Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 14.2MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) : Digital SLR Camera Reviews, Canon, Nikon, Olympus and Much More upto 70% Discount : Digital SLRs

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Product Description
Designed from the ground up to bring live view into the digital SLR mainstream, they set a dramatic standard in image quality, and can help you get shots you've never gotten before. Numerous technologies and image processing algorithms are employed in Sony DSLR-A550 to reduce noise and ensure rich, realistic color under the widest possible range of conditions. So you can take advantage of more shooting opportunities, and see your photos come alive with the vividness of precious memories. Speed and responsiveness are also much improved, and battery life has been extended to provide power for up to 950 shots.

KIT INCLUDES:
* 8GB SD MEMORY CARD.
* LENS PEN CLEANING TOOL.
* SUNPAK TRIPOD WITH CASE.
* MEMORY WALLET.
* PACKAGE OF LCD SCREEN PROTECTORS.
* CLEANING KIT.
* 25 FREE QUALITY PRINTS.

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 1-5 of 13

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The best possible choice for real-world non-pros February 10, 2010
Tim Naff (Huntsville, AL USA)
57 out of 58 found this review helpful

I'll give you the summary first. This camera is ahead of every other camera on the planet (except the A500) in three areas that are critical to non-professionals:

1. low light performance - it is excellent out to ISO 6400 (Pros care about this too.)

2. fast-focusing live view with tilt screen, which is slightly better than two other Sony offerings (350 and 300) and beats all other brands like a drum;

3. high dynamic range (HDR) feature, which, for stationary subjects, will bring images out of the shadows with full detail, grain-free, like you won't believe.

There are some negatives, which will bother pros much more than non-pros:

1. no mirror lock-up, not even with the timer - a shortcoming partially mitigated by a very lightweight mirror that reduces vibration

2. no program shift, although there is a very useful manual-mode shift, which is often overlooked altogether by professional reviewers

3. no depth-of-field preview

The rest of this review will explain these features and their associated benefits and liabilities, point out some other key discriminators, provide recommendations for sources of additional information, and offer suggestions for accessory purchases. I'll note one other important item that the professional reviewers, to a man, got wrong. Finally, and you may want to skip ahead to this, I'll cover the differences between the A550 and the A500, from a real-world user's perspective.

There are three kinds of potential buyers for this camera: those who already own a Sony SLR or a Minolta SLR, those who own another brand of digital SLR, and those who would be newcomers to digital SLRs but typically already have compact digital cameras. Most of the first group is pretty much already in Sony's pocket, because they have sunk cost in lenses and accessories that they can use on the A550. The second group will be a very hard sell because they're fully vested in another brand. The third group is wide open, and the obvious opportunity for Sony's DSLR brand growth. This is exactly why Sony has put so much emphasis on the live view capability. Very few compact cameras now have optical viewfinders. These owners are accustomed to framing their shots in a video display on the backs of their cameras (which is what live-view means), and they are not likely to buy a big, clunky, expensive camera that won't do live view as well as what they already have. This group is also likely not to know that they should care about mirror lockup, program shift, or depth-of-field preview (even though those things do matter).

I've said that Sony is targeting the DSLR newcomer here. Does that mean that this is an entry-level digital SLR? Absolutely not. This is a serious camera. And speaking as one who spent 30 years with Nikon-professional and Hasselblad film cameras, I have to say that the SLR snobs should wake up and smell the live-view coffee. There are many, many situations in which live view is a vastly superior way to set up a shot. I predict that in five to seven years, all DSLRs - even the pro models - will have live view capability like the A550. It is just ahead of its time. When that time comes, I'll be first in line to buy a pro model that won't be obsolete in five more years like today's pro offerings will.

So what's the significance of the three superlatives that I cited first?

