The Amazing Sony A1/A7/A9/APS-C & Anything else welcome Mega Thread!

.... and the slower focusing and slight shutter delay on the A7R does exactly the same for me.

Simply a matter of knowing the limitations of the cameras and working within them.
 
david357 said:
.... and the slower focusing and slight shutter delay on the A7R does exactly the same for me.

Simply a matter of knowing the limitations of the cameras and working within them.
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Yea its s***. Will wait till they iron out the issues in the a7r2
 
I also will let the early adopters find the problems before I commit, but I do intend to purchase.
 
Just got back from a rather lovely trip to Thailand with my A7 and 35mm f2.8 and of course my GF too :D

Things I learned...
- I can live with the 35mm f2.8 but it would be very nice if I could have a 35mm of similar bulk and weight and optical quality and f1.8 but that may not be possible :D
- ETTR sometimes isn't a great idea in such strong light. On some days even when it didn't seem that sunny there was quite a lot of glare and if tempted to ETTR it's easy to blow the highlights.
- Having blinking blown highlights in a full EVF/screen image playback as per my Panasonics would be nice instead of having to scroll through the display options and ending up with a teeny tiny image with blinkies.

I also learned that the monkeys down the road from GF's family are vicious little sods.

The last "FF" camera I had and used in Asia's strong light was a 5D and the A7 crushes it and with not a dust bunny in sight.

No dust bunnies but the night before the trip I check the A7 and was disappointed to see a hot pixel in the EVF. It was invisible at wide apertures in good light but at smaller apertures in poor light it glowed and was obvious. I assume it was in the EVF and not on the sensor as it didn't show up in pictures, anyway... annoying but hey-ho... but on the last night in Thailand it vanished. I wonder if the A7 realised it was there and mapped it out or maybe it burned out??? Whatever happened it was there and then it wasn't. Never had a hot pixel in the EVF of any other camera but I suppose it happens.

Thailand...









 
Rumor site links to DPR article reporting good low light focusing...

"The a7R II, when paired with a bright lens, can match or exceed the performance of the best DSLRs with respect to low-light AF ability."

Rumor site...
http://www.sonyalpharumors.com/dpre...-dslr-low-light-af-performance/#disqus_thread

DPR article direct...
http://www.dpreview.com/articles/68...n-match-or-beat-dslr-low-light-af-performance

What they say...
"The a7R II, when paired with a bright lens, can match or exceed the performance of the best DSLRs with respect to low-light AF ability. And we haven’t even shared the most exciting thing with you yet: although in this video we show you results at -2EV, our ‘extinction’ tests measured -3EV as the failing point of phase-detection with the a7R II + 35mm F1.4 combo. That’s very dark, and represents potentially game-changing performance, in our opinion.4"

That's nice :D

One comment that keeps cropping up is that the A7rII is too expensive and should be much cheaper. Why? Aren't the high MP count Canon DSLR's much more expensive?
Quick check at Wex...
A7rII = £2,599.
5DS = £2,999.
5DS R = £3,199.

I suppose I'm missing something.
 
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woof woof said:
Rumor site links to DPR article reporting good low light focusing...

Rumor site...
http://www.sonyalpharumors.com/dpre...-dslr-low-light-af-performance/#disqus_thread

DPR article direct...
http://www.dpreview.com/articles/68...n-match-or-beat-dslr-low-light-af-performance

What they say...
"The a7R II, when paired with a bright lens, can match or exceed the performance of the best DSLRs with respect to low-light AF ability. And we haven’t even shared the most exciting thing with you yet: although in this video we show you results at -2EV, our ‘extinction’ tests measured -3EV as the failing point of phase-detection with the a7R II + 35mm F1.4 combo. That’s very dark, and represents potentially game-changing performance, in our opinion.4"

That's nice :D

One comment that keeps cropping up is that the A7rII is too expensive and should be much cheaper. Why? Aren't the high MP count Canon DSLR's much more expensive?
Quick check at Wex...
A7rII = £2,599.
5DS = £2,999.
5DS R = £3,199.

I suppose I'm missing something.
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Yea your missing lenses
 
jonneymendoza said:
Yea your missing lenses
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In the sense that I buy dodgy and slightly sticky lens magazines off the top shelf in sleazy news agents?

Oh, you mean that the Sony lenses are expensive?

