
The B&H Superstore is pleased to be hosting a live stream panel conversation about the incredible Sony a7R II Mirrorless Digital Camera. Panelists include photographers and camera experts who have had the chance to use this new full frame camera, as well as Sony and B&H representatives. For more information see our dedicated webpage concerning the August 12th, 2pm event. In preparation, we asked the founder of LearningCameras.com, Daniel Watson, a few questions regarding his experience with the a7R II.
On LearningCameras.com, you have tested the various Sony a7 models. What excites you most about the new a7R II?
The Sony a7 cameras have really been ahead of their time and, as a result, it has always felt like something was holding them back. When I tested the original A7, the lens selection was scarce and the autofocus was not the best, but the image quality from this tiny camera kept me longing for more. Thankfully, not only has Sony improved things with each iteration, they also blew us away with new abilities that pushed the market forward to a degree no one thought possible. The A7s was a prime example of this, as moonlight became the favorite lighting source for a7s owners. The a7R II is once again pushing the limits of what we thought was possible in a compact, mirrorless camera. For me, the most exciting element of the a7R II is the autofocus system. Not only did Sony manage a class-leading 399 phase-detection AF points, 25 contrast-detect points, and 45% area coverage, they also surprised us with Canon EF autofocus support, a feature so unexpected that most of us thought it was a typo and still don't quite trust it. Nothing makes me more excited than a feature that pushes the market into new territory, accomplishing what no one thought was possible.
The issue of AF speed with non-native lenses was a concern regarding the Sony a7 series. Is there hope that the a7R II has addressed this?
The a7 series has, since the beginning, suffered from a lack of lens selection, which pushed many photographers and videographers to non-native lenses. I think Sony has addressed this in two very different ways. Along with this new camera launch are no less than four new FE lenses from Sony and Zeiss, offering stunning quality with native E mounts. Sony clearly wants a7 owners to have a wide variety of native lenses at their disposal and the FE lens selection has grown exponentially over the last year. In addition, the a7R II allows non-native lenses, including Canon EF lenses, to autofocus using 399 phase-detection points. Sony has placed a very high priority on AF speed, accuracy, and coverage. Not only has Sony addressed this issue, they have potentially solved it, with a cherry on top.
What new video features does the A7R II bring with it, and can you elaborate on its ability to record internal 4K video?
The Sony a7s ushered the a7 series into the video world and, overnight, it was seen as a mainstay for videographers. Whether or not the Sony a7R II is the replacement for the a7s or merely an a7R upgrade that utilizes features of the a7s remains to be seen. What we do know is that the a7R II brings a host of new features to videographers, unseen in any a7 series camera. I mentioned AF before, but this could be as important for videographers as photographers by allowing pupil subject tracking (yes, the a7R II can track the pupil of your eye!) that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to accomplish manually. You also have an improved OLED viewfinder, a super 35mm crop mode reducing rolling shutter, and a lower native ISO of 800 for s-log2 recording. However, one of the features that has me even more excited is the 5 axis in-body stabilization, turning all of your wide-aperture primes into stabilized lenses! I can't wait to test the new Zeiss Batis 25mm f2 which will now be fully stabilized on my gimbal head.
4k is somewhat of a tricky subject. We still have limited distribution channels for 4k content, few of our customers require 4k, and many are not convinced they need it as a result. However, while 4k might have few applications in the marketplace, I contend it is invaluable for the editing process. Recorded 4k video provides a level of detail unseen with 1080p, providing better masking results, noise reduction, and the ability to crop, reframe, and stabilize in post. In other words, shoot in 4k no matter what the delivery resolution. While the a7S technically allowed this via an external recorder, the high cost and increased footprint made it far from ideal for most users. With internal 4k using XAVC S at up to 100Mbps, there is no excuse not to use it. After shooting 4k with other camera systems and with external recorders on the a7s, I maintain that internal 4k recording on the a7R II is game-changing.
The original a7R was considered the camera for landscape, interiors, product shots, and advertising, and the a7S the camera for videographers. Will the new a7R II change that dynamic?
Sensors have always had to balance between resolution, speed; low-light performance and videography further complicated this balance by placing limits on the desired resolution for a full pixel readout. While the a7s appealed to one side of the spectrum with a full pixel readout for 4k video, providing amazing video quality, this limited us to a paltry 12MP sensor but with the added benefit of increased speed and low-light performance. Compared to the stunning 36MP a7R sensor with worse low-light performance, reduced video quality, and decreased speed, Sony seemed to offer a tradeoff that many photographers and videographers were forced to choose from. Thankfully, several new technologies have almost negated the advantages of the a7s without sacrificing the features that made the a7R amazing. A new back side illuminated sensor, never seen on a full-frame camera, allows the a7RII to achieve better low-light performance, even with a slight increase in resolution! The faster camera also allows full pixel readout of the 42MP image, in addition to a super 35mm crop with no pixel binning—for the best of both worlds without sacrificing quality. And just in case that wasn't quite enough for you, the 42MP a7R II is just as fast at 5fps as the 12MP a7s and, as I mentioned, provides internal 4k recording at higher bitrates of up to 100Mbps and even offers internal image stabilization built in to the camera body. Truly, the dynamics have changed, causing both photographers and videographers alike to drool over the potential of this new camera. The last time this happened was in 2008 with the launch of the Canon 5D Mark II.
Is it possible for a camera body to be too small, in relationship to ergonomics and to balance, when used with larger lenses?
Unfortunately, the ergonomics of my hand or camera rig are slightly different than the ergonomics of my pocket or bag. And while the a7R II is not quite pocketable, Sony has really been able to reduce the size of full-frame cameras while still appealing to professional photographers and videographers who need quick access to a variety of functions. Unfortunately, wide-aperture lenses for full-frame sensors will always be large and heavy and no matter how small cameras get, lenses will forever be the thorn in their side. When I tested the original a7 and a7s, it was obvious that some ergonomics were sacrificed to achieve a smaller profile and you don't have to look further than the extremely awkward placement of the video Record button.
There are two simple ways of combating these issues; however, Sony has only implemented one of these abilities thus far. The a7 camera series has offered exceptional customization and control of virtually every button on the camera, including the four dedicated custom buttons. This allowed me to prioritize the controls I needed faster access to and customize the camera to suit my shooting style. The other feature that Sony has yet to implement is a touch screen, which also allows faster access to functions without taking up valuable hardware space on the camera body. Tripod mounting with large lenses, battery life, and front-heavy weight distribution are other sacrifices to the smaller, lighter body. There is clearly a point where ergonomics and features are sacrificed to save a fraction of an inch or a couple of ounces, and I do hope that manufacturers exercise great caution when considering camera size reductions. I was encouraged that Sony chose to increase the size of the a7R II to add inside stabilization, and hope that they continue to prioritize technology over size.
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