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Sony Alpha / A new player in the DSLR arena
12. junij 2006 -
Matjaz Intihar / translated by Joze Sveticic |
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Sony just made a new giant leap in the world of photography. In the past ten years, Sony sold over 50 million compact digicams under the CyberShot brand. Several facts make this decision perfectly rational: compact digicam demand is slowing and is expected to increase by only 3 to 5% in the year 2006, an increasing number of low cost manufacturers and the plummeting margins in this market segment. Sony’s annual turnover puts it into the top 30 companies worldwide, enabling them to invest heavily into more profitable ventures. The DSLR market is certainly a lucrative one. The DSLR market is expected to grow by at least 40% this year alone. Since the majority of these cameras are very much in the upper price bracket, and with accessories being almost necessary, Sony’s decision to enter this new territory seems even more sensible.
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Marrakech in Morocco was the background to the unveiling of Sony’s first DSLR camera, named Alpha. |
Sony is no stranger to high-end digital recording. They have been a substantial influence in digital video recording for the past 15 years and currently occupy the top spot in this field. In this way, it is even more noticeable to photographers that the new players in the DSLR field will lead a very aggressive battle against the classic photography companies. This will of course be very painful for those companies that do not develop the electronic components in-house.
In the field of photographic equipment, things have changed rapidly in the past few years. Old school photo companies who 10 years ago produced primarily mechanical cameras now have to rely heavily on support from electronics companies. Only in this way can they survive in the brutal world of fast development that is more typical of electronics than it is of photography. Especially the once top SLR manufacturer Minolta was one of the first victims of the need to invest in R&D. Because of this, more and more companies which were familiar to photographers primarily due to home entertainment products, such as TVs and stereo equipment, are entering the photography market. One of these companies is the leading manufacturer of home entertainment products. It is a very well known name - Sony. Even if you were woken in the middle of the night and asked about Sony, you probably wouldn’t have to think long to give an answer. From now on, their competition in the DSLR world hears their name in sleep as well.
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Over 200 European journalists were gathered in a real desert camp. |
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It is only fitting that the locals are present with dancing … |
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... loud music ... |
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… playing … |
Alpha
In 1985, I was admiring the Canon T90 SLR camera and began to wonder if anything at all could possibly be added to a camera. The answer came very soon. Minolta, a well established photography company, which was always among the top three Japanese photography companies, presented an SLR camera. It was called Alpha in Japan, Dynax in Europe and Maxxum in America and bore the number 7000. The Minolta Alpha 7000 was a real revolution that showed where equipment development was going. This was the first camera to include autofocus (AF) in the body. Minolta was continually innovating and tried to reach the top spot with their excellent Rokkor lenses. However, digital appeared and Minolta gradually began losing touch with the leaders. In 2003, it merged with an equally strong photography company, Konica. However, even the resulting company could not compete successfully in the brutal market of digital photography equipment, where investments must be enormous and development must be fast.
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... and a loud announcement of the beginning. |
A new era
In January 2006, an interesting development took place. Sony announced that they took over the photography department of Konica Minolta. This, of course, was not done in order to take over their market share in the compact world. Rather, they wanted the SLR technology. It is this step that today directs and pushes forward the whole photographic technology. I can confidently state that in the world of photography, too, nothing will be as it used to be. An electronics company, which produces CCD and CMOS chips for the vast majority of other companies, introduced a DSLR camera with their own brand.
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Keichi Ishizuka officially announced the birth of a new name. |
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As night fell and the full moon rose, things started happening above the desert. |
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Alpha was born in a spectacular firework display. |
Sony Alpha 100
June 5 2006 is a day that marks the turning of a new page in the world of photography. As of yet, the vast majority of photographers cannot feel that. I believe, however, that in a year or two, Sony will be among the leading DSLR manufacturers in the entry class and middle class. Using the “old” Minolta team, Sony introduced its entry into the DSLR world with a new-old name. The name Alpha is taken from Minolta’s SLR cameras which were sold under this brand in Japan. Now, however, Sony uses the Alpha name for the whole global market.
The presentation was designed to show a totally new thing. Sony invited a large number of European journalists, which has developed into the biggest digital camera market, to a presentation outside Europe. Morocco or rather the desert around Marrakech was chosen as the official birthplace of the Alpha, and also the place where it was presented to the world the next day. Far away from the modern world, in Morocco's Atlas mountain range, a loud bang was heard in the evening, followed by another one. A huge fireworks display illuminated a big alpha letter, announcing Sony’s dedication to a long and fierce struggle for a large market share in the DSLR field.
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On 6 June 2006, Sony prepared a press conference and a presentation of the camera in the exclusive Palmeraie Golf Palace Hotel in Marrakech |
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Fujio Nishida, president of Sony Europe began the presentation by stating why Sony entered the world of DSLR cameras. |
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Takashi Kondo, vice-president of Digital Imaging Europe at Sony Europe presented and showed the new camera. |
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Kornelius Müller, marketing manager of Carl Zeiss presented the Zeiss lenses for the Alpha. |
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Richard Kalvar, a photographer with Magnum, presented the functioning of the Alpha 100. He was very excited about the possibility of wireless triggering additional flashes using the built-in flash. |
The official presentation of the Alpha 100 DSLR camera
On 6 June 2006, Sony prepared a press conference and a presentation of the camera in the exclusive Palmeraie Golf Palace Hotel in Marrakech This was rather short, but well suited to the company's level and reputation. There was no excessive self-praise and no claims of being the best at the moment, nor was anything said about conquering the DSLR world immediately. However, their faces showed very clearly that they are very happy with what they achieved, and more importantly, that they are confident in their start in the new world of digital photography. It is a fact they acknowledge themselves, which is why they chose to start with an entry level DSLR camera. The people Sony know fully well that one must learn and tread slowly if one wishes to succeed in the long run.
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Even the users of competitive cameras tested out the Alpha 100. |
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Testing the Alpha 100 on the streets of Marrakesh. |
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Testing of all functions was performed under various conditions. |
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The Alpha 100 has built in image stabilisation technology, Super SteadyShot. |
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Sony added a new feature to the camera. The sensor is covered with an anti-static coating to reflect the dust particles. |
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The BIONZ processor enables fast data processing. |
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Alpha 100 is the first DSLR camera with the Dynamic Range Optimiser technology, enabling the photographer to capture a better shot in high-contrast conditions. |
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Alpha also allows use of Minolta’s older lenses. |
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A veritable multitude of lenses was announced. |
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Carl Zeiss produced a special series of ZA lenses especially for Alpha. By the end of the year, the users should be able to choose from three ZA lenses. |
Author :
Matjaz Intihar / translated by Joze Sveticic
Contact e-Photographia.com
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Published by:
Matjaz Intihar
Article
ID:
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Copyright: e-Photographia | Matjaž Intihar |
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