Thoughts on the a6700

jhunna · Jun 15, 2023

If this camera comes with the A7R5 internals and rear screen with the new APSC sensor and a larger EVF it is going to be a winner even at $2000.

If it carries over the 10bit 4k60/120 video modes, it immediately becomes one of the best hybrid cameras on the market. Some things to consider that I haven't heard others mention:

1. Using a button to capture the tracking focus instead of the touch screen. This is HUGE for sports photography.

2. 4k/120p with sound is a dream format that will allow you to do video, slow motion, and pull decent photos from the video.

3. I haven't heard about the low light performance, but I am imagining it will be reasonably good.

4. Hope it has the new dynamic IS even with the crop this will extremely useable and save money on things such as gimbals. And hopefully removes the need for post processing of gyro data.

5. When it comes to photos, you really can't go wrong with any of the Sony lineup, so I am not worried about the photo concerns, although 1/250 flash sync would be great.

6. This camera will be a strong competitor to the A7C lineup, and will really make people decide on lens size, Shallow Depth of Field, and super Wide. For me Lens size is probably the most important, so it means I am probably going to sell my a7c IF everything is as I expect.

7. No overheating with 4k 10bit video. Again, if it can do this it is exceptional.

I haven't been this excited about an apsc camera being delivered since they mentioned the Fuji X100V, I really think the 6700 if it comes in at a price of $1500 or lower will be a game changer.

Canon2018 · Jun 15, 2023

jhunna said:
If this camera comes with the A7R5 internals and rear screen with the new APSC sensor and a larger EVF it is going to be a winner even at $2000.
If it carries over the 10bit 4k60/120 video modes, it immediately becomes one of the best hybrid cameras on the market. Some things to consider that I haven't heard others mention:
1. Using a button to capture the tracking focus instead of the touch screen. This is HUGE for sports photography.

2. 4k/120p with sound is a dream format that will allow you to do video, slow motion, and pull decent photos from the video.

3. I haven't heard about the low light performance, but I am imagining it will be reasonably good.

4. Hope it has the new dynamic IS even with the crop this will extremely useable and save money on things such as gimbals. And hopefully removes the need for post processing of gyro data.

5. When it comes to photos, you really can't go wrong with any of the Sony lineup, so I am not worried about the photo concerns, although 1/250 flash sync would be great.

6. This camera will be a strong competitor to the A7C lineup, and will really make people decide on lens size, Shallow Depth of Field, and super Wide. For me Lens size is probably the most important, so it means I am probably going to sell my a7c IF everything is as I expect.

7. No overheating with 4k 10bit video. Again, if it can do this it is exceptional.

I haven't been this excited about an apsc camera being delivered since they mentioned the Fuji X100V, I really think the 6700 if it comes in at a price of $1500 or lower will be a game changer.

It all depends on the price. I regularly see the A7C on offer for $1,400 so there is NO way I would spend more on an APS-C body, no matter how good it was.

My A6400 already produces excellent results, making it hard to justify an expensive upgrade.

José B · Jun 15, 2023

The key for me is the number of FPS and the performance of readout speed. If it is anywhere close to the Canon R6MKII I'll probably order one.

jhunna · Jun 15, 2023

Canon2018 said:
It all depends on the price. I regularly see the A7C on offer for $1,400 so there is NO way I would spend more on an APS-C body, no matter how good it was.

If you don't need 4k 10bit 4.2.2 60/120p video I don't think there is a reason to upgrade just for photos.

Canon2018 said:
My A6400 already produces excellent results, making it hard to justify an expensive upgrade.

agreed...

fotojeger · Jun 15, 2023

jhunna said:
If this camera comes with the A7R5 internals and rear screen with the new APSC sensor and a larger EVF it is going to be a winner even at $2000.

For that kind of money I'd want either more MP or stacked sensor, and a better rear screen, or even better EVF. Not that I necessarily need most of those, but around that price point the alternatives have better specs.

jhunna said:
1. Using a button to capture the tracking focus instead of the touch screen. This is HUGE for sports photography.

