Sony has taken the camera world by storm with their lightweight, compact cameras that boast incredible photo and video quality. For YouTubers everywhere, their products are a dream and Sony offers some of the best vlogging cameras, best video cameras and best photography cameras on the market.
Whether you’re a beginner vlogger shooting the world in front of you, or an experienced filmmaker meticulously crafting your shots, Sony’s extensive catalog of products means that there is a camera out there for you.
Today, we’re outlining Sony’s best camera under $200, under $500 and under $1000, so you can choose the right fitting camera for your budget and style!
The Best Sony Camera Under $200
SONY DSC-W830
The Sony DSC-W830 is a point-and-shoot camera with a 20 megapixel sensor. It has an 8x optical zoom and can shoot 720p HD videos. This is a camera built for beginners who are starting out in photography and videography. The Sony W830 is one of the best cheap cameras out right now.
Build
The Sony W830 is a super compact and lightweight (4.3 oz) camera that can fit in a purse, jacket or pocket. It has a 2.7 inch LCD screen with 230k dots. This is the industry standard for a camera of this caliber. You’ll get an excellent view of what you are shooting while you are indoors. Once you get into bright and sunny conditions, it becomes a little tougher to see.
The battery life is reasonable, as you can shoot up to 210 shots with a full charge. The camera gets charged via Micro-B USB cable.
Specs
The image quality is excellent for a camera this size and price and you’ll get incredible photos with the 20MP sensor. When pairing the image stabilization with Sony’s top notch face-detecting focusing system, you’ll be able to capture breathtaking JPEG images. Even better, the W830 offers a smile shutter feature, which allows the camera to detect when someone is smiling and immediately focuses on that person.
The ISO ranges from 80 to 3200, which will allows you to shoot a wide range of indoor and outdoor settings, whether it be in harsh direct sunlight or low lit night scenes. Though, be careful when shooting at a high ISO, because you will notice grain and noise in your videos and photos.
Video
When shooting video, you’ll get a 720p HD output. The auto focusing and auto exposure system make it super easy to point the camera at your subject and capture it immediately. For aspiring YouTubers and vloggers, this is a good first choice for a camera. Though, there’s no flip up screen where you can see yourself in real time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ry0uTWJf970
Conclusion
For under $200, this is one of the best cheap Sony cameras. You’ll get an intelligent, easy to use camera that takes great photos and good videos. Though, there are some limitations such as no manual mode, no built in viewfinder, no RAW photographs and a low video resolution.
Once you have mastered this camera, I’d suggest graduating to a better Sony camera. In no time, you’ll elevate your photography and videography skills, and capture your perfect moments.
The Best Sony Camera Under $500
SONY A5100
The Sony A5100 is a very light and portable camera that will give you the best bang for your buck. It provides superior quality footage and incredibly intuitive auto focusing that makes your job easy as a content creator.
You are equipped with the easiness of using a point and shoot camera while capturing super high quality videos, all at an affordable price.
Build
Weighing in at a bit more than half of a pound, the Sony A5100 is one of the cheapest and smallest Sony cameras with interchangeable lenses. It gives you a selection of wide and telephoto E-mount glass to use for your specific needs.
The battery life isn’t bad either – it gives you around 400 shots on a full charge. It has a flip up screen that allows you to view yourself while recording, as well as a pop up flash when you’re shooting photos. The Sony A5100 doesn’t come equipped with an external mic input, though the good news is that the audio is acceptable for filming casually.
Specs
The A5100 has a 24.3MP APS-C Exmor CMOS sensor. This sensor is built to reduce noise and improves light quality. The A5100 has an ISO range of 25600, so even in dark conditions, this camera can produce superior images. Sony has implemented the Fast Hybrid AF system with 179 phase-detection points as well as 4D FOCUS. These features provide unparalleled auto focus tracking so the camera can focus for you while you focus on getting your perfect shot.
Video
The A5100 is has a maximum resolution of 1080p FHD at 24/30/60fps. 24fps allows you to shoot cinematic looking videos, while at 60fps, you can get excellent slow motion smooth footage – both at a very acceptable bit rate of 50 mbps. Sony’s highly intelligent color science and autofocus allow footage to be consistent and sharp.
