Sony Alpha a5000 Mirrorless Digital Camera with 16-50mm OSS Lens (Black)

I am so glad I bought this camera. I am an amateur for sure, and have not bought a camera in many years. This was serious upgrade from a cheap point and shoot camera I have used for years that takes not so great pictures when conditions are not absolutely perfect. I decided to buy this one to take on a trip. Not only did it take beautiful pictures of the scenery, it took great portraits and selfies (with the flip up screen). I have always hated the selfies I took with my iPhone but with this camera I love them. I actually had to stop myself form being self-obsessed and taking more because I am so happy with how the photos turned out! I did buy a Sigma 19 lens as well as a Sony E55-210 telephoto lens to go with this camera & I love the Sigma lens but the lens that came with it also took nice photos and selfies. However, the Sigma took it up a notch for me. I love that this camera allows for interchangeable lenses, just make sure they are E-mount lenses. I bought this used and it looks and performs like new. I think the friend I traveled with was jealous how great my pictures kept coming out because usually I am jealous of hers! My sister saw the pictures I took and immediately asked where I got this camera and now she wants one too. My family was pleased with the pictures I took of them. I think this has been my best purchase of 2016 and I am pleased that I bought a used, lower model camera (the a6000 would have cost me significantly more) in order to save money and still ended up with a great camera! I received it quickly using Prime and in wonderful condition. Another feature that I like about this camera is that it has wifi so you can send the photos to your phone or laptop or whatever via a Sony app. This allowed me to easily share the pics I'd taken. Also, I keep the camera on airplane mode until I am ready to share them over wifi. then I turn airplane mode off and back on again when I'm done. Someone said that keeps the battery from running down quickly. As for the battery life, with airplane mode on most of the time, I was able to takes pictures for hours all day long, and I never went under 50% charge by the time I got to the hotel to charge it again. I did not turn it off most of the day, just let it go to sleep and then would wake it up and start shooting again. I hope this review helps you. I do not know much about cameras as far as technical aspects so I won't even begin to speak to anything like that. All I know is I thoroughly enjoy this camera! I do think you will need to spring for a telephoto lens, if you have that need. I used mine a little but I also find I cannot live without the Sigma lens. One last thing, taking pictures while in motion on a tour bus came out great!!! I have never been able to do that before. There are many settings to use and it's easy to find them and shoot in the setting you want.

I did a decent amount of research when it came time to buy a "real" camera. Up until now, I used either a decent smartphone camera (Lumia 1020/1520/950, LG G4) or a bridge/superzoom camera. When I did a little more background reading, I learned that most bridge cameras use a sensor no bigger than what's in a smartphone, and that the DSLRs use sensors 10-20 times bigger. Once I decided to go large-sensor route, I needed to decide on mirrorless or traditional. While I wouldn't mind a "true" viewfinder, as in traditional DSLRs, I really wanted compact so I'd be more likely to use the camera on the go. I have 3 young kids, so bulky is just not an option. Sony seems to lead the way on mirrorless designs, and this model in particular had some nice features. The WiFi and NFC is great to get pictures over to your smartphone for quick sharing, and really gives these dedicated cameras a new level of convenience when on the go. Charging from microUSB is great, as I have many chargers already available, including in the car. As for the actually light capturing, so far so good for me. I like the speed in which it can focus and take pictures, and I like how you can set the modes to go from idiot to advanced. I'm not as impressed with the lens itself, but it does a decent job, though I've yet to find a way to manually control the focus (I guess that's not something people really want?). I'm eager to get a 50mm prime lens and maybe a 55-200 telephoto lens for more versatility. Low light performance isn't too bad, though I don't normally shoot in such a setting. I target nature shots and pictures of the kids, and I've already captured several winners with just the stock kit, and my kids do not sit still. I'm very happy with the overall package, and I look forward to growing with the camera. Update: Still happy after a few months of pictures. I added my first lens to my kit, the E55-210. It adds some weight, but it really gets you close to things further away. I've had no problems with the camera itself, and I am quite happy with this camera. I found sharing to my iPad via WiFi to be quite handy for sharing and showing your content, and for getting it to my cloud storage.

