Customer Reviews

Sony Alpha DSLR-A380 Digital SLR with 18-55mm & 75-300mm Lenses and Carrying Case wtih Turtorial DVD

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After researching Nikon for a month, I was ready to buy the Nikon D5000. My daughters teacher told me to look at Sony before plunking down the Nikon money. I'm so glad I did!

The body of the Sony has a vibration reduction built into the BODY of the camera so the lenses don't need it. This make Sony lenses several hundred dollars cheaper than the Nikon lenses (that have VR). Lenses being the most expensive part of photography, this feature made me look harder at Sony.

Recovery time from shutter press to ability to take the next photo is faster than on the Nikon. The Nikon was .5 to 1 second slower in recovery time. When you need to take several pictures fast (but not the continuous photo feature) this is a big thing.

The Sony is lighter. I held both camera with the 18-55 lens attached, one in each hand, and the Nikon is much heavier after about 3 minutes. When carrying a camera around all day, that is important.

I purchased my camera kit (body, 2 lenses, DVD and bag) for this price at Wolf/Ritz Camera in Denver. The people there allowed me to take several photos inside their store with both camera, using my SD card. I was also allowed to take several just outside the store. I used their 1 hour service to print the photos and found no quality difference. I printed them on 4X6 matte finish and at that small a size, the difference in megapixels (12 for Nikon, 14 for Sony) wasn't seen.

The price difference between the Sony and a comparable Nikon was so big that this kit is a no brainer! BUY IT! At 14mp this camera will last you years and you'll pass it on to your kids. And you won't spend all your money on lenses.

Okay, there are a couple features I wish the Sony had. Primarily video. This camera cannot take video. I have 5 kids and I use a small Kodak 12mp point and shoot for the video, so I still get that. The kodak takes nice video and is inexpensive, is small so it fits in my camera bag easily.

The bag that come with this kit isn't the best. I will buy a better one this week. The bag is too small for the camera with the lens on.

I took my Sony on a 4 day, 250 mile bicycle tour that I was SAGing for. I used it all weekend, took over 700 photos and the camera performed perfectly. The battery lasted over 500 shots (I used the optical viewfinder since it was so sunny I couldn't see the LCD) before needing recharged.

I'm very happy I purchased this Sony and expect it will last me many years to come.

First things first... I am not a professional photographer. It would be a stretch to even call me an amateur photographer.

I had been in the market for a new camera since I was in Haiti a few months ago and I took a picture with my Canon Powershot S5IS of the sunset and a pair of fisherman in a canoe on the port in Port-au-Prince. The pictures turned out really good and I got a lot of compliments on them, but I knew that the camera did not do the scene justice.

I wanted an entry to mid-range dSLR. I think I got that. The 18-55mm lens is nice. I have been taking a lot of photos on the daily walks with my wife and it seems to take work well enough for me. The 75-300mm lens does really well in low light with the right ISO, shutter speed, and a steady hand or support. The menu format/operating system/whatever is very intuitive and geared for people like me. The DVD was a nice touch. I tried to watch it, but my ADD kicked in. I am learning by fiddling.

I like the fact that I got two pretty good quality lenses, a bag, and the camera. This is the bridge camera for me... After a few years, this will become a backup or a learner for my kid. I am going to use this to learn as much as I can, hone my skills, and perfect my techniques. When I get the rest of the equipment I want for this set up, I will probably be in about $1500, a small investment for my multi-year learning experience. By then, I'll be ready to spend the big dollars for a camera that will last a lifetime.

I definitely recommend this kit to someone making the jump. Come and see how much you have to learn... It is awesome.

This is a great kit. Telephoto lens, lens covers, a super nice SONY A380 (no not the airplane...the camera), and the standard 18-55mm lens, too! 14 Megapixels - WOW!

Awesome camera first off...a real tank. Sony bought out Monolta, so the SLR's will also use the older Auto-Focus Monolta lenses so I'm told. Me, I don't know jack about photography, so I watched the DVD for dummies (-: comes with it and you can take a look while the batteries for the camera is charging (if you are a NOOB like me). This is gonna be the best B-Day gift ever!

*****'s for value & quality - was so amazed by shots of my wall clock, can't imaging the stunning frames the recipient of this will capture. Thanks to sony for putting this out there! As far as I can tell this camera is in the range of the Nikon D90, so this bundle is great if you don't mind owning SONY.

Years ago I used to use a Nikon F SLR with an assortment of wide angle, normal, and telephoto lenses. I would buy my film in bulk, load it into casettes, shoot, then develop and print in my home darkroom. Those days are long gone. Once digital arrived I used a variety of compact cameras whose main virtue was portability and convenience, which sometimes did not provide the sharpest pictures.

With the birth of a grandchild on the way, my wife decided to look for a "really good" camera. She bought this kit at a one day sale for $535, and after she brought it home the "photo bug" that had been dormant for so many years bit me again. I absolutely love this camera. Here is why.

