Manual Control Options
For photographers who wish to do more than just point and shoot, there is a vast array of manual control options available on the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W7. Shutterbugs can control the exposure with the four-way navigational dial. The up and down arrows select the shutter speed; the right and left arrows control the aperture (although aperture alterations are limited). The shutter speed and aperture can only be manipulated on the LCD screen and are not available within a menu (which I think is practical). Other settings can be manually selected, including White Balance, ISO, Exposure Compensation (although not in the Manual mode), Metering, and Focus (sort of). The following sections go into greater detail about the versatility of these features.

 

Focus
Auto (6.0)
The Sony W7 has two auto focus modes, Single and Monitor, that can be selected in the Setup menu. The Single mode activates the focus only when the shutter release button is pressed halfway. The Monitor option acts like a continuous mode, but really sucks the juice out of the batteries. When in Auto mode, the W7 blurred lots of shots it shouldn't have. When subjects move quickly, there is a slight hesitation with the auto focus. The W7 does have an AF illuminator that helps the camera focus at times in compromised lighting, but is not enough to ensure accuracy. The illuminator casts an eerie red light in the center of the frame and could almost pass as a laser pointer. All in all, the autofocus is definitely sub-par compared to other cameras of the W7’s caliber.

 

 

Manual (1.0)
Manual focus is offered on the Sony W7, but as with most compact models, it is a travesty of the meaning of "manual." A Focus option in the menu offers two auto focus settings and the following manual focus settings: 0.5m, 1.0m, 3.0m, 7.0m, and infinity. These settings are more like focus presets than actual manual focus. I doubt you'll want to whip out your measuring tape and make sure your subjects are exactly 3 meters away, so don't expect much from these options.

Metering (7.5)
The multi-pattern metering mode is the default in the W7, but there are two other options. Similar to other compact models, this Cyber-shot has spot, center-weighted, and multi-pattern metering modes. The default mode measures from several points on the screen and reads photo conditions from them. The spot metering mode measures from a tiny point in the center of the screen and is useful for backlit subjects. In this mode, the camera puts a small cross in the center and reads conditions from that point. The center-weighted metering mode measures from the subject in the center of the frame.

Exposure (7.5)
Users of the Sony W7 can control the exposure both automatically and manually, depending on their fancy. The mode dial on the top of the camera pictures all of the exposure modes, including the scene modes. The camera has manual, automatic, and priority modes on the mode dial, as well as seven image presets. When users turn the mode dial, a picture of it appears on the LCD screen and as it is turned, the current mode is highlighted in color — indicating its potential engagement.

 

This compact camera also offers the typical exposure compensation range of +/- 2 EV in 1/3 steps. It is available in every mode except for Manual and Auto.

 

 

White Balance (4.5)
Staying within the automatic realm, the Sony W7 only offers white balance presets. The list is even a bit limited: Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Incandescent, and Flash. Sadly, there is no manual white balance mode. This is unfortunate, as a camera that allows users to manually adjust the shutter speed and a bit of the aperture should ideally also let users set the white balance. However, I do appreciate the interface of the white balance menu. The different modes are represented by intuitive icons on a gray background, which takes up the left side of the screen. The right side of the screen is left for users to see live views. The implementation is strong, but the options are weak. This would not be so much of a problem if the camera’s automatic white balance function worked appropriately, but it seemed to be one of the camera’s weakest elements. Particularly in compromised lighting, the W7 displayed significant difficultly finding true white and often (inside and out) produced images with strong reddish overtones.

ISO (4.0)
The Cyber-shot DSC-W7 has a truncated ISO range that approaches the typical offerings of most compact digital cameras. Users can select Auto, 100, 200 or 400 within the menu. And when they do, they can see a live view and watch the lighting brighten and darken when the different ratings are selected. Most point-and-shoot models will throw in an additional setting below the ISO 100 rating, either an ISO 50 or 80 rating to ensure (given ample lighting) that noise is not a problem. Sony skimps out a bit here with the limited sensitivity range, but compensates for it by controlling stray noise with an effective image processor and strong sensor.

Shutter Speed (7.5)
The shutter speed can be automatically or manually controlled on the Cyber-shot W7. When the W7 takes over and selects the shutter speed, it does so from a range of 1/8-1/2000^th of a second. This range will suffice as long as users aren’t taking pictures of night landscapes or fireworks — or anything that would require a shutter speed longer than 1/8 of a second. The Program Auto setting allows slightly more freedom with a 2-1/2000^th of a second range. Even then, sometimes two seconds will not be enough. Luckily, the shutter speed can be manually adjusted from 30-1/1000^th of a second when more control is needed to attain the proper exposure. While this range leaves out the quick 1/2000^th of a second option, it is far more valuable for its longer shutter speeds. The shutter speeds can be manually adjusted by pressing the button in the center of the four-way navigational dial, then pressing the up and down arrows. When users select any speed below 1/8 of a second, the camera shows the letters “NR” on the LCD screen to indicate that the noise reduction system has been activated. And there are plenty of shutter speed options to choose from — 46 of them to be exact.

Aperture (3.5)
The W7 is equipped with a Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens. This 3x optical zoom lens has an aperture range of f/2.8-f/5.6 when it is zoomed out and a range of f/5.2-f/10 when zoomed all the way in on a subject. The aperture can be semi-manually adjusted by pressing the same central button in the four-way navigational dial, then pushing the right and left arrows. I say semi-manual because users have only two choices at a particular focal length. The aperture is either open or stopped-down and there’s nothing to select in between. This is typical of many compact cameras that offer manually adjustable aperture controls.

As users scroll through the options, there is a live view available that shows how the lighting and depth of field changes.

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