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| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Maker | Sony Group |
| Type | Full-frame mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera |
| Released | October 2013 |
| Lens | |
| Lens | Sony E-mount |
| Sensor/medium | |
| Sensor | 35.8×23.9 mmExmorfull-frame HD CMOS Sensor |
| Maximumresolution | 6000×4000 (3:2) (24megapixels)[1] |
| Film speed | Auto, 100–25600 |
| Storage media | Memory Stick Pro Duo, Pro-HG Duo,SD,SDHC,SDXC (α7R IV supports only SD family) |
| Focusing | |
| Focus modes | Contrast Detect (sensor), Phase Detect, Multi-area, Center, Selective single-point, Single, Continuous, Face Detection, Live View |
| Exposure/metering | |
| Exposuremetering | Multi-segment, Center-weighted, Spot |
| Shutter | |
| Shutter | Electronically-controlled, vertical-traverse, focal-plane shutter |
| Shutter speed range | 1/8000 – 30 sec, BULB |
| Continuous shooting | 5 frame/s |
| Viewfinder | |
| Viewfinder | Built-in 2.4 million dots OLED Electronic viewfinder |
| General | |
| Video recording | 1920×1080 (60p, 60i, 24p), 1440×1080 (30p), 640×480 (30p) |
| LCD screen | 3.0 in (76 mm) Tilting XtraFine LCD, 921,600 pixels |
| Battery | NP-FW50, InfoLITHIUM, 7.2 V, 1080 mAh, 7.7 Wh, Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery |
| Dimensions | 127×94×48 mm (5.0×3.7×1.9 in) |
| Weight | Approx. 474 g (16.7 oz) (camera body, card and battery) |
| Chronology | |
| Successor | Sony α7R II |
TheSony α7,α7R,α7S andα7C (the α is sometimes spelled out as Alpha) are four closely related families offull-frame mirrorless interchangeable-lens cameras. The first two were announced in October 2013,[2] the third in April 2014 and the fourth in September 2020. The α7 series was the firstfull-framemirrorless interchangeable lens camera on the market.[3] They share theE-mount with the company's smaller sensorNEX series.
Theα7 II was announced in November 2014, and is the first in the family to revise the original body and ergonomics. The α7C introduced an even more compact form factor, being the smallest full-frame camera within-body image stabilization.[4] The α7 series is targeted at experienced users, enthusiasts and professionals.[5]
The Sony α7 and α7R have the model numbers ILCE-7 and ILCE-7R respectively. In addition, the α7S, the α7 II, and the α7R II have the model numbers ILCE-7S, ILCE-7M2, and ILCE-7RM2. Sony's new model naming prefix strives to unify model names. "ILC" stands for Interchangeable Lens Camera, followed by an indicator ofA-mount "A" orE-mount "E".[6]
Pre-announcement rumours speculated that the new camera would be named "Sony NEX-9".[7]
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In 2014/2015, three new models became available forming the second generation of α7 series. They are the α7 II (ILCE-7M2), α7R II (ILCE-7RM2) and α7S II (ILCE-7SM2).Sony continues to produce the first generation models α7 and α7S, even three years after the launch, only the α7 has been discontinued in April 2019.[citation needed]
The basic α7 II model has 24 MP and has manual focus and hybrid autofocus.[citation needed]
The second generation common ground is the newer and improved body design as well as the world's first five-axis sensor-shift image stabilization system for a full-frame ILC. Sony claims that this can compensate a 4.5-stop equivalent of camera shake. In-body stabilization requires no special lens features, and mirrorless system cameras can typically accommodate lenses from any SLR system.[8][9] As an upgrade of the α7, the α7 II has the same 50 Mbit XAVC-S codec as the α7S but lacks 4K video, and the five-axis stabilization is less effective in video mode than that used in theOlympus OM-D E-M1.[10] However, the crop mode used in the α7 II does not incur "very much loss in image quality", unlike that of theNikon D750.[10]
On 14 June 2015,Hasselblad announced theLusso, a variant of the Sony α7R marketed by Hasselblad.[citation needed]
