Sony Alpha SLT-a35 16 MP Digital SLR with Translucent Mirror Technology

by Sony

• Sony exclusive Translucent Mirror Technology enabling simultaneous focusing and capture
• Up to 7 frames per second continuous shooting and continuous auto focus
• Main Sensor Live View with Phase Detection auto focus (Quick AF Live View)
• Phase detection-the highest-precision auto focus-available at all times, even Live View and Movie modes
• 15-point Auto Focus w/ 3 cross sensors so the subject need not be in the center of the frame

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 6.3 x 6.2 inches ; 2.6 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0054I54EU
• Item model number: SLTA35
• Batteries 1 Lithium ion batteries required. (included)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,349 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 7, 2011

Product Description

Style: Body Only

From the Manufacturer

The SLT-a35 joins SLT-a55V and DSLR-a580 at the heart of Sony’s α (alpha) DSLR lineup.  These models slot in between the entry-level a390 and the 35mm full-frame DSLR-a850 and a900.

Capture your perfect moments with Sony's exclusive Translucent Mirror Technology DSLR superior performance whether you're shooting HD movies or still images. Tele-zoom High Speed Shooting at up to 7 frames per second, complete with continuous auto focus.  Auto focus is also visibly faster in Live View and HD Movie modes.

Translucent Mirror Technology   
Conventional DSLRs can shoot.  Or they can focus with the speed and precision of Phase Detection AF.  They cannot do both at once.  The SLT-a35 utilizes Translucent Mirror Technology that  directs light to both the image sensor and the Phase Detection AF sensor simultaneously.  

Tele Zoom High Speed Shooting   
The translucent mirror makes it far easier to capture the decisive soccer kick or your baby at her absolute cutest.  The Tele Zoom High Speed shooting mode shoots up to 7 fps at 8.4 MP while maintaining continuous auto focus and auto exposure.

Quick AF for Full HD Movie Capture   
When most DSLRs shoot video, their Contrast AF is slow and visibly "hunts" for focus.  The Quick AF Full HD Movie retains the same fast, precise Phase Detection you enjoy for still images.  It's a decisive advantage for tracking fast-moving subjects and a major benefit of Translucent Mirror Technology.

16.2 megapixel resolution   
You get incredible detail and gorgeous enlargements.  Thanks to the 16.2 megapixel APS-C sensor size and Sony Exmor APS HD CMOS technology, the camera achieves high resolution with no penalty in low-light sensitivity or sensor noise.

APS-C size HD CMOS image sensor   
With 19.5 times the area of the typical camcorder image sensor, APS-C makes the difference between amateur and professional-looking video, delivering an exceptional combination of high resolution, high sensitivity and gorgeous, blurred backgrounds.

Sony Exmor technology   
Conventional image sensors use only a handful of analog-to-digital (A/D) converters, which can slow you down.  The Exmor sensor provides more than 4,000 column-parallel A/D converters.  This helps enable continuous shooting at up to 7 frames per second.

Full HD 1080/60i movies   
This is one of the very few DSLRs with 1080/60i Full HD, exactly the same resolution and frame rate as most broadcast and cable HDTV channels.  Records in 1080/60i AVCHD format, 1080/30p high definition in PC-friendly MP4 format and standard definition 480/30p in MP4 format.

Picture Effect mode   
There are 7 types (11 variations) of picture effects to choose from: Posterization (Color), Posterization (B/W), Pop Color,Retro Photo, Partial Color(R), Partial Color(G), Partial Color(B), Partial Color(Y), High-key, High Contrast Monochrome, Toy Camera. Each is unique and each give you a new and exciting way to make your images and videos  pop.

Multi-frame NR   
Experience incredible low-light shooting without a flash.  The camera captures six images in a fraction of a second.  Combining the data from all six, it creates a single image with a reduction in noise equivalent to two additional steps of ISO sensitivity. Sensitivity selectable up to ISO 25600. (Recommended for still subjects.)

Hand-held Twilight   
Get cleaner and sharper nighttime pictures—beyond the capability of traditional cameras—without using flash or a tripod.  The camera captures six images in a fraction of a second.  Combining the data with separate algorithms for still and moving parts of the picture reduces blur, minimizes noise and enables extraordinary detail.  

