UKC

Has anyone had any experience with the sony alpha a7? Do the rumours that it's autofocus is too slow and it's low light ability basically rule it out for outdoor / climbing photography?

The size / weight and the full frame sensor look great, but if it can't keep up with the action then I guess it's not worth the plunge.

TY!

In reply to Pewtle:

Bought one second-hand a few months ago. Getting that sensor in such a small body for £500 was very attractive. Image quality is exceptional ( though lens dependent obviously).

You have to be careful with lens options as they are mostly expensive and large. I've got a load of quality old glass that I can use with adapters, but even tiny OM lenses double in size with the required thickness of adaptor.

The handling is not great. Menu items are confusing. I've failed to get the AF/MF switch setup in a way that works consistently. Have missed a few shots already when it refuses to AF. Having said that I've never used CAF much for climbing photography, it's always pre-focus then shoot. The problem I've found is that the lag from the electronic viewfinder means you miss the moment. I have to compose then look over the top. Battery life is very poor, especially in the cold.

Video seems great. Electronic first-curtain shutter (and no mirror obvs) is great for getting vibration free shots on a tripod.

So it depends what lenses you plan to use, and what you want to shoot with it. I think I'll stick with a proper viewfinder for action.

In reply to Adam Long:

Thanks Adam - useful advice - sounds like it might be better just to take the hit on the weight and go for a SLR, I hadn't thought of the lag issue on the electronic viewfinder.

Cheers

In reply to Pewtle:

very little difference in image quality compared with the a6000- that's why i've just bought myself the a5100 for £299 (i couldn't justify the extra for the a6000 with viewfinder)
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/sony-alpha-a6000/12

In reply to Pewtle:

surely a full frame dslr has the best low light ability or are you nitpicking brands?

In reply to malk:


Re-reading that I didn't word it very well - I was trying to say I've heard that in low light the AF becomes basically useless.

In reply to Pewtle:
>" I hadn't thought of the lag issue on the electronic viewfinder."<

There isn't a lag issue with the A7II electronic viewfinder, and which also has a stabilised sensor that makes ridiculously low light hand-held photography possible (if the subject isn't moving much of course). Supposedly, AF is much improved too though I don't know as I only ever manually focus. Its AF is probably still not comparable with the AF of the best dSLRs, but it has other advantages compared to dSLR's . Battery life is what it is, about 300-400 shots per battery, each of which is smaller than a matchbox so there's no problem carrying spares. I never related to the criticism about handling. Yep, Sony have made some gaffs most of which could be sorted by firmware revisions to bug fix (which they're a bit cr@p at doing), but for those of us who like to control our cameras entirely manually, the A7x's ergonomics are superb.

In reply to moffatross:

I guess it depends what you have used before, I find the ergonomics pretty bad. I've had better handling compacts.

Have you got a link to any info about the improved viewfinder lag, I can't find any? What I have found is that shutter lag even in manual focus is still too long to be compatible with action.

In reply to Pewtle:
I agree - auto focus at night is mostly useless.

Stops on lenses seem to be out of fashion these days, so manual focus + evf/screen with zoom is the best way of focusing in low light I have found. A decent sensor+lens combo will allow you to use bright stars for this.

In reply to Adam Long:
>"I guess it depends what you have used before, I find the ergonomics pretty bad. I've had better handling compacts."<

I've used film SLR, compact 35 mm, 110 format film, digital SLR, digital compact and mirrorless cameras. The experience and handling of the A7II is the most connected to the camera one I've had since my Oly OM-10 and Minolta X-700 days. The shutter, aperture, ISO, and focus controls are quick to hand and the EVF actually makes the experience better than a prism and ground-glass screen. But if point-and-shoot is the parameter for handling measurement, then arguably a mobile phone handles better than a discrete camera.

>"Have you got a link to any info about the improved viewfinder lag, I can't find any? What I have found is that shutter lag even in manual focus is still too long to be compatible with action."<

I said that EVF lag isn't an issue on the A7II. I have no experience with the A7 and have no idea whether it's improved or indeed whether I would also have an issue with the A7 in that respect. The thing is, you haven't really explained the problem you have except to say EVF lag (and then later, shutter lag) and as I don't find a problem with action and people shots using manual focus through the EVF, I can't relate to it. Have a look here (anything post July 2015 is A7II except for the music festival pix) for a few night shots, people shots, sports shots etc ... https://www.flickr.com/photos/88898381@N02/

P.S. I looked through the photos at your website and couldn't see any images that couldn't just as easily (in my mind) have been taken manual focus through an EVF i.e. no birding, wildlife or football stadium telephoto goal shots.

In reply to moffatross:


Well that just goes to show it's all personal - my favourite camera was an OM too, and the initial appeal of the A7 was a lot to do with the resemblance. But while the OM was an evolved design with a few simple controls and nothing more, the A7 soon turned out to be a computer in a box. I can do loads of things I don't need, but even some simple fundamentals have been missed. After several months and a lot of googling I have finally managed to set the autofocus up in a way I would expect any pro to use it (back button AF, with instant manual override available), but manual is still slow to engage and fly-by-wire (no haptic feedback). There is no way to switch between finder and screen as I'd like, no way to have a simple, uncluttered view on either. Change any basic setting, and things pop-up obscuring the view... it's like an arcade game.

Admittedly I still shoot a lot of medium and large format, so I'm used to a big piece of ground glass and a meditative compositional process. I prefer the technical info to be completely hidden until I want to check it. I'm sure EVFs will be spectacular one day but for now I prefer not to be distracted from the image by weird colours and scintillating pixellation.


For climbing, a classic shot for me is someone latching a dynamic move. I miss them every time with the A7. Looking at your flickr, I guess the snowboard kicker shots would be similar. Never had a problem with any serious camera before. I'm not sure if it's EVF lag or shutter lag, or (as I suspect) a combination of the two. I assumed at first there wouldn't be shutter lag in MF - I was wrong. 0.2 of a second is way too long to have to anticipate - it becomes a guess.

Don't get me wrong it is a camera with fantastic potential, hopefully like you I'll be getting mine up into the Scottish hills soon. And while I don't like the EVF generally it is a revelation for macro work. But overall it feels to me more like a turbo compact than a tiny DSLR.

In reply to Adam Long:
Yep, personal perspectives are funny like that, and though you might think it odd, but after many intervening years of various autofocus digital cameras, I have gone back to shooting in the same way as I did with the Olympus OM-10. All the post July 2015 photos (except the festival ones) in my flickr link were taken with 30-50 year old film SLR lenses and the A7II is a total skoosh to use them with.

Big shutter speed dial - TICK
Big exposure compensation dial (for the rare occasions the camera isn't set on M) - TICK
Big clicky aperture rings on the lenses - TICK
Big, real (not fly-by-wire) focus rings on lenses - TICK
Big ISO dial - TICK
Big, clean, bright viewfinder and system for nailing focus - TICK
Big, full frame sensor, same size as 35mm film negative - TICK
Small, lightweight body just like SLRs used to be before dSLR turned them into behemoths - TICK
And with the BIG Brucey Bonus of image stabilisation for any lens I put on it.

What more could I want for

In reply to moffatross:

I didn't realise the A7II had added a shutter speed dial. The sensor based stabilisation does look brilliant.

I agree though, old lenses are a pleasure to use on these cameras, my OM 21mm is my favourite, just a shame the adapter is as big as the lens. The Sony Zeiss 35mm I've got is sharp and small but not so enjoyable to use.