The a7S III promises to be Sony's best mirrorless camera for video to date. Instead of winning a battle of spec sheets, it focuses on delivering robust, high quality 4K video. What do we think so far? Watch our hands-on preview to find out.
I pre-ordered A7s3 right away because it is the most complete video package in a MILC body that matches the image quality of a cinema camera like C500ii that costs $16k: Cinema features: 15 stops DR at 640 iso and 16.5 stops at 102400 is under S-log 3, dual gain at 640 and 16000, 10bit422 internal with full audio and AF at all modes, 16 bit RAW output, Venice color science, full-size HDMI, 4-channel audio, dual internal recording & external recording, no overheating Run & Gun features: best AF (-6 to +5 EV), lightweight (body and lenses), no crop at most modes, downsampling FHD, 4K120p, FHD240p, tons of picture profiles, no overheating Cost-saving features: cheap and abundant E mount lenses, versatile dual SD/CFE-A slots, Ninja V compatibility (12 bit ProRes Raw already available) Bonus features: best low light, best EVF, flip-out screen, new touch menu, shoot stills
Surprised they didn't include waveforms, vectorscopes, etc. This class of camera is a serious video tool that will be bought by people who want an affordable, compact camera that can still deliver professional-grade results. Not giving those professionals the features that they are used to using seems rather cheap on Sony's part.
I'm struggling a bit here because although I can see the advantage of the A7S III from an operators perspective, and the disadvantages of the new Canon R's from that same perspective. So far I'm finding the footage I've seen from the R's to be much more appealing to my eye. It will be interesting to see how all of this sorts out. I'm going to give it a few months and see where it goes.
I like the concept of this camera but I'm struggling with the color grading in this video. Maybe it's because you guys are trying to demonstrate all of the various codecs and color spaces but it's a bit erratic to my eye. I'm normally a big fan of Jordan's color grades but the Log footage all looks a bit off to me. The Cine-2 looks good for the most part so maybe it's just an issue with S log.
Sorry, don't take it as too much of a criticism. I understand it must be impossible to smooth all of that out in post. Just an observation. As a Canon/Fuji shooter I usually a have to readjust my eye for Sony footage and it could just be subjective on my part. . I like the cam but I'd probably have to rent one and see if I can work with the grading. Thanks for the review.
i am not a Sony believer, not a videographer too, but with this cam Sony made quite some thinking out of the box, mainly the 12 Mp sensor used -mo matter if it was an obvious solution for a lot of guys, I also presume that this cam's features/specs will sooner or later be integrated in its APSC/M43 cams for both Sony and competition. Being an innovative cam, I say that this cam is establishing a new niche, overpricing is more than expected, two thirds of its price would be more than welcomed. As for the color "negative" comments they' re just funny as always...
I'm exhausted, after watching those Dpreview vids, I speak good English but it's not my language, those guys speak way too fast, too much blabla, silly jokes and it all takes way too long. A good layout, and a good script will make the review more accessible and shorter, speaking very fast is so counterproductive.
this is web video, where the attention span of most viewers is very short, if you drag it out people will bail for something more entertaining.
light comedy keeps viewers engaged, when the subject matter is dry technical content like this.
i can see your point wrt jordan covering a lot of ground really quickly, he was on a roll with that new haircut :-) but i thought that he did an xlnt job, i wouldn't change any of it.
Neat video of a neat camera I won't buy, but I still watched it and learned a great deal.
Very cool to see such emphasis in the videography field. I love the cross-pollination with photography and how this all comes together into the tools I use.
These guys are the best addition DPR has ever had.
Personally I think the video colors from the Sony ZV-1 were much better than these coming off the A7S3. Guess I was hoping Sony would have mirrored the ZV-1 color science over to this latest body. What happened, Sony?
Maybe because this is more pro shooter. They grade their own colors. ZV-1maybe is aiming for YouTubers and casual users and most of them will not grade their video, I think?
Don’t be a jerk. No other camera in the market, not even blackmagic, offers 4k120 and 4k60p in 16bit ProRes Raw, with extremely capable autofocus, recording to reliable dual CFExpress or SD. Did I mention this is full frame?
@Vincenco: "I pity the fool that you are. But your mom still thinks you're the best boy ever."
No need for unnecessary name calling, you are not on a Youtube comments section here. Your comment is fully unasekd for. And your first comment about the price of the camera shows that you have no idea what you're even talking about.
@quatpat Obviously, your observation skills are non-existent. Please see the original comment that prompted my reply. People who shows no respect do not deserve mine as well. As for the price I stated - are you familiar with the term "sarcasm"? Obviously not. Have a nice day.
They are shooting with Sony right? It is obvious with skin tone heavy towards green muddy color (Mostly Chris). It is better than the last year one though where it turned Chris into alien. Jordan is fine for most part. I think, the problem is consistency. It changes skin tones a bit based on the surrounding.
Colors did look a bit too warm to my eye in some of the shots, but definitely not green or muddy. In any case Jordan is grading this stuff himself, so it's really just a case of him making different choices than I would have made rather than anything inherent to the camera.
Slightly OT: So funny that the posts with the specs boast hundreds of comments including major trolling, while the comment section of this (initial) hands-on review by Chris & Jordan with actual video footage is rather quiet and pretty civilized. Spec warriors...
It's a bit like in a soccer match. It's the finals and only two teams are left. Both teams have given their best and the decisive moment is close. The winner of this match will be the champion for a long period. Of course, the crowds are cheering for their favorite team.
