Opinion Poll: Sony A6300 / A6500

[Dustin]

I am needing some advice on a camera upgrade. I appreciate all the helpful advice this forum always seems to provide. After at least 2-3 years of working with what I have I’m ready to move up to that sweet autofocus/gradeability/120fps etc. on an A6300/6500. Yes the a7iii looks awesome but I can’t afford it.

Current kit: Nikon D5300 /Tamron 17-50 f2.8 

I do this as a hobby mainly the odd short project here and there and I make vacation films from time to time. I would love to pick up more video work as it’s not my 9-5 but after 4 years of using the Nikon system while I love the colors I can’t get over its inefficiencies for video.

I like to shoot handheld mainly or if I must on a monopod unless I’m doing an interview of course. I’m not great with still hands so the A6500 is what I’m favoring due to IBIS but also due to the idea of adding stabilization to a couple of manual Nikon e series primes I own from my film photography kit. 

From the videos I’ve seen it seems like the A6300 with an OSS lens actually does pretty good as long as you’re not like walking which I wouldn’t expect it to do anyways. 

The kicker: I’m going to sell my Nikon kit (with some other photo accessories I don’t use) to help fund the cost but I am thinking either an A6300 or a6500 with a 35mm lens plus the kit lens if I can swing that. However, I’m trying to do this all for $800-900 and it looks like the bodies on eBay are coming up around that alone. 

Is it worth it to spring for the a6500? Or would I be fine with an A6300 and oss lens (the cheaper option)

[IronFilm]

Why not Panasonic? (Or BMD)

As you're not using Sony now, so you've got no lens investments in Sony to lean you in that direction. Personally I'd strongly avoid the a6300 due to how easily they overheat 

Also if you like Nikon, maybe give a second look at the D7500? 

Or perhaps even hold out and wait a little longer for a "D5700" which surely will get 4K

[Dustin]

36 minutes ago, IronFilm said:

Why not Panasonic? (Or BMD)

As you're not using Sony now, so you've got no lens investments in Sony to lean you in that direction. Personally I'd strongly avoid the a6300 due to how easily they overheat 

Also if you like Nikon, maybe give a second look at the D7500? 

Or perhaps even hold out and wait a little longer for a "D5700" which surely will get 4K

My complaints on the Nikon: bad video AF (a feature I am strongly wanting), terribly usability for video- I mean I hate hitting the live view just to change my f stop! There are other things but mainly I’m just tired of the camera and feeling like I’m going out of my way on it, if that makes sense.

I did strongly consider the G85 and honestly I’m not considering it due to the AF not being as good as Sony’s. Otherwise it would meet nearly every thing. While I think I’ll use focus peaking some as well with manual glass, I want the capability to throw a light prime and just go out and shoot- not worrying about focus, and the ability to just create. 

I feel like the Sony’s check a lot of boxes for me- especially for the price.Might be wrong? Idk

[webrunner5]

1080p on both the A6300, A6500 is pretty terrible. The A6500 is damn good for 4K though. I agree, in this day and age I don't think either one would be on my radar at all. I would take a GH4 over one of them any day. AF is about the least of your concerns on a Video Camera purchase. You want to use touch screen focus. Why would you want a camera to decide what the hell it wants to focus on, not you? The Sony eye focus I can see if you are doing Weddings, Corporate Interviews, etc. Now if you want to run around like you have a Bottle Rocket up your Butt, well then I guess you need AF and a Life Squad! ?

There is a Sony A7s on Craigslist where I live for $775.00.  https://cincinnati.craigslist.org/pho/d/used-sony-7s/6611663099.html

I would sure rather have that than a A6300 for nearly the same money. The A7s has about the best looking 1080p going right out of the camera sharpness wise. Maybe not the best colors back then, but I like those colors. But they do have Luts and Editors for that in this day and age LoL. ?

[Dustin]

@webrunner5 I appreciate your thoughts man! I agree the GH4/A7S can be had at a fantastic value now! I need something with either good OS in lenses or IBIS because my hands are so shaky. Even with proper techniques. I also am not much a fan of a rig I’d rather shoot and go. 

Ive tried out the A6300 in the store with the kit 18-135 (not my taste in lenses) and the AF felt very smooth there? Seemed to focus on whatever I wanted it to. Also focus peaking was working really well there. 

Any other cameras I should consider besides the M50 that has good AF, flat or log profile, decent battery life on used for around $700-900?

 

___________

 

Edit - I would also be downscaling the 4k to 1080p. I don't even own a 4k tv lol.

[noone]

As much as I love my A7s (and it is to me still the best camera I have had), I would never recommend it for someone that wants good AF in video.       It is ok for MY uses but I don't need it to focus on anything really far or fast moving for video.      Likewise for stills, it can  not AFC to save its life (though AFS is excellent and even in almost no light).

