A weekend with the Sony a7iii

Life is a funny old thing. You never quite know what might happen next. Case-in-point, this weekend just gone (as I write this).

It just so happens that over this last weekend, our daughter and her partner had planned an 'elopement' here in Greymouth. We knew about the elopement - just the parents were invited - so we were 'planning' a wedding - and getting ready for grandkids, a new puppy(!), catering for a small gathering etc.

I was going to be doing 'some' of the photography on the day (just try and stop me) - the getting ready at our home and the bridal party photos afterwards. A friend of the family would be covering the actual service and family photos.

Leading up to the day, I looked over my photography gear to decide what I might use. Of course I have the recently acquired Sony a57, with SAL18250 lens, which is decently sharp from 18mm up to around 100mm. This should cover most bases on the day, together with the 50mm f2.8 macro. I also have the Sony a99, which I could pair with the 50mm for a low-light option indoors. So I figured I could manage pretty much everything on the day with this setup.

Unfortunately, rain was forecast. So I thought things might get a little 'gloomy'. Since I haven't got a flash for the Sony's, I thought I would ask Stew (from who I have the loan of the a99) if he had a flash that might work? I also explained the 'elopement' scenario. Wasn't really expecting his reply though....

"Yeah, I've got a flash that will work with the Sony's", he said. "But why don't you just use my a7iii for the weekend? You could use it with the Zeiss 24-70mm f/2.8 and have the whole day covered".

What's a guy, whose been reading up on the a7's for the last month and wondering what it would be like to shoot with one, supposed to say to that!? Except, of course, YES!

Those who have been following along with my blog (shame on you if you haven't), will know that I have seriously been considering my next camera move. And that my next camera move is most likely to be full-frame. And that top of my list for 'affordable' full frame options, is the Sony a7 line (more specifically the A7ii or A7Rii). Check out my last few posts if you haven't already.

Anyways, as much as it's wonderful to 'dream' about this stuff, and play around with 'what-ifs', it's another thing to actually have the gear in your hands. And it's even better if you can get to spend a decent amount of time actually using said gear out in the field. Now, it seemed, I was going to get to do both...

Daddy & daughter time. Sony a7iii (ILCE-7M3) with Minolta 85mm f/1.4 - f/2.5 @ 1/400th, ISO 200 

First of all I want to preface everything I'm about to say with the following statement - image quality from the 24MP sensor on the a7iii is simply gorgeous! There, I've said it. The dynamic range of the sensor is excellent - about 14.5 stops - allowing details to be retained and recovered in both shadows and highlights. The above image was very contrasty, with a lot of bright highlights and deep shadows in the RAW capture, but the recovery of both still looks very natural. A truly great result. So not surprisingly, no issues with IQ whatsoever.

Ok, here it comes...

BUT, I didn't really enjoy shooting with the camera. Unfortunately. For a couple of reasons. One that might be fixable, but the other - maybe not? Let me explain...

First - the fixable issue. The weight. At one level I can't (and shouldn't) complain - because I got to borrow and use some truly amazing glass with the a7iii. I mostly (95% of the day) used the incredible Vario-Sonnar T* 24-70mm f/2.8 ZA SSM II (SAL2470Z) lens (pictured right), and as already stated above, IQ is outstanding. But... it also happens to be an A-mount lens, therefore requiring an adapter to fit the E-mount, and it also happens to be unbelievably heavy (about 1kg including adapter). The camera body itself is a solid 650grams - so the total package comes in at around 1.65kgs. 

Pretty hefty to be carrying around all day, and you certainly know that you have some gear with you. But I did say that this was 'fixable'. And of course it is. Just use lighter lenses... Easy. And, of course, also having dedicated E-mount lenses would  help eliminate some of the weight by getting rid of the adapter. Fair enough.

Emy and Emily. Sony a7iii with SAL2470Z

But, what if your E-mount lens happens to be the equivalent FE 24-70mm f2.8 G, at 886grams? That's still about 1.5kgs to be carrying around. Not insignificant.

You could, of course, say "harden-up you big sook and be a man! If you want to go to full-frame, then heavier cameras and lenses are par for the course. Grow some muscles and get over yourself"!

To which I would say - fair enough. I agree. If... if it wasn't for my second (and major) gripe with the a7iii - it's handling and ergonomics.

Because I also happen to have another full frame camera at the moment. The Sony a99. And it, too, is not a lightweight camera. In fact, it's even heavier than the a7iii (at 812grams). But, when I attached the aforementioned SAL2470Z lens to the a99 - with a total weight of almost 2kgs - it felt so much better to hold and use than the a7iii. Where the a7iii was cramped, sharp, and angular, the a99 was comfortable, rounded and relaxed. Even with the weight. The a99's ergonomics are such a superior experience, it's like night and day.

Ok then, what about a grip? The a7iii will take a grip that will increase the hand space and therefore make it more comfortable to use (playing devil's advocate).

Yes, this is true. And I would absolutely get the grip attachment for an a7 if I go down that route. I do agree that it should/would improve the handling significantly. It's unfortunate that it's another thing to have to buy - but there you go. I'm getting used to this with mirrorless systems.

Of course the added grip would also help by including a shutter button when the camera is in portrait orientation - another bonus - and increase the already excellent battery life (of the a7iii at least).

Mrs Emily Hunt. Sony a7iii with SAL2470Z. f/4 @ 1/500th, ISO 200

Which brings me to my last gripe. Which also has to do with the ergonomics of the camera. And which won't be fixed by adding a battery grip. And that's the exposure compensation dial on the camera. It's awful. Truly awful. I don't know about other versions of the a7, but on the a7iii it's way too stiff and hard to move, and it actually hurt to use it. The dial is sharply ridged (presumably for better grip), but because it's so hard to turn, it very quickly started taking skin off of my thumb! I ended up switching out exposure compensation to the control wheel next to it, which was so much easier to use. So yes, again another work-around. But really!? If the exposure compensation dials are of the same design, and the same stiffness to use, in all the other a7 cameras, then I really don't think the Sony a7 line is for me?

Maybe it's just this copy of the a7iii? I've done a little research, and some people on-line complain that it's too easy to change accidentally on the a7ii? So maybe they made it a little stiffer on the A7iii? And I could always just shoot fully manual and forget about the exposure compensation wheel altogether? Which is an option.

But the menus also drove me a little crazy as well. Not very intuitive to use (and this from someone who used Olympus for years).

I guess I just didn't love my time with the A7iii as much as I'd hoped that I would? I did love the images it produced though. And maybe all the other stuff is just, well, stuff? A grip would help, for sure. And a slightly less stiff exposure compensation wheel. And if I got used to the Sony menu system...

So maybe I haven't counted the Sony a7's out completely. But there are some caveats. Poor ergonomics is something that has plagued the a7 series from the very beginning. And there is no doubt that there are better handling cameras out there. But is there better value? Or a more filled-out system? Or better IQ than the Sony's? Probably not.