As I mentioned yesterday, I had the opportunity to play with my friend’s Sony A7II at a church celebration. I thought I would share my thoughts on the Sony A7II from the perspective of someone who owns the Sony A7R and A6000.
Here are some shots of the Sony A7II.
What stands out about the Sony A7II?
1) The grip is much more substantial and feels stable when holding the camera – the first-generation Sony A7 series cameras probably should have been designed like this.
2) The body is definitely thicker (by a few mm) than the Sony A7R, due to the in-body image stabiliser.
3) The weight is definitely heavier than the Sony A7R, but it is still light compared to a DSLR.
4) The shutter button is better placed than on the A7R. It is very differently placed, so A7R users may need some time to get used to it – my index finger did wander to the wrong place on the A7II on a few occasions (as I am accustomed to the A7R layout).
5) The zooming in and out of the image when reviewing a photo, is done by rotating the back circular dial clockwise or anticlockwise which is so much better (just like in the Sony A6000); the A7R uses the top rear dial to scroll in and out which can require many turns and is not very user-friendly – this is probably one thing I hope Sony would improve through the firmware.
6) The shutter sound is so much softer and less intrusive than that of the Sony A7R. The fact it has electronic first curtain shutter which reduces the sound to just one (more refined) click also helps.