As I've said before... Yes. They are but I think Sony / Zeiss are aiming a little higher than 18-50mm f3.5-5.6 kit lenses. I think that if you compare lenses that are aiming to be rather good (if they actually are or not doesn't really come into it...) I think that the pricing starts to look a little more understandable. IMVHO.
 
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chrism_scotland said:
Double cashback on the A7ii is mighty tempting!
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Annoying just claimed my cash back on the a7.
Anyone else have issues with Sony crediting the cash back? They denied my jessops invoice was actually an invoice..I had to really kick up a fuss to get the money.
 
Tried to post a nice sharp 100% crop but Photobucket killed it so no point.
 
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addicknchips said:
Annoying just claimed my cash back on the a7.
Anyone else have issues with Sony crediting the cash back? They denied my jessops invoice was actually an invoice..I had to really kick up a fuss to get the money.
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That is annoying, the the A7 (&28-70) at only £770 is a steal
 
chrism_scotland said:
That is annoying, the the A7 (&28-70) at only £770 is a steal
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Wouldn't have any use for that lens myself personally - have been spoilt with the zeiss 55 1.8.
But yes it's a good deal. I wonder how many years until the a7rii gets some cash back on the go lol
 
addicknchips said:
Wouldn't have any use for that lens myself personally - have been spoilt with the zeiss 55 1.8.
But yes it's a good deal. I wonder how many years until the a7rii gets some cash back on the go lol
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I still haven't used my 28-70mm outside the house and I'm beginning to wonder why I bought it but I do think that it's an under rated and actually quite good lens. Certainly it's better than the Canon or Nikon "kit" lenses I've owned/used.

An A7+28-70mm has sold (I think...) in the for sale section for £515. That's very cheap for what it is IMVHO.
 
woof woof said:
I still haven't used my 28-70mm outside the house and I'm beginning to wonder why I bought it but I do think that it's an under rated and actually quite good lens. Certainly it's better than the Canon or Nikon "kit" lenses I've owned/used.

An A7+28-70mm has sold (I think...) in the for sale section for £515. That's very cheap for what it is IMVHO.
Click to expand...

I noticed that one Alan, very cheap!!! The 28-70 with the A7 seems a good deal (Around an extra £150) but its certainly not worth the extra £300 odd with the A7ii...
 
This is mildly interesting... a comparison of A7rII and A7 prints at 24 and 36"...

http://admiringlight.com/blog/sony-a7r-ii-vs-a7-ii-print-test/

He sez...

"In both sets of prints, upon close examination, the resolution of the A7R II was clearly visible. Everything seemed a bit sharper, with simply finer detail. However, with the 24″ print samples, the prints became indistinguishable to my eye when the viewing distance extended to around 18″. That’s it. Just 18″ away, and the extra detail in the print became essentially invisible. Since a 24″ print would need you to back up further than 18″ to see the whole print, at normal viewing distances the prints are indistinguishable...

The same is true for the 36″ print samples. Both prints looked fine, but the A7R II print was just a bit sharper and more detailed when viewed close up. The difference is there, but it’s not enormous, to be honest. The distance for these to equalize was a bit further, but they became essentially indistinguishable just beyond arms length, or around 30″ away. This, again, is around the normal viewing distance for a 36″ print if you’re fairly close...

The A7R II is shaping up to be a fantastic camera, but the extra resolution may or may not be of use to you for printing, unless you print very large or really like to get up close to large prints. Where the A7R II’s extra resolution really may come in handy is when cropping. A significant crop will still yield images with greater than 24 MP, and an APS-C crop will yield 18 MP images. This means that even heavily cropped images can be printed quite large and retain a very good look to the image, where the same crop on an A7 II may limit you to, say, a 12×18″ print before the print doesn’t look quite as good. In any case, I think that most shooters, especially those who don’t print larger than around 24 inches wide, should feel good knowing that in most circumstances, the difference in final output is fairly minimal at low ISO. For high ISO, well, that will take more investigation and more time with the camera. Look forward to my full A7R II review later this month."

I've pretty much given up printing. One thing which puts me off is that my Epson R2880 seems to need at least one new ink cartridge every time I go to use it. I dread to think what an A3 print out of it costs.
 
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woof woof said:
I still haven't used my 28-70mm outside the house and I'm beginning to wonder why I bought it but I do think that it's an under rated and actually quite good lens. Certainly it's better than the Canon or Nikon "kit" lenses I've owned/used.

