Industry News: Sony Introduces the High-resolution A7R IV with World’s First 61.0 MP Back-illuminated, Full-frame Image Sensor

Jan 16, 2019
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Canon said they would be the most aggressive camera company in terms of mirror-less development, but Sony certainly isn't taking a wait and see mode. Hopefully the new Canon RF models will be sooner than 2020
Sony's tactic is to release new products not at once but in certain periods. For example now A7RIV, in 1 week A6900, in 3 months A7SIII, in 5 months 2 lenses, in 8 months A9 II etc... This way they can keep the attention by distributing new releases throughout the year.
Canon and Nikon mostly release/announce 1-2 bodies together with some lenses so their releases are like a flash in a year.
 
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gmon750

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The only thing having me wait for whatever "pro" body Canon has in store are the stellar RF lenses and the superior ergonomics. Sony is definitely giving Canon a gut-punch with this new camera, so I hope Canon gets something in consumers hands quickly.

That being said, I will continue to happily use my 5DM3. Unlike the Sony fanbois harping all over the Internet, our dSLR cameras have not suddenly stopped working or takes inferior shots.

61MP is just nuts. I certainly don't need that kind of resolution but the storage manufacturers I'm sure are just salivating with all the future buyers needing massive storage solutions for these upcoming photos.
 
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Aussie shooter

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I must be mis-understanding something here... Isn't direct readout super 35mm 4k just a fancy way of saying the 4k is cropped on the sensor? I thought pixel binning was the preffered way of getting 4k off of a higher resolution sensor?
Just a dumby looking fur enlightenment...
Yes. But if they use the term 'cropped' then people won't be able to hate on cannon as much. And I reckon the youtoob 'reviewers' will buy it hook line and sinker. Some won't of course. But the fanboy ones will
 
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Sony's headquarters
Management/Marketing: "We want you to bring us a camera that will sell for $3500 US."

(2 years later)
Engineers: "Here you go!"

Management/Marketing: "Whoa!"


Canon's headquarters
Management/Marketing: "We want you to bring us a camera that will sell for $3500 US."

(3 years later)
Engineers: "Here you go!"

Management/Marketing: "No! No! You need to remove this feature and this feature and limit this other feature and. . . ."
 
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I must be mis-understanding something here... Isn't direct readout super 35mm 4k just a fancy way of saying the 4k is cropped on the sensor? I thought pixel binning was the preffered way of getting 4k off of a higher resolution sensor?
Just a dumby looking fur enlightenment...
Good question. I'm not sure why they didn't bin down from 8K to 4K. Maybe it took too much processing power or the sensor readout wasn't fast enough. There isn't really any good way to get 4k from a 9K capture in-camera. I don't think it's going to be much of a video cam. The R's are targeted towards pixel peepers. Sony has been holding back their updated A7S which is where I'd expect to see the biggest improvements in video capture.

edit: The A7IV is oversampling 6k and processing it down to 4k so it's reading a 6K vs a 4K crop. This usually yields a better result that a straight 1:1 readout.
 
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dtaylor

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We've been holding our hats for many years, and each year it's the same... wait a little longer and Canon will catch up.

That's not a fair assessment. 'Many years' ago it was Sony playing catch up. Sure, the first FF mirrorless bodies were 'new' and 'innovative' but their AF and ergonomics sucked, their EVFs couldn't touch an OVF, and their sensors suffered from fatal IQ flaws under certain conditions (off sensor flare; compressed RAWs; eating stars; and then striping with gen III).

Sony fans act like it has been nothing but innovation from day one (of FF mirrorless) when in fact much of the 'innovation' involved trying to catch up to where DSRLs were for years. And in some respects they're still not quite there. Weather sealing, ergonomics...and while I appreciate exposure preview in an EVF, I still would rather spend the day looking through an OVF. It has gotten better and is winning over more people, but there's still room to improve.

Sony has moved fast but at the expense of some important details. They also focus on headline grabbing features (i.e. FF 4k) while ignoring specs that are just as important but not as well appreciated by amateurs (i.e. bitrate).

