Back in 2017, the Sony A7C was released as a smaller, more compact version of the favored Sony A7 III. It was praised on the time for its lightweight and small form factor while still packing the punch of among the larger models, although as time has passed and technology has advanced, it has been growing increasingly more outdated. Six years on, we have now welcomed the A7C II which has a faster processor, more megapixels and Sony’s recent AI-based autofocus system. It’s launching for an RRP of $2198 and is available in all black or black & silver.
Specifications
Release date: September 2023
System: Mirrorless
Sensor: Full frame 33MP BSI CMOS
ISO range: 100-51,200 (expanded 50-204,800)
Burst shooting: as much as 10FPS
AF: 759 phase-detection
Video: 4K 30p, 4K 60p cropped
Storage: Single UHS-II SD slot
Screen: 3-inch fully articulating, 1.036M dots
Dimensions: 4.88 x 2.8 x 2.48-inches (124 x 71 x 63 mm)
Weight: 1.13 lbs (514g)
The Sony A7C II is aimed toward casual photographers and globe trotters who need to take pictures and videos while traveling or on holiday. It has a ton of useful features which make shooting a breeze and produces stunning results that will definitely impress. It will be an awesome option to think about in case you’re making the jump from crop sensor over to full frame due to its accessibility and comparatively low price.
When paired with a few of one of the best zoom lenses and best lenses for astrophotography, this camera truly comes into its own and proves that larger is not all the time higher — actually, many users prefer one of the best mirrorless cameras to be compact and light-weight, reasonably than having to hold around heavy and ponderous DSLRs.
So is the Sony A7C II probably the greatest cameras for photos and videos? Let’s take a better look.
Sony A7C II review
Sony A7C II: Design
- Subtle design changes from the previous model
- Small and light-weight form factor makes it perfect for travel
- Fully articulating screen is great for awkward astro positions and vlogging
Design
🔎 Sony A7C II: Overall we just like the design for its comfort and usefulness, and we found it comfortable to carry and use for long periods. Nevertheless, in case you’re a professional, you will likely desire a camera that has more custom buttons to dive into the customization that Sony cameras offer. ★★★★
With regards to the design of the Sony A7C II, overall, it’s quite just like the unique A7C. The A7C range is billed as Sony’s ‘smallest full-frame cameras’, and the unique model still holds that title, with the newer version being 5g heavier and just 3mm deeper — which, let’s be honest, doesn’t really make any difference in practice.
It weighs 1.13 lbs (514g) and measures 4.88 x 2.8 x 2.48-inches (124 x 71 x 63 mm), so it’s actually not much larger and heavier than the brand new APS-C Sony A6700, which we reviewed. We found it no trouble in any respect carrying around our neck (even when paired with a reasonably large lens), and we predict the small form factor is ideal for travel photographers who might need to avoid wasting on space of their camera backpacks. But in case you think it could be too small for you, you should buy a grip for it — although that’ll cost you an additional $160.
We like that Sony have added a front dial on the A7C II, which was a standard criticism in the unique version. We found it easy and convenient to alter the settings with our forefinger and thumb at the identical time, versus having to wade through the menus to alter settings, which is incredibly annoying. Although this will appear to be a reasonably small change, it means the camera handles a lot better. The rear of the camera is basically the identical because the A7C, only they’ve added a further custom button next to the menu button. On the highest, the exposure compensation dial is now a blank custom dial, and there is a separate selector dial below the fundamental dial for photo, video and s&q.
They’ve improved the resolution of the LCD screen, although not by a very noticeable margin. The LCD screen on the unique version was 0.92M dots, but now they’ve upped it to 1.03M dots. We thought the LCD screen was positive, but we predict they might have improved it much more to make it really stand out, especially considering it’s the identical resolution because the A6700, which is simply a crop sensor camera. The fundamental advantage the screen has is that it’s fully articulating, making this camera a implausible option for vlogging and taking selfies.
Sony A7C II: Performance
- Produces surprisingly good images
- Autofocus is fast and reliable
- Low light performance is nice for casual astro
Performance
🔎 Sony A7C II: We were pleasantly surprised with the performance of this camera, and even though it won’t give one of the best results you have ever seen, for the value, it’s pretty impressive. It’s positive for astro, but the photographs are quite noisy. ★★★★
We are saying ‘surprisingly good’ because, having only just reviewed the incredible Sony A7R V, truthfully, we weren’t expecting much from this camera (though it isn’t a very fair comparison). But once we checked out our images on a pc screen, we were very pleasantly surprised with the sharpness, color and dynamic range this camera is capable of manufacturing.
The 33MP BSI sensor sits nicely in between the insanely-detailed 61MP of the A7R V and the lower resolution of the unique A7C (24MP), meaning you get beautifully detailed images that are not hugely overrun with noise but are still detailed enough to be impressive, particularly if you would like to print your images or share them to social media. Not to say, a 33MP sensor doesn’t produce enormous files for the camera to try to sustain with, so we had no issues with the buffer speed while we were shooting.
