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Canon 30D vs Sony A99

Portability
58
Imaging
46
Features
39
Overall
43
Canon EOS 30D front
 
Sony SLT-A99 front
Portability
57
Imaging
70
Features
88
Overall
77

Canon 30D vs Sony A99 Key Specs

Canon 30D
(Full Review)
  • 8MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 1600 (Boost to 3200)
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • No Video
  • Canon EF/EF-S Mount
  • 784g - 144 x 106 x 74mm
  • Released April 2006
  • Superseded the Canon 20D
  • Renewed by Canon 40D
Sony A99
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 812g - 147 x 111 x 78mm
  • Launched December 2012
  • Previous Model is Sony A900
  • Successor is Sony A99 II
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Canon 30D vs Sony A99 Overview

Its time to take a deeper look at the Canon 30D and Sony A99, both Advanced DSLR cameras by manufacturers Canon and Sony. There is a large difference among the resolutions of the 30D (8MP) and A99 (24MP) and the 30D (APS-C) and A99 (Full frame) possess different sensor size.

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The 30D was manufactured 7 years prior to the A99 which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras come with the identical body type (Mid-size SLR).

Before we go through a comprehensive comparison, below is a brief summary of how the 30D scores vs the A99 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Canon 30D over the Sony A99

 30D A99 

Reasons to pick Sony A99 over the Canon 30D

 A99 30D 
LaunchedDecember 2012April 2006Newer by 81 months
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Screen dimension3"2.5"Bigger screen (+0.5")
Screen resolution1229k230kSharper screen (+999k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Common features in the Canon 30D and Sony A99

 30D A99 
Focus manually Very precise focusing
Touch friendly screen Absent Touch friendly screen

Canon 30D vs Sony A99 Physical Comparison

When you are going to travel with your camera often, you will want to consider its weight and volume. The Canon 30D has outer dimensions of 144mm x 106mm x 74mm (5.7" x 4.2" x 2.9") accompanied by a weight of 784 grams (1.73 lbs) while the Sony A99 has sizing of 147mm x 111mm x 78mm (5.8" x 4.4" x 3.1") having a weight of 812 grams (1.79 lbs).

Check out the Canon 30D and Sony A99 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you have during that time. The following is the front view dimension comparison of the 30D compared to the A99.

Canon 30D vs Sony A99 size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability rating of the 30D and A99 is 58 and 57 respectively.

Canon 30D vs Sony A99 top view buttons comparison

Canon 30D vs Sony A99 Sensor Comparison

Often, it can be tough to imagine the gap in sensor dimensions just by looking through a spec sheet. The picture below will offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the 30D and A99.

Clearly, both of the cameras have got different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The 30D because of its smaller sensor is going to make achieving shallower DOF tougher and the Sony A99 will render more detail due to its extra 16MP. Higher resolution will also help you crop pictures much more aggressively. The more aged 30D will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.

Canon 30D vs Sony A99 sensor size comparison

Canon 30D vs Sony A99 Screen and ViewFinder

Canon 30D vs Sony A99 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Canon 30D Portrait photography highlights
Sony A99 Portrait photography highlights
51
focusing manually
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
no liveview
megapixel count low (8 megapixels)
82
has manual focus
good MP (24 megapixels)
great sensor size (Full frame)
comes with face detection focusing
supports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Canon 30D Street photography information
Sony A99 Street photography information
52
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
no articulating screen
no image stabilization
75
fully articulated screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
great sensor size (Full frame)
supports RAW formats
weather proofing
very good ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Canon 30D Sports photography factors
Sony A99 Sports photography factors
44
high shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
comes with phase detect AF
no liveview
max fps low (5.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
megapixel count low (8 megapixels)
78
maximum shutter speed is high (1/8,000 seconds)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (24 megapixels)
great sensor size (Full frame)
comes with tracking autofocus
weather proofing
sensor has phase detect AF
not so great battery pack (500 shots)
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Travel Comparison

Canon 30D as a Travel photography camera
Sony A99 as a Travel photography camera
42
has built in flash
missing Timelapse recording
megapixel count low (8 megapixels)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
60
weather proofing
good MP (24 megapixels)
selfie friendly screen
no Time Lapse mode
not so great battery pack (500 shots)
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Landscape Comparison

Canon 30D Landscape photography features
Sony A99 Landscape photography features
46
focusing manually
interchangeable lenses (Canon EF/EF-S mount)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
tiny screen (2.5")
no liveview
no image stabilization
megapixel count low (8 megapixels)
missing Timelapse recording
75
has manual focus
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (24MP)
great sensor size (Full frame)
very good ISO range (25,600)
supports RAW formats
weather proofing
has double storage slots
not so great battery pack (500 shots)
no Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Canon 30D Vlogging information
Sony A99 Vlogging information
9
can't record video
76
selfie friendly screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detection focusing
video res high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
includes external mic port
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Canon 30D vs Sony A99 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Canon 30D and Sony A99
 Canon EOS 30DSony SLT-A99
General Information
Manufacturer Canon Sony
Model type Canon EOS 30D Sony SLT-A99
Class Advanced DSLR Advanced DSLR
Released 2006-04-04 2012-12-12
Body design Mid-size SLR Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Chip - Bionz
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size APS-C Full frame
Sensor dimensions 22.5 x 15mm 35.8 x 23.8mm
Sensor surface area 337.5mm² 852.0mm²
Sensor resolution 8 megapixels 24 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 3504 x 2336 6000 x 4000
Highest native ISO 1600 25600
Highest enhanced ISO 3200 -
Minimum native ISO 100 100
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
Continuous autofocus
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Total focus points 9 19
Cross type focus points - 11
Lens
Lens mount type Canon EF/EF-S Sony/Minolta Alpha
Amount of lenses 326 143
Crop factor 1.6 1
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fully Articulated
Display sizing 2.5" 3"
Resolution of display 230k dot 1,229k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Display technology - TFT Xtra Fine color LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentaprism) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359k dot
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.56x 0.71x
Features
Min shutter speed 30s 30s
Max shutter speed 1/8000s 1/8000s
Continuous shutter speed 5.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 12.00 m (ISO 100) no built-in flash
Flash settings Auto, On, Red-eye reduction, Off Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Max flash sync 1/250s 1/250s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (60, 24 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 640 x 424 (29.97 fps)
Highest video resolution None 1920x1080
Video data format - MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 784g (1.73 lb) 812g (1.79 lb)
Dimensions 144 x 106 x 74mm (5.7" x 4.2" x 2.9") 147 x 111 x 78mm (5.8" x 4.4" x 3.1")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 59 89
DXO Color Depth rating 21.5 25.0
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.8 14.0
DXO Low light rating 736 1555
Other
Battery life - 500 pictures
Form of battery - Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-FM500H
Self timer Yes (10 sec (2 sec with mirror lock-up)) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Storage media Compact Flash (Type I or II) Memory Stick PRO Duo/Pro-HG Duo; SD, SDHC and SDXC
Storage slots One Two
Pricing at release $773 $1,998