The capability out to ISO 6400 means you can shoot in lower light. It affords a faster shutter speed that will facilitate the use of longer (i.e., telephoto) lenses without a tripod and deliver fast-action shots with less blurring. Alternatively, you can get greater depth of focus and/or get by with a smaller, lighter, and cheaper lens (i.e., with larger f-number). The terrific built-in stabilization, coupled with the low-light capability will allow you to sit in the den and shoot Fido without a flash. No more pet red-eye! It also means you can sit in your den with the manual (or better yet, with the books that I recommend here) and learn the camera pretty much inside-out, working in available light.

In addition to near instantaneous focusing (in decent light), the live view screen is bright and has extraordinarily high resolution. You can set up the shot better, you get a better review of what you've shot, and you have a better idea of whether you need to reshoot. The tilting screen allows you to shoot over crowds, shoot over fences, shoot from waist level, and shoot from floor/ground level without having to lay down to do it. It's extremely handy for macro work. You'll also find yourself using the tilting screen in ordinary circumstances. (Some have complained that this camera does not have an LCD readout on top. The flip-up screen does help compensate.) Other DSLR brands, with the exception of Olympus, have totally pathetic live-view focusing capability. That's an understatement. And even Olympus does not have the tilt screen. (Nikon actually has a better tilt screen, but they don't have the fast-focus live view.) BTW, any DSLR will focus fast and allow you to squeeze off a shot in a split second when you use the optical viewfinder. With this camera, the difference is that you can have it both ways, and both ways will yield way faster focusing than a compact point-and-shoot. These first two features alone, on an otherwise good camera, should be sufficient to persuade the DSLR newcomer to get onboard the A500/A550 bandwagon. But there's much, much more.

What about this HDR thing? When you turn on this mode, the camera shoots two frames in succession at differing exposure levels (you can set the difference). It then superimposes the pictures, replacing dark areas in the low exposure with corresponding areas from the higher exposure. This camera, like others, has a mode called dynamic range optimization (DRO) that selectively adjusts contrast to improve shadow detail. HDR beats DRO, producing shadow detail that is sharper with less grain than DRO. You might wonder if you would have a problem holding the camera steady enough to capture two frames for overlay. With the built in stabilization and the image correlation algorithm, the camera will take care of it. The only catch is that moving objects will produce a double image, so you will only turn on HDR when you are shooting near-static scenes. Also, since HDR lightens the dark areas of the photo, you won't want to use HDR on static scenes when you need strong contrast between light and dark areas.

What are some other significant features?

The A550 will take an SD card and a Memory Stick simultaneously. You have to throw a mechanical switch to go from one to another. SD cards will give you about the same speed and storage as memory sticks for about half the price, so having the SD option is valuable. I keep my A550 loaded with both. It just means I have a deeper built-in magazine and something to fall back on in case of a problem with one storage device.

The camera will shoot up to 7 frames per second, which is world class. It has a buffer that will allow you to shoot 15 or 20 shots at that rate before it slows down. (The A500 is slower and has a much smaller buffer.) As the A550 is firing and filling your buffer, it is dumping from the buffer to your memory stick or SD card. A faster stick/card will give you more shots before the buffer tops out. If you're not shooting rapid fire, you can get by inexpensively with a Class 4 SD card. Also note that the some SanDisk Class 4 models (see, for example, SanDisk Ultra II 16 GB Class 4 SDHC Flash Memory Card SDSDRH-016G-A11) are as fast as other brands' Class 6. I haven't tried anything slower, and I haven't tried the new Class 10 SD cards. ---- Okay, here's an important update. Since I wrote this review, I've bought and tested a Class 10 card. Unlike the upgrade from Class 4 to 6 (or the SanDisk Class 4 Ultra II), an upgrade from 6 to 10 produced NO benefit for high-speed shooting. The camera is apparently not designed to take advantage of a card faster than Class 6. The only benefit of Class 10 is that it will upload a bit faster to your computer. I recommend that you save your money and buy the best deal available, which is the SanDisk Class 4 Ultra II. It will give you all the speed you can get, and do it for the lowest price. (You owe me for that one.)

