20.18.57 Sony Alpha A7S III | |
Find out how the Sony Alpha A7S III performs in our in-depth review. With a full-frame 12mp sensor, the A7S III offers exceptional low-light performance, but is it enough for photographers? Or is it best suited to video use?
Sony Alpha A7S III Features
The Sony Alpha A7S III is designed to be the "ultimate" low-light camera from Sony. At the core of the Sony Alpha A7S III lies a full-frame 12mp BSI CMOS sensor, so not only does the camera benefit from larger pixels (with 8.4micron pixels, making it more sensitive to light), but it also benefits from a Back Side Illuminated sensor, further improving sensitivity to light. The sensor also benefits from faster (doubled) readout speeds, to reduce rolling shutter. To process the data from the sensor, there is a new BIONZ XR image processor which has been developed to give up to 8x more processing power (compared to the BIONZ X). You've also got 5-axis in-body image stabilisation, that moves the sensor to help with slower shutter speeds as well as helping you get more stable video footage. Dynamic range is said to be an impressive 15-stops. There's also Active Mode for hand-held shooting to give improved stabilisation. ISO40 to ISO409600 is available giving a wide ISO range, and allowing for faster shutter speeds when needed. You can record 4K UHD video at 120/100fps as 4:2:2 10bit ALL-I. You can use bitrates up to 600Mbps, and the camera uses HEVC/H.265 or AVC/H.264 encoding. There's S-Log3 gamma, S-Gamut3.Cine gamut available to give a wider dynamic range, as well as HLG (Hybrid Log-Gamma), to simplify HDR video creation. 16-bit RAW HDMI output is available to connect the camera to an external recorder, using the full-size HDMI port. There's also support for HD proxies for quicker workflow. A graphite heatsink is built into the image stabilisation unit, which moves heat 5x more effectively allowed extended recording times, without worry about the camera overheating. Focus is built-in to the sensor, with focal-plane phase-detection AF, with 759 focus points available, which of course, work both in stills and video recording. Focus also includes face and eye detection focus with tracking, which works for both humans, as well as animals, with the option to switch between the two in the menus. Eye AF is said to be improved, and you can use touch tracking to select the subject you want to track on the screen. AF can be adjusted in a number of ways, letting you adjust the transition speed (7 levels), there's also AF Subject Shift Sensitivity (5 levels), and there's touch AF which can be used during manual focus operation. AF is sensitive down to -6 EV. The camera will shoot at 10fps with AF/AE and will allow over 1000 shots as uncompressed RAW. There's also support for HEIF format images and HLG image capture modes. HEIF gives 10-bit colour, with better image quality and improved compression compared to JPEG.
Updates to the A7S III over the A7S II:
The camera has P, A, S, M shooting modes, giving you manual controls, plus 3 custom modes, Auto, and two different video modes on the mode dial. The two video modes are standard and S&Q (Slow and Quick).
On the back, there's a 3.0inch vari-angle touch-screen, with 1.44m dots, and this can be tilted around to face forwards, which will be of particular interest for vloggers and other videographers. There's also a 9.44 million dot electronic viewfinder (EVF) the highest resolution we've seen on any camera, with 0.90x magnification, and dioptre adjustment. You'll find an Eye-detection sensor so the camera will automatically switch between the rear screen and EVF. Connections and slots on the camera include dual side memory card slots, letting you use 2x CFexpress Type A or you can use SDXC UHS-II cards. The camera also has Wi-Fi 2.4GHz / 5GHz built-in, which is selectable depending on what you want to use. You'll also find NFC for quicker connections to compatible smartphones, and built-in low-power Bluetooth lets you transfer images using less battery than Wi-Fi, albeit with a slower transfer rate.
Key Features
Sony Alpha A7S III Handling
Handling - As new versions of the Sony Alpha series have been introduced, they've grown in size, however, they still remain relatively compact, and if you have large hands, you may find that your little finger can slip off the bottom of the camera. If this affects you, you might want to look at an optional battery grip. The larger size has enabled a larger grip, as well as Sony's larger battery, for improved battery life. The grip is of a good size (other than somewhere to support your little finger), and there is ample rubber coating. The movie button has been moved following feedback from users, to make it easier to use. The camera has a solid build quality and has weather-sealing to make it suitable for use in inclement weather. The edges on the camera are mostly hard-edged, without the smoothing you find on Canon cameras. The camera feels good in the hand, once you get used to some of the harder edges, and thankfully the bottom of the camera and the areas in contact with your right hand are more rounded. The layout of buttons and controls are quite neatly laid out, and won't take too long to get used to. The mode dial has a locking button on top, which you need to press in so that you can turn the mode dial. This can be a little "fiddly" at times, as it doesn't let you leave it unlocked. There are 3 user modes on the mode dial. The exposure compensation dial can be locked and unlocked, by simply pressing the button in the middle of the EV compensation dial. There are four Custom buttons, labelled as C1, C2, C3, and C4. On the back, there's the usual joystick control making it easy to adjust settings, and this has a grippy texture making it easy to use. It's also a good size compared to some other cameras. The touch-screen interface is greatly improved and can be used to select and set menu options.
The electronic viewfinder (EVF) has an ultra-high-resolution of 9.44million dots. This makes the view extremely clear, extremely crisp, and detailed. For photography, this is great, with a 0.90x magnification the view is large and easy to see. The EVF has a refresh rate of 50/60fps (Standard PAL/NTSC), or 100/120fps (High PAL/NTSC). For video users, I'm not convinced they will see the benefits of the EVF, and perhaps they would prefer a larger screen with a higher resolution.
The 3.0inch vari-angle screen is the first one to be found in a Sony Alpha camera, with only one other Sony camera (currently) featuring a vari-angle screen, the Sony Z-V1. The screen has a resolution of 1.44m dots, which doesn't match other high-end mirrorless cameras. However, the screen still looks good, with good colour reproduction, and as you can adjust the angle of the screen it's possible to position it for the best view. It's also suitable for videographers, and vloggers, being possible to turn the screen to face forwards.
Battery life - Battery life is rated for up to 600 shots using the LCD screen and 510 using the EVF (according to Sony / CIPA test results). This gives great performance for stills photographers, and for videographers, you can record 80 minutes (EVF), or 95 minutes (LCD). Continuous recording is 130m (EVF), 135m (LCD). You can also power the camera with an external power bank compatible with USB PD.
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