Hey everyone! I hope 2017 has been treating you well so far and that you’re hopefully all still sticking to your new years resolutions. For Christmas, Josh and my dad surprised me with the Sony A5000, which I haven’t stopped going on about since forever. A couple of months ago, I had always had my heart set on the Olympus PEN EPL8 when it came out and was promoted by various bloggers that I follow. After hours of reading reviews, watching YouTube videos etc. I decided that the Olympus was not the camera for me due to the fact the flip screen flipped down instead of up and I found this a huge flaw in the design of the camera. I then did a lot more research and even went in to Curry’s to have a little play with the Sony A5000 and as soon as I saw it, I knew that it was the camera for me.
So, here’s how the story went… little did I know, that sat underneath the Christmas tree in a quality street box was the Olympus PEN, which I immediately said to Josh.. “there isn’t chocolates in there” shaking it frantically but still no idea that there would be a camera sat in there. A couple of days later I mentioned that I didn’t like how the Olympus PEN flip screen dropped down instead of up so he went back to Curry’s and exchanged it for the Sony A5000, and decided to replace the empty quality street box with an actual box of chocolates so on Christmas day I was like “oh it really is a box of quality street”.
There I was on Christmas day, having opened all my presents feeling very chuffed with myself.. Mum goes “where’s your camera” which I actually hadn’t received yet as dad and Josh were planning on surprising me with it after dinner. So thanks mum for ruining the surprise but an even bigger thank you to the two of them treating me to the best present ever. I have been well and truly spoilt!
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Since starting my blog, the pictures I have used have been ones taken on Josh’s Sony cybershot, my iPhone 6s or my dads GoPro camera. I love using the Go Pro because it’s so robust and it’s great for underwater pictures and taking it to the beach, so you don’t have to worry about getting any sand in it or getting it damaged by water.
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Firstly, lets start with the aesthetics of the camera. It is a really beautiful looking camera and it fits really well in your hand. Josh went for the white version which is what I’d have chosen too, had I a choice. It also comes in black but I think it looks a lot more modern and sleek in the white. I find it is one of those camera people are drawn to look at, it’s not just a camera but also a stylish accessory, oh and it is super light weight so no aching arms or shoulders from carrying it around.
Most cameras now have the wifi feature, which allows you to transfer photos wirelessly from you camera to your phone or laptop. I really love this feature as I enjoy editing my photographs on an app called VSCO on my iPhone. You simply download the Play Memories app and connect to your camera using it’s own wifi name and password, you can then chose to select the photos on your device or on your camera – I personally chose them on my iPhone as the images come up clearer so I can see which photos best. There is one thing that does slightly bother me and that is that you can’t send your videos you’ve recorded on the camera to your iPhone. I do like to make quick snippets of videos using ‘Videoshop’ app on my iPhone, so not being able to do this is a tad annoying but obviously not a deal breaker.
So, as I mentioned earlier, the flip screen is a huge bonus and one of the reasons why I wanted to treat myself to a camera. I find that a flip up screen makes vlogging super easy, although I’m yet to upload anything to YouTube but stay tuned because my channel is coming in April/May. I found trying to take selfies on the cyber shot difficult as you couldn’t see where the camera was shooting and more importantly if you looked OK.
Although the Sony a5000 may be classed as a point and shoot, it has the same ability as a DSLR but just more compact and lightweight. Learning to play with the settings can really enhance your photographs. Having done a little bit of photography back at college using DSLR cameras, I was always keen to learn more and teach myself about the manual setting on a camera so I’ve read up about shutter speed, aperture and ISO and how adjusting these settings can create some stunning shots.
The only thing that slightly annoys me about the A5000 are the little metal hoops that are used if you want to attach a strap to your camera. Without a strap, these hoops really rattle and when you playback a video you’ve recorded you can hear a slight tapping sound. At the moment I just keep my neck strap on all the time so this stops it from jingling.
In a nutshell it’s, affordable, stylish, lightweight, superb picture quality and easy to use, the perfect little camera to start a blog or YouTube channel!
Speak soon.