The professional reviewers like to whine that changing settings requires you to go to a whole new screen. Not true if you are shooting in live view. One of the live-view display options has the critical settings around the outside of the live-view frame. To change any of them, just push the function button and you can navigate and change the ones on the sides of the frame (11 or 12 of them) just like that. It goes to show that pros (and other SLR snobs) just don't seem to "get" live view. There are several layers of reasonably intuitive menus that will take you to the full complement of settings, and they do, of course, change the screen. Some of the pros whine that there are not enough paths to the settings. (There are multiple paths to ISO, frame speed and auto delay, DSO/HDR, and exposure compensation. You can get to the other most-important settings very quickly through the Fn-button menu. Are these guys slow studies or what?) When you first get your A550, put it in live view mode (using the slide switch on top), then push the DISP button until you get the view with the settings arrayed around the outside. Next, push the Fn button and navigate from one setting to the next, and you'll get a brief description of what each setting is. This is a quick way to learn the layout or refresh your memory if you've been away for awhile. You may want to turn off the pop-up descriptions after you learn them, because they can get in the way.

Here's another trick that I've learned: There is an array of 7 buttons that you can reach with your thumb without changing your hand position on the grip. Once you push a button, you can make the associated adjustment (partially in some cases and fully in most) with the "thumb wheel" using your forefinger. Then, lightly pushing the shutter button finalizes the setting. You can also just re-push the button you started with to finalize the setting. With practice, this really increases your agility, giving you instant command of the most critical settings. If you're in a hurry, you can make a change and finalize it by firing a shot. Any adjustment that you make through any pathway can be set by firing a shot. You don't have to push an "okay" button ever, if you don't want to. The bottom line here is that you can make these adjustments one-handed without taking your hand off the camera or your eye away from the viewfinder or screen. It takes considerable practice, but it can make all the difference in getting or missing a critical shot.

What about the three negatives I mentioned at the start?

When an SLR fires, it flips up the mirror before it opens the shutter. This can cause vibration that can matter on longer exposure times. All pro cameras and many pro-sumer models have mirror lockup, which temporarily ends your ability to use the view finder (and in some if not all cases, the live view). I used to use it regularly on my 35mm and medium-format film cameras. The advantage is that when you take the shot, there is no vibration imposed by the mirror. This is the kind of thing you do with the camera on a tripod, and Sony specifically says not to use image stabilization when you're using a tripod. The A500/A550 design does not have lockup - it does not even flip up the mirror early in timed auto mode (which really annoys me). Unfortunately for me, I like to carry a bean bag in my pocket as a portable tripod. (I even use it to brace the camera against posts and walls.) At least with a tripod, the camera is bolted down - not so with the bean bag, so maybe in that case it's best to leave stabilization on. I don't doubt that I'll suffer from not having lockup, although I haven't seen any evidence yet. When you shoot hand-held, it isn't practical to use mirror lockup anyway.

Program shift would allow you to take the camera's program choice of aperture and shutter-speed setting and quickly and smoothly shift the program to other aperture-shutter combinations of equivalent exposure. (For the technology-savvy, it's like an instantaneous shift from Program mode to Aperture Priority or Shutter priority, while starting at the initial Program mode settings.) With the A500/A550, you can't do that. You can, however, do a "manual shift." This accomplishes a similar purpose but only in manual mode and not with the camera's programmed exposure. Program shift is a nice feature, and I wish the 550 had it, but it's no show-stopper.

No depth of field preview means that you have to shoot a test shot to tell what the level of focus is for objects at differing ranges from your primary focal range. What you see without depth of field preview is the worst case for depth of field, matching what you would get with the largest aperture setting of your lens. This is helpful for precise manual focusing, but not good for getting a look at the ultimate focus distribution of your actual shot. For example, if you want to throw the background out of focus in a portrait, and you don't want to use your widest aperture setting, expect some trial and error. Depth of field preview is not 10 percent as important on a digital camera with a high-res display as it was on film cameras. I've used depth-of-field preview hundreds of times on other cameras, but I could have done without it, even using film. And BTW, when you use depth of field preview with the lens stopped way down, the optical viewfinder can become so dim that you can barely see what's in or out of focus anyway. I really believe that some of the pros haven't noticed that this feature ain't such a big deal on digital cameras.

