Tried & Tested: Sony A7c (Second-life review) the Travellers Camera

Summary

I am a traveller and amateur photographer who, for many years, has shot with Nikon DSLRs (the last of which was a D750 on terrafirma) and a Sony RX100 - (marks I to V) below the water.

On this trip, I was cycling and hiking for three months and needed to lighten the load and learn more about shooting video. As I am familiar with Sony, I traded in my Nikon equipment and moved over to a Sony A7c, which is one of the smallest full-frame cameras available with good videography specs.

I am not a pro so for a full technical breakdown check out websites such as DP Review.

Camera Specs

• 24MP BSI CMOS full-frame sensor

• Bionz X processor (same as in the a7 III)

• 'Real-time tracking' AF system with a human head, face, eye, and animal recognition

• Oversampled 4K video at up to 30p, including 8-bit S-Log and HLG

• Continuous bursts at up to 10 fps

• Fully articulating 921k-dot touchscreen (great for video)

• 2.36M-dot EVF with 0.59x mag.

• Mic and headphone sockets (I use with a Rode microphone)

• Large 'Z-type' battery, rated to 740 shots per charge

My point of view

Pro’s

It is small and powerful with a great battery life. There are a selection of various photos above from my trip. The silent shooting took a while to get used to but when I did the wildlife were grateful for not being disturbed by the quick-fire clicks of the shutter. The autofocus is pretty good.

Con’s

It is still using the old Sony menu system which has to be one of the most painful on the market even though I am familiar with the RX100 setup.

I do miss the front dial which are a feature on the larger DSLR’s but this is the sacrifice for size.

The viewfinder image feels pixelated to me compared to my previous mirrored camera. However this disappears on the higher end Sony cameras such as the A7rV which has a 9.4m dot electronic viewfinder (HERE is an article on that).

Overall

It's a wicked little travel camera and for the price it punches in specifications with some of the more expensive cameras. If / when I trade it in to MPB I will consider saving my pocket money and upgrading to the A7rV as the 214g is worth the new menu, front dial and superior viewfinder and some wicked new AI tracking capabilities (insects for macro).

Lenses Used

• FE 50mm F1.8 - Link

• FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM - Link

• FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS II - Link

• 2x Teleconvertor - Link

Find second-life @https://www.mpb.com/