[niceshot]

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Does anyone here have one or know anything about it. I have a chance to get one with low usage for 500 smackerooneys Just looking fore input

[UncleVanya]

Sony Alpha DSLR-A850 Review - DigitalCameraReview

I have zero direct experience. Reading a few highlights:

Low frame rate (3)
Poor high iso noise
No live view

A mount bargains in lenses exist. The Tamron sp usd 70-300 is a good example. The Tamron 45 f1.8 is another.

[niceshot]

Sony Alpha DSLR-A850 Review - DigitalCameraReview

I have zero direct experience. Reading a few highlights:

Low frame rate (3)
Poor high iso noise
No live view

A mount bargains in lenses exist. The Tamron sp usd 70-300 is a good example. The Tamron 45 f1.8 is another.

thx for the reply Uncle Vanya , I Appreciate that. Hoping some one who has ever used this will appear or has experience with the a900

[UncleVanya]

thx for the reply Uncle Vanya , I Appreciate that. Hoping some one who has ever used this will appear or has experience with the a900

A900 or a850?

[niceshot]

A900 or a850?

well both are kind of the very same insides , either and or

[surfar]

thx for the reply Uncle Vanya , I Appreciate that. Hoping some one who has ever used this will appear or has experience with the a900

Talk to BigMack,he uses that system.

[Wheatridger]

Ten or so years ago, the a850 was my favorite DSLR. I had come up through the end of the Konica Minolta years, starting with a KM 7D, the first DSLR with IBIS. As Sony took over, I hunted out used "obsolete" Minolta Maxxum lenses in pawn shops, to be system-ready when the first Sony a-mount FF camera came along. That was the a900, which caused a sensation as the first FF DSLR under $2000. Still a bit rich for me, but I jumped at the a850, a cut-rate model a shutter rated for a shorter life, for a few hundred bucks less. That shutter indeed did fail after two years- I don't recall the shutter count. I had it repaired, because I loved the camera. Very enjoyable to use, the OVF was notably bigger than the K-1's, IIRC. The sensor had more DR than I'd known before. One cool, lost feature was the shake-o-meter bar graph of LEDs in the OVF, which used the IBIS system to show you how shaky or still you were holding the camera. Pentax, give us this feature!

As you probably know, the a850/900 lacks one customary feature. There's no Live View. Instead you can use the shutter button collar to trigger a test exposure that's displayed on the rear screen. If you like that, you can then save it to the card. The cameras use a unique Sony hot shoe design that's incompatible with any current and most vintage flashes. Other than those two considerable quirks, it's a capable and up-to-date camera. Let me know if you buy it and need an a-mount flash. I have a friend with one or two.

[niceshot]

Ten or so years ago, the a850 was my favorite DSLR. I had come up through the end of the Konica Minolta years, starting with a KM 7D, the first DSLR with IBIS. As Sony took over, I hunted out used "obsolete" Minolta Maxxum lenses in pawn shops, to be system-ready when the first Sony a-mount FF camera came along. That was the a900, which caused a sensation as the first FF DSLR under $2000. Still a bit rich for me, but I jumped at the a850, a cut-rate model a shutter rated for a shorter life, for a few hundred bucks less. That shutter indeed did fail after two years- I don't recall the shutter count. I had it repaired, because I loved the camera. Very enjoyable to use, the OVF was notably bigger than the K-1's, IIRC. The sensor had more DR than I'd known before. One cool, lost feature was the shake-o-meter bar graph of LEDs in the OVF, which used the IBIS system to show you how shaky or still you were holding the camera. Pentax, give us this feature!

As you probably know, the a850/900 lacks one customary feature. There's no Live View. Instead you can use the shutter button collar to trigger a test exposure that's displayed on the rear screen. If you like that, you can then save it to the card. The cameras use a unique Sony hot shoe design that's incompatible with any current and most vintage flashes. Other than those two considerable quirks, it's a capable and up-to-date camera. Let me know if you buy it and need an a-mount flash. I have a friend with one or two.

Thank you for your input, didn't know the shutter was rated less than the a900

[Broadside]

500 smackerooneys

Too much. My personal view is that the asking price of Sony A-mount cameras is over-inflated. One auction on eBay finished recently here in the UK for 240GBP, which was a bit of a bargain.

