Sony has announced the latest additions to its imaging line-up, including the Alpha 7 IV camera and two new flashes.
The Alpha 7 IV is a 33-megapixel full-frame camera and the successor to the Alpha 7 III, offering significant improvements over its predecessor.
The camera combines its 33-megapixel full-frame back-illuminated Exmor R CMOS sensor with wide ISO sensitivity range expandable to ISO 50-204800, allowing for high resolution images with fine details while also reducing noise.
The camera also takes advantage of a 15-stop dynamic range, along with Creative Look settings for both images and videos.
The Alpha 7 IV is powered by Sony’s latest BIONZ XR processing engine found inside its flagship Alpha 1, offering high-speed autofocus and continuous shooting at 10fps with AF/AE tracking.
Other AF features include Real-Time Tracking, which latches onto a subject as you move, as well as 759 phase-detection AF points covering around 94% of the image area.
The Real-time Eye AF feature is now capable of keeping track of bird and animal eyes in both images and videos, while accuracy in tracking human faces and eyes have been improved by 30%.
As far as video goes, the Alpha 7 IV packs the S-Cinetone features found on Sony’s Cinema Line cameras, along with 4K 60p recording in Super 35mm mode and 4K 30p recording with 7K oversampling in full-frame mode.
There’s also AF Assist, which helps with focus transitions, and Focus Map which makes it easier to visualise the depth of field with a coloured map. There’s also Breathing Compensation to ensure your angle of view doesn’t change as you move between focus points.
On the top of the camera, there’s a dual dial, which one layer that makes it easy to switch between the Still, Movie and S&Q modes, and another for toggling the Auto, P, A, S, M and MR settings.
There’s also a 3.68 million dot OLED viewfinder that is 1.6x the resolution of the one found on the Alpha 7 III, a larger grip, a CFexpress Type A media slot and 5-axis optical in-body image stabilisation.
The Alpha 7 IV is designed to aid remote communication with Bluetooth transfers available via the Imaging Edge Mobile app, and there are a range of new features to support live streaming, including UVC and UAC.
Sony also took the opportunity to announce two new flashes designed to accompany the Alpha 7 IV — the HVL-F60RM2 and the HVL-F46RM.
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“With the introduction of the Alpha 7 III, we set the baseline for what full-frame cameras should deliver and now it is time to redefine those boundaries”, said Sony Digital Imaging’s Director of Product Marketing, Yann Salmon Legagneur.
“The ALPHA 7 IV brings together the best of Sony imaging technology to deliver a fantastic experience in both stills and video, meaning that users will be able to capture exactly the content that they want, in whatever situation they find themselves in”.
The Alpha 7 IV will be available to buy from December 2021 and is priced at £2400/€2800 for the body only or £2600/€3000 with the FE 28-70mm lens kit.
Both flashes will be available from November, with the HVL-F60RM2 priced at £550/€650 and the HVL-F46RM £370/€430.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
