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Sony a7IV (ILCE-7M4) Review

Dustin Abbott

January 31st, 2022

Perhaps no Sony camera series has benefitted as much from the “trickle-down” effect as the a7 series.  The a7III set a new benchmark for the “full frame affordable(ish)” category by being basically good at everything.  It inherited an amazing focus system from the Sony a9 that actually gave it better focus capabilities than the more expensive a7RIII, which itself had been a huge step forward.  The a7III also benefited from a lot of a7S video capabilities, which resulted in it being a better video body than either the a9 or the a7RIII.  It got the new battery, the new control layout, and a host of other improvements.  Fast forward a few years and we’ve seen Sony release the truly incredible Alpha 1 (my review here), which advanced Sony design on almost every level.  The downside?  It cost $6500 USD!  The new Sony a7IV (technically the ILCE-7M4) is not necessarily an Alpha 1 clone (it has a much lower burst rate, lesser video capabilities, lower resolution, etc…) but I do see a lot of Alpha 1 DNA in this camera.  The Alpha 1 is my most used camera these days, so I’m very familiar with its performance and handling, and I can say that you’re getting a lot of Alpha 1 for the $2500 price point of the Sony a7IV.  I’ll detail why in this review.

The Sony a7IV is designed around a brand new 33MP Full-Frame Exmor R CMOS Sensor.  This ups the resolution from the 24MP seen on previous a7 bodies and brings us to what I consider a sweet spot for performance.  It always felt like there was too much of a gap between the a7 series (24MP) and the a7R series (typically 42-61MP).  This new 33MP sensor feels like a series step up, but it also sits in a sweet spot for today’s performance.  As we’ll see in this review, this new sensor is among Sony’s best in dynamic range, high ISO performance, and seems to have improved color handling.  Images are highly detailed, and I don’t feel a huge chasm between these images and my 50MP Alpha 1 images like I did with the a7III.  Image resolution is 7008 x 4672 pixels, which is probably as many pixels as most people will ever need.  Images from the a7IV look great:

Also useful is the fact that you still get 16MP in APS-C crop mode, which is a much more useful figure than the roughly 11MP figure on the a7III and other 24MP bodies.  I found the 33MP resolution point and the new sensor helped make the a7IV feel more upscale than the a7III, which is appropriate, as it has moved upscale in terms of pricing.  The a7III debuted at a bargain price point of around $2000, but the a7IV has jumped to $2500.  This does create a little more room for Sony to release a budget full frame model under $2000 (a space occupied at the moment by the a7III and a7C cameras).  The a7III will probably get phased out as current supply is sold off.  Does the Sony a7IV justify this price increase?

 

Before we dive into the details, here’s a quick look at the major specs and features that stood out to me during my review:

  • 33MP Full-Frame Exmor R CMOS Sensor
  • Up to 10 fps Shooting, ISO 100-51200
  • Much deeper buffer depth (up to 828 uncompressed RAW + JPEG)
  • 4K 60p Video in 10-Bit, S-Cinetone
  • No recording limit
  • 3.68m-Dot EVF with 120 fps Refresh Rate
  • 3″ 1.03m-Dot Vari-Angle Touchscreen LCD
  • 759-Pt. Fast Hybrid AF
  • Real-time Eye AF (including bird AF in stills and video tracking)
  • Focus Breathing Compensation
  • 5-Axis SteadyShot Image Stabilization
  • 4K 15p UVC/UAC Streaming via USB Type-C

Like the Alpha 1, I feel like the Sony a7IV has “enough” of everything that I don’t feel like I’m missing much.  That in itself adds up to a very compelling camera.  But is it the camera for you?  Find out by reading on or watching my long format definitive or quick video review below:

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Thanks to Sony Canada for getting me a loaner of Sony a7RIV.  As always, this is a completely independent review.

Sony a7IV Build, Handling, and Features

The body of the a7IV is largely familiar [131.3mm (W) x 96.4mm (H) x 79.8mm (D)], but with a deeper grip depth that improves the feel of the camera in the hand.    The a7IV manages to only be 8g heavier than the a7III at 658g (with memory and batter).  In many ways the control layout feels like the Alpha 1 (without the extra dial on the left of the viewfinder), though the a7IV has a welcome articulating touchscreen with a 1.037 million dot resolution that is a slight gain over the 922K dot resolution on the a7III’s tilting screen.  The responsiveness of the screen is fairly good, though I do find the font size a little too small for touch precision at times and wish the menu layout was more like Canons.  Being able to front monitor and use the screen in nearly infinite positions is very welcome, as is being able to position the screen for proper vertical shooting.

I love the way that Sony has designed the ports so that they fit next to the hinges of the screen in a very logical way (something Canon typically doesn’t do).  The doors over the ports open precisely and don’t just “hang” like they used to on the a7III.  I really like the small separate port for the microphone jack, as that assures you’ll never miss recorded audio because you accidently plugged into the headphone jack (which is in the port beneath).  You’ll find a Micro-USB  multi-control port along with a USB-C port used for both data transfer and charging, though like other new Sony cameras the charging requires a power source with Power Send capability.

Also improved is the resolution of the viewfinder, which has been upgraded from the 2.359 million dot resolution on the a7III to a new 3.68 million dots resolution.  It’s worth noting that the viewfinder and LCD screen resolution figures are just the bare minimum for competitiveness, so don’t get too excited!

The top plate shows a few minor tweaks to the dials along with a swapping of the C1 button to the back and the video record button to the top plate.  For some reason there is no longer a label on the exposure compensation dial, which I find odd.  The mode dial now has a lever underneath it that allows you to switch on the fly between Stills, Video, and S&Q, and you can set up your control scheme independently for these (buttons can have different function for video mode than in stills, for example).

Most of the buttons can be programed to the function of your choice.  Sony cameras have always excelled in customization, and that remains true here.  The feel of the buttons is much like the Alpha 1, a7SIII, or other recent Sony cameras.

The right side of the camera holds the memory cards, and you now have the option to use a CFExpress Type A card in the #1 slot or a UHS-II SD card in either slot. There’s a slight redesign to the latch on the memory card door on the right which has you pull down and slide the door open.  As noted, the #1 slot can use both UHS-II SD cards and CF Express Type A cards.  The latter offers some speed advantages but at a much higher price point.  I prefer the Sony Tough cards in either format right now, as I have found them to be highly performing and extremely durable).

The burst rate is the familiar 10FPS, but the buffer depth has been dramatically improved, now allowing over 1000 frames of Lossless compressed RAW or JPEGs and even 828 full size uncompressed RAW + JPEG.  Long gone are the delays while the camera empties the buffer, too.

There’s probably no reason other than market separation that the a7IV does not have a faster burst rate.  If it were up to 15FPS or similar there would probably be many who would see little reason to go for the a9II, as the a7IV has just as good a focus system (if not better), deep buffers, and very good tracking capabilities.  This doesn’t seem too cheap on Sony’s part, however, as the a7IV’s role is really as a jack of all trades, while the higher speed bodies like the a9 series and Alpha 1 are more specialist tools.

The hotshoe has been upgraded to Sony’s new multi-interface port which allows it to record digital audio when select mics are mounted.

The shutter mechanism is better damped and quieter than the a7III, which hopefully points towards more durability over the long haul.  There are front and rear dials on the top plate, with the front dial slightly cantilevered up to make it fall to hand (finger?) easily.

The main menu is the updated version that was first seen in the a7SIII and then on the Alpha 1.  It is color coded and side tab oriented rather than top tab oriented like the older Sony menus.  I’m yet undecided as to whether I prefer the newer menu.  There’s still a lot of complexity there, and there are a LOT of options in these menus. Don’t get me wrong; I love the wealth of customization and features you have access to, but the sheer number of options will be slightly overwhelming for a while until you develop familiarity with them.  I didn’t love the previous Sony menu structure, though, unlike some reviewers, I didn’t despite it either.  But after years of use, I was at least familiar with it and knew pretty much where everything was.  I’m having to relearn that somewhat, though Sony’s basic organization of features remains similar.

The battery door is on the bottom, as per usual, and the battery is the typical NP-FZ100 that we’ve seen since the original a9.  It’s rated for about 520 shots, though real world use varies depending on what you are doing.  If you shoot hybrid style and have some video clips in there, expect to charge the battery more often.  If you are shooting bursts or consistent portraits, you will get far more shots than the rating.  Getting an extra battery or two is never a bad idea, though.  I typically feel like I have to charge my Sony batteries quicker than I expected.

Sony was an early pioneer in IBIS (In Body Image Stabilization), though over the past few years their advantage here seems to have shrunk.  On paper, the 5 1/2 stops of stabilization is the same as we’ve seen for years, though in practical applications the quality of the stabilization has subtly improved over the past few years.  I’ve definitely noticed that more recent Sony models have better stabilization, and that’s true here, too.   One new addition for the video side is a mode called “Active” (as seen on the a7SIII) which has a slight crop but utilizes electronic aids to further stabilize active movements (like walking).  I did a series of tests and found that the the active mode definitely gave smoother results when walking or moving.  The crop wasn’t particularly noticeable to me, but I did feel like footage was slightly less crisp, so I would utilize the Standard IBIS setting when shooting static handheld footage and save Active for the appropriate moments.  I added the option to the custom menu so that I could quickly sort between the settings.

I’ve seen ratings on IBIS and Lens IS/OSS going up and up, but it seems to me like the law of diminishing returns, as it seems like the same limitations that I’ve seen with image stabilization for the past decade still apply.  I did a test at 50mm and 1/5th second shutter speed (about 3 1/2 stops) and got about a 25% keeper rate.

Still, I love having IBIS in the camera as it means that all lenses get at least some stabilization.  You can manually set the focal length to stabilize even if you are using old vintage lenses.  It’s possible to get good results at very low shutter speeds in many situations, but it is important to have realistic expectations about what IBIS can and cannot do.  Sony needs to continue to innovate on this front because the competition has more than caught up at this point.  

 

So while the Sony a7IV may look very familiar, there are a lot of key upgrades that seriously improve the ergonomics and performance of the camera.  I find a lot of the Alpha 1 DNA here…in a camera that is about a third of the price!

Sony a7IV Autofocus Performance

One again the Sony a7IV has really benefitted from the trickle-down effect, as like the a7III received most of the AF system of the a9, the a7IV has received most of the focus system from the even better Alpha 1.  Sony has upped the ante on the total number of phase detect points from 693 on the a7III cameras to 759 on the a7IV, with about 94% coverage of the sensor.  That’s only up a percentage point or two, but it does suggest that the AF points on the a7IV are slightly smaller and more precise, which can help when you are trying to nail focus on a very narrow subject (like when shooting macro).  As is typical with Sony cameras, the PDAF is backed up by 425 contrast points (which is why it is called a Hybrid-AF system).

The improvement in AF is more than AF points or spread, however, as the a7IV has also inherited the BIONZ-XR processor from the Alpha 1.  The Sony a9 was capable of 60 focus and exposure calculations per second; the Alpha 1 (and thus the a7IV) doubles that to 120.  Here’s what Sony says, “At an astonishing calculation speed of up to 120 AF/AE per second, the Alpha 1 can maintain focus with high accuracy even for fast moving subjects. It can automatically adjust exposure, even with sudden changes in brightness, with an AE response latency as low as 0.033 seconds“.  While the lower frame rate of the a7IV means that you won’t push the limits of the processor the same way, it does indicate that we have a very, very robust autofocus system.

Also improved is AF sensitivity, which can now focus down to -4 EV and up to +20 EV.  This doesn’t quite match the numbers that Canon is throwing out, but I was definitely able to focus effectively in low light situations.  I took this shot, for example, at ISO 25,600 inside my very dark Ruggard Dry Cabinet.

Sony has also ported over the refined Eye AF capabilities of the Alpha 1, including the new Bird Eye detect mode. Part of that improvement is that they state that eye detection is now effective from more angles, and that I believe to be true.  You can see that I shot this low shot of Loki at an odd angle and eye detect still nailed everything perfectly at F1.4 (using the new Samyang AF 50mm F1.4 II – my review here).

This shows how much better Sony’s eye detection has gotten, as you are much more likely to get precision in a wider range of situations.

Sony has now enabled all three types of Eye tracking for video purposes as well.  Even the Alpha 1 didn’t have real-time bird tracking in video (though expect that to get added via firmware).

My two week loaner period coincided with a severe cold snap in January where the temperature hovered between -20 and -40C…and public spaces like gyms were in COVID lockdown  Not much was moving out there for tracking, so I didn’t get a chance to really torture test the a7IV’s tracking abilities.  Still, I was very impressed even with the tracking of the a7C (an inferior focus system), and I think the focus system in the Alpha 1 is amazing (which is where most of the tech in the a7IV is borrowed from), so I fully expect the a7IV to be a very capable camera for tracking…as far as the focus system goes.  The real story is a little more complicated, though.  

What you don’t have relative to the a9 series or the Alpha 1 is the blackout free viewfinder.  In fact, at 10 FPS (H+), you get something like a storybook where the last image shows for a split second and you don’t get a real-time view at all.  At High (H) speed you get only 8 FPS, but you do get a real time viewfinder experience, though one interrupted 8 times per second with black as the shutter closes.  You can switch to an electronic shutter, but the burst rate seems to drop to about 6FPS and you still get blackout.  The illustration below shows the difference between the blackout free readout of the a9/Alpha 1 vs the blackout view you’ll see on the a7IV.

This is clearly not as sports oriented as the a9 and Alpha 1 models that are built around an electronic shutter.  You have the autofocus capabilities to track action effectively, but the architecture of the camera means that the process will be more difficult.  If you want to purely do sports or fast action, then you need to look at one of Sony’s serious sports bodies.  In some ways those deep buffers go to waste, as the burst rate and viewfinder experience don’t really lend themselves to dedicated action tracking.  The upside, though, is that you’ll probably never have to worry about missing a shot because the camera was trying to empty the buffer!

Where the Sony a7IV does shine is as a general purpose or portrait camera.  I put the Sony a7IV in my assistant’s hands for a quick portrait shoot (it was so cold that I needed to be the subject – no other volunteers for portraits at -25!).  He used a camera he had never previously touched and a lens (aforementioned Samyang AF 50mm F1.4 II) he had never used and shot in very cold conditions…and yet when I reviewed the images, I found that they were all focused very well.

I had him shoot strongly backlit shots, though trees, and at various distances, and there wasn’t a missed shot in the bunch. 

This quick shot of Loki also shows great focus and accuracy even at F1.4:

So while this may not be a pro sports camera, it will do all of the ordinary things that photographers do exceptionally well.

Sony a7IV Video Performance

The Sony a7III was a very popular hybrid camera for video work for several reasons.  It had very good video quality even though it was capped at 4K30.  The high ISO performance was very good, as was the autofocus quality.  It had things like SLOG and other picture profiles.  Expectations are of course higher still for the a7IV, and in many ways I think it delivers.

Here’s some of the video highlights of the a7IV courtesy of B&H Photo’s listing:

  • Making full use of the high-resolution 33MP sensor and fast processing capabilities, UHD 4K 30p XAVC HS 10-bit recording is possible using the full width of the sensor, offering 7K oversampling for impressive sharpness and realism.
  • There is also oversampled 4K recording, via a 4.6K capture area, with a Super 35 crop, that offers UHD 4K output up to 60p in 10-bit.
  • No recording time limit allows for unlimited clip lengths and the camera’s physical design features an improved heat-dissipating structure to promote longer possible recording times; longer than one hour of continuous 4K 60p 10-bit 4:2:2 recording, for example.
  • The a7 IV employs a pair of codecs to suit different workflows: XAVC HS, which uses HEVC/H.265 encoding to retain more detail at smaller bitrates and XAVC S-I, which is an intraframe codec for consistent performance and quality at bitrates up to 600 Mb/s.
  • S-Cinetone can be used to deliver distinct colors and healthy-looking skin tone rendering that matches the FX9 and FX6 cameras, along with the a1 and a7S III, and is based on technology from the professional Cinema Line cameras, such as the VENICE. This color profile offers natural mid-tones, soft colors, and especially well-controlled highlights.
  • HLG (Hybrid Log-Gamma) support permits recording within a wide color gamut for producing HDR-ready content directly from the camera.
  • S-Log3 is also available for producing a 15+-stop dynamic range with increased grading control in the shadow to mid-tone regions of the image.

That’s obviously a lot of great video options there, and my only critique is having to deal with the crop factor to get 4K30.  The biggest challenge there is if you want to get wide shots, so having a decent APS-C wide angle lens might be a good idea for shooting 4K60 and keeping a wide perspective.  Other standouts to me are the lack of any recording limit, improved heat dissipation (getting more than an hour of 4K60 without overheating issues is great news!), and of course the practical advantages of the articulating LCD screen for front or side monitoring along with all of the autofocus tracking options.

We’ve also got a few new features to help with video capture.  One is the focus breathing correction that helps certain lenses get a better result during focus changes.  For more information and a list of lenses covered, check out this page.  I tested it with my Sony 35mm F1.4 G Master lens (one of the supported lenses) and noticed a few things.  First of all, there is a slight crop factor involved with the process.  Secondly, I noticed a subtle improvement with focus breathing, but no magic cure at all.  The concept is interesting, but thus far software seems no match for actual optical engineering in the lens for this video issue.

Another new feature is called “Focus Map”, which uses an overlay of brightly colored boxes to highlight what is before and after the plane of focus with only the in focus area being naturally colored.  It’s a more visually pronounced way of seeing what is in focus relative to typical focus peaking color overlays, and I can see it being useful, though some might find the sheer brightness of the color distracts them from the actual process of engaging with whatever subject is onscreen.

There’s a wealth of professional video options here in terms of codecs, color profiles, and HLG.  The footage looks great, with great detail and a good deal of versatility for low light performance and dynamic range.  I also do like the look of the S-Cinetone profile that’s included.  I’m not a serious videographer or cinematographer (I mostly shoot for my YouTube channel), so I’ll leave the detailed analysis to those more professional than myself.  

I suspect that things are good enough here that some people may decide that spending the extra money on the a7SIII is unnecessary.

Sony a7IV Sensor Performance

Put simply, I’m loving the new 33MP sensor from Sony.  I’ve petitioned for a camera at this resolution point for a while.  Image resolution is 7008 x 4672 pixels, which is probably as many pixels as most people will ever need.  It gives you reasonably high resolution but without any of the complications that extremely high resolution brings. 

I also love having the Lossless Compressed RAW options, as most of the ARW (RAW) files are around 40MB, which is plenty for editing but not too onerous to store.  There’s enough resolution there for a usable 16MP APS-C mode, too.   Photos look great from the camera, with nice resolution, great dynamic range, and good color rendition.  Look at the great detail even in the deep crop from the main image.

As this is a new sensor, I’ll take a deep dive into various aspects of its performance.