This came in its original packaging. Arrived in a timely manner (same day shipping is bae). Looked brand spanking new. I could tell the original owner cared for this camera. I wanted something so could I create YouTube videos and I didn't want to buy an expensive DSLR like 90% of the entire YouTube community. After weeks of constant research, I was convinced that this camera was the one for me. Contains manual features so I can get that cinematic look, although, navigation made it a hassle to set up. 1080p24, 1/50 shutter speed, manual focus, manual exposure, adjustable white balance, etc. All of that and more was available to me at a cost of about $350. Love the rotating LCD. Good to watch myself look like an idiot while making sure I look somewhat presentable. Battery life is subpar so I could be investing in extra batteries in the future. This is a good step up from my Sony A3000, which has a similar camera sensor but with a DSLR like body at a lower cost (no rotating LCD unfortunately). I can even use the same stock lens from the 3000 on 5000 which is good because the focus adjustment was smoother and more satisfying on the 3000. Picture and video quality is great if you know what you are doing and if you have good lighting, which I will also be investing in soon. I'm having fun researching how to use this camera to its full potential. Glad I made this investment and I can't wait to start making good content.

It's a good camera. Takes nice pictures, works for what I wanted it for... but I do have some complaints about things I never even would have thought about prior to purchasing this. 1- The lens cap removes completely, and there is no option to tie it to the camera so as to avoid ever losing said cap. I've owned it for about 36 hours now, and already lost the little bugger. I'm no professional photographer, so I don't know if this is how all cameras are; but the only other cameras I've experienced either had a lens cover that opened and recessed into the camera, or a strap that kept the cap dangling, yet still technically attached. Now, this time I was able to find the cap, but I am very worried that I won't be so lucky next time. Hopefully replacements aren't too expensive. So, if you think at any point you'll be using your camera without an outfit with pockets or a purse/backpack, this is something you really need to consider. 2- NFC is a fail. NFC is one of the two options for transferring pictures from the camera to your phone. It's the easier of the option, requiring only to touch one specific part of your smartphone to one specific part of the camera. And yes, it must actually full on touch. Now, the problem is that on this camera, the NFC spot on the camera is located right beneath the little camera strap thingy. So it is actually physically impossible to make this work with any smartphone. If someone else figured it out... congrats. I watched videos and scoured google, and came up with no way to make this work. The other option is via a wifi connection between the camera and phone. Which is... still super easy, but also kind of tedious. You have to go through the settings on the camera, find the right thing, open the app on the phone, have them in range, connect them (yes, you have to reconnect each time. It will also temporarily disrupt your actual wifi connection), and then let it load onto your phone. So it does work fine, it's just not as fast and simple as I wish it could be. Also you kind of need to master the camera/phone shuffle, as you need to be holding both and switching between which you're operating to make this whole thing work. 3- I will say this though, it does take nice pictures. Better than my galaxy s5. So if you want a step up from your smartphone's camera, this will definitely work. It has a lot of really cool features, many of which I haven't even discovered yet. My personal favorite is the option to take the same picture in 3 different light settings. So while you're still working on mastering the way to get the best lighting and when to choose each setting, you can fall back on this to ensure you do get the perfect photo.

Absolutely Beautiful! I mean, the reviews say it all. It has 5 stars for a reason. It's affordable which is what I loved and appreciated so much (I got mine used but it was in perfect condition). The color is so pretty! It's super easy to use for anyone who wants to get great crisp photos and who don't want to deal with the more complex canons and nikons. I primarily chose this camera because of it size. I travel a lot and that is what I blog about. I wanted something that was practical for me, as I preferred something light weight and something that isn't obnoxious. I travel to 3rd world countries quite often and i don't want to flaunt around a huge camera. So this seemed like the perfect fit for me! So excited for my journey. My favorite feature is the fact that you can flip the monitor! I use this feature all the time and I love it, especially for video blogging. Thanks again, Sony

