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Sony Alpha
350 Review
The Sony Alpha 350 (or the a350 as it will be referred to here)
builds on the success of the a100 and is designed to compliment the
a200 and a300 DSLR cameras. It is the first Alpha camera to feature
live view but its implimentation is different from other DSLRs. Not
only that, the a350 features the second highest imaging sensor
resolution (the a900 of couse being the highest).
The live view works by displaying the image the image that forms in
the viewfinder rather than the one that forms directly on the
sensor. This permits the camera to use it's standard phase detection
autofocusing rather than resorting to the slower contrast based
method. This shall be discussed later.
Specification
-
14MP
imaging sensor
-
Bionz Image
processing engine
-
40 segment
evaluative meter
-
Quick Live
View
-
9 point AF
sensor array
-
2.7"
articulating LCD monitor
-
In body
image stabilization (Steady Shot Inside)
-
Contrast
Optimiser (D-Ranger Optimiser)
Exposure
The a350 is using what is now the standard 40 segment honeycomb
metering. This meter can be configured for evaluative, centre
weighted or spot metering. The evaluative metering is the default
metering method and capable of handling a range of lighting
situations.
With the camera set to live view, the metering method changes. The
metering is from the image formed in the viewfinder and meter in
over 1000 areas.
All the standard exposure modes are provided in the form of aperture
priority, shutter priority, full manual and program modes. The
parameters are changed via the single control dial on the front of
the hand grip.
In keeping with DSLRs of a similar range, the fastest shutter speed
is 1/4000 seconds. The slowest shutter speed is 30 seconds.
The ISO sensitivity ranges from 100 to 3200 to provide flexibility
in a range of lighting conditions.
The D-Range Optimiser feature is designed to give better detail and
clarity by sophisticated adjustment of an images contrast. Once
activated it comes into play when capturing high contrast images.
This feature only affects images that are saved in the JPEG format.
Autofocus
The a350 AF sensor array seems to be derived from that in the a100.
However, the performance of the AF sensor has been improved to give
faster focusing. The central
sensor is of the cross type design permitting it to be sensitive to
both horizontal and vertical contrast image information. The
remaining sensors are only most sensitive to single contrast
information.
The default AF will determine if it is necessary to lock focus or
switch to continuous focus it a moving subject is detected. The
focusing mode can be determined manually if necessary. Unlike the
a700 there is no switch that will toggle the focus mode between AF
and manual.
Image Quality
The a350 with it's 14MP sensor demands a high quality lens to make
to most of the available resolution. The images rendered are
typically highly detailed with smooth gradations. As expected the
high pixel count makes the sensor prone to higher levels of image
noise compared to lower resolution sensors.
Flexibility
The a350 uses the same Quick Navi feature as employed on the a700
for adjusting the parameters for flash, metering, autofocus, AF
area, white balance and D-Range
Optimiser. It is a very intuitive system to use. Direct access to
ISO, Drive, LiveView, exposure compensation, exposure lock and
Smart Teleconverter is provided for on the body. The d-pad style
controller on the back is for entering or adjusting parameters and
selecting AF sensor.
To the left of the LCD screen are buttons for
accessing the Menu, Display, Delete and Playback. Above them is the
power on/off switch. One the top left of the camera is the exposure
mode dial which has all the standard P, A, S and M modes as well as
scene modes to assist the
beginner.
The LCD monitor articulates to enable the camera to be held away
from the eye and at different angles. This comes into it's own when
the a350 is used in live view mode. It makes a great waist level
viewfinder and will make life easier when trying to shoot above the
heads of a crowd. When Live View is activated a blind comes down in
the viewfinder and a tilting mirror is adjusted to redirect light to
the live view imaging sensor within the viewfinder. The process is
very quick and it is easy to go from standard view to live view and
back in hardly any time at all.
Performance
I found that I liked the size of the a350 body finding it nice to
travel with as it does not take up too much space in the camera bag.
It is not the smallest of DSLRs but it's size seems about right for
most purposes. Perhaps the most notable external body design
aspect is that of the articulating LCD monitor. Unlike many other
designs I does not sit flush with the body but protrudes by the
thinking of the screen. In practical terms it did not seem to cause
problems but it may make the screen more liable to get scratched in
some circumstances.
The Eye Start implimentation if will either please or annoy you. As
expected when the eye is near the viewfinder the autofocus and
exposure systems become active. The omission of no hand grip sensor
(as implimented on the a700) meant that whilst carrying the camera
the lens was continuously focusing. This inevertably impacted on the
battery life and so when not actively shooting or carrying the
camera for extended periods was best to switch the camera off. There
is perhaps one benefit that was gained from this, by switching the
camera off the anti dust feature is activated to keep the imaging
sensor clean.
With regards to the anti dust feature, I found it not to be 100%
effective as I noticed a couple of particles of dust it could not
remove. However, it is a feature well worth having as the instances
of dust particles appearing on images (after lens changes) was lower
than I had experienced with cameras without this feature.
The articulating LCD screen is of the design that permits the screen
to be angled upwards or downwards but it cannot be set at fancy
angles or set to front facing. In the field accessing the screen is
fast and simple and does not get in the way of a shoot. The other
typical design as found on some Olympus, Panasonic and Canon cameras
I have found a bit more fiddly but they do not protrude when not in
use and can be reversed as an added measure to protect the screen.
Activating what Sony refer to as Quick Live View is straightforward.