ISO

The challenge when you raise resolution is that low light performance can suffer.  Camera makers have gotten increasingly good at mitigating that, however, and that’s definitely true here. The a7IV has a native ISO range from 100-51,200, with an expanded range of ISO 50-204,800 available.  Yes, ISO 204,800, which is certainly getting into silly territory.  I’m not going to be recommending that you take any shots there, but the native range is another story.  It wasn’t that long ago that I found ISO 51,200 to be joke range, but that’s far from true now.  It’s still not my preference to shoot that high, but I’ll definitely say that even ISO 25,600 is very usable here.  Let’s start by taking a look at our base ISO image, which looks excellent with great contrast, good color accuracy, and fine detail.

At ISO 1600 the result is scarcely distinguishable from base ISO (100) even at a pixel level:

At ISO 6400, there is the tiniest amount of noise in some of the shadows, but color saturation levels, color fidelity, and contrast are pretty much indistinguishable from base ISO:

Things are mostly similar at ISO 12,800, with black levels still quite inky.  By ISO 25,600, you can start to see some uneven pixels in the black area (some white specs) and the “grain” is heavier, but things are still quite usable.

Often I see cameras fall apart in the last stop (say, from 25,600 to 51,200), and that’s somewhat true here, but  ISO 51,200 is only slightly further deteriorated.  I see a tiny green shift in the basic tone of the image (a Sony sensor hallmark), but the image still looks pretty good at a global level.

It doesn’t even look too bad at a pixel level.  ISO 102,400 and 204,800 are mostly there for marketing (more green shift, less contrast, more rough noise…), but I do think that in a pinch ISO 51,200 could be used for certain applications.  That’s as good a performance as I’ve seen from any camera.  The a7IV is one of the best cameras I’ve used for high ISO performance, and the fact that it does it while moving up to a higher resolution point is impressive.

Dynamic Range

Dynamic range has become one those topics debated ad nauseum on photography forums and harped on by certain reviewers to the place where some perspective has been lost on the topic. It has become one of the key “stats” where brand fanboys either push their brand or bash another, causing many people to become disgusted with the term in general.  That being said, there is no question that there are a number of situations where improved dynamic range gives the photographer (and particularly the post-processor) more latitude to fulfill their vision. This could be in the ability to recover a blown-out sky or shadowed area as a landscape photographer or the ability to balance a foreground subject with a background or sky for portrait photographers.  I’ve also been able to save images where I captured something special but a flash didn’t fire. 

Sony claims up to 15 stops of dynamic range for the a7IV, though they are not specific as to where one could expect this performance (S-Log video?)  Many recent Sony cameras have been close in this metric (as you can see from Photons to Photos chart here).  They show a slightly better performance from the a7IV than the a7III or Alpha 1, but it is by a few fractions of a percent.  I felt like my experience with a7IV was that I saw the best dynamic range that I’ve personally seen from a full frame camera (only better with medium format bodies).

There are different aspects of shadow and highlight recovery, and I find it best to try to visually demonstrate my findings.  In this comparisons I will intentionally under or overexpose by the correct number of stops and then try to recover the lost information by adding it back in post (either increasing or reducing exposure).

First of all, shadow recovery.  Bottom line is that the Alpha 1 is simply fantastic at recovering shadows.  At a global level you simply can’t tell a difference between a perfectly exposed image and an image underexposed by 5 stops and then recovered.

Even when I look at the image at a pixel level I am hard pressed to find any ill effects of shadow recovery.  Everything looks clean.

Some people compare dynamic range by showing how much the highlight and shadow recovery sliders can open up shadows and recover highlights.  I find that there is a LOT of latitude in images for recovering shadows in the sliders.  Here’s a look at an original image with deep shadows and then the result after using Lightroom’s shadow recovery slider at 100%.

That’s obviously a lot of flexibility for whether you want to conceal or reveal details from the shadows.

Recovering highlights is something that cameras struggle more with, as when highlights are “blown out” there is often unrecoverable information loss. The a7IV does particularly well here, though, proving able to successfully recover 3 stops of overexposure with minimal loss of information and good color saturation levels…slightly better than what I’ve previously seen.

So far the practical limit has always been four stops of overexposure, and that’s true here.

There’s just information lost that isn’t recoverable, and the recovered image has a very unnatural quality to it.  Some of the colors in the color swatches have been lost, and others have bled in odd ways.  Somewhere between three and four stops is where the limit is, but that limit is definitely a little bit higher than anything I’ve seen before.  

I find that recovering sky information seems to be particularly good with the a7IV.  This shot was taken into extremely bright morning sun, and I was very pleasantly surprised when I could recover all the sky information.

That’s awesome!  That kind of dynamic range is very useful, as it used to be that I had to bracket exposures for HDR to get that level of performance.  There’s a good chance that I would never use HDR with the a7IV; I just wouldn’t see the need.

Colors and Gallery

I first started testing Sony mirrorless cameras at the a7RII stage, and I’ve watched Sony’s color science evolve along the way.  At this stage, I find Sony’s color science to be quite good, and the Sony a7IV seems quite similar to my Alpha 1 in performance.  This has happened for two reasons, I think.  The first is that Sony has carefully tweaked their color science, and over the past three generations of new Sony product I’ve seen steady improvement.  Colors are a little more balanced and less prone to becoming garish when “pushed” a bit.  The second reason is that as Sony’s market share has increased, I think that major software makers like Adobe have invested more attention on properly “translating” their colors for RAW images.  I’ve steadily found Sony’s colors easier to process and have been increasingly happy with the results.  Here are a few images taken with different lenses that demonstrate that nice color.

In summation, I think that Sony has done a great job with this new sensor.  It hits a sweet spot for me in terms of resolution, detail, contrast, color, dynamic range, and ISO performance.  I suspect this sensor will get used in several other cameras, and it is definitely worthy of some regular use by Sony. Check out more images than I can share in this review by visiting the image galleries here.

Conclusion

Sony has moved the a7 series upmarket with the Sony a7M4, and I think the series is better for it.  I think that Sony has positioned itself for a cleaner market separation, as I found the release of the a7C muddied the waters a bit.  The a7III and the a7C were too similar in terms of performance, and it was somewhat hard to choose between the two.  The a7IV is a superior camera to the a7III and has a corresponding price at the $2500 mark.  An a7C successor (or some other budget full frame model) can now slot into the $1500-1700 range and have very nice market separation.  

As I noted in my Alpha 1 review, I was a little underwhelmed by Sony’s previous generation of updates.  I passed on both the a7RIV and the a9II without upgrading my a7RIII or a9 because I didn’t see a compelling reason to make the move.  It’s been a different story with both the Alpha 1 and now the a7IV.  Sony has made some significant strides in improving some of their areas of weakness, and I find that there is little lacking on the a7IV.  Sure, I would like to see 4K60 without a crop factor, and I certainly wouldn’t mind a tracking/viewfinder experience more like the Canon R6, but it would also be a mistake to expect this camera to be an a9 or the Alpha 1.  I think the best way to look at this camera is to view it as a budget Alpha 1 but without the specialized sports capabilities.  It has less resolution, less video capabilities, less sports capabilities, but also does a lot of the same things that the Alpha 1 can do…and at a much, much more affordable price.

The most compelling upgrade here is the great new 33MP sensor.  It ups the resolution ante while not compromising on any facet of ISO performance or dynamic range.  The Sony a7IV feels like a great compliment to my Alpha 1, as it handles very similarly and produces images that a nice match.  I am strongly considering picking up the a7IV as my second/backup Sony full frame body, particularly since the articulating LCD screen is a great help to someone like myself who spends a lot of time in front of the camera…and without someone behind the camera to run it!  I have found a lot of reasons to praise the a7IV during my time with it, and frankly very little to criticize.  It comes with my wholehearted recommendation. 

Pros:

  • A lot of Alpha 1 DNA
  • Does basically everything well
  • Incredibly deep buffers
  • 33MP resolution should be a sweet spot for many photographers
  • Upgraded autofocus system – more points, better sensitivity, more tracking options
  • Up to 4K60 recording (in Super 35)
  • No record limits (no 29:59 limitations)
  • No significant overheat issues
  • Lossless compressed RAW capture 
  • Touchscreen menus (finally!)
  • Articulating LCD screen
  • Excellent dynamic range
  • Excellent high ISO performance
  • Webcam ready
  • Good layout of ports
  • Good dynamic range and ISO performance

Cons:

  • Small font sizes make navigating menus by touch imprecise
  • LCD resolution still very low
  • 4K60 requires Super 35 crop
  • Viewfinder experience limits the potential of the great autofocus and deep buffers

 

Gear Used:

Purchase the Sony a7IV @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany 

Purchase the Samyang AF 50mm F1.4 II @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany 

Purchase the Sony 50mm F1.2 GM @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase the Sony FE 50mm f/1.4 Planar T*: B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon.ca | Amazon UK | Ebay

Purchase the Sony Alpha 1 @ Camera Canada | B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase a Sony a9M2 @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase a Sony a7C @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Sony a7RIV Camera: B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Buy DA Merchandise https://bit.ly/TWIMerch

Purchase a Sony a7C @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Peak Design Leash Strap:  Peak Design StoreB&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada  | Amazon UK

Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud 1-Year Subscription
Exposure Software X6 (Use Code “dustinabbott” to get 10% anything and everything)
Visit Dustin’s Amazon Storefront and see his favorite gear

Purchasing your gear through B&H and these links helps fund this website and keeps the articles coming. You can also make a donation here if you would like.  Visit my Amazon page for some of my gear of choice! Thank you for your support.

B&H Logo

Great News! I can now offer a 5% discount on all purchases at Amplis Foto, Canada’s Leading Photographic Supplier. Please enter discount code: AMPLIS52018DA in your cart. It is good for everything in your cart, and is stackable with other coupons, too! It will take 5% off your entire order! Proceeds go towards keeping this site going and providing you with new reviews!

Check me out on:  My Patreon  | Sign Up for My Newsletter |  Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Flickr | 500px |  Google+ |


 

Keywords: Sony Alpha 7IV, Sony A7IV, Sony Alpha 7IV Review, Sony A7IV Review, ILCE-7IV, ILCE-7M4, Sony, a7IV, A74,  Review, Hands On, Dustin Abbott, Real World, Comparison, Sharpness, Sensor Performance, ISO, Dynamic Range, Autofocus, Image Quality, Sample Images, Video, Photography, Sony a7III, Sony a7C

DISCLAIMER: This article and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Sony a7IV (ICLE-7M4) Image Gallery

Dustin Abbott

January 31st, 2022

Perhaps no Sony camera series has benefitted as much from the “trickle-down” effect as the a7 series.  The a7III set a new benchmark for the “full frame affordable(ish)” category by being basically good at everything.  It inherited an amazing focus system from the Sony a9 that actually gave it better focus capabilities than the more expensive a7RIII, which itself had been a huge step forward.  The a7III also benefited from a lot of a7S video capabilities, which resulted in it being a better video body than either the a9 or the a7RIII.  It got the new battery, the new control layout, and a host of other improvements.  Fast forward a few years and we’ve seen Sony release the truly incredible Alpha 1 (my review here), which advanced Sony design on almost every level.  The downside?  It cost $6500 USD!  The new Sony a7IV (technically the ILCE-7M4) is not necessarily an Alpha 1 clone (it has a much lower burst rate, lesser video capabilities, lower resolution, etc…) but I do see a lot of Alpha 1 DNA in this camera.  The Alpha 1 is my most used camera these days, so I’m very familiar with its performance and handling, and I can say that you’re getting a lot of Alpha 1 for the $2500 price point of the Sony a7IV.  

The Sony a7IV is designed around a brand new 33MP Full-Frame Exmor R CMOS Sensor.  This ups the resolution from the 24MP seen on previous a7 bodies and brings us to what I consider a sweet spot for performance.  It always felt like there was too much of a gap between the a7 series (24MP) and the a7R series (typically 42-61MP).  This new 33MP sensor feels like a series step up, but it also sits in a sweet spot for today’s performance.  As we’ll see in this review, this new sensor is among Sony’s best in dynamic range, high ISO performance, and seems to have improved color handling.  Images are highly detailed, and I don’t feel a huge chasm between these images and my 50MP Alpha 1 images like I did with the a7III.  Image resolution is 7008 x 4672 pixels, which is probably as many pixels as most people will ever need.  Images from the a7IV look great:

Also useful is the fact that you still get 15MP in APS-C crop mode, which is a much more useful figure than the roughly 11MP figure on the a7III and other 24MP bodies.  I found the 33MP resolution point and the new sensor helped make the a7IV feel more upscale than the a7III, which is appropriate, as it has moved upscale in terms of pricing.  The a7III debuted at a bargain price point of around $2000, but the a7IV has jumped to $2500.  This does create a little more room for Sony to release a budget full frame model under $2000 (a space occupied at the moment by the a7III and a7C cameras).  The a7III will probably get phased out as current supply is sold off.  Does the Sony a7IV justify this price increase?

 

Here’s a quick look at the major specs and features.

  • 33MP Full-Frame Exmor R CMOS Sensor
  • Up to 10 fps Shooting, ISO 100-51200
  • Much deeper buffer depth (up to 828 uncompressed RAW + JPEG)
  • 4K 60p Video in 10-Bit, S-Cinetone
  • No recording limit
  • 3.68m-Dot EVF with 120 fps Refresh Rate
  • 3″ 1.03m-Dot Vari-Angle Touchscreen LCD
  • 759-Pt. Fast Hybrid AF
  • Real-time Eye AF (including bird AF in stills and video tracking)
  • Focus Breathing Compensation
  • 5-Axis SteadyShot Image Stabilization
  • 4K 15p UVC/UAC Streaming via USB Type-C

Like the Alpha 1, I feel like the Sony a7IV has “enough” of everything that I don’t feel like I’m missing much.  That in itself adds up to a very compelling camera.  But is it the camera for you?  Find out by reading my text review or watching my definitive video review…or just enjoy the photos from the gallery below.

Follow Me @  Patreon  |  My Newsletter |  Instagram | Facebook | DA Merchandise | Flickr | 500px

Thanks to Sony Canada for getting me a loaner of Sony a7RIV.  

Photos of the Sony a7IV

Photos Taken with the ILCE-7M4

Gear Used:

Purchase the Sony a7IV @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany 

Purchase the Samyang AF 50mm F1.4 II @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany 

Purchase the Sony 50mm F1.2 GM @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase the Sony FE 50mm f/1.4 Planar T*: B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon.ca | Amazon UK | Ebay

Purchase the Sony Alpha 1 @ Camera Canada | B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase a Sony a9M2 @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase a Sony a7C @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Sony a7RIV Camera: B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Buy DA Merchandise https://bit.ly/TWIMerch

Purchase a Sony a7C @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Peak Design Leash Strap:  Peak Design StoreB&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada  | Amazon UK

Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud 1-Year Subscription
Exposure Software X6 (Use Code “dustinabbott” to get 10% anything and everything)
Visit Dustin’s Amazon Storefront and see his favorite gear

Purchasing your gear through B&H and these links helps fund this website and keeps the articles coming. You can also make a donation here if you would like.  Visit my Amazon page for some of my gear of choice! Thank you for your support.

B&H Logo

Great News! I can now offer a 5% discount on all purchases at Amplis Foto, Canada’s Leading Photographic Supplier. Please enter discount code: AMPLIS52018DA in your cart. It is good for everything in your cart, and is stackable with other coupons, too! It will take 5% off your entire order! Proceeds go towards keeping this site going and providing you with new reviews!

Check me out on:  My Patreon  | Sign Up for My Newsletter |  Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Flickr | 500px |  Google+ |


 

Keywords: Sony Alpha 7IV, Sony A7IV, Sony Alpha 7IV Review, Sony A7IV Review, ILCE-7IV, ILCE-7M4, Sony, a7IV, A74,  Review, Hands On, Dustin Abbott, Real World, Comparison, Sharpness, Sensor Performance, ISO, Dynamic Range, Autofocus, Image Quality, Sample Images, Video, Photography, Sony a7III, Sony a7C

DISCLAIMER: This article and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Sony Alpha 1 Image Gallery

Dustin Abbott

April 19th, 2021

What do you get when you combine the massive resolution of the Sony a7RIV (almost!), the blazing speed of the Sony a9II (and more!), and all the video capabilities of the Sony a7SIII?  The answer is the Sony Alpha 1, aka the Sony A1, or, more technically, the Sony ILCE-1.  The Alpha 1 is definitely the “Alpha” in the Sony Alpha lineup, as it packs a whole new 50MP sensor but manages to also produce a Sony highest 30FPS burst rate along with video capabilities up to 8K.  It’s also the Alpha in terms of price, carrying a hefty nearly $6500 USD price tag, meaning that you could buy the Sony a7RIV and the a7SIII for the same price, or, for a thousand more, the a7RIV and the a9II.  Ouch!  Put simply, the Alpha 1 is more camera than what most people need or can afford.  I’m a frugal person in many ways, and yet, the longer I thought about it, I became increasingly compelled to sell my a7RIII and a9 bodies and purchase the A1.  I’ll detail why in this review.

When I reviewed the massive Fujifilm GFX-100 and showed it to family and friends, they were easily convinced that it was a consequential, expensive camera.  It has an intimidating presence that shouts that only a professional photographer could be worthy to wield such a weapon.  That’s not the case with the Alpha 1.  When I showed it to my 18 year old son (it had arrived while I was out of town and I had tasked him with making sure that an expensive delivery was properly taken care of), his response was, “Doesn’t that look just like your other cameras?”  And, for the most part, that’s true.  It has the familiar body that is similar to the a9II or a7RIV, and it’s still a very compact camera.  Cameras this expensive used to come in the “pro” body style with the integrated vertical grip, and they shouted “professional camera”.  The A1 doesn’t intimidate from the outside; it’s a Clark Kent wrapper around a Superman inside.

