The Joy of Using a New Camera

(Camera: Sony a55)

For photographers, it is always a joy to try out and, much more so, own a new camera, especially when the camera is full of surprises. The Sony a55 is definitely in the category of camera with surprises.

Although size-wise the a55 can in no way be called a compact, it actually feels lighter than the Samsung NX100 in the hand, thanks to its better weight distribution. Fitted with a 50mm lens for the shot of today, the a55 is really a gem in hand -- with loads of useful features and a cheap price tag. You would have marvelled at its value-for-money.

Today's shot was done with the HDR Auto on. In the unlikely event that you are not aware, Sony has engineered this function to combine three simultaneous shots into a final image with a dynamic range similar to that of the human eyes. It can either be left on auto-pilot for the camera to decide when and how to use it or be tuned to the desired effect levels to the user's taste. For all the shots taken with the HDR Auto on so far, the results come out with flying colours.

The poorly translated instruction manual doesn't help users understand the seemingly overlying HDR/ D-Range/ Multi Frame NR functions. Fact is, the HDR mode is primarily for scenes with statutory subjects, the D-Range for moving subjects (because it simply adjusts the tones without combining multiple images) and let's call the MF-NR function the catchy "museum mode" as this mode is for doing shots at high ISOs which need noise reduction.

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