Sony A7s Review

[DSLRguide]

Thanks for the brilliant review! The shots at 2:21 look amazing - and i'm not giving all the credit to the camera.

You summed it up pretty well at the end, so for me the GH4s battery / internal 4K is a big deal, and I'm okay with avoiding anything that ISO800 at f/2.8 + speedbooster can't handle! 

Price is something to consider - the A7s is already more expensive, and that's without an external battery / monitor / cards. Let alone a recorder for 4K.

That said, I'm liking the sound of having both cameras - for two camera interviews and the huge variety of options for the rest of the time. 

[iMakeThat]

Thank you for finally being someone to show real world scenarios with this camera. Everyone is talking about the specs and just showing pretty locked down shots. Was just about to buy the A7s, but because I can only afford 1 camera, I'm probably going to lean towards the GH4 and grab a speedbooster to EF lenses.  Thank you Caleb!!

[pzimann]

Thanks Caleb for this review, it is really back to earth and on the spot, the best I've seen so far. Cheers!

[garrettdollar]

I own both and couldn't agree more with your review Caleb. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.

[valbeccia]

Thank you so much for a great episode. Eventhough its 5 years old this video is exactly the kind of comparison I was looking for particularly as I was initially only trying to find a A7 S mk1 review. The GH4 is another contender for me as I can not afford a GH5 or A7SII or IIi which is only just been announced. Thanks again and I dig all your content.

[ManShed]

Great review and insight.  I have experienced all of the A7s Pros and Cons as you have described them in your video.  I love the camera and inspire of its few drawbacks, it is for sure the camera for me.  I switched from a Nikon D7100 with DX lens so the full frame sensor has been a huge upgrade for me.  I went back and forth for a week trying to decide between the GH4 and A7s and at the end of the day the A7s was the winner for me.

[BrotherBloat]

As always, a very well thought out and balanced interview! Thank Caleb!

[Samtagri]

Great stuff man. This is the video we have all been waiting for. And you have laid it down nice and clear.
It seems that the Sony is a step back to the old Canon ways of compromising and getting some extra batteries and an external recorder and external monitor... Bla bla bla that's where we were before with Canon DSLRs.
The GH4 is solid and does what you want with little to no compromise. Of course, I wish it was less bulky and had higher ISO and wider field of view. But these compromises are small considering what you are getting. GH4 is hands down winner in my book.

[sanketss]

I love the way you start your review intros fantastic music and flashy lights and then the review carries forward with more awesomeness. :)

Could you share a video tutorial on how did you
1. highlight the sony a7 logo at 0:12
2. that that flashy lights things that you did in this video from 0:13 to 0:16

Also what are the audio tracks that play do you create your own music ?

Review index like you did for the GH4 Review would be helpful.

[marcopervo]

The Slog 2 on the A7s looks excellent. The greens bring to mind 1970's era 35mm footage. I'd choose it for indie film making, but the GH4 + Meta Bones EF for event videography.  

[andyuxd]

Great stuff Caleb. I got the A7s and GH4 recently and am experiencing the same evolving emotions in terms of m43/APS-C vs full frame, but I love both cameras! You nailed the review on several counts; it really is a case of which camera is right for a given shot/scenario and they're totally workable as a partnership. I think we can get a little too OTT about colour matching sometimes.. Low light has been a huge issue for me with the GH4 alone. E.g. Come a wedding reception the GH4 now stays in my bag, it's just too noisy. I'm also finding grading the A7s footage (using PP6) far, FAR easier. My gripes (aside from battery life) are: I can't seem to find a way to assign a button to switch between EVF and LCD and the auto mode is very frustrating, any ideas?.. Also, no [obvious] way to assign the APS-C to a custom button.. And, (like the GH4) perception is a factor with clients - it looks like a pocket camera! ;-) 

[Ethereal_Sun]

Awesome review!!! This as helped me figured out what DSLR to get! Thanks!!!

[WildStagStudio]

Love this review! Wish we could afford both cameras, but unfortunately not at the moment. The GH4 seems to be the winner, but having shot a live gig the other day we could really use the low light. Still undecided but thank you for putting this together! 

[mppodcastDOTcom]

Drop your shutter on the GH4 and it also will be amazing in low light. Philip Bloom filmed his A7S film Now I See at 25th of a second. I only drop my shutter when I really need to.

[Rothagonithagie]

Great review Caleb, i think i'll end up with the A7s.

Also. have you tried it with the Wooden Camera quick cage?

[RobHelmink]

Great video dude! I myself have the Sony A7s, I was in doubt between the Gh4 & the Sony as well, but I do a lot of nighttime timelapse work as well, so my choice was pretty simple ;). So in which mode did you shoot the video's to make it pop like that?

[mattcarlson]

Anderson Ravens on the license plate! Are you based in Chicago Caleb?

[ryeconproductions]

Amazing camera! I'll keep my 60d for now its still a very capable camera I just shot this film on it Dawn light

[dogslonely]

Great and practical review, very useful, thanks a lot!

[TheEditingResource]

My thoughts exactly... I went with the GH4 as it fits my needs best, but I love the idea of having a full frame + aps-c sensor in 1 and high ISO usability + aperture flexibility in one. I've considered the GH4 + A7s combo, but the idea of cutting them interchangeably worries me a bit - though really w a 4K camera I rarely need multicam as with interviews I'm fairly broll heavy and when I do it doesn't really demand quality between intercutting. At the same time I don't find myself in conditions needing to go past ISO 800, below 1/40, and larger then F1.8 but do feel limited on flexibility. It'd be nice to be able to shoot on a 24-105 f4 indoors! The new EF to M43 metabones speedbooster is nice addition too though. Either way, now is a good time to be in video w great choices at a great price and I'll stick w just my gh4 for the time being