If we look underneath the hood, however, we find the most powerful, sophisticated mirrorless camera to date.  Here’s a quick look at the major specs:

  • 50.1-MP 35 mm full-frame stacked CMOS sensor with integral memory
  • Advanced BIONZ XR engine boosts speed by up to 8x
  • 30fps continuous shooting with AF/AE tracking
  • Movie-making with 8K 30p and 4K 120p
  • Wide AF coverage with 759-point phase-detection and 425-point contrast-detection AF points
  • Battery life (stills) – Approx. 430 shots (Viewfinder) / approx. 530 shots (LCD monitor) (CIPA standard)
  • Image Quality Modes – RAW (Compressed / Lossless Compressed / Uncompressed), JPEG (Extra fine / Fine / Standard / Light), HEIF (4:2:0 / 4:2:2) (Extra fine / Fine / Standard / Light)
  • Viewfinder – 9.44 million dots
  • LCD 1.44 million dots
  • Human face and eye AF, animal body and eye AF, and a new Birding AF mode
  • Flash Sync. Speed – (Mechanical Shutter), (Flash Sync. Priority) is (ON) or (AUTO):1/400 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/500 s (APS-C), (Flash Sync. Priority) is (OFF):1/320 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/400 s (APS-C), (Electrical shutter), 1/200 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/250 s (APS-C)
  • Image Sensor-Shift mechanism with 5-axis compensation
  • Continuous Drive Speeds – AUTO/Electronic Shutter: Continuous shooting: Hi+: 30fps, Hi: 20fps, Mid: 15fps, Lo: 5fps | Mechanical Shutter: Continuous shooting: Hi+: 10fps, Hi: 8fps, Mid: 6fps, Lo: 3fps

Standout features are the new 50MP sensor while also boosting continuous shooting up to 30FPS (50% increase over the A9II’s 20FPS) along with the 8K30 and 4K120 video capabilities.  But I had two cameras that could shoot 20FPS (which has always proven enough for me) and a camera that could shoot 8K30 and 4K120 (Canon EOS R5).  It was the some of the less-headline grabbing features that began to sway me.  Things like an amazingly high resolution 9.44 million dot viewfinder, lossless compressed RAW option, anti-flicker technology and great flash sync specs even while using the electronic shutter, eliminating rolling shutter, no 29:59 record limits, more touch capabilities on the LCD, the ability to protect the sensor with the shutter mechanism when powered down, and more that we’ll detail in the main review.  I’ve found that Sony’s last four major camera releases (a7RIV, a9II, a7C, and a7SIII) all had unique features that I found desirable when reviewing them, but each camera’s strengths were offset by certain weaknesses that made me hesitate to pull the trigger on an upgrade.  The A1, while incredibly expensive, manages to put all the strengths of Sony cameras in one location, making me feel as if I could sell off other cameras and get one Sony camera that had all the Sony goodies.

So what should have gotten upgraded and didn’t?  There isn’t much, but the big standout to me is the LCD screen, which is the same size (3″), resolution (1.44 million dot), and with the same limited tilt capabilities as previous models.  The Canon EOS R5 has, by comparison a larger (3.2″), higher resolution (2.1 million dot), more responsive and fully articulating LCD that allows for front monitoring.  If I were to nitpick, I would point out that the Canon EOS R5 also has more phase detect focus points (1053 vs 759), better coverage (100 vs 93%, and greater sensitivity to its AF system (down to -6 vs -4 EV).  The R5/R6 are still ahead in tracking the eyes of birds, too.  But there are, of course, areas where the Alpha 1 easily surpasses the EOS R5, too, with one of the most noticeable being the overheating issues that the Canon cameras suffer with.

You can see my findings in either the video reviews or by reading my text review, or just enjoy the photos below.

Follow Me @  Patreon  |  My Newsletter |  Instagram | Facebook | DA Merchandise | Flickr | 500px

Thanks to Camera Canada for working hard to source a Sony Alpha 1 for me.  I’ve purchased both my Canon EOS R5 and Alpha 1 from them, and they’ve provided top notch customer service.  If you are in Canada, be sure to check them out!

Photos of the Sony A1

Photos Taken with the Sony A1

Gear Used:

Purchase the Sony Alpha 1 @ Camera Canada | B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Buy DA Merchandise https://bit.ly/TWIMerch

Purchase a Sony a9M2 @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Sony a9 Camera:  B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada  | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 
Sony a7RIV Camera: B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Peak Design Leash Strap:  Peak Design StoreB&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada  | Amazon UK
BenQ SW271 4K Photo Editing Monitor – B&H Photo  | Amazon | Amazon.ca | Amazon UK
Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud 1-Year Subscription
Exposure Software X6 (Use Code “dustinabbott” to get 10% anything and everything)
Visit Dustin’s Amazon Storefront and see his favorite gear

Purchasing your gear through B&H and these links helps fund this website and keeps the articles coming. You can also make a donation here if you would like.  Visit my Amazon page for some of my gear of choice! Thank you for your support.

B&H Logo

Great News! I can now offer a 5% discount on all purchases at Amplis Foto, Canada’s Leading Photographic Supplier. Please enter discount code: AMPLIS52018DA in your cart. It is good for everything in your cart, and is stackable with other coupons, too! It will take 5% off your entire order! Proceeds go towards keeping this site going and providing you with new reviews!

Check me out on:  My Patreon  | Sign Up for My Newsletter |  Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Flickr | 500px |  Google+ |


Purchase the Sony Alpha 1 @ Camera Canada https://shrsl.com/2wdk2 | B&H Photo https://bhpho.to/3upRFZd | Amazon https://amzn.to/3t1m8MD | Amazon Canada https://amzn.to/3cVFrBB | Amazon UK https://amzn.to/2OtrjGe | Amazon Germany https://amzn.to/3d0GtMO | Ebay https://ebay.us/i371Vs

Keywords: Sony Alpha 1, Sony A1, Sony Alpha 1 Review, Sony A1 Review, ILCE-1, Sony, Alpha 1, A1,  Review, Hands On, Dustin Abbott, Real World, Comparison, Sharpness, Sensor Performance, ISO, Dynamic Range, Autofocus, Image Quality, Sample Images, Video, Photography, Canon EOS R5, Sony a7RIV, Sony a9II, Sony a7SIII

DISCLAIMER: This article and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Sony Alpha 1 (ILCE-1) Review

Dustin Abbott

April 19th, 2021

What do you get when you combine the massive resolution of the Sony a7RIV (almost!), the blazing speed of the Sony a9II (and more!), and all the video capabilities of the Sony a7SIII?  The answer is the Sony Alpha 1, aka the Sony A1, or, more technically, the Sony ILCE-1.  The Alpha 1 is definitely the “Alpha” in the Sony Alpha lineup, as it packs a whole new 50MP sensor but manages to also produce a Sony highest 30FPS burst rate along with video capabilities up to 8K.  It’s also the Alpha in terms of price, carrying a hefty nearly $6500 USD price tag, meaning that you could buy the Sony a7RIV and the a7SIII for the same price, or, for a thousand more, the a7RIV and the a9II.  Ouch!  Put simply, the Alpha 1 (which is the name I prefer and will use for this review – less “saucy”) is more camera than what most people need or can afford.  I’m a frugal person in many ways, and yet, the longer I thought about it, I became increasingly compelled to sell my a7RIII and a9 bodies and purchase the Alpha 1.  I’ll detail why in this review.

When I reviewed the massive Fujifilm GFX-100 and showed it to family and friends, they were easily convinced that it was a consequential, expensive camera.  It has an intimidating presence that shouts that only a professional photographer could be worthy to wield such a weapon.  That’s not the case with the Alpha 1.  When I showed it to my 18 year old son (it had arrived while I was out of town and I had tasked him with making sure that an expensive delivery was properly taken care of), his response was, “Doesn’t that look just like your other cameras?”  And, for the most part, that’s true.  It has the familiar body that is similar to the a9II or a7RIV, and it’s still a very compact camera.  Cameras this expensive used to come in the “pro” body style with the integrated vertical grip, and they shouted “professional camera”.  The Alpha 1 doesn’t intimidate from the outside; it’s a Clark Kent wrapper around a Superman inside.

If we look underneath the hood, however, we find the most powerful, sophisticated mirrorless camera to date.  Here’s a quick look at the major specs:

  • 50.1-MP 35 mm full-frame stacked CMOS sensor with integral memory
  • Advanced BIONZ XR engine boosts speed by up to 8x
  • 30fps continuous shooting with AF/AE tracking
  • Movie-making with 8K 30p and 4K 120p
  • Wide AF coverage with 759-point phase-detection and 425-point contrast-detection AF points
  • Battery life (stills) – Approx. 430 shots (Viewfinder) / approx. 530 shots (LCD monitor) (CIPA standard)
  • Image Quality Modes – RAW (Compressed / Lossless Compressed / Uncompressed), JPEG (Extra fine / Fine / Standard / Light), HEIF (4:2:0 / 4:2:2) (Extra fine / Fine / Standard / Light)
  • Viewfinder – 9.44 million dots
  • LCD 1.44 million dots
  • Human face and eye AF, animal body and eye AF, and a new Birding AF mode
  • Flash Sync. Speed – (Mechanical Shutter), (Flash Sync. Priority) is (ON) or (AUTO):1/400 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/500 s (APS-C), (Flash Sync. Priority) is (OFF):1/320 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/400 s (APS-C), (Electrical shutter), 1/200 s (35 mm full-frame), 1/250 s (APS-C)
  • Image Sensor-Shift mechanism with 5-axis compensation
  • Continuous Drive Speeds – AUTO/Electronic Shutter: Continuous shooting: Hi+: 30fps, Hi: 20fps, Mid: 15fps, Lo: 5fps | Mechanical Shutter: Continuous shooting: Hi+: 10fps, Hi: 8fps, Mid: 6fps, Lo: 3fps

Standout features are the new 50MP sensor while also boosting continuous shooting up to 30FPS (50% increase over the A9II’s 20FPS) along with the 8K30 and 4K120 video capabilities.  But I had two cameras that could shoot 20FPS (which has always proven enough for me) and a camera that could shoot 8K30 and 4K120 (Canon EOS R5).  It was the some of the less-headline grabbing features that began to sway me.  Things like an amazingly high resolution 9.44 million dot viewfinder, lossless compressed RAW option, anti-flicker technology and great flash sync specs even while using the electronic shutter, eliminating rolling shutter, no 29:59 record limits, more touch capabilities on the LCD, the ability to protect the sensor with the shutter mechanism when powered down, and more that we’ll detail in the main review.  I’ve found that Sony’s last four major camera releases (a7RIV, a9II, a7C, and a7SIII) all had unique features that I found desirable when reviewing them, but each camera’s strengths were offset by certain weaknesses that made me hesitate to pull the trigger on an upgrade.  The Alpha 1, while incredibly expensive, manages to put all the strengths of Sony cameras in one location, making me feel as if I could sell off other cameras and get one Sony camera that had all the Sony goodies.

So what should have gotten upgraded and didn’t?  There isn’t much, but the big standout to me is the LCD screen, which is the same size (3″), resolution (1.44 million dot), and with the same limited tilt capabilities as previous models.  The Canon EOS R5 has, by comparison a larger (3.2″), higher resolution (2.1 million dot), more responsive and fully articulating LCD that allows for front monitoring.  If I were to nitpick, I would point out that the Canon EOS R5 also has more phase detect focus points (1053 vs 759), better coverage (100 vs 93%, and greater sensitivity to its AF system (down to -6 vs -4 EV).  The R5/R6 are still ahead in tracking the eyes of birds, too.  But there are, of course, areas where the Alpha 1 easily surpasses the EOS R5, too, with one of the most noticeable being the overheating issues that the Canon cameras suffer with.

We’ll break it all down in detail in this review to help you determine if the camera really is worth selling off a kidney to purchase…  You can read on or watch my long format definitive or standard video reviews below…

Follow Me @  Patreon  |  My Newsletter |  Instagram | Facebook | DA Merchandise | Flickr | 500px

Thanks to Camera Canada for working hard to source a Sony Alpha 1 for me.  I’ve purchased both my Canon EOS R5 and Alpha 1 from them, and they’ve provided top notch customer service.  If you are in Canada, be sure to check them out!

Sony Alpha 1 Build, Handling, and Features

As I noted in the introduction, the Alpha 1 feels largely very familiar.  The tweaks and improvements are subtle; evolutionary rather than revolutionary.  The dimensions of the body are 128.9 x 96.9 x 69.7 mm (W x H x D), or 5.07 x 3.81 x 2.74″.  The a9II is very, very similar at 128.9 x 96.4 x 77.5 mm, as is the a7RIV at 128.9 x 96.4 x 77.5 mm.  What does differ between the three cameras is weight, with the Alpha 1 being slightly heavier (737g or 1.6 lb) than the other two.  At most, though, you are talking about 60g, which will hardly be noticeable.  Here’s a look at a few competing cameras and their basic specs:

The additional weight in the Alpha 1 is most likely due to it having a slightly more robust build along with more weather sealing.  Sony specifically states that the magnesium alloy chassis features a beefed up lens mount to help support heavier lenses along with a more robust grip.  The grip does feel very good (probably the best yet from Sony), though I still would prefer the grip on cameras like the Canon EOS R5.  I have slightly larger than average hands, so I almost always put a SmallRig grip extender on my Sony cameras to give me a little more grip height (and make the camera Arca-compatible!!).

The button and wheel placement are largely all familiar, which does give you the advantage of feeling instantly familiar with the camera if you’ve used a recent Sony full frame mirrorless camera.  Canon has chosen to utilize a top LCD in its designs, and, while I like the design on Canon cameras, I don’t find that I miss it on Sony cameras, where they instead utilize more physical controls.  There are three main dials on the top of the camera instead, including a two-tier drive mode dial (upper) and AF selector (bottom) on the left side of the top plate.  On the right side we have a familiar mode dial and then at the far right the exposure compensation dial.  I vastly prefer having an exposure compensation dial to any other means of controlling it.  Like the a9II and a7RIV, Sony made a rather curious chose to have two of the deals move by depressing the center lock button and rotating, while they designed the exposure compensation dial to having a clicking lock button that is either locked or unlocked all the time depending on whether the center lock button is up or down.  I don’t particularly prefer one or the other, but I do prefer to have them all function in a consistent fashion.

Also on the top of the camera are two custom buttons (C1 and C2) that can be programed to the function of your choice.  I personally like quick access to Super35/APS-C and to turning Steadyshot (IBIS) on and off, but there are dozens of options you could assign to those buttons.

The shutter button has a nice textured feel to it, and is surrounded by the ON/OFF dial.  I like this design, as you can use one finger to quickly power on and be ready to shoot.  The mechanical shutter mechanism itself is a new design for the Alpha 1, made of carbon fiber for durability and also to reduce sound and vibration.  The shutter is very quiet and smooth even in mechanical operation with a very nice feel to it.  It feels like a high end camera (if you care about little details like that).  It’s not only quiet, however, for Sony has improved performance with the mechanical shutter, at it maxes out at 10 fps while allowing for 1/400th sec flash sync, which is the highest I’ve seen.

The Alpha 1 is primarily designed around the electronic shutter, however, and they’ve made a number of notable improvements to the electronic shutter here over past iterations in the a9 series.  We’ll deal more with the burst rate (up to 30 FPS), but typically one has had to revert to the mechanical shutter to utilize features like flash sync or anti-flicker technologies.  No longer, as you can now get up to 1/200th flash sync speeds using the electronic shutter, access anti-flicker (which comes with a variety of customizations to make sure you can get reliable results in just about any kind of lighting), and they’ve also vastly improved the readout speed to avoid rolling shutter issues.  This is very possibly the best execution of an electronic shutter ever.  The electronic shutter also gives you more “headroom” with shutter speed, allowing for a maximum shutter speed of 1/32,000th of a second.  The mechanical shutter limit is the more typical 1/8000th of a second.

In one of those small upgrades that makes a serious real world improvement, the Alpha 1 now has a menu option that allows for the shutter mechanism to come down and cover the sensor when the camera is powered off.  Sony sensors have always been dust magnets for me, and I’ve loved Canon’s similar innovation on its EOS R cameras.  This subtle change in the A1 already given me more confidence when changing lenses in the field!

There are front and rear dials on the top plate, with the front dial slightly cantilevered up to make it fall to hand (finger?) easily.

The viewfinder on the Alpha 1 is a serious upgrade.  It is a 9.44m-dot OLED EVF with up to 240fps refresh rate for fluid motion rendering and greatly reduced blackout when shooting continuously.  The opening is 0.64″ (slightly larger than average) and the magnification is also higher at 0.9x (the a7RIV has a 0.78x magnification).  This makes for greater clarity than before and helps close the gap on optical viewfinders.  EVF’s have a lot of unique advantages over optical viewfinders, but the disadvantage has often been lower resolution and clarity along with being more prone to washing out in really bright situations.  I find the viewfinder in the Alpha 1 to be exceptionally good, and it is one of those important improvements that made me want to upgrade to it.  The a9II, by comparison, had only a 3.68 million dot resolution viewfinder, which I found disappointing in what was then a flagship model.  Yet another area where the Alpha 1 doesn’t make you accept compromises.

I noted in the intro that the LCD screen did not get a size, positional versatility, or resolution upgrade, which is disappointing, though finally Sony has listened and has updated the versatility of the touch capacity of the screen.  You now have the ability navigate both the quick and full menus via touch, though the main menu has a design that is not easily accommodating to touch.  There’s a bit too much on the screen at any given point, and the selectable areas are often too small.  I ended up using a hybrid approach of using the joystick and touch to navigate menus, but this was definitely an improvement over past iterations of Sony menus with no touch navigation.  I particularly found touch useful for changing tabs and getting to other areas of the menu quickly.  Navigating the Q menu via touch is great, as everything is nicely sized for touch interactions.  Screen responsiveness in general is up, too, with less lag and better input sensitivity.  

The main menu is the updated version that was seen in the a7SIII.  It is color coded and side tab oriented rather than top tab oriented like the older Sony menus.  I’m yet undecided as to whether I prefer the new menu.  There’s still a lot of complexity there, and that’s made worse by the fact that the Alpha 1 has more options than any Sony camera before it.  Don’t get me wrong; I love the wealth of customization and features you have access to, but the sheer number of options will be slightly overwhelming for a while until you develop familiarity with them.  I didn’t love the previous Sony menu structure, though, unlike some reviewers, I didn’t despite it either.  But after years of use, I was at least familiar with it and knew pretty much where everything was.  I’m having to relearn that somewhat, though Sony’s basic organization of features remains similar.

The rest of the ergonomic design on the rear of the camera is very familiar.  The C3 and Menu buttons are to the left of the viewfinder, while the video record button along with the AF-ON and AEL buttons are found on the right.  The joystick has a nice texture and is easy to use, and the rear wheel/directional pad works as it should.  You can customize the function of the buttons and directional pad.

There’s a slight redesign to the latch on the memory card door on the right which has you pull down and slide the door open.  There is an upper and lower slot like most Sony full frame mirrorless cameras, and thankfully starting in the previous camera cycle Sony started putting slot #1 in the upper rather than lower position.  These slots are slightly different, however, as they accommodate both UHS-II SD cards and CF Express Type A cards.  The latter offers some speed advantages but at a much higher price point.  I don’t own any Type A cards at the moment (I’ve invested in some Type B cards for the Canon EOS R5), so my tests were all with high quality UHS-II SD cards (I prefer the Sony Tough cards at the moment).  The CFexpress Type A cards are extremely expensive because almost no one else (other than Sony) is making them.  Fortunately I didn’t run into any performance issues when utilizing high speed SD cards, though if you plan to do a lot of high-bitrate video recording (8K) or deep burst sports shooting, you might want to invest in the CFexpress cards.  You can shoot 30FPS bursts and 8K video at lower bitrates with an SD card just fine so long as it is at least V60 (I use V90 cards).  The good news is that I can do everything I want to do with SD cards, so I’ll wait on the CFexpress Type A’s until the prices come down and capacity goes up.

