New Sony A7RII announcement

[ashwinrao1]

Dang, what a day for the camera industry?!?

Like Ric Flair, I am saying "Woooooooo"!!!!!!

 

[iiiNelson]

In terms of set up, people have wondered: why have an A7s? Well, imagine a backlit A7s sensor with the Mark II body specs? We know that's next. I would suspect high ISO's in the 1,000,000 range (imagine that headline)....

Then we'll all be wanting an A7RII/A7SII combo to cover every shooting situation....For 99%, this is all that anyone could ever want or need, other than a complementary set of smaller lenses to go with that kit.....

Hopefully a slight bump in resolution as well to something in the 16-20MP range... If so they can just kill the base model IMO.

 

[k-hawinkler]

In terms of set up, people have wondered: why have an A7s? Well, imagine a backlit A7s sensor with the Mark II body specs? We know that's next. I would suspect high ISO's in the 1,000,000 range (imagine that headline)....

Then we'll all be wanting an A7RII/A7SII combo to cover every shooting situation....For 99%, this is all that anyone could ever want or need, other than a complementary set of smaller lenses to go with that kit.....

My thoughts exactly, combined with even more resolution.

 

[k-hawinkler]

Unveiled: Sony A7R II, RX100 IV, and RX10 II | explora

Sony a7R II Alpha Mirrorless Digital Camera (a7RII Camera Body) B&H

 

[scho]

Looks like when funds allow, this will be added to my kit and then the current a7R goes in for a full spectrum upgrade.

That is exactly what I'm planning to do. Meanwhile I've sold my A7II and Olympus kit. Working now with the A7R as my main cam and a newly acquired RX1R as a travel cam.

 

[hcubell]

I'm marrying a slight enabler provided I keep it mostly in check which I mostly do.

Get it in writing with clear parameters!

 

[jlm]

what's gonna happen to all those last year's models? and should we expect to dump and upgrade yearly?

 

[hiepphotog]

In terms of set up, people have wondered: why have an A7s? Well, imagine a backlit A7s sensor with the Mark II body specs? We know that's next. I would suspect high ISO's in the 1,000,000 range (imagine that headline)....

Then we'll all be wanting an A7RII/A7SII combo to cover every shooting situation....For 99%, this is all that anyone could ever want or need, other than a complementary set of smaller lenses to go with that kit.....

LOL, you might see a whole 2MM (million) if they keep the same 12MP, considering this Mark 2 is 2 whole stops better. And yes, the A7RII/A7SII combo... I don't imagine I would upgrade for a while.

 

[hiepphotog]

what's gonna happen to all those last year's models? and should we expect to dump and upgrade yearly?

Give it to your significant other(s) . I would pass my A7s down to my kid, given it's still functioning.

 

[Vivek]

what's gonna happen to all those last year's models? and should we expect to dump and upgrade yearly?

I have a collection. One can only have so many IR, UV, Monochrome , etc converted bodies. I came up with a couple of specific applications just the other day. Normally, it would have been a luxury but in this case, puts them to use.

 

[Kolor-Pikker]

Agree no question. I wonder if the filter stack has changed also though. It may solve some of the issues. I don't any Leica glass so not a big concern for me although I would love a Leica M 18mm

Seeing as the pixel wells aren't nearly as deep down anymore, the microlenses are obviously going to have to be of a different shape too, but it's anyone's guess until someone with M glass gets their hands on this camera.

I didn't see anything related to uncompressed RAWs, I wonder if there's anything different there. Not a big deal for me, but I know some folks had issues with it the A7 series RAWs.

A roughly ~8000x5300 file is listed as using 42MB, so there's definitely compression going on, as Pentax 645D images weighed in around 50MB+ of data.

Compression seems to be Sony's weak point right now, the internal 4K is rated at 100mbps, which is a broadcast quality bitrate... for full HD. 4K needs at least 300~400mbps to be considered "master" quality, like 100mbps is for 1080p.

 

[Hausen]

This is great news to wake up to. Have already got my name on the list at my local store. Sold some MF film gear so funds are already available, roll on August.

 

[iiiNelson]

Get it in writing with clear parameters!

She bought me the 25/85 Batis for our Anniversary and my birthday since they should be released around that time frame. They're aleady paid for and I didn't even ask... Proof enough!?!

 

[tn1krr]

Graham, the spec says "14-bit RAW (Sony ARW 2.3 format)", whatever the heck that means. We won't know whether there's any "secret sauce" baked into those RAW files until testers begin their evaluation of production cameras in August.

That RAW spec is 100% same as in current A7-series so based on that no lossless available in A7R II. I forgive them, this camera addresses almost everything I wanted improved in my A7R and adds a ton on top of that.

Already ordered LA-EA3, A7 II compliant L-Plate (same body as the the same battery grip fits) etc.

 

[ggibson]

Graham, the spec says "14-bit RAW (Sony ARW 2.3 format)", whatever the heck that means. We won't know whether there's any "secret sauce" baked into those RAW files until testers begin their evaluation of production cameras in August.

Joe

Hmm, I see that now. With some googling, it looks like the current Sony A7 series also specifies the 14-bit ARW 2.3 format. I might have expected the version number to change if there was any update, but like you said--who knows until people start testing it upon release.

Actually, that made me think about how Sony has added e-shutter to this high MP model--I'm guessing it reduces the bit depth in order to read the sensor fast enough (kind of like continuous shooting does now).

 

[BackToSlr]

Whoa! It apparently focuses Canon lenses pretty fast too!

DPR staff comments

<snip from the article>
"One of the most impressive features of the a7R II is its autofocus system. 399 phase-detection AF points cover 45% of the frame, which means over 60% coverage in either horizontal or vertical directions in the frame. That gives it more coverage than any full-frame camera out there. PDAF will work even with third-party lenses via existing adapters, including in continuous AF tracking mode. This is potentially a huge deal - especially for Canon users. We've used an a7R II with a Canon 24-70mm lens and a Metabones adapter, and focus is indeed very fast indeed. We'll be looking at this in more depth as soon as we have a production sample camera, but for now, we're highly impressed."
</snip>

 

[iiiNelson]

Whoa! It apparently focuses Canon lenses pretty fast too!

DPR staff comments

<snip from the article>
"One of the most impressive features of the a7R II is its autofocus system. 399 phase-detection AF points cover 45% of the frame, which means over 60% coverage in either horizontal or vertical directions in the frame. That gives it more coverage than any full-frame camera out there. PDAF will work even with third-party lenses via existing adapters, including in continuous AF tracking mode. This is potentially a huge deal - especially for Canon users. We've used an a7R II with a Canon 24-70mm lens and a Metabones adapter, and focus is indeed very fast indeed. We'll be looking at this in more depth as soon as we have a production sample camera, but for now, we're highly impressed."
</snip>

Unintended consequence or a deliberate attempt to cannibalize 5Ds/5DsR sales for those that care about dynamic range above resolution?

 

[ggibson]

Found the spec on low-light focusing on the Sony site:

A7rII = -2 EV!
A7r & A7 = 0 EV
A7II = -1 EV
A7s = -4 EV

Good to see it'll be even better than the A7II!

 

[The Ute]

Count me in.

 

[Guy Mancuso]

Unintended consequence or a deliberate attempt to cannibalize 5Ds/5DsR sales for those that care about dynamic range above resolution?

That just did in Canon and all those folks with Canon glass just got a big smile today. Does change my thinkng on my 24-70 Sigma A lens.