Stuff you should consider buying:

Gary L. Friedman's Complete Guide to Sony's Alpha 500 & 550. At the time of this review, the book was not at Amazon yet. If you're not sure about the A550, consider going to Gary's site and paying $25 for the pdf download. Once you get past the "golly gee" Dick and Jane business at the front of the book, you'll find almost 500 pages of the most thorough treatment of this camera available, with a pretty decent course in digital photography woven in. Even if you don't buy an A550, you'll be a smarter buyer after Gary's book if you're less than a seasoned DSLR user. Gary writes the best books on cameras out there. I read his book on the A900 and decided NOT to buy the A900 based on that read. (The A900 has no live view at all and no built-in flash. The next generation Sony pro camera will probably at least have live view. Also, the super high resolution of the current full-frame A850 and A900 will become cheaper fairly soon if the trends of the last 20 years hold true. I decided to spend the big bucks on full-frame Zeiss and G-lens optics, which will hold value much better than any camera body.)

If you want a compact reference book, consider Magic Lantern Guides: Sony a500/a550 by Peter K. Burian. It's cheap and good. See my review on it. You can learn the camera way faster with Peter's book than with the manual. (But do try to ignore the fact that Peter seems confused about whether the A500 and A550 have program shift.)

You will need something to use to clean the sensor when it gets dust on it. Unless you install just one lens and never take it off, the sensor will get dust on it. At a minimum, get a Giottos Rocket Blaster Air Blower - Red (Large) 7.5" for Cleaning Lenses and Optics and Sensors - AA1903. Friedman doesn't agree with me, but get one anyway. Then consider a VisibleDust Brite Vue Sensor Loupe - VisibleDust 3468822, an Arctic Butterfly SL 700 Sensor Brush, a LensPen SensorKlear Loupe Kit w/SensorKlear II, and/or a Digital Survival KIT - Sensor Swab Type 2 (w/Eclipse). (Note that Friedman says you should only use E2 fluid. SensorKlear, who produced E2 fluid, now says that after two years of testing, they've proven that their Eclipse fluid is just as safe as E2 on sensors like the A550's. They are phasing out E2.) Don't get all these accessories! Just get the blower and check the others out. I especially like the VisibleDust Sensor Loupe, and I'd by the cheaper version of the two available on Amazon.

As an aside, I think I'd better tell you what I've learned about cleaning the sensor. First turn the camera body face down and switch it on and off a few times, which shakes the sensor. If that doesn't work, insert a well-charged battery, turn the body face down, and switch the sensor clean mode on and off a few times. It isn't documented, but that gives the sensor a better shake (like an ultrasonic cleaner) than the on-off shake - I only know because I can feel it. If that doesn't work, be sure you have a well-charged battery (or put it on an external power supply), turn on the clean mode, remove the lens or body cap, hold it face down, and use the blower brush. By holding it face down, you have better odds of causing debris to fall out of the camera. If the blower doesn't work, consider the other options I listed previously. The blower has always worked for me so far. [Update: I later did have to use a brush.] If you are klutzy with delicate instruments, and the blower brush doesn't work, take it to a camera shop. You have to be very careful about poking around the sensor. Never use a sensor brush on anything but the sensor so you don't pick up any contamination on the brush. The only exception might be on a squeaky clean filter if you want to test the brush's condition before using it on the sensor. Also, if your Arctic Butterfly brush seems loose or falls apart when you turn it on, just push it back together to assemble it properly. Some were shipped without being properly assembled. (Hard to forgive, considering the price.)

Get one spare battery and consider getting a charger with a camera DC supply built in. The DC supply is nice when you need to work on your sensor, but it is not essential. The charger that will handle two batteries is especially nice, because you can leave batteries in it indefinitely without concern about over charging. Read the manual carefully on this subject, BTW.

