Which would you get? New A7RV or Used A1mk1

dazzerfong · Apr 13, 2025

Hotel Lonely said:
dazzerfong said:

If you absolutely must insist on shooting 8k, just get the A1.

But knowing you, get the A1II and get the best of both worlds so that you don't trigger your GAS again and inevitably go to the A1II. Your rate of switching gear is nuts, so just jump to the end if that's who you are.

Click to expand...

It's not about the destination, it's about the journey, said by a fellow GAS dude on my therapy group

But yeah, acknowledging the part of simple fun of new toy is important

I'm glad folks like him exist, keeps the 2nd-hand market healthy!

Interceptor121 · Apr 14, 2025

Adam-T said:
I shoot for a living and even then have no use for a stacked sensor (never shoot sports and never video) , the A7R5's shutter is more than quiet enough and no way would I want to lose the 60Mp sensor quality let alone the low light AF, the superb IBIS and a very nice rear screen which tilts and flips (the A1's low rez panel didn`t get the A upgrade which the A7R4 got) . add in that despite no sensor stacking the RV still tracks people faultlessly .. so I`d keep the A7RV even if someone offered me a direct swap for an equal minter . the A1 would be a downgrade for me .

Having tested the A7R V my opinion is different from yours

1. Resolution - you can see the resolution gap however you need to have high quality lenses. If ally you use are super zooms you won't see much

2. Low light AF - the A1 is 100s better than the A7R V. One thing are spec sheets the other is reality. Soon CAF on the A7R V dies in low light

3. IBIS. the improvement is not even one stop it can be important to some

4. Tracking: the A7R V is ok to shoot people and slow moving targets at 3 fps higher is not a match and the amount of screen blackout or lag makes it extremely challenging with anything that has sudden change of direction

I still think the op would be better off with the A7R V on the basis that he did not need any of the benefits of the stacked sensor however other than the resolution side of things and some better color in the image it is not a stark benefit as you portrait

Now the A7R V has cashback attached so it comes new at lower price than a used A1 I think making it even more appealing to the op

CamerEyes · Apr 14, 2025

jhunna said:
As much as I love my a7cr, I am going to sell it, and get the GFX100RF as the everyday high MP camera I have always wanted. I was going to keep my a6700 because of its video performance, but I know I would miss my 24GM and 50GM so I am stuck with full frame.

While I follow tech specs it isn't just about that, I like features and how the camera feels in hand. I have shoot with A7RV, but not the A1mk1. As I am going to be behind this camera I only need the tilt up screen. Both shoot 8k video, I know how to shoot 4k60p video on the a7cr, and that's my standard format, but I love the idea of pulling a 35MP snapshot from 8k video. I can work with the rolling shutter of the a7rv.

Photos, I love the a7cr for pictures. It is the best file output I have seen and/or worked with outside of the MF sensor. Combined with the 50GM, there isn't anything else I would rather use when I am looking for quality output. I haven't shot the A1 and heard that the colors may be slightly different than the a7rv. I would use pixel shift, and any other photography tricks in either camera.

In essence I am looking for the best hybrid 8k high MP camera for $3k or less. I like the Nikon z8, but don't want to switch systems at this time. I actually love the Nikon z8 and the 28-400, but now isn't the time.

Anyrate appreciate any feedback from those who have used both, either in photo, video, and/or hybrid modes.

I gave up my Canon R6 Mark II, Canon R5 and Canon R7 in favor of the Sony A7CR and Fuji X-H2.

There is no perfect system. But with the A7CR, I get the performance and flexibility to meet personal and client needs. The Fuji X-H2 is a high MP cropped sensor that have also seen its fair share of commercial work for me, generally as backup to my A7CR.

Your money so I will respect your desire to grab a new camera. It might just help you really ask yourself the question - what shots are you missing / joy you are not feeling with your current system?

Adam-T · Apr 14, 2025

Interceptor121 said:
1. Resolution - you can see the resolution gap however you need to have high quality lenses. If ally you use are super zooms you won't see much

Only use that tamron on the A7-III, you`re right, it gains little at 200mm past 24Mp

Interceptor121 said:
2. Low light AF - the A1 is 100s better than the A7R V. One thing are spec sheets the other is reality. Soon CAF on the A7R V dies in low light

I use SAF in light which needs bounced flash and it sees in light the A1 fails from experience (I tried one) , the D850 and D6 still reign supreme for this but the A7R5 was a good step closer than the A1 / a7R4 etc and the A7R3 / Z7 etc were useless

Interceptor121 said:
3. IBIS. the improvement is not even one stop it can be important to some

I found it to be way more in real life than the old IBIS prior to this , Finally Olympus / Canon level IBIS in a Sony and of course the A1-II and A9-III have it now too .