I'm pretty sure this is already possible on a6400/a6600 via back-button focusing + tracking AF.

jhunna said:
3. I haven't heard about the low light performance, but I am imagining it will be reasonably good.

New sensor will be backside-illuminated unlike the old one, so theoretically it should be better, but likely not that much in practice. As for DR, I haven't seen any lab tests of FX30 (same sensor), but marketing says "14+ DR". Dxomark rates old sensor at 13.7 stops, so 14 stops could be true.

jhunna said:
5. When it comes to photos, you really can't go wrong with any of the Sony lineup, so I am not worried about the photo concerns, although 1/250 flash sync would be great.

If they really add front dial and improve IBIS then I kind of agree because of Sony's AF, lenses, and body size. But other manufacturers still do some things better. Fujifilm uses better quality screens and the X-T series has a nice "3-way tilting screen" which IMO is more ergonomic for photography than the fully articulating one. Good selection of weather sealed lenses as well, while very few Sony APS-C lenses have the sealing. Also there's no high-end Sony APS-C option for those that want it.

jhunna said:
6. This camera will be a strong competitor to the A7C lineup, and will really make people decide on lens size, Shallow Depth of Field, and super Wide. For me Lens size is probably the most important, so it means I am probably going to sell my a7c IF everything is as I expect.

There are now some wild rumors about A7C II, but APS-C still has better value and portability if you consider total size and cost of body + equivalent lenses.

jhunna said:
I haven't been this excited about an apsc camera being delivered since they mentioned the Fuji X100V, I really think the 6700 if it comes in at a price of $1500 or lower will be a game changer.

IMO for photography the a6700 body alone is not that special among competition, it's just a more well rounded option in comparison. Canon doesn't have the lenses and Fujifilm's AF is still unreliable, while Sony has supposedly now fixed its own faults (such as IBIS and lack of dials) and added some further improvements (EVF, sensor, body redesign...). I wish they'd start using better screens as well though.

jhunna said:
If you don't need 4k 10bit 4.2.2 60/120p video I don't think there is a reason to upgrade just for photos.

If the rumors are correct then a6700 will have some very good improvements for photography: better EVF (3.69M), faster fps (FX30 sensor), faster shutter speed, faster write speed (UHS-II / CF A cards), front dial, better IBIS, better grip as well.

Not necessarily worth the upgrade if you still happy with a6400/a6600. But I've seen many people complain about the faults of existing a6x00 bodies, and most of those faults will now supposedly be fixed.

On the other hand tilting screen will probably be replaced with a fully articulating one, which can be more of a drawback for photography.

Bread chef · Jun 15, 2023

fotojeger said:
I've seen many people complain about the faults of existing a6x00 bodies, and most of those faults will now supposedly be fixed.

There isnt a single brand without people complaining about it, every brand/device has its pros and cons and everything is relative to the individual user. User A has very big hands and dislikes Sony while user B values Sony over the rest because of the smaller form factor while user X is indifferent to all that and just values best AF/viewfinder/batterylife or whatever properties. And while Canon and Sony are the current mirrorless market leaders they will also gather most complains.

Martin_99 · Jun 16, 2023

fotojeger said:
jhunna said:

If this camera comes with the A7R5 internals and rear screen with the new APSC sensor and a larger EVF it is going to be a winner even at $2000.

Click to expand...

For that kind of money I'd want either more MP or stacked sensor, and a better rear screen, or even better EVF. Not that I necessarily need most of those, but around that price point the alternatives have better specs.

fotojeger said:

1. Using a button to capture the tracking focus instead of the touch screen. This is HUGE for sports photography.

Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure this is already possible on a6400/a6600 via back-button focusing + tracking AF

If I understand the point correctly, you don't need touch screen or BBF for tracking focusing on aA6400/A6600. I use neither from these. Consistency of results can be improved though. Therefore I hope that faster 26Mpx sensor together with updated processor show it's magic.

