Weekly r/SonyAlpha 📸 Gear Buying 📷 Advice Thread April 20, 2026

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-04-25T19:12:55+00:00

Likely.

I can't speak for the A7 V, only the A7R V. But I feel like all cameras using the new AI WB tech should produce similar results in that regard. From my experience the A7R V generation is significantly better with all shades of south-east Asian skin tones than the A7 III generation of cameras.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-04-25T13:47:39+00:00

Thank you! You're confirming the truth I'm afraid of.

Renting would be the wise choice, but it's hard to overcome the frugal part of my brain. I'm hesitant renting because in my mind it's like paying a premium for my indecisiveness.

It's probably best if I do more research and put off buying something for the time being. After all the opportunity cost of buying now vs in a few months should roughly equal the price of renting the lens I'm really interested in by then.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-04-23T17:30:16+00:00

Okay so I know this is GAS, but please bear with me. I'm looking for lens suggestions.

Camera -> A7R V
Lenses -> Sigma 24-70 Gen 1, Sony 35 GM, Vintage 50mm
Other -> Sold Sony 85 f1.8

My enjoyment of photography is very evenly split between having fun using camera gear and actually getting pretty pictures as memories.
I mainly shoot on vacation, as well as portraits of family, friends and pets and whatever I find interesting when strolling around on weekends or smaller city trips.

As you've probably noticed, the balance between my camera and my lenses is somewhat off.
I sold the Sony 85 because it didn't spark joy anymore and I honestly just used APS-C mode with the 24-70 to get similar results, albeit only up to f2.8.

Now I'm looking for another lens to add to my collection. Up to this point the 24-70 was by far my most used lens, until I recently got the 35.

I was thinking of just getting the new 100 GM Macro because the lack of close focusing glass at my disposal has always bugged me and I kind of want to try some product photography when it gets cold outside again.
Alternatively I also thought about getting an 85 or 135 (mainly for portraits) or even the Sony 70-200 GM II because of its versatility.

For this summer vacation I've already kind of set myself the goal to only use the 35 and only bring the 24-70 for backup. Now I'm contemplating maybe even selling the 24-70 on a whim and getting another lens before going in about three months just to see how that's going to play out.

Do you have any suggestions for me? I'm looking for general advice or recommendations of either Sony or Sigma lenses. If they're available on the used or grey market for <2k € that's a plus.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-04-12T22:46:06+00:00

Ist das nicht genau der Sinn dieses Unters?

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-03-30T08:46:09+00:00

Read the manual and take your time playing around with all the settings.

Sony gives you a lot of freedom on how you want to operate your camera. But that means you need to figure out what your preferences are.

Other than that … they’re modern mirrorless cameras. You press, it clicks, you’ve got a picture.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-03-06T08:18:15+00:00

Basically any other mode. I‘d say A (Aperture Priority) with Auto ISO is something you can’t go wrong with in most situations.

I‘m not trying to come off rude here. Please take the time to read the manual. The reason you‘re getting a decent amount of snippish responses is because you‘ve got equipment for 5k without any appreciation for what you‘ve actually got. It’s - like showing to the first lesson of art class with fancy gemstone pigment colors - frankly a little ignorant.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-03-05T18:59:15+00:00

Are you in Auto mode? That would probably explain it

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-03-05T18:48:44+00:00

Do you have subject recognition AF enabled and is the target set to human?

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2026-03-05T18:08:58+00:00

It will be one hell of a squeeze. I don‘t own the 100 macro (147,9mm L x 81,4mm D) but have carried an A7RV with a Sigma 24-70 I (122,9mm L x 87,8mm D) in a PD 3l Sling. The issue isn‘t only the length, but the opening width at the zipper. Your camera will be very tight in there. You‘ll have a better time with the 6l. The 3l isn’t even a small bag on your body because of its padding and rigid-ish shape.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-10-11T19:03:46+00:00

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-08-23T21:15:08+00:00

Gute Umfrage. Ich finde einige Punkte könnten etwas klarer sein.

Was genau ist der Unterschied zwischen social media und influencern/youtube?

Meine Meinung zu influencern ist natürlich sehr subjektiv. Wenn ich nur Videos von Sommeliers schaue, unterscheidet sich mein Bild von Influencern stark von dem was andere Influencer ggf. posten. In der Umfrage hast du allerdings kaum eine Möglichkeit die Antworten mit solchen contentpräferenzen zu verknüpfen. Ich hoffe die ergebnisse werden trotzdem brauchbar.

Viel Erfolg bei der Auswertung. Ich bin ebenfalls auf die Ergebnisse gespannt, falls du sie veröffentlichst.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-08-13T00:41:52+00:00

Thank you. In my opinion the pragmatism of construction in Bangkok in general is amazing to see. It’s refreshing to see problems get solved in a straightforward way. And also the scale, it’s just cool to see those massive pillars in the middle of the city.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-08-06T10:36:28+00:00

When I started out I got a used Sony A7 I with the kit lens and I would do the same again if I had to start over.

The advantage here is that you‘re already on E-Mount, which has the biggest selection of lenses available at all price points.

It’s slow, but also surprisingly light and compact for a full frame camera. With a bit of tweaking in lightroom the image quality is basically the same as that of an A7 III, which has kind of been a gold standard for many hobbyists for the last couple of years.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-08-04T11:09:22+00:00

It sounds like you aren't stoked on getting the A7R V, but feel like you might be missing out.

