Sony a7r Review & Samples

HOT: Adorama a7/a7R Trade in - ANY working interchangeable lens camera take a chunk off the price of the A7, A7 with 24-70 or A7r.In my search for a lighter travel camera I spent a few weeks with the Sony a7R. My video review is below along with some sample images.I found the a7R to produce gorgeous 36MP images with excellent dynamic range.

Sony a7R Pros:

  • Beautiful 36MP files - Medium format like quality in something that isn't even DSLR sized.
  • No Low pass filter for sharp detail
  • Wonderful Dynamic range- detail in highlights and shadows that can be pulled out is impressive
  • Small and light (A7R weight 1.03 lbs | 5D Mark III weight over 2lbs)
  • Vibrant and tilting screen - rarely felt like I needed to put my eye to viewfinder.
  • Good manual controls with decent customizability
  • Useful focus peaking for manual focus
  • Auto exposure dial works in manual mode when auto ISO is enabled
  • 1080p at 60fps.
  • Fun sony features like sweep panorama (with 36MP images you can make stunning panoramas!)
  • USB Charging - Ability to charge battery in camera or from a USB battery (also a drawback, no charger included)
  • Good Wifi connectivity for sharing and remote control.
  • Ability to add apps in camera - Star trail app for example

Sony a7R Cons:

  • Slow
    • to start up,
    • when new SD card is inserted - needs to create a recovery DB
    • focus
    • to clear buffer - camera locks up when clearing buffer
  • Battery life is short 300-400 shots and without an included charger forced to charge in camera (buy 3rd Party charger & additional batteries)
  • Crashes - I saw this camera crash way more than any other and at times would revet back to settings 15 minutes earlier - some I believe were a result of using the metabones adapter but other times it would just hang. UPDATE: I have heard from a few other A7R users and they don't experience crashes. I might have had a buggy copy.
  • Lens selection - Native lens selection is small and f/4 fastest with a few exceptions that are coming soon.  Most of the weight savings are offset by these lenses - but the quality is awesome and multiple adapters exist to use with Canon, Nikon or other lenses.
  • Loud shutter - with some rumors that causes blurred images at the slower shutter speeds. I didn't see that but for such a small body and mirror less camera it is loud.
  • Video quality is good (why is this a con then? I was hoping it would be noticeably better than my 5D Mark III and I could use this camera for travel photos and video for my channel, but it is only as good as 5D Mark III or a tiny bit better - not the difference you see in photos between the two)

 

Watch my video review on the Sony A7R

Sony a7R Sample Images