I come from the point-n-shoot world and for last two years have used a Canon Elph 330 HS. I decided to upgrade to a more advanced camera when it became evident that except on very few occasions, my Canon takes no better pics than an i-phone. Sucks for the industry..and hence why I decided to upgrade. I chose the A5000 because of its size compared to the higher end models. Also, the selfie option seemed cool. Overall, I'm impressed with still pictures-actually freaking amazing. For the first day, I took identical shots with my Canon and A5000 and there is no comparison. You can zoom into much more detail and the clarity is amazing. So why the 4 stars. Well, the screen isn't a touch screen. I knew it wouldn't be when I bought it but seems intuitive. In 21st century, its intuitive to have a touch screen. Also, selfie option focuses too much on faces and not on the background. Not cool and makes the selfie option moot especially if your standing in front of something memorable and you want it clear. I'm still playing around the settings so if I can figure out how to balance the focus more between the background and foreground, I'll change this to five stars. In my mind though, the camera is clearly designed and advertised for selfie people and the Bokeh effect should be an option and not a primary setting. In the last two years, I've taken some amazing pictures with my Canon but that was only after I understood what the camera could do and it's limitations. I'll play around with this camera too as I eventually want to learn the intricacies of photography. Pros: -Quick auto-focus -Amazing still photography -Tons of settings and options -Relatively small camera -Easy menu options -Decent movie making capabilities Cons: -Very bad focus balance on selfies between fore and backgrounds -No touch screen -Flash seems too strong

We just had our one year anniversary with this camera, and we couldn't be happier. This is our first step up from the "point and shoot" realm, and this camera exceeded our expectations in pretty much every respect. It takes beautiful photos in terms of clarity and color. The focus is fast and accurate, although more expensive cameras might get even faster. It's not even in the same ballpark as the photos we get with our phones or with our old point and shoots. The 16-50mm lens was a little limiting in terms of zoom, but we just got the 55-200mm for the holidays and it has really increased our already voluminous photo taking with this camera. Transferring the photos to a phone, tablet, or laptop is way easier than I expected. It sets up a wireless "hotspot" even in places where there is otherwise no internet or network connection, and it transfers quickly and painlessly (you just need to get the app). On top of all of that, it's much smaller and less obtrusive than traditional SLR's. I can't recommend this camera enough.

I purchased a Sony a5000 in May 2014 and loved the functionality and quality it put out even with my amateur photo skills. However, I noticed that the stock lens was "stiff" to rotate. I wish I would have contacted Sony sooner. This June (13 months after purchase), the lens started giving a "Lens Not Recognized" error message and quit working with the camera. My father in law has the same camera and I tried swapping lenses. It was definitely a problem with my lens as his lens worked on my camera body, but my lens would not recognize on his camera. I contacted Sony knowing that the 12 month warranty was expired, but hoped they could help me resolve the problem and/or point me in the right direction for repairs. To my surprise, they offered an "accommodation" to the warranty and offered to cover the repair costs. I received an email with instructions to send the lens to Precison Camera and promptly sent it off. Included in the instructions was the phrase "Sending the lens under accommodation warranty. :- Warranty: Yes" After almost 6 weeks, I tried to contact Precision Camera. After several weeks of no one answering on their service line, I decided to contact Sony. Since that point, it has been an absolute nightmare. I received a call back saying that they had contacted Precision Camera and they were waiting for payment on the repair. That took me by surprise since Sony had promised to cover the repairs. After explaining this, they requested proof of purchase of the camera (even though it was out of warranty and they were accommodating it anyways). I sent this, along with the original email stating they were covering it under a warranty accommodation. Since then, they've given me the runaround during a dozen phone conversations and finally today (a month after I contacted them to check on the status and 2.5 months since the initial contact!) they told me they wouldn't cover it because it was out of warranty. Explaining they had promised to cover the repairs and the fact that I would never have sent the lens to them in the first place fell on deaf ears. After 10 minutes of back and forth with the rep, I then asked them to send the lens back to me so I could pursue repairs on my own (for a much cheaper price than the quoted $126.50). I then received a call from Precision telling me I need to pay $12.50 shipping to get it back! I can't believe the runaround I've received from Sony regarding the repairs. While disappointed my lens stopped working after 13 months, I accepted I would probably need to pay for repairs. When they offered to cover the price, I was extremely happy with their customer service, but since then my respect for them has sunk to rock bottom. The fact that they tricked me into sending my camera to their "repair center" that in actuality is a 3rd party vendor with absolutely terrible online reviews is despicable. Then to retract their offer and require me to pay for shipping both ways is downright horrendous. In the future I plan to steer clear of Sony products (both cameras and otherwise) for their incredibly poor customer service.