An A7+28-70mm has sold (I think...) in the for sale section for £515. That's very cheap for what it is IMVHO.
Click to expand...

I think you'll find that sale didn't go through, and it ended up for sale elsewhere at a different price.
 
addicknchips said:
I think you'll find that sale didn't go through, and it ended up for sale elsewhere at a different price.
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I'm not surprised, was very low, that said if the A7 + 28-70 is £770 new then £550-£600 odd probably is a reasonable used value.

I think.... I'm going to buy an A7ii this weekend, I've been thinking about it for a while anyway but the extra cashback is a nice bonus.
 
woof woof said:
- Having blinking blown highlights in a full EVF/screen image playback as per my Panasonics would be nice instead of having to scroll through the display options and ending up with a teeny tiny image with blinkies.
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Are you not describing the zebra function? Mine warns of blown highlights.
 
chrism_scotland said:
I'm not surprised, was very low, that said if the A7 + 28-70 is £770 new then £550-£600 odd probably is a reasonable used value.

I think.... I'm going to buy an A7ii this weekend, I've been thinking about it for a while anyway but the extra cashback is a nice bonus.
Click to expand...

You can buy grey for same price after cash back on the a7ii.
I've been thinking of ditching the a7 system and focusing on my Nikon gear...but then I use that 55 zeiss and can't part with it. Sounds silly, but the shutter noise on the a7 is too loud. Puts me off using the camera . I've woken my sleeping baby with it before.
 
addicknchips said:
Annoying just claimed my cash back on the a7.
Anyone else have issues with Sony crediting the cash back? They denied my jessops invoice was actually an invoice..I had to really kick up a fuss to get the money.
Click to expand...
Not here. Processed the refund form my amazon order fine. Got an email a few days later saying it was being paid into my bank account.
 
addicknchips said:
You can buy grey for same price after cash back on the a7ii.
I've been thinking of ditching the a7 system and focusing on my Nikon gear...but then I use that 55 zeiss and can't part with it. Sounds silly, but the shutter noise on the a7 is too loud. Puts me off using the camera . I've woken my sleeping baby with it before.
Click to expand...

I'd rather have UK stock than gray given the price, I keep fancying an A7 but I'll never know if it can replace my Nikon kit for my needs if I don't try one.
 
robj20 said:
Are you not describing the zebra function? Mine warns of blown highlights.
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I'm just describing the playback mode which includes blinking blown highlights rather than the zebra's. My Panasonics give a nice image which fills the display whilst the A7 has only a small image with the histograms. The A7 has three playback modes whilst the Panasonics have 5 but whilst I only need to view one with the Panasonics I need to toggle between 2 with the A7 if I want to review both a full screen image and the little image showing the blown highlights, if you follow me. It's a minor nit pick but I'd rather be able to hit the display button just once and get a full screen image including blown highlights than have to toggle between 2.

I did give zebras a brief try when I got the camera but I found it too distracting and not very accurate anyway. I might give it another go.

At home in northern England I rarely get blown highlights but in Thailand I got more than I expected which I suppose was a product of the much stronger light and glare and the additional pressure of trying to be a little quicker as I was with a group of people all wanting me to take a shot of them / this or that. Dialing in -2 stops or more of compo isn't always the answer but despite me being disapointed with the odd shot with a bit of blown sky everyone has been really happy with my shots and no one has mentioned blown highlights, but of course they wouldn't, they're normal people, unlike us :D
 
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twist said:
Id agree, if the same price, its a no brainer.

But youve had an A7?
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I did and I probably should have kept it but wasn't too keen on the grip, the A7ii redesign seems much nicer to hold. But I couldn't fault the IQ of the A7 it is basically the same as my D750.
 
chrism_scotland said:
I'm not surprised, was very low, that said if the A7 + 28-70 is £770 new then £550-£600 odd probably is a reasonable used value.

I think.... I'm going to buy an A7ii this weekend, I've been thinking about it for a while anyway but the extra cashback is a nice bonus.
Click to expand...

That sale thread didn't seem clear to me... but £770 for new is very good value IMO.