The left side of the camera is loaded with ports (a total of 4 of them).  Sony has really improved the feel and precision of the port doors in their last few cameras, and it is also clear that they are better sealed.  The top front port has an ethernet port along with a flash sync port.  The rearmost top port has a microphone and headphone monitoring jack.  Like other recent cameras, the hotshoe of the camera is also compatible with a few different Sony mics that will deliver digital audio.  I haven’t tested any of these options yet, but I’m very intrigued by the new ECM-W2BT wireless setup.  There’s also a very small port on the bottom that has a micro-USB multi-control port, while the larger of the bottom ports has a full size(!) HDMI port along with a USB-C port used for both data transfer and (potentially) charging.  I say potentially because charging is a little more complicated here than the typical Sony camera, requiring the power send

The battery door is on the bottom, as per usual, and the battery is the typical NP-FZ100 that we’ve seen since the original a9.  It’s rated for fewer shots here (430) than in some other Sony cameras, though I found the real world use to easily exceed this.  If you are shooting bursts, for example, you will get far more shots.  I shot about 1000 photos during a tracking session and exhausted less than 25% of the battery in doing so.  Getting an extra battery or two is never a bad idea, though.

Sony was an early pioneer in IBIS (In Body Image Stabilization), though over the past few years their advantage here seems to have shrunk.  On paper, the 5 1/2 stops of stabilization is the same as we’ve seen for years, though in practical applications the quality of the stabilization has subtly improved over the past few years.  I’ve definitely noticed that more recent Sony models have better stabilization, and that’s true here, too.  IBIS is incredibly important with such a high resolution sensor, as any kind of motion blur will occupy more pixels and will thus be more obvious.  I’ve been able to use the 50Mp Alpha 1 pretty much like I would any other camera, and that’s very helpful.  One new addition for the video side is a mode called “Active” (as seen on the a7SIII) which has a slight crop but utilizes electronic aids to further stabilize active movements (like walking).  I did a series of tests and found that the the active mode definitely gave smoother results when walking or moving.  The crop wasn’t particularly noticeable to me, but I did feel like footage was slightly less crisp, so I would utilize the Standard IBIS setting when shooting static handheld footage and save Active for the appropriate moments.  I added the option to the custom menu so that I could quickly sort between the settings.

For stills, however, I found the Alpha 1’s IBIS good but no longer exceptional compared to models like the Canon EOS R5.  I can handhold fairly low shutter speeds, but I’m certainly moving into any new territory that I haven’t seen with previous Sony models.  This shot was taken at 1/8th second, 75mm, handheld.

It looks good, and, because I have realistic expectations about what IBIS can and cannot do, I’m happy overall with the IBIS performance, though I’ll temper that by saying that Sony needs to continue to innovate on this front because the competition has more than caught up at this point.  One final plus is that due to the smoothness of the mechanical shutter, I didn’t notice any real difference in handholding ability whether using the electronic or mechanical shutter.

The subtle improvements to the Alpha 1 body make it perhaps the most functional Sony camera yet, though I do with that we had seen the fully articulating LCD screen that the a7SIII got.  Sony is maturing as a camera company, and, while I applaud that, I don’t want them to stop innovating.  That’s one of the things that Sony does best!

Sony Alpha 1 Autofocus Performance

The first time I used a Sony a9, it was a revelation.  The incredible speed, effortless tracking, and deep buffers almost felt like cheating when tracking action.  I found it a real joy to use, and I’ve reached often for a9 over the past several years.  The Alpha 1 is essentially a high resolution a9 in the field, but with more processing power and even faster bursts.  When using a Sony lens (Sony 135mm F1.8 GM), I hit 30FPS when tracking a fast moving dog.  And, though I was shooting at F2.2, every single shot in the sequence was perfectly in focus.

That’s just incredible!  I will note that I saw a fairly significant difference in my number of keepers using a Sony lens over a third party lens like the Sigma 100-400mm F5-6.3 OS DN.  Tracking was good with the Sigma lens (probably about 70% under demanding conditions and speeds), but when using a good native Sony lens, the keeper rate went up to nearly 100%.  I’ll also note that my top burst rate with the Sigma dropped to about 15FPS, so something worth noting if you’re going to invest in a serious performer like the Alpha 1.  I still got a number of killer images with the Sigma combination, though.

Sony has upped the ante on the total number of phase detect points from 693 on the a9 cameras to 759 on the Alpha 1, though curiously Sony states that the total sensor coverage on the a9/a9II is 93% and quote 92% coverage on the Alpha 1.  Not a meaningful difference either way, but it does suggest that the AF points on the Alpha 1 are slightly smaller and more precise, which can help when you are trying to nail focus on a very narrow subject (like when shooting macro).

The improvement in AF is more than AF points or spread, however, as the Alpha 1 has much more processing power under its hood.  The Sony a9 was capable of 60 focus and exposure calculations per second; the Alpha 1 doubles that to 120.  Here’s what Sony says, “At an astonishing calculation speed of up to 120 AF/AE per second, the Alpha 1 can maintain focus with high accuracy even for fast moving subjects. It can automatically adjust exposure, even with sudden changes in brightness, with an AE response latency as low as 0.033 seconds“.  That’s incredible, obviously, and is pretty extraordinary when you consider that the Alpha 1 is moving more than double the amount of pixels that the a9 does through the pipeline.

On that note, one genuinely useful feature here is that the Alpha 1 gives you an option to have an oversampled 21MP JPEG resolution full frame image that packs incredible detail.

You can also choose APS-C resolution at the same 21MP resolution, so you effectively have two different options for shooting a scene.  What I really like about this is that I don’t always want/need high resolution for everything, so I can set up the camera to capture full size RAWs to one card, but the 21MP JPEGs to another card.  The RAWs serve as master files if needed, but the 21MP JPEGs are perfect for quick delivery to clients or servers.  I also don’t need super high resolution for some action sequences, so shooting the smaller JPEG size without a crop is almost like having an a9 option on hand, too.  High resolution is great, but I prefer to be able to have some control over that resolution.  The oversampling assures that the quality of these smaller JPEGs is really top notch.  Check out the detail from the crop of this image:

Sony has also refined Eye AF performance on the Alpha 1.  They claim a 30% improvement in eye detection over the a9II, which, if true, is certainly impressive.  Part of that improvement is that they state that eye detection is now effective from more angles, and that I believe to be true.  One of my very first photos with the Alpha 1 was of my daughter in our kitchen, laughing with a friend.  I used the Sony 135mm F1.8 GM (an amazing lens, by the way!!), and shot it wide open.  I double tapped the LCD screen to zoom into the photo, and a big grin spread across my face.  The amount of precision and detail in the shot was just fantastic…even though she was turned away from me.

This shows how much better Sony’s eye detection has gotten, as you are much more likely to get precision in a wider range of situations.

Pet Eye AF has proven even more precise as well, with faster, more “sticky” detection of pet eyes…like Loki’s, here.

I’m not a big birder, but I did head down into some marshes to visit the returning Canada Geese as they lay their eggs and protect their young.  I wanted to see how Sony’s new Bird Eye AF works.  On the negative side, it’s not foolproof.  I had a number of occasions where the AF grabbed tail feathers rather than the eye (geese tend to bob up and down).  But it was pretty obvious when that happened through the viewfinder and focus usually found its way back quickly.  My actual results where well focused when I returned home and examined them:

This is not an easy subject because the neck and head are so dark (I had to lift shadows with a +54 to reveal details), but the Bird Eye AF did the trick (and this was with the Sigma).

I was even more impressed with the camera’s ability to acquire focus when I saw a red-winged blackbird take off in my peripheral vision.  In times past I’ve not had a high success rate with acquiring birds in rapid flight, so I was impressed that a single frame fired under this circumstance was perfectly focused.  The shot doesn’t have a lot of aesthetic value, but it is interesting from a technical perspective.

This little sequence is a little more visually interesting, as another red-winged blackbird was doing a little aerial maneuvering (hunting insects?), and I was able to capture his antics with no problem.

Bottom line is that this camera is well equipped for tracking action, and these same technologies are on tap for video as well.  

You also have a lot of versatility for controlling your burst speed, with customizable levels for each of the four drive modes (L, M, H, H+).  There are a lot of options for instructing the camera how to track action, obviously, though one of the advantages here is that the advanced processing seems to take a lot of the guesswork out of the equation.

Low light sensitivity doesn’t quite match the best from Canon (as low as -6 EV), but the Alpha 1 can focus in conditions as dim as -4 EV.  I did have perfectly fine autofocus even with a 10 stop ND1000 filter attached for this image:

Buffer depth is slightly less than the a9II, though that’s probably to be expected considering the size of the files.  According to Sony:

  • JPEG Extra fine L: 182 frames,
  • JPEG Fine L: 400 frames,
  • JPEG Standard L: 400 frames,
  • RAW: 238 frames,
  • RAW and JPG: 192 frames
  • RAW (Lossless Compression): 96 frames
  • RAW (Lossless Compression) and JPG: 83 frames
  • RAW (Uncompressed): 82 frames
  • RAW (Uncompressed) and JPG: 78 frames

There’s some give and take in the various modes here, with the potential of getting a few more JPEGs if you choose Fine or Standard (a9II is limited to 361).  Compressed RAW (not lossless) is also close (238 vs 241), but the a9II will give you 131 uncompressed RAW images and 361 Extra Fine JPEGs.  But the reality is that the Alpha 1 can move a LOT of images in a short amount of time, and even at 30FPS you can shoot uninterrupted for 13 seconds if shooting JPEGs (and probably more in optimal real world use).  That should be plenty for capturing most subjects.  You still will watch the buffer clear after shooting a long burst in typical Sony fashion, though it clears quicker and you can do more things while it clears, so I haven’t found it to be a real world annoyance like it was with cameras like the a7RIII.

Bottom line is that the Alpha 1 is a jack-of-all-trades that allows you to not just effectively track and capture action, but also lets you do it while simultaneously capturing high resolution images.  We are in a golden age of camera technology, and the Alpha 1 is clearly Sony’s best focusing camera yet.

Alpha 1 Video Performance

Sony’s a9 series of cameras were weird contradictions when it came to video performance.  On one hand, the autofocus performance and footage quality was excellent, and I ended up using my a9 more than any other for my channel.  But that’s mostly because I tend to use footage right out of camera and rarely grade it.  Serious videographers weren’t particularly interested in the a9 or a9II because they lacked Sony’s picture profiles, including things like SLOG.  The footage had little flexibility, and was limited to 4K30, which has ceased to be a competitive standard.  The Alpha 1 is a whole other story, though.  Look at the comparison of the video specs from the a9II (first image) and then the Alpha 1 (second image).

Here’s what Sony’s press release says about the video functionality:  “8K High-resolution Movie Shooting

For the first time in an Alpha camera, the Alpha 1 offers 8K 30p 10-bit 4:2:0 XAVC HS recording with 8.6K oversampling for extraordinary resolution. Combined with Sony’s acclaimed autofocus technology, gradation and color reproduction performance, the Alpha 1 will help the user realize their creative vision with the finest detail. It’s 8K footage can also be used for flexible 4K editing during post-production.

Supporting Various Video Formats for Professionals

The Alpha 1 offers in-camera 4K recording at up to 120 frames per second which allows the user to shoot up to 5X slow-motion video. In addition to supporting 10-bit 4:2:2 recording, this feature can be used with efficient Long GOP inter-frame compression or high-quality Intra (All-I) intra-frame compression.

The Alpha 1 features S-Cinetone, the same color matrix that produces the highly regarded FX9 and FX6 color and skin tones. It delivers natural mid-tones, plus soft colors and gorgeous highlights to meet a growing need for more expressive depth. The S-Log3 gamma curve makes it possible to achieve 15+ stops of dynamic range, while the S-Gamut3 and S-Gamut3.Cine color gamut settings make it easy to match Alpha 1 footage with video shot on VENICE cinema camera, FX9 and other professional cinema cameras.

Heat-dissipating Structure

A unique heat dissipating structure keeps image sensor and image processing engine temperatures within their normal operating range, preventing overheating while maintaining compact body dimensions. This makes it possible to record 8K/30p video continuously for approximately 30 minutes

There’s a lot to unpack there, but what has stood out to me while using the Alpha 1 for video is that 1) there is an incredible amount of options for getting the kind of footage you want at a bitrate you prefer.  So much choice! 2) I love having 4K120.  I’ve loved it on the Canon EOS R5, and I love it here.  There are certain situations where slow motion video gives such amazing creative agency. 3)  I find the removal of the 29:59 recording limit incredibly helpful when I’m recording teaching sessions and 4) Eliminating the overheating issues gives Sony a serious competitive advantage over Canon for those who shoot a lot of high resolution video.

I’m not really set up for shooting 8K and don’t really have a practical application for it (yet), but I really enjoy the versatility of choice among the 4K options.  The footage looks great, with great detail and a good deal of versatility for low light performance and dynamic range.  I also do like the look of the S-Cinetone profile that’s included.  I’m not a serious videographer or cinematographer (I mostly shoot for my YouTube channel), so I’ll leave the detailed analysis to those more professional than myself.  Much like the stills side, however, the video performance of the Alpha 1 doesn’t make you settle.  You’ve got pretty much everything you could possibly expect from a hybrid camera like this…outside of an articulating LCD screen.  I continue to find ways to be impressed by the Alpha 1.

The a7S line has been Sony’s video-centric line (in standard, none-CINE bodies), though the a7S lineup typically is pretty short on the stills side.  Never before have we seen a Sony camera that is so complete on both video and stills.  The Alpha 1 has essentially everything that the a7SIII has while also being a high performance action and high resolution camera.  Pretty amazing, really…

Sony Alpha 1 Sensor Performance

The Sony Alpha 1 has Sony’s second-largest sensor resolution with an effective sensor resolution of 50.1MP, producing files with dimensions of 8640 x 5760 pixels.  The Sony a7RIV is higher still at 9504 x 6336 pixels, though most photographers will find the Alpha 1’s resolution plenty for them.  Pair the Alpha 1 with quality lenses and it will reward you with incredible detail across the frame:

High resolution bodies like this allow you to deeply crop images while still having plenty of resolution, which gives you all kinds of framing options:

Like the Sony a9 cameras before it, the Alpha 1 has a stacked sensor. According to Sony, this is a “full-frame stacked 50.1-MP Exmor RS™ CMOS sensor with integral memory.  A stacked architecture in this back-illuminated 50.1-MP full-frame image sensor contributes to high resolution and speed. Separate pixel and circuit layers and advanced A/D conversion mean faster processing.”  It’s a sensor designed for both speed and performance, and, while I have always liked images from the a9 cameras, they did lag somewhat in areas like ISO performance and dynamic range when compared to, say, the a7III that had identical resolution.  Sony has (appropriately) given us a new sensor for the Alpha 1, and it a technically superior one.  It gives us speed and resolution while not compromising in terms of ISO performance and dynamic range.  I also think that it delivers some of the best color I’ve seen from a Sony camera.

Put simply, I’m enjoying images from the Alpha 1 on both an artistic and technical level.  Let’s dig deeper into some of the technical issues.

ISO

High resolution cameras face an uphill battle in ISO performance for the simple reason that more pixels packed onto the surface area of a sensor results in higher apparent amounts of noise as the ISO rises.  I found the Canon 5DsR (also 50MP) nearly unusable by 6400 (its upper native ISO limit), but more recent high resolution cameras have done much better in this metric. This is certainly true of the Alpha 1, that was encouragingly good in many situations.  It has a native ISO range from 100-32,000, with an expanded range of ISO 50-102,400 available.

At ISO 1600 the result is scarcely distinguishable from base ISO (100) even at a pixel level:

At ISO 6400, there is some visible noise in some of the shadows, but color saturation levels, color fidelity, and contrast are pretty much indistinguishable from base ISO:

Things are mostly similar at ISO 12,800, with black levels still quite inky.  By ISO 25,600, you can start to see some uneven pixels in the black area and the “grain” is heavier, but things are still quite usable.

Often I see cameras fall apart in the last stop (say, from 25,600 to 51,200), and that’s somewhat true here, but the difference between 25,600 and 32,000 isn’t really significant.  ISO 51,200 is only accessible via the expanded range, and I noticed a drop-off in contrast there, with the image lacking the deep blacks and overall punch that the image even at 25,600 has.

When I compared to a few other cameras, I noticed a quirk about the Alpha 1 performance.  When compared to the a7RIII and the Canon EOS R5, I noticed that that the ISO sensitivity on the Alpha 1 wasn’t quite as bright.  It required more exposure to get equal settings compared to the RIII (about a third stop).  The RIII’s image also retained slightly more contrast at ISO 25,600:

I continue to feel that the a7RIII has perhaps Sony’s best sensor in many ways.  It seems to strike the best balance between resolution, ISO, and dynamic range performance.

The difference in sensor tuning was even more apparent in the comparison with the Canon EOS R5, where the difference in sensitivity seemed closed to 2/3rds of a stop.  This makes direct comparison slightly more difficult, as exposure values never quite line up.  As I examined images, however, I felt like the Alpha 1 retained slightly more contrast while the Canon produced slightly lower noise levels.

I would be hard pressed to declare a winner between the two; they are just different.  Both do impressive jobs of delivering usable image quality at higher ISO values despite the impediment of having high resolution.  

The Alpha 1 is a strong performer for a high resolution camera at higher ISO values, and that’s true for video use as well.

Dynamic Range

Dynamic range has become one those topics debated ad nauseum on photography forums and harped on by certain reviewers to the place where some perspective has been lost on the topic. It has become one of the key “stats” where brand fanboys either push their brand or bash another, causing many people to become disgusted with the term in general.  That being said, there is no question that there are a number of situations where improved dynamic range gives the photographer (and particularly the post-processor) more latitude to fulfill their vision. This could be in the ability to recover a blown-out sky or shadowed area as a landscape photographer or the ability to balance a foreground subject with a background or sky for portrait photographers.  I’ve also been able to save images where I captured something special but a flash didn’t fire. 

Sony claims up to 15 stops of dynamic range for the Alpha 1, though they are not specific as to where one could expect this performance (S-Log video?)  For stills, it seems to me that the Alpha 1 is close to but not quite at the levels of the most recent a7R cameras (RIII and RIV).  Furthermore, it seems like different testers get different values for the camera, with the good people over at DP Review testing it at 13.9 stops (compared to 14 for the a7RIV).  Considering the speed of the sensor readout, that’s impressive, though not 15 stops.  Photonstophotos (and DXOMark) rank the sensors of the Canon EOS R5 (11.85 stops) and a7RIII (11.65) as being slightly higher than the Alpha 1 (11.36):

Both sites agree that the performance is significantly better than the a9II (10.9) and even more so than the a9 (10.64).  The broad agreement is that the Alpha 1 is a significant improvement from the other stacked sensor models (a9 series), but close (not quite) to the a7III, a7RIII, or a7RIV, which all hover a fraction of a percentage higher. The outlier from Photonstophotos is that the Canon EOS R5 ranks higher than all of these sensors, which I haven’t quite seen.  There are different aspects of shadow and highlight recovery, and I find it best to try to visually demonstrate my findings.  In this comparisons I will intentionally under or overexpose by the correct number of stops and then try to recover the lost information by adding it back in post (either increasing or reducing exposure).

