Pop Photo Magazine Field Tests The Alpha 100

Being a long-time Minolta user I was saddened when the news came out that Konica Minolta was throwing in the towel in regard to its photography interests. In my opinion there was no better bang for the buck than Minolta photo gear. The price to quality ratio was always a factor for a budget conscious photographer like myself. Nikon and Canon, although the industry leaders were just out of my price range and Minolta equipment was my salvation. I still think the Maxxum 7 is one of the best film SLRs ever produced in regards to price, quality, ease-of-use, and just plain fun to shoot with. So I’ve been waiting anxiously for Sony, who acquired Konica Minolta’s photography business to release it’s first digital SLR so I can finally make the plunge into digital (beyond my little Canon A-75 digital shooter.)

Sony announced recently that the Alpha 100 DSLR will be available sometime in late July, early August and several pre-release reviews have been posted on the internet as mentioned in my earlier post. Popular Photography and Imaging magazine has also just posted a pre-release field test. John Owens put the Alpha 100 through the test a couple of weeks ago on a two-day Alaskan trip put together by Sony to allow the press to evaluate the camera. That Alpha 100 field test from Pop Photo can be viewed here. I just wish the camera had a pc connector. I’ve never understood why new cameras, even entry level models don’t have a pc connector. How expensive can it be to add this convenient and sometimes necessary feature. The Konica C35 rangefinder, that I recently picked up for ten dollars at an antique store, has a pc connector and hotshoe for flash. The Konica wasn’t a premier camera when new, yet it sports this feature. For this reason alone I may wait for a semi-pro or professional model of the Alpha, if Sony plans to release one. I would assume they will. It looks like Sony’s initial foray into the digital SLR category is a winner, and it will be very hard for me to not purchase this camera, even though it is missing a couple of features I would prefer to have. I’m not a patient man, just ask my wife and kids!