This is a 6-month review of my used A6300 Sony camera, which I bought at KEH online used equipment store. I bought this camera for my birthday last year, before going to visit Chicago, with the full intention of working on my Chicago Travel guide. Which is taking longer than I expected or planned.
I’ve been a photography enthusiast for about 21 years. When I was 18, I got a job at the Photography Store in my neighborhood and was immediately into it.
The year was 2004, and back home in Brazil, they were still transitioning to digital media. So I started learning about film photography, camera, aperture, depth, and printing sizes. I learned how to hold the DSLR camera and use it on Manual to take passport photos, since that was one of my functions. My boss and store owner were adamant, saying that if I dropped the camera, I would have to pay for it.
After about a month working in the store, my boss asked me to crop the pictures on Photoshop. At that time, I didn’t even have a computer at home (computers in Brazil were extremely expensive and my mom was raising me alone, so she bought one a year later when I started college), and I got terrified of doing something wrong.
That job kept me on edge for reasons I would only understand years later( harassment, bullying, misogyny, and even racism towards other people). All I had to do was crop the carnival pictures and save them. My job also included being a salesperson, a store coordinator, replacing inventory, receiving payments, making sure the store was clean and organized, taking passport photos, and printing them.
My favorite part was restocking the film shelf. That’s where I learn more about ISO, the different film brands, stories, and I could sell it with confidence. I was exhausted, but happy, even though the owners were a nightmare. I got fired at the end of my trial period, because according to them, I didn’t pass a important message that someone called, and it was important. Sure, it was not you being racist with my black friends visiting me at the store, and you got scared of being robbed.
Besides the bluntly racism, they had hired 2 people for the same position and were trying out which one was better. The other guy was older, had a more kiss-ass approach to the boss and never left the store. At 18, I was naive enough to believe I had a chance. I wanted to work, but I also wanted to be out with my friends.
When it was time to apply for college, I told my mom I wanted to take photography classes, because I liked it and I thought it would be a good career. She vetoed. She said I would not have any money to buy the equipment, as digital cameras in Brazil cost an arm and a leg, and neither would I make money from it. I would be better off going to hospitality school, because I would be able to travel and get a job anywhere.
It could have been a beautiful career.
My first digital camera was a 2.5 megapixel, with a small screen on the back. I still have it. I used to go out in Rio de Janeiro, my hometown, taking photos of everything in the streets. That’s when the evolution started to happen.
From that, to my Kodak in 2007, which had the manual option and allowed me to explore my photos creatively. I remember being in New York for the first time, and I got some great shots of the city. I posted all on my Flickr account and waited for the comments. That’s how I used to get my dopamine fix before all the social media chaos. Shot, edit, post it, and wait for the comments.
Fast forward a few years, I got my first Canon DSLR in 2013, and last October, I surrendered to the Sony A6300 mirrorless camera. It was time for an upgrade, but my pocket wasn’t ready to make a big purchase. Not everyone can afford 700,800 dollars plus lenses.
I kept my eye on the KEH website, which sells used photography equipment, and did a lot of research about the A600 series until I decided on the A6300 model. I also ended up purchasing the E 16-50mm APS autofocus lenses. After using it for about 6 months, these are my pros and cons based on my photography experience:
Pros:
It’s a very light camera, so you can carry it around on your trips without the weight of a DSLR, and it has an easy interface to use. It’s very easy to get used to it if you are a beginner and don’t want to spend much money on equipment.
You can change the lenses according to the kind of photography you would like to take. My E 16-50mm APS autofocus lenses are considered a more versatile lens for portrait photography, and they work well with macrophotography ( at least on my Denver garden 😂)
For a more distant subject, I would get a different one. I’m currently looking for wide-angle lenses, but they are still more expensive than the camera itself. I might have to make a payment plan. So here we go to what I learned about having this camera so far:
Cons:
If you are a beginner and just got the camera, it might be a bit confusing. You will need to watch a tutorial about the settings. My settings are still based on what I learn at the Photography store, and I try to follow the same settings while shooting in manual mode. Another way to learn is to take the photos on auto and look for the specific information about the photo. That’s also how I learned. The auto-focus was a bit of a struggle to understand. The flash does a good job, but again, you can change the light settings on manual to open up to more brightness. I rarely use the camera flash.
My first experience testing the A6300 was on our trip to Chicago. Chicago is gray and overcast in November. It goes from Sunny, to cloudy, to rainy in a matter of 2 hours, so I had to hurry up. The cold was not helping either. I took some good photos, but there is a huge difference between Chicago and our last trip to Orlando, last week.
The more time I spend with the A6300, the more confidence I gain. The more control I get over the manual settings, the ISO, and the aperture, putting it all together, it starts to make sense. The file setting that I’ve been using is Raw + JPEG, which allows me more flexibility when it comes to editing. Even though the files are a little bigger.
I recently purchased an ND filter for my camera, which allowed me to get those cloudy days a better chance at the photos. The ND filters work like sunglasses for your camera, making it easier to control the light. Especially if you are taking photos of a bright lake with shadows, or in an open field with a lot of lighting. It’s a cool add-on to the camera and I’m enjoying it a lot.
The camera battery doesn’t last much longer either. I had to purchase extra ones. I didn’t want to be in the middle of the park run out of battery
Conclusion:
I really like the A6300, especially because it’s a light camera, you can switch lenses accordingly, it’s easy to carry, and if you are looking for a starter camera without breaking the bank, the Sony A6300 might be the one for you. If you are looking for a vlogging camera instead, I would go for the a6400 and on, because of the back screen that flips all the way to film yourself.
Not to be very technical about it, because I don’t have the professional technical knowledge, I have the basic knowledge, so I hope this post helps.
Do you have a any Sony A600’s model? which one do you recommend for beginners? Let me know in the comments!
Disclaimer:
Since this post was written, I learned a little bit more about lenses, and the camera itself, now I’m fully invested in buying a 35mm E mount lenses.
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