Sony ILCE5100LB.CEC Compact System Camera with 16-50 Lens (24.3 MP, 180 Degrees Tiltable LCD, Fast Hybrid Auto Focus, Noise Reduction Feature, Wi-Fi and NFC) - Black

There are so many reviews on this camera I thought rather than simply add to these, I would try to offer an opinion on some of the lenses and accessories I’ve used over the past 14 months since buying it. I think this is a brilliant camera but I must confess that I was initially a little disappointed, and this turned out to be due to the 16-50 kit lens. On a positive note the kit lens helps to keep the camera/lens combination small, it looks right on the camera, offers a reasonable range and under the right conditions, it can take a decent image but, it doesn’t really do the camera justice. My first lens purchase was the Sigma 30mm, in my opinion this is an excellent lens and is probably the one that spends most time on my camera. Physically it isn’t much larger than the kit lens so it is still quite a compact package. My next lens was the Sigma 19mm, another excellent lens. I’ve shown people quite heavily cropped photos taken with this lens and they genuinely haven’t been able to tell. This lens is about 1cm longer than the Sigma 30mm and therefore, not quite so compact, but it’s still not a large combination. Both of these Sigma lenses are available for around £120, a bargain in my opinion and a must buy for anyone owning this camera. I then bought the Sony SEL50 f/1.8, please read the reviews for this lens here on Amazon. Physically it’s slightly larger again than the Sigma 19mm but another excellent lens and highly recommended. I’ve recently taken the plunge and bought the Sony 18-105. Again, please read the reviews for this lens here on Amazon. This is by far the most expensive lens I’ve purchased but it met my requirements perfectly, it’s got the range I wanted, it can provide excellent IQ and therefore, I’m very happy with it. However, of the four lenses I’ve mentioned here this is the most difficult for me to recommend, and this is largely due to the cost. I guess you simply need to ask yourself if you really need/want the range this lens provides? I was quite lucky and managed to buy a Patona Battery Charger and Battery from GmbH through Amazon around the same time I bought the camera (it was £21 at the time), it doesn’t seem to be available on Amazon anymore but can still be bought from GmbH on Ebay. It’s hard to recommend a spurious battery but, I can say that in my experience the Patona lasts just as long as the original Sony, holds its charge just as well, displays remaining charge quite accurately and overall, I’ve been so pleased with the performance of the battery that I’ve recently bought another (from GmbH on Ebay), it was about £12. Other purchases worth considering... (and available here on Amazon):- Joby DSLR Wrist Strap – good quality and great for when you don’t want to use a neck strap. It’s about £13 Black Camera Case Bag for Sony NEX by BW&H – it’s a small case and suits the A5100 perfectly (I’ve actually posted a review on this bag). It’s about £9 If you need a slightly larger Camera Case, the Sony LCS-U11 at £12.50 is worth a look.. In respect to the camera bags I didn’t see the point in buying a compact camera and then lugging around a huge case.. however, I’ve sort of contradicted that by buying the Sony 18-105 lens (it looks quite huge on the A5100) but the combination will still ‘just’ fit in the Sony LCS-U11.... just.!! I’ve seen a few negative comments about the menu navigation and lack of quick access buttons/dials but personally, I like the clean look. I’ve removed the ‘tile’ view when you open the menu and I’ve programmed the available buttons to do what I want. Over time I’ve got to know where the most often needed options are and this, combined with removing the tile view, means that I can generally navigate to what I need quite quickly. I tend to only use the PASM modes but on the odd occasion that I’ve tried it, ‘Intelligent Auto’ seems to do a decent job in most situations too. I do not feel the same about ‘Superior Auto’, it’s just my personal opinion but, on the rare occasions I’ve tried it I’ve never been happy with the results.... I should stress that I am not a professional photographer, I’m just an enthusiastic amateur who like a nice photo.! And I never shoot RAW, only JPEG. These are just my thoughts and opinions but I hope these comments offer some help....

