Champion of champions and referred to as a legendary brand for famous mirrorless
cameras, Sony never fails to amaze you! As mirrorless cameras have taken over the
crown from the initial hit DSLR era, it is extremely crucial to be the best among the
hit club.Autofocussing in Sony systems has become 10x sharper with brilliant subject tracking
and recognition. Clearly, we can’t stress enough the countless unique features that
Sony has developed over the past years. Jumping to current affairs, it took 4 full years
for the brand to update with its brand new release Sony A7 IV.
However, the previous release Sony A 7S III continues to flaunt its hybrid, full-frame
mirrorless edition. Hybrid mirrorless devices are sleek and slim with the feature of
interchangeable lenses. And, we can’t hold our thrill to break down the exciting upgrade!
Sony announces A7 IV. Grab a cup of coffee as our top Kerala wedding photographers
decode this beauty!
Body
The device promises a higher resolution, improved video specifications and guess
what!? a 33-megapixel sensor Sony camera as well! To beat the rival brands such as
Nikon and Canon, the brand pushed forward impressive technologies in this new
edition that belongs to a category the brand has been pioneering for a long time. The
body of the model is 99 percent the same of A 7S III and A I.
Most importantly, as per the detailed Sony A 7 IV reviews, it has acquired the good
grip that the A I model has while holding and shooting. For portrait photography, the
full articulation capability of the rear touch display is a huge plus especially while
setting up the device on the ground level. Added to that, the model is handy for
vlogging and low angle frames with this important feature. the 3.68 million dot
electronic viewfinder is advanced and more clear than the Sony A7S III specs and
similar models of the brand Canon.
The Sony A 7 IV card system has 2 slots and it intakes CF express kind of A cards,
UHS 2 and SD. The USB C spot in the device helps the user to charge while using the
camera. Added to that there is also an HDMI port that is full-sized. Clearly, the
battery used is the new release of Sony NP FC100 with 580 shots while being on a
stable charge set up, or, for 4k video shoots upto 2 hours of hassle-free recording.
And, the A7 IV has the ability to keep its mechanical shutter closed after the device
has gone to the off mode. This inturn protects the device from pollutants and dust in
the air when the user is actively changing and experimenting with lenses. However, this
trend was initially brought forward by the brand Canon in its EOS R.
Core Imaging System
– 33 megapixel Exmor R CMOS image sensor
– Full frame feature.
Performance
Alpha models have stolen our hearts with it’s impressive shooting performance and
sharp autofocus features. The A7 IV has all those noteworthy features. But, the sensor
we have discussed above that is 33 megapixels is not stacked. Though it is illuminated
in the backside, it is not stacked just like we have seen in A1. The mild issue here
comes with the slow shooting speed limiting to 10 frames per second in electrical or
mechanical modes.
To point out, this applies to raw photos that are compressed. When we use raws that
are uncompressed or lossless, it becomes 6 frames per second. But, there is a 50
percent spike in the resolution which is not bad for the mentioned numbers. Also, the
burst mode allows us to click around 1000 photos at a time with a noticeable speed.
As we come to the most advanced autofocus by the brand, A7 IV is the latest with a
whole lot of AI tricks boosting the reliability and user-friendly factors. Extra brownie
points for the excellent focusing abilities on the body, face and eyes in people, birds
and animals. Interestingly, it works smoothly on all focus modes. This inturn helps the
photographer to shoot action or interviews.
We have discussed that the resolution has been spiked to 50. Naturally, we all might
feel doubtful about the low light picture quality. We got it all wrong there! Even till
ISO 12,800, we get ultra-clean images that comment on the amazing ISO performance Sony
A7 IV offers! This is a big plus for Number one wedding photographers in Kerala as they have
to shoot continuously in low light.
Massive improvement in color science is yet another feature to discuss. The problems we
have noticed in the earlier models have been easily wiped off. Images in JPEG formats
look superb with very less noise. As wedding photographers, the rolling shutter has been
a mild road bump as we can’t use it during silent mode usages.
Still Autofocus
– 759 phase-detection AF points (assured 94% coverage)
– Improved low light AF down to EV-4
– AF tracking feature for continuous shooting (at F22)
– Real-time eye AF for animals, birds and humans
– Advanced Real-time tracking (overall)
Photos
For tracking the subject we simply have to click on it. Thereafter the device will be
recognizing the face or eye as per our requirement. Most importantly, the raw images
(14 bit) display the dynamic range till 13 stops. This, in turn helps the editors to
correct the shadows and adjust the highlights to perfection. Still Photography
– High resolution
– Accurate color reproduction
– Low noise
– Soft skin effect for portraits and fashion shoots
– Polished and creative look
– 5-axis in-body image stabilization (5.5 step)
– 828 continuous RAW+JPEG shooting
Video Shooting
Advancing the 4k videos that were shot till 30p with the sensor’s full width, the new
launch can shoot till 10 bit at the S-log of Sony. This inturn helps the editors to stretch
and pull the videos while finishing up in the post-production works. Next comes, the
lens breathing compensation. As we change the focus from one point to another, the
distraction caused by a mild zoom is corrected with the breathing compensation
function Sony.
Currently, Sony A7 IV is the only device with this feature. To point out, manual focusing
can be made much more sharper with a feature called manual focus assist Sony with
the help of color blocking the backdrop and the subject. Also, by keeping the active
mode in video options on, image stabilization is even more top-notch!
Movie
– 4k 60p recording in Super35 format (for slow motion)
– 4k 30p recording and 7k oversampling (for high resolution)
– For quick deliveries, S-Cinetone and creative look
– 10 bit S-Log3 with 15 plus stops of dynamic range
– 10-bit depth, 4:2:2 color sampling and intraframe encoding (XAVC 5-1)
– High-efficiency MPEG-H HEVC/H.265 (XAVC HS)
– Active mode for image stabilization
– Digital audio interface for crisp audio recording
Price Range
Sony A7 IV price India retails for Rs 2,42,490 for just the body. For both body and
28-70 mm zoom lens the total price stands at 2,62,490. The above prices are as per the
data available on 23 rd February 2022.
Aside the rolling shutter that forbids the users from using the silent mode or recording
4k videos that are not cropped, the A7 IV is a great choice for both photography/videography
enthusiasts and professionals. A7 IV has really excelled in AF tracking, resolution and
features of video recording! But, the most notable thing is the ability of the device to
capture both photos and videos perfectly. Here, the credit goes to smart Sony AI features
that will readjust the camera functioning with respect to the shooting circumstances and
the experience of the user!