When the Sony Alpha range of cameras was first announced, many photographers were excited by the potential that an electronics giant like Sony could bring to the digital camera market. Up until recently, Sony has spent most of its time and energies developing entry level Alpha cameras, but that strategy is now beginning to change, and Sony now looks committed to expanding its range of midrange and professional level cameras. The DSLR-A700 is a great step down that path, and the DSLR-A500 and A550 take it even further to show Sony’s determination to continue to grow the Alpha DSLR series.

When Sony released the A700 in September 2007, it was clear from the spec sheet that this was a camera that they wanted to be taken seriously. The A700 has a 12.4 megapixel sensor and a tough metal body to protect the sensitive electronics on-board. There are 11 AF points that also include some precision focus sensors that are designed to maximize performance in this area. Weather sealing was added around the buttons to keep out moisture and dust, and a dual card slot is used to give you the choice of Sony’s proprietary memory stick, or compact flash memory cards. The camera comes with a remote control, a high resolution LCD and Sony Super SteadyShot image stabilization. The A700 can shoot at up to 5 frames per second, but has no live view, flip out LCD, or HD movie modes. A replacement 7 series is expected soon, and will likely address at least one of these concerns. If you are looking for a shop offering Sony Alpha A700 camera repair you should be able to find a reputable repair shop with a couple quick Google searches.

With the A500 and A550, Sony has continued its tradition of releasing two versions of the what is essentially the same camera. The A500 was unveiled alongside the A550 in October 2009, and sports a 12.3MP CMOS with ISO capabilities up to 12,800. The same tilting 2.7″ LCD screen that is on the 3 series Alphas, can be found on the A500, as is the twin sensor live view. However, improvements mean that it is now capable of shooting up to 4 frames per second in live view mode, or 5 frames through the viewfinder. You also have face detection in the new live view, and the smile shutter feature developed for Cyber-shot cameras. A great new feature of the camera is built in HDR (High Dynamic Range) functionality that combines three photos of different exposure settings into one image to produce spectacular effects.

A DSLR-A550 costs around 0 more than the DSLR-A500; so what’s the difference between the two? Well, the A550 has a much higher resolution, tilting 3-inch LCD screen. It also has a larger 14.2MP sensor. The A550 has a speed improvement that lets you shoot at up to 7 frames per second if you lock the exposure in advance, and this alone may make sports photographers think that it is worth the extra $200 over the A500. If you are looking for a business that offers Sony DSLR-A500 camera repair you should be able to find a reputable repair shop with a couple quick Google searches.

The A500 and A550 are both excellent cameras but neither is able to record HD movies which may lead some buyers to lean more towards Nikon or Canon instead. If this isn’t a feature you would miss, then these are Sony DSLRs that you should consider.

Hopefully this will help you with choosing a Sony Alpha DSLR camera! When you are needing to find a Sony Alpha camera repair shop that doesn’t overcharge there is one shop that not only can repair them, but you can buy one through their Amazon store as well. The store is called Darntoothysam.com.

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