Buying this camera via an Amazon Warehouse deal solved a problem for me. Basically, I wanted to upgrade my NEX 5 and still use the same e-mount lenses, but didn't like the price Sony were asking. The deal I chose was listed as very good with no cosmetic imperfections and tested as being in full working order. This is one below the 'as new' category, which as far as I can tell means that the box it comes in is also perfect. The box didn't matter so much to me, so I took the chance, trusting that the 30 day returns Amazon backing would allow me to test the camera very well. Sure enough, it arrived in great condition and I took it on holiday to Madeira, a sub-tropical paradise with plenty of things to photograph in a variety of conditions. Initially, I found the camera less familiar than I'd expected. But, quickly came to terms with the changes, most of which were for the better. The frustrating menu system of the Nex series has gone, replaced by something much more intuitive, although occasionally still difficult to find the odd item. The kit lens that comes with the model I bought (prospective buyers should take care that they are buying a model WITH the lens included) soon proved to be excellent in general use. Since returning home I've also tested it with a Sony E-Mount Macro lens, with spectacular results. The BIONZ processing engine combined with 24 megapixels and a superior-auto setting really helps an enthusiastic snapper produce better results almost without effort. And if you do put in the effort, using manually tweaked settings, this little camera can produce shots that easily rival those of the much more expensive Sony DSLR's, and in some respects out spec them. The camera is also really light, conformable in small to medium sized hands, and feels well made. Carrying it on a strap around my neck was no effort at all. So, there's lots to like here, and for those upgrading from the NEX series, this model is the best of the bunch IMHO. I say that because the A5000 model has lesser features and the A6000 model not that much more, yet at a huge difference in price. The A5100 models use the same basic tech spec as the A6000, but with auto settings left intact for those who, like me, prefer them under most circumstances. The one thing that may be a deciding issue for some is this model's lack of a viewfinder. But, if you're happy to take the rear screen settings off manual, so that you can see it well in bright sunlight, then this isn't really a big problem most of the time. For sure, paying out a lot more for a model with a viewfinder was not something I was willing to do. There are a few negatives. Firstly, Sony has scrimped on value by not supplying a lens hood and external battery charger, as it did with the NEX 5 model. This means that unless you buy your own, as I did, you'll need to plug the camera in to a power source every time the battery runs out. Obviously, this is no use at all in the field. As for the lens hood, this is what I consider to be a design flaw, which Sony has expanded throughout its recent range. It used to be the case that a filter, such as a UV shield, could be attached to help and protect the lens, and the lens hood attached via a separate fixing, which could be reversed for storage. Now, on the A5100 and other models, the only way to attach a lens hood and a filter at the same time, is to screw the lens hood into the filter. What this does is you are not VERY careful, is accidentally over tighten the filter thread, making is almost impossible to remove with finger pressure alone. If this happens to you a way out is to reattach the lens hood, and putting slight pressure on it an an angle, use the leverage to begin unscrewing the filter. But do take care, as too much pressure could easily crack the filter and possibly damage the lens. Proceed at your own risk. So, in summary this is an excellent buy for those upgrading from a NEX camera, or wishing to buy into Sony's A series mirrorless compact cameras for the first time. But, only at Amazon Warehouse prices. I paid just over £259 for this with the kit lens. I would not have paid the £400 plus that Sony want for a brand new model.

Me compré esta cámara tras consultar y comparar entre muchas del mismo rango de precio y características.Tambien seguí los consejos de un fotógrafo profesional que me ayudó a decidirme.Estoy convencida de que ha sido un acierto. No sé mucho de fotografía pero estoy iniciandome y la Sony A5100 tiene unas prestaciones increibles y una calidad de imagen perfecta. He podido realizar fotos durante mis viajes y son asombrosas.Captura muy bien los colores y el enfoque y desenfoque del fondo para realizar retratos.He leido algunos comentarios de que con claridad no se aprecia bien la pantalla...pero amí eso no me ha sucedido. He flipado con la rapidez que tiene para pasar al instante las fotos al móvil,además del control remoto.Estas no pierden calidad al pasarlas y con un buen editor quedan increibles. No pesa nada,es muy pequeña y muy fácil de manejar.Además, tiene muchas opciones de toma de fotos,que aún estoy aprendiendo a utilizar. Comparto las primeras fotos realizadas.Tengan en cuenta que están en modo automático y que aún no he podido practicar mucho con la cámara. Como siempre con Amazon el envío perfecto. Espero que mi opinión les sea de utilitidad.

Oğlum amatör olarak çekimler yapıyor ve çok memnun kaldı.

