Sony A77 II Shooter’s Report Part I: A pro-like DSLR with image quality, features to rival the competition
posted Tuesday, September 23, 2014 at 3:58 PM EST
Straight from the Rocky Mountains, John Shafer's first installment of his Sony A77 II Shooter's Report is now published. As a sports and action photographer first and foremost, John took a look at the Sony A77 II's featureset and specs -- 79-point AF system, 12fps continuous burst, bright EVF, dust- and weather-sealing build, plus Wi-Fi and 1080/60p video -- and contemplated it as a worthy upgrade over his Canon 7D.
In his own words, "I've been using Canon EOS SLR cameras since the mid-nineties. However, I'm also a big Sony fan. I love their out-of-the-box approach to camera design -- especially the SLT camera family, to which the new A77 Mark II DSLR belongs. I like it so much I was considering buying an A77 II, sight-unseen, to replace my Canon EOS 7D. The second-gen A77 features and specs make it look like an excellent replacement for my aging EOS 7D."
Now that he's had a chance to take Sony's latest flagship APS-C SLT camera out for a spin, John has a good sense for the ergonimics, design and build quality as well as its image quality performance, espeically at higher ISOs compared to his Canon 7D and 70D. However, for him, the real test is the AF performance and sheer speed at continuous burst shooting, which he'll tackle, alongside video performance, in the second Shooter's Report installment that's currently underway.
In the meantime, head over to read John's in-depth Sony A77 II Shooter's Report Part I to see how this camera feels in the hand and how it holds up in higher ISO shooting, including how much you can push the Sony's files in post-production.
[Quick Links: Overview • Lab Shots • Image Quality • Shooter's Report Part I • Gallery]