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Archive 2016 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

Chijrt
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

The day I sold my originaly a99 is the day they announced they a99ii (didn't know it until after I sold it). My plan was to move over to the a7rii. I recently rented the a7rii and liked it but didn't love it like I did when using the a99 but nonetheless, I was moving over to a more "progressive" ecosystem. Then I go to PhotoPlus...

1. Got to test out the a99ii and I can't even explain the speed this monster is equipped with. Going from 6fps to 12fps is just spectacular. The focusing is lightening fast and at 800iso and even up to 1600iso the shots were very very clean even up close (I have a bad habit of pixel peaking). IMO (and only my opinion), the a99ii can do more and cover more types of photography than the a7rii. While the translucent mirror degrades the image quality compared to the a7rii (but just by a hair), I can use this camera to do landscape and sports, etc.
2. I then go to play with the a7rii with several dedicated e-mount lenses including the G master 24-70mm. When I rented the a7rii several weeks ago, I used it with the LA-EA3 with my Zeiss A-mount lenses. While I wasn't a fan of the focusing speed (I already knew the several downsides of this combo), the image quality was spectacular. BTW, I rented this camera during my trip in Yosemite and I really couldn't have asked for me. I do 80% landscape and 20% action/sports and after this trip, the a7rii pretty much sold me and I was planning on going forward with my a7rii purchase. The only downside with the a7rii is the 5 or 6 fps. I literally tested the a99ii and went right over to the a7rii and there was an obvious speed difference. The one thing I will say is using e-mount lenses with the a7rii was VERY VERY different compared to using a-mount with a7rii. I mean, the focusing speed...hello? I hear complaints about the a7rii's focusing speed but based on my testing, there was really none. I could not tell the difference. Though I will say, the focusing speed testing done on the a99ii was with gymnasts (or acrobats?) while the focusing speed testing done on the a7rii was done on non-action/fast moving subjects.

Anyway, what I'm getting at here is I'm more confused than ever with which camera I want to get. I'm thinking I should just wait for the a9 but those are just rumors and there's no definitive timeline on the release date. I also spoke with a Sony rep at PhotoPlus and he said (not sure how reliable this is) all G Master lenses will be on E-Mount ONLY from now on. No more A-Mount. Then I spoke with 2 other Sony reps and they both echoed the same thing: The release of a99ii was for customers such as myself where the majority of my investment have always been in a-mount and therefore the a99ii was to accommodate that crowd. I did not feel good after hearing this because I basically translated it to "We need the A-mount folks to just shut up".

With the lenses I have now (all a-mount), if I were to purchase the a99ii, I'd say it can last me 3 to 4 years before I'd consider a new body. But if I just make the move now to e-mount, I'd start my transition early and into a system where the survival rate is higher.

Like I said, I do 80% landscape and 20% action/sports. I'm not really asking for anyone to push me to one system over the other but I'm just wondering if there are any other considerations that I may have missed. I personally hate the a-mount fanboys versus e-mount fanboys types of debates and I apologize if this sparks it but at this point, this is the longest I've ever held out on a camera body purchase and the longest I've ever been without one since I started photography.

The one thing I have going for me is Winter is coming. I rarely do any type of photography during the colder months so I can technically hold out until early next year/Spring 2017 to see what is looming. I guess ideally, I want an a99ii that is E-mount and everything points to the rumored a9. But there's a huge question mark in terms of actual specs, release date, etc, etc. Sony isn't stupid. They wouldn't release the a99ii in November 2016 and then boom, a9 in Spring 2017. The a-mount abandonment rate at that point would be huge and would more or less kill off the a-mount market faster than anticipated.

Oct 24, 2016 at 09:46 AM

mogul
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

The E mount is set up as convenient easily taken out camera that can do most things well. The A mount going forward (77II and 99II) is the rugged fast camera with an eco-system dating from the early 80's. Just compare the big beefy mount of the A mount with its 6 screws to the E mount designed for little lenses on the nex. Buttons for everything and very little menu diving, the A mount is designed for ruggedness and speed. I do like what is happening with the E mount but for my style, the A mount is my go to camera.