Adam-T · Jun 16, 2023

Martin_99 said:
Martin_99 said:

this is already possible on a6400/a6600 via back-button focusing + tracking AF

Click to expand...

If I understand the point correctly, you don't need touch screen or BBF for tracking focusing on aA6400/A6600. I use neither from these. Consistency of results can be improved though. Therefore I hope that faster 26Mpx sensor together with updated processor show it's magic.

BBF makes it easier though in single shot mode as if you can hold it to keep tracking and jab the shutter button when you want to take a shot . if you`re shooting continuous then , no BBF doesn`t help unless you need to do short bursts of the same subject

Martin_99 · Jun 16, 2023

AdamT said:
Adam-T said:

Adam-T said:

this is already possible on a6400/a6600 via back-button focusing + tracking AF

Click to expand...

If I understand the point correctly, you don't need touch screen or BBF for tracking focusing on aA6400/A6600. I use neither from these. Consistency of results can be improved though. Therefore I hope that faster 26Mpx sensor together with updated processor show it's magic.

Click to expand...

BBF makes it easier though in single shot mode as if you can hold it to keep tracking and jab the shutter button when you want to take a shot . if you`re shooting continuous then , no BBF doesn`t help unless you need to do short bursts of the same subject

I use only AF-C tracking modes. Switch between Wide and smallest focus point based on scene.

Wide is clear (mainly for portraits) - camera will choose closest face and track it. In second case I keep focus point in center and just aim with camera to focus on desired subject. After that camera track the subject and I shoot in the right moment.

Adam-T said:
--
** Please ignore the Typos, I'm the world's worst Typist **

fotojeger · Jun 16, 2023

Take non said:
fotojeger said:

I've seen many people complain about the faults of existing a6x00 bodies, and most of those faults will now supposedly be fixed.

Click to expand...

There isnt a single brand without people complaining about it, every brand/device has its pros and cons and everything is relative to the individual user. User A has very big hands and dislikes Sony while user B values Sony over the rest because of the smaller form factor while user X is indifferent to all that and just values best AF/viewfinder/batterylife or whatever properties. And while Canon and Sony are the current mirrorless market leaders they will also gather most complains.

Sure. But my point was that for those "complainers" the upgrade is going to be worth it. It was said in response to the statement that there's no reason to upgrade to a6700 just for photos.

Frankly I think some of the complaints are universally valid, regardless of what other brands are doing. Some flaws are just basic things that one would want from a camera no matter what's the specific use case or what year it was produced in.

To my knowledge Sony is the only APS-C manufacturer that requires you to use only your thumb to dial in all of the exposure settings. Even if you just use aperture priority and auto ISO, you'll still be using exposure compensation. Moving the thumb from top dial to rear dial requires you to slightly shift your grip. Or you can overload the top dial with two exposure settings (hold+dial setup), which is also very annoying to use (it still trips me up on my old camera which only has one dial). It's much better to simply have a separate dial for the index finger instead of overloading your thumb (which is already serving many duties beyond just exposure).

If a6700 really solves basic faults like this then it will become the most well rounded APS-C camera today IMO, whereas other brands require bigger sacrifices. If it's not obvious, I'm overall really happy about what's been rumored so far regarding a6700.

I see no reason to now defend older a6x00 cameras against a6700 improvements.

fotojeger · Jun 16, 2023

AdamT said:
Adam-T said:

Adam-T said:

this is already possible on a6400/a6600 via back-button focusing + tracking AF

Click to expand...

If I understand the point correctly, you don't need touch screen or BBF for tracking focusing on aA6400/A6600. I use neither from these. Consistency of results can be improved though. Therefore I hope that faster 26Mpx sensor together with updated processor show it's magic.

Click to expand...

