Using The Sony A7r II – Is It A Great Camera?

As part of my Voigtlander 35mm f1.7 review, I took a stroll to the Walt Disney Concert Hall to get some test shots.

The Japanese Consulate is there, and I had to bring my half-Japanese daughter to complete some paperwork. I paid for two hours of parking, so I used the rest of that time to shoot.

This was my first chance to use my Sony A7r II for something other than landscape work. Usually, or I should say, always, when I go shooting for fun, I take a Fujifilm with me. They’re just more fun to use, and you can shoot JPEGs with them with great results, so post-processing isn’t as heavy.

But I do still like my Sony and wanted to share some thoughts.

Using The Sony A7r II

Going downtown was a great opportunity to use my A7r II for something different. I haven’t done a full review of this camera, and I probably won’t. It’s just too talked about and blogged about to be a valuable topic that could generate traffic for this website. Instead, I’ll just talk about my experience using it occasionally. I think people might like that better anyway.

So, what was it like shooting around Downtown Los Angeles?

I was shooting with a manual lens, the Voigtlander 35mm f1.7, and the ability to press the C2 button and get a zoomed-in view of what you’re shooting made the process very smooth and quick. Reminded me of the Fujifilm XT1 in that regard.

The focus peaking works nicely with many color options, making the camera all-around pleasant to use in the field with manual lenses. 

The camera isn’t great to hold in the hand, but I do have a LIM’s case on mine. The cases don’t work well with these cameras, but I like to use them as an extra layer of protection to sell my camera when the next one comes out. After all, we’re now in the era of treating our cameras like iPhones.

The camera isn’t so bad without the case; it’s heavy. I’m very curious to try it with the extra battery grip case. It might make it weigh too much, but it would likely solve the ergonomic and battery life issues.

 The Bad And The Ugly

I know this camera gets a lot of false praise. People seem to think it’s the next coming of Christ. As a Sony user, I have to be honest with you and tell you that’s just not true. The dynamic range and low light are NOT better than the competition in real-world shooting situations in any measurement to justify buying this camera over the Canon or Nikon. And in some of the tests I’ve seen, people were doing it them wrong.

Other huge issues bother me, too. I’ll discuss a few that are more than opinions.

1. Battery Life: This camera’s battery life is a disaster. It’s so bad. On the flip side, I use my Sony A7r II mostly for landscape work, and the chances of me using up one battery during a single sunrise or sunset are extremely unlikely. So, for me, it’s not a huge issue. Just when I have the camera on and around the house, it eats through batteries like a fat kid through cake.

2. The Menu: When I see people complaining about a bad menu system, I usually think they’re bitter or they have Asperger’s or something. But really, this menu system could be better. Video and Photography options are randomly thrown around the camera settings without rhyme or reason. You can tell it’s a menu system designed by the programmers, not a UI designer.

Why not create a tab for video features, one for Photography features, and a third for global features? Why are Creative Styles and Profiles two different settings? Don’t they all control the look of the image? Just make it one option. Please call it Camera Profiles. And get rid of all the kiddy bubble gum camera effects. Nobody wants that in a professional 3,000-dollar camera.

3. The Weight: People keep posting on the Internet that “they needed a smaller and lighter system, so they switched to Sony.” If you need a smaller and lighter system, switch to APS-C or M43. Seriously. Good lenses will always be huge and heavy with a full-frame sensor. It’s just the way physics works. Yes, you can buy small Leica lenses, and they are great, but they will still have issues small lenses have, like Vignetting and color ring patterns. 

And in terms of body, the Sony A7r II is about as heavy as a Canon 6D. Or, it is slightly lighter than a 5DSR without the battery. The DSLR is heavy but has a smaller mirrorless form factor, so it is very uncomfortable to grip and handle.

Now that that’s out of the way, what do I love about the Sony A7r II?

The Good

It rattles the cage: It’s loaded with many great cutting-edge features, and owning the camera makes you feel like you’re at the forefront of photography technology. It also forces Canon and Nikon to look into the modern world instead of stubbornly making the same cameras repeatedly.

I say all that, but we do have to understand one thing: Canon could never make the A7r II. Not because they technically don’t know how, but because if they designed a mount that doesn’t work perfectly with their lenses or a camera with serious battery life issues, Canon would be burned at the stake. For some reason, Photographers look the other way with Sony.

I can use Leica Lenses. Because of the shallow mount, you can use so many other lenses. This alone makes this a camera every photographer should look at closely. The ability to own different lenses and swap between different brands of mirrorless camera bodies is great. Now, using various mounts, I can use my Voigtlander lenses on both my Sony and Fujifilm cameras. Having multiple bodies makes it so much more affordable—and not to mention more fun!

Using The Sony A7r II Final Thoughts

Photographers often post on the Internet, “Why I quit Canon and switched to Sony!” like it’s some badge of honor. They usually follow up by claiming to be professional and saying they need something smaller and lighter. As we now know, an A7r II doesn’t offer this—not if you want Canon L-quality lenses.

Although the camera is fantastic, it does not replace the Canon or Nikon flagship models. However, it does provide just as good image quality, even slightly better in some situations. Its focus is fine, quick, and accurate enough, but the battery life and ergonomics might be problems for many serious shooters with specific needs.

After using the camera for a few months, I can say that it deserves to be among the greats. It stands alongside the Canon 5Dsr and the Nikon D810 and holds its ground well. It’s better in some areas but not as good in others, making the Sony A7r II its unique camera.

is it worth the switch?

For what I do, which is pretty casual, I have to say, honestly, the Sony A7r wasn’t. The Sony A7r II is.

The A7r was a pathetic prototype that was not built for rugged handling. It was a gimmick, and Sony got us. But the Sony A7r II is the real deal. The camera is great and feels like you’re holding a little tank.

I think it’s just a better system for the casual shooter who wants a Swiss Army knife-like camera. One camera that can do it all.

If only the Sony A7r II were in the Fuji XT1 body. My life would be complete.