Compared on sensors, the mirrorless a7 series offers better value (excepting when you get a bargain as above).

• For the 500 asked for an a850, you can probably get an a7ii which will have a couple of generations newer sensor.
• The a7Rii and a99ii use the same sensor IIRC; the asking price of the dSLR is TWICE that of the mirrorless.

On the flip side, Minolta AF lenses are very good value: you ought to be able to get all three of 28/2.8, 50/1.7 and 70-210/4 "Beercan" for less than 100; somewhat more if you choose the Tamron SP 70-300 USD as mentioned above (but, like the Pentax system, no OIS).

[niceshot]

Too much. My personal view is that the asking price of Sony A-mount cameras is over-inflated. One auction on eBay finished recently here in the UK for 240GBP, which was a bit of a bargain.

Compared on sensors, the mirrorless a7 series offers better value (excepting when you get a bargain as above).

• For the 500 asked for an a850, you can probably get an a7ii which will have a couple of generations newer sensor.
• The a7Rii and a99ii use the same sensor IIRC; the asking price of the dSLR is TWICE that of the mirrorless.

On the flip side, Minolta AF lenses are very good value: you ought to be able to get all three of 28/2.8, 50/1.7 and 70-210/4 "Beercan" for less than 100; somewhat more if you choose the Tamron SP 70-300 USD as mentioned above (but, like the Pentax system, no OIS).

all point to consider

[niceshot]

Ten or so years ago, the a850 was my favorite DSLR. I had come up through the end of the Konica Minolta years, starting with a KM 7D, the first DSLR with IBIS. As Sony took over, I hunted out used "obsolete" Minolta Maxxum lenses in pawn shops, to be system-ready when the first Sony a-mount FF camera came along. That was the a900, which caused a sensation as the first FF DSLR under $2000. Still a bit rich for me, but I jumped at the a850, a cut-rate model a shutter rated for a shorter life, for a few hundred bucks less. That shutter indeed did fail after two years- I don't recall the shutter count. I had it repaired, because I loved the camera. Very enjoyable to use, the OVF was notably bigger than the K-1's, IIRC. The sensor had more DR than I'd known before. One cool, lost feature was the shake-o-meter bar graph of LEDs in the OVF, which used the IBIS system to show you how shaky or still you were holding the camera. Pentax, give us this feature!

As you probably know, the a850/900 lacks one customary feature. There's no Live View. Instead you can use the shutter button collar to trigger a test exposure that's displayed on the rear screen. If you like that, you can then save it to the card. The cameras use a unique Sony hot shoe design that's incompatible with any current and most vintage flashes. Other than those two considerable quirks, it's a capable and up-to-date camera. Let me know if you buy it and need an a-mount flash. I have a friend with one or two.

I Did buy it, and wow what a camera incredible. Yes I could use a flash unit. PM me if you could thx>

[niceshot]

Here is a picture from my new toy

[Steve Beswick]

There are adapters to give you a normal hot shoe.

amazon.com: Vbestlife HD-N3 PC Flashlight Hot Shoe Adapter for Sony a100, a200, a230 a300, a330 a350, a700, a900 and for Minolta a5D, a7D, a5, a7, etc. : Electronics?tag=pentaxforums-20&

[Wheatridger]

There are adapters to give you a normal hot shoe.

amazon.com: Vbestlife HD-N3 PC Flashlight Hot Shoe Adapter for Sony a100, a200, a230 a300, a330 a350, a700, a900 and for Minolta a5D, a7D, a5, a7, etc. : Electronics?tag=pentaxforums-20&

Yes, I tried one of those, back in the day. It works, but it creates a wobbly, insecure flash mount. Not only is it raising the flash's center of gravity by a half-inch, it adds a second contact surface that has to be held securely. This adapter looks to be released by pushing the button on the side. That's never as secure as a twist ring that can be tightened down.

The best way to deal with the uncommon alpha hot shoe (since discontinued) is to use a compatible Sony flash. But the best way to mount a flash on any camera is to use a handle-mount. I've been using the Metz 45 for 35 years now, but there are (a few) newer models. It's the most rugged way, attaching to the strongest physical part of the camera body, not the weakest. It adds weight, but the camera body/lens balance is improved. And it provides a left-hand handle! Do you pick up your camera by the flash? I do.