So, is it a keeper? (A7R II)

[Chris Giles]

I'm not a a7rii owner but I did managed to square off the images from a wedding I shot with the second shooter who runs the whole A7 series.

The IBIS, flip screen and silent shutter are cool but silent shutter means shooting it 12 bit. Further to this the images from the sensor were not as exciting as I expected, above ISO3200 images are quite noisy and noisier than my Canon 5DSr. The images themselves across the ISO ranges are ok, but missing something, like a smear of flatness across the image compared to what I'm used to.

Certainly, the comparisons between the 645z and the rii that were happening have been decisively answered and I was considering getting the Sony up until I tried it out last week.

 

[retow]

Though at heart a Leica M shooter I consider the A7rII a keeper. A camera I rather respect than really (Leica-)like. As a versatile tool it is a significant step up from the A7r which was more of a niche solution, an excellent sensor held back by a not so perfect shutter and housing (lens mount, ergonomics). I guess I will sell all of my Leica M gear, maybe except for the M9 and two M lenses for nostalgia`s sake. The A7rII and the new e-mount lenses tick more of the boxes currently relevant to me than any other system.

 

[Vivek]

If you read the posts of some they seem to want to rattle the tree's to possibly force Sony to lower the MSRP more than determining if the problem is a real issue to final output or one that needs Sony to correct or who the source of the problem is? Makes one wonder their true objectives.... and whether they have a agenda.

Jim, Who are they and where do they post? I would like to contact them to form a club. Sort of like a "groupon". :ROTFL:

 

[Viramati]

For me it is a keeper and I feel that in many ways the the camera has come to maturity compared to the first models. While I would prefer it to have the more analogue controls of my Leica Q I know that it just won't happen so I can work around that. In reality this camera with the FE55 and maybe a super wide like the CV15 mkIII plus my Q would be all I would ever need!! Though I'm still keeping that A7s for the moment and my leica glass and wait to see what leica come up with this autumn. On the whole a general Steve Huff "Wow, Awesome, Wow"

 

[Knorp]

For me it's a keeper simply because I needed something to replace my (stolen) A7R ...
But I can say these 'small' improvements I really like:
- lovely shutter sound
- no shutter shock
- better positioned release button

YMMV

 

[k-hawinkler]

For me it's a keeper simply because I needed something to replace my (stolen) A7R ...
But I can say these 'small' improvements I really like:
- lovely shutter sound
- no shutter shock
- better positioned release button

YMMV

Congratulations Bart!
This maybe of interest, especially the APO-R 280/4 shutter shock measurements on A7R and A7RII by Jim Kasson.

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3885234

 

[tashley]

So the overwhelming view is - KEEPER!..... and for very good reasons.

 

[Guy Mancuso]

Guy I am sure you are following those "artifact" issues being discussed with a7rII's and pushing the darks up 4-5 stops under very specific light/subject conditions and the hot pixel/noise issues also being discussed on long exposures.

Now I am no brainiac and as stated before some of these issues and discussions have so little importances to the effects of my needs and wants they tend to sound like the teacher in a Peanuts cartoon. But, I put this out to you and the rest here...... Lets forget just how over the top the exposure settings have to be for these objections occur but being as there is documented differences on how obvious or not these issues are with various PP softwares could these possibly be PP software issues and not the camera's?

If you read the posts of some they seem to want to rattle the tree's to possibly force Sony to lower the MSRP more than determining if the problem is a real issue to final output or one that needs Sony to correct or who the source of the problem is? Makes one wonder their true objectives.... and whether they have a agenda.

I have not seen a hot pixel issue personally yet with long exposures so I don't have much to say about it but the artifact issue when pushing the blacks up 4-5 stops all I can say is really???? In what/who's world is that a real issue as I have always felt that as a photographer we have a obligation to at least get our exposures close. If one wants HDR shoot the shot that way with multiple exposures and stack them.

Mark my words the so called professional reviewer's are listening and reading these absurd complaints (whose parameters to observe them are so ridiculous no good photographer would ever intentionally encumber himself with them in a proper shot he took) and depending on their hidden agenda's will dissect these issues to the nth degree and malign this body like they are issues that every photo you shoot with this body you just can't avoid them. One can see the writing on the wall already and with the pre volume hype of letting other manufacturers glass function as well or better on this body than their own has brought forward over critical evaluations from people who are based in the other camps who worry this just might happen one day.

Sad to see this happen yet again.....good ole agenda driven misinformation and the sky is falling; mentalities.