Oct 24, 2016 at 10:11 AM

Ltgk20
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

I love the idea of the a9 but one thing I continue to be concerned with the mirrorless bodies is fast focusing in lower light or with lenses that aren't fast. As I understand it (and please correct me if I'm wrong), one of the advantages of the on sensor focusing of the E mount is that if it gets more light it can use it for better performance (such as with fast prime's and zooms). However, in low light or with slower lenses, the ospd focusing begins to struggle more. It also seems like at high burst rates the aperture doesn't open all the way up for fucus tracking between each shot which can further reduce autofocus performance.

This might be something to research before making a decision.

Oct 24, 2016 at 10:33 AM

GMPhotography
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

Well you kind of hit the nail on the head. Let's look ahead the A99II was really to shut up existing users and at least keep it alive, I honestly don't think you will see a newer model of it for another 4 years or more. Even though Sony says it will support it with more lenses I do think it will just update some of the good selling current ones. BTW I'm no fanboy of either but I do believe the future of Sony is mirrorless and that is what they have worked on and continue to be their future. Just look how fast it has grown and not a hard count but 6 A7 xxxx series in a very short time frame. Also plenty of FE lenses ( we still need more) but also tons of support from Zeiss and other 3rd party vendors supporting the FE mount. Now I'm a Pro and I certainly thought about the A99II and currently a A7rII user but given the differences their are some for sure but it really comes down to speed more than anything else. The sensor is identical so no advantage at all here plus looking at lenses the FE is just more current today than waiting for Sony to update new A mount which I believe will be a slow process as the FE mount is going to be priority on production abilities. Now I'm not saying the A99II is not worth it , far from it as it is inticing if your coming in with no Sony gear at all but for me to switch over and give up the GM lenses and more coming it makes little sense. Now having said all that I'm not a spray and pray shooter, I don't need to be as I have done sports and such even with medium format. But that comes down to being really good at timing and such. I honestly don't need 12 foes but if I did than a backup A6500 at 1500 dollars just maybe a better idea when that need arises as it's darn fast. Obviously this is about need and not wants or wish lists. You buy abilities and this will change for everyone's critical needs. The one area it's a little sticky is long glass but we do have 3rd party adapters and long glass as A7 users to consider as well. Honestly if you shoot 95 percent sports or grizzly bears a Sony system maybe not the top choice although it can be done than look elsewhere. Again I'm not brand loyalist on anything, I buy what my needs are so end of day analyzing the A vs E than I'm good with the E as I know the future products will come faster and Sony is more dedicated to it as I see no signs the A will continue at a fast pace. If they announced 2 updated or new lenses with the announcement of the A99II than I would think they are dedicated more to it but they didn't so it leaves me more skeptical on its ultimate future. I think we may see some updates but it's too slow a pace for me. Just some thoughts to think about.

Oct 24, 2016 at 10:37 AM

GMPhotography
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

They areas that are critical for the A7 really comes down to AF speed and faster buffers and such. All that is in place right now as far as the tech it just needs to get into a new A7 camera which we all know is coming in some form or another soon.

Oct 24, 2016 at 10:42 AM

sflxn
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

What else is there to say? Sony isn't stupid. A mount is legacy and on maintenance mode. They will refresh the existing lens a over time, but it doesn't make any sense to add more. Industry momentum is behind E mount. More importantly, the company's video division is behind E mount. This is very important since it is a bigger share of sales than the tiny photo division. Who's behind the A mount? Existing owners. Is that a big and growing base that justify significant investment? You can't even find a Zeiss lens sold by Zeiss in the lineup. Guess where they put their chips?