The third generation started in 2017, and the fourth was announced in July 2019.[citation needed]
| Model | α7 | α7R | α7S | α7 II | α7R II | α7S II | α7R III (A) | α7 III | α7R IV (A) | α7S III | α7C | α7 IV | α7R V | α7C II | α7CR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Product standing | Basic | High Resolution | High Sensitivity | Basic Mark II | High Resolution Mark II | High Sensitivity Mark II | High Resolution Mark III | Basic[11] Mark III | High Resolution Mark IV | High Sensitivity Mark III | Compact | Basic Mark IV | High Resolution Mark V | Compact Mark II | High Resolution Compact |
| Announced | 16 Oct 2013 | 6 Apr 2014 | 20 Nov 2014 | 10 June 2015 | 11 Sept 2015 | 25 Oct 2017 | 26 Feb 2018 | 16 Jul 2019 | 28 Jul 2020 | 15 Sep 2020 | 21 Oct 2021 | 26 Oct 2022 | 29 Aug 2023[12] | ||
| Sensor resolution atFull Format | 24.3 MPExmor CMOS 6000 × 4000 pixels | 36.4 MP Exmor CMOS 7360 × 4912 pixels | 12.2 MP Exmor CMOS 4240 × 2832 pixels | 24.3 MP Exmor CMOS 6000 × 4000 pixels | 42.4 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS[13] 7952 × 5304 pixels | 12.2 MP Exmor CMOS 4240 × 2832 pixels | 42.4 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS[14] 7952 × 5304 pixels | 24.2 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS sensor[15] 6000 × 4000 pixels | 61.0 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS sensor[16] 9504 × 6336 pixels | 12.1 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS sensor[17] 4240 × 2832 pixels | 24.2 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS sensor[4] 6000 × 4000 pixels | 33.0 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS sensor[18] 7008 × 4672 pixels | 61.0 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS sensor[19] 9504 × 6336 pixels | 33.0 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS sensor[20] 7008 × 4672 pixels | 61.0 MPExmor R BSI-CMOS sensor[21] 9504 × 6336 pixels |
| Processor | BIONZ X | BIONZ XR | BIONZ X | BIONZ XR | |||||||||||
| ISO range | Expanded ISO 50-25600 Multi frameNR 100-51200 | Expanded ISO 50-25600 Multi frameNR 100-51200 | Native ISO 100-102400 Expanded ISO 50-409600 | Expanded ISO 50-25600 Multi frameNR 100-51200 | Native ISO 100-25600 Expanded ISO 50-102400 | Native ISO 100-102400 Expanded ISO 50-409600 | Native ISO 100-32000 Expanded ISO 50-102400[22] | Native ISO 100-51200 Expanded ISO 50-204800[23] | Native ISO 100-32000 Expanded ISO 50-102400[16] | Native ISO 80-102400 Expanded ISO 40-409600[17] | Native ISO 100-51200 Expanded ISO 50-204800[4][18] | Native ISO 100-32000 Expanded ISO 50-102400 | Native ISO 100-51200 Expanded ISO 50-204800 (Stills), 100-102400 (Video) | Native ISO 100-32000 Expanded ISO 50-102400 (Stills), None (Video) | |
| Autofocus | 25 pointsCD-AF w/ 117 pointsPD-AF | 25 points CD-AF | 25 points CD-AF w/ 117 points PD-AF | 25 points CD-AF w/ 399 points PD-AF | 169 points CD-AF | 425 points CD-AF w/ 399 points PD-AF[22] | 425 points CD-AF w/ 693 points PD-AF[23] | 425 points CD-AF w/ 567 points PD-AF[16] | 425 points CD-AF w/ 759 points PD-AF[17] | 425 points CD-AF w/ 693 points PD-AF[24] | 425 points CD-AF w/ 759 points PD-AF[18] | 425 points CD-AF w/ 693 points PD-AF[24] | Stills: 759 pointshybrid Video: 627 points hybrid | Stills & Video: 693 points hybrid | |
| Maximumflash sync speed | 1/250 | 1/160 | 1/250 | 1/160 | 1/250 | 1/160 (full frame) 1/200 (APS-C) | |||||||||
| Max Continuous Shooting | 5 frame/s | 4 frame/s | 5 frame/s | 10 frame/s | 8 frame/s[21] | ||||||||||
| In-body image stabilization | No | 5-axis | |||||||||||||
| Flash Exposure Lock | No | Yes | |||||||||||||
| Shutter Speed | 1/8000 – 30s | 1/4000 – 30 s e-Front Curtain only (1/8000 electronic)[1] | 1/8000 – 30 s | 1/4000 – 30 s e-Front Curtain only (1/8000 electronic)[20] | |||||||||||
| Electronic shutter mode | First-curtain only | No | First-curtain, Silent shutter | First-curtain only | First-curtain, Silent shutter | ||||||||||