I'm with you on this actually. Most of it is complete nonsense in situations I'll just never be in. Hell Jim I don't even bracket. I still scratch my head over that one. I never do HDR or anything like it either. My areas are high ISO to about 6400 max ever and actually far less. Another area is I really rather not buy Canon lenses so that whole thing is a non issue. I bought Sony want to use Sony lenses or some manual lenses. The lenses I did buy the Batis pair and 35 1.4 I dare anyone to touch them. There very very good. I'm really happy so far. I got exactly what I though I was going to get. Heck I sold my A7r 2 months ago and the A7II 2 weeks ago. I knew exactly what I was getting without real risk.i really don't have a bitch area but I do struggle with all the whining on stuff that in a real photographers heart just don't exist for real world shooting. I'm also a big work around person. I'm not after the perfect camera just the perfect image.
So a lot of stuff I am ignoring and the other big one is cost. I do NOT feel it's over priced or anything like that. Way too many I paid X I should get this comments. Go buy MFi should be getting free Las Vegas nights with all the trimmings for those costs. Lol

I am reading this thread with interest and have to say the members here are really the bright spots on the whole package here. You guys get it

 

[Guy Mancuso]

One are not talked about is the shutter sound. Frankly I'll probably never use silent shutter nice to have it but the normal sound is like ice cream to me smooth and my ears don't hurt. The camera is very responsive and the AF is so much better and accurate. I have a bunch to talk about here. I have tried every setting in AF and I got a ton of keepers.


Actually the only thing I am extremely disappointed in is the people doing some of these blogs, opinions , you tube ****. I never seen such puss poor information in my life and as a reviewer tester type person. I'm freaking embarrassed to even call myself that. A very serious amount of bad info being thrown around for the love of money and popularity that folks are getting really bad data. I mean piss poor stuff. Flame suit on and I can really give a **** what they think I just said. This is not how you inform people correctly. So I'm being a little quiet for right now.

That's no reflection of anyone here. You folks are killing it with great data.

 

[Knorp]

No interest here either in that 'silent shutter' option as the A7R2's shutter sound is already truly civilized !
In fact it's pretty addictive ...

 

[Chris Giles]

One are not talked about is the shutter sound. Frankly I'll probably never use silent shutter nice to have it but the normal sound is like ice cream to me smooth and my ears don't hurt. The camera is very responsive and the AF is so much better and accurate. I have a bunch to talk about here. I have tried every setting in AF and I got a ton of keepers.


Actually the only thing I am extremely disappointed in is the people doing some of these blogs, opinions , you tube ****. I never seen such puss poor information in my life and as a reviewer tester type person. I'm freaking embarrassed to even call myself that. A very serious amount of bad info being thrown around for the love of money and popularity that folks are getting really bad data. I mean piss poor stuff. Flame suit on and I can really give a **** what they think I just said. This is not how you inform people correctly. So I'm being a little quiet for right now.

That's no reflection of anyone here. You folks are killing it with great data.

There's an SEO land grab going on right now. Even in my limited circles people who never do reviews are doing them to get web traffic.

 

[Guy Mancuso]

There's an SEO land grab going on right now. Even in my limited circles people who never do reviews are doing them to get web traffic.

Yea something is going on and it's really bad.

 

[Jim DE]

Yeah my jetties and seascapes have never been annoyed by a shutter sound vibration maybe but never the sound

I agree the a7rII standard shutter sound is addicting.... They nailed that issue!

Guy I am waiting to see someone on the other sites complain that if they drop a a7rII it actually hits the ground and doesn't hover over it till you grab it This is about as absurd as the artifact issue in real world use by people who consider themselves photographers. In a way, the ones (because of this bizzarr complaint) who now are eliminating this new body from consideration because of this I am almost glad they are. Without a doubt those are the people who thrive on negatives and complaints no matter what the realities are. Think everyone who uses Sony is better off without them cluttering up the forums with the sky is falling type issues ... I know I will be happier ... Let them bring cloud cover to some other manufacturers bluebird days

 

[tn1krr]

One are not talked about is the shutter sound. Frankly I'll probably never use silent shutter nice to have it but the normal sound is like ice cream to me smooth and my ears don't hurt. The camera is very responsive and the AF is so much better and accurate. I have a bunch to talk about here. I have tried every setting in AF and I got a ton of keepers.

