Sony A7RIV vs A7IV

[Loke]

Hello!

Im a fairly new photographer, and i have the A7R. I do enjoy this camera for shooting still objects, but lately i've been starting to look for a new camera. I feel that the A7R is quite slow on the autofocus and bursts, and im also a little annoyed of the shutter sounds, so an electronic shutter would be nice.

So far i've mainly taken photos of nature, landscape, big animals, tried some macro and also tried at birds. I've been looking into both the A7R IV and the A7 IV. Where i am located theese cameras goes for almost the same prices now.

I talked a little to a mate of mine, and he is really good at wildlife, but especially bird photography. He recommended me the A7 IV - and this seems like newest and fastes camera, with the best autofocus, but i cant stop thinking about those juicy 61 megapixels the A7RIV gives I do like to crop a little in lightroom, and i dont think im going to be the most avid bird-shooter.

Is the focus system so much better and faster on the A7IV? Any other major differences between the cameras?

Anyone has some tips on my way? Thank you so much!

 

[Brownie]

Is the focus system so much better and faster on the A7IV? Any other major differences between the cameras?

I have the A7 IV and A7R III.

As to the specific question about focus:

Sony has improved focus ability with each iteration. Compared to the A7 IV, the original A7 and A7R are pretty archaic. Even the difference from the A7R III to the A7 IV is substantial. The A7R III was one of the earliest cameras where Sony's advancements in focusing were noted by reviewers.

Where the A7R III will sometimes bounce or hunt, the A7 IV locks on like a rabid dog. There were two cameras in between the R III and the IV, those being the A7 III and A7R IV. Each one has slight improvements over its predecessor.

For really fast focus and speed, the A9 series is the ticket. For speed and pixel count, the A1. For high resolution the A7 RIII, IV, or V. For best low-light performance (not including the S series), the A7 IV holds a slight advantage, which is expected due to pixel count. However, it is not a speed demon and is limited to 6 frames per second in Uncompressed RAW.

In short, anything you move into from the original A7/A7R is going to be a huge improvement. The newer the camera, the more obvious it will be.

Consider what you'll be shooting most. Low light, action, landscapes, BIF, etc. and let that guide you.

 

[Loke]

I have the A7 IV and A7R III.

As to the specific question about focus:

Sony has improved focus ability with each iteration. Compared to the A7 IV, the original A7 and A7R are pretty archaic. Even the difference from the A7R III to the A7 IV is substantial. The A7R III was one of the earliest cameras where Sony's advancements in focusing were noted by reviewers.

Where the A7R III will sometimes bounce or hunt, the A7 IV locks on like a rabid dog. There were two cameras in between the R III and the IV, those being the A7 III and A7R IV. Each one has slight improvements over its predecessor.

For really fast focus and speed, the A9 series is the ticket. For speed and pixel count, the A1. For high resolution the A7 RIII, IV, or V. For best low-light performance (not including the S series), the A7 IV holds a slight advantage, which is expected due to pixel count. However, it is not a speed demon and is limited to 6 frames per second in Uncompressed RAW.

In short, anything you move into from the original A7/A7R is going to be a huge improvement. The newer the camera, the more obvious it will be.

Consider what you'll be shooting most. Low light, action, landscapes, BIF, etc. and let that guide you.

Thank you for your inputs. I'm leaning towards A7IV but my brain just cant let go of thoose 61mp. But i think for my use, A7IV might be the better choice.

 

[iamdlewis]

So far i've mainly taken photos of nature, landscape, big animals, tried some macro and also tried at birds.

For nature and landscape either camera will do great. Yes more MP is generally considered better for these but 33mp is still a large image.

As the owner of an A1 and A7Riv I can say that the A1 is much faster and hold focus better on large animals than the A7Riv but I've never had an issue with photographing large animals when the A7Riv was my primary camera. I would say that the A7iv would be better for large animals but honestly if you have experience using the A7R for this and your issues with capturing large animals hasn't caused you to get a new camera till now you shouldn't have an issue with the A7Riv.

For macro it depends what you are doing. If you are trying to shoot insects outdoors with a dependance on the AF than the A7iv will be the better choice. If you are doing any other macro I don't think it will make a difference. For my macro stuff which is basically all studio stuff now I use my A7Riv over the A1.

Birds, the A7iv will be better for acquiring focus as the eye auto focus is superior in the A7iv than in the A7Riv. The A7iv will also be superior in capturing BiF than the A7Riv. That said if you are only doing Bird in Tree type of bird photography the A7Riv can still do this quite well and the amount of cropping you can do with 61MP is incredible allowing you to capture usable sized images that you cannot with the A7iv's 33MP.

I am sure all of that in the end didn't help you make a choice. So to break it down to something simple: How important is the speed of the AF in what you photograph? If it is very important than the A7iv will be the right choice, if it isn't I think you would be happy with the A7Riv. Neither is a bad choice.

 

[TerryL]

I have the A7R IV and I can print to 20x30 with tons of resolution. That is using a GM lens. It’s a lot of fun.

 

[Brownie]

The key is to limit cropping. I have a 22 x 28 hanging on my office wall that was made with the A7 IV and a Minolta Maxxum 28-135 A-Mount.

DSC08002 by telecast, on Flickr

I have printed 24 x 30 from a 20MP M-4/3 camera and it looks great.

