For the second time in a couple of weeks, I'm posting here acknowledging my short sightedness. I had largely dismissed the a7r6 (last post was about dismissing the 50-150 in error) as a camera that was probably not suitable for my shooting style. Although I have the a7r5 (not for much longer), it really was not suitable for sports and while a great portrait camera, it just wasn't versatile enough for me. I found my A1 a much better all around camera. And it should be as at one time it was Sony's flagship. Anyway, I digress. I decided to give the a7r6 a try and bought one here on the B&S forum, figuring worst case is that I would use it for a couple of months and then resell if it wasn't getting the job done. I don't think I'll be selling it anytime soon.
I shot some birds in the back yard with the a7r6 and the 300-600 f4 and it was really sharp and seemed to have quick and accurate AF. But the real test would be some sports. So I took it out Friday night to the local HS where I photograph their homecoming candidates and sports amongst other things. First up was some strobed portraits.
And after that was done, quickly transitioned the settings to some more appropriate for sports. The A7R6 and 50-150 is a lovely sports combo. When the the lens isn't long enough, the resolution of the A7R6 makes giant crops possible.
And sure, HS sports is one thing, but how will it perform at the college level. So I took it to the game on Saturday and paired it with the 50-150 again for most of the game and then about the last quarter mounted it to the 300-600 to see how that would work.
First had to get warmed up with the 50-150.
and this one was a huge crop but still tons of detail.
And then onto the 300-600. Definitely not the fastest combination of lens and body, but definitely adequate and probably more so for many. Next week I'll pair it with the 400 2.8GM and see how that combo works.
Bottom line for me is the a7r6 is quite a powerhouse and maybe the best bang for the buck in the Sony eco system. I'll be selling the a7r5 in short order. The next question I'll need to address is where does my A9v3 fit into my lineup?
White backdrop is a vinyl sheet about 8' wide on a tube hung on a background stand and about 8 feet high and white tile board from big box stores for flooring. Key is blow out the background without to much spill onto the subjects. Typically I lay at least 3 sheets of 4x8 horizontally and have them stand in middle board so about 5 feet from the background. Sometimes a bit of clean up on the tile board edge but if you overlap it right, the seam almost disappears. I have to replace the flooring fairly regularly as it gets scuffed up and once the photoshop fix becomes too tedious, I replace them. Also, they are a bit heavy so on some shoots, carrying the boards to the location is a chore. For my dance team shoots, I'll use about 12 boards to get a giant white floor, laying them 3 wide and 4 deep.
Strobed is mechanical shutter and then all sports with the electronic one.
Great shots Tim! Looks like your experiences match up to what a lot of people have been saying about the A7RVI. With a lot of folks saying it’s near the A1 II, or even slightly better, in terms of AF
How’s the viewfinder? It’s supposedly an upgrade over the A1II. Is it noticeable?
Also, interesting about the white background. I thought it was your typical white paper roll you see in many studios. Until I looked at the people’s feet and saw the floor is actually glossy. Pretty cool setup! Although it does sound like quite a bit of work to take out to locations
The A1 after all these years is still a keeper. Maybe when the a1v3 comes out I'll take a look. So far I've resisted the a1v2. But I should know better by now to not rule it out.
schlotz wrote:
Please to see you got some very good results with it Tim. What limitations it has certainly didn't interfere with capturing action, that is for sure.
Noticed you weren't planning on re-evaluating where the A1 fits in.
