Images Of New Sony DSLR Possibilities

I don’t speak or read Japanese but I did come across a website with close-up photos of new Sony DSLRs and lenses that were showcased at the recent PMA in Las Vegas, NV behind glass. The images on the Japanese site were actually taken at a recent Photo Imaging Expo in Tokyo where Sony had three DSLRs out and about. It looks as if the A100 is featured, along with a ‘pro-sumer ‘model, and the other (with pointed prism housing) is a professional model that might possibly feature a full-frame sensor. All of this is speculation at this point, as Sony is being quite closed-lipped about the camera specifications and street dates.

The supposed ‘pro’ model, resembling a modified Minolta Maxxum 9, has a hot shoe but no built-in flash, and as the images indicate it has a robust body construction and available vertical grip. The possible ‘pro-sumer’ version is also pictured with vertical grip, but looks less like a Minolta Maxxum 7 than the Konica Minolta 7D, as the second knurled control dial on the top of the camera body has been removed. The third DSLR pictured is the already available Alpha 100. All models are displayed with one of the new Carl Zeiss lenses attached.

All of the cameras look great in the images on this Japanese website, and it is maddening that Sony won’t divulge their release plans and specifications for these cameras. The new Carl Zeiss lenses are also featured within the photos. It seems good things are coming from Sony this year, I just wish I had more patience and was able to read Japanese.