[Greg Scott]

Cameras, Lenses and Shooting Gear

on: November 3, 2022 at 10:20 pm

I have traveled with Kevin several times.  He introduced me to Capture One a long time ago.  Like Kevin, I shoot with a Sony A1 and A7R iv.  Historically, I have focused more on landscape shooting.  Recently I have shifted gear and find I am shooting wildlife about 50% of the time.  Last August I was in South Africa and used the A1 for over 80% of my shooting.  It is the first time I have ever had a reliable animal eye autofocus when animals were moving.  However, when shooting wildlife, I often find subjects significantly beyond the range of a 400mm lens requiring significant cropping.  While the megapixel difference between the A1 and the A7R V doesn’t sound like a large amount, when you are cropping out 85% of the image, every little bit helps.  In situations like this, GigaPixel can be extremely helpful.

I have placed an order for the A7R V because for me, it is a better balance for the wildlife shooting I will be doing.  I am only sorry I will not have it for my trip to Botswana.  It will enable me to have two cameras in the field with long lenses (100-400mm and 200-600mm) both capable of wildlife tracking while moving.  While better gear doesn’t guarantee better images, it can make it easier to capture better images.  When I look at what I pay for international workshops each year, the cost of a new camera is not significant thus tilting the cost / benefit decision toward upgrading.  From South Africa, I have a leopard image shot with a 324mm focus range and I can clearly seem my reflection in the leopards eye on the right side of the picture. The A1 is truly an amazing piece of gear.  I have every reason to believe the A7R V will be at least as good if not better.  Here is a link to the leopard image:

https://www.scottgeographic.org/South-Africa/i-Rp7X6CD/A

On the road less traveled....

• This topic was modified 1 year, 1 month ago by Greg Scott.

[Mike Broomfield Silver Member Posts: 80]

Re: Sony a7r V — Am I Upgrading?

Reply #1 on: November 4, 2022 at 6:02 am

Another A1/R4 user here.  I plan to upgrade the R4 to an R5.  Not immediately, but in time for a long trip to the UK in the spring, I hope at a reduced price.

As a land/city/seascape photographer a lot of my work is done on a tripod, especially at night and dawn, but more and more I find myself hand holding when possible so the extra 2 or so stops of stabilization (which seems to be borne out from videos I’ve seen) will be welcome.  I take a good number of shots vertically, and also at knee/shin height so the new screen is welcome (long overdue) as are focus bracketing and the 900 second timer (also long overdue).

Mike

[Jeremy Roussak Gold Member Posts: 961]

Re: Sony a7r V — Am I Upgrading?

Reply #2 on: November 4, 2022 at 6:43 am

After something like three years of being teased/nagged by Kevin, I finally sold most of my Canon gear in June, buying an A7Riv and a couple of lenses. I’m delighted with it (apart from its propensity to gather sensor dust) and I have shots taken in Svalbard that wouldn’t have been achievable with my 5Ds.

My heart sank when I heard of the A7Rv. I thought I’d managed again my usual trick of buying gear which is superseded within a short time. When I read the specs, however, I relaxed. Same (superb) sensor, same resolution; better video (I don’t care); better autofocus (perhaps useful, but not for the vast majority of the photos I take). A better EVF would be nice, but after playing with Kevin’s A7Riv and A1 for a while before I changed systems, I found it didn’t really matter much.

So, thanks for the article, Kevin. You’ve expressed my feelings exactly. I’ll be sticking with my iv. Maybe by the time the vi comes along, my bank balance will have recovered sufficiently for me to upgrade. I can wait.

Jeremy

(Mike, if you’re going to be in the North West of England when you’re over, let me know. We could have a beer.)

[Mike Broomfield Silver Member Posts: 80]

Re: Sony a7r V — Am I Upgrading?

Reply #3 on: November 4, 2022 at 7:04 am

TBD Jeremy, but will let you know.  Sent you a PM.

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