I strongly recommend against buying batteries not made by Sony. Learn from my mistake: I bought two third party batteries and both had problems. One would never charge to a sufficient voltage to turn out the "charging" light on the Sony charger. On the two-battery charger, the displayed messages were messed up with both of the batteries. Nothing I could do would make the batteries show a full charge when placed in the camera. Finally, the batteries lasted about half as long as the Sony batteries. Don't be penny wise and pound foolish. Twenty dollars saved on a battery can shut down hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of camera equipment.

If you get a separate flash, get lithium (non-rechargeable) batteries for it or either NiMH or NiZn rechargeables. I have the HLV-F20AM and the HLV-F58AM flashes and I love them. I advise, however, that the A500/A550 built-in flash is quite capable, providing good, even illumination. Of course, it can't do bounce, it can't operate off the camera, and it has much less power.

For lenses, I bought the Zeiss 24 -70mm f/2.8 Zoom , the 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G-Series Compact Zoom (it isn't really compact), and a used Minolta 17-35G. I bought these in part because I know I'll eventually get a full frame camera. The Zeiss 16-35mm f/2.8 Zoom has a wider aperture and marginally better optical performance than my used Minolta option, but the Minolta is lighter weight and somewhat less expensive. Otherwise, my three lenses are the best available zooms in their ranges for Sony. The Zeiss 24-70 (which is available for some other camera brands) is possibly the best SLR zoom lens made, period. I expect you'll want to start with much more affordable choices, however. I strongly recommend the Sony DT 16-105 as a rock-solid performer at a much more reasonable price. This lens is compact and practical and is my walk-around lens. Of course, it, like all DT lenses, will not support my transition to full frame. Search Amazon for Sony DT 16-105mm f/3.5-5.6 Zoom Lens. Others to consider are the basic kit lens and the Sony DT 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 Zoom which won't be quite as strong in overall optical performance as the 16-105, but offers the very popular super zoom range at a low price. The ultimate walk-around DT lens is the Zeiss DT 16-80mm f/3.5-4.5, but it's pricey, especially given its zoom range. Zeiss and Leica make the best camera optics in the world, bar none, and I speak from experience. (I'm a Ph.D. experimental physicist, so I understand this stuff, too.) The Sony G-series represents the (non-Zeiss) Sony premium line, inherited from the Minolta premium line. Do check out Friedman's recommendations for some very affordable used Minolta lenses. I can vouch for the fact that some of them are very, very good. The downside is that their focal lengths were chosen for full-frame use, and they are less than ideal when multiplied by 1.5 as you must do for this camera to get to the 35mm full-frame equivalent. If you need a cheap way to get to longer focal lengths, look into a used Minolta 70-210 F4 "beer can" lens, which is an excellent optical performer and can transition to full frame later. If you are not aware of the meaning of DT for lenses and the difference in using a lens for full frame application, please read-up before making a lens decision. Get a UV filter for your lens to protect it, but take it off when you want the absolute best lens performance. (You should try shooting with and without the UV filter when shooting long-range in hazy atmosphere. It may actually improve performance in haze by blocking the invisible UV light scattered by fog. This really mattered with UV-sensitive film, but may not be such a big deal for digital detector arrays.) Also consider a circular polarizer at some point for their color saturation benefits and to reduce reflections like polarized spectacles. The better coated the filters are, the less they will degrade other aspects of performance. The Hoya HMC Super line is about as good as it gets, but you pays for what you gets. Those HMC supers are so expensive you may feel like putting a cheaper UV filter in front of them to protect them!

Don't let the cost of these extras scare you. All you really have to have are a kit lens and the Giottos blower. The rest are just things to be aware of. You can start with these basics and then build as you discover where you want to go next.

I promised at the beginning that I'd cover the differences between the A550 and A500 from a real-world perspective. The differences are (1) the A550 has 14.2 megapixels in an image, while the A550 has 12.3; (2) the A550 has more than double the pixels on the rear LCD screen; (3) the A550 has an additional special shooting mode that delivers 7 frames per second against the 5 fps highest speed of the A550; (4) the A550 has a larger picture memory buffer (mentioned previously) between the image processor and the ultimate storage medium (stick or card); (5) the cameras have slightly different surface finishes.

