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Cameras

Hands On: Sony A77

Chris Gampat
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09/28/2011
4 Mins read
Chris Gampat The Phoblographer hands on sony a77 and nex7 (2 of 7)

The other day, I finally got my hands on the extremely coveted Sony A77 camera. Though the reviews have already started to come out, I’m still waiting for my units to give them a full run through. However, this camera seemed extremely impressive during the brief time I spent with it.

Focusing Demo from Both Cameras

A77

Tech Specs

  • 24.3 megapixel APS-C Sensor
  • Magnesium Alloy and high grade plastic body
  • Main controls sealed against dust and moisture
  • Anti-dust system
  • ISO 100 – 16000 equivalent (expandable to ISO 50)
  • AUTO ISO 100 – 12800 selectable with upper or lower limit
  • In-body Image Stabilization
  • 12 frames/second at full resolution with continuous autofocus
  • 30 sec to 1/8000 shutter speed, bulb
  • 1/250 sec. flash sync. speed
  • Exposure Compensation Âħ5.0 EV (1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps selectable)
  • 1200-zone evaluative metering plus Spot, Center weighted modes
  • XGA OLED, 2,359,296 dots electronic viewfinder
  • 3-way tilt/swivel, 921,600 dots TFT LCD with TruBlack technology
  • Storage by SD memory card, Memory Stick Duo
  • USB 2.0 – no Thunderbolt
  • 1080p HD Video
  • Virtual horizon indicator in viewfinder
  • External Microphone jack (but no volume control)
  • In-body lens correction of vignetting, CA and distortion (JPEG only)
  • Electronic first curtain shutter reduces vibration and shutter lag
  • Built in GPS
  • Shot Result Preview allows preview of shutter speed, a la Panasonic G series
  • Focus Peaking function helps verify manual focus
  • ‘Smart Teleconverter’ shows 1.4 or 2x crop
  • Memory Recall function saves three sets of camera settings
  • Approx. 470 shots with viewfinder and 530 shots with LCD monitor (CIPA standard) for still images
  • Approx. 185 min. with viewfinder and 185 min. with LCD monitor for videos
  • Dimensions 142.6 x 104.0 x 80.9mm (excluding protrusions)
  • Weight 732g with battery and card

Ergonomics

The Sony A77 is one heck of a beefy DSLR camera; especially with the grip on. In fact, when the grip is on, it feels even beefier but still good in the hand. The grip and shutter release are in an interesting position ergonomically, and if I did use it, it would take some getting used to as opposed to those from Canon and Nikon.

The build of the camera is both very Nikon-like and Canon-like. The shutter and aperture dials are like Nikon’s, but the body feels like a Canon 7D in some ways.

The back of the camera features an ejection seat, dual rocket launchers, four mini guns to take out threats on the side, and twelve inches of steel armor. lots of functions. First off, there is a control joystick like on Canon’s DSLR models. The back also features and Auto Exposure Lock button that it in just the right place. There is also a custom function button, display button, and that big LCD screen that flips out in a very innovative way. Above the LCD screen is that big, gorgeous, and amazing OLED viewfinder that I really love. Plus, there is the menu button. It makes a lot of sense to place that where it is.

The top of the camera features the mode dial: which I which had a center button to lock it in place. The pop-up flash, finder/LCD button, ISO button, and drive buttons are also there. These seem much more Canon-like in placement, so holding the body felt like I was right at home.

The left side of the camera features the ports (and the focusing control dial; which is in an interesting place.) Here you can plug in a remote, HDMI cable, USB connection cable, microphone, or DC in cable.

Build Quality

Overall, the build quality of the A77 seemed very impressive. It’s a solid body that isn’t overly heavy, but still feels extremely robust. The Sony Rep told me that he shot a wedding with it this past weekend, and it was able to take all the normal punishment that a wedding photographer dishes out on their cameras. He also stated that the 16-50mm f2.8 lens handled extremely well when shooting the wedding. By that, it had great image quality, focuses quickly, and just overall worked well. Indeed, the 16-50mm was quite impressive, but I wasn’t floored by it.

The focusing with the lens was also relatively quick, but I still feel that my 7D wins in this case.

Ease of Use

Since I am used to both Canon and Nikon’s systems, using this camera felt very familiar to me. The controls and dials felt just like one or the other and it was simple and easy to figure things out. I didn’t dig into Sony’s menus though. However, the display is very informational in that almost any setting that you’d want is displayed across the top, side or bottom. When looking at that through the viewfinder, you really appreciate all the information that is easily displayed right in front of you. Because of this, your eye will probably never leave the viewfinder when shooting.

I couldn’t put a card in unfortunately, I was handling a pre-production model. However, Sony has made a very impressive step forward with the A77.

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16-50mm f2.8 a77 dslr focusing oled review sony viewfinder
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Chris Gampat is the Editor in Chief, Founder, and Publisher of the Phoblographer. He provides oversight to all of the daily tasks, including editorial, administrative, and advertising work. Chris's editorial work includes not only editing and scheduling articles but also writing them himself. He's the author of various product guides, educational pieces, product reviews, and interviews with photographers. He's fascinated by how photographers create, considering the fact that he's legally blind./ HIGHLIGHTS: Chris used to work in Men's lifestyle and tech. He's a veteran technology writer, editor, and reviewer with more than 15 years experience. He's also a Photographer that has had his share of bylines and viral projects like "Secret Order of the Slice." PAST BYLINES: Gear Patrol, PC Mag, Geek.com, Digital Photo Pro, Resource Magazine, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, IGN, PDN, and others. EXPERIENCE: Chris Gampat began working in tech and art journalism both in 2008. He started at PCMag, Magnum Photos, and Geek.com. He founded the Phoblographer in 2009 after working at places like PDN and Photography Bay. He left his day job as the Social Media Content Developer at B&H Photo in the early 2010s. Since then, he's evolved as a publisher using AI ethically, coming up with ethical ways to bring in affiliate income, and preaching the word of diversity in the photo industry. His background and work has spread to non-profits like American Photographic Arts where he's done work to get photographers various benefits. His skills are in SEO, app development, content planning, ethics management, photography, Wordpress, and other things. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. FAVORITE SUBJECT TO PHOTOGRAPH: Chris enjoys creating conceptual work that makes people stare at his photos. But he doesn't get to do much of this because of the high demand of photography content. / BEST PHOTOGRAPHY TIP: Don't do it in post-production when you can do it in-camera.
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