| Gapless on-chip lens | No | Yes | No | Yes | |||||||||||
| Live-viewTethered Capture | No | Yes | Yes (wired and wireless) | ||||||||||||
| Custom minimum shutter speed at Auto ISO | No | Yes | |||||||||||||
| Flexible Spot with Lock on AF | |||||||||||||||
| Continuous Eye-AF | Yes | Yes (real-time tracking) | |||||||||||||
| AF Sensitivity | 0 ~ 20 EV | -4 ~ 20 EV | -1 ~ 20 EV | -2 ~ 20 EV | -4 ~ 20 EV | -3 ~ 20 EV | -6 ~ 20 EV[17] | -4 ~ 20 EV[24] | |||||||
| Metering Sensitivity | -3 ~ 20 EV | -3 ~ 20 EV | |||||||||||||
| User Custom Buttons | 3 | 4 | 1 | 4+Dial | |||||||||||
| Programmable settings | No | Yes | |||||||||||||
| Monitor pixels | 921.6 K | 1,228.8 K[25] | 1,444K[22] 2,359.2K(A7RM3A)[26] | 921.6 K[23] | 1,444 K 2,359.2K(A7RM4A)[27] | 1,444K | 921.6 K | 1,036 K | 2,095 K | 1,036 K | |||||
| Touch Panel | No | Yes | Yes (fully touch menu system) | Yes | Yes (fully touch menu system) | Yes | |||||||||
| Viewfinder dots | 2.4 M | 3.68 M | 2.4 M | 5.76 M | 9.43 M | 2.4 M | 3.68 M | 9.43 M | 2.4 M | ||||||
| Viewfinder Resolution | XGA (1024 × 768 pixels) | Quad-VGA (1280 × 960 pixels)[28] | XGA (1024 × 768 pixels)[29] | UXGA (1600 × 1200 pixels)[30] | Quad-XGA (2048 × 1536 pixels) | XGA (1024 × 768 pixels) | Quad-VGA (1280 × 960 pixels) | Quad-XGA (2048 × 1536 pixels) | XGA (1024 × 768 pixels) | ||||||
| Viewfinder Magnification | 0.71× | 0.78× | 0.90× | 0.59× | 0.78× | 0.90× | 0.70× | ||||||||
| Memory card slot | 1 (Memory Stick Duo/SD) | 2 (slot 1: SD;slot 2: Memory Stick Duo/SD) | 2 (both slots: SD/CFexpress Type A) | 1 (SD only) | 2 (slot 1: SD/CFexpress Type A;slot 2: SD) | 2 (both slots: SD/CFexpress Type A) | 1 (SD only) | ||||||||
| Video record format | MPEG-4, AVCHD (28 Mbit/s) 1080p | MPEG-4, AVCHD (28 Mbit/s), XAVC S (50 Mbit/s)1080p | MPEG-4, AVCHD (28 Mbit/s), XAVC S (100 Mbit/s)4K video | MPEG-4,XAVC S,H.265 (280 Mbit/s), MPEG-4,XAVC S,H.264 (100 Mbit/s)4K video[31] | MPEG-4, AVCHD (28 Mbit/s), XAVC S (100 Mbit/s)4K video | XAVC S, XAVC HS, XAVC S-I | |||||||||
| Video sampling | Line skipping | Full-pixel readout | Line skipping | Pixel-binning atFull Format Full-pixel readout atSuper 35 | Full-pixel readout | ||||||||||
| Slow motion video record | No | Yes (720p, 120fps) | No | Yes (720p, 120fps) | Yes (1080p, 120fps) | Yes (4K, 120fps) | Yes (1080p, 120fps) | ||||||||
| HDMI Output | 4K still and1080p video | 4K still and4K video | 4K still and1080p video | 8K still and4K video | 4K still and4K video | 8K still and4K video | 4K still and 4K video | 8K still and4K video | |||||||
| Video Light mode | No | Yes | No | Yes | |||||||||||
| Professional Video edit | Picture Profile w/CineGamma, Timecode, Userbit | ||||||||||||||
| Other features | Hybrid autofocus system | No opticalLow-pass filter | Full-pixel readout video atFull Format | Hybrid autofocus system | Hybrid autofocus system, No opticalLow-pass filter | Full-pixel readout video atFull Format | |||||||||
| Lossless RAW | No (11+7 bit lossy RAW[32]) | Yes, uncompressed (2.0 firmware update[33][34]) | Yes, uncompressed | ||||||||||||
| Star Eater[35][36] | Only in Bulb mode | Only at 4s and above after Fw2.10, upgraded algorithm after Fw4.0, not present in continuous shooting mode[37] | Only at 4s and above, upgraded algorithm[38] | ||||||||||||
| PD-AF w/ adapted lens | Only A-mount lenses w/ LA-EA2 and LA-EA4 | Yes (Firmware update) | Yes | Only w/ LA-EA2/4[39] | Yes | ||||||||||
| Operate while USB charging | No | Yes | Yes w/ Tethering | ||||||||||||
| Battery Life (CIPA standards) | 340 shots | 340 shots | 380 shots | 350 shots | 340 shots | 370 shots | 530 shots (EVF) / 650 shots (Monitor)[22] 640 shots (Monitor on A7RM3A)[26] | 610 shots (EVF) / 710 shots (Monitor)[23] | 530 shots (EVF) / 670 shots (Monitor)[16] 660 shots (Monitor on A7RM4A)[27] | 510 shots (EVF) / 600 shots (Monitor)[17] | 680 shots (EVF) / 740 shots (Monitor)[24] | Stills: 530 shots (EVF) / 560 shots (Monitor) Continuous video recording: 165 minutes (EVF or monitor) | Stills: 490 shots (EVF) / 530 shots (Monitor) Continuous video recording: 155 minutes (EVF or monitor) | ||