Auto HDR built into camera   
Captures more scene dynamic range than a single exposure can handle—and more range than photo film.  Combines the best highlight detail from one shot, the best mid-tones from a second and the best shadow detail from a third for one incredible shot.  Captures in a split second.  (Recommended for still subjects.)

3D Sweep Panorama Mode   
Capture vast scenic vistas and 16:9 shots in spectacular 3D.  As you sweep across the panorama, the camera records separate right-eye and left-eye images that make landscapes come alive on your 3D television.  Records both JPEG and MPO file formats.

Eye-Level Electronic Viewfinder   
The Tru-finder Electronic Viewfinder (EVF) is super bright, easy to see with 1.1x magnification, ultra-sharp with 1.44 million dots (1.15 effective) and provides 100% frame coverage.  Exposure preview and informative overlays make operation easy.  

Eye-level finder for HD Movie   
The eye-level finder is one of the reasons people love DSLRs.  But that finder goes dark whenever you shoot HD Movies.  The Sony  SLT-a35 enables you to shoot movies with the added stability you get holding the camera up to your face and using the eye-level finder for framing a scene and focus.

15-point Auto Focus   
To maximize the value of Translucent Mirror Technology, Sony incorporates Phase Detection AF of great sophistication.  Three cross sensors maximize precision.

921K dot TruBlack LCD screen   
Sony's 3.0-inch Xtra Fine LCD monitor has 921K dots for superb resolution.  The TruBlack screen includes a special resin layer to suppress internal reflections, increasing contrast compared to conventional LCDs.  Sunny Weather mode boosts visibility even further in bright sunlight.

Main Sensor Live View with Quick AF   
Main Sensor Live View with Quick AF combines the optimum focus of Phase Detection with high quality Live View images right from the main sensor.  This is made possible by Sony Translucent Mirror Technology.  

Live View in LCD or EVF   
You can use both the LCD monitor and Electronic Viewfinder for composing shots.  Both provide a what-you-see-is-what-you-get preview of white balance, focus, depth of field, exposure and 100% framing accuracy, plus informative on-screen displays.

Phase Detection Auto Focus   
While Contrast Detection AF often  hunts for correct focus, Phase Detection AF knows exactly where correct focus is, and goes straight for it.  The Sony SLT-A35 provides  Phase Detection AF  when capturing HD movies as well as during still image capture, either using the viewfinder or Live View on the LCD.

ISO 12800 sensitivity   
Incredibly clear low-light pictures without sacrificing detail, made possible by the low-noise Exmor APS HD CMOS image sensor and refined BIONZ image processor.  

AUTO+ (Advanced Auto) mode   
Get cleaner, more dynamic pictures and fewer missed shots. Unifies and simplifies Sony intelligent technologies, the camera automatically recognizes the correct scene mode, then quickly shoots and combines up to six shots to produce images with greater clarity, optimum dynamic range using Auto HDR technology and lower image noise using 6 shots layering technology.

Sweep Panorama Mode   
Capture expansive landscapes automatically.  Press the shutter and sweep vertically or horizontally.  The camera does the rest, continuously shooting images and stitching them together.  Up to 23 MP image size.  

Powerful creative control over movies   
While the camera offers fully automatic movie shooting, you can also control aperture (A mode w/ MF only), white balance and select Creative Style.  During a movie shot, you can change the metering mode and adjust exposure compensation.  

Pro-style "rack focus" movie effect   
A hallmark of today's movies is the "rack focus" effect, when the cinematographer changes focus between background and foreground subjects.  This usually involves careful planning, a tape measure and dedicated a crew member for "pulling" focus.  With the SLT-a35, you can perform this pro-style effect simply by changing the selected AF Area within the frame.

Compact, lightweight design   
Eliminating the moving mirror also reduces the camera's size and weight.  It's not just remarkably advanced; it's notably small and light.

Help Guide   
Provides ready reference to advanced camera functions, helping to develop your confidence and skills as a photographer.  

Graphic Display   
Clarifies the relationship between aperture and shutter speed, as well as the effect each has on photographic results.

