David Busch’s Sony Alpha a77 II/ILCA-77M2 Guide to Digital Photography

David Busch’s Sony Alpha a77 II/ILCA-77M2 Guide to Digital Photography

by David Busch
Released August 2015
Publisher(s): Rocky Nook
ISBN: 9781681980171

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Book description

David Busch's Sony a77 II Guide to Digital Photography is your all-in-one comprehensive resource and reference for the Sony a77 II camera. With this book in hand, you will explore the world of digital photography, develop your creativity, and take great photographs with your a77 II.

This advanced Sony model features a new autofocus sensor with an industry-leading 79 AF points, and lightning fast tracking. It can capture 24-megapixel images at a blazing fast 12 fps or shoot 1080p high-definition movies with stereo sound. Filled with detailed how-to steps and full-color illustrations, David Busch's Sony a77 II Guide to Digital Photography covers all the camera's features in depth, from taking your first photos through advanced details of setup, exposure, lens selection, lighting, and more, and relates each feature to specific photographic techniques and situations.

Also included is the handy a77 II "roadmap," an easy-to-use visual guide to the camera's features and controls. Learn when to use each option and, more importantly, when not to use them, by following the author’s recommended settings for every menu entry.

With best-selling photographer and mentor David Busch as your guide, you'll quickly have full creative mastery of your camera’s capabilities, whether you're shooting on the job, as an advanced enthusiast, or are just out for fun. Start building your knowledge and confidence, while bringing your vision to light with the Sony a77 II today.