 

I would try the A6500 (and A6300) and see what you think yourself as it seems they may well suit you and make up your own mind (lots of people will probably try and steer you to M43 or to stay with Nikon -both are fine for many people).

There are a couple of Sony kit lenses and while they get a bad rap with some people, I thought the 16-50 I had was actually pretty good (though I only used it on FF cameras sparingly a little). 

[webrunner5]

I have No complains about focus with my A7s in AFS like noone says. Is it a killer focusing camera, not if you have that Bottle Rocket burning your cheeks back there. I like the A6500 a lot better than the A6300 because of the IBIS. But Sony Has to be close to coming out with a new one, and the prices on it will drop like a rock. But it is a heck of a good camera now with the newest firmware. They raised the temperature thingy on it so it doesn't overheat as often now.

Yeah the M50 looks interesting but no DPAF in 4K, and you really need to buy the Speedbooster to make it work. That is a 1000 bucks total right there. And it doesn't have many tricks up it's sleeve other than good color output, which I know is important, and soft 1080p with DPAF, which I know is ehh, well I don't like soft 1080p Unless I want to make it soft LoL..

The problem with most Video Cameras is they just don't have many features you need other than Sony and Panasonic cameras. I guess it just depends on how serious you want to get. I mean at the price point you are looking at you probably can sell anything you buy and not loose much down the road. Now if you buy a lot of lenses for it well then you can take a big hit if you change brands, or go from APSC  say to FF. That is why I love the Sony A7s. FF and it has the APSC crop mode in it, plus the Sony Clear Zoom. And since it is mirrorless you can use damned near any lens other than s16, m4/3 stuff.

I went to a thrift store near me a few days ago and bought a camera bag with a old Pentax SP 500 film camera on it with 4 lenses in the bag for 16 dollars! It had 3 M42 screw lenses, a 24mm f2.8, a 28mm f2.8 and a 135mm f2.8. And a Canon FD  28mm f 2.8 all with caps for both ends! All of it looks like brand new. All will work on my A7s. Just magic I tell you.

 

[noone]

I agree I don't have any problems with AF with my A7s but could you honestly recommend it for AF in video for someone for whom that was a/the major feature?      Pretty sure I would hate it if that was my most desired point (it isn't and there are so many things I love it for).

Nice find with the lenses!     I love haunting Pawnshops and charity stores.

[webrunner5]

4 minutes ago, noone said:

I agree I don't have any problems with AF with my A7s but could you honestly recommend it for AF in video for someone for whom that was a/the major feature?      Pretty sure I would hate it if that was my most desired point (it isn't and there are so many things I love it for).

Nice find with the lenses!     I love haunting Pawnshops and charity stores.

No I would say the AF is close to Dog Shit in video mode. But name me a camera in his price range that has good video AF?

And 2 of those M42 lenses are Super-Multi-Coated Takumars!!

[Dustin]

@webrunner5WOW! Great find. I love film photography so I actually have an Olympus OM2N with a super sharp 50mm 1.8, Nikon FE2 - what I consider to be a near perfect slr for my needs with a 28mm fe 2.8 and 50mm 1.8. I love the 28mm. Hoping to adapt those to the Sony or other camera I choose.

I'm not afraid of manual focus I've been using it for years but I'd rather not rely on it so much. I'm thinking about getting into weddings. Mainly for the $$ but also I look around and see alot of guys doing if I"m frank not that great videos and surely I think I can do better. Also after seeing so many videos and trying the a6300 AF at the store today for myself - I'm convinced this is a feature I want to at least have at my disposal  

I agree on the soft 1080p, my nikon looks great but compared to cameras from the last few years with 4k downscaling to 1080p - it just can't compare.

I thought about the g85..I know it has focus peaking and Caleb Pike seemed to get decent auto focus. Also GH4's can be had for a bargain now. But...Idk. 

Then there is the a6700 around the corner that will probably blow the a6500 out of the water. I could probably sell it by that time and still make decent money. Heck the Best Buy (hate that store) where I tried the a6300 never even stocks the a6500 in store. Salesguy "Hey Man that's the best camera we have!" (Thinking to myself you obviously know nothing about cameras) Me" Thanks man, just looking!"

 

 

There is an a6300 for $586 I'm watching now expiring in the hour...but no IBIS..ugh decisions!!

 

[noone]

To be fair, it can handle focusing on a rock band where they don't move very far (or too fast) so I wouldn't call it Dog shit and it maybe could keep up with a three legged dog?

