Alpha a7IIK Mirrorless Digital Camera with 28-70mm Lens, black

I was very let down when I first used this camera out of the box but then I popped a prime lens on it and it was AMAZING! Normally I think kit lenses are underrated and take too much abuse but this camera's kit lens is just horrible. Once I put a $198 50mm lens on the camera is was incredible. So this is one of the few times I found recommend you go for the body without the kit lens and buy yourself a good prime instead. The menu on Sony is terrible and I can't get used to it. It's completely upside down to me coming from Nikon but all that said the camera is just amazing. It's fast and lightweight. It's smaller and lighter than my Nikon DX crop sensor. It's incredible to have what feels like a micro four thirds but is a full frame camera! The 50 and 85mm f1 8 lenses are super affordable and are incredible paired with this camera. I got a 35mm f2 Rokinon pancake lens ($200) to keep on this camera between shoots and with that tiny lens I can carry this camera with me everyday everywhere I go and have a full frame mirrorless on me all the time! Incredible that after all these years as a photographer I finally got a full frame digital camera and it was only $900! You can't beat the price. It's such a great deal. In body image stabalization is so valuable by itself. I remember when VR lenses were new and that seemed crazy but now any lens I out on this camera gets an extra 2 stops handheld! For video it makes everything looks so smooth. You can literally shoot at 3200 ISO if you have to and it works. At 1600 ISO it's not even something I have to worry about. I never used to go over 400 ISO on a digital camera, 800 for black and white street stuff but now I will shoot at 800 just to be able to stop down more because it's honestly not an issue. Oh BATTERY LIFE, not nearly as bad as what I exoected! I think that it's fine. It lasts me all day on one battery without a problem. Also the batteries are super cheap. I got 2 extra batteries and a double charger for them for $35 (in total) with that I have 3 batteries at all times if I need them. If you are really paranoid spent $30 more and get 6 batteries. I'd rather have a small battery and camera and be able to just swap in these cheap tiny batteries as needed. I found that a full day of regular life use can easily last on 1 charge. Amazing camera!

Sony has very nice cameras; this model, I think, is a good deal for photographers, not videographers... I wasn't sure that I want to switch from Nikon, but I like the concept of using same lenses for a6000 series and A7 series :-)

To preface this review, I think the time for purchasing this particular camera is when it is being sold for under 1000 dollars. This tends to happen frequently throughout the year, especially around the holiday season. In fact, one could also find the body for ~900 new on black friday/cyber monday deals on amazon or other camera stores. If you already have invested in one system, say Canon or Nikon,or even already own a Sony APS-C camera, I would not recommend the a7II. The a7II is a gateway product that provides the most value to those who have not yet experienced the mirrorless movement of cameras, or even cameras in general. I will also not recommend this camera to those who are looking into seeking photography as a career. You would probably be better investing in a camera which is 'competitive' to offer top results to clients. So to begin, who is the Sony a7II perfect for? This camera is perfect for those who are interested in full frame photography and not so much interested in shooting video. This is the camera for the amateur or the casual shooter who want to reap the rewards that mirrorless designs offer. While the camera is fairly old, around 4 years as of 2019, do not mistake it as a bad camera. Even in 2019, the image quality and sensor performance is quite impressive. The IBIS, a feature seldom found on cameras of this price range, allows you to take very sharp images in low light situations. Auto focus on this camera is fairly quick and will get you sharp focus in most, if not all, situations. Just know, that high action or high movement subjects will not be easy to focus on using this body. Dynamic range on this camera is also very impressive. Aside from the built in features, the E-Mount system is the most mature mount system on the market. Since Sony adopted mirrorless designs early, there is a large selection of high quality lenses that can fit almost any budget. The current high value lenses to be looking out for are: - Tamron 28-75mm F/2.8 which runs for just under 900 dollars MSRP. It is the most bang for you buck zoom lens on the market for the E-Mount system and potentially a lens you will never take off. - Sigma Art Primes come in various focal lengths and sizes. Again, these lenses are razor sharp and don't break the bank. One could get the a7II kit for 1000 dollars and the Sigma Art 35mm F1.4 and that would still be cheaper than buying an a7III body. - Samyang/Rokinon lenses. For every Sony lens on the market, there is a Samyang/Rokinon of similar design at a small fraction of the Sony price. This glass is cheap, but quality for what you pay for. Some would even reckon that these lenses surpass some of the available Sony options. Of course many will be purchasing the a7II Kit which comes with the 28-70mm lens. This kit lens is about the epitome of the 'jack of all trades and master of none' title. It gives access to a pretty standard zoom range, the sharpness is pretty solid even at its wide open aperture of 3.5. It is small and light weight as well, meaning you could easily carry this lens around with you in a bag. But that's about it. You can take very good pictures with this lens, but you'll always be wanting for more in terms of sharpness and aperture options.

I love this camera. Sold my a6000 when I got this and it's a massive upgrade. My first full frame digital. The difference is noticeable, but it's not a silver bullet - it doesn't make everything magically better. I am keeping my other crop cameras for both the reach and at least in the case of the a77ii, for its great AF system. The a7ii is primarily for using manual lenses, though the AF works great. Pros: * Image quality is great. * Improved high ISO\low-light performance (over my prior cameras) * I like the size\weight\handling. Many don't, but I've had 0 issues with it. * Customizability. Coming from another system it's probably confusing. No problems here, familiar. * AF system is good. Not the best, but for most it's perfectly fine. * I'm able to use all my old a-mount FF lenses w\AF on LAEA4 adapter * Focus peaking, magnification, zebra all very effective and useful for manual focusing * IBIS for the vintage lenses (as long as you set it properly each time) can be a huge advantage in low-light, especially in conjunction with all the other capabilities. Cons: * APSC mode is only 10MP. This is really the only sore point that has me second guessing whether I should have sprung for an a7RII instead. But realistically the price point was beyond my reach atm. * AF system isn't as good as the newest A7 models or the best DSLR's * AF on LAEA4 adapter is passable for static subjects, but it's too slow for any sort of action. * FE lenses can be expensive. I've had it for about 2 months now, and I really don't have a lot of complaints about this camera at this time. Some of the cons I listed are a bit of a stretch and not specific to the camera. What you get for what you pay is an outstanding value and I don't see that changing. Depending on your needs this may not be the best option for you, the a7 might be sufficient in a more stripped down and compact package, or maybe having the best AF possible is more important than the full frame, etc. There's all sorts of options across many systems. Just think carefully about what you need and avoid an expensive impulse buy.

Still learning how to use all the options. I was able to buy some old glass lenses for about $30 (28mm, 50mm) and take some outstanding portraits and landscapes. Very versatile.