First of all, shadow recovery.  Bottom line is that the Alpha 1 is simply fantastic at recovering shadows.  At a global level you simply can’t tell a difference between a perfectly exposed image and an image underexposed by 5 stops and then recovered.

If we compare our original and then recovered result at a pixel level, it will show you how completely and how cleanly those shadows have been recovered.

If I compare to the Canon EOS R5, I see that both have recovered shadows well, but the colors from the Sony recovery are more accurate, contrast is a bit better, and the Canon result has shifted towards magenta a bit.

The results between the two Sony models is closer, though I think the a7RIII wins for having slightly smooth results in the shadows (though, to be fair, it has 8MP less resolution):

Some people compare dynamic range by showing how much the highlight and shadow recovery sliders can open up shadows and recover highlights.  If I maximize the shadows (+100) and recover highlights (-100), I find that the Canon EOS R5 does have slightly more ability to open shadows, though at reduced contrast, and that Sony has the ability to retain a little more information and color in the sky:

All three cameras have great ability to recover shadows, however, and I think the Alpha 1 is extremely competitive with the very best here.

Recovering highlights is something that cameras struggle more with, as when highlights are “blown out” there is often unrecoverable information loss. The Alpha 1 does well here, though, proving able to successfully recover 3 stops of overexposure with minimal loss of information and good color saturation levels.

I’ll note that the difference in sensor sensitivity does create a bit of a challenge in creating comparisons, but if I compare this result to the Canon EOS R5 recovery, the results look fairly similar though the Canon image is slightly brighter:

If we move on to four stops of overexposure, however, the Sony starts to show an advantage in retaining color information.  If you look at the color chart you’ll see that certain colors have been lost from the Canon recovery that are retained to some degree on the Sony recovery:

This could prove important when recovering a sky, for example, or certain skin tones if a flash goes off too brightly.

I’ve found real world dynamic range to be excellent, with plenty of latitude in highlights and shadows to shoot even challenging scenes with a single exposure that has in the RAW image the potential to be edited to taste:

Colors and Gallery

The sensors in the a9 cameras didn’t have Sony’s best DR and ISO performance, but I always liked their color performance.  I tended to favor images taken with my a9 over my a7RIII in terms of general feel.  The Alpha 1 might be better still, with just a little more refinement in the color science that results in images that seem to have a little more flexibility for “pushing” color without it becoming garish (a past weakness at times for Sony).  I’ve shot with close to ten lenses on the Alpha 1, and gotten color results I really like from all of them.  Here’s a few different kinds of images:

Put simply, I’ve been very happy with the images I’ve been capturing with the Alpha 1.  I’m happy with the detail, the contrast, the color, the dynamic range, and the ISO performance.  I can’t recall ever enjoying a Sony camera more.  You can check out even more images by visiting the image galleries here.

Conclusion

I doubt you’ll hear anyone say anything negative about the performance of the Sony Alpha 1.  This may be the most sophisticated mass market camera ever made, combining the tracking capabilities and burst rate of a Canon 1DxIII or a Nikon D5 with the vast resolution of the a7R series and then, to top it all off, the video capabilities of a cine camera.  I suspect the most often cited negative you’ll hear is the price, which, at $6498 USD, makes the $3900 Canon EOS R5 seem almost inexpensive.  

I was, frankly, a little underwhelmed by Sony’s last round of updates.  I passed on both the a7RIV and the a9II without upgrading my a7RIII or a9 because I didn’t see a compelling reason to make the move.  I’ve told people for the last year that my favorite cameras at the moment are Canons, but my favorite catalog of lenses is on Sony due to having so many excellent third party lenses available to compliment an increasingly excellent lineup of native Sony lenses.  But the Alpha 1 has essentially everything I was looking for in a camera, and while I was initially turned off by its price tag, I started to realize that it was an upgrade to both my a7RIII and my a9, and, by the time of this review, I have privately sold both cameras to fund purchasing an Alpha 1.

Is the Alpha 1 for everyone?  Absolutely not.  For many photographers it is simply overkill.  If you don’t shoot action, you’ll get just as good of image quality from an a7RIII or a7RIV in many ways.  If you just want to shoot video, an a7SIII will get you there cheaper.  But if you are the kind of person that doesn’t want compromises in your photography gear, the Alpha 1 is made for you.  Bottom line is this: the Sony Alpha 1 is like an a7RIV, a9II, and a7SIII rolled into one camera…and then further improved.  It’s expensive, yes, but Sony has held nothing back, and, for the first time that I can remember, it feels like you are getting a camera where you have all the best Sony features in one body.  And that is a very compelling narrative for the right kind of photographer.  I suspect the Alpha 1 and I will be friends for many years to come…

 

Pros:

  • The best of the Sony’s cameras in one body
  • Does basically everything well
  • Record speed (30FPS) for tracking
  • New high resolution sensor packs a punch
  • Autofocus better than ever
  • Most electronic shutter downsides solved (rolling shutter, flash sync, etc…)
  • 8K video + 4K120 + Sony S-Cinetone
  • No record limits (no 29:59 limitations)
  • No significant overheat issues
  • Awesome viewfinder
  • Lossless compressed RAW capture (finally!)
  • Touchscreen menus (finally!)
  • Good white balance performance due to new WB sensor
  • Full compliment of video options – bitrates, codecs, etc…
  • Webcam ready
  • Quality construction
  • Good dynamic range and ISO performance
  • Shutter mechanism can cover sensor when camera is off

Cons:

  • Incredibly expensive
  • 1.44 million dot LCD screen seems budget for a camera this expensive
  • Basic tilt capabilities for LCD rather than fully articulating
  • No major advancements in IBIS performance
  • Canon’s Eye tracking is still a little better

 

Gear Used:

Purchase the Sony Alpha 1 @ Camera Canada | B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase a Sony a9M2 @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Sony a9 Camera:  B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada  | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 
Sony a7RIV Camera: B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Buy DA Merchandise https://bit.ly/TWIMerch

Purchase a Sony a7C @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

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Keywords: Sony Alpha 1, Sony A1, Sony Alpha 1 Review, Sony A1 Review, ILCE-1, Sony, Alpha 1, A1,  Review, Hands On, Dustin Abbott, Real World, Comparison, Sharpness, Sensor Performance, ISO, Dynamic Range, Autofocus, Image Quality, Sample Images, Video, Photography, Canon EOS R5, Sony a7RIV, Sony a9II, Sony a7SIII

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Sigma FP-L Mirrorless Camera Image Gallery

Dustin Abbott

March 25th, 2021

Most of us know Sigma as a lensmaker and nothing more, but Sigma has actually been developing somewhat quirky cameras for some time.  Many of those were built around Sigma’s own SA mount or with a fixed lens and tended to be crop sensor cameras (APS-C or APS-H).  They frequently had unique shapes well outside the mainstream of camera design.  In 2020 Sigma released the Sigma FP, a 24MP compact full frame mirrorless built around a Leica L-mount.  It should probably come as no surprise that in the latter part of 2019 Sigma had started to design a new lineup of DN lenses designed specifically for mirrorless and coming in both the very popular Sony FE (full frame e-mount) along with the Leica L mount.  Clearly some partnership with Leica had been forged, and by building their new camera around the Leica L-mount, it allowed Sigma to not only leverage their new lens designs on two different platforms but also allowed them to produce lenses “for” their new camera(s) in a more popular mount that maximized their investment.  A fringe benefit is that the FP was immediately compatible with a wide range of existing Leica L-mount lenses and Sigma didn’t have to build their own full catalog of lenses.   2021 brings the second camera in the FP line-up, the Sigma FP-L, the world’s most compact high resolution full frame camera with a massive 61 megapixels of resolution.  That kind of resolution allows you to deeply crop an image like this:

…and get a still nicely resolved image like this:

This also helps explain Sigma’s recent fixation with developing small, light lenses that are still high performing (this has previously been Sigma’s strategy at all).  Sigma’s most recent release was the compact wide aperture standard zoom – the Sigma 28-70mm F2.8 DG DN (my review here), a lens that makes a lot of sense on a camera like the FP-L. We’ve also seen Sigma dive into the compact prime market in the past year with the i-Series (24mm F3.5, 35mm F2, 45mm F2.8, and 65mm F2 lenses, all of which I’ve reviewed and you can find in this playlist).  These lenses addressed the reality that most of Sigma’s recent lenses have largely been well, large, and as such were poor pairings for compact cameras.  Certain people love Sigma’s large aperture ART series lenses and their highly corrected optical performance, but others find them unnecessarily large and heavy.  Sigma’s focus recently seems to be on addressing the secondary market of those who want good optical and build quality but want smaller, more compact lenses to pair with smaller cameras like the Sony a7C, the Sigma FP or FP-L, and the Leica SL2-S

The Sigma FP-L is the smallest and cheapest way (at the moment) to get such high resolution, but that comes with a major asterisk.  At $2499 USD, it is cheaper than the Sony a7RIV (with similar resolution), and it is certainly smaller at a compact dimension of (W x H x D) 112.6 x 69.9 x 45.3mm (4.43 x 2.75 x 1.78″).  This is identical to the dimensions of the FP, and the weight is quite similar as well, with the FP-L weighing 427g (15.1oz) vs 422g for the FP.  Both bodies can share accessories because of their identical size, which becomes very important because of the discussion at hand.  Sigma has designed the FP cameras to be modular in design, so the basic “brick” is designed to be as square and compact as possible.  This means that a lot of basic features that you take for granted (a viewfinder, hot-shoe, or even a functional grip) are not built into the camera but are accessories.  The hot shoe is an included accessory, but requires you to mount it to the side of the camera like this:

The grip and viewfinder options are separate purchases, however, and if you go with the new Sigma EVF-11, you are looking at an EXPENSIVE upgrade ($699 USD solo, or sold in kit with the FP-L for $2999).  It requires a rather delicate process of removing the cover from some ports and then bending another cover back while simultaneously lining up male mini-HDMI, communication socket, and USB-C attachments on the EVF-11 into their female counterparts on the camera and then securing it with a tightening wheel on the front.  I’m a little concerned that there is room for damage to components if you don’t get that process right.  After attaching everything, here’s what the viewfinder looks like: 

The EVF-11 can be adjusted up or down for different viewing angles, and sports a fairly good 3.68 million dot resolution and 0.83x magnification, though the refresh rate of 60fps is only so-so.  This isn’t really an action camera, though, so it is probably sufficient.  There’s an alternate loupe-style viewfinder (LVF-11) that goes over the LCD screen and provides some magnification of the rear LCD along with shading, but it radically changes the compact nature of the camera (it is more than double the natural depth of the camera).  The modular design of the camera only then makes sense if you either want no accessories (want to go as compact as possible) or want to build around the camera in a video rig, because for ordinary use you’ll end up with a larger, more expensive camera than the Sony a7RIV once you add either viewfinder and a grip…and you still won’t have a hotshoe all the time as it is either/or rather than both when it comes to mounting the two accessories.  It’s an unconventional approach, to say the least, and while it will suit a couple of small demographics just fine, it won’t make a lot of sense to the masses, I suspect.  Maybe Sigma is okay with that…

What’s not up for debate is the fact that the camera can produce beautiful images.  My review period was brief, but you can check out the photos I was able to take during that time below.

 

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Photos of the Sigma FP-L

Photos Taken with the Sigma FP-L 

Gear Used:

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Keywords: Sigma FP-L, Sigma, FP, FP-L, Sigma FP-L Review, Leica, L-mount, Sigma 28-70 DN, Sigma 28-70 F2.8, Sigma 24mm F3.5, Sigma 35mm F2, Sigma 45mm F2.8, Sigma 65mm F2, Review, Sony a7C, Review, Hands On, Dustin Abbott, Real World, Comparison, Sharpness, Sensor Performance, ISO, Dynamic Range, Autofocus, Image Quality, Sample Images, Video, Photography, Leica L

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Sigma FP-L Mirrorless Camera Review

Dustin Abbott

March 25th, 2021

Most of us know Sigma as a lensmaker and nothing more, but Sigma has actually been developing somewhat quirky cameras for some time.  Many of those were built around Sigma’s own SA mount or with a fixed lens and tended to be crop sensor cameras (APS-C or APS-H).  They frequently had unique shapes well outside the mainstream of camera design.  In 2020 Sigma released the Sigma FP, a 24MP compact full frame mirrorless built around a Leica L-mount.  It should probably come as no surprise that in the latter part of 2019 Sigma had started to design a new lineup of DN lenses designed specifically for mirrorless and coming in both the very popular Sony FE (full frame e-mount) along with the Leica L mount.  Clearly some partnership with Leica had been forged, and by building their new camera around the Leica L-mount, it allowed Sigma to not only leverage their new lens designs on two different platforms but also allowed them to produce lenses “for” their new camera(s) in a more popular mount that maximized their investment.  A fringe benefit is that the FP was immediately compatible with a wide range of existing Leica L-mount lenses and Sigma didn’t have to build their own full catalog of lenses.   2021 brings the second camera in the FP line-up, the Sigma FP-L, the world’s most compact high resolution full frame camera with a massive 61 megapixels of resolution.  That kind of resolution allows you to deeply crop an image like this:

…and get a still nicely resolved image like this:

This also helps explain Sigma’s recent fixation with developing small, light lenses that are still high performing (this has previously been Sigma’s strategy at all).  Sigma’s most recent release was the compact wide aperture standard zoom – the Sigma 28-70mm F2.8 DG DN (my review here), a lens that makes a lot of sense on a camera like the FP-L. We’ve also seen Sigma dive into the compact prime market in the past year with the i-Series (24mm F3.5, 35mm F2, 45mm F2.8, and 65mm F2 lenses, all of which I’ve reviewed and you can find in this playlist).  These lenses addressed the reality that most of Sigma’s recent lenses have largely been well, large, and as such were poor pairings for compact cameras.  Certain people love Sigma’s large aperture ART series lenses and their highly corrected optical performance, but others find them unnecessarily large and heavy.  Sigma’s focus recently seems to be on addressing the secondary market of those who want good optical and build quality but want smaller, more compact lenses to pair with smaller cameras like the Sony a7C, the Sigma FP or FP-L, and the Leica SL2-S

The Sigma FP-L is the smallest and cheapest way (at the moment) to get such high resolution, but that comes with a major asterisk.  At $2499 USD, it is cheaper than the Sony a7RIV (with similar resolution), and it is certainly smaller at a compact dimension of (W x H x D) 112.6 x 69.9 x 45.3mm (4.43 x 2.75 x 1.78″).  This is identical to the dimensions of the FP, and the weight is quite similar as well, with the FP-L weighing 427g (15.1oz) vs 422g for the FP.  Both bodies can share accessories because of their identical size, which becomes very important because of the discussion at hand.  Sigma has designed the FP cameras to be modular in design, so the basic “brick” is designed to be as square and compact as possible.  This means that a lot of basic features that you take for granted (a viewfinder, hot-shoe, or even a functional grip) are not built into the camera but are accessories.  The hot shoe is an included accessory, but requires you to mount it to the side of the camera like this:

The grip and viewfinder options are separate purchases, however, and if you go with the new Sigma EVF-11, you are looking at an EXPENSIVE upgrade ($699 USD solo, or sold in kit with the FP-L for $2999).  It requires a rather delicate process of removing the cover from some ports and then bending another cover back while simultaneously lining up male mini-HDMI, communication socket, and USB-C attachments on the EVF-11 into their female counterparts on the camera and then securing it with a tightening wheel on the front.  I’m a little concerned that there is room for damage to components if you don’t get that process right.  After attaching everything, here’s what the viewfinder looks like: 

The EVF-11 can be adjusted up or down for different viewing angles, and sports a fairly good 3.68 million dot resolution and 0.83x magnification, though the refresh rate of 60fps is only so-so.  This isn’t really an action camera, though, so it is probably sufficient.  There’s an alternate loupe-style viewfinder (LVF-11) that goes over the LCD screen and provides some magnification of the rear LCD along with shading, but it radically changes the compact nature of the camera (it is more than double the natural depth of the camera).  The modular design of the camera only then makes sense if you either want no accessories (want to go as compact as possible) or want to build around the camera in a video rig, because for ordinary use you’ll end up with a larger, more expensive camera than the Sony a7RIV once you add either viewfinder and a grip…and you still won’t have a hotshoe all the time as it is either/or rather than both when it comes to mounting the two accessories.  It’s an unconventional approach, to say the least, and while it will suit a couple of small demographics just fine, it won’t make a lot of sense to the masses, I suspect.  Maybe Sigma is okay with that…

And that sets the stage for what will be a fairly complicated review, as I have a list of personal dislikes nearly as long as my list of likes.  I’ll do my best to handle this review with nuance, but the Sigma FP-L can be a rather hard camera to pin down and categorize.  You can read on or watch my long format definitive or standard video reviews below…

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Thanks to Sigma Canada for providing me loaners of the FP-L and lens used for this review.

Sigma FP-L Build, Design and Handling

The Sigma FP-L is uniquely Sigma; it doesn’t feel like a clone of any other camera that I’ve used.  There are elements of this that are refreshing, while in other places being different just means being less functional.  The physical shell of the camera is a sturdy die-cast aluminum alloy Sigma says was chosen for its superior robustness and thermal conductivity.  It feels tough and well made.

You’ll note from the photo above that the front of the camera has literally no grip at all.  It doesn’t even extend the textured rubber finish to the front.  The only concession to grip is a slightly raised thumb rest in the back:

It mostly feels like I am just pinching the camera rather than it molding to my hand.  The last camera I used like this was the original Canon EOS M.  If you are sticking with small, light lenses, it will probably be okay, but add on heavier lenses and you are going to miss having a real grip.

Another positive that I like is that Sigma has recognized that a fundamental flaw in many modern compact mirrorless cameras has been heat dissipation.  Capturing and processing high definition video generates a lot of heat, and some recent Canon and Sony cameras have received a lot of public criticism over their overheating issues. Sigma has addressed this by building heat sinks into the design on all four sides.

This is part of what allows the FP-L to record up to two hours of uninterrupted 4K video internally (no 29:59 limit!!) and even longer if recording to an external SSD.  That’s a smart move by Sigma, and, while I have some weather sealing concerns over any camera with open heat sinks, Sigma claims, “…sealing on 42 points for a dust- and splash-proof structure, making it a perfect camera to use for long hours under all types of environments.”

