:
Auto.
Fill Flash.
Rear (slow synch on the second curtain).
Wireless.
And it also allows selection of Flash Exposure Compensation
over a range of ±2 EV in 1/3 EV increments.
The third position controls
the FocusPoint selection:
Wide Area AF: allows the camera to select the focus
point from 9 areas.
Spot AF Area: focuses at the centre of the frame
exclusively.
Focus Area Selection: allows setting the point
manually to any of 9 areas.
And the way the autofocus operates:
AF-S: Single-shot AF.
DMT: Direct Manual Focus.
AF-A: Automatic AF (switches between Single and
Continuous modes automatically as dictated by the
subject's movement.
AF-C: Continuous autofocus.
Controls the ISO Sensitivity:
Auto (between 100 and 800 ISO), 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600
ISO, Lo80 and Hi200. The last two options are called Zone
Matching, and are designed to capture Low Key or
High Key subjects.
Serves to select the White
Balance : Auto; Presets (Daylight, Shade, Cloudy,
Tungsten, Fluorescent or Flash — these settings
can also be compensated over ±3 values, shifting
the colour cast towards green or magenta); Colour Temperature,
selected from a range that covers from 2000 to 9900
K; or Custom White Balance, to set the colour balance
manually by using a white surface under ambient light.
D-Range Optimizer
has three settings:
Off.
D-R (Standard): adjusts brightness and contrast
for the whole image.
D-R+ (Advanced): optimizes the contrast and colour
reproduction area by area.
There is no effect with Centre-weighted or Spot metered
images, if the Manual mode is used, or the Quality is
set to RAW or RAW + JPEG.
The Colour/DEC mode
controls the in-camera image processing: Standard, Vivid,
Portrait, Landscape, Sunset, Night View, Black and White,
or Adobe RGB. In addition, Contrast, Saturation and Sharpness
can be individually modified over 5 steps.
The Power Switch of the Alpha 100 is below the Function
Dial, on the back of the camera and to the left of the viewfinder.
The TTL viewfinder shows 95%
of the captured image and is equipped with a dioptre corrector
on the top right side of its exit pupil, which has a soft
black rubber eyepiece.
The viewfinder provides a clear, sharp image that shows the
9 AF points — these illuminate briefly when the cameras
focuses — and the circular area that is used for the
Centre-Weighted metering.
Two small windows below the viewfinder
are for the Eyepiece Sensor — proximity sensor —
which detects the presence of the user's eye at the viewfinder.
The Eyepiece Sensor can be disabled in the Custom menu (see
the Characteristics section of the review).
An LCD display, below the viewfinder's
image, shows current values for a number of camera settings:
Flash Exposure Compensation
Flash Charging
Wireless Flash Active
High Speed Sync Indicator
AE Lock
AF
Shutter Speed
Aperture
Exposure Compensation Scale
Camera Shake Warning
Super Steady Shot Scale
Frames Remaining Counter
More controls are positioned on
either side of the Alpha 2.5 inch (6.3 cm when measured
diagonally), 230,000 pixel monitor.
On the left, a column of 4 buttons
provides functions in the capture modes, indicated by white
labels, and the playback mode indicated by blue labels:
MENU
The top button displays
the Alpha's menu system, a single menu composed
of different sections which cover capture, playback,
custom and setup options. (See the Characteristics
and Interface and Software sections of the review
for details about the menu's contents.)
The second button presents
an Information screen which shows the current settings
of the camera when the Alpha 100 is in capture mode. Pressing
the button a second time magnifies the text, making it
easier to see the most critical settings. Worth noting,
the orientation of the information screen changes as the
camera is held horizontally, or vertically.
Set to the Playback mode,
pressing the button once removes the few shot parameters
that are superimposed on the image. A second press of
the button displays photos in an index format, 9 thumbnails
per screen.
Serves to Delete
an image currently on the monitor.
Enters the Playback
mode.
At the top of the back, to the right of the viewfinder, are
two round buttons:
Serves to set Exposure
Compensation when the camera is set to a capture
mode. A range of ± 2 EV in 1/3 EV increments is
available.
AV
Indicates that the button
also serves to change the aperture when used in combination
with the Control Dial when the Alpha 100 is set to the
Manual mode.
In Playback mode, the
button allows zooming out of an image that has been zoomed
into.
AEL
In the capture modes the AEL button Locks the Auto Exposure,
while allowing the Autofocus to function, making it
possible to maintain the same exposure while re-framing
the shot so as to get a better composition.
SLOW SYNC
With the camera set to Program
or Aperture Priority modes, the same button
allows using the flash in Slow Sync mode, all the while
retaining the exposure metered under ambient light.
And when the camera is set
to the playback mode it serves to zoom into an
image under review up to 12X. The level of magnification
is memorized and recalled the next time the image is displayed
on the monitor.
The last group of external controls for the Alpha 100 are
lower down on the back, next to the monitor. The Controller
has four directions, and serves to review images, navigate
the menu, and select the focus point.
At the centre of the control,
a small button labelled AF serves to activate the autofocus
without having to touch the shutter release.
In addition, two of the 4 directional arrows of the Controller
have functions when the camera is set to Playback. The up
arrow controls the way an image is displayed, presenting
it as thumbnail on the left side of the monitor with the histogram
below and the shooting parameters on the right side of the
screen.
The down arrow serves to rotate images in 90°
increments to the right or the left.
Furthest down on the back, the
Super Steady Shot switch controls the image stabilization
system, which compensates for involuntary movements by the
user by moving the CCD to cancel the effect of camera shake.
The Alpha 100 is equipped with
a built-in, pop-up flash that is manually opened. The flash
has a Guide Number of 12 m (39.3 ft) at 100 ISO. Worth noting,
the Alpha 100 inherits the proprietary Konica Minolta flash
mount.
The flash shoe's design and shape
is different from all others, not only by its shape but its
contacts. Only Sony flash units (HVL-F56M, HVL-F36M
or Macro Twin Flash Kit HVL-MT24AM) are compatible,
or Konica Minolta flash units designed for Dynax cameras.
The ergonomic design of the Alpha
100 is good, as is generally the case with reflex type cameras.
However, some peculiarities of the design take a bit of time
to get accustomed to. One of these is the preeminent position
of the Control Dial, placed directly in front of the shutter
release. Another is the position of the Depth of Field Preview
button, which is placed a bit too low and requires loosening
one's grip on the camera to use it. The Function Dial, however,
is very practical as it provides a quick and efficient access
to many critical settings.
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Ergonomics
The
Depth of Field Preview button on the lower left.
