Sony Alpha A7S Pro Reviews

Its 1080p footage is the cleanest, most detailed we've yet seen, with virtually no moiré and often jaw-dropping low-light performance. Some of the low light advantage is undercut if you need to stop-down to achieve sufficient depth-of-field but, unlike smaller sensor systems, you have the choice over whether to do this or whether to embrace the shallow-depth-of-field and low light capabilities.

The Sony Alpha A7S bucks the trend for more megapixels, by offering a 12 megapixel full-frame sensor, this gives it impressive light capturing abilities, with low noise right up to ISO25600 and above. The smaller file size should also let you shoot more on a memory card, as well as speed up workflow and image processing times. The camera has a weather sealed magnesium alloy body, along with a very good electronic viewfinder, all packed in to a relatively compact design, making it the smallest full-frame sensor camera available. Compared to the Panasonic Lumix GH4, which will record 4K video straight out of the box, at a lower price and with a much larger range of lenses available, the Sony Alpha A7S may seem limited and expensive as a 4K video device, particularly as you will need to buy an external recorder for 4K video. However, for stills photography and low-light the Sony Alpha A7S delivers very impressive performance, with low levels of noise even when using high ISO settings. It's also possible to use the Sony Alpha A7S with a lens adapter so you can use a wide variety of lenses from Nikon, Canon, Olympus and others. If you simply want excellent low-light performance, then this is one of the best cameras currently available, however it is more expensive than an alternative such as the Canon EOS 6D. If you want a camera that is also able to deliver excellent low-light performance for videos, then this would make an excellent choice, although you do need to bare in mind that you are likely to need to spend an additional 2000 US Dollars before you can record 4K video. For those that can make the most of the video performance on offer then it would make sense to invest in the 7S, particularly as you can upgrade to 4K recording at a later date.

The Sony Alpha 7S full-frame mirrorless camera offers incredible performance in low light, but you'll need an external recorder to take advantage of its 4K video support.

Nikon told us for years that 12 million pixels was 'enough'. But as technology developed and commercial pressures came to bear, it increased the pixel count offered by its SLRs to the point that it introduced the first 36Mp full-frame SLR, the D800, recently replaced by the Nikon D810. While the D800 is an excellent camera, capable of resolving a huge amount of detail at lower sensitivity settings, its users have to be prepared to follow all the 'rules' about using tripods, mirror lock-up and so on, to get the benefit from all of those pixels. In addition, they have huge files to deal with. It's also interesting to remember that Nikon has stuck with a 16Mp sensor for its range-topping D4S and the retro-styled Nikon Df. This and the popularity of other 16Mp cameras like the Fuji X-T1, X-E2 and Olympus OM-D E-M1, E-M5 and E-M10 suggests that photographers now realise there's much more to a camera than its pixel count – and a high count can bring its own limitations. So where does that leave the Song A7S? Well, it's an excellent camera, but still it's one that has limited appeal. The average enthusiast is usually less concerned about low light performance and high sensitivity settings than pros who have to shoot in gloomy conditions. A professional wedding photographer, for example, might like it for its low light capability when shooting in churches and candle-lit receptions, but they are also likely to carry an A7 to enable them to take larger images (and therefore sell more expensive large prints) when shooting outdoors. Videographers will also find it very appealing and a strong competitor for the Panasonic GH4, but one that allows greater control over depth of field thanks to its larger sensor.