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Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title
  3. Copyright
  4. Dedication
  5. Acknowledgments
  6. About the Author
  7. Contents
  8. Preface
  9. Introduction
  10. Chapter 1 Getting Started with Your Sony a77 II
    1. Your Out-of-Box Experience
    2. Initial Setup
      1. Battery Included
      2. Final Steps
      3. Formatting a Memory Card
    3. Selecting a Shooting Mode
    4. Choosing a Metering Mode
    5. Choosing a Focus Mode
    6. Selecting a Focus Point
    7. Other Settings
      1. Adjusting White Balance and ISO
      2. Using the Self-Timer
      3. Using the Built-In Flash
    8. An Introduction to Movie Making
    9. Reviewing the Images You’ve Taken
    10. Transferring Photos to Your Computer
    11. Software
  11. Chapter 2 Sony a77 II Roadmap
    1. Front View
    2. The Sony a77 II’s Business End
    3. What You See, and What You Get
      1. LCD vs. EVF
      2. Choosing Your View
      3. Swiveling the Screen
    4. Going Topside
    5. Underneath Your Sony a77 II
    6. Lens Components
  12. Chapter 3 Camera Settings Menu
    1. Anatomy of the Menus
    2. Camera Settings Menu
      1. Image Size
      2. Aspect Ratio
      3. Quality
      4. Panorama: Size
      5. Panorama: Direction
      6. File Format
      7. Record Setting
      8. Drive Mode
      9. Flash Mode
      10. Flash Compensation
      11. Flash Control
      12. Power Ratio
      13. Red Eye Reduction
      14. AF-A Setup
      15. Focus Area
      16. AF Illuminator
      17. AF Drive Speed
      18. AF Track Duration (Still Photos)
      19. AF Track Duration (Movies)
      20. Exposure Compensation
      21. Exposure Step
      22. ISO
      23. Metering Mode
      24. White Balance
      25. DRO/Auto HDR
      26. Creative Style
      27. Picture Effect
      28. Zoom
      29. Focus Magnifier
      30. Long Exposure. NR/High ISO NR
      31. Center Lock-on AF
      32. Smile/Face Detect
      33. Soft Skin Effect
      34. Auto Object Framing
      35. Auto Mode
      36. Scene Selection
      37. Movie
      38. SteadyShot (Still Photos)
      39. SteadyShot (Movies)
      40. Color Space
      41. Auto Slow Shutter
      42. Audio Recording
      43. Audio Recording Level
      44. Audio Out Timing
      45. Wind Noise Reduction
      46. Memory
  13. Chapter 4 Custom Settings, Playback, and Setup Menus
    1. Custom Settings Menu
      1. Zebra
      2. Focus Magnifier Time
      3. Grid Line
      4. Audio Level Display
      5. Auto Review
      6. DISP Button
      7. Peaking Level
      8. Peaking Color
      9. Exposure Settings Guide
      10. Live View Display
      11. AF Range Control Assist
      12. AF Area Auto Clear
      13. AF Area Points
      14. Flexible Spot Points
      15. Wide AF Area Display
      16. Zoom Setting
      17. Eye-Start AF
      18. FINDER/MONITOR
      19. Release w/o Lens
      20. Priority Setup
      21. AF w/ Shutter
      22. AEL w/Shutter
      23. SteadyShot w/ Shutter
      24. e-Front Curtain Shutter
      25. Superior Auto
      26. Exp. Comp. Set
      27. Bracket Order
      28. Face Registration
      29. AF Micro Adjustment
      30. Lens Compensation
      31. Function Menu Set
      32. Custom Key Settings
      33. Dial Setup
      34. Dial Ev Comp
      35. MOVIE Button
      36. Dial Lock
    2. Playback Menu
      1. Delete
      2. View Mode
      3. Image Index
      4. Display Rotation
      5. Slide Show
      6. Rotate
      7. Enlarge Image
      8. 4K Still Image Playback
      9. Protect
      10. Specify Printing
    3. Setup Menu
      1. Monitor Brightness
      2. Viewfinder Brightness
      3. Finder Color Temperature
      4. Volume Settings
      5. Audio Signals
      6. Upload Settings
      7. Tile Menu
      8. Mode Dial Guide
      9. Delete Confirm
      10. Power Save Start Time
      11. Cleaning Mode
      12. Demo Mode
      13. Remote Control
      14. HDMI Settings
      15. USB Connection
      16. USB LUN Setting
      17. Language
      18. Date/Time Setup
      19. Area Setting
      20. Format
      21. File Number
      22. Select REC Folder
      23. New Folder
      24. Folder Name
      25. Recover Image Database
      26. Display Media Information
      27. Version
      28. Setting Reset
  14. Chapter 5 Shooting Modes and Exposure Control
    1. Getting a Handle on Exposure
      1. Equivalent Exposure
    2. How the a77 II Calculates Exposure
      1. Correctly Exposed
      2. Overexposed
      3. Underexposed
      4. Metering Mid-Tones