This summarizes my impression of the camera. AF smokes the one in the older A7R or A6000 pretty much hands down (A7R II af murders A6000 as light levels start to fall). No "false positives", if the AF says lock, the image is in focus. With my A6000 I'm sometimes baffled why I get a significantly OOF shot regardless of camera locking. Even LA-EA3 + 70-400 SSM2 + Kenko Pro 300 1.4x TC focused ok (I think this should not even work at all) in rather dimly lit indoor light. TC goofs the IBIS though, due to camera not "seeing" the multiplied focal lengths.

Overall responsiveness is way better than in the sluggish old A7R. Shutter is awesome, sounds like silenced MP5 submachine gun in the movies. Shutter is fast too, no issues with TTL preflash and missing the moment/expression or getting slightly OOF shot due to ~0,3 sec shutter lag; had a a pile of that with A7R. AF-C with Eye-Af feels magic in decent light.

IBIS. What can I say, I get 1:1 vievable pixel sharp images with FE 55 at 1/4 shutter speed. And stabilized 12.5x magnification for manual focusing for Zeiss ZE APO 135/2 if just superb, even if it is just 3-Axis.

Did a huge amount of research beforehand so I knew what to expect and yet the camera has surprized me positively.

 

[hcubell]

One are not talked about is the shutter sound. Frankly I'll probably never use silent shutter nice to have it but the normal sound is like ice cream to me smooth and my ears don't hurt. The camera is very responsive and the AF is so much better and accurate. I have a bunch to talk about here. I have tried every setting in AF and I got a ton of keepers.

Guy, I am not an autofocus kind of guy. My camera normally sits on tripod and is manually focused or I will use one button autofocus. However, I am taking the A7RII to Africa and I am curious about the autofocus settings you would recommend for "moving objects" like animals in the wild. I won't try to shoot cheetah running at full bore, but I also don't expect to get the animals to sit and pose. [G]

Thanks.

 

[Viramati]

I want another one

 

[fmueller]

Scratched the rear screen in the first 12 hours of owning the camera. Are you freaking kidding me!

So it's a keeper.

All kidding aside, I bought the A7r, went through multiple copies of the 35 2.8 to get one that's right (and honestly, I'm not a difficult customer)' also had the 55 1.8 and a couple of adapted lenses. Little things drove me away and the shutter clunk and limited lens lineup were the biggies, image quality was always outstanding. My big complaints have been resolved so I'm taking a second go at it.

I'm also using a Fuji xt1 (in the small camera category) and much as I love it, the full frame Sony sensor is worlds ahead---if that matters to you. Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't...

 

[Guy Mancuso]

Guy, I am not an autofocus kind of guy. My camera normally sits on tripod and is manually focused or I will use one button autofocus. However, I am taking the A7RII to Africa and I am curious about the autofocus settings you would recommend for "moving objects" like animals in the wild. I won't try to shoot cheetah running at full bore, but I also don't expect to get the animals to sit and pose. [G]

Thanks.

Howard I would first start at APC with a low continuous shooting mode. You can try two settings that I think would work good with a single animal on the move. You can go focus area and use Wide which you have to get the AF point on the animal than just keep tracking them across the frame. In wide the downfall is if it don't start on the animal, so you may have to release and try again. The other setting is the expanded flexible spot which you can zero on the animals face and it will track them across the frame as well. Trick is nailing the animal on the start and keeping that half press on all the time . I have more faith in the low continuous than I do in the high mode. Native lenses obviously will be best. I think you where renting the 70-300 which sounds like a good lens for this .

 

[Guy Mancuso]

Scratched the rear screen in the first 12 hours of owning the camera. Are you freaking kidding me!

So it's a keeper.

All kidding aside, I bought the A7r, went through multiple copies of the 35 2.8 to get one that's right (and honestly, I'm not a difficult customer)' also had the 55 1.8 and a couple of adapted lenses. Little things drove me away and the shutter clunk and limited lens lineup were the biggies, image quality was always outstanding. My big complaints have been resolved so I'm taking a second go at it.

I'm also using a Fuji xt1 (in the small camera category) and much as I love it, the full frame Sony sensor is worlds ahead---if that matters to you. Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't...

That's the big one is if you came from the A7r than this is a huge upgrade for you because of all the little quirks are all fixed now plus we gained a lot of good features. Overall operationally it's a world of difference. Let's face facts we where beta testers on the A7r which is fine they followed it up with a solid upgrade. Now we got something useful in our hands.

 

[Guy Mancuso]

I want another one

Lol so do I .