BIONZ image processor   
The brains of the camera is a refined version of Sony's BIONZ image processor.  Its chroma noise reduction delivers high-resolution, low-noise photos even at ISO 12800 sensitivity.  Also enables up to 5.5 fps continuous  shooting at full resolution, Sweep Panorama mode and more.

Dynamic Range Optimizer (DRO)   
Improves results with backlit subjects and recovers details hidden in shadows.  Settings include Auto, Level with a choice of five operating levels and Off.

1200-Zone exposure metering   
Reads exposure directly from the main image sensor.  Choice of Multi, Center and Spot metering accommodates a full range of shooting situations.

RAW image capture   
Saves your pictures as compact JPEG files or ultra-high quality RAW files or both.  RAW files save images prior to de-mosaicing, white balance, sharpness and color enhancement.  This retains maximum latitude for enhancing the image on your PC.

SteadyShot INSIDE stabilization   
Image stabilization reduces blur by compensating for camera shake. Typical DSLR systems build image stabilization into selected lenses only. SteadyShot INSIDE image stabilization is built into the camera body itself. You'll reduce blur with every a-mount lens, including macro and wide-aperture standard zoom lenses.

Powerful supplied software   
To help you refine and manage your images and video, the camera is equipped with computer software including Image Data Converter SR, Image Data Lightbox SR and Picture Motion Browser (PMB).

Face Detection technology  
 The camera can automatically detect up to eight individual faces and adjust focus, exposure, white balance and flash to help deliver crisp, properly lit images of family and friends. Can prioritize children or adults.

Smile Shutter technology   
Captures a smile the moment it happens.  Simply select the Smile Shutter mode and the camera takes the picture automatically.  You can prioritize children or adults and adjust the smile sensitivity.

HDMI output for HD viewing   
Enjoy HD movies and stunning still images on a compatible HDTV.  The camera includes an HDMI output.  In addition, the BRAVIA Sync system works with compatible Sony BRAVIA HDTVs enabling you to control camera playback using the television's remote.

Eight Scene Selection Modes   
These help you get the shot by optimizing the camera for specific shooting situations.  Select from Portrait, Sports Action, Macro, Landscape, Sunset, Night View, Night Portrait and Handheld Twilight Shot modes.

Six Creative Style settings   
Control how the camera processes your images with six finishing styles: Standard, Vivid, B&W, Sunset, Portrait and Landscape.  You can even fine-tune contrast, saturation, and sharpness to your personal taste.

Up to 440 Shots of battery life   
Take up to 440 shots on a single charge with Sony Stamina battery power. Sony's InfoLITHIUM battery system enables you to see the percent of power remaining, so you can keep shooting in confidence.

P/A/S/M exposure modes   
The camera offers a full range of controls from the beginner's AUTO+ mode to P/A/S/M: Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority and Manual.  On-screen prompts help you refine your skills, build your confidence and exercise greater creative control.

Anti-Dust Technology   
Anti-Dust Technology helps keep the CMOS sensor clean, resulting in consistently clear pictures.  First a static-free coating on the sensor's low-pass filter helps repel dust. Then vibration automatically dislodges dust from the sensor.

Built-in Auto Pop-Up Flash   
To help you shoot more effectively, the built-in flash automatically pops up and fires as needed when the camera is set to certain scene selection modes. The built-in flash can also trigger a wireless accessory flash (sold separately). The integrated hot shoe enables you to expand your lighting options with a range of accessory flashes (sold separately).

Versatile on-screen displays   
Informative displays in the LCD monitor and electronic viewfinder include digital level gauge, graphic display of exposure settings.

Slot for two media types   
For cost-effective, convenient storage and sharing of your images, the camera accepts Memory Stick PRO Duo/Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo and SD/SDHC/SDXC media (Class 4 or higher recommended). (Memory card is required. All are sold separately.)

PhotoTV HD compatibility   
Optimizes compatible BRAVIA televisions for gorgeous display of digital pictures.

Index and Slide Show Display   
Quickly review your photos using 6- or 12-frame index views, or as an automatic slide show with fade-in/fade-out effect.

