Steve Huff has been reviewing camera gear for nearly 7 years and when he gets this excited about a new camera you know it’s a good sign. He’s especially taken with the build quality of the new Sony A7 II and describes it as solid and professional and can even imagine this camera replacing his trusty Leica M for a lot of shooting. Hit the jump to watch the video!
Sony A7 II Steve Huff First Look
The original A7 took the photography world by storm with its excellent image quality and small size and street photographers loved that you could use Leica lenses to the little wonder. The Sony A7 II uses the sames sensor as it’s predecessor but adds 5 axis image stablization as well as a number of improvements across the board.
Steve is definitely impressed by the solid feel of the new Sony A7 II and thinks the build quality is slightly better than the Nikon Df. No small feat considering the Nikon Df body sells for nearly $1000 more!
In general he finds a lot to like about the Sony Ay II with its excellent build quality, nice fast AF, better image quality wiht improved color and thinks the refined button layout really improves handling. His full review will be up in a couple of weeks so this will have to hold you over if you’re still on the fence about the Sony’s latest full frame mirrorless camera. But judging by the level of excitement from Steve I think it’s safe to say the Sony A7 II has a lot going for it!
The Sony A7 II is now available at your favorite retailer:
B&H Photo Video
Sony A7 II (Body Only)
Sony A7 II with FE 28-70mm OSS Lens
Amazon
Sony A7 II (Body Only)
Sony A7 II with FE 28-70mm OSS Lens
Adorama
Sony A7 II (Body Only)
Sony A7 II with FE 28-70mm OSS Lens
StreetShootr’s Take
There’s a lot to like about the Sony A7 II and it looks like it might be a great way for street photographers to use Leica glass without breaking the bank. The original A7 had amazing picture quality but felt a little cheap and suffered from key usability issues that held me back. It looks like Sony has been listening to its customers and has made key improvements to both build quality and usability.
One huge issue for me was the lack of a native 35 mm manual focus lens but the recently announced Zeiss Loxia lenses have that covered with amazing build quality and fantastic color rendition. As long the battery life is on par with the original A7 it’s hard not to recommend the A7 II for street shooters. Its small size and light weight combined with excellent image quality and the ability to shoot with Leica glass will make a lot of street photographers very happy!
What’s your take on the new Sony A7 II? Too much hype for too little camera? Or the logical evolution of Sony’s full frame mirrorless line? Post your ideas in the comments below and keep the conversation going!