The A7C II is supplied with Sony’s recent AI processing unit, making their already class-leading autofocus even higher. We were incredibly impressed with this recent autofocus system once we reviewed the Sony A7R V and the Sony A6700, and once we were testing out the A7C II for this review, it was just as fast, accurate and reliable as we expected it to be. It features recent intelligent ‘deep-learning’ technology and may detect a spread of various subjects, from humans to animals, insects, birds, cars, trains and airplanes — although there isn’t any auto mode for this, so you will have to set it manually. We tested the autofocus on a pair of black indoor cats and it was in a position to detect and track their eyes effortlessly, and it routinely switched to face tracking once they were looking away from the camera.
In terms of its astro performance, we would say it performed well overall and it could actually autofocus all the way down to -4EV, but we would not recommend it as a dedicated astro camera. We found the photographs to be fairly noisy, so you would not need to bump the ISO up over around 5000. You eliminate quite a lot of the noise using Lightroom’s AI denoise feature, but that process might be quite time-consuming so it would not be value it if you could have quite a lot of astro images to process.
We also tested its astro performance at a dark sky site away from the intense city lights and, unsurprisingly, the photographs were higher and there was less noticeable noise overall.
Sony A7C II: Functionality
- Upset with only a single card slot
- Powerful AI-processing unit means lower battery life
- A camera aimed toward enthusiasts
Functionality
🔎 Sony A7C II: It’s decent enough for an entry-level full-frame camera, even though it won’t win any awards for its features or capabilities. That said, we predict having such a strong AI autofocus processor, image stabilization and detailed sensor in a camera this reasonably priced is impressive. ★★★★
Given the cheaper price tag, it won’t come as a surprise that just a few sacrifices needed to be made to maintain the value down. We have already mentioned the LCD screen resolution being one area they have been fairly conservative in, but one other is available in the shape of the cardboard slot, being that there is just one.
Not only is there just one, but it surely’s also not compatible with faster CFexpress cards. This may not be an excessive amount of of a difficulty when it comes to writing speed because the 33MP files aren’t huge, but it surely might be more of an issue in case you’re using it as a second camera and you would like peace of mind with a second card in case one among them fails. In a perfect world, we would love a second card slot, but we understand why they have not included one here.
While the brand new AI processing unit is undoubtedly implausible and takes Sony’s cameras to a brand new level, they need to deal with the incontrovertible fact that it means the battery life is significantly reduced in consequence. We noted the identical thing on the opposite newer Sony cameras we have reviewed recently, and even though it does rely upon whether you utilize the EVF or the LCD screen, how long you are shooting for and the way often you stop to take a look at your images, reduced battery life could pose an issue in case you’re going to be using this camera for skilled use or on long shoots and don’t desire to maintain changing batteries. Based on CIPA standards, the unique A7C had a 740 shot battery life on a single charge, but with the addition of the brand new autofocus unit, the A7C II only has 540 shots.
That said, we found the battery life on the A7C II to be positive for an informal day of shooting, and it’s value remembering that this camera is not aimed toward professionals anyway, so the reduced battery life won’t be an excessive amount of of a difficulty here, even though it’s something we would like Sony to deal with going forward.
Do you have to buy the Sony A7C II?
Buy it if
✅ You are an enthusiast: The A7C II is an ideal camera for enthusiasts because it produces beautiful results and has adequate specs for many shooting situations without breaking the bank.
✅ You are on a budget: …relatively speaking. For a full-frame camera, the value is incredibly reasonably priced, so that is option in case you do not have 1000’s and 1000’s to spend on one of the best tech.
Do not buy it if:
❌ You are knowledgeable: It just doesn’t have the quantity of features, customization and power that professionals need.
Overall, we have no particularly strong opinions on this camera either way — it’s just… positive. It’s probably not going to be anyone’s ‘dream camera’ and it isn’t groundbreaking or anything recent, exciting or sexy — but it surely’s reliable, does what you would like it to and is comfortable to make use of and carry around. For the value you pay, it’s extremely good value for money and it is going to suit amateurs and enthusiasts all the way down to the bottom.
If, nevertheless, you are knowledgeable and also you earn a living through photography, we do not think this is able to be the camera for you. It will be positive as a second camera for events or weddings, but it surely just doesn’t have the juice to satisfy pros in search of something powerful.
It’s able to most photographic styles, from astro to landscapes, wildlife and portraits — not to say vlogging. The one style we predict it would potentially struggle with is fast-action or sports, as you may only rise up to 10FPS out of it.
If the Sony A7C II is not for you
For those who’re on a tighter budget and also you’re blissful to sacrifice image stabilization and megapixels, the Canon EOS R8 can be value considering. It’s still a powerful camera and we enjoyed shooting with it, but it surely doesn’t have any of the fancier tech that the Sony has. We also thought it handled astrophotography thoroughly.
For those who like among the facets of the Sony A7C II but need something with a bit more oomph for professional work, we cannot recommend the Sony A7R V enough. It has an insanely detailed 61MP sensor and includes the newer AI autofocus unit in addition to an ideal amount of customization, and we now have been pining after it ever since we needed to send it back after testing.