 

[webrunner5]

5 minutes ago, Dustin said:

@webrunner5WOW! Great find. I love film photography so I actually have an Olympus OM2N with a super sharp 50mm 1.8, Nikon FE2 - what I consider to be a near perfect slr for my needs with a 28mm fe 2.8 and 50mm 1.8. I love the 28mm. Hoping to adapt those to the Sony or other camera I choose.

I'm not afraid of manual focus I've been using it for years but I'd rather not rely on it so much. I'm thinking about getting into weddings. Mainly for the $$ but also I look around and see alot of guys doing if I"m frank not that great videos and surely I think I can do better. Also after seeing so many videos and trying the a6300 AF at the store today for myself - I'm convinced this is a feature I want to at least have at my disposal  

I agree on the soft 1080p, my nikon looks great but compared to cameras from the last few years with 4k downscaling to 1080p - it just can't compare.

I thought about the g85..I know it has focus peaking and Caleb Pike seemed to get decent auto focus. Also GH4's can be had for a bargain now. But...Idk. 

Then there is the a6700 around the corner that will probably blow the a6500 out of the water. I could probably sell it by that time and still make decent money. Heck the Best Buy (hate that store) where I tried the a6300 never even stocks the a6500 in store. Salesguy "Hey Man that's the best camera we have!" (Thinking to myself you obviously know nothing about cameras) Me" Thanks man, just looking!"

 

 

If you want to do weddings by all means buy the A6500 with IBIS and eye tracking. It will be your best bet. But think about Maybe going with a few FF lenses for it in case you move up to FF. You can always use the APSC lenses in the Crop mode on the FF though.

[Dustin]

Maybe since I'm on a budget I should just grab an a6300, update the new firmware for less overheating and one of these guys for $60 bucks? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NJKJ1IA?tag=kit-gl-20&th=1#customerReviews Not quite as portable as a gimbal but better than nothing.

 

 

[webrunner5]

1 hour ago, Dustin said:

Maybe since I'm on a budget I should just grab an a6300, update the new firmware for less overheating and one of these guys for $60 bucks? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NJKJ1IA?tag=kit-gl-20&th=1#customerReviews Not quite as portable as a gimbal but better than nothing.

 

 

If you Only use one lens a lot, and it is not a extending zoom they are pretty good. If you change lenses a lot, you will try to find the highest skyscraper you can find and jump off of it. You are Never going to be able to use one of those mechanical Gimbals for a wedding. You have to change lenses all the time and damn fast unless you have 4 cameras hanging off of you. You can't really even use a Electronic Gimbal changing lenses fast. IBIS and a OIS lenses on it to boot that is matched to the camera is the only way it will work for fast changing situations.

Giving up IBIS for what you want to do, nah, go for the A6500. If you really want to shoot videos for weddings the camera is the least of your cost. Getting into video is DAMN expensive. You are going to have to have a really good tripod and fluid head, damn good lighting, great lenses, on and on. And you Really need a backup to all of it. I shot weddings for years and years. If it can break, or you forgot it, it happened. I had backups for backups trust me. You Only have one shot to get it. And now everyone is sue happy. You can't half ass a wedding. And you really can't start small. It is balls to the wall or nothing if you want to charge for it. And on top of it you have to look and act professional as hell or oh boy. That means more than a Cellphone and a flashlight.

[Mark Romero 2]

28 minutes ago, Dustin said:

Maybe since I'm on a budget I should just grab an a6300, update the new firmware for less overheating and one of these guys for $60 bucks? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NJKJ1IA?tag=kit-gl-20&th=1#customerReviews Not quite as portable as a gimbal but better than nothing.

Yes, those are better than nothing, but the a6300 / a6500 is too short / too light for those. You would need to add a cheap (Meike) battery grip. There is a guy on you tube

https://www.youtube.com/user/kylester925/videos

who has used the a6300 with a glidecam and I think he has some tips on it.

Oh, as for updating the firmware of the a6300, yes, it does extend the time you can record before overheating, but it also dims the screen even further. An a6300 with the old firmware has a brighter screen than an a6500 with the default firmware.

The af of the a6300 / a6500 with a lens like the SEL 50mm f/1.8 OSS is good for both stills and video. Here is an a6300 shot at 1080p 24fps on a Zhiyun crane with the 50mm f/1.8 OSS. The DOF isn't super shallow so maybe it won't give you too much of an idea of the AF, but it was shot at twilight and I was chasing around my son who was kind of unpredictable.

 

[Mark Romero 2]

As for a6300 vs a6500 vs other cameras...

The three reasons to buy an a6300 / a6500 over any other cameras are:

Really good low light
Really good AF with Sony lenses
Really detailed 4K at 24fps

So you have to ask yourself if you will be negating those benefits with your shooting scenario:

Motion blur (can) negate benefit of Really detailed 4K at 24fps
Using adapted lenses can negate the benefit of the really good AF
Using lights can negate the advantage of really good low light performance.

