Sony A380 Review
Sony A380 - Image Quality
Exposure
During this test I was consistently impressed by the accuracy of the A380’s metering system. The only time it tended to err was when I would have expected it to (such as when shooting against backlighting) but even then the Dynamic Range Optimisation is keen to bring out shadow detail. Shooting a predominantly light subject gave it no problems, with no need for manual intervention to get the exposure right.
Colour and tone
The camera’s white balance system fares about as well as would be expected, with accurate results in daylight and slight difficulties under artificial light. Even so, I found that while shooting under tungsten light gave images a slight cast, there are cameras that do a far worse job at maintaining a neutrality in such circumstances. Colour is generally good on the Standard setting, though the six further Creative Style options and the ability to change contrast, saturation and sharpness of each makes the camera as customisable as it needs to be.
Raw and JPEG
The differences between Raw and JPEG files depends largely on what settings you use in-camera, but there are still differences even when settings like Dynamic Range Optimisation, noise reduction and so on are deactivated. On the whole, JPEGs are sharpened a little more compared to their Raw equivalents, but there is still room for improvement as they are quite soft. Noise reduction is impressive; Raw files shot in good light at even ISO 100 can show a very slight texture, but in JPEGs this is successfully removed without overall sharpness suffering.
Software
The Image Data Lightbox and Image Data Converter software supplied with the A380 give you comprehensive control over viewing and editing your images. The former package allows you to group images in Collections, rate them and view their metadata, with the interface customisable to your tastes. It can even sort all your images by which lens was used to take them, should you want to bring them all up at once. You can also use this in conjunction with the latter program, where more intensive Raw processing is possible. Despite being quite simple to use, it offers all the standard Raw tools such as white balance, noise reduction and sharpness, but even goes so far as to offer control over things like Peripheral Illumination, for example. Considering the limited software options still being provided with some DSLRs, it’s very encouraging that Sony provides this for entry-level users as standard.
Have your say!
Latest comments
August 12 09:14
bigdaveg40
An excellent in-depth review, not only here but in the Magazine which also featured the A330. A missed oportunity by Sony I feel to expand on 2 already excellent camera's (A300 & A350), the old grip was substantial and comfortable, the new one is'nt, I don't like the new Alpha's or kit lens and hope that the next batch are a definite improvement, if I were a noobie looking for my first budget D-slr I'd have to say i'd be looking elsewhere. It is good however to see that Sony are addressing the noise issue, especially in the A330.
August 29 19:31
Mick W.
Surprised at the high score. Seen very little to back up an 18/20 IQ score, in fact far from it. Likewise on the features front. Looks poorer than a 500D or a D5000 by some margin to be honest. With the A500 now announced, whats the point of the A380?
November 23 19:36
Pikesan
Happy to say my refund for this camera is processing from the Laredo, TX help center. I'll present what happened with facts even though I am very upset with the outcome and would love to lay on some emotion. * Bought camera with high hopes. Loved the price, and the movable LCD. * Arrived with strange blue, flickering spots in the LCD. Like "snow" on a bad TV signal. I immediately called Sony expecting exceptional service since this is a fairly new product... and because it's Sony, a brand I USED TO trust. * Took pics and was fairly happy with results. I was still learning. Then shipped camera back after I insisted they pay for shipping. * Sony held my camera for 3 weeks, then finally returned it without any repair and without calling me for some explanation of the issue. * Received camera and obviously found the same problem. Called and emailed Sony. "Can you send us some sample images?" they said. They didn't even understand, after repeated attempts to explain, what my issue was. * I asked for a refund or a new camera immediately. I used this camera for my work, I explained, I NEED a camera. I had to return the camera before any action could be taken. They received the camera Nov. 4th 2009. * On Nov 20th, I called. They had no update for me. 3 weeks and NOTHING! I demanded a refund and they did start the process, but could not tell me when the check would arrive. * I called Sony's National Customer Relations line and spoke to Margret, ID CJD9. She was the worst of all. No compassion, barely any courtesy at all! * She started with, "We don't do refunds, only exchanges. Before she had heard ANYTHING about my troubles with my camera. * When I asked about the other equipment I bought for the camera, she sarcastically said, "We can't refund for Optional equipment. That's why they call it optional." She was worthless. * I called back to Larado and they promised a call by the end of the day to tell me when I'd get my check. Nothing. Called Monday, it's being processed. Finally. I hope this helps you with your decision. I'm not sure if I'll ever buy a Sony product again.
November 25 20:06
mark cayas
Thanks for this review but sorry for your sad experience Pikesan. This will surely back me off from considering to buy the Sony A380, guess I'd rather have the Canon 500D after all.