As far as pixel count goes, it's technically a mixed bag, because the sensor plane is the same size on both cameras. That means that while you get higher resolution with the A550, your image will be commensurately noisier. The hard fact is that on any picture, the A550 will give you only a 7.4 percent increase in pixels per inch. Neither of the two effects is significant. You won't be able to see a difference in resolution or noise.

The higher-resolution, rear LCD can really matter. This would be especially true if you bought one of those add-on loupes to allow a better look at the screen. You can potentially get a much better look at pictures to determine the need to shoot again.

The higher-fps mode will matter if you shoot fast moving objects. I used to do a lot of horse photography, and a high-speed mode was great for shooting horses going over jumps. Understand though, that you probably won't be able to get more than 3 seconds of continuous shooting at that pace. Also, the camera doesn't refocus between frames in that mode. If you're shooting something coming toward you or away from you, you may have to use the slower mode. The faster speed will be an advantage to some users.

The larger memory buffer is probably there to support the higher-fps mode. As I mentioned earlier, the function of the buffer is to store your shots until they can be dumped into permanent memory, which is either your memory stick or SD card. The larger buffer takes longer to fill, so you get more shots in before the camera has to slow down. It could benefit you in the 5 fps mode as well, however. The higher the frame rate, and the slower your storage medium, the more you need the larger buffer.

The different finishes are strictly a matter of taste. If it matters to you, you might want to visit a shop that has both to allow you to compare.

I think the choice between the A500 and A550 should depend in part on the size of your total investment. If you are planning to invest a whole lot more on lenses, the $200 difference in the bodies won't be significant, and you might as well get the best camera to use with the lenses. On the other hand, if you're on a tight budget and may be only buying one or two lenses in the sub-$500 range, you will probably do better to put the $200 into lenses. The bottom line is that you won't go wrong if you decide to buy either camera. I doubt you'll have any serious regrets either way.

I wish you luck in your decision. I could keep going, but let's leave the heavy duty reporting to Friedman. When I published the first version of this review, I'd had the camera for two months. I've now had it for almost eight, and I just returned from carrying it for three weeks through 10 cities in Europe. I'll close by saying that I'm more devoted than ever. If I didn't love the camera, I wouldn't have taken the time to write this review.

Good shooting,
Tim Naff

5 out of 5 stars

Good camera October 31, 2009
Jackal (Singapore)
41 out of 42 found this review helpful

I'm happy with this camera. However, the development of digital cameras is very fast so the camera is likely to be behind cutting edge in a couple of years. I bought this camera because it is not that expensive, so one can always upgrade. Some good and bad things:
- Steady shot makes it possible to take very sharp pictures at 1/15.
- Quite decent performance up to ASA 800. I can go up to ASA 12,800, which results in noise, but also sharp pictures in very low light. If you, like me, hate using the flash, this is great. I'd rather have grain than flat flash light.
- Very sharp live viewfinder. I cannot do without this facility anymore. Not many higher-end DSLR cameras have this function yet.
- The autofocus does not work that well in low light. However, the Manual Focus Live Viewfinder function is very good when using manual focus in low light and low contrast settings. Even if it is very dark the scene is lit up in the viewfinder and manual focusing becomes easy. Still it is very annoying that the camera doesn't have some kind of infrared focusing in darkness. The manual focusing works but it is also not that quick and it requires the LCD screen mode (not the viewfinder mode)
- The camera could be better prepared for HDR (high dynamic range) photography. There is a built in function taking two shots (great!). This works okay if you don't use the 'auto' setting, which just give a very small adjustment. In high contrast settings (or if you use PC software) you need three or four photos. However, taking bracketed exposures in 1 or 2 EV steps is not possible. I can do bracketed exposures in 0.3 or 0.7, so Sony is clearly holding back on performance for the next model in 2010 (bad!).
- The camera fits okay in my standard male sized hands. Bigger might fit better but it is also nice that the camera is not bulky.
- Information panel is informative, except for ASA level when using ASA Auto setting. It would have been very nice to know what ASA level the camera decide to use when in Program mode. ASA is as important as aperture and shutter speed.