What has probably been sacrificed for the heat sinks (due to their location) is any kind of tilting or articulating on the rear LCD screen.  It is fixed 3.15 inch LCD with 2.1 million dot resolution and a 3:2 ratio.  This is normally where I’d show you the different angles the screen can move to, but there’s nothing to show here.

I was quickly reminded of how dependent I have become on owning only cameras with either tilting or articulating LCDs.  I found the fixed screen limiting in a number of applications, from doing tripod tests of my test charts (usually done at roughly waist height) or when filming on a gimbal.  The screen has limited touch capacity, with the ability to touch to focus and to move focus points around, but no navigation of menus (full or quick menu).  There’s more input lag than what you’ll find on a Canon camera (best) and even some of the better Sony cameras.

That’s a shame, as I really like the look of the menus.  They have a great font and a very clean look.  The Q menu in particular looks tailor-made for touch:

Navigation is done via the directional pad/wheel on the back of the camera, and menu changes are made by either the front or rear wheels, with the center button serving as the OK button.  Sigma has utilized the increasingly popular two-tier approach to menus where the menus are divided between Cine and Stills, so if you select Cine with the switch on the top plate of the camera you will be presented with a unique menu tailored for video use:

The feel of the buttons and wheels feel pretty good with decent ergonomic placement, though I do miss have a dedicated dial for exposure compensation.  One ergonomic fail is that with the EV-F attached there is no quick, logical way to access the power button, as it is located to the far left of the top plate, and suddenly the EV-F is towering near that space, making it nearly impossible to get at with your left thumb (the logical digit to use the power switch).

A uniquely Sigma feature is the row of buttons along the bottom portion of the back of the camera.  It’s a clean design, and the choice of buttons shows the importance Sigma places on being to able to control color and tone curve in either video or stills applications.  You have a lot of control over the output of the camera, from color to contrast.  The Tone and Color buttons provide direct access to these menu functions.

The left side of the camera holds the ports, two of which are covered with port covers that lift but cannot be removed and the middle port cover that must be removed to attach the side accessories.  There is a place to store this rubber cover in either the hotshoe or EVF attachements, though there is probably a pretty good likelihood that some people are going to lose this cover…

I don’t suppose that I need to tell you that losing the port cover will not help the weather sealing of the camera!  I suspect that having one of the attachments in place will also limit weather sealing, as there is no evidence of seals on them.

There are four connection points on the left side, which include a mic input on the bottom, a micro-HDMI and communication pins in the middle compartment, and the USB-C connection on the top.  The camera can be charged via USB (no fancy power-send requirements), and it can be externally powered to further help its ability to do long format recording.  One important inclusion on the FP-L is its ability to be a plug-and-play webcam through the USB-C port.  The pandemic of 2020 and 2021 has made this a more important feature than ever before.

You’ll note that what is missing is a headphone monitoring jack, though the EVF-11 does have one on it.  It also has a dedicated USB-C port designed specifically for recording externally to an SSD.  This recording arrangement is required to access the 30 FPS mode in the higher bitrate CinemaDNG 12 bit format.   Internal recording to the SD card will only allow you up to 25 FPS in CinemaDNG at a lower 8 bit, though you can access 4K30 internally by choosing the .MOV format instead.  FullHD recording can be done up to 120FPS for slow motion capture.

The SD card location is in my least favorite spot – the bottom of the camera in the battery compartment.  This is the least convenient way to quickly access the card if you are working on a tripod or gimbal, though fortunately the bottom plate design is slightly better than most cameras with this arrangement, allow me to fit a standard size QR plate vertically or a smaller Peak Design plate that I add to cameras and still open the bottom compartment.  I add something to make cameras Arca-compatible so I can throw them quickly on a tripod.  I can’t quite open the battery door with the QR plate mounted horizontally, though.  The battery pack is Sigma’s BP-51, a 1200 mAh battery.  It is rated for about 240 shots, and that doesn’t seem to be far off.  You’ll probably want to buy a second Sigma BP-51 to make sure you don’t run out of power for an extended shoot.

The single SD slot is UHS-II compatible, though that proves not enough to give us much buffer depth.  The FP-L can shoot up to 10FPS, but the RAW buffer depth is only 12 frames before that speed drops.  Surprisingly the JPEG rating isn’t much better at just 14 frames.  That obviously limits the potential of the camera as an action camera, though any camera that you primarily shoot with solely via a rear LCD is never going to be an action camera.

The Sigma FP-L is built around an electronic shutter, and there is no mechanical shutter.  The primary liabilities of that will be banding under certain kinds of lighting (any lighting that cycles frequencies) and a serious limitation for strobing.  Flash sync speed is rated at 1/15th second.  That’s a figure so low that I had to verify with Sigma, as I struggle to see how that figure is even usable.  I don’t often find strobes enough to deal with all camera/subject shake at 1/15th second…particularly with a high resolution sensor like this one.  If you are a portrait photographer, you are probably going to need to stick to natural light or fixed lights and just avoid the hotshoe altogether (which might be why they never bothered to integrate it into the camera design).

There’s another serious omission on a high resolution camera that is also marketed as a “run and gun” video option; there is no IBIS (In Body Image Stabilization).  This problem is exacerbated by the fact that out of the ten DN lenses that Sigma has released in a Leica L mount in the past two years, only one of them has a built in OS (optical stabilizer), and that’s the 100-400mm F5-6.3 OS DN.  You aren’t getting stabilization either from the lenses or the camera, which means that to get stable video footage you will have to mount the camera on either a tripod or a gimbal…which really diminishes its versatility as a compact “go anywhere” camera.  That’s a serious liability, and I was reminded of how unsteady handheld video footage is when you have no optical stabilizer helping out.  The footage is near unusable…and I’m fairly steady!  61MP of resolution for stills will also seriously benefit from stabilization, too, as any motion blur occupies more pixels and becomes much more obvious.  The FP-L will show more motion blur in identical conditions than the lower resolution FP would.

It seems to me that developing IBIS is a hugely important next step for Sigma if they are serious about the FP lineup as a “pocketable” option. 

One other thing that I really like here is that Sigma utilizes the high amount of resolution to allow you to employ lossless zooming in video.  Even in 4K, you can do a lossless zoom up to 2.5 times, and up to 5x in FullHD.  What I also like is that you can do the same when recording stills (even RAWs).  Choices include 9.5K (full resolution), 6.2K, 4.8K, UHD, and FHD, each with an accompanying amount of crop.  It’s the same for JPEG, which is not unusual, but to have those options in RAW is much more unusual.  You can actually pinch on the LCD to zoom – a cool feature that shows me that screen is capable of more touch gestures than what it is currently being used for.

As stated in the introduction, the FP-L is a contradictory mix of things that I like and things that I don’t.  This modular design is going to be attractive to some potential users while leaving many others scratching their heads and wondering who would ever choose this camera over a Sony a7RIV (which has a near identical price tag once you bundle the EVF in with the FP-L).

Sigma FP-L Autofocus Performance

The Sigma FP-L upgrades the FP’s 49 contrast point AF to the more modern hybrid system of phase detect autofocus supplemented by contrast AF.  There are still 49 AF points, but those offer more speed and precision.  You can see that the focus point coverage is about roughly 80% of the frame.

I’ll preface my observations by noting that I was using a preproduction model of the camera prior to its announcement, so there might (hopefully!) be some further improvement to AF in the final retail firmware.  Autofocus was the area most criticized in the original FP, and it remains my least favorite aspect of the camera’s performance.  You can use the rear wheel to cycle through the number of active points, from all points down to a single point, though I don’t find even that quite precise enough.  You’ll note from the photo above that the AF point selection on screen has rectangles rather than small squares, and in practical use I found this shape less precise.  It wasn’t hard to hit an overlap between two different layers of focus, and the wider focus point meant that I couldn’t always center the focus point where I wanted.

I also found that I couldn’t always trust my preferred method of focus.  My ordinary case use is to have all points active and the let the camera’s AI first select the focus area while utilizing continuous autofocus.  In most modern cameras the camera’s AI gets the right focus point at least 90% of the time, and I just override with a thumb on the touchscreen if I need to move the AF point elsewhere.  I found in some situations that the FP-L’s focus wouldn’t settle on a focus area with all points active, and sometimes I would end up with an image where nothing was quite in focus.

I found that I ended up going to the smaller focus selection and just moving it around where I wanted, and this produced more reliable results.

I found a similar problem when using Eye AF (works for people and not for animals).  If there was more than one person in the frame, the Eye AF dot (it produces a smaller box than what you can select on screen) kept jumping around from person to person constantly and wouldn’t settle.  In this shot, for example, it ended up not being properly focused on either subject.

I found that I got more reliable focus by overriding Eye AF and just putting a focus point where I wanted.

Even with that technique, however, focus wasn’t always perfect.  In this shot, for example, I feel like focus is a bit backfocused, and I shot several photos in the sequence without any of them being “nailed”.

That lack of settling also impacted video AF focus (check out either of the video reviews to see this in action).  I found that focus did not do a good job of tracking me as I approached the camera at a slow walk, and, when sitting and shooting a static scene, focus kept micropulsing and adjusting rather than just settling on my face and gradually tracking minor movements. I also found that during focus pulls in my standard test that I got some defocusing in the wrong direction and that lack of settling on the final subject…even if it was big and high contrast.

There’s a general lack of sophistication in the focus system that will hopefully be improved via firmware, but I think even in the raw specifications of the camera that it probably running behind most of its competitors.  The Sony a7RIV, for example, has 567 phase detect points.  Autofocus continues to be a weak point for the system compared to the competition.

Sigma FP-L Sensor Performance

The Sigma FP-L sports one of the highest resolutions currently available in a 35mm/full frame camera.  The native resolution of the 61MP Bayer sensor is 9602 x 6498, which is actually slightly higher than the 9504 x 6336 resolution of the Sony a7RIV.  That’s a LOT of resolution, and it makes it easy to create an image from within an image.  This wide view of the thawing Ottawa River can be reframed from within the original image and still have plenty of resolution for printing.

I can deeply crop into this “still life” test and get a highly detailed photo of the grip of this vintage Pentax KR-5 film SLR.

Embedded color seems to be nice in the camera (there’s still some Foveon influence there), and, as previously noted, there are a wide variety of color modes on tap along with the ability to tweak JPEG and video output further. 

And speaking of RAW files…

Often testing a preproduction camera creates a problem for reviewers like myself, as you are getting a camera before the software infrastructure is ready to support it.  You’ve probably seen/heard reviewers say that they were unable to open RAW files in Adobe/Capture One, etc…  I’ve had no such problem here for the simple reason that Sigma has chosen to utilize the DNG file format.  DNG is the Adobe standard, and it is a high quality lossless compression that has a high degree of compatibility.  I convert everything to DNG myself, and Adobe has promised to support the format in perpetuity.  I found that file sizes averaged around 85MB.  Big, yes, but relatively better than the native .ARW files in the Sony a7RIV, which give you the option of an uncompressed RAW at an average of 122MB or a compressed (lossy) format at 61MB.  The FP-L splits the difference but with a lossless format.  This was one of my favorite aspects of the camera, as I think the file format is great and it saved me time on import since I didn’t have to convert formats.

The FP-L does have a low pass filter, and, while that helps with eliminating moiré, it sometimes comes as a cost of some sharpness.  I was curious to compare sharpness on my test chart and to see if I could see less moiré.  I didn’t have either of the lenses that Sigma sent me with the FP-L (24-70mm F2.8 DN and 65mm F2 DN) when I reviewed the a7RIV, but I had reviewed the 65mm F2 in FE mount just a few months back using my Sony a7rIII.  Here’s a look at the center of the frame, with the FP-L on the left and the Sony result on the right:

A few observations.  The FP-L result seems larger due to being higher resolution.  I’ll show a downsampled result to similar resolution levels on the a7RIII in our next comparison.  You can see that that there is bit more detail information on the Sigma result, though the contrast slightly favors the Sony.  What is really obvious, however, is the increased moiré on the Sony results that manifest as the blue and yellow color patterns in the prow and sails of the ship.  Here’s the midframe result with the Sigma downsampled:

Similar observations, but the moiré is even more noticeable here.  It seems to me that the choice to include the low pass filter was probably justified.  Yes, you sacrifice a tiny bit of sharpness, but the camera has great resolution already, and controlling that moiré makes a big difference in controlling false color for stills and video.

ISO

High resolution cameras face an uphill battle in ISO performance for the simple reason that more pixels packed onto the surface area of a sensor results in higher apparent amounts of noise as the ISO rises.  I found the Canon 5DsR (50MP) nearly unusable by 6400 (its upper native ISO limit), but more recent high resolution cameras have done much better in this metric.  The Sigma FP-L has a native ISO range of 100-25,600, with the expanded range going as low as 6!!! and up to 102,400.  Everything is very clean at the base ISO level of 100, with good contrast and smooth, dark shadows.

Things are little changed at ISO 1600, with contrast levels looking similar and minimal amounts of noise showing up in transition areas.

By ISO 6400 the noise pattern is a bit rougher, but the results are still very usable.

At ISO 12,800, there is a more uneven illumination amongst the noise, and contrast levels are starting to lift.  This pattern continues intensifies at ISO 25,600, which is where the image quality starts to degrade.  

I would avoid ISO 25,600 when possible and use 12,800 as my practical upper limit.  This is a fairly good performance for such a high resolution camera, however.

Dynamic Range

Dynamic range has become one those topics debated ad nauseum on photography forums and harped on by certain reviewers to the place where some perspective has been lost on the topic. It has become one of the key “stats” where brand fanboys either push their brand or bash another, causing many people to become disgusted with the term in general.  That being said, there is no question that there are a number of situations where improved dynamic range gives the photographer (and particularly the post-processor) more latitude to fulfill their vision. This could be in the ability to recover a blown-out sky or shadowed area as a landscape photographer or the ability to balance a foreground subject with a background or sky for portrait photographers.  I’ve also been able to save images where I captured something special but a flash didn’t fire.  In this case, I had to deal with the bright directional sun on my new Bengal kitten, leaving his face in harsh shadow.  Good shadow recovery along with a bit of highlight recovery allowed me to freshly illuminate his face in post due to the good dynamic range from the FP-L.

As is typically the case, I found that I had greater success in recovering shadows than I did highlights.  I was able to easily recover four stops of shadow information with very little negative impact:

When going the opposite direction, however, I started to get a few hotspots even at two stops of overexposure.

If we compare the three stop highlight recovery with the correct exposure, we find that the recovered image doesn’t look “right”, with a lot of information lost.

This is a good dynamic range performance, though I would say that it lags slightly behind the Sony a7RIV in overall performance (perhaps a stop of DR).  There’s enough DR here though to make sure that you can get balanced results in shadow and highlight areas with most scenes.

All in all, the Sigma FP-L has a strong sensor that is competitive with some of the best options out there.  I’m not sure there is any area where it bests them, but there’s no reason you can’t get highly detailed, great looking images out of this camera. You can see more samples by checking out the lens image gallery here.

Conclusion

The Sigma FP-L is a very quirky little camera.  It is incredibly small and light for such a high resolution instrument, but the modular design also means that by the time you add on some of the basic accessories built into most competing cameras that advantage is lost.  The same applies to the price point, making it hard to justify simply from a value perspective.  You would have to really want what this camera offers to choose it over a Sony a7RIV, which is currently retailing for a similar price to the FP-L + EVF-11 combo.

Autofocus issues and a lack of IBIS are two significant drawbacks for me, as I feel like these limit the applications of the camera and detract from its “pocketable”/run and gun attributes.  

I see two potential audiences for the FP-L.  The first is a group who want the absolute lightest high performing camera and don’t need to use the accessories.  They will use the FP-L in its bare form and with the light, compact lenses that will allow it to behave like an APS-C sized camera but with more imaging potential.  Backpackers and travelers could enjoy this scenario, so long as they choose their lenses wisely.  I had the Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 DN lens on hand for my review, and it’s just too big for a camera like this.  

The second case group is for videographers who like this small, vented form factor and who tend to accessorize in cages, for example.  A fixed screen is no big deal if you use an external monitor, and having a squared off body without a grip is perfect if you don’t plan on holding the camera directly.  The FP-L runs cool, can produce nice footage, and is optimized to pair with other cine cameras like Arri, Sony, Red, etc…in their director’s view finder and custom frames.  There’s a wide variety of color looks, too, if you want to stylize your footage without a lot of grading later on.

The typical market that has come to expect their cameras to do everything well might be less than impressed with the FP-L, however.  It’s modular design is far from mainstream, and there are a few key weaknesses that mean that it won’t impress you with its specs or performance in key areas.  This is a specialist tool for a niche audience.  Sigma hopes you are a part of that niche, I’m sure, but it looks like they will keep producing quirky cameras even if you aren’t.

Pros:

  • Smallest and lightest high resolution full frame mirrorless camera
  • Integrated heat sinks make overheating a non-issue
  • Long format video recording 
  • Webcam ready
  • Quality construction
  • Native .DNG file format
  • Lossless video cropping
  • Option to externally power
  • Reasonable base price
  • Good dynamic range and ISO performance
  • Low moiré 

Cons:

  • No IBIS
  • No integrated viewfinder
  • Grip on bare camera essentially nonexistent
  • Useless flash sync speed
  • Fixed LCD screen
  • Erratic autofocus accuracy
  • Video AF isn’t reliable
  • Value is lost once you add viewfinder
  • Shallow buffer

 

Gear Used:

Purchase the Sigma FP-L @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany 

Purchase the Sigma 24mm F3.5 DN @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada Amazon UK | Amazon Germany 

Purchase the Sigma 65mm F2 DG DN @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase the Sigma 35mm F2 DG DN @ B&H Photo  | Amazon | Camera Canada  | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Purchase the Sigma 28-70mm F2.8 DN @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada  | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Buy DA Merchandise https://bit.ly/TWIMerch

Purchase a Sony a7C @ B&H Photo | Amazon | Camera Canada | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Amazon Germany | Ebay 

Peak Design Leash Strap:  Peak Design StoreB&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada  | Amazon UK
BenQ SW271 4K Photo Editing Monitor – B&H Photo  | Amazon | Amazon.ca | Amazon UK
Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud 1-Year Subscription
Exposure Software X6 (Use Code “dustinabbott” to get 10% anything and everything)
Visit Dustin’s Amazon Storefront and see his favorite gear

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Keywords: Sigma FP-L, Sigma, FP, FP-L, Sigma FP-L Review, Leica, L-mount, Sigma 28-70 DN, Sigma 28-70 F2.8, Sigma 24mm F3.5, Sigma 35mm F2, Sigma 45mm F2.8, Sigma 65mm F2, Review, Sony a7C, Review, Hands On, Dustin Abbott, Real World, Comparison, Sharpness, Sensor Performance, ISO, Dynamic Range, Autofocus, Image Quality, Sample Images, Video, Photography, Leica L

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Sony a73 (a7III) Review

Dustin Abbott

June 4th, 2018

Sony chose the WPPI Conference in February, 2018 to drop the bombshell that we now know as the Sony a73 (ILCE-7M3). I call it a bombshell in that while many camera makers hold back a lot of key features on their “entry-level” full frame cameras (that typically fall around this $2000 USD price point), it seemed like Sony held back nothing. That’s not entirely true (as we will discover in this review), but, at the same time, the a73 is a serious shot across the bows of Canon and Nikon that seriously raises the bar of what we can expect from an “entry-level” full frame camera. I keep using this in quotes, as, frankly, the spec list from the Alpha 7 Mark III look remarkably close to what a flagship camera might have from just a few years ago.