Oct 24, 2016 at 11:18 AM

mogul
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

sflxn wrote:
What else is there to say? Sony isn't stupid. A mount is legacy and on maintenance mode. They will refresh the existing lens a over time, but it doesn't make any sense to add more. Industry momentum is behind E mount. More importantly, the company's video division is behind E mount. This is very important since it is a bigger share of sales than the tiny photo division. Who's behind the A mount? Existing owners. Is that a big and growing base that justify significant investment? You can't even find a Zeiss lens sold by Zeiss in the lineup. Guess...Show more →

Zeiss and Sony had an agreement when Sony took over the A mount to only produce Zony lenses; that agreement still seems to be in effect.

Oct 24, 2016 at 11:37 AM

pizdets17
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

I think there will be some canikon users that prefer the heavy duty feel and speed of the a99II that have been sitting on the fence. I went from 5d3 to an a7r2 and was always missing that solid feel. A few hundred grams means nothing to me where as being able to have a robust platform means plenty. I also for some reason find the rendering of the A mount zooms and primes much more pleasing than anything i've tried in E-mount and I've pretty well owned every e-mount lens to date besides the 24-70gm. Just actually did a sharpness test of the Nikon 14-24 I had been using with no AF and my copy of the 16-35 2.8 SSMI destroys it in corner sharpness at every aperture except for f16 and has a much nicer color to it. Not bad for an $800 lens..

mogul wrote:
The E mount is set up as convenient easily taken out camera that can do most things well. The A mount going forward (77II and 99II) is the rugged fast camera with an eco-system dating from the early 80's. Just compare the big beefy mount of the A mount with its 6 screws to the E mount designed for little lenses on the nex. Buttons for everything and very little menu diving, the A mount is designed for ruggedness and speed. I do like what is happening with the E mount but for my style, the A mount is my...Show more →

Oct 24, 2016 at 06:01 PM

Planetwide
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

I think that the A mount is alive and well. Sony only has the resources to push the development of the FE mount right now. One the FE mount is matured to the point of a full suite of lenses, then Sony will go ahead with the A mount. This might take another year, but if Sony wants to be a professional solution, then they will have to do this. They will update existing A mount lenses and then begin development in that sphere of pro glass. Think high speed telephoto, tilt shift, etc.... The combo of A mount and FE with an adapter is a very compelling one once they build out the the A mount lens catalog. iMHO

Oct 24, 2016 at 09:50 PM

Ken_Cravillion
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

I have an A7RII and a ton of Zeiss, Zony, GM and Canon (with Metabones adapter) lenses. I recently picked up an A-mount 135mm f/1.8ZA and am in love with that lens on my A7RII with the LA-EA4 for my wedding and portrait work. It's one of my most used lenses currently. I'm flirting with the idea of getting an A99II just to use with the 135mm. It's that good of a lens...

Oct 24, 2016 at 10:24 PM

pizdets17
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

Same here, and my 85 1.4 just arrived today and by the looks of it, its just as great as the 135.

Ken_Cravillion wrote:
I have an A7RII and a ton of Zeiss, Zony, GM and Canon (with Metabones adapter) lenses. I recently picked up an A-mount 135mm f/1.8ZA and am in love with that lens on my A7RII with the LA-EA4 for my wedding and portrait work. It's one of my most used lenses currently. I'm flirting with the idea of getting an A99II just to use with the 135mm. It's that good of a lens...

Oct 24, 2016 at 10:59 PM

sflxn
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

Existing A mount users really love the mount, but it's not growing. They have great lenses but so did many mounts that faded into history. A canikon user isn't going to be tempted to switch to a more limited A mount. They're likely going to switch over to E mount only if they want small and light mirrorless. Also, there is no way Sony will inconvenience the vast majority of their users by producing new A mount lenses and tell their E mount users to use an adapter. Adapters really suck from a convenience standpoint. Judging from all the lea adapters that sold on the B&S board I'm not the only one who agrees. The video guys don't mind as much, but it would still seem strange to inconvenience the majority of users. I won't be annoyed if they came out with a brand new A mount lens. I'll just be shocked. There's only so much R&D funds to go around in a shrinking camera business.

