Lately, I have been testing quite a few different cameras. I’ve had the opportunity to shoot with the new Canon mirrorless cameras as well as a variety of others. With all of those tests, I keep coming back to the Sony platform because of their consistently impressive advancements with every new camera model. Sony has really continued to move things forward and provide what I need for performance and image quality. The Sony a7 IV is no exception. I’ve been shooting with it for a few months now for YouTube videos, client shoots, real estate shoots and various photography projects. What I found is that the a7 IV is an absolute powerhouse of a camera. It takes incredible footage in almost any environment I shoot in. Here are five reasons that I think you should buy the Sony a7 IV.
33MP Images and 4k60p Footage
The first point, which may be the most obvious, is the impressive resolution this camera can shoot in. In my experience, most cameras in this price range end up sacrificing quality with either the photo resolution or the video capabilities in order boost the other.The a7 iii for example, only offered 20mp images in order to provide full frame 4k record capabilities.
With the a7 IV, both aspects of recording are very solid. I’ve found that the 33mp images are plenty large for pretty much everything that I’m going to be shooting. I shoot a lot of real estate and product photos, but I’m not necessarily shooting any larger format images that will be blown up for theaters or billboards.
The 4k60p option for video recording is also very handy. The truth is, I rarely need to use 60p in my video project, but it is a nice feature to have that capability if I need it. Even with the crop that this camera has when utilizing 4k60p, the footage still looks crips, detailed and overall fantastic. At this price point, it’s hard to find anything else that matches this level of resolution and quality.
Lens Options
The second reason to buy the a7 IV is that Sony’s lens platform for its mirrorless camera lineup is very mature at this point. Other brands like Canon are starting to improve their options for mirrorless cameras, but Sony has had a pretty significant head start. Canon has absolutely fantastic lenses in its RF platform, but they have yet to create a full range of lenses like Sony has. Sony’s G-Master lenses are also on par in quality to most lenses I’ve used. Some lenses, like Sony’s 70-200 f2.8 lens, are already on their second version because Sony has been at it for so long. I’m a firm believe in staying away from lens adapters as much as possible, so to have all of the options that I would want readily available for my a7 IV is a huge selling point for me.
Aftermarket lens companies are also producing pretty fantastic options for the Sony mirrorless lineup.
If you don’t have many lenses yet, or if you’re just starting to think about getting into the camera and lens world, I would highly recommend joining the Sony camp. Right now in 2022, you’ll end up getting many more lens options that if you were to go with a competing company.
The Autofocus
The autofocus in the Sony a7 IV is almost unmatched to any of the other cameras I’ve used. I’ve put it up against other cameras like the Canon r6 and have seen a significant difference in low light focusing and its ability to focus on fast-moving subject. The autofocus is just absolutely fantastic. For video shooters, the a7 IV also has focus mapping that makes it even easier to visualize what is in focus and what is out of focus. For those of you who are hybrid shooters like me, shooting both photos and video, this is hands down a better option all around when it comes to focusing quickly and accurately.
No Record Limit
One thing that bothered me about work with Canon’s EOS r6 is its 30 minute record limit. Every 30 minutes, the camera would automatically stop filming and you would have to manually restart the recording in order to continue. Honestly, in this day and age we shouldn’t have to be dealing with record limits anymore. Thankfully, with the Sony a7 IV, we don’t have to. As long as I have memory and battery power I can film until the cows come home and continue to film without having to deal with broken clips or frequently starting and stop a recording.
When it comes to video, this camera also has a very high output bit rate. This is something that a lot of cameras in this price range don’t offer. This means your video will be much more manageable for things like color correcting and changing the footage in post-production.
Battery
The next reason, which is very important for many people, is the impressive battery life that the a7 IV offers. Now, the actually battery isn’t very large, but I have found that when I am out shooting, I can shoot all day long on a single battery. Now, this includes me turning the camera off and on throughout the day as I’m traveling and looking for shots. But, I’ve taken thousands of photos in a day without have an issue. Overall, the battery performance on this camera is significantly better than a lot of the alternatives I’ve tested.
Final Thoughts
I think these five reasons are pretty enticing if you’re on the fence as to whether or not you should go with the a7 IV or with a camera from Canon or Nikon. If you’re interested in purchasing the a7 IV, you can check it out here:
I also have a lot of content on the a7 IV available on the Gear and Light YouTube channel. Check out some of those videos here:
