Sony A580

capri28

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15/02/2013 - 5:19 pm

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Having had a Sony A300 and A390, I decided to upgrade to the A580.

What's good:
The body feels nice in your hands, it's well weighted. Unlike some DSLR's that are too small and fiddly - this one's fine.

14 meg V the 16meg sensor. If you think there will be loads more resolution think again.
Viewed at 100% you'll find a bit more, but it's certainly not worth buying one just for that.

Image quality – tested side by side, on the same lens at the same settings, the A580 seems to come up with a sharper image. I don't know if that's the sensor or the processing but something's better and that's a good thing!

ISO - the older models were at bit useless above 400, it was definitely grain city up there. The 580 offers smoother shots even up to ISO1600. I was surprised. It's not perfect but this camera is not mega money.

The older models never really seemed to get the hang of how to expose a picture. They were a bit hopeless. The A580 is better but it's not brilliant.
I don't know if any dslr's do a competent job. May be I'm expecting too much.

The thing has an HDR facility that overlays three shots and tries to improve the light balance in tricky conditions. It sort of works but the image lacks contrast. You will not get excited about it!

It has video but I've not really used it. I think if you want video buy a proper video camera. It's like buying a spoon and trying to use it as a fork – pointless!

FPS – it can punch out 7 frames a second. That's more than enough for most. You can select a slower rate, which where I use it.

What's bad:
The visible image, when viewed through the optical viewfinder, seems a bit small. There's a lot of black around it. It just seems a bit lost somehow.
I find it a bit distracting.

Otherwise there's not much to moan about. Saying that some will moan but come on, you get what you pay for. This is not 5D money.

I think it's a nice – middle of the market - bit of kit. I'd definitely say get your money out, there are worst things to spend it on.