  • 24MP Full-Frame Exmor R BSI CMOS Sensor
  • BIONZ X Image Processor & Front-End LSI
  • 693-Point Hybrid AF System
  • UHD 4K30p Video with HLG & S-Log3 Gammas
  • 2.36m-Dot Tru-Finder OLED EVF
  • 3.0″ 922k-Dot Tilting Touchscreen LCD
  • 5-Axis SteadyShot INSIDE Stabilization
  • ISO 204800 and 10 fps Shooting
  • Built-In Wi-Fi and NFC, Dual SD Slots
  • USB Type-C Port, Weather-Sealed Design

10 frames per second? 693 Point AF system (which handily tops the 399 point AF system of the Sony a7R3, which costs more than 50% more)? 4K video complete with great codecs and gammas? Dual card slots? In body image stabilization?

In fact, I betrayed my Canon familiarity in that one of the first things I did with the a73 was flick the dial to control TV (shutter speed) to check if it was capped at 1/4000th of a second instead of going up to 1/8000th second. It wasn’t capped…so it wasn’t a Canon. Whereas Canon has often chosen to employ very obvious protectionist tactics that limit performance of its cheaper cameras (things like the afore-mentioned maximum shutter speed, limited AF systems, single card slots, and limited video capabilities and resolution options), Sony has chosen to essentially use resolution (a7R3 is 42mp, a73 is 24mp) and the viewfinder/LCD (both are higher resolution and with better refresh rates on the a7R3) to differentiate the two cameras.

As I went through the spec lists in my video episode where I reacted to the announcement I had some questions. One of my most popular articles that I’ve ever written was called, “Why I Chose a Canon 6D over a 5D Mark III”. In that article I detailed how some of the features of the 6D actually made it the more interesting camera to me despite the areas that Canon had intentionally “crippled” it. I think my feelings were mirrored by many others, too, as the 6D went on to be one of Canon’s best-selling models.

I mused out loud in that video episode about the a73 that while I think the a73 is going to do serious damage to Canon’s 6D series and Nikon D600 series, I also wonder how many orders for an a7R3 (or even a A9) got cancelled by those that reasoned that 24 megapixels was enough resolution (a7R3) or that 10 FPS was fast enough (A9) when coupled with a very similar focus system to the flagship A9?  While I do value the higher resolution of the a7R3 for my own kit, I would personally say that 10 frames per second is plenty for me, and I would probably opt for an a73 for sports and wildlife work over an A9. That’s a potential conundrum for Sony, who may cannibalize sales of their other models by those who look at the a73 and conclude that it is “enough”. I suspect this is a calculated risk by Sony, though, who view the a73 as the vehicle for getting a lot of Canon and Nikon shooters on the fence to make the jump to Sony. And from the buzz that I’m hearing I think they may have gotten it right.  At the same time, after spending a lot of time with the a73, I feel like I could write a similar article to why people might choose a Sony a73 over an a7R3.

On paper, the Sony a73 is one of the most well-rounded full frame options out there and has an amazing price-to-performance ratio, but how does it hold up in real life? Let’s find out together…

Prefer to watch your reviews? Here’s my final verdict on the camera:

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Build and Design

The best way to interactively see the build and design along with comparisons to the a7R3 is to watch this video.

The Sony a73 is instantly familiar to those who have used the Sony A9 or a7R3. It looks and feels nearly identical to the a7R3, and, in fact, weighs only 7 grams less (650 vs 657g, or 1.43 lbs vs 1.45 lbs). The physical dimensions are in fact identical, with the Width xHeight x Depth ratio at 126.9 x 95.6 x 73.7mm (5 x 3.8 x 2.9”). There are only a couple of external cues that separate the two models 1) the small badge on the front right of the camera (the a73 says, appropriately, a7III, while the a7R3 says, somewhat oddly, just a7R with no mention of the series Mark) and 2) the mode dial on top of the camera is slightly different. The mode dial on the a73 is missing the lock button, has one less custom mode option (2 rather than 3, though it adds a “scene” option), and has a slightly cheaper finish with letters printed rather than etched.

It is likely only those with high attention to detail that would ever note these physical differences.

One of the single biggest criticisms of the a72 was the battery life. It shared the NP-FW50 battery pack that the smaller a6300/a6500 cameras use, and battery life was, well, abysmal. I own an a6500 and, as I use it most often for shooting video, I am shocked by the fact that it seems to almost always need a fresh battery. Battery life is terrible. It wasn’t uncommon for batteries to be “exhausted” (as the camera says) before the memory card was filled when shooting 4K video. The shift to the NP-FZ100 battery pack has really, really turned a fundamental weakness in Sony’s mirrorless cameras into a real strength. The FZ100 battery packs are fantastic, and more than double the capacity of the NP-FW50, which has a 1020mAh capacity compared to the 2280mAh capacity of the FZ100 battery. I shot a wedding a few weeks ago with the a7R3 along with a Canon 5D Mark IV, and the battery on the Canon died long before the battery on the a7R3 did. In the a73 the battery rating goes even higher and is rated at 710 images per charge as opposed to 650 on the a7R3. I have found that the a7R3 routinely exceeds the rated battery life, and, beyond that, it also handles shooting video much better. All signs point to the a73 being even better. After my first 3-4 days with the camera (which included all the setting up of controls and getting familiar with the camera plus shooting with it), I was still at 86% battery life.  In fact, after having had the a73 in hand for a month with daily shooting and occasional video work, I had recharged the battery once after the initial charge!

The improved battery life has definitely made the a73 a much more “livable” camera. One thing I did note when unpacking the a73 is that, unlike the a7R3, it does not come with a standalone battery charger. It has an AC adapter so that you can use the USB port on the camera for direct charge, but your only default charging option is in camera. I like the fact that Sony batteries can be charged in camera (as a backup), but that is not my preferred charging method. The Sony BC-QZ1 battery charger is somewhat pricey, but fortunately there are some good charging options from Watson that work fine and at a much cheaper price point.

On the left side of the camera behind one of the covered ports is one other physical difference; the a7R3 has a flash sync port (PC) that the a73 lacks. I personally haven’t used a flash sync cord in years, as I tend to use wireless triggers instead, but that might be an important feature to you. Otherwise the connectivity is the same, with a 1/8th” headphone jack, 1/8th” microphone jack, HDMI D (Micro), Micro USB, and USB 3.0/ USB Type-C ports. Wireless connections include WiFi, NFC, and Bluetooth.  Just know that Sony’s PlayMemories Mobile app is still really rough and limited and has seen little development in the last few years.  You can’t even change the focus point from the mobile app.

On the note of Bluetooth: the primary application for Bluetooth is for the camera to sync with your phone to provide geotagging for your images. This utilizes the PlayMemories Mobile app. As I noted in my a7R3 review, I strongly prefer the built-in GPS options of Canon cameras. It works much more reliably with internal GPS, and I have found trying to geotag on the a6500, several A7RIII bodies, and now this a73 to be a somewhat fiddly process that produces inconsistent results. Sometimes it stays connected, sometimes it doesn’t. I would prefer that Sony move to an embedded GPS solution in the future, particularly now that they seem to have the battery life issue solved.

I noted previously that Sony has chosen not to give the a73 the improved viewfinder found in the a7R3 and a9, so it has an OLED viewfinder with 2,360k dots of resolution and a 60fps refresh rate. The higher end models have a 3,686k OLED with a refresh rate that is twice as high (120fps), which makes for a more engaging experience at all times and a much better manual focus lens experience due to the increased clarity when magnifying the image in the viewfinder. When you go from the a7R3 to the a73 it is a bit like feeling as if you have forgotten your glasses and don’t see things quite as well. This does make for a less enjoyable shooting experience in some ways, though if you’ve never experienced the higher resolution viewfinder you may not miss it.

The LCD is also higher resolution on the a7R3, with a 1440k dot resolution compared to the 921k dot resolution of the a73. While I miss the higher resolution in the screen and viewfinder of the a73, I can at least look at this as a reasonable cost-saving method and a logical way of differentiating the product lines.

Since the bodies are essentially identical, the strengths and weaknesses of the a7R3 are essentially all true here as well. I find that my pinky still has no place to go when gripping the A73. Sony actually sells a grip extension to help solve this problem – the GP-X1EM. It essentially has one purpose – to add a little more length to the grip. Ironic to pay an additional $115 to make the camera bigger! Another option is to add a battery grip, which does have the added benefit of doubling the potential battery life as well as providing some vertical controls. The VG-C3EM runs around $350.

One unfortunate trend that seems to continue from the a7R3 to the a73 is an issue with the sensor quickly collecting dust. I noted a dust spot in some of my images within hours of receiving the camera, and there had only been one lens mount! Plan to keep a blower on hand to help with this issue

There are a few key ergonomic improvements as well inherited from the a7R3 (in turn inherited from the a9). The first is just a basic improvement of the tactile quality of the switches, dials, and buttons themselves. Everything feels a little more premium; more precise. Another improvement is in the placement of the video record button, which is now just to the right of the viewfinder rather than off on the side of the camera. The most important improvement, however, is the addition of a thumbstick above the rotary wheel on the back that is similar that found on the better DSLRs. It makes a huge difference in navigating menus and images during playback, changing settings, and selecting focus positions.

The ergonomics of the a73 will be either an improvement or a disappointment depending on a couple of things. The first is whether you are upgrading from an earlier Sony body (where things will feel like a definite improvement) or coming over from a DSLR (where you might be a little disappointed). The second factor is how comfortable you are in customizing your camera. The strength of Sony cameras is the ability to map a lot of functions to the physical control point of your choice (buttons, wheels, etc…) I don’t enjoy shooting Sony cameras out of the box, but once I get them “set up” to my preference, my ergonomic experience vastly improves.

The same is true to the menu options. Sony’s menus have long been panned as being somewhat unintuitive. What helps this (a lot) on the a73 is that you can customize your “My Menu” to put the settings you most often need to access in an easy location that is ordered according to your own logic.

The combination of being able to customize menus and physical controls goes a long way towards improving the ergonomic experience of the a73, though it probably will take some trial and error until you find what combination works best for you. By this point, I personally have a go-to arrangement that I can set up quickly, and it is worth noting that Sony does allow you to save a configuration to an SD card so that you can transfer it. There’s no doubt that ergonomics are improved over earlier Sony cameras, however, and the improved feel of the switches and dials makes everything more user friendly. I should also note that having a dedicated dial for Exposure Value compensation (+/-3 EV) is one of the key advantages of Sony mirrorless over many DSLRs that I’ve used.

Unfortunately there is still one glaring ergonomic issue that, frankly, boggles my mind. Sony continues to have the most half-baked touchscreen integration of any the true competitors, and lags far behind the touchscreens in the most basic of Canon’s DSLRs or mirrorless cameras. You can’t use the touchscreen to navigate menus, to navigate images during playback, to change settings, or to touch to focus during stills shooting or to release the shutter. The last point is a bit puzzling, as you can touch to focus during video recording. The amount of things you can do is pretty limited, though, thankfully, you can use your finger on the touchscreen to move focus around while your eye is pressed up to the viewfinder. You can also touch the screen to select a focus point when using the LCD screen, though this will not trigger focus. What I find irritating is that there is no question that Sony is capable of doing better. I particularly find the lack of navigation ability via the touchscreen irritating. I love to pull up Canon’s Q Menu (FN on a Sony) and make quick changes with the touchscreen. Sony’s FN menu functions similarly, though you have to do all your navigation there the old-fashioned way.

I keep hoping the next Sony body I try will be the one where they get the touchscreen right, but unfortunately the a73 is not that body.

For better or worse, the a73 gets a similar degree of weather sealing to the a7R3. This makes sense as it is essentially the same outer shell. Tests have shown that while the sealing on a good part of the body is fairly good, the bottom plate has little sealing. Don’t let your camera sit in water…or there might be an issue. Weather sealing doesn’t appear to be at the level of the better DSLRs, which is logical when you consider how much is packed into the compact body of these E mount mirrorless cameras. My experience is that the camera does fine in somewhat inclement conditions, but you need to exercise some caution in extreme situations to protect your investment.

Ultimately I find the physical design of the camera to be good, though if you have larger hands you may find that smaller body is a disadvantage compared to a DSLR.

Sony a73 Sensor Performance

The primary means by which Sony separates the a73 from the a7R3 is found in what the “R” stands for – resolution. The A7 III has 24.2 megapixels while the A7R III has 42.4 megapixels. This gives the a73 a 6000 x 4000 pixel resolution, which many users will find plenty for their applications. Both models include a BSI structure which gathers more light than conventional sensors and a front-end LSI chip to improve the readout and processing speed of the cameras. Both cameras record 14-bit RAW with uncompressed or compressed options.

For my own purposes there is one significant disadvantage to the a73 when compared to the a7R3, and that is in APS-C/crop mode. For video this presents no problem, but when shooting stills it means that you are only getting a 10 MP APS-C mode instead of the much more useful 18 MP APS-C mode of the a7R3. On the a7R3 you are getting 75% of the resolution of, say, the a6500, but with all the sensor advantages of the a7R3. It produces really nice results. On the a73 you are getting less than 42% of the a6500’s resolution in APS-C mode, and while there are applications for this, I personally found that the images lacked the kind of detail I’m accustomed to seeing.

At the same time, however, there are definitely some advantages for a sensor that is not impeded by having to carry the “weight” of such high resolution. We will explore some of those advantages in the following sections.

Dynamic Range

Dynamic range has become one those topics debated ad nauseum on photography forums and harped on by certain reviewers to the place where some perspective has been lost on the topic. It has become on the key “stats” where brand fanboys either push their brand or bash another. At the same time, as a person who gets a chance to use most current gear, and one who has used the current best from Canon (5D Mark IV), Nikon (D850), and Sony (a7R3) along with older cameras, I can definitely say that there are a number of situations where improved dynamic range gives the photographer (and particularly the post-processor) more latitude to fulfill their vision. This could be in the ability to recover a blown-out sky or shadowed area as a landscape photographer or the ability to balance a foreground subject with a background or sky for portrait photographers.

I have found with each of these cameras that I bracket exposures for exposure blending/HDR less often, as it is often possible to get the result I want out of a single exposure. Dynamic range is the range of visible light that a sensor can record, and the Sony a7R3 boasts a rated 15 stops of dynamic range, though this figure is at a standardized 8 MP downsampling (this is the DXO approach). While this useful for standardizing test results, note that in most practical situations (at a native pixel level) that dynamic range is 13.6 stops at a pixel level (the D850 is rated at 13.7 stops). It is notable that Sony has managed to improve this figure from the a7R2’s 13.2 stops, showing a significant improvement of near ½ stop. At the standardized level the Canon 5D Mark IV has a 13.6 stop rating, which is little over a stop behind the D850 and a7R3.

DXO ranked the Sony a73 with an identical score to the a7R3, but in real world tests, I found that the full picture actually favored the a73. Check out this video to see the details.

What I found when purposefully underexposing by one, two, three, and four stops and then adding that exposure back in post is that the a7R3 and a73 produced very similar results through three stops, but the four-stop recovery showed cleaner results in the shadows for the a73 (even when downsampling the a7R3 result). Furthermore, while the a7R3 shows a tendency to push towards a green tint when pushed to the limit, the a73 remains impressively neutral, with no color casts of any kind. This was the best shadow recovery that I’ve seen (right on par with the Nikon D850). Like the D850, the a73 seems to retain a little more “brightness” in the image when pushed compared to the a7R3.

When I overexposed by one, two, three, and four stops and reduced that exposure in post, I found little difference between the two Sony models. The typical trend is that modern cameras are better at recovering shadows than highlights, and that remains the case here. One can recover two stops perfectly, while three stops will produce some minor “hot spots” in the brightest area of the image. Four stops is pretty much a mess, though, with “recovered” areas not looking overly credible.

Bottom line is that the a73 ranks right there with the very best models on the market in its dynamic range performance.  Here’s a look at the latitude you have to recover a real image from either severe under or overexposure:

Whenever you talk about dynamic range, you invariably ignite the debate over its importance, with some arguing that “good photographers” don’t need it, while others that say that cameras without a top score in this area are “garbage”. For me, however, I don’t need good dynamic range because I “blow shots” and under or overexpose, but I do need good dynamic range because a lot of things that I shoot (from landscapes to portraits) require some latitude when processing to create the best results. Having good dynamic range allows me to recover shadows in forest areas, for example, while still having a nicely exposed sky. It enables me to raise lighting on people’s faces when using available light and balance the exposure with the background. 

At the same time, however, we have reached a point where you can overdo shadow and highlight recovery and create images that have a somewhat cartoonish, bad-HDR-type look like this image:

I would always rather have more than what I need, but it is important to not abuse images in post-processing.

ISO Performance

The A7 III has a 100-51200 native range with extended levels that go as low as 50 and as high as 204800. The A7R III goes up to 32000 (native) and 102400 (extended).

Is the extra “headroom” warranted? I suggest that you watch this video to get the full picture:

I had previously compared the top models on the market in their ISO performance, but I focused on the a7R3 for this comparison, as it was the previous best of bunch.

Was. As in past tense.

The a73 most certainly leaves the a7R3 in the dust, producing the best results at higher ISO settings that I’ve ever seen. While I’m shocked to say it, I would have no hesitation in using ISO 51,200 for event work on the a73.

Where it surpasses the a7R3 is in its completely lack of color banding or cast when pushed to the limits. The a7R3 tends to skew towards a green tint, while the a73 remains impressively neutral. In fact, the color fidelity at higher ISO settings is fantastic, as is the fact that contrast remains strong. You can very faintly see some green and magenta noise at ISO 51,200 in shadow areas, but it is minimal. This is a camera that is clearly tuned for work at higher ISO settings.

While noise does increase at higher ISO levels, it remains fine and non-destructive on a global level. You can see it, but it doesn’t ruin the image.

What also stood out to me is how much brighter the a73’s image is even with all other settings equalized (lens, settings, lighting). When I look at the histograms I can see a clear shift to the right (darker) with the a7R3’s image. It’s not significant (about a third stop), but it is noticeable.

