Sony claims that the A7R V delivers a new level of resolution at low sensitivity settings, and the results are very good, but there are no major changes in comparison with the A7R IV. However, the improvements made to the autofocus system, subject tracking and the enhanced stabilisation mean that there are more ‘keepers’ in each sequence of images. The refreshed Subject Recognition AF system is particularly good.
It’s worth noting that although the A7R V has a top continuous shooting rate of 10fps (in Hi+ mode), you need to shoot Jpegs or compressed raw files to achieve that rate. When shooting uncompressed raw files in Hi+ mode, I was able to capture 82 images to the CF Express Type A card in around 12 seconds. That equates to a frame rate of around 5fps. Switching to compressed raw files extended the shooting time to around 15 seconds and the burst depth was boosted to 153 images, hitting the 10fps maximum.
Exchanging the CF Express type A card for a UHS-II SD card, however, reins in the shooting time to around 9 seconds and reduces the burst depth to 95 compressed raw files.
Sony A7R V Autofocus
As I mentioned earlier, the Sony A7R V’s Subject Recognition system can be set to detect and focus upon humans, animals, birds, insects, planes and trains. There’s an option for it to look for both animals and birds, but not humans and animals – which may be disappointing for family photographers who might want to include pets in the frame.
Part of the beauty of the Subject Recognition system is that it’s easy to use, you just set the type of subject that you want it to target and it does the job regardless of the AF Focus Area Mode you have selected. If it doesn’t see the subject in the frame, you can fall back on using your preferred Focus Area mode.
The system works extremely well for stills and video, and usually detects the specified subject as soon as it enters the frame, even when it’s quite small. With humans, animals and birds, you see the selection area narrow down to target the head and eyes as the subject gets larger in the frame and these features become more visible.
When photographing the London Welsh Women play rugby against Wasps, the camera was quick to spot a body, head or eye in the frame, but with so many players on the pitch it didn’t always target exactly who I wanted. I found one of the Tracking Settings, often Tracking Spot M (medium) or S (small) a good alternative.
The system proves invaluable when photographing wildlife. When photographing a robin, for instance, it latched onto its eye quickly and following it around the frame as I composed the shot. Not having to select the appropriate AF point manually gives you that extra bit of time to check the background and compose your shot. The speedy subject detection and autofocus system is very useful when a bird flits from one area to another and you need to find it again, and it’s fast enough to capture birds in flight.
When the Subject Recognition was set to Bird, it did an excellent job of keeping a blue tit’s eye sharp as it moved from one side of a twig to another, it was almost like the twig wasn’t there.
I’ve found that some subject detection systems mistake the ears of some animals for eyes. Otters are a prime example, but on most occasions the A7R V correctly identified the eye.
Sony A7R V image quality
It’s clear that the camera’s AF system is capable of keeping up with the 10fps maximum continuous shooting rate, but it’s easier to follow a moving subject if you drop from the Hi+ setting to Hi and 8fps (depending upon the file format) because there’s live view of the image between the shots.
Another issue to consider is the type of shutter that you use because the A7R V is prone to rolling shutter effect when the electronic shutter is used. I have some images that were shot at the rugby match which look fine despite the fact that I was moving the camera and using the electronic shutter, but there are others that show the tell-tale distortion. As a rule, stick to using the mechanical shutter if the subject or the camera is moving.
According to Sony, the A7R V has an improved automatic white balance system with a new sensor on the front of the camera. However, I find that it tends to make scenes look a bit too neutral, especially under an overcast sky and it’s preferable to use the Daylight or Cloudy presets, or a manual setting to give images a little warmth. Colours can also look a little drab when the Natural Creative Look, however underexposing by 1/3-stop or switching to the Vivid setting gives them a boost. Fortunately, the screen and viewfinder provide accurate guide for the colour and white balance so you can adjust accordingly at the shooting stage if you want share-ready images.
There are five metering options but the default all-purpose Multi-segment (1200-zone evaluative metering) setting proves a good choice in many conditions. However, it tends to err on the side of caution with regards to highlights, so you may find yourself dialling some positive exposure compensation now and then to brighten your image. Again, the viewfinder and screen provide accurate previews for the exposure so you can trust the evidence of your eyes.
As I mentioned at the start of this section of our Sony A7R V review, there’s an excellent level of detail in the images that the camera produces. Noise is also controlled well for such a high resolution model.
The native sensitivity range for stills and movies is ISO 100-32,000. Where possible, I’d aim to to keep to ISO 12,800 or lower, but I wouldn’t worry much if I had to push up to ISO 25,600.
If you’re keen on pixel-peeping you’ll see a clear granular texture in ISO 12,800 raw files in images at 100% on a computer screen, and the Jpegs look a little smooth between the edges. However, it’s worth remembering that we’re talking about 9,504 x 6,336 pixel images and at 300ppi, the images measure 80.47 x 53.64 cm (31.68 x 21.12 inches). When the images are sized to fill a 27-inch screen the noise isn’t visible and the level of detail looks great.
Sony has worked on the in-body image stabilisation (IBIS) system in the A7R V, and while I find the 8EV shutter speed compensation a stretch with the Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM at 70mm, around 50% of my images were acceptably sharp when I shot 1 second exposures. That’s a compensation factor of around 6EV.