1. Picture quality is stunning. Don't be overly impressed with the 14.2 megapixels because unless you regularly make 16 x 20 pictures or larger, you won't really notice a difference from a camera with say 10 megapixels. The whole emphasis on megapixels is really just a marketing ploy. The thing to focus on are the lenses, and both lenses that come with this kit take amazing pictures--clear, sharp, vivid colors. I use one of the pictures that I took as a screensaver on my 22 inch monitor, and the detail is incredible. Also, my cousin who is an avid photographer has a much more expensive Nikon DSLR, and because the Sony lenses are so good, there is no difference in our picture quality.

2. The lenses are easy to remove and put on, and the autofocus and automatic light metering features work very well.

3. The included flash is compact but powerful. No it is not a substitute for an external flash if you do lots of flash photography, but for ordinary use it works just fine.

4. If you are a beginner or just don't want to be bothered with lots of technical details, just set the main control dial to Auto, and the camera will take care of all of your settings for you. If you want to start playing with settings to adjust aperture, shutter, depth of field, ISO settings etc. you can do so. In short, you can simply point and shoot or else start making all kinds of adjustments to become more creative.

5. The manual that comes with the camera is adequate. If you want a book that clearly and concisely explains everything about using this camera with lots of tips for being creative, buy David Busch's book on Sony DSLR A380/A330/A230 cameras (I have reviewed it on Amazon).

6. The bag supplied is adequate for holding all of the equipment, though there is little room for anything else.

7. Lens caps on any DSLR have a way of popping off and getting lost, so I suggest you buy an inexpensive lens cap keeper. I use the one made by Bower (I have reviewed it on Amazon).

8. I suggest buying an extra battery. Battery life is pretty good, but an extra battery is always a good idea. I bought one made by Lenmar that works just as well as the Sony battery, but is half the price (I have reviewed it on Amazon).

9. Although there is no video on this camera, I don't consider that a problem. I have always preferred using a separate video camera because taking videos is much different from taking still photos, and video cameras have a different set of controls that are missing on a DSLR.

10. Even with the camera bag loaded with everything, it is not that heavy, and is about the size of an average pocketbook.

Bottom Line: Whether you use this camera as a simple point and shoot or start experimenting with the different settings, you can take great pictures. I recommend this. Shop for price since this is a discontinued model, and prices should drop.

I spent weeks trying to decide what camera to get, my son is playing youth football and our old point and shoot would only give us ghost images when he was in motion. I read the reviews on all DSLRs and saw that most of them give the good rating to Cannon and Nikon but they are at least $100 more expensive, granted they have HD movie capability but that is not something I need in my DSLR. The price plus the antishake built into the camera is what had me decide to get a Sony, this allows you to buy less espensive lenses, and I couldn't be happier, I haven't taken my son'd pictures yet but we went to the NY Giants football practice this weekend and I was able to get amazing pictures from the watching area, usually the opposite end of the field and at least 100 feet from the end zone, and they look like I was on the field within 20 feet of the action. I took the pictures in the auto mode using burst and moved the camers with the action perfect pictures, I will try to post a few. From the practice we went to the baseball Hall of Fame and I took pictures with the camera flash and at times I had to retake the picture because of bad light exposure, I was able to get great shots with the flash most of the time. Also the 14+ mp allows the pics to be zoomed and cropped without quality loss. I founf it very easy to use the auto mode and hadn't even read a single line in the manual.
I reccomend this camera to someone that is looking to get quality pictures but doesn't want to spend a lot of $$$.
The seller Andorama got me the camera immediately, I ordered Saturday night and had the camera on Tuesday.

i Started with Konica SLR's, than onto Minolta, now Sony Dslr's i paid $500.00 when the Sony a380 CAME OUT, body only, i paid $550.00 for the Sony a33 when it first came out, body only. Both of these cameras i found better than their virgin reviews, i still have them and use them. If i would sell them today i would be lucky to get $100.00 for each of them, but yet when i look at what some individuals are asking, along with the establishment photo suppliers you would think that these cameras were lined with gold. My advice is for anyone looking for a DSLR they do their homework and purchase new products just out like the Sony a65 or Sony a77. Do not pay these asking prices for Discontinued Products, because you are cheating yourself. This is true on all the major brands, do not let these places ripe you off. Buy new technology, you will be glad you did. The two (2) lenses mentioned above, they are just average quality lenses if that.

Camera is easy to use. Still learning allthe nick nacks on camera. Faster lens would have been nice. For the money, probably one of the better cameras. Adjustable view finder is a great option.

I bought this camera for my wife as a replacement for her 35mm. She took it to shoot a wedding 2 days after getting the camera. She won't be going back to 35mm any time soon. The only thing she will be needing is an external flash. the built in flash doesn't cut it.

It works really really good. First, the fully charged battery could shot 300+/- pictures even with flash on; then, it very easy to handle and feel good with holding in hand; third, the adjustable LED screen is good for holding the camera up over head. It's enough for a beginner as me.