I now make sure to take an iPhone snapshot along with shots from my FE camera. It's easier to share. Let me tell you, these smartphones cameras are so good, there is nothing that will stop the camera business from continuing to shrink. For Sony, video is probably still growing, and that means E mount. I'm just amazed at how many video lenses have been introduced for E mount once the video division chose to emphasize it over A mount for their prosumer video line.

Oct 25, 2016 at 01:00 AM

JimUe
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

pizdets17 wrote:
Same here, and my 85 1.4 just arrived today and by the looks of it, its just as great as the 135.

it's not.

Oct 26, 2016 at 09:55 AM

pizdets17
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

Well my copy looks great and is a lot better at f1.4 than the 135 lol. But ok.

JimUe wrote:
it's not.

Oct 26, 2016 at 11:57 AM

joychris
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

pizdets17 wrote:
I think there will be some canikon users that prefer the heavy duty feel and speed of the a99II that have been sitting on the fence. I went from 5d3 to an a7r2 and was always missing that solid feel. A few hundred grams means nothing to me where as being able to have a robust platform means plenty. I also for some reason find the rendering of the A mount zooms and primes much more pleasing than anything i've tried in E-mount and I've pretty well owned every e-mount lens to date besides the 24-70gm. Just actually did a...Show more →

The A99 body/ergonomics are far superior to the A7's IMO, but if you want a good zoom that doesn't feel like you have a cinder block attached to your camera, you're out of luck. The 2.8 zooms are not something I want to carry everyday. I'd be all over the A99II if they had a 16-35, 24-70 and 70-200/4. Not much in the A-mount wider than 16mm either.

As with just about every Sony body these days, the spec kills the competition, I really do like what the A99II offers.

Oct 26, 2016 at 01:37 PM

pizdets17
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

I find it hilarious that all a7 users complain about only having f4 zooms at 16-35, and a99 guys complain about only having 2.8 zooms. I don't see anything wider than 18 in the FE line up besides the 16-35. Rokinon makes a 12,14 for both mounts though

joychris wrote:
The A99 body/ergonomics are far superior to the A7's IMO, but if you want a good zoom that doesn't feel like you have a cinder block attached to your camera, you're out of luck. The 2.8 zooms are not something I want to carry everyday. I'd be all over the A99II if they had a 16-35, 24-70 and 70-200/4. Not much in the A-mount wider than 16mm either.

As with just about every Sony body these days, the spec kills the competition, I really do like what the A99II offers.

Oct 26, 2016 at 02:23 PM

joychris
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

pizdets17 wrote:
I find it hilarious that all a7 users complain about only having f4 zooms at 16-35, and a99 guys complain about only having 2.8 zooms. I don't see anything wider than 18 in the FE line up besides the 16-35. Rokinon makes a 12,14 for both mounts though

Off the top of my head, for E-mount there's the two Samyang 14/2.8's, one MF and the new AF which E-mount only and its pretty impressive, Voigtlander has the 10, 12, 15, Laowa has the new low distortion 12/2.8 and there are a few others. Plus the new Sigma 12-24 can easily be adapted - along with any others.

Oct 26, 2016 at 06:53 PM

Ken_Cravillion
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

For ultra wide I use my adapted Canon 11-24mm and am happy with the results.

Oct 27, 2016 at 03:37 PM

Gary Clennan
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

Ken_Cravillion wrote:
For ultra wide I use my adapted Canon 11-24mm and am happy with the results.

I bet you are!

Oct 27, 2016 at 04:21 PM

Mark K
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · Undecided between a99ii / a7rii - spoke w/ Sony @ PhotoPlus...

Chijrt wrote:
The day I sold my originaly a99 is the day they announced they a99ii (didn't know it until after I sold it). My plan was to move over to the a7rii. I recently rented the a7rii and liked it but didn't love it like I did when using the a99 but nonetheless, I was moving over to a more "progressive" ecosystem. Then I go to PhotoPlus...

