I signed up for a touch and try session at the Studio Zaloon Sony shop in Pudu, KL on the first Sunday of November. The participants were briefed on the different Sony A7 cameras available then and we were given the opportunity to use some of the demo sets available. I got myself a Sony A7 ii with the Sony Zeiss 55mm f1.8 attached to it.
All photos below were shot using this combination. The photos were saved in JPEG only and later processed in Lightroom CC (except for the last photo which required additional edits in Photoshop CC) .
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| Sony A7 ii Key Features. © Edward Chen Photography |
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| More on the Sony A7 ii 5-axis image stabilization . © Edward Chen Photography |
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| Product briefing. © Edward Chen Photography |
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| Sony Representative from Japan. © Edward Chen Photography |
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| Model shooting session. © Edward Chen Photography |
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| Model shooting session. © Edward Chen Photography |
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| Model shooting session. (Edited in Photoshop.) © Edward Chen Photography |
First impression
Somehow it didn't seem to make me feel I want to shoot with this camera. Don't get me wrong. It's a good camera. (I bought one eventually.) Probably it's because of the camera menu navigation and dials which were very new to me. There is also a copyright feature missing if compared with models from many other brands. It's handy to have if you are shooting events and your personal data (i.e. name) is saved in the photo which may then be shared immediately. It's no big deal. To many, this is probably a negligible option. (But hey, Sony eventually added this feature to the later A7R ii model !) ;)
Other than that, the initial feeling was that it's just a copy of an Olympus OM-D in a Sony fullframe body.
So why did I (eventually) get one?
I have a handy collection of classical / manual focusing lenses lying unused in my dry box. They are not expensive lenses. I have used them for fun, attached to my Olympus OM-D. However, I am still curious as to how the lenses work with the A7 ii and the potential of the endless lens combination. The image stablisation is not as good as my Olympus OM-D E-M5, but it's the first mirrorless fullframe with in-body image stablisation (Sony calls it SteadyShot).I like the feel of the EVF on the mirrorless cameras (minus the dreaded short battery life due to it as well).
Besides, age is catching up. The thought of being able to use lighter manual focus lenses is enticing.
And I just got rid of my road bike. More time for photography. :D
What do you think?