| Body material | Combi. ofmagnesium alloy andpolycarbonate | Fullmagnesium alloy chassis andpolycarb bayonet mount. | Fullmagnesium alloy chassis and stainless steel bayonet mount. | Magnesium alloy used for the top, front, and rear covers[24] | |||||||||||
| Weight (w/ battery and media) | 416 g (474 g) | 407 g (465 g) | 446 g (489 g) | 556 g (599 g) | 582 g (625 g) | 584 g (627 g) | 572 g (657 g) | 565 g (650 g)[23] | 578 g (665 g)[16] | 614 g (699 g)[17] | 424 g (509 g) | 573 g (658 g) | 723 g | 429 g (514 g) | 430 g (515 g) |
| Dimension | 126.9 × 94.4 × 54.8 mm | 126.9 × 95.7 × 59.7 mm | 126.9 × 95.7 × 60.3 mm | 126.9 × 95.6 × 73.7 mm[23] | 128.9 × 96.4 × 77.5 mm | 128.9 × 96.9 × 80.8 mm | 124 × 71.1 × 59.7 mm | 131.3 × 96.4 × 79.8 mm | 131.3 x 96.9 x 82.4 mm | 124.0 x 71.1 x 63.4 mm | |||||
| Discontinued | Dec 2019[40] | ||||||||||||||
BIONZ is a line ofimage processors used inSony digital cameras. It is currently used in manySony α DSLR andmirrorless cameras. Image processing in the camera converts the raw data from a CCD or CMOS image sensor into the format that is stored on thememory card. This processing is one of the bottlenecks in digital camera speed, so manufacturers put much effort into making, and marketing, the fastest processors for this step that they can.
Sony designs the circuitry of the processor in-house, and outsources the manufacturing to semiconductor foundries such as MegaChips and (mostly) GlobalFoundries, as they currently do not own any fabrication plant capable of producing a system on a chip (SoC).[1] Sony also sourcesDRAM chips from various manufacturers namelySamsung,SK Hynix andMicron Technology.
BIONZ utilizes two chips in its design. The first chip is an SoC that manages overall functionality of the camera such as SD card storage management, wired connection such as USB and HDMI, and wireless protocols such asWi-Fi and NFC that are increasingly common on modern Sony α cameras. The BIONZ SoC can be identified by its part number "CXD900xx". The second chip is the ISP (image signal processor). It handles the data directly from theCMOS image sensor, and it is directly responsible for the camera's high-ISO noise characteristics in a low-light environment. The ISP can be identified by the part number "CXD4xxx".
The Sony α7 series has been adopted by various filmmakers for its compact design and high-quality imaging. The α7S model, in particular, has been favored by independent filmmakers for its affordability and low-light capabilities. Notably,The Bastard Sword (2018), a 187-minute British fantasy film, was shot entirely using the Sony α7S, demonstrating the camera's suitability for long-form, microbudget productions.[41]
TheSony α (Alpha) cameras, particularly the α7 and α7R models, garnered widespread acclaim from critics and industry experts.DxOMark, a reputable source for camera and lens evaluations, crowned the α7R as the highest ranking full-frame mirrorless camera, with a score of 95 (the same score as theNikon D800, but one point behind the Nikon D800E). The α7 achieved a score of 90, higher than theNikon Df andNikon D4 professional DSLR cameras, and even Sony's ownSLT-A99.The Verge rated the cameras 8.3 out of 10, commenting that "It might be a few years before we realize it, but when the DSLR is relegated to a niche status among specialty photographers and full-frame mirrorless cameras dominate the market, we'll have the α7's to thank as the cameras that started it all."[42] EPhotozine which rated the α7 5 stars, meanwhile praised the α7 series' price point for making them "the cheapest full-frame digital cameras currently available" while being lighter and smaller than comparable cameras.[43] It awarded the α7 "Camera of the Year".[44] The α7R was awarded by Imaging Resource as the "Camera of the Year".[45]