BTW: a6300 and a6500 are both great stills cameras... as long as there is a sony lens that meets your focal length and - more importantly - your budget. Eye AF is great. The dynamic range is great. There is a reason I take my a6500 out on my paying gigs while my D750 sits at home.
 

 

[webrunner5]

Great points, but he is going to Have to have some kind of lighting at a Wedding. He just has too. Maybe not a lot of the time, but man when you need it you better have it and have it ready to go in a heartbeat. You can only slow down a wedding so much, even shots of the group after the wedding there is pressure to get you out of the church, people want to get to the reception, have to go to the bathroom, on and on. And when things get going, ergo, people get drunk at the reception, you are not stopping Anything. Ain't happening. Half the people don't even know or care about the cake cutting, bouquet tossing, etc. They just want to get drunk. Hey, free Booze.  And if it is a Polish, Russian wedding even You and both Grandma's will be drunk! ?

[Axel]

Wedding? Just did one with A6500, bunch of fast lenses and Zhiyun Crane ("V1"). No additional light needed. Even not in frigging candlelight! Weight, size, good AF, IBIS (therefore not A6300) and good lowlight make me think: well, would do this again. Get yourself a dummy battery and connect it to a powerbank (Intenso S10000 costs some 15 €, has the size of a smartphone and therefore fits perfectly into a belt clip holster, easily lasts a whole day). Main problem - at least if you are a one-man-band - is audio. Not even an earphone jack ...

[IronFilm]

7 hours ago, Dustin said:

My complaints on the Nikon: bad video AF (a feature I am strongly wanting)

Unless you go Canon you're likely to find yourself disappointed. 
(and if you do go Canon.... you'll find yourself disappointed anyway! But for different reasons)

 

7 hours ago, Dustin said:

I mean I hate hitting the live view just to change my f stop!

Newer Nikons (such as a  D500 or D750 etc) have fixed this. 
(and I find it only a minor nuisance on my D5200 anyway)

 

 

6 hours ago, webrunner5 said:

1080p on both the A6300, A6500 is pretty terrible. The A6500 is damn good for 4K though.

Being "forced" to always shoot in 4K (without the option for good 1080) is quite unappealing to me. (plus there are the overheating issues with the a6300.... and even some a6500 as well)

 

6 hours ago, Dustin said:

I need something with either good OS in lenses or IBIS because my hands are so shaky. Even with proper techniques. I also am not much a fan of a rig I’d rather shoot and go. 

One word:
Monopod

(it is a "no rig" approach that allows you run and gun around at events at a fast pace, if that is what you prefer, a monopod is my preferred weapon of choice for weddings)

[Deadcode]

8 hours ago, Dustin said:

I am needing some advice on a camera upgrade. I appreciate all the helpful advice this forum always seems to provide. After at least 2-3 years of working with what I have I’m ready to move up to that sweet autofocus/gradeability/120fps etc. on an A6300/6500. Yes the a7iii looks awesome but I can’t afford it.

Current kit: Nikon D5300 /Tamron 17-50 f2.8 

I do this as a hobby mainly the odd short project here and there and I make vacation films from time to time. I would love to pick up more video work as it’s not my 9-5 but after 4 years of using the Nikon system while I love the colors I can’t get over its inefficiencies for video.

I like to shoot handheld mainly or if I must on a monopod unless I’m doing an interview of course. I’m not great with still hands so the A6500 is what I’m favoring due to IBIS but also due to the idea of adding stabilization to a couple of manual Nikon e series primes I own from my film photography kit. 

From the videos I’ve seen it seems like the A6300 with an OSS lens actually does pretty good as long as you’re not like walking which I wouldn’t expect it to do anyways. 

The kicker: I’m going to sell my Nikon kit (with some other photo accessories I don’t use) to help fund the cost but I am thinking either an A6300 or a6500 with a 35mm lens plus the kit lens if I can swing that. However, I’m trying to do this all for $800-900 and it looks like the bodies on eBay are coming up around that alone. 

Is it worth it to spring for the a6500? Or would I be fine with an A6300 and oss lens (the cheaper option)

There are stores where you can find pretty decent prices. Go for the A6300. With Sony E lenses there is no difference between the a6500 and a6300, the touch screen not wort the extra 300 eur.

So 750 eur for a6300 +16-50. 150 eur for Sony E 50 1.8 oss. 300 eur for Sony E 35 1.8 oss. In summary for 1200 eur you will have full lens setup for almost any cases, awesome 4K video, decent 1080 if you set up your sharpening settings properly, and class leading RAW photo dynamic range, nice AF, shallow DOF.