Shooting in the dark with Sony's A7S II full-frame camera
Sony's marketing team may be reaching with its claims that the A7S II can turn night into day. But it isn't far off. The company's new full-frame mirrorless camera, announced last month, boasts an insane 409,600 ISO range -- making it the perfect companion for shooting your darkest moments. Compared to the original model, which also came with those night-friendly features, the A7S II sports the same 12.2-megapixel, full-frame CMOS sensor and Bionz X processor as its predecessor. Now, here's where things get interesting: Sony has added in-camera 5-axis image stabilization and internal 4K UHD recording at 24 and 30 fps. In addition to this, it also supports uncompressed 14-bit RAW files, up to 5 fps continuous shooting and photo-sharing via WiFi or NFC. The best part about it is that these high-end specs are all crammed inside a palm-sized body.
I had the chance to test it out for a couple of hours and put it this way: Parting ways with the unit was hard when it had to be returned to Sony. That said, I'm not surprised by the fine quality of the camera, inside and out, particularly because the first-generation A7S is already phenomenal in its own way. As you'd expect, the A7S II takes wonderful, sharp, vivid shots in low-light atmospheres, and finally being able to record 4K (3,840 x 2,160) footage directly into the camera is a huge benefit -- especially for pro videographers. Browsing through the menus is a breeze, too; settings are easy to find and customize, while the S-Log3 Gamma and Display Assist Function modes will be appreciated by power users -- who are ultimately the target audience for Sony's overhauled shooter.
We'll have more on the $3,000 A7S II soon. For now, check out some sample images we took last night.
To view sample images shot with the Sony A7S II click here.