1. Got to test out the a99ii and I can't even explain the speed this monster is equipped with. Going from 6fps to 12fps is just spectacular. The focusing is lightening fast and at 800iso and even up to 1600iso the shots were very very clean even up close (I have a bad habit of pixel peaking). IMO (and only my opinion), the a99ii can do more and cover more types of photography than the a7rii. While the translucent mirror degrades the image quality compared to the a7rii (but just by a hair), I can use this camera to do landscape and sports, etc.
2. I then go to play with the a7rii with several dedicated e-mount lenses including the G master 24-70mm. When I rented the a7rii several weeks ago, I used it with the LA-EA3 with my Zeiss A-mount lenses. While I wasn't a fan of the focusing speed (I already knew the several downsides of this combo), the image quality was spectacular. BTW, I rented this camera during my trip in Yosemite and I really couldn't have asked for me. I do 80% landscape and 20% action/sports and after this trip, the a7rii pretty much sold me and I was planning on going forward with my a7rii purchase. The only downside with the a7rii is the 5 or 6 fps. I literally tested the a99ii and went right over to the a7rii and there was an obvious speed difference. The one thing I will say is using e-mount lenses with the a7rii was VERY VERY different compared to using a-mount with a7rii. I mean, the focusing speed...hello? I hear complaints about the a7rii's focusing speed but based on my testing, there was really none. I could not tell the difference. Though I will say, the focusing speed testing done on the a99ii was with gymnasts (or acrobats?) while the focusing speed testing done on the a7rii was done on non-action/fast moving subjects.

Anyway, what I'm getting at here is I'm more confused than ever with which camera I want to get. I'm thinking I should just wait for the a9 but those are just rumors and there's no definitive timeline on the release date. I also spoke with a Sony rep at PhotoPlus and he said (not sure how reliable this is) all G Master lenses will be on E-Mount ONLY from now on. No more A-Mount. Then I spoke with 2 other Sony reps and they both echoed the same thing: The release of a99ii was for customers such as myself where the majority of my investment have always been in a-mount and therefore the a99ii was to accommodate that crowd. I did not feel good after hearing this because I basically translated it to "We need the A-mount folks to just shut up".

With the lenses I have now (all a-mount), if I were to purchase the a99ii, I'd say it can last me 3 to 4 years before I'd consider a new body. But if I just make the move now to e-mount, I'd start my transition early and into a system where the survival rate is higher.

Like I said, I do 80% landscape and 20% action/sports. I'm not really asking for anyone to push me to one system over the other but I'm just wondering if there are any other considerations that I may have missed. I personally hate the a-mount fanboys versus e-mount fanboys types of debates and I apologize if this sparks it but at this point, this is the longest I've ever held out on a camera body purchase and the longest I've ever been without one since I started photography.

The one thing I have going for me is Winter is coming. I rarely do any type of photography during the colder months so I can technically hold out until early next year/Spring 2017 to see what is looming. I guess ideally, I want an a99ii that is E-mount and everything points to the rumored a9. But there's a huge question mark in terms of actual specs, release date, etc, etc. Sony isn't stupid. They wouldn't release the a99ii in November 2016 and then boom, a9 in Spring 2017. The a-mount abandonment rate at that point would be huge and would more or less kill off the a-mount market faster than anticipated. ...Show more →

I moved to E mount/FE mount. Have had A7 A7r and now A7rII. Guess what, cameras used for daily shooting are D800/D810 or 5D3. The shooting experience with dSLRs compared to A7rII is so different. I am so lucky that I kept all my A mount lenses so buying the A99II is undoubtedly the best move. E/FE mount system serves as a great backup system when my back hurts to much. As for you there should not a single blink on A99II...just grab one.

Oct 27, 2016 at 07:12 PM

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