Now I admit I would like to see Canon move faster on body tech. Given recent rumors it looks like they will in late 2019 and in 2020. But the situation still isn't a KO by Sony the way people portray it.

And with every release Canon crimps their cameras to protect the top of the line.

I don't think there's any basis for that claim. It comes from specs on the video side but it seems pretty clear that Canon has had a readout speed issue which has 'crimped' video.
 
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As a wildlife photographer i am kind of torn between canon and sony at the moment. On the one hand i really like canon so far and am pleased with the gear, but my needs arent getting adressed. i am longing for a native not 10k+ wildlife lens and for an up to date good high iso camera body with good reach (high mp) that can handle moving subjects.

sony seems really good regarding those requirements. 200-600 f6.3 + this 60mp beast with 10fps and supposedly a9 tracking is really all i want.

i dont know what to do. i really like canon but my needs arent getting adressed :/
do what I do and have both :)
 
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RayValdez360

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Any real surprise today was the legion of complaints from Sony users. Not so much against what the new A7R iv can do, but a few features missing, and other models they thought should be upgraded first. I was expecting 90% to 95% positive replies, but that wasn't quite the case.
2 reasons. it isnt much of an improvement since they are used to all these good features in a slightly inferior version with less MP. 4k60p is missing. we all know many sony users use the camera for video especially anyone that switched from another system. They get crisper 4k with better AF but that isnt a biggie for them. Now compared to a Canon camera in the same price rang, it is a huge upgrade.
 
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Sony are making it tough. Canon have one more year for me to at least catchup if not surpass in some areas. The DR gap is getting too large to ignore for my landscape and Astro work. The focus system, IBIS, eye detect and focus coverage gap is also getting too great to ignore for my wildlife work. I don’t currently care about video.

Items keeping me in the Canon camp are down to lenses (I have over 20k invested in EF that is now at risk due to RF), weather sealing, handling, menu system/learning curve and CPS.

It guts me that Canon has thrown away 2019 in my book. All the while Sony has been catching up in lenses and distancing themselves in the other key areas. Canon, I am rooting for you but it is time to show the goods.
I would wait and see what the DR really is. until you see some real test data, it's just a number on paper.
 
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This thread for some reason brought out the Canon trolls masquerading as either on-the-fence or gullible-impressed users ("I have Canon but Sony's really tempting me!" or "Sony was already 5 years ahead of Canon, now they're 10 years ahead!"). If you're really on-the-fence or impressed, wouldn't you be trying and buying Sony and posting on Sony forums? Really. I did. I heard all the rave reviews since the original A7, then all the hoopla when the a7R2 came out, so decided to try it. I liked the compact size especially with a few of the zeiss lenses. But I was stunned how undeveloped it was - slow, sluggish, freezes when buffering, frustrating menus, video autofocus inferior to dpaf, etc. Very few reviews mentioned this, among many other flaws, including the pervasive dust sensor issue, oh and the anti-flicker on the a7r3 doesn't actually work (ref: TDP a7r3 review).

If you're really on-the-fence, see what 2 pro's said about the a7R2 (yes it's an older model, but compare what they experience versus the online reviews, and notice the reality gap): https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/59526785 (pro users are "unknown user"/Sr1racha, the OP, who was Sung Park from http://www.sungparkphotography.com , and Jeff2013 from http://www.gr8photography.com ) In short, Sony's specs and real-world performance don't match. They over-hype and under-deliver. Canon does the opposite. Really, if you're impressed with Sony, go try it. The grass is always greener. Then maybe (probably) we'll eventually see you back here.
 
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Exactly. I use my 5D mark IV for 90% of my shooting and didn't "angrily sell all my Canon gear!" but rather picked up an a7III (and MC-11) and happily enjoy both worlds.
Same thing for me. 5D4 and A7III and a Tamron 28-75. The Sony is nice. Took that camera only on vacation and it performed flawlessly in 5 different national parks and the files are great. The A7III and Tamron were great for all the hiking we did. I attached it to my backpack with the Peak Designs clip and I almost forgot it was there most of the time and we were on some tough hikes in Glacier National Parks and Yellowstone NP. Already started printing large prints today at the studio.
 
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