Remote capability   
Works with the RMT-DSLR1 Remote Commander wireless remote control, sold separately.

Awards

Product Description

Sony SLTA35 Digital SLR Camera (Black)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 56 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Sony Alpha SLT-A35 August 22, 2011

By Dave R

Style Name:Body with Lens|Amazon Verified Purchase

Sony Alpha SLT-A35 16 MP Digital SLR Kit with Translucent Mirror Technology and 18-55mm Lens

I've had the Sony SLT-A35 for a couple of weeks now and after some testing and two in the field photo shoots, I think I'm ready to review it. I'll outline Pros, Cons and Matters of Preference.

Pros:
The photo quality is very good, what you would expect from a 16MP camera.

The colors seem accurate and true to me.

While the menu system is fairly deep, it seems well organized. Key features (Shutter Speed, F-Stop, WB, ISO, Bracketing/Self Timer, Screen Display Toggle, Focus Zoom) all have buttons within easy reach. A programable button can be set for easy access to one of many additional feature sets like HDR, Filter Effects, etc.

If you use Auto Focus, it is extremely fast. Manual focusing is a snap and the 7.5X and 15X focusing zoom helps a great deal for distance details.

While the battery life isn't great, compared to reviews of the A33 and A55, it is improved. I was able to shoot for about 4 hours and still had about 30% of the battery charge remaining. Still, a second battery just in case seems like a must.

The 18-55mm kit lens (SAL1855) seems solid as an all purpose lens.

Cons:
Biggest flaw so far is lack of Camera RAW support from Adobe/Lightroom. The Image Data Converter SR software that comes with the camera is lacking at best. I'm shooting everything in RAW + JPG so that I have something to play with until the RAW files are useable.

There is a strange chromatic effect through the EVF when the camera moves or even when you blink. It's somewhat mild and I've gotten used to seeing it pretty quickly, but it was startling at first.

I haven't captured a quality image with the Panoramic sweep after about 20 attempts. The file size is around 3MB, so it's capturing significantly less data than even a fine JPG at full resolution.

Matters of Preference:
The camera body is very light. People taking the camera on long treks will probably find this to be beneficial as every ounce of weight you can shed matters. Those who like a more substancial feeling in their hands as they shoot may see that differently.

So far this camera is near useless for Infrared Photography. It lets through very little IR light. With a 720nm filter on a bright sunny day, a 4-5 second exposure shows almost no IR light. Adding a ND 8 filter allowed for longer exposure time but very little additional IR light. What you get is a very orange cast image with proper IR sky but foliage retains it's greens. With a 950nm filter, finally IR light came through but on the same bright, sunny day, an exposure of 1 minute or more was necessary. It's very difficult to get quality IR shots over that long a shutter. If you don't shoot in IR, this is a non issue, obviously.

Conclusion:
I'm very satisified with the camera. Although it's IR capabilities are non existent so I have to carry my old setup out on shoots I may want to do IR work on, the image quality and basic functionality of this camera are spot on. The annoyances will either be sorted out soon (Adobe RAW support) or are in the extra features that are non-essential.

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Best entry-level camera, missed a few features September 11, 2011

By Szu-ping Lee

Style Name:Body with Lens|Amazon Verified Purchase

The primary advantage of A35 over A55 except price(price difference is $100 at this point) is the overheating issue with A55. A35 being a second-generation model using Sony's 16.2mp sensor, Sony claim the improved version is more efficient, hence has longer battery life and less heat. Other than this, A55 is a more feature packed camera. Except the obvious feature differences (articulating screen, GPS, continuous shooting speed...) you can find on major camera review website, here are the minor ones:
1. No support for the wireless remote (infrared), Noted both the description on Amazon and Sonystyle.com state the RM-DSLR1 infrared remote works with A35. IT DOESN'T!! it is one feature missing from A55 you don't see anywhere. Not that it is critical, but this should be noted and corrected.
2. No digital level

In the end, I don't think I will return the A35 for an A55, even though the price difference is only $100 and much more were packed into A55. In my opinion, an A56 with the heat issue fixed but retains all the A55 feature and price point will be killer. But since that is not available at this point, I would settle for A35 without the overheating problem over A55.