If you buy this camera, skip the 18-55 lens and go for the 18-250 lens instead Sony SAL18250 Alpha DT 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 High Magnification Zoom Lens w/Lens Hood. That is a good allround lens, a bit slow but an amazing range, 27-375mm equivalent. I actually don't find a 200mm zoom that useful, but when you can go up to 375mm new opportunities open up. If you want to spend some more, get the 50mm f/1.4 Sony 50mm f/1.4 Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera. That lens will function like 75mm, which is not optimal but that is really the only chance of getting a wide open aperture lens. (Sony also sells a 35mm f/1.4, but that is very expensive and has received poor reviews.) The advantage with the 50mm f/1.4 lens is that it is full-frame so it can be used when you later upgrade to a fullformat camera.

I would also recommend getting Sony Alpha RMT-DSLR1 Camera Remote (Black). This is both cheaper and more functional than the wired remote Sony RM-S1AM Remote Commander for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera. See my reviews of those products

5 out of 5 stars

Has Bells, has Whistles & Delivers too January 24, 2010
Dave Mayer (Huntington Beach)
25 out of 26 found this review helpful

I can remember sitting in an outdoor cafe in St. Martin on the French side with my Canon EOS film camera on the table. I was alone, looking out over the bay in Marigot, wishing I was on one of the sailboats going out to sea, when a man asked if he could join me. It's not what you think, all the other tables were full with couples or more. I was the only one dining (actually drinking) alone. So I told the portly Dutch guy, "Sure, no problem."

He sat down, immediately pointed a small digital camera out to sea and snapped a few shots, then he showed them to me on a small LCD screen. Damn, I thought. Digital photography just might catch on.

And it did, but I didn't make the jump from film to digital until the the summer of 2006, six years after I'd met that guy in Marigot. Why, it took me so long, I don't know. The laundry room I'd converted into a dark room, maybe. I was a pseudo, photo taking stuck up snob, who thought film was better, probably. I was an idiot, certainly.

My ex, also a photo taking snob, got the house, the darkroom, my heart in the divorce and I threw in all my gear and moved to a condo by the beach. Huntington Beach, where I could see the ocean from my front door. Lots of surf there. You can see Catalina on a clear day and the pollution makes for gorgeous sunsets. The sunrise on the water is gorgeous, too.

And because there was no room for a darkroom in my small condo, I decided it was time to go digital and I bought a new Sony Alpha 100. And I liked it. Rather than upgrade the body year after year, I concentrated on lenses and I have a lot now. But my Alpha 100 body got long in the tooth, so I upgraded to an Alpha 550 and wowza, this is a camera.

Bigger pictures, 14.2 megapixels, a bright three inch LCD. The resolution is so good you can even read it in bright sunlight. The live view is great, but there is no video which you can find on Canon and Nikons, but I don't do video, so I don't miss it. The camera accepts both SD cards and memory sticks.

This camera has bells, it's got whistles. Built in IS, which helps keep the price of the lenses down, five frames per second shooting with auto focus, seven without. Want face detection? This camera has it. Smile detection too, though I believe that's overkill and I don't use it. I could go on and on about this cameras features, but all the bells and whistles in the world wouldn't be worth a hill of beans if it didn't deliver and this camera really delivers. For me it comes down to noise, because I do a lot of low light shooting. I got noise at 800 ISO & above on my Alpha 100, but not now. Shooting at 6400 ISO and you don't see any noise. You can shoot 12.800 and it's barely noticeable, depending what you're shooting.

And this camera just feels right in your hands. They say this isn't a professional camera because it's not full frame. Well, that's just crazy talk, because if you can't full fill your photographic dreams with this camera, you can't call yourself a pro.

