{CameraGear} UPDATED: Sony announces new a57 DSLT camera

Hi everyone! 

The a55 is Sony's oldest DSLT camera in the lineup launching in 2010 also winning camera of the year by Pop Photo. The a57 replaces it continuing on with the Translucent Mirror Technology and with a number of upgrades that consumers will find interesting. The key features and upgrades are as follows:

 - 16.1 megapixel sensor (same as the NEX-5N)

 - a bigger body similar to the size to the a65

 - AVCHD 2.0 with P/A/S/M control 

 - high speed 12fps shooting in tele-zoom continuous

 - a new upgraded LCD tru-finder

 - auto-portrait framing
 - clear image zoom

 - ISO 100-16000

There are more features that have been upgraded that can be found by clicking here.

The feature that I find most interesting in this camera is the auto-portrait framing mode. If you're taking a photo of a person in this mode, the camera uses face detection and the 'rule of thirds' and crops the frame to give it a more professional look and this works in both landscape and portrait. It also saves both the original image and the cropped image. 

Here is a video of the a57 from SGNL by Sony to give you a brief rundown of the camera

Availability for Australia would be around mid April with pricing as follows:

Body only: $899

Single lens kit w/ 18-55mm lens: $1049

Twin lens kit w 18-55mm & 55-200mm lenses: $1299

Well overall, I think its a good upgrade to the a55 offering some new unique features and the bigger body is a good move in my opinion but I wonder why they left out the GPS option (not that I ever use it). I'll do a video review as soon as I get one in my hands. 

Thanks for reading!

{CameraGear} New Review Videos

 Hi everyone!

I have a couple of new review videos that you can check out. If you haven't yet, subscribe to my channel by clicking here and like my videos. In these videos I'm reviewing the Sony 70-400mm f4-5.6 G Series Lens and the LA-EA2 NEX adapter.

{Snapshots} Australian Open of Surfing

Hi everyone!

I've pretty much neglected my blog and my self portraits for a long time due to other commitments and let me admit, laziness as well but I'm back now showcasing what I love doing and that is of course, photography. I recently had the chance to take photos at the Australian Open of Surfing at Manly, thanks to Sony. I had the opportunity to try out some of their professional lenses such as the 300mm f2.8 G lens, 70-200mm f2.8 and 70-400mm f4-5.6. It was a great day and I had the chance to meet some awesome people from the various camera stores around Sydney. Luckily, the sun was shining and the crowd and contestants put on a good show. Here are a few photos from the day.

 

{CameraGear} My YouTube Channel

Hi everyone!

I just thought I would extend the invite to all my readers who are interested in the latest camera gear from Sony (Alpha and NEX cameras) to subscribe to my YouTube channel. Basically this channel is me reviewing new gear and giving tutorials on how to use Alpha and NEX products as well as talking about photography in general. I'm open to suggestions on tutorials and requests for lenses and other accessories for review. This is a fairly new channel and videos will only get better so check it out.

So far I have reviewed the following:

• Sony a77
• Sony a65
• Sony NEX-C3

And I have made a short tutorial on how to use sweep panorama and picture effects. I'll have a couple more reviews and tutorials (hopefully) with in the next few days so stay tuned and thanks for watching!

YOU CAN SUBSCRIBE BY CLICKING HERE

{Self-Portrait Project} Runaway Pudding

exposure: 1/8000sec f/stop: 2.8 iso: 800

Hi everyone! This self-portrait was sort of my Christmas themed one (changed my idea a few times). For Christmas 2011, I dressed up as a pudding for my friend's party. It was full of stuffing and it tempted all of my friends to continually chase and tackle me. This inspired the shot of the pudding chase where I envisioned myself being chased by a mob of hungry Johns because I looked pretty tasty.

The photo was taken with my camera mounted on a tripod and pre-focused. I took several shots of myself in different positions and outfits. I then merged all the photos in photoshop to get the final image.

Gear used:

- Sony a77 with Carl Zeiss 24-70mm 2.8 lens attached

- one flash (HVL-F58AM)

- tripod

- remote cable

{Self-Portrait Project} Snorting Coke... Coca-Cola

exposure: 1/60sec f/stop: 2.8 iso: 800

Hi everyone! I saw a photo by Wesche Photography where he was pouring red wine into his mouth and I was inspired to do the same thing. I like his idea and you can check out his version by clicking here. As you can see, it was a big fail for me but it was so funny trying to do this. I completely missed my mouth and the coke poured into my nose. I had the weirdest fizzy sensation in my nose.

This shot was taken with my camera lying down on the ground with a flash mounted on top of the camera. I had the remote cable in my hand and I was taking the photo at 8 frames per second so I could pick the best shot later. 

Gear used:

- Sony a77 with Carl Zeiss 24-70mm 2.8 lens attached

- one flash (HVL-F43AM)

- remote cable

{Self-Portrait Project} Bang!

exposure: 1/60sec f/stop: 8 iso: 400

Hi everyone! I've seen so many photos like this where a person has a gun and shoots themselves in the head with something coming out on the other end. So this is my take on that concept. 

The shot was taken with myself lying down on a white crinkled backdrop with party streamers lined up on the floor. The photo was taken with my camera and flash mounted on a monopod facing down. I used a remote cable to trigger the camera.

Gear used: 

- Sony a77 with Carl Zeiss 24-70mm 2.8 lens attached

- one flash (HVL-F58AM)

- monopod

- remote cable