Nah, I don‘t see it that way. As long as the brand I‘m with keeps on innovating and putting out bodies and lenses I enjoy and can work with, I don‘t really care whether a different brand presents a camera with better AF or better low-light performance or better resolution. I really like the R5‘s picture quality and its AF seems to be darn good but I‘m still happy with my Sony. People go as far as blatantly lying in their comments to downplay the *other* brand in comparison to their own. As if their worth would be defined by some company putting out some product.
I think this should be classified as a ILVC that can take stills. To call it a hybrid would mean that all Videocam would be to be classified as hybrid also. It looks like a hybrid camera but functionality it is a Video camera first, second, and last as a camera.
Anyone else notice that the b-roll shot on the S1H has much better color than the main footage? The a7SIII has a yellow cast/strange skin tones and colors. It's like a filter has been applied to the video that isn't there in the b-roll.
Yeah, but don’t be too proud. It’s like a camera that has bad color (S1H) slightly beating a camera with worse color (Sony). Neither are seen as color kings.
Jordan is probably more familiar with his own S1H and it’s output than the Sony. All cameras at this level require a decent degree of familiarity and practice to get the most out of them.
I liked the color out of the graded CineStill modes. But remember when they shot the video recently on the E-M1mk3 and the comments section was raving about the color? I agree with fPrime, bad color vs worse color.
Blah blah blah blah blah Sony skin tone. I dare anyone out here to prove that Sony’s color science is in fact “off” as they often claim it to be. I double dare you. By the way, the blind tests conducted(by vloggers and youtubers) so far has only confirmed that Sony’s color rendition is lifelike and pleasing for most people.
Hmmm my scopes would disagree with you. Yeah, perceptive quality might be similar but this is a professional tool. If you implement this tool (A7S3) to other tools like scopes and color transform, you'll see that the colors are very hard to work with. If this is something that doesn't interest you then you probably shouldn't be looking for cameras at this high of a price range.
sony professional video gear is quite a bit more expensive.
@its_a_knife - "If you implement this tool (A7S3) to other tools like scopes and color transform, you'll see that the colors are very hard to work with"
given that you've never used an a7siii, since it hasn't been released, i don't see how you can make that claim.
if jordan thought there was an issue grading a7siii footage, i think that he would have mentioned it.
That's not substantial for a lot of video work though when you need a good looking Rec709 image out of camera. I would much rather have the colors of Like-Rec709 in the S1h.
ProRes requires you to dump a big lump on top of the camera, and try to handle the resulting battery issues... Fine if shooting a movie, a pain otherwise (I tend to use the GH5's internal recording over sticking my Atomos Ninja on top, most of the time. I have so many batteries for all that...)
Why go through all that though? You're better off buying a C200 and then you get all the great efficient codecs in that camera and you can save costs on your storage. If you're going to rig out your camera to be like a cine camera, then just buy a cine camera.
Sony still hasn't pulled it together with the skin tones out of camera, and I see a little muddy compression in the out of focus areas, but maybe it's just YT compression. But the EVF and autofocus are huge improvements.
Canon has great color but its tech is not up there with Sony.
Blackmagic still provides the sweet spot for budget filmmakers looking for specs and color science, but every camera has some glaring oversights like autofocus, IBIS, because they don't have the R&D budgets of the big boys.
Panasonic seems very impressive but haven't used their stuff in the field besides the Varicam LT (which is amazing) much.
Lots of great mirrorless options in 2020, but not one complete package yet.
I see rolling shutter and IBIS are still similar to previous Sony models. I am surprised. My A9 has almost none and this 12MP has less pixels. Is stacked sensor so much better?
I’m really surprised and disappointed they didn’t use a stacked sensor here. I’m not really the target market for this camera but this still surprised me.
Maybe the production cost of stacked sensors is so much higher, especially with large sensors, that it would have pushed the price of the camera too far above the price point Sony had in mind?
It’s hard to know how much the sensor cost is for a stacked sensor. My guess is it’s on the order or more than double the cost of an unstacked sensor. It’s an extra 36x24mm chip plus the process to actually stack the two together with perfect alignment and without breaking them. This is not easy. I think in general the readout speeds are improving without having to stack and for a 12MP readout Sony figured it’s probably fast enough.
It’s hard to tell from the video how fast it is. I’m sure when someone gets it in their hands it will be precisely measured and then we will know.
I agree, I was surprised too. A stacked sensor would seem like the ideal antidote for rolling shutter, which is especially important for a video-centric camera. Maybe it would have impeded the camera's low light capabilities? I don't think people really care about that all *that* much though. I know "S" stands for "sentitivity," but really it should be "V" for "video."
Brilliant upgrade Sony. I look forward to putting it to work.
Stills resolution is great for fast post production and more than adequate for magazine covers and pages... Double page spreads might need more.
My only gripe is that I wish they'd used the a99II style reversing screen, over the top, rather than side swing. a99II style screen allows photographer to sit between camera and product... from either side of camera. This is super handy for looking at screen while adjusting product... without the need for tether. I'll have to do it from one side now. The side without the controls... Bummer.
Which photo/scene from the video are you referring to? I looked at all photos plus the video on a color calibrated srgb screen and i really can't see any green beards...
Are you talking about number 9 beard shot through out of focus strips of green grass in cool shaded light? That green beard? LOL... Looks pretty neutral to me, considering natures filtering. But then again, I'm on a calibrated monitor so I can't speak for your viewing standards Mark.
An email sent by Sony Nordic to newsletter subscribers appears to have let the preverbal cat out of the bag — the a7S III will get Sony’s S-Cinetone color profile in a version 2.00 update.
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