Sony a7 III discussion

[Don Kotlos]

 

[scotchtape]

Just got mine.  

Surprised by how much I miss FF and shallow DOF (don't hate).  Love how much the camera does for the price.

Despite the fact that you can't use HDMI with 4K AF-F face detect, face detect can't track individual faces (with many faces on screen), and no 4K60P, for the price and useable AF-C it's making me smile (so far).  

Shot some Cine4 with colors adjusted a bit and I think it looks pretty good TBH!

[Robert Collins]

7 hours ago, scotchtape said:

Just got mine.  

Surprised by how much I miss FF and shallow DOF (don't hate).  Love how much the camera does for the price.

Despite the fact that you can't use HDMI with 4K AF-F face detect, face detect can't track individual faces (with many faces on screen), and no 4K60P, for the price and useable AF-C it's making me smile (so far).  

Shot some Cine4 with colors adjusted a bit and I think it looks pretty good TBH!

Does 'face registration' not work in video mode?

[Andrew Reid]

On 02/04/2018 at 12:43 AM, Robert Collins said:

Interesting he says that the video is slightly better on the A7iii than the A7riii. I guess he means the FF 4k video.

It's better than both the A9 and A7R3 overall for video.

Advantages over A7R3 is that it is a LOT cheaper and has the 6K full pixel readout, yet remarkably low rolling shutter.

Advantages over A9 is of course Hybrid LOG Gamma and S-LOG, plus full suite of the other picture profiles (Cine 4, etc.)

The full pixel readout helps image quality a lot in full frame vs A7R3... But ironically the A7R3 Super 35 mode is better than the A73... Bit of moire in that mode on the 24MP cam.

1080/120p looks similar on both.

A73 is basically an A9 for half price.

I am very surprised Sony were prepared to allow the A73 to come so close their two most expensive cameras.

I don't really need 42MP for stills... And that is about the only difference between the A73 and A7R3 I can think off, off top of my head!!

[Simon Young]

I respectfully disagree about the video quality being better on the a7iii than the riii. I’ve used both extensively and I agree about the a7iii being maybe one stop better in low light and more detailed in full frame, but there’s something about the image of the riii in full frame that’s simply more pleasing, even if you get the occasional moire and aliasing artifacts. Maybe it’s got something to do with the riii having less rolling shutter or being a tad “softer”, thus resulting in a more organic image.

I also feel the build quality and evf (obviously) being a notch above the a7iii. Is the Riii worth the price though? Highly questionable for 99% of potential buyers who are more video oriented.

And what about those ghosting artifacts? They are nowhere near as severe in the a7riii due to possibly better nr algorithm. (Read Arturs description).

[Trek of Joy]

3 hours ago, Andrew Reid said:

I don't really need 42MP for stills... And that is about the only difference between the A73 and A7R3 I can think off, off top of my head!!

The EVF and the LCD are much, much better on the rIII. The resolution of the a7rIII's EVF makes it much sharper and it doesn't get mushy when you magnify to focus. The a7III also lacks the LCD brightness of the rIII's LCD since it doesn't have the RGBW capabilities, and its a lower rez panel as well. Plus you have pixel shift mode - which for whatever reason isn't in any other body. I'm guessing like the PP's in the a9, it'll never get added to the a7III. Maybe the a7IV....

Chris

[scotchtape]

4 hours ago, Robert Collins said:

Does 'face registration' not work in video mode?

Not sure, i just watched a YT video that showed you can't select a face to track by touching on the screen.  I tried it as well, touching the screen in any of the "focus area" modes except the flex point modes just locks focus.

Even if you can register it, still annoying you can't just tap a face if you are doing events.  I haven't done any narrative

[Don Kotlos]

@Simon Young That was a nice illustration of the NR + ghosting. Wish companies would allow turning off any kind of in-camera processing other than basic color calibration and pixel remapping + allowing for LUTs. At least Slog2 looks good so everyone should use slog2 in low light... 

@Trek of Joy Is that correct for the LCD display brightness of A7iii? It doesn't look like it is dimming as the older models, and if did then it would be a dealbreaker for many. 

 

[Coiii]

Hey guys! Can anyone please help me with this. I've never been fan of the Sony color science, but I just remembered that in the EOSHD review of the A7RIII, Andrew mentioned that the new HLG color profiles are a lot better than the previous cameras, and almost fixed the "Sony color science"

Since the A7III has the same HLG color profiles, where can I find some good examples of the new color profiles? Anyone has a good example? Or maybe a comparison between cameras? I want to check the new profiles because I'm tempted for the A7RIII (or A7III) as a video/photo hybrid.

[webrunner5]

26 minutes ago, Coiii said:

Hey guys! Can anyone please help me with this. I've never been fan of the Sony color science, but I just remembered that in the EOSHD review of the A7RIII, Andrew mentioned that the new HLG color profiles are a lot better than the previous cameras, and almost fixed the "Sony color science"

Since the A7III has the same HLG color profiles, where can I find some good examples of the new color profiles? Anyone has a good example? Or maybe a comparison between cameras? I want to check the new profiles because I'm tempted for the A7RIII (or A7III) as a video/photo hybrid.

