Hey guys! HAPPY MONDAY! Not many of us love Mondays but I always do as it gives me a fresh start to the week with a purpose and goal, and this week is a big one!
I have just arrived back home from an 8 day road trip vacation and have already started writing my Sony A7s review. Not sure how long it will take but the words are flowing about this little wonder. It is no secret that I loved it but I will tell you and show you exactly WHY that is the case. So look for the review in the next 24-48 hours! I shot the A7s with the Sony/Zeiss 35 2.8, Sony/Zeiss 55 1.8 and the Voigtlander 15 VM lens as well as a few with the Mitakon 50 0.95.
Take a look at the shot below at ISO 80,000 and 1/10s with the Voigtlander 15. This is a 100% OOC JPEG with NR on its lowest setting.
I have so much to say about the A7s and will say it all in my review..so stay tuned! You can order the Sony A7s at Amazon HERE or B&H Photo HERE. Some have already started shipping but mass shipments start TOMORROW!
Steve
Is there anyway to use the A7s with nikon lenses such as the 70-200 vrii and 50mm 1.4 and so on? This camera would be very appealing if it could do this and retain the full frame capabilities that are seen with sony lenses. If anyone could answer this for me it would be awesome! Thanks
We are leaving to our summer holiday in Middle Italy in a few days, and I am very sad that the camera is still not available in UK – I will therefore, miss shooting great videos at night in Perugia’s Jazz Festival next week. I tried to buy it from Hong Kong and it still does not arrive in time. 🙁 I have read enough about it to know that you do need Sony Full Frame lenses to get the best out of it. So a 24-70 or the 70-200 and even better both will cover all possibilities. Having read what it can do and reviews by people that have it – left me no other choice to pay for it in full and wait until end of the month when it arrives in UK. SG
Steve Thanks for all the work you do saving us a lot of money not buying the wrong camera for our individual needs. How well is this camera working with Leica lens 28 , 35 and 50 I use a M9 have not cared for the size and weight of the 240 to me it is on the verge of a DSLR just not comfortable I would want to use it with Leica glass any help would be great if I decide to get it I will go through you to B&H Again Thanks
I can’t wait for my A7s to arrive tomorrow from NY retailer. I’ll use it mainly for video.
i have to admit, the A7S is indeed a camera of endless possibilities. I would love to own it but i wouldn’t spend the money on it because i already have the A7R and the A6000. As good in low light as the A7S, i also rarely shoot in darkness and up to ISO 6400, i don’t see any advantage the A7S has over the A7R. The shutter sound also isn’t an issue for me..i actually like it. For fast AF and burst shooting, i have the A6000 for that. Do I need the 36MP? I would say yes..not because i pixel peep and I also resize my images to under 10MP BUT the 36MP is very useful during photo editing in Photoshop where i have to really zoom in pixel by pixel to use the pen tool and since i use photoshop almost on all my photos, i am thankful for the 36MP. It’s not for print, it’s not for online, it’s purely for photo editing at the pixel level in photoshop.
I love the grain on this picture impressive !
what’s the difference between electronic shutter and a mechanical one except silent mode?
Steve! Why are you not mentioning your Df in the 7S story? Could it be worth a look?
The Df is a DSLR, totally different. Larger, Optical VF, and the Sony beats in in IQ and Low Light. But the A7s is not a DSLR, it is smaller and even AF’s faster and in lower light than the Df.
What I think often gets left behind in the whole low light / high ISO shooting scenarios is the decrease in useable dynamic range. This is what contributes to images having the “muddy” look which, to me, is FAR worse than grain. I’ll take a little grain that I can usually either work mostly out of an image or heck, leave it in the image for a cool look/effect. It’s the muddy colors and weak DR that really makes shooting at high ISO’s problematic for me.
For this reason, I’d like to see how the A7s holds up in this regard in regards to the other bodies. I know I’ll probably be run from here with this comment, but with the Nikon D810 coming out, despite having a slightly higher price tag, bigger files (they can always be downsized), and weighing a bit more, I just don’t see where the A7s really can make a compelling argument against that body. Particularly when you start looking at reasonably priced (yet good performing) lens availability.
I’m 99% certain my next body will in fact be the D810 however I’m keeping my eye on Sony’s FF mirror less bodies.
The D810 doesn’t weigh “a little more”. It weighs a hell of a lot more … 1.1 pounds or 1/2 kg to be precise.
Is this the summary of your review that is forthcoming? 🙂
Steve Slay my eyes with more pictures 🙂 .Please macro pictures ,etc
Review will be up tomorrow..but Macro? I do not have a macro lens so not possible.
Wonderful Picture!
Thorkil
what an amazing combo Steve! I sure hope it will be almost the same the Voigtlander 12MM :)))
+1 …. Amazon oders started shipping today btw…
My B&H order gets delivered tomorrow. I cannot wait!
This may me a completely stupid question, but are the dials metal like the 7r? My A7 obviously doesnt have that construction and I wasnt sure which body characteristics the 7s mimic’d.
Hi Steve,
Congratulations for your excellent work.
I’m very interested in this camera, but there’s one thing that I would like to know before making my decision.
I’ve noticed that the A7r is generally more flare resistant than the A7. According to some people, that’s due to A7r different sensor and lack of low pass filter. Could you give us your impressions about A7s in this regard, compared to its siblings?
All the best,
Rick.
I just read DP Review’s comparison of high ISO between the A7S, A7R, and the Canon EOS 5D Mark III. I am one of those people who hate camera noise of any kind and all I really care about is how clean the files are at reasonably high ISO’s such as 6400 and, perhaps, 12,800. According to DP Review, at these two ISO’s, the A7S doesn’t have any real world advantage over the A7R or Canon. Since each pixel size on the A7S is larger it gathers more light but, because the A7R has more pixels, the A7R matches the A7S light gathering abilities at reasonable ISO’s. It will be interesting, Steve, to see if you agree with DP Review’s findings or not. Check it out here: http://www.dpreview.com/articles/4613822764/high-iso-compared-sony-a7s-vs-a7r-vs-canon-eos-5d-iii
Are you talking about resizing images from 36MP to 12? Not sure, but I am sure about the fact that the A7s has faster AF, more accurate AF and can AF in the dark without the assist light. I also know the camera is faster in operation, quieter shutter, has the silent mode that works very well and the files do not hog up my computer. The AWB is among the best I have seen, no color casts and the images seem to have better color than other Sony bodies. Video? You can shoot at 102k ISO and get great results, something the A7 or A7r cannot do. They also can not shoot in the dark at ISO 80,000 and get results like this. Not possible. The A7s is a jack of all trades, master of all. I’ve used the hell out of it and it has never faulted, failed or disappointed me.
Thecamerastore review mentioned a rolling shutter problem with silent shutter.
I think the A7 to A7s comparison will be the most interesting, as the A7 is supposed to focus faster (in all but dark conditions) due to phase detection? Which will be more useful to many.
Won’t downsizing the 24MP A7 image get rid of a little noise? although I expect the s to be better still (if not then why release a new camera).
@davidhunternyc interesting that was your response. Mine was just the opposite. I thought it was impressive that there was a noticeably improvement (particularly in grain size and structure) over the 5D and A7R even at 6400 & 12800.
Yes, of course, there IS a difference but it looks to me to be a 1 stop difference at ISO 6400 and 12,800. Is this enough? I don’t know. Steve’s other points are well stated.