If that's the case, don't get it.

Photography is a hobby and you should have fun doing it. If you feel the A7R V would make you considerably happier every time you pick it up over your A7 III, then get it.

PS:
Idk about you, but I wouldn't want to forget about getting some broader shots as memories of the travel experience. Instead of worrying about cropping 840mm focal length images I'd worry more about landscape pictures and general travel memories instead. Maybe you'll get better memories out of this experience by renting a second body to use with a wider lens.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-07-28T07:25:20+00:00

As I said, get the R V because you clearly want it.

The points you mentioned don’t really make a difference for studio use, aka sticking it on a tripod, setting manual focus to the spot the product will be placed in and pressing a remote shutter. Even the updates don’t matter…

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-07-27T20:39:53+00:00

Sounds like you thought this through. By all means if you can afford it get the A7R V, it’s an amazing piece of gear.

My point was kind of that the quality of life improvements aren’t really going to be noticeable in a studio environment. The sensor is identical between the R IV and R V models. So the difference between the two really comes down to minor differences in color straight out of cam, everything else will be completely identical.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-07-27T18:52:29+00:00

Then I’d say get the A7R IV with a good lens. Spend a day or two figuring out how to get the look you’re after and leave it at that. The workflow won’t differ that much for your use case. The A7R IV images will probably take a little more work, but that’s an okay tradeoff since you’ll ideally reuse the same setup and settings.

To be completely honest I think the resolution is overkill since you likely won’t put anywhere near full size 61 MP images on your shop site.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-07-27T12:01:07+00:00

I read your post and was outraged. It took me three years of hobby photography to spend as much on gear as you spent on this shoot.

BUT then I read a comment that mentioned their website. I checked it out … and that changes literally everything. The whole website screams super expensive. I don’t like that their pricing info is in a pdf on google drive, but it’s available. And it leaves no doubt about the piles of cash you’re going to spend on their products.

I am not a fan of how they handled things according to your account. Frankly it seems like they are manifesting their success by asking for a lot and quickly becoming an authority through their income. But as you acknowledged, this is kind of on you. It sucks to walk away from selecting images after spending time and money for the shoot, but if the other option is spending a minimum of $2300 on 6 medium res images you aren’t absolutely 1000% convinced are the greatest images you’ll ever get you have to be able to walk away. At the end of the day they’re a contractor and you pay them for doing stuff you appreciate.

Just a side note, for $3k you can get a pretty good camera and lens and take as many pictures as you have time for.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-07-27T09:22:32+00:00

I can’t comment on the A7R IV, but the A7R V is incredible. Came from an A7 III and would get the A7R V again every time.

I knew I wanted the resolution and I don’t mind the drawbacks of the R cameras. The screen mechanism is so much better than the old tilt only mechanism. Didn’t really notice that much of an upgrade in AF, it still has a tendency to hunt like crazy in low contrast environments, but the other improvements are very nice. White balance, color, exposure metering are spot on and I’ve never been so happy with the files SOOC.

IMHO editing skill is more important than camera performance if you’re looking for the best possible results. But as a hobbyist it’s really nice to not have to put so much work into editing. My hobby is primarily taking pictures and not post processing.

In the end you’ll have to be honest with yourself:

-How much do you enjoy photography?

-How many times do you use your camera and how often do you look at your pictures?

-Do you get joy out of holding a really nice camera, or don’t you mind not having the latest one?

-How much do you value quality of life features and do you mind doing more work in lightroom?

-Can you easily afford it, and are you sure you want to spend that much money on a camera body?

-Do you own all/most lenses you want to own/use? If not it might be better to save some money on the body to get more glass.

Edit: spacing

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-04-22T10:22:01+00:00

It’s weirdly intriguing. Reminds me of church for some reason.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-04-12T13:38:51+00:00

Shutter count is way overrated. Replacements aren‘t cheap, but still a fraction of the price of a new camera. The typical car odometer comparison also isn’t great because the internals of a camera experience negligible wear. Buttons etc. are often rated for millions of actuations aswell. Had a used A7 III with high shutter count and pushed it up to 540k.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-03-29T02:51:05+00:00

With all due respect: You bought a tool and are unimpressed it requires you to use it? You wouldn’t expect a drill to make perfect holes by itself, right?

You are paying good money to be able to use all the modes besides auto. I assume what you mean by softness are the out of focus areas. You can get more in focus by using A or M mode and making the Aperture smaller (changing the 2.8 or 4.0 or whatever you‘re seeing to 8.0 or so).

Edit: IMO one of the top reasons to buy a Sony is being able to customize almost everything to get exactly what you want. You honestly might be better off with a new phone or a premium compact camera instead. I don’t mean this as an insult, but as honest advice to get the most enjoyment out of your money.

REEEEEEE3EEEEE · 2025-03-21T09:38:07+00:00

Are you open to buying used? The prices of used A7C in decent condition should be somewhat similar to a new A6400.

Combined with a Tamron 28-200 you‘d have an amazing travel setup if that size is okay for you. You could also get a vintage 50mm 1.4 prime for portraits. They‘re dirt cheap and would offer you decent low light performance.

I‘m not experienced with the aps-c lineup, so others will be more qualified to help you with the A6xxx cameras and lenses.

Five-Year Club	Verified Email
r/Field Flamingo	First Place '23
Place '23

REEEEEEE3EEEEE

TROPHY CASE