Interceptor121 said:
4. Tracking: the A7R V is ok to shoot people

which is what I do , have no inteerest in wildlife etc not part of my job

The A1-II brought the bits up to date which desperately needed it , there never was anything wrong with the sensor but even there I don`t need a stacked sensor for my Job , I can make more use of the extra rez and low ISO DR ,

--
** Please ignore the Typos, I'm the world's worst Typist **

Interceptor121 · Apr 14, 2025

Adam-T said:
Adam-T said:

1. Resolution - you can see the resolution gap however you need to have high quality lenses. If ally you use are super zooms you won't see much

Click to expand...

Only use that tamron on the A7-III, you`re right, it gains little at 200mm past 24Mp

Adam-T said:

2. Low light AF - the A1 is 100s better than the A7R V. One thing are spec sheets the other is reality. Soon CAF on the A7R V dies in low light

Click to expand...

I use SAF in light which needs bounced flash and it sees in light the A1 fails from experience (I tried one) , the D850 and D6 still reign supreme for this but the A7R5 was a good step closer than the A1 / a7R4 etc and the A7R3 / Z7 etc were useless

Adam-T said:

3. IBIS. the improvement is not even one stop it can be important to some

Click to expand...

I found it to be way more in real life than the old IBIS prior to this , Finally Olympus / Canon level IBIS in a Sony and of course the A1-II and A9-III have it now too .

Adam-T said:

4. Tracking: the A7R V is ok to shoot people

Click to expand...

which is what I do , have no inteerest in wildlife etc not part of my job

The A1-II brought the bits up to date which desperately needed it , there never was anything wrong with the sensor but even there I don`t need a stacked sensor for my Job , I can make more use of the extra rez and low ISO DR ,

And thats accurate and what the op needs

Besides photontophotos measurements for the original A1 are wrong. Not sure who provided them. I measured my two units and get same results to the A1M2 except at ISO 100. Max difference is 0.1 Ev

dcstep · Apr 14, 2025

I don't see anything in this post, your galleries or your other threads that indicate that you need any of the speed and AF advantages of the a1, so either will make you very happy until your next case of GAS.

poipoipoi_2016 · Apr 14, 2025

Interceptor121 said:
If you did not need the silent shutter and fast burst until now it is likely you don't need it at all

I would get an A7R V

I don't actually get why you would get a medium format camera with and f/4 fixed optic?

If you need 20FPS, you know and I will say that for my occasional airshows, 10 FPS for about 5 seconds has been plenty.

aronake · Apr 16, 2025

I have both.

First got the A1 and then wanted to retire my A7R3 as backup body, so got a A7R5.

To me, the A7R5 with its mirror flipping up and down causing blackouts feels like operating a tractor compared to A1. In most cases the A1 autofocus is clearly superior.

I don't use high framerates very often, but when there it a need its good to have the ability.

On video A7R5 is quite so so with its rolling shutter, the A1 great.

The screen arrangement for A7R5 is good, but I rarely use that. IBIS A7R5 better, but A1 good enough.

Easy vote on A1 for me.

swill · Apr 21, 2025

My first Sony was an A7R3 I got used from KEH. Loved it... the form factor was great for me, not too big - not too small. I only shoot photos so I was never interested in the video features.

A year later I found a great deal on a new A7CR... loved the step up in resolution and auto focus but the handling wasn't as good as the A7R3.

On a whim at the beginning of this year I decided to bring some stuff I wasn't using to KEH... so convenient that is local for me. I ended bringing home a an A1 (original) for quite a deal. I immediately fell in love with it. The comment above that the A7R IV / V feels like a tractor compared to the A1 is true for me. The A7CR is basically the V... and I totally love the speediness and responsiveness of the A1.

My only downside is the grip. I've gotten used to it just wish it was more like the R3 body. I hear the A9 III body is where it's at. Maybe I'll get the A1 II someday and have the best of all worlds.

In a nutshell... the A7CR is a great backup camera to the A1.

xGR86x · Apr 21, 2025

jhunna said:
Interceptor121 said:

If you did not need the silent shutter and fast burst until now it is likely you don't need it at all

I would get an A7R V

I don't actually get why you would get a medium format camera with and f/4 fixed optic?

Click to expand...

I don't really like the f4, but I like everything else, RF style and flat (no grip). If it was f2.8, with IBIS, pixel shift and 8k video it would be ideal for me.

The A1 has less rolling shutter in video modes which is also a plus.

And it's a big difference. The A1 is supposed to scan at some 15ms for 8k modes, while the A7RV is 37ms. Another factor is the A7rV seems to not have 4k 120p at all, while the A1 has very good numbers there.

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Which would you get? New A7RV or Used A1mk1

dazzerfong

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Interceptor121

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CamerEyes

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Adam-T

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Interceptor121

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dcstep

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poipoipoi_2016

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aronake

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swill

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xGR86x

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