Advice needed for 1st time Alpha purchaser to be.

[RubenAlonzo]

Greetings Everyone,

My name is Ruben an I am new here, I plan on purchasing a new Sony Alpha A series camera on May 31st for my 53rd birthday. I have always been a fan of Sony cameras since the A300/350 debuted years ago, though have never owned one. I have extensive knowledge of the Nikon D40 (I still own mine with the 50mm prime) and am finally looking to jump on the mirrorless bandwagon. I have been looking closely at the Alpha A7 II as my first Sony and would like to hear from you all that have experience with this body is it is a good match for a noob lilke myself?

I am most likely going to get a 50mm prime lens for the body as my first lens besides the included kit lens. On that note, how do you all feel about the 28-70 kit lens and what lens would you all recommend instead? My budget is about $1,500 and I am not averse to buying used if I can get a good deal but also I can buy new and simply wait for other lenses. Thank you all for reading.

 

[Brownie]

Greetings Everyone,

My name is Ruben an I am new here, I plan on purchasing a new Sony Alpha A series camera on May 31st for my 53rd birthday. I have always been a fan of Sony cameras since the A300/350 debuted years ago, though have never owned one. I have extensive knowledge of the Nikon D40 (I still own mine with the 50mm prime) and am finally looking to jump on the mirrorless bandwagon. I have been looking closely at the Alpha A7 II as my first Sony and would like to hear from you all that have experience with this body is it is a good match for a noob lilke myself?

I am most likely going to get a 50mm prime lens for the body as my first lens besides the included kit lens. On that note, how do you all feel about the 28-70 kit lens and what lens would you all recommend instead? My budget is about $1,500 and I am not averse to buying used if I can get a good deal but also I can buy new and simply wait for other lenses. Thank you all for reading.

I'd recommend buying a used A7III over a new A7II. One of our members here, @Jeff A, had one listed with a kit lens for a very reasonable price, not sure if it sold or not. Maybe he can chime in.

Welcome to the forum. If the D40 is your most recent experience, you're going to be amazed.

 

[Deleted Member 5045]

I'll second Timmy here. Definitely push up to the fantastic A7III for sure! The better battery alone is worth the extra, not to mention the vast operational upgrades as well.

 

[iamdlewis]

Just to expand on Brownie's post as to why the A7iii over the A7ii.
1. The battery (Z series) is far superior and is the now standard across the A series
2. The performance improvement from the ii to the iii is incredible. The 3rd generation (plus A9) is what convinced Canon and Nikon that mirrorless is the future and you need to start working on it now.

I would say that for a 2nd lens defiantly look at the used market and don't be afraid of Sigma or Tamron lenses.

 

[AlphaWorld]

could you get the 28-60 kit lens with the camera? It is a newer, lighter lens with a lot of favourable reviews.

Getting a 50mm prime is a somewhat old-fashioned idea, but you can still do it. I’d suggest considering something a bit different, instead - maybe get an 85mm f/1.8, for example. Still gets you a bigger aperture lens, but it’s a focal length outside your zoom’s range.

 

[Brownie]

Just to expand on Brownie's post as to why the A7iii over the A7ii.
1. The battery (Z series) is far superior and is the now standard across the A series
2. The performance improvement from the ii to the iii is incredible. The 3rd generation (plus A9) is what convinced Canon and Nikon that mirrorless is the future and you need to start working on it now.

I would say that for a 2nd lens defiantly look at the used market and don't be afraid of Sigma or Tamron lenses.

Yes, all of that. The A7III was the first camera Sony produced that made everyone sit up and take notice due to their autofocus. Nothing wrong with the A7II, but the Mark 3 is that much better.

 

[Gaz]

Greetings Everyone,

My name is Ruben an I am new here, I plan on purchasing a new Sony Alpha A series camera on May 31st for my 53rd birthday. I have always been a fan of Sony cameras since the A300/350 debuted years ago, though have never owned one. I have extensive knowledge of the Nikon D40 (I still own mine with the 50mm prime) and am finally looking to jump on the mirrorless bandwagon. I have been looking closely at the Alpha A7 II as my first Sony and would like to hear from you all that have experience with this body is it is a good match for a noob lilke myself?

I am most likely going to get a 50mm prime lens for the body as my first lens besides the included kit lens. On that note, how do you all feel about the 28-70 kit lens and what lens would you all recommend instead? My budget is about $1,500 and I am not averse to buying used if I can get a good deal but also I can buy new and simply wait for other lenses. Thank you all for reading.

Happy birthday youngster!

I recently got hold of an A7iv but I’ve been using Pentax SLR/DSLR forty years. I developed a liking for prime lenses, so the first purchase was a K-mount adapter.

Totally manual, so I was curious about this fuss over fast focusing. Saved up and got a Sony 200-600.

Fun, but until I develop another 20kg of muscle mass, I went out and got a Sony 35DM lens. It’s a ripper but attracts attention, so I then bought a Sony 16mm F2.8 which is ok with a price to match. As that lens is is not full frame, it shoots at the 24mm crop. Then I realized I could program my lens buttons to toggle APS-C on/off, so my 35mm is also 50mm, albeit at 15Mp. Then I purchased a Sony 20mm F1.8 and programmed the lens button to switch to 30mm at 15Mp. I put my nice Pentax 50mm 1.4 on the adapter for full frame 50mm and so have 70mm at 15Mp, albeit manual everything which is fine for portrait shots.

So, I’ve got 20mm, [24], [30], 35, 50 manual, [52], [70] mm, all with very wide aperture, as well as 200-600, [300-900] …

Because autofocus is so fast and interesting, my next lens is likely to be Sony14mmGM [I think it’s the widest full frame available?] or Sony 85mm 1.8, which will give me [130] cropped. I’ll wait for my birthday.

G

 

[Cαscαdian]

If budget is tight a used 7Rii is a pinch more than the 7ii. Battery life is still weak but bsi sensor, af system and shutter are all superior, and live charging is possible. If storage space is tight, shoot the superior sensor at 18Mpx and still reap the benefits