Sony Full-Frame A7 and A7r Tomorrow?
Related: shutter, Sony, Sony A7, Sony A7 II, Sony A7R, Sony A7R II, Sony A7R III, Sony mirrorless
See the review of the Sony NEX-7 with its APS-C sensor in Guide to Mirrorless.
Rumor sites are abuzz about a new full-frame NEX.
Search for the Sony A7 at B&H Photo for pre-order. Thank you for pre-ordering through that link. (When it shows up, I don’t know).
Rumor sites indicate a 24MP full-frame A7 for $1698 and a 36MP full-frame A7r for $1998, the latter having no anti-aliasing filter for max sharpness. Lenses to include a couple of mid-range zooms, and Zeiss 35/2.8 and 55/1.8 primes. Rumors also state weather sealing, built-in WiFi, tiltable LCD screen, 1/8000 shutter (bummer not to have leaf shutter), high-res LCD, but apparently no built-in flash (TBD).
An interesting speculation is whether and by how much an A7r with the Zeiss 35/2.8 can outperform (or not) the Sony RX1R with its fixed Zeiss 35mm f/2 lens. One can hope that the sensor is fully optimized for peak sharpness and that at least one lens (the 35/2.8) will deliver to its full resolution. But neither is a given.
Shutter— a focal plane shutter has some vibration (shows up with long teles), and cannot do high speed flash sync as with a leaf shutter: the full speed flash sync as with the Sony RX1R and Ricoh GR and similar cameras is not possible with a focal plane shutter. This is a very practical issue for field use (subtle fill flash at any shutter speed) and one reason the RX1R might be preferred, at least if you frequent a 35mm focal length.