Not trying to sway you away from the higher resolution cameras, they're great. But you really don't need huge MP unless you want to crop the heck out of it and print large.

 

[TerryL]

That is beautiful.

 

[iain clyne]

I’ve used the A7iv for wildlife it works great except when panning as you get rolling shutter in electronic shutter Which you will get with the A7riv as well.
if I had to choose between the two I would go for the A7iv.

 

[Deleted Member 5045]

I believed that I absolutely wouldn't want more than between 40-50mp until I had 60mp.

It's really a nice luxury to do a good size crop on a bird image and still be left with 30 or so megapixels.

I'd be buying the A7RIV without a doubt, or the A7RV if you can squeeze a little more juice out of your budget.

 

[Deleted Member 5045]

What lenses do you currently have Loke?

 

[Loke]

Thank you everybody for the responses! Very helpful community!

What lenses do you currently have Loke?

So far i have:

- Sony FE 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6
- Tamron 24mm f/2.8 Di III OSD M1:2
- Sigma 100-400mm f/5-6.3 DG DN OS
- Sony FE 55mm f/1.8 ZA

 

[iamdlewis]

I have printed 24 x 30 from a 20MP M-4/3 camera and it looks great.

Not trying to sway you away from the higher resolution cameras, they're great. But you really don't need huge MP unless you want to crop the heck out of it and print large.

Just to add to this you don't need a lot of MP to print sizes that most people consider large. I have two 28"x16" images hanging that unless I tell people they came from a 15MP camera phone they wouldn't know.

That said having 61MP to crop with is amazing.

 

[AlphaWorld]

Just to add to this you don't need a lot of MP to print sizes that most people consider large. I have two 28"x16" images hanging that unless I tell people they came from a 15MP camera phone they wouldn't know.

That said having 61MP to crop with is amazing.

It's oft pointed out that the resolution of the typical billboard print is just 6Mpixel. My first DSLR managed 8Mpixel

 

[Loke]

Thank you everybody for the inputs - a decent priced A7IV with only 3800 on the shutter. I think it will be a great camera for me, a good alrounder for most tasks. I picked it up for 1950 USD, with 4,5 years remaining warranty.

So - now i just have to get to the mailbox before me wife, so she dont find out i've bought another camera

Again - thank you for inputs!

 

[Brownie]

Ok, one more piece of advice on how to sneak a new camera or lens past the wife:

1) Give it to a friend, have them drop it off (while your wife is present) and thank you for 'the loaner'.
2) Put a lamp shade on it and show your wife. She'll tell you it's the ugliest lamp she ever saw and she never wants to see it again.
3) Buy an oversized bag, make sure there's always a few empty spots no matter how much you buy.

Hope this helps!

 

[Loke]

Ok, one more piece of advice on how to sneak a new camera or lens past the wife:

1) Give it to a friend, have them drop it off (while your wife is present) and thank you for 'the loaner'.
2) Put a lamp shade on it and show your wife. She'll tell you it's the ugliest lamp she ever saw and she never wants to see it again.
3) Buy an oversized bag, make sure there's always a few empty spots no matter how much you buy.

Hope this helps!

Haha

 

[iain clyne]

Ok, one more piece of advice on how to sneak a new camera or lens past the wife:

1) Give it to a friend, have them drop it off (while your wife is present) and thank you for 'the loaner'.
2) Put a lamp shade on it and show your wife. She'll tell you it's the ugliest lamp she ever saw and she never wants to see it again.
3) Buy an oversized bag, make sure there's always a few empty spots no matter how much you buy.

Hope this helps!

I just baffle the wife with a load of different camera model numbers then she can't remember which ones I have and which I don't.

 

[Brownie]

Or just point at the 'shoe closet'!

 

[MeowZzz]

I just buy similar looking fountain pens, then as long as they don't come out at once she doesn't know I bought another...

 

[Brownie]

You guys are a bunch of chauvinists.

Fair enough! So, how do you sneak new camera gear past your husband?

 

[Brownie]

i just tell him him and he rolls his eyes.

It's good to be the King!

 

[Gaz]

Thank you for your inputs. I'm leaning towards A7IV but my brain just cant let go of thoose 61mp. But i think for my use, A7IV might be the better choice.

Cropping from A7iv down to 4k is manageable from a novice perspective. I’m a total newbie with Lightroom and usually grab whatever is transferred to my iPhone and trick it up on this tiny little screen. These guys keep laughing at my dust spots, but I know I can clean that up on a desktop.

I cropped this image and I think it’s not too bad as a concept for future studies using my A7iv.

• ILCE-7M4
• FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS
• 481.0 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/4000 sec
• ISO 640

• ILCE-7M4
• Sony FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 OSS
• 481.0 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/4000 sec
• ISO 640

 

[Gaz]

I just tell him him and he rolls his eyes.

The old “begging for foregiveness is easier than consent” trick also works with motorcycles.

 

[TerryL]

Cropping from A7iv down to 4k is manageable from a novice perspective. I’m a total newbie with Lightroom and usually grab whatever is transferred to my iPhone and trick it up on this tiny little screen. These guys keep laughing at my dust spots, but I know I can clean that up on a desktop.

I cropped this image and I think it’s not too bad as a concept for future studies using my A7iv.

View attachment 41098

View attachment 41097

I keep asking myself why I sold that lens.