5 out of 5 stars

Excellent upgrade from A300 November 17, 2009
Jeffrey M. Curtis (Allen, TX)
18 out of 18 found this review helpful

I sold my A300 in anticipation of the A550 and I am very happy with that decision. The A500/550 are targeted towards the A300/350 user base and upgraders from the existing A330/380. This is not meant to be a replacement for the A700 as some review sites had been wishing for. I am extremely pleased with the camera up to this point (about a month as of this review).

The improvements over the A3xx series in my view are:
1) Much improved LCD - it is much sharper than the A3xx series and also the A500
2) High ISO is also much improved over the A3xx series cameras
3) FPS is much faster and makes this camera much more suitable for catching action shots than the A3xx series
4) Improved button layout
5) SD card compatible (subjective)
6) Easy to use menu system
7) Built in HDR
8) Better built in flash
9) Exposure is spot on and colors are great

The not so good
1) Power switch takes some getting used to. It is in a position much like Nikon and Pentax cameras which is not familiar for existing Minolta/Alpha users. It took me a few days to get used to the power switch being near the jog dial, but I have adjusted and it is not a big deal any more.
2) No video - I do not care much about this, however it is a feature that helps sell cameras and Sony needs to step up here to help increase marker share in the dSLR arena
3) Lack of MLU (Mirror Lock Up) - again this has little value to me, but is a selling point at least to the more advanced user base
4) Lack of Program Shift - another one that is a feature the more advanced users would like to have that was in the A300/350 granted it was clumsy to use

Overall I am enjoying my camera immensely. The LCD and Built in Stabilization make differentiate this camera from Nikon and Canon and make this a great choice for me. I have had 3 previous Minolta Maxxum cameras in the late 1980's - 1990's and Sony in my opinion is doing a good job. They have more work to do and need to make cameras that have a wow factor to win more market share and these cameras are a good step in the right direction. Once Sony adds video and some of the more basic missing features, the critics will quiet down...

5 out of 5 stars

Excellent advanced entry-level camera December 29, 2009
Justin Miller
11 out of 12 found this review helpful

I also upgraded to this camera from the DSLR-A300, hoping for some evolutionary changes improving on what was already a solid and reliable entry level camera. I am an experienced shooter, like to manually control exposure, and tend to shoot a lot of wildlife and action shots, as well as low light photography. The A550 was perfectly suited to my needs - ergonomically, a wonderful fit similar to the A300 but with better button control and menu functionality. Image quality as good at low ISO as the solid A300, but a whole different league at higher ISOs (I was able to use up to ISO1600 on the A300, whereas I can comfortably push to ISO6400 with the A550). Autofocus is very fast and accurate, tracking focus on moving subjects quite good, continuous frame shooting is blazing fast at 5fps with focusing or 7fps without, LCD is beautiful, optical viewfinder finally even with competitors, stabilization even more effective, advanced dynamic range much more useful with 5 settings and auto, and the HDR function not only useful for dynamic range, but also as a tool to use image stacking for lower noise and greater detail at higher ISOs. The battery life is amazing, and kudos to Sony for displaying battery life in accurate percentages on their entry cams unlike competitors. The live view is simply the best available on the market, period. I shoot mostly OVF, but on occasion where I need live view, the quick live view mode functions as would any P&S camera in the world - no delay in focus or shutter speed at all. This is 100% functional live view for the average user, not a specialized slow tripod-only type live view as is common elsewhere. For those who DO want that manual focusing ability and accuracy, the MF Live View mode provides that option, with up to 14x zoom on the excellent 920K LCD providing utmost accuracy even in near-total darkness. I bought this camera body-only, as I already had the excellent Sony 18-250mm F3.5-4.5 lens, as well as a Sigma 30mm F1.4, Tamron 10-24mm F3.5-4.5, Tamron 200-500mm F5-6.3, and Minolta 50mm F1.7. Those looking for a semi-pro camera will likely find the A550 too limiting in overall controlability and a few key features for particular types of pro or enthusiast photography...but those looking for either an excellent entry-level DSLR camera, or a suitable upgrade for a basic entry-level DSLR camera, may find the A550 to be a marvelous choice.

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Review: Sony Alpha DSLR-A550 14.2MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)