I hope you like the A7II. I really like my A7 despite my odd little occasional grumble and my keeper and happiness rate has never been higher. I'm even using AF lenses now :D
 
chrism_scotland said:
I did and I probably should have kept it but wasn't too keen on the grip, the A7ii redesign seems much nicer to hold. But I couldn't fault the IQ of the A7 it is basically the same as my D750.
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The A7ii ergonomics do look better. Im not so sure on that last comment but I guess it depends on what you shoot ;)
 
woof woof said:
That sale thread didn't seem clear to me... but £770 for new is very good value IMO.

I hope you like the A7II. I really like my A7 despite my odd little occasional grumble and my keeper and happiness rate has never been higher. I'm even using AF lenses now :D
Click to expand...

Can be had for as low as 750, total bargain. APSC price for a FF.
 
twist said:
The A7ii ergonomics do look better. Im not so sure on that last comment but I guess it depends on what you shoot ;)
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I always had the intention of buying the A7II, but after holding both - I actually prefer the A7. It's slimmer and easier/nicer to hold, although the larger grip on the II is nice. I also prefer the location of the custom buttons on the A7, on the II they're a little harder to get to (as they're angled). Add the fact that the A7 II weighs more, for not much extra in features - seemed a no brainer to go for the A7. I got mine from Amazon back in March (+ 28-70, which is the first kit lens that's actually half decent) for £800. Bargain!
 
woof woof said:
This is mildly interesting... a comparison of A7rII and A7 prints at 24 and 36"...

http://admiringlight.com/blog/sony-a7r-ii-vs-a7-ii-print-test/

He sez...

"In both sets of prints, upon close examination, the resolution of the A7R II was clearly visible. Everything seemed a bit sharper, with simply finer detail. However, with the 24″ print samples, the prints became indistinguishable to my eye when the viewing distance extended to around 18″. That’s it. Just 18″ away, and the extra detail in the print became essentially invisible. Since a 24″ print would need you to back up further than 18″ to see the whole print, at normal viewing distances the prints are indistinguishable...

The same is true for the 36″ print samples. Both prints looked fine, but the A7R II print was just a bit sharper and more detailed when viewed close up. The difference is there, but it’s not enormous, to be honest. The distance for these to equalize was a bit further, but they became essentially indistinguishable just beyond arms length, or around 30″ away. This, again, is around the normal viewing distance for a 36″ print if you’re fairly close...

The A7R II is shaping up to be a fantastic camera, but the extra resolution may or may not be of use to you for printing, unless you print very large or really like to get up close to large prints. Where the A7R II’s extra resolution really may come in handy is when cropping. A significant crop will still yield images with greater than 24 MP, and an APS-C crop will yield 18 MP images. This means that even heavily cropped images can be printed quite large and retain a very good look to the image, where the same crop on an A7 II may limit you to, say, a 12×18″ print before the print doesn’t look quite as good. In any case, I think that most shooters, especially those who don’t print larger than around 24 inches wide, should feel good knowing that in most circumstances, the difference in final output is fairly minimal at low ISO. For high ISO, well, that will take more investigation and more time with the camera. Look forward to my full A7R II review later this month."

I've pretty much given up printing. One thing which puts me off is that my Epson R2880 seems to need at least one new ink cartridge every time I go to use it. I dread to think what an A3 print out of it costs.
Click to expand...

you could see if the very effective fuji printer salesman has been in your local camera shops, ive had a few prints done at great western cameras and they have been very good, easily beating boots. clifton cameras got same printers at same time
 
pingu666 said:
you could see if the very effective fuji printer salesman has been in your local camera shops, ive had a few prints done at great western cameras and they have been very good, easily beating boots. clifton cameras got same printers at same time
Click to expand...

Apart from when testing and comparing gear I can't remember exactly when I last made a print with any eye on quality. It was probably about 2012 and happily they were very well received but my printing has dwindled to next to never and these days I just view pictures on my PC and other devices and send them around the world 2000 pixels wide and I rarely get asked for higher resolution pictures.

In fact when we redecorated a couple of years ago I took my pictures down and I've never put most of them back up as I decided I liked the minimalist look :D Most of my framed pictures are just piled up now.

I still think it's worthwhile having decent kit though rather than using a smart phone as apparently I (or rather my camera... :D) take "beautiful pictures" :D GF's family wanted a lot of pictures taken in Thailand and they're very happy with the results... at 2000 pixels wide at quality 10 rather than 12 :D
 
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