[Update]
After owning this camera for about 2 months and several hiking trips, I can attest that A35 is a solid performer, lightweight with output quality rivaling cameras costing $1500. When you think about the same/similar Sony 16.2mp sensor is used in Nikon D7000 and Pentax K5 (both are about $1500 at this point), the $700 A35 is truly a great bargain. Things I like most are its: LCD resolution (921k is just so clear), responsiveness, lightweight. What can be improved upon are: battery life, somewhat grainy EVF. I really shouldn't complain given its price point.

By the way, you can get excellent Minolta AF mount lenses for your Sony Alpha camera. I recommend, as a new user, Minolta 50mm 1.7 (or Sony DT 50mm 1.8) for A35. Both are inexpensive (Minolta used can be had for well under 100), but very useful for low light photography. The image quality is amazing. Plus, they are compact and fit well to the A35 body. People often recommend Minolta 70-210 F4 (beercan) and 28-105 (secret handshake). All of these are solid, inexpensive lenses with low price.

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars almost perfect entry-level DSLR (SLT) October 13, 2011

By Tengo

Style Name:Body with Lens

Sony alpha slt-a35 is certainly one of the best camera under 800$. it has bunch of cool features and neither of them will disappoint you.
I want to start with "multiframe noise reduction".(this is iso setting and you can choose any iso up to 25600) this is the feature that gives you 1-2 stops advantage when shooting at night without tripod. It works amazingly (takes 6 pictures sequentially and then micro-aligns them). even when subject is moving you can get very decent results.. sweep panorama is very funny and really useful feature. Despite that a35 has the best dynamic range among its rivals and DRO(dynamic range optimizer) is very effective, sometimes its necessary to use hdr and sony-s auto-hdr will give you excellent result.

many people complain that the body of camera is too small or lightweight and they don't lie, but i havn't seen anything more comfortable before. If you have extra large hands maybe it will be distracting but for normal sized hands (or smaller) holding the camera is a big pleasure. You can control everything rapidly, all the buttons are there where they should be. controlling your camera gets even faster with using elecrtonic viewfidner. The EVF is really great and in terms of visibility almost matches the ovf-s we have seen in other entry level dslr-s and outperforms them in any other aspect, at first its larger (1.1x vs 0.78x magnification) and has 100% coverage vs 95% of competitors. You can do everything without taking eye from viewfinder and this really matters. I found manual focus magnification very helpful. To be honest before I got my a35 I used to say that I'd like to have an ovf rather than evf, but now i must say i can't imagine living without EVF.

Of course the most important thing is image quality of camera. I must say the 16mp exmor-R sensor is really excellent, 2000$ nikon-d7000 has the same sensor and with this everything is said.
image quality of raw files are perfect and jpegs are also very good (sometimes strong NR of sony is very annoying). Metering is almost unmistakable, colors are true and dynamic range is excellent as I've already mentioned. Hight iso performance is best-in-class and it gets far better with multiframe iso. Video is great, although there are limited control but its enough for most I think. Phase detection AF during video (and stills) works amazingly you cant see same thing in any camera of other manufacturer.

image stabilisation (steadyshot inside) does job very well. you'll get sharp images even in 1/2 second at 18mm and good thing is that lenses without stabilisation costs less.
Battery life isn't as bad as predecessor's, I usually take up to 500 image per charge, its pretty good result since there isn't OVF and sensor always has to work.
Overall a35 is excellent all-round performer, it has great IQ, great features and bunch of advantages that gives translucent mirror technology.

cons:
Nose Reduction cant be turned off in jpegs.
automatic white balance could be better (but it isn't worse than competitors)
kit lens feels very "plastically" (but optically its very good)
no digital level gauge (we have seen in previous models a33/a55)
no switching button between raw/jpeg. (many cool features works only with jpeg so you often have to switch between raw and jpg)
sensor gets only 70% of incoming light (because translucent mirror doesn't move)
EVF visibility isn't great in lowlight (there's significant noise but not so much to worry about)

overall a35 is certainly one of the best camera for the price, it delivers everything that promises and I hardly recomend it for everyone who is looking for entry-level dslr with excellent image quality and many cool features.