The camera doesn’t have In-Body Image Stabilization but many Sony E-mount lenses, such as the 16-50mm kit lens offer OSS (Optical Steady Shot). You’ll be able to have the benefits of the smooth and steady footage when you use native lenses.
While the major downfall of this camera is that it does not shoot in 4K, 1080p is still an adequate resolution for YouTube videos.
Conclusion
This is my top choice for the best Sony camera under $500. Though 4K video and an external mic would make this camera stand out from it’s competitors, this is still an excellent option for photographers and videographers.
The light weight of the camera allows you to travel with it virtually everywhere, but you will still have to budget for the size of the lenses. Overall, it is a highly acceptable option and one of the best Sony cameras at this price range.
The Best Sony Camera Under $1000
SONY A6400
The Sony a6400 is Sony’s 4th edition in the a6000 series. Launched in January 2019, this 24.2 megapixel, 4K mirrorless camera is a delight for YouTubers. It boasts many great features that allow vloggers, YouTubers and filmmakers to capture cinema-quality photos and videos that will make your jaw drop.
Build
The A6400 is a compact and lightweight camera with a sleek and ergonomic design. This camera is a workhorse, as it’s typically for more experienced shooters. The A6400 has a flip up LCD screen that is a little awkward to work with, but is essential for a someone who uses this as a vlogging camera.
It has an external microphone input, though if using a mic on the hot shoe mount, you will not be able to flip up the LCD screen. You’ll have to opt for a camera cage if you want to use these two features at the same time.
The touchscreen of this camera does not work exceptionally well as it has trouble reading your finger to focus or navigate sometimes.
Specs
The Sony A6400 is one of the best Sony cameras not because of the exterior, but rather the interior. Many new features allow you shoot superior photos and capture incredible videos. Like always, Sony’s autofocusing system is second-to-none. It has improved even more this time around with 425 auto focus points and a newly implement Real-time Tracking AF, a revolutionary new way to focus automatically.
Working with this camera has never been easier with Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth, allowing you to connect to the camera with ease. For the photographers, you can shoot 24.2 MP images at 11 frames per second. It’ll even continually focus while shooting in full RAW mode!
Video
For experienced vloggers and YouTubers, the video resolution is excellent. You get 4K video at 30fps or 1080p HD video at 120fps. At 4K, you get super sharp video and you’ll be able to zoom in to your footage without losing resolution. At 120fps, you’ll create smooth slow motion that looks like you’re pausing time.
With picture profiles such as HLG (Hybrid-Log-Gamma), S-Log and Cine 4, you can capture awesome videos fit for your type of color grading. Each profile has their own advantages and disadvantages, but my personal favourite is S-Log. It keeps the most amount of colour information and dynamic range when editing your videos.
One downfall to this camera is that it does not have IBIS (In-Body Image Stabilization). This makes it a little difficult to keep the video stable while in rough or shaky settings. Though, when paired with a gimbal stabilizer or mounted on a tripod, the video is cinema-like.
Conclusion
The Sony A6400 is a super versatile camera for YouTubers. It is one of the best vlogging cameras for it’s size and price. For the experienced filmmakers, the A6400 is more than acceptable to produce high quality music videos, commercials, documentaries, etc.
The Best Cheap Sony Cameras – Final Thoughts
The Sony vs. Canon vs. Nikon rivalry has never been more tense.
Sony is carving out a big sector of the market by producing some of the best vlogging cameras. It doesn’t stop there though, there is a Sony camera out there for everyone at every price range and every skill level, whether you’re a casual picture-taker or Hollywood director.
And hey, if you’re sold on Sony and looking for something even better than these 3 options, check out the Sony A7III, a cinematic beast of a camera! In the meanwhile, I’ll wait for the Sony A7SIII and dream about all the unbelievable footage I’d be able to get with it.
Hopefully this articled has steered you in the right direction to find your perfect Sony camera. Check out some of our other posts!
Leave a Reply