Hello everyone!
Today we’ll take a look at the another Sony
a7 series camera – A7R first generation.
This one is slightly more expensive and little
downgraded in exchange of higher resolution
so I expect top notch image quality.
Let’s start by mentioning key specs.
It has:
36MP Full-frame CMOS sensor
25 point contrast detection AF system
records 1080p videos up to 60 fps
I have to remind you that quite a lot of things
I mention in this review are already covered
in my Sony a7 Review, because obviously both
share quite a few things with each other.
With a7r body is entirely made of magnesium
alloy, in opposite to a7.
Having said that I haven’t noticed any difference.
I have once again no complaints in terms of
build quality.
It really gives impression of professional
grade quality, additionally emphasized by
built in weather-sealing.
Ergonomics are without complaints, aside from
the two things: unusual shutter button placement
and too small grip.
It’s still comfortable to use though thanks
to it’s weight, especially after using bulky,
one kilogram full-frame DSLRs.
Half a kilogram of a weight from a camera
this type is always welcome from my point
of view.
3 inch LCD panel on the back lacks full articulation.I
don’t mind that much since video recording
capabilities are sadly not the best.
In short: screen quality is below my expectations.
It unfortunately has too much reflections,
poor contrast and dull colors.
By the way if you look at this footage keep
in mind that my testing unit has anti-reflective
screen protector installed.
I am sure it’s 2.4 milion dot OLED viewfinder
has made bigger excitement back in 2013, but
nowadays things changed.
From todays perspective it definitely lacks
vision, sharpness and contrast, but it’s
fair to tell that it’s still pretty decent
overall.
Anyway like always I will say that optical
viewfinders have some edge.
With a DSLR; it can always be turned on and
ready for an instant shooting.
With a mirrorless you are doomed to the screens,
which drain battery quickly and rely on the
software speed.
Both of which are not particularly strong
point of the Sony a7r.
Turning camera on, switching to viewfinder,
focusing and taking picture; it all take some
time for it to process.
User interface and menu is like in most Sony
cameras.
Relatively intuitive to use.
Autofocus is one of the biggest downgrade
from a standard Sony a7.
It’s 25 point, only contrast detection system.
I am really surprised that Sony made it that
way.
I haven’t had opportunity to compare them
side by side, but I definitely felt that a7r
was much slower and not as reliable as I would
expect from camera in this class.
Certainly it’s not suitable for fast action,
sports shooting.
It’s a shame because Nikon D810 has same
high resolution sensor and doesn’t suffer
from compromises like that, but hey let’s
remember a7r is from 2013, back when mirrorless
cameras were still a new thing.
In terms of image quality 36 megapixel sensor
delivers indeed very good results.
Dynamic range is on the great level.
However I am not seeing as much color richness
as with Nikon D810, but side-by-side comparison
would be necessary to precisely determine
that really.
Anyway it’s still a very good perfomer.
Color accuracy is on point.
Landscapes look very good and you can recover
a lot of information in a post processing.
Sony a7r has tendency to sometimes overexpose.
It’s not that big of a deal though since
of course you can correct it in a post-process
pretty quickly.
All full frame cameras that I’ve used were
behaving little funky from time to time in
exposure control department.
So I am thinking it’s maybe just a matter
of limitation in processing a lot of data
from a such big sensor.
Unfortunately I have to advise you that this
camera exhibit significant shutter shock.
It’s well known issue, you will find many
articles and posts about it on the web.
I don’t know exactly how much it contributed,
but a lot of my photos end up becoming blurry.
With photos that came out good, like in the
a7, in the crop you will find solid amount
of depth and texture of photographed objects,
but in my opinion in that department Nikon
D810 also performed slightly better with more
clarity.
It may be due to that shutter shake issue
though.
Low-light performance is on the excellent
level.
I am not seeing any downgrade after using
standard a7.
Hardly any noise up to ISO 800, and below
it’s still delivers fantastic results.
Even at ISO 3200 photos are still very usable.
Although like aways I am not fan of Sony’s
noise-reduction algorithm in JPEGs.
It produces too many artifacts, losing a lot
of details.
Video quality aspect is just outdated.
Amount of detail and sharpens is below todays
standards so I can’t recommend this particular
camera for video recording.
That’s said with a full-frame you will get
a nice bokeh and low-light performance so
it might be worth something as an extra feature.
In conclusion Sony a7r offers professional-grade
image quality.
Sadly by 2019 standards autofocus, operating
speed and video quality are far from the best
and keeping in mind price difference between
normal a7 and a7r I wouldn’t consider the
other one.
There is just too much sacrifice.
Apart from resolution difference Sony a7 is
much cheaper, has better autofocus and no
shutter shock issue, but don’t get me wrong
if you want cheapest highest resolution Sony
mirrorless camera – a7r might be the ultimate
choice!
Let me know what do you think about the Sony
a7r!
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