    3. The Importance of ISO
    4. Choosing a Metering Method
    5. Choosing an Exposure Mode
      1. Aperture Priority (A) Mode
      2. Shutter Priority (S) Mode
      3. Program Auto (P) Mode
      4. Making Exposure Value Changes
      5. Manual Exposure (M) Mode
    6. Exposure Bracketing
    7. Using Dynamic Range Optimizer
    8. Working with HDR
      1. Auto HDR
      2. Bracketing and Merge to HDR
    9. Exposure Evaluation with Histograms
      1. Tonal Range
      2. Histogram Basics
      3. Understanding Histograms
    10. Automatic and Specialized Shooting Modes
      1. Auto and Scene Modes
      2. Sweep Panorama Mode
    11. Dealing with Digital Noise
      1. High ISO Noise
  15. Chapter 6 Mastering Autofocus Options
    1. Getting into Focus
      1. Phase Detection
      2. Contrast Detection
      3. Adding Circles of Confusion
    2. Components of Autofocus
      1. Focus Modes—Begin/Stop
      2. Area to Focus On
      3. Lock-On, Object Detection, and Tracking
    3. Manual Focus
      1. Focus Peaking
    4. Autofocus Summary
      1. Focus Stacking
  16. Chapter 7 Advanced Techniques for Your Sony a77 II
    1. Exploring Ultra-Fast Exposures
    2. Long Exposures
      1. Three Ways to Take Long Exposures
      2. Working with Long Exposures
    3. Continuous Shooting
      1. Continuous Advance Priority AE
    4. Setting Image Parameters
      1. Customizing White Balance
      2. Setting White Balance by Color Temperature
      3. Setting a Custom White Balance
    5. Image Processing
      1. Using Creative Styles
    6. Picture Effects
  17. Chapter 8 Shooting Movies
    1. Basic Settings
      1. File Format
      2. Record Setting
    2. Exposure Settings
      1. Movie
      2. Zebra
      3. Auto Slow Shutter
    3. Audio Settings
      1. Audio Recording
      2. Audio Recording Level
      3. Audio Out Timing
      4. Wind Noise Reduction
    4. Other Settings
      1. AF Track Duration (Movies)
      2. SteadyShot
    5. Recording Video
    6. Steps During Movie Making
    7. Tips for Shooting Better Video
      1. Stop That!
      2. Lens Craft
      3. Keep Things Stable and on the Level
      4. Shooting Script
      5. Storyboards
      6. Storytelling in Video
      7. Composition
      8. Lighting for Video
      9. Audio
  18. Chapter 9 Working with Lenses
    1. But Don’t Forget the Crop Factor
    2. Sony’s Alpha-bet Soup
    3. Lens Mounts and Motors
    4. Your First Lens
      1. Buy Now, Expand Later
    5. Your Second (and Third . . .) Lens
      1. Your Wide Angle/Normal Options
      2. Longer Lenses
      3. What Lenses Can Do for You
      4. Zoom or Prime?
    6. Categories of Lenses
    7. Using Wide-Angle and Wide-Zoom Lenses
      1. Avoiding Potential Wide-Angle Problems
    8. Using Telephoto and Tele-Zoom Lenses
      1. Avoiding Telephoto Lens Problems
      2. Telephotos and Bokeh
    9. Add-ons and Special Features
      1. Lens Hoods
      2. Telephoto Extenders
      3. Macro Focusing
      4. Using the Lensbaby
      5. SteadyShot and Your Lenses
    10. Fine-Tuning the Focus of Your Lenses
      1. Lens Tune-Up
  19. Chapter 10 Making Light Work for You
    1. The Elements of Light
    2. Continuous Lighting—or Electronic Flash?
    3. Continuous Lighting Basics
      1. Daylight
      2. Incandescent/Tungsten Light
      3. Fluorescent Light/Other Light Sources
      4. Adjusting White Balance
    4. Electronic Flash Basics
      1. How Electronic Flash Works
    5. Using the Built-In Flash
      1. Setting Flash Modes
      2. Flash Exposure Compensation
      3. Flash Control
      4. Red Eye Reduction
    6. Using the External Electronic Flash
      1. HVL-F60M Flash Unit
      2. HVL-F58AM Flash Unit
      3. HVL-F43M Flash Unit
      4. HVL-F36AM Flash Unit
      5. HVL-F20AM Flash Unit
    7. Wireless and Multiple Flash
      1. Channels
      2. Groups (RMT and RMT2)
    8. More Advanced Lighting Techniques
      1. Diffusing and Softening the Light
      2. Using Multiple Light Sources
      3. Other Lighting Accessories
  20. Chapter 11 Using Wi-Fi and NFC
    1. Making a Wi-Fi Connection
      1. Using WPS Push
      2. Registering Manually
      3. Wi-Fi Settings
    2. Wi-Fi Functions
      1. Sending Photos to a Smart Device
      2. Wi-Fi Transfer to a Computer
      3. Viewing Images on a TV
      4. Near Field Communications (NFC)

Product information

  • Title: David Busch’s Sony Alpha a77 II/ILCA-77M2 Guide to Digital Photography
  • Author(s): David Busch
  • Release date: August 2015
  • Publisher(s): Rocky Nook
  • ISBN: 9781681980171