Nikon D5000 vs Sony A7

Sony A7 advantages over Nikon D5000

• Focus peaking
  Peaker vs Non-peaker
  Your camera will highlight what's in focus
• Larger sensor
  35mm vs APS-C
  More sensor area. Bigger is (generally) better.
• In-camera panoramas
  Yes vs No
  Stitches multiple shots into a panoramic photo
• Built-in Wi-Fi
  Wi-Fi vs None
  Share your photos wirelessly
• Higher effective ISO

  Higher effective ISO

  Maximum effective ISO is an estimate of the highest sensitivity at which a camera can capture excellent quality photos.

  Cameras with higher effective ISO will be better choices for indoor photography, night shooting, and indoor sports photography, especially if you intend to make large prints.

  You can learn more at our glossary entry.

  Maximum effective ISO test data courtesy of DxO Mark.

  A7 test data on DxO Mark D5000 test data on DxO Mark
  2,248 vs 868 iso
  Take photos in low light with less noise
• More dynamic range

  More dynamic range

  Cameras with more dynamic range allow you to take photos with dramatic differences in highlight and shadow areas while retaining detail in both.

  Think of a brilliant sunset on a rocky beach: Bright sunset in the background, with dark rocks in the foreground. High dynamic range means more of the extremes will be faithfully reproduced.

  Dynamic range test data courtesy of DxO Mark.

  A7 test data on DxO Mark D5000 test data on DxO Mark
  14.2 vs 12.5 evs
  Retain detail in highlight and shadows
• On-sensor phase detect
  Yes vs No
  Usually improves live view and video AF performance
• Thinner
  48 mm vs 80 mm
  Thinner
• External Mic Jack
  Jack vs No jack
  Improved sound fidelity when shooting video
• Newer
  11 years vs 16 years old
  Newer cameras often support more advanced features
• More dots on screen
  922k vs 230k dots
  Can mean greater resolution or a brighter screen
• Shoots 1080p video
  Yes vs No
  You'll want this if you shoot video
• More viewfinder magnification
  0.71x vs 0.52x
  Get a bigger view of the scene through the eye-level viewfinder
• More pixels
  24.3 vs 12.3 megapixels
  Higher resolution photos
• Shoots 60p video
  Yes vs No
  A faster framerate can give you more editing options
• Headphone jack
  Yes vs No
  Monitor audio recording while you shoot video
• Faster JPEG shooting
  5.0 fps vs 4.0 fps
  Faster JPEG shooting (burst mode)
• Faster RAW shooting
  5.0 fps vs 4.0 fps
  Faster RAW shooting in burst mode
• Bigger RAW buffer
  28 vs 10 shots
  Larger buffer for RAW shots (burst mode)
• Faster shutter
  1/8000 vs 1/4000 sec
  Shoot wide open in bright light
• Higher extended ISO
  51200 vs 6400 ISO
  Higher extended ISO can give more low-light flexibility