I still carry the R4. I use it for landscape. Didn't move to R5 because AF doesn't matter that much, but we will see what the R6 gives. If it's a stacked sensor with same dynamic range, I'd consider it,, but I think it will cost like $4500.
eriet30 wrote:
And what do you like or use about it compared to R5 or what might come.
I still have an a7rIII but mostly use the a7rV. I only used the rIV about 6000 frames and it was no good for AF with the 200-600 that I was interested in at at the time. Due to the pandemonicum I was not photographing in that period. Then the V arrived and the AF was like a modern camera, able to identify and track subjects. It's not up to the best, but way better than any earlier "r" bodies. The IV and V have the same sensor from what I read, so V is not needed if you don't need good AF. At this point I'm eagerly awaiting an "a7rVI" that will have usable ES mode for dynamic subjects.
I do enjoy the image quality a lot and don't need much more than that really. I do however feel like ergonomics and operation wise it doesn't give the most modern feeling anymore and that is something I would want to upgrade eventually. (manual focus eye-AF, please Sony?)
Not that the R4 is bad, but expectations in 2026 are high.
The R5 didn't make much sense in terms of upgrading financially, but the R6 might be different. I wouldn't upgrade right away though, but maybe next year or something.
I just bought a new A7RIV. A nice upgrade to my A7RII and at 1500€ quite a good camera for the price. The A7RV is again a bit heavier and bulkier, so there is a drawback too.
I use it, and like it very much. I use it for street, travel and game parks. The AF is super if you set it up properly, it has a simple flip-up screen that I like, and it is lighter and smaller than the A7R5, so I had no wish to 'upgrade'. I would only want to go lighter.
I use it along with the A7RIII for architectural work mostly. It works great and I love the 61 MP sensor. For this type of work, which is slower paced, both cameras serve me well. However, I do also have the A7RV and A7CR which I use for commercial work, personal projects, landscapes, travel, hiking and stock photography. Overall I prefer the A7RV over the IV as it is speedier in operation, has the new menus, has a better EVF and LCD plus better focusing (even though the A7RIV has great AF too). It will be interesting to see what the A7RVI brings to the table in a couple weeks.
The main things I want in the R5 (instead of R4) are the longer than 30s exposures and focus stacking feature. Not really enough to upgrade but I am looking forward to the R6.
I also have a A6700 which is supposed to have the same AF as the A7R5. It is a good camera but not better than the A7RIV. With both cameras I have the problem with the AF that with birds in a small part of the frame the camera tends to put the focus frame on the bird but focusses on the background.
The A7RII is a good camera too, but the operational speed is a joke. It focusses ok and takes great images but expects the user to do some meditiation here and there. But I wouldn't die if i had to make do with it. In the end the camera is just 10% of the photographing.
I carry a A7RIV and A7CR. The RIV has everything I want in a camera body, including many items the CR lacks. Tilting (Non-flippy) screen, Joystick for AF control, APS-C 26MP crop mode, 567 AF detection points coverage (way better than the A7RIII), Dual UHS-II card slots, great 5.76 million dot EVF, 10 FPS shooting and USB C connection.
The A7RIV is the heavy lifter, used with my 70-200 and 100-400 GM zooms and 4 Batis lenses. Main use is for portraits, landscapes, airshows, boat races, birds and wildlife. The A7CR is used for travel and when a lighter weight kit is wanted with my smaller Sigma, Sony primes and Voigtlander primes.
I did not see ANY reason to update to the A7RV, especially at a $3,400 cost. It is the same IQ as both my 61MP bodies, what would I really gain? The upcoming A7RVI I am sure will have nice some upgrades too, but it will cost $4,000 no doubt.
I have an a7r iii with a shutter at 200k and a slight messed up screen still kicking it. I find it enough for my needs. Was tempted to switch up to an a7r iv but I'll wait for the rvi to come out so the prices drop a little further before I pull the trigger
I have an A7Riv and A6700. I would prefer they used the same menus and related features, recognizing cameras may have different controls or features by size, of course - the "newer" system so maybe an A7Rv at some point. The big, so to speak, thing, I'd like the enhanced v finder. I like the ability to reverse the rear panel to protect it when packed away, etc. I almost never use the "L" of the L bracket on my iv but can see. I'd like the focus bracketing on the ff 61 mp body. My A6700 tends to be a casual use camera so haven't tried it there. Both have a full mechanical shutter. I might add a second ff body to reduce some lens swapping.
My personal camera is the IV. Over the newer body I prefer the chunkier buttons, tilt not flip screen and the EC dial with numbers on it. I'm still amazed by the viewfinder, the resolution and the AF keeping in mind that the origianl A7r was my personal camera prior and DSLR's/SLR's prior to that. I've used the A7rII professionally, really didn't like ergonomics and we have three A7rIII's in the studio but the IV is the sweet spot for me personally. The value, especially these days, is amazing.
Love that A7RIV! I have 2 (one is at 80k shutter actuations and the other has almost 300,000) and have been using them for the last 4 years for weddings, portraits, and sports. If you haven't used a very recent camera, you will be super impressed with the autofocus. That being said, the A7RIV is poorly balanced. It has an amazing top tier sensor, but the processing and writing does not match. I do a bunch of fast shooting, and the A7RIV struggles to keep up This would not be an issue for landscapes, and shooting slow moving subjects. Running an A7RIV in a high speed environment requires a lot more attention and skill.
I have recently purchased an A7V, and that camera is amazingly fast and at ISO 100+mechanical shutter, the dynamic range is a serious step above the A7RIV/A7RV. The A7RIV's AF felt amazing when I first got it, but the A7V feels like magic. From what I've used, the A7RIV is good, the A7RV is great, and the A7V is best. I have not used any of the A1's or A9's.
It is crazy to see how inexpensive used A7RIV's have gotten. They def punch above their price.