Not a fan of Ken Rockwell, but his review has some pretty much in your face shots on his review of the A7 mk III. I guess this is what they look like Color Science wise.

https://www.kenrockwell.com/sony/a7-iii.htm

I have seen some shots from it that look more Canon looking than a newer Canon! To me the newer Canons are looking more toward Red than the older ones that were a Orange Red. Maybe it is because Canon wants a more punchy look, or maybe they are a bit sharper now even in 1080p. Or well maybe both reasons?

[Coiii]

11 minutes ago, webrunner5 said:

Not a fan of Ken Rockwell, but his review has some pretty much in your face shots on his review of the A7 mk III. I guess this is what they look like Color Science wise.

https://www.kenrockwell.com/sony/a7-iii.htm

I have seen some shots from it that look more Canon looking than a newer Canon! To me the newer Canons are looking more toward Red than the older ones that were a Orange Red.

Thank you! I will check this now ?

[scotchtape]

Try some "regular" settings, you might be surprised.

I'm using this right now:

Black Level 0

Gamma Cine4

Black Gamma - Wide Level 0

Knee Manual 80% +2

Color Mode: Pro

Sat 0

Col Phase 0

Color Depth: R+5 G0 B+2 C +2 M0 Y-3

Detail -7

[Robert Collins]

37 minutes ago, scotchtape said:

Try some "regular" settings, you might be surprised.

I'm using this right now:

Black Level 0

Gamma Cine4

Black Gamma - Wide Level 0

Knee Manual 80% +2

Color Mode: Pro

Sat 0

Col Phase 0

Color Depth: R+5 G0 B+2 C +2 M0 Y-3

Detail -7

My settings on my A7riii are incredibly close to these - even the color adjustments are within 2 points on each color. I do have detail set to 0 on 120p (-6 4k).

[Don Kotlos]

2 hours ago, Coiii said:

Hey guys! Can anyone please help me with this. I've never been fan of the Sony color science, but I just remembered that in the EOSHD review of the A7RIII, Andrew mentioned that the new HLG color profiles are a lot better than the previous cameras, and almost fixed the "Sony color science"

Since the A7III has the same HLG color profiles, where can I find some good examples of the new color profiles? Anyone has a good example? Or maybe a comparison between cameras? I want to check the new profiles because I'm tempted for the A7RIII (or A7III) as a video/photo hybrid.

In my experience you can get better results with the cine gammas + the pro/cinema/sgammut3.cine gammuts than the HLG+rec2020. As scotchtape & Robert already mentioned, try playing around a bit and you can make the colors look as you want. 

After moving from A7rii to A7riii, there is a significant improvement in color even with the same video profile settings. Even the default jpeg profiles look better than they used to. Sony finally started paying attention to color, and they even released the FS5II with better color being the only real improvement. Adobe has also improved their color with Lightroom. I like this direction!

[scotchtape]

7 hours ago, Robert Collins said:

My settings on my A7riii are incredibly close to these - even the color adjustments are within 2 points on each color. I do have detail set to 0 on 120p (-6 4k).

Nice to know I'm on the right track! So many confusing options, wish there was a "look good" setting or at least someone to do all the work for us.

That being said colors looking way better!

[Gregormannschaft]

Thinking about selling my A7S2 for this. I'd get around 1700€, which means I'd be spending around 500€ for a whole host of improvements. Are there any major downsides to doing this?

[Don Kotlos]

1 hour ago, Gregormannschaft said:

Thinking about selling my A7S2 for this. I'd get around 1700€, which means I'd be spending around 500€ for a whole host of improvements. Are there any major downsides to doing this?

Other than the imminent release of A7sIII ? 

Joking aside, it seems the only real downside is the excessive noise reduction at higher ISOs with gammas different than slog as illustrated in the video that @Simon Young posted. 

Other than that I believe you will be very satisfied. 

[Gregormannschaft]

8 minutes ago, Don Kotlos said:

Other than the imminent release of A7sIII ? 

Joking aside, it seems the only real downside is the excessive noise reduction at higher ISOs with gammas different than slog as illustrated in the video that @Simon Young posted. 

Other than that I believe you will be very satisfied. 

Crazy move to make, feel like I'd be silly not to sell before the average Joe realises just how good the A73 is.

[jonpais]

5 minutes ago, Gregormannschaft said:

Crazy move to make, feel like I'd be silly not to sell before the average Joe realises just how good the A73 is.

I think he already knows. ?

[Coiii]

15 hours ago, Don Kotlos said:

In my experience you can get better results with the cine gammas + the pro/cinema/sgammut3.cine gammuts than the HLG+rec2020. As scotchtape & Robert already mentioned, try playing around a bit and you can make the colors look as you want. 

After moving from A7rii to A7riii, there is a significant improvement in color even with the same video profile settings. Even the default jpeg profiles look better than they used to. Sony finally started paying attention to color, and they even released the FS5II with better color being the only real improvement. Adobe has also improved their color with Lightroom. I like this direction!

Thanks.

I've previously used the Cine4 + Sgammut3 combo with the A7SII with good results. Maybe the best result for my taste, but in the end it's not good enough for me compared to the 1DxII or 5DIV (talking about color rendition only).

Now I'm wondering if with the new HLG profiles are really better or something closer to the new FS5II but I can't find anything relevant :/