In my experience the Sony a73 is the new low light king.

Resolution

The Sony a73 lags behind the a7R3 in the resolution category by a wide margin, and, as mentioned, the greatest impact of that is felt in the APS-C (crop) mode. On the a7R3 I feel like using APS-C lens in crop mode (or even using the crop mode for a different framing when shooting events) is a worthy endeavor. I don’t feel that way with the a73.

But I also feel that the a73’s resolution is at a sweet spot for a lot of things, including things likes events and weddings. The a7R3’s resolution is overkill in those settings. I find the images out of the a73 to have great detail, and their smaller size makes them snappy to work with in post. I do feel like Sony is squeezing the most out of this sensor in terms of resolution.

You do have the option of shooting either compressed or uncompressed RAW images (the difference is only noticeable in the most demanding of situations), but you don’t have anything like MRAW or SRAW resolution options where you can still get a RAW file at a smaller resolution. This is far less of an issue than with the Sony a7R3, however, as the resolution is already at a reasonable area. 24MP is probably plenty for most shooters in most situations.

Color Science

I gave the a7R3 some criticism for its color science, which I felt lagged behind that of the models like the Canon 5D Mark IV. I continue to feel that Canon’s color is easier to play with in post, while Sony color can sometimes get “extreme” very quickly. At the same time, however, I do think that Sony has continued the processing of refining their color science, and I think the a73 has a little less of the green/yellow bias that I saw on the a7R3.  I don’t think the gap between it and Canon is significant anymore. As previously noted, the a73 does a better job when pressed to its limits in retaining neutral colors, which tells me that the color science is a little better there as well.

When I directly compared the a73 and a7R3 with equal settings, color balance, profile, and the same lens (the impressive new Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 RXD), I found the a73 delivered more natural skintones, without the somewhat sallow, yellowish tint that I’ve seen with other Sony bodies.

I’m also finding skin tones a little more natural (less yellow/sallow), and the custom profiles I made for the a7R3 overdo the addition of reds and blues into the skin, which is another indicator that they are already better represented there. This example was one where I played with the color a bit and found natural (and accurate) skin tones easy to produce. I used the Sony/Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.4 for this shot, which helps in that is a lens with excellent, neutral Zeiss color.

One final boost (at least for my workflow), is that Adobe has redone their color profile structure in Lightroom and ACR, and I’m finding these new profiles work better with Sony color science.  Here’s some “people shots” that show the progress in skin tone rendering.

I’m encouraged by what I perceive as progress towards improved color science from Sony cameras

Check out the image galleries to really get a sense of what this camera can do with a variety of lenses!

a73 Autofocus

When I first heard some suggest that the a73 would have a BETTER autofocus system than the a7R3, I initially rejected the notion. “How could that be?”, I reasoned, as the a7R3 is still very new and costs nearly 60% more than the a73.

But it’s true. This video episode details the differences between the two.

It seems that while Sony did amazing work in packaging a fantastic sensor with extreme resolution into an extremely versatile camera with the a7R3, there were limits to what the processor could keep up with. The a73 is not saddled with the added burden of that extreme resolution, leaving Sony with the ability to swing for the fences with its AF system. What we got is probably 95%+ of the flagship Sony a9’s autofocus system. Here’s a look at a few of the highlights of where it trumps the AF system of the a7R3:

  • 693 Phase Detect Points vs 399
  • 93% Coverage vs 68%
  • Both with 425 Contrast Detection Points

So yes, it has nearly 300 more Phase Detect points which results in nearly the whole image frame being covering with focus points.  The first image here shows the phase detect coverage of a73, the second the a7R3, and finally the Contrast Detection points they both share.

You can, essentially, focus anywhere. This just embarrasses the relatively puny area of coverage of the Canon 6D Mark II, which covers only 39% of the width and 30% of the height. Ouch!

And yes, in real world shooting I could see a difference. I had already found the focus system quite excellent in the a7R3, but the a73 works just a little bit better.

First of all, let’s highlight one of Sony’s proprietary technologies – Eye AF. When Eye AF is engaged it seeks to focus on the most important area to be in focus when shooting humans or animals – the eye. Eye AF works very well (even with many adapted lenses) and enables quick focus on the subject’s eyes…wherever they happen to be in the frame. This has several real-world benefits. One is that you spend less time trying to get a focus point where you want, enabling you to move more swiftly in a portrait session…or maybe get a shot in an event setting that you might have otherwise missed. It also provides more accuracy with wide aperture lenses in “outer points” than what I’m accustomed to seeing. Eye AF works better with a wider variety of lenses than I’ve ever seen.

Even when not using Eye AF, the focus system is excellent at picking up faces and tracking them, making autofocus often more intuitive. I enjoy being able to touch the LCD screen while using the viewfinder to override focus and slide the “flexible spot” AF point wherever I want it. For me mapping this to the right side of the screen and selecting “relative” in the menu results in the best experience for me.

The tracking abilities of the a73 are definitely improved over the a7R3. I tracked a sprinter moving towards me at top speed, and during an 82 image burst using the Sony/Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.4 (at f/2) I could not detect even ONE misfocused image! When I repeated that scenario with the a7R3, I got several front and back-focused images during that same sequence. The Planar 1.4/50mm is hardly the top sports lens out there, so that made this performance doubly impressive. It also represented the absolute best focus experience I’ve ever had with a 50mm prime (and I’ve used and reviewed MANY of them!).

When trying to track with non-native glass and various adapters (including the Metabones Fifth Generation, Sigma MC-11, Vello EF to E adapter, and the new Commlite High Speed EF to E adapter), I got mixed results. When shooting single shots or short bursts I actually saw excellent results with various adapted lenses (including the Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II, Tamron 70-210mm f/4 VC, and Tamron SP 85mm f/1.8 VC). When I attempted a sustained burst like the scenario I describe above, however, I found that the lens just stopped focusing even though the camera continued to hammer out frame after frame. The plane of focus just fell further and further behind.

Some have reported that Sony only supports 3 FPS (Low Speed Drive Mode) with continuous AF with adapted lenses.

Fortunately, when shooting birds in flight (and primarily panning), I got much better results.

Focus accuracy with adapted lenses was downright excellent (exceeding what I achieve on their native DSLRs), and while focus speed varies from lens to lens, I felt that adapting lenses is an increasingly successful endeavor. The very fact that you can adapt Canon EF mount lenses and use them successfully is a key advantage for Sony. Still, if you want to do critical work for sports or wildlife, I do think that using native lenses is going to produce the best result. Unfortunately, Sony still has a lot of work to do in providing more options for both consumer grade and professional grade telephoto options.

The a73’s ability to customize button functionality means that you can map key focus-related menu items to physical buttons (including Eye AF), which further aids ergonomics. If shooting with a native Sony lens (one with the AF Hold button) you can even map something like Eye AF to it.

One other interesting feature is the a73’s Silent Shutter mode, which, combined with the whisper quiet focus of lenses like the FE 24-105mm f/4 G OSS or the new Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 Di III RXD, results in such a silent operation that the only indication of a photo having been taken is the writing of the file to the card. This is pretty huge for events or quiet venues, allowing you to take photos in a completely unobtrusive fashion. There are a few quirks with this, however, including the fact that it doesn’t work with the anti-flicker mode (which helps get even lighting results from lights that cycle – a common feature in many venues). It appears to be an either/or thing, which is unfortunate considering that these should be complimentary rather competing technologies.

The a73 has a truly exceptional focus system that I found a joy to use. It is fast, accurate, and flexible, and I love not having to calibrate lenses before I can expect good focus accuracy from them…even when shooting at wide apertures and far off center!

Buffer and Burst Rate

The a7R3 had taken the biggest jump in burst rate that I had ever seen in a camera line, and the a73 matches it…and some. While the a73 shares a burst rate that is up to 10 FPS with either mechanical or electronic shutter, its buffer deepens even further. It can now go to 89 RAW images, and up to 177 JPEG images. The a7R3 caps at 76 frames for either RAW or JPEG. When shooting tracking sequences, I had several situations where the a7R3 started to stutter and drop frames while the a73 showed no signs of slowing down.

Another bonus is that while you are still limited in what you can do while the camera is flushing the buffer and writing to the card, this happens much more quickly due to the smaller file sizes of the a73. I rarely found it an impediment in real-world shooting.

In some situations you can speed things by tweaking what format you are recording in and where you are writing to. You obviously want to prioritize the Slot 1 (UHS-II supported) card slot (and have a fast UHS-II card in there). Slot 2 only supports UHS-1, so, for me, that’s where I write JPEGs so that doesn’t slow me down. I like to shoot RAW + JPEG, but with the JPEGs stored on a second card to give me an automatic backup but also the alternative of grabbing JPEGs if I want them. You might get a little more speed if you were just writing to the UHS-II Slot/card.

This is an astoundingly good performance from an “entry-level” full frame camera.

Video Performance

One of the strengths of the Sony mirrorless brand for the past five years has been on the video side of things, where Sony has been far more aggressive than Canon or Nikon in introducing video features. Sony seems to have solved earlier issues that plagued video recording, including overheating and short battery life. Neither of those are an issue with the a73.

The nature of the resolution of the a73 also makes it a more natural video option than the a7R3. It has a near perfect 6K native resolution (6000×4000 pixels), which easily downsamples to a highly detailed 4K image without an “pixel-binning”. This allows for a perfect full frame readout at 24/25fps. If you want to film at 30fps, it goes to a downsampled 5K readout at a very mild 1.2x crop factor. Both formats are very, very clean and handle high ISO filming better than the a7R3.

You also have the option of shooting in the Super 35 Crop mode, which means you get the option of using lenses designed for that crop (APS-C lenses) without having vignette issues. It means that all of my lenses from the a6500 will also work on the a7R3 in Super 35 mode, which is fantastic!

A little note on Super 35: it is enabled by default, and the menu option to enable full frame mode isn’t as intuitive as what you might like. In my mind this should be a menu choice where you select between the two, but instead the menu option is essentially just turning Super 35 off, which then enables the full frame option. And even that is a little convoluted, as the default mode is “Auto” on Super 35, which is the best mode for stills (it detects whether a lens is APS-C or full frame and acts accordingly). For video, however, it’s as if that doesn’t apply any longer, and “Auto” always selects Super 35 regardless of the lens attached. So, you first have to switch Super 35/APS-C from Auto to Manual, and then turn Super 35 off. Like I said, a little more convoluted than what it should be. I personally map Super 35/Crop mode to the C1 button on Sony cameras so that I can quickly switch back and forth. I like having the option when shooting events so that I can change up framing without having to go into post (some clients want photos immediately so that they can push them out).

Things like picture profiles, S-Log2, S-Log3 and HLG gamma curves are included along with audio in & out and a clean 4:2:2 8-bit HDMI output.

The codec choices are mostly MP4 variants (XAVC-S) in a compressed IPB format that is limited to 100Mbs. 4K framerates are still limited to 24/25/30P, but you can now shoot 1080 footage up to 120P. On the codec front this is good news (compared to the Canon) for the average shooter (the footage looks great and takes up 1/5th of the space!), though it’s also a negative for the serious cinematographers who would prefer a higher bitrate, less compressed option.

Earlier Sony cameras had two main areas people complained about for video work: battery life and overheating issues. Both seem to be solved here. The new Z series battery is VASTLY improved, and for video work will give you about 3x the battery life of the older NP-FW50 packs in the a7RII. I had no issues with overheating at any time during my six-week review period.

One other ergonomic asset is that the dedicated video “record” button has moved from the somewhat awkward side position to a new location just to the right of the viewfinder on the back of the camera. The button itself is now more raised and easier to use. It’s definitely more logical, though long time Sony users will have to mentally readjust.

Sony employs a tilting screen much like the D850, which is better than the fixed screen on the 5D Mark IV but not nearly as useful as the fully articulating screen on the Canon 6D Mark II. For video work, however, the tilting screen is useful, whether using it handheld or on a gimbal.

One issue does remain, however, and that is that Sony’s touchscreen is still rather lackluster. Beyond this, the “touch-to-focus” selection box is extremely small and a sort of grey color that seems to disappear, making it hard to know where the focus point is. The touchscreen isn’t as responsive as that on the 5D Mark IV, thus selecting a point of focus in general is a much poorer experience in general.

On a positive note, however, Sony’s face tracking during video is much improved. I still find Canon’s industry-leading DPAF a hair better, but the a73’s face tracking and smoothness of Servo AF during video is the closest I’ve seen to. It is miles ahead of the rather poor tracking capabilities of the Nikon D850.

Sony’s EVF has an extra degree of usefulness when recording video, as you can playback video clips not only on the screen but on the viewfinder. I find this very useful if I’m recording in bright, sunny conditions where it’s difficult to see anything on the LCD screen. I can get better feedback on the levels of my footage that way.

Sony’s built in 5 axis Steady Shot OSS is undoubtedly useful, as it applies equally to whatever lens you may have mounted for video. I think Sony’s IBIS works a little better for stills than video, though, and your best results will come from using a gimbal assembly of some kind.

I seriously doubt any hybrid body does as a good of job for both photos and video than the a73. It is impressive!

Conclusion

I was still in Sony a7R3 mode when the a73 was announced, and I wondered at the timing of Sony’s announcement. I was also more excited about the a7R3 because of it’s huge improvements along with the fantastic resolution. I went into this review with no interest in owning an a73 for myself, but, having now spent some serious time with one, I have reconsidered. I’m seriously considering adding the a73 to my kit, selling the a6500, and just using the crop mode on the a7R3 when testing APS-C glass. I can easily see the benefits of having the a73 for 1) shooting events, where the 24MP resolution and amazing low light performance makes it a top choice and 2) shooting action, where having incredibly high resolution is less important. In many ways it is a complimentary camera to the a7R3. I have only a few complaints: I miss the higher resolution EVF on the a7R3, find the APS-C mode less useful, and continue to be seriously disappointed in Sony touchscreens. And that’s about as much negative as I can come up with. The DSLR vs Mirrorless debate will continue, but regardless of what side of the fence you land, this is a great camera. Sony swung for the fences with the new Sony a73, and I think they connected.

Pros:

  • Great focus system that is easily the best in class
  • Great price-to-performance ratio
  • Awesome battery life
  • Improved color science
  • Incredible low light (high ISO) performance
  • Excellent dynamic range
  • Excellent frame rate and buffer depth
  • Solid In Body Image Stabilization
  • Outstanding video performance

Cons:

  • APS-C mode is much less useful than a7R3 for stills
  • Lower resolution viewfinder makes shooting experience less enjoyable than a7R3
  • Touchscreen execution continues to be lackluster
  • Clunky GPS/smartphone implementation
  • No dedicated battery charger included
  • Still a dust magnet – plan on blowing off the sensor often!

 

Gear Used:

Sony a73 Camera: B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Ebay

Sony a7R III Camera: B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon.ca | Amazon UK  | Ebay
Peak Design Slide Lite:  Peak Design StoreB&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK
Sony a6500: B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon.ca | Amazon UK | Ebay
Peak Design Leash Strap: B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada  | Amazon UK
BenQ SW271 4K Photo Editing Monitor – B&H Photo  | Amazon | Amazon.ca | Amazon UK
Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud 1-Year Subscription
Alien Skin Exposure X2 (Use Code “dustinabbott” to get 10% anything and everything)

Purchasing your gear through B&H and these links helps fund this website and keeps the articles coming. You can also make a donation here if you would like.  Visit my Amazon page for some of my gear of choice! Thank you for your support.

B&H Logo

Great News! I can now offer a 5% discount on all purchases at Amplis Foto, Canada’s Leading Photographic Supplier. Please enter discount code: AMPLIS52018DA in your cart. It is good for everything in your cart, and is stackable with other coupons, too! It will take 5% off your entire order! Proceeds go towards keeping this site going and providing you with new reviews!

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Keywords: Sony a7III, Sony a73, Sony, Canon, Sony a73 Review, Sony a7 iii review, Sigma FE, Sigma, ART, FE, Dustin Abbott, Review, Sony A7R3, Sony A9, MC-11, Sample Images, Video Test, Autofocus test, Real World, Hands On, ISO, Dynamic Range, Resolution, Tracking, Video, Sony Alpha, ILCE7M3

DISCLAIMER: This article and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Sony a73 Image Galleries

Dustin Abbott

April 27th, 2018


The Sony a73 is the camera that everyone is talking about!  Sony has swung for the fences with this camera, packing a lot of features into a (barely) sub-$2000 body.  Where Canon has chosen to intentionally cripple cameras like the 6D series to “protect” its higher lines, Sony has chosen resolution as the primary differentiation between the Sony a7R3 (42 MP)and the a73 (24 MP).  There are a few other differences, but there’s no questioning that the a73 is a fully featured, extremely versatile camera.  It benefits from the ergonomic improvements to the Sony a9 and a7R3, has a great focus system (most of what’s in the top-of-the-line a9), and has great image quality.  I’ll delve into the differences between it and the a7R3 more fully in my review so that you can make an educated choice about which is the camera for you.  In the meantime, enjoy all the images that I’ll be adding to these galleries during my review!

Images of the Sony a73

Images taken with the Sony a73 and Native Lenses

Images taken with the Sony a73 and Adapted Lenses

 

Sony a73 Camera: B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK | Ebay   
Peak Design Slide Lite:  Peak Design StoreB&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK
Sigma MC-11 Adapter:  B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon Canada | Amazon UK
Venus Optics Laowa 15mm f/2:
B&H Photo | Amazon | Amazon.ca | Amplis Foto (use code AMPLIS52018DA to get 5% off | Amazon UK
BenQ SW271 4K Photo Editing Monitor –
B&H Photo  | Amazon | Amazon.ca | Amazon UK
Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud 1-Year Subscription
Alien Skin Exposure X2 (Use Code “dustinabbott” to get 10% anything and everything)

Purchasing your gear through B&H and these links helps fund this website and keeps the articles coming. You can also make a donation here if you would like.  Visit my Amazon page for some of my gear of choice! Thank you for your support.

B&H Logo

Great News! I can now offer a 5% discount on all purchases at Amplis Foto, Canada’s Leading Photographic Supplier. Please enter discount code: AMPLIS52018DA in your cart. It is good for everything in your cart, and is stackable with other coupons, too! It will take 5% off your entire order! Proceeds go towards keeping this site going and providing you with new reviews!

Check me out on:  My Patreon:  | Google+: | Facebook: | Twitter: | Flickr: | 500px: | Sign Up for My Newsletter :




 

Keywords: Sony a7III, Sony a73, Sony, Canon, Sony a73 Review, Sony a7 iii review, Sigma FE, Sigma, ART, FE, Dustin Abbott, Review, Sony A7R3, Sony A9, MC-11, Sample Images, Video Test, Autofocus test, Real World, Hands On, ISO, Dynamic Range, Resolution, Tracking, Video, Sony Alpha, ILCE7M3

DISCLAIMER: This article and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.