Sony A100: Why I Will Always Love It
April 2020, Carl Garrard
Konica Minolta's camera business was bought by Sony officially on March 31, 2006, about a year after the two companies agreed to co-develop digital SLR cameras together (July, 2005). Konica Minolta cited that the quickly growing digital camera industry was moving at a pace which, despite their talented staff and excellent technology resources, simply could not keep up with. This was both disconcerting and exciting news alike. On one hand, the Alpha lens mount would survive, and on the other hand a "television electronics company" was taking the reins of a historical and innovative photography company. Through this merger came Sony's Alpha A100, the very first interchangeable lens camera with the Sony badge on the front. To this day I still consider the A100 to be a Konica Minolta camera, not only because of its resemblance to the Konica Minolta 5D, but because KM employees retained by Sony, designed and built it.
Seems like all that happened yesterday, in a blink of an eye.
April 2020, Carl Garrard
Konica Minolta's camera business was bought by Sony officially on March 31, 2006, about a year after the two companies agreed to co-develop digital SLR cameras together (July, 2005). Konica Minolta cited that the quickly growing digital camera industry was moving at a pace which, despite their talented staff and excellent technology resources, simply could not keep up with. This was both disconcerting and exciting news alike. On one hand, the Alpha lens mount would survive, and on the other hand a "television electronics company" was taking the reins of a historical and innovative photography company. Through this merger came Sony's Alpha A100, the very first interchangeable lens camera with the Sony badge on the front. To this day I still consider the A100 to be a Konica Minolta camera, not only because of its resemblance to the Konica Minolta 5D, but because KM employees retained by Sony, designed and built it.
Seems like all that happened yesterday, in a blink of an eye.