Sony A33

[Spanglepants]

Hi my 13 year old son wants a DSLR , I've seen a Sony A33 for sale with a couple of lenses etc for a decent price. Is it worth going for or should he continue saving up for a 600D or similar?
Thanks

[ecsrobin]

It depends what a decent price is, and what lenses are coming with it. Remember an A33 is 2.5years old by now and was the first SLT on the market.

I have an A33 and compared to the equivalent cameras on sale at the time you just couldn't beat it. I'm just waiting to go to the A99 when funds allow so still sticking with SLT. I wouldn't pay over £125 for an A33 body though.

[conkerman]

My choice would be a Nikon D40. Can be had for <£100.

I loved mine.

[Spanglepants]

Its going for £160 , got an 18-55 mm and a 80-210mm plus filters,remote etc.
How good is it at video? He will use it with a samyang fisheye and I'd probably borrow it now and again with other lenses. Could you tell me what you think of the picture quality, has it been left behind by modern dslrs?
Thanks

[ecsrobin]

£160 is a good price, I have an 18-55mm sony, I haven't used it in probably 2 years. The lenses I use mainly are a sigma 10-20mm and a minolta 50mm (old minolta lenses are a better build than the sony and can be had for around £100 I'd recommend the 28mm over the 50 though due to the APS-C sensor)

As for image quality here's a few images I've taken with mine:

Teeth by -robinecs-

Windmill by -robinecs-

viaduct by -robinecs-

17 by -robinecs-

Enzo by -robinecs-

chinook3 by -robinecs-

Camera Roll-256 by -robinecs-

Hopefully that's a wide enough choice for you to get an impression. Don't get me wrong I still enjoy using my camera but I know it needs upgrading, for someone just starting off then he should be fine. I'm guessing the fact he's going to be using a fisheye would suggest he's looking at doing extreme sports photography at his age? If so the A33 shoots 7fps which is a lot higher than equivalent camera.