Premetto che ho preso questa mirrorles soprattutto per i video e che l'ho presa inizialmente con l'obiettivo kit 16-50 (allego anche due foto fatte con questo obiettivo che reputo comunque buono per iniziare, entrambe le foto sono state fatte a 50mm). Ho comprato da Amazon Warehouse Deals e sono stato soddisfatto della merce sia per le condizioni sia per la spedizione. Prima di fare la recensione ho utilizzato la a5100 per un paio di mesi sia facendo foto che video, sia con l'obiettivo kit, che con i due che ho preso successivamente (il 16mm e il 50mm sempre Sony) e ho notato subito le potenzialità di questa macchina che fa foto e video ad alta qualità. Ovviamente le foto sono composte anche e direi soprattutto dall'abilità del fotografo e dal soggetto, ma già avendo un buon corpo macchina aiuta molto. Questa mirrorless di ottima qualità può essere utilizzata completamente in automatico, in modo semiautomatico e in modo completamente manuale, quindi la consiglio sia a chi ha esperienza, sia a chi non ne ha ma eventualmente è interessato a imparare. Io l'ho trovata comoda da utilizzare, leggera e se accoppiata con un obiettivo pancake (tipo il 16mm 2.8) si può praticamente mettere in tasca. La durata delle batterie dipende dall'uso che se ne fa, può durare 2 ore se se ne fa un'uso molto intensivo (soprattutto video) oppure tranquillamente tutta la giornata con un uso moderato (soprattutto foto), ma per questo non c'è problema esistono le batterie (anche non di marca) da tenere a portata di mano. Ricordatevi di prendere una memory card capiente da almeno 64gb con una buona velocità (io ho preso una 90mb/s per poter sfruttare al massimo le qualità di questa fotocamera). Si può scattare anche utilizzando il cellulare che si connette alla sony con un applicazione gratuita, inoltre ci sono anche diverse applicazioni scaricabili direttamente sulla mirrorless (alcune a pagamento) come quella per fare i timelapse che costa 9,99€. Lo schermo che si è può ruotare è molto comodo, soprattutto per i video in modo da controllare l'inquadratura. Per contro però manca il mirino, ma per quanto mi riguarda non mi ha dato particolari problemi, tranne quando si utilizza in pieno solo e si fa fatica a vedere il display. Prima di concludere posso dire che se siete alle prime armi potete comprare il corpo macchina più un'obiettivo kit 16-50 e poi valutate le vostre esigenze, se volete comprare altri obiettivi (sicuramente lo farete). Ma non solo: tenete presente che potrete comprare un cavalletto, delle batterie extra, forse un'altra memory card se la usate in viaggio, dei filtri ND per le lunge esposizioni, un filtro polarizzatore e ovviamente degli attrezzi base di pulizia come una pompetta per la polvere e un pennellino (io me la sono cavata prendendoli separatamente spendendo circa 10 euro). Questo per dire che quando comprate una mirrorless potrete avere bisogno di altri accessori, alcuni indispensabili. Non che dobbiate spendere molto, però tenetelo presente.

Molto soddisfatto dell'acquisto. Era da tempo che volevo avere qualcosa in più nel fare foto e trovandola a 349 euro nom potevo che acquistarla. Menù complicato,ma dopo un po' ci si abitua. C'è da dire che sicuramente di meglio e nuovo in giro,ma di certo ad un budget piu alto.

Un hybride compact et léger avec une qualité d'images digne des meilleurs reflexs aps-c. L'absence de viseur, objet de critiques par les pros ou pseudo-pros, ne me gène pas du tout car l’écran est très lisible (à condition de passer en mode soleil quand nécessaire) et j'aime bien l'utiliser avec l'écran à 90° (ça rappelle le bon vieux temps des Rolleiflex...). L'autofocus et très performant. Le chargement direct par usb est un plus et je ne comprends pas ceux qui préféreraient un chargeur externe : achetez simplement une deuxième batterie compatible, c'est peu cher et moins encombrant qu'un chargeur ! Il y a énormément de possibilité de configurations (le manuel fait 219 pages !), pas toujours faciles à mettre en œuvre à travers les menus, mais heureusement les modes auto sont très efficaces, si on n' a pas le temps ou l'envie de se lancer dans des réglages...C'est pourquoi j'aurais aimé une vraie molette de sélection des modes. Sinon, le prix actuel est trop élevé, mais j'ai profité d'un promo Amazon, et de toute façon il baissera dans un avenir proche.