Sony A55 Modes & Menus

Sony Alpha A55 Modes and Menus

When powered on, the Sony A55 is automatically placed into Record mode. The Mode dial on the left side of the A55's top panel lets you select various exposure modes. The Mode dial offers the following selection of shooting modes:

Auto: Proceeding around the Mode Dial in a clockwise direction, the first option on the Sony A55's Mode dial is the Auto mode, which gives the camera control over most exposure variables, including shutter speed, aperture, and ISO sensitivity. The user can still adjust image resolution / compression, aspect ratio, image stabilizer, flash metering, AF illuminator, color space, drive mode, flash m mode (off, auto, or on), face detection, and smile shutter.

Auto+: In Auto+ mode, the Sony A55 still retains control over the same exposure variables as in the standard Auto mode, but also has the ability to recognize specific scene types, and to enable shooting functions not typically available in automatic shooting, such as slow shutter, continuous advance, slow sync / daylight sync flash, and Auto HDR. Scene types that can be recognized in the A55's Auto+ mode include Night View, Hand-held Twilight, Landscape, Backlight Portrait, Portrait, Tripod Night View, Backlight, Macro, and Night Portrait. Recognizing that it might be confusing to less experienced photographers that the A55 can capture multiple image bursts in Auto+ mode, Sony has provided two options in Custom Menu 2 that allow burst shooting in Auto+ mode to be disabled, or to have the camera automatically select only one image from each burst to be saved.

Program AE: In its Program AE mode, the Sony A55 controls both aperture and shutter speed automatically, and you have control over all other exposure variables, including exposure compensation. Unlike many SLRs, the A55 lacks a Program Shift function in its Program mode, however, so without switching to a Priority mode, you're stuck with whichever balance of shutter speed vs. aperture that the camera selected.

Aperture-Priority AE: This mode allows you to manually set the lens aperture (with available apertures depending on the lens in use), while the Sony A55 selects the most appropriate shutter speed. You have control over all other exposure variables, including exposure compensation.

Shutter-Priority AE: The opposite of Aperture-Priority mode, Shutter-Priority AE allows you to set the shutter speed anywhere from 1/4,000 to 30 seconds, while the Sony A55 chooses the best corresponding aperture setting. Again, you have control over all other exposure variables, including exposure compensation. The Bulb setting that's available in Manual Exposure mode isn't available in Shutter-priority AE mode.

Manual Exposure: This mode provides full control of all exposure variables, including independent control of shutter speed, lens aperture, and ISO sensitivity, and hence there is no exposure compensation function. The Control dial adjusts shutter speed by default, and adjusts the aperture when turned while holding down the Exposure Compensation button. The shutter speed range also includes a Bulb setting, allowing long exposures for as long as you hold the Sony A55's Shutter button down. A display in the viewfinder reports whether the Sony A55 thinks your settings will result in under, over, or correctly exposed photos.

Continuous Advance Priority AE: In this mode, the Sony A55 offers its highest shooting rate of ten frames per second, but with some limitations. If Continuous Autofocus is enabled, then the lens aperture is fixed at its fully open position, and ISO sensitivity is controlled automatically. In Single Autofocus mode, aperture and sensitivity can be manually controlled, but shutter speed is controlled manually, and focus is locked from the first frame. Manual focus shooting has the same limitation with regards to shutter speed.

Sweep Panorama: Captures multiple images in a burst for as long as the shutter button is held down, then automatically stitches them into either a 2D panorama, or a 3D panorama that's saved as a multi-picture object file. Focus and exposure are locked from the first frame.

Scene: This mode provides access to the eight preset shooting modes via a Scene Selection menu. Scene modes available are: Portrait, Sports Action, Macro, Landscape, Sunset, Night View, Hand-held Twilight, and Night Portrait.

Flash Off: This mode functions identically to the standard Auto mode, but disables use of flash -- perfect for shooting in situations where flash might prove objectionable, such as in museums.

Playback Mode
The Playback button on the rear panel accesses the A55's Playback mode, which rather unusually allows you to review either captured still images, or movies -- but not both side by side. The left and right arrow keys scroll forward and backward one image or movie at a time, and turning the Control dial has the same effect. The Up arrow key cycles through the various display modes -- image only, image plus basic information, and RGBY histogram with detailed information, of which only the first two modes are available in movie playback. Using the AEL (Enlarge) and Exposure Compensation (Reduce) buttons, you can enlarge captured still images by as much as 11.8x, while the arrow keys pan around the zoomed image. Panoramic images can be automatically scrolled across the screen by pressing the AF (OK) key, and paused with a second press. The same controls are used to play, pause, and cue through movie files. By pressing the Reduce key without playback zoom active, the NEX-5 can also display images or movies in an index format for quick viewing, with either six or twelve thumbnails per page. The index includes tabs on the left hand side with which to switch between still image or movie playback, and this can also be done through a Playback menu option. The A55 also remembers whether you captured a still image or movie most recently, and defaults to entering the Playback type relevant to the last image or movie capture performed.

Sony Alpha A55 Menu Details

Pressing the Menu button provides access to the camera's main menu system, while the Function button calls up the separate Function menu when in Record mode. Below are Sony A55 menu options and their descriptions.

Record Menu 1:

Record Menu 2:

Record Menu 3:

Custom Menu 1:

Custom Menu 2:

Playback Menu 1:

Playback Menu 2:

Storage Menu 1:

Date and Time Menu 2:

Setup Menu 1:

Setup Menu 2:

Function Menu: