First Look: Sony A7R II–Holy $#!+

Sony Alpha a7R II Mirrorless 42MP/4k Video Digital Camera

I’ve lost track of how many cameras I’ve reviewed, but it’s been a lot – including many Sony cameras. I’m not an easy guy to impress, but HOLY $#!+ this camera has my jaw on the ground and slobber dripping from my chin!

As a result, I couldn’t hold back and had to share a few photos I took recently with this much hyped camera – which I can honestly say deserves the praise. For my testing, B&H sent me this lens:

Sony Vario-Tessar T* FE 24-70mm f/4 ZA OSS Lens

I wish I would have got the Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 ZA SSM II Vario-Sonnar T* Lens, but the f/4 hasn’t disappointed me thus far.

Real World Shots

These are 100% unedited shots taken straight from the camera using in-camera JPEG default processing. Only the shoes shot features studio lights, otherwise these shots are taken with available light and no additional light sources or reflection. All shots are handheld with in-camera stabilization turned on.

f/5 @ 70mm for 1/160 sec at ISO 4000
The detail and dynamic range are breathtaking, but when you notice it is ISO 4000 it’s impossible not to be blown away! No camera has ever touched my hands that has done this well at such a high ISO!

f/5.6 @ 40mm for 1/125 sec at ISO 6400
Again, ISO 6400 – Are you kidding me?!!!!
Super crisp foreground detail, gorgeous bokeh and bang on color!

f/4 @ 30mm for 1/125 sec at ISO 3200
Even a crap shot like this becomes stare worthy in the excellent B&W creative style shown here with +3 contrast and +3 sharpness (in-camera)

f/8 @ 30mm for 1/160 sec at ISO 160
Having fun above, I decided to toss a spotlight on some black shoes to see the range of blacks in a dark scene – I wasn’t disappointed, but what was even more impressive was the detail that remained in the hot spots! Oh yes, there’s lots of potential for great things with this sensor!

f/5.6 @ 33mm for 1/30 sec at ISO 6400
This is a torture test for any camera, but what blew me away here is that this is the only camera to capture this much of the tonal range without losing detail – and it did it at ISO 6400 handheld! Imagine if I was using a tripod at ISO 100?!!!

f/5.6 @ 26mm for 1/125 sec at ISO 5000
No other camera I’ve tested, at any ISO, has captured this much detail in one exposure – and this was a super bright day with the sun coming in hard from the right. Imagine if you did HDR with this camera?!!!

f/5.6 @ 41mm for 1/100 sec at ISO 6400
Again, dynamic range like I’ve never seen – ever – yet this is ISO 6400!!!
The camera meter with default settings was bang on too!

f/9 @ 36mm for 1/25 sec at ISO 6400
The in-camera stabilization is impressive especially for such a high megapixel camera. While the in-camera noise reduction smeared the details pretty bad, it still did an admirable job of having something very publish worthy with no editing – well done Sony!

f/4 @ 70mm for 1/160 sec at ISO 12800
Yeah, ISO 12,800 – try that with a D810 or 5DsR! Nothing I’ve tested can touch this camera!

This isn’t my review as I’ll have more to come after I get out and do some more serious shooting, but I had to share some of my early results because I’m so happy with what I see!

For more files, visit the full gallery at http://photos.ronmartblog.com/sony/a7rii which will be updated when I do my review.

Conclusion

See my complete a7R Mark II review here.

Where to order

Click here to learn more or order on the B&H web site.

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