Its was just the the flick of the switch to get things started and
as the very same focusing system was still employed in this mode as
the standard mode using the optical viewfinder the focusing array is
represented in the standard positions.
I found it regretible that the live view design has meant that the
optical viewfinder had to be compromised. The image seen through the
viewfinder is smaller than I have seen in recent DSLRs making manual
focus even more difficult than it would be on an APS-C based camera.
All the usual viewfinder information present.
It seems the live view has also impacted on the
built in flash. The flash is raised by pressing the flash button but
unlike most modern flash designs the flash does not raise very high.
The LCD screen appeared not to have any anti glare coating. This is
unfortunate as images on the screen were difficult to see in bright
day light or sunlight.
There is no hard protective screen cover available but a protective
sheet. I found it needs to be carefully applied to ensure it stays
in position. It won't protect against impacts but it will against
scratches.
At this point I must refer you to the user controls on the a350. The
front control dial is adequate for most tasks but slows down the use
of the DSLR because this is no rear dial. With the LCD screen
designed to articulate things are a bit cramped on the back of the
camera. The positioning on the d-pad AF sensor selector makes it
prone to being accidently pressed. I found it best to lock the
control to protect my selection.
The autofocus on the whole seemed swift and precise. It was
considerably better than the version used by the a100 and almost
seemed like a match for the a700. No doubt the a700 has a stronger
motor but certainly autofocusing with a range of lenses the a350
felt just as confident. There is an exception to this however. Under
more demanding conditions, I found that the a350 lacked the accuracy
of the a700 when shooting with fast lenses. The a700 has the
advantage of it's central double cross sensor and it's extra
precision for fast lenses. I also found that on occasions the a350
AF will hesitate. Despite this, the AF system held up very well
during a shoot capturing wildlife.
As I have found in the past, live view is not a feature that would
be used everyday but only when really necessary. The a350's quick
live view did not interrupt the flow of my shoots and allowed me to
take photos at more interesting angles. A histogram overlay came in
handy to help avoid burning out highlights. I found it ashame that
the focusing areas were fixed to the standard focus areas. Part of
the charm of live view is that usually any area on the screen can be
focused on. The a350 is not autofocusing via the screen hence this
feature cannot be offered.
The Smart Teleconverter feature has limited
appeal. It magnifies an image by effectively cropping towards the
centre of the screen and can produce the equivalent of x2
magnification. It's use is limited because it only works in the Live
View mode and jpeg file format must be selected. With the high pixel
count sensor the results maintain a decent level of detail but it is
a feature that can easily be achieve within an image editing
package. It's a shame the button used to activate the feature cannot
be re-assigned to about task as I found I had no use for it.
Unlike the a700 and the a900, the a350 only has a single RAW file
setting which seems to be the equivalent of cRAW on the bigger
cameras. This is a compressed file and I could that typically a file
can be anywhere from 8MB to 18MB in size. These are relatively small
files given that they are derived from a 14MP sensor. I feel raw is
the format of choice in order to get the best possible image
quality. JPEG format is there for those who need it and it is the
only format that can be used if the D-Range Optimiser feature is
used. The extra flexibility as offered on the a700 was missed but
you cannot
have everything at the price bracket this camera is targeted at (at
least not for now).
Generally, handling is good. The Quick Navi feature makes
controlling the camera straightforward. Care has to be taken when
gripping the camera as it is easy to accidentally press the
controller and upset the AF setting. It was therefore necessary to
check the AF selection or better still set the AF area to just use
the central AF sensor.
Not unexpectedly, image quality is not at it's best when the highest
ISO of 3200 is used. It is what I term 'for emergency use only' or
when producing small prints. I found ISO 1600 useable in some
situations but I generally preferred not to go above ISO 800. If I
demanded the best image quality I would not shoot above ISO 400. I
was very happy to just leave the camera set to Auto ISO which would
set the ISO from 100 to 400 based on lighting conditions. To
minimise issues with image noise correct exposure was important. The
a350 does not have the same flexibility at the a700 when it comes to
making adjustments to raw images because of the higher
susceptibility to noise of the sensor. No doubt this will not be an
issue to the average consumer but those who want to make very big
enlargements or demand the highest quality should be aware.
There is a switchable image noise reduction provide what helps to
keep high ISO noise under control. At the other end of the scale
there is noise reduction available for the exposures beyond 1
second.
Battery life seemed reasonable in terms of
permitting over 600 frames to be shot per charge with lots of use of
the LCD screen. The battery level is accurately represented on the
screen but when the level is showing empty it is still possible to
shoot a number of frames before the camera shuts down.
The a350 has turned out to be an interesting
camera to use. The compromises imposed surely suggest the a350 very
much aimed at the average consumer but in use once the limitations
are understood the a350 proves to be a very capable. I would hope
that Sony makes improvements to the implementation of their Live
View system so at the very least the viewfinder does not have to be
compromised to the same level as the a350. Despite the availability
of Live View the viewfinder was still the main way to view and
compose a subject. EA
The A350 has since been replaced by the A380
which has a re-designed exterior but the underlying technology
remains the same. A smaller lower capacity battery is used and Sony
have opted for the SD and MS Duo memory card storage rather than the
compact flash medium. There is no provision for a vertical grip of
the type available for the A350 (very handy when shooting with heavy
lenses like the 70-200mm G SSM).
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SSM lens review
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