BBF makes it easier though in single shot mode as if you can hold it to keep tracking and jab the shutter button when you want to take a shot . if you`re shooting continuous then , no BBF doesn`t help unless you need to do short bursts of the same subject

The idea is that you use BBF only once to initiate continuous tracking AF, then compose the shot(s) freely without the need to refocus, whether the subject moves or you do.

PieterB · Jun 16, 2023

I wouldn't like to switch to FF because I can't use my existing lenses anymore.

But if the new camera costs more than say a A7mk3, I'd switch over to full frame.

Adam-T · Jun 16, 2023

PieterB said:
But if the new camera costs more than say a A7mk3, I'd switch over to full frame.

It will you can be sure of that , the Mk3 is on the edge of falling off the lineup anyway as its now looking very dated in terms of AF etc (it came out before Real time tracking) , new it costs less than the A7C (UK) and used can be had for around £1000 - yeah its still more money than the A6600 but the A6600 has had nearly Four years on the shelf itself so a new version with all the latest stuff and the Ergonomic improvements will rack up the price .

Canon2018 · Jun 16, 2023

PieterB said:
I wouldn't like to switch to FF because I can't use my existing lenses anymore.

But if the new camera costs more than say a A7mk3, I'd switch over to full frame.

DutchMM · Jun 16, 2023

Your ability to get the small AF point onto the subject before you start tracking must depend partly on the speed at which the subject is moving? In an effort to avoid this difficulty - and because I am concentrating on swallows in flight atm - I have the AF area set to wide, AF to continuous, and have a custom button set to start tracking. This allows me to keep the lens focused before the bird enters my viewfinder, without tracking whatever is in the background. I think.

Cheers

Mike M

Bread chef · Jun 16, 2023

fotojeger said:
I see no reason to now defend older a6x00 cameras against a6700 improvements.

It was merely an observation as no camera is ever perfect, old(er) or new.

At the moment I'm anxiously anticipating a (new) Sony aps-c myself but however good it will be there will always be something more to be desired. I'm guessing this time for Sony to be putting lots of new tech and more improvements than ever on the table as it never before had to deal with such high level devices from mirrorless competitors and smartphone innovations alike.

Bread chef · Jun 16, 2023

PieterB said:
I wouldn't like to switch to FF because I can't use my existing lenses anymore.

But if the new camera costs more than say a A7mk3, I'd switch over to full frame.

You can just use your aps-c lenses in crop-mode when using full frame camera's, leaving you with about 16mp when using a 33mp a7mk4.

fotojeger · Jun 16, 2023

Take non said:
fotojeger said:

I see no reason to now defend older a6x00 cameras against a6700 improvements.

Click to expand...

It was merely an observation as no camera is ever perfect, old(er) or new.

Personally I think a good balance is the best so that no single thing frustrates you too much and so that the camera can adapt to whatever unforeseen use case. This means you'll remain happy with your camera for longer. From that perspective a6700 will be ahead of others, even if this or that spec is worse than competition.

For those that have very specific needs it's a different story of course, but then the choice is more limited and thus easier anyway.

Canon2018 · Jun 16, 2023

Take non said:
PieterB said:

I wouldn't like to switch to FF because I can't use my existing lenses anymore.

But if the new camera costs more than say a A7mk3, I'd switch over to full frame.

Click to expand...

You can just use your aps-c lenses in crop-mode when using full frame camera's, leaving you with about 16mp when using a 33mp a7mk4.

If only the A7 IV were more affordable..

Bread chef · Jun 16, 2023

Canon2018 said:
Take non said:

PieterB said:

I wouldn't like to switch to FF because I can't use my existing lenses anymore.

But if the new camera costs more than say a A7mk3, I'd switch over to full frame.

Click to expand...

You can just use your aps-c lenses in crop-mode when using full frame camera's, leaving you with about 16mp when using a 33mp a7mk4.

Click to expand...

If only the A7 IV were more affordable..

True but they are getting cheaper used still, some allready with a 30% price reduction.

Thoughts on the a6700

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