Sony A7R II vs Nikon D810

AHarvey

AHarvey

AHarvey

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Hi,

So, I do weddings and portraits a few times a year and I am looking at pushing it full time.

Current kit: Nikon D700, 24-70mm f2.8 and 70-200 f2.8 + a couple of SB900's, studio gear etc.

Now, I need a new camera to work along side the D700 so the obvious choice is the D810 as the lenses will work on both and I can add extra prime lenses to it.

However, I am really liking the Sony A7R II but it means investing in a whole new system and running alongside the D700. I think it'll be better as a general out and about with family camera too. I'd also like to play around with video and heard varying reports on the Nikon video systems.

Looking for advice from anyone that has used either, or better yet, has used both of them.
 
I have no experience with either but worth noting that the Sony A7R II only has one memory card slot. I know of a number of people that feel too uncomfortable shooting weddings or any paid work on a body which only has a single memory card slot. I can kinda understand why.
 
2StepSteve said:
I have no experience with either but worth noting that the Sony A7R II only has one memory card slot. I know of a number of people that feel too uncomfortable shooting weddings or any paid work on a body which only has a single memory card slot. I can kinda understand why.
Click to expand...

While I definitely see the benefit of two slots, the D700 only has one as well. Back up often during the day and any loss will be kept to a minimum.
 
FUJI Xpro 2 etc?

been watching videos from Angry Photographer and it looks good and has dual slots.
 
What do you see the advantages of the Sony being? For me, I can't see it being worthwhile as a second camera in a professional setup for size/weight saving. Especially if you invest in sony glass. The continuity of buttons with the D700, autofocus speed, and ruggedness of the D810 seems like it would be the best fit for you.
 
D810 is probably going to be a bit of a handful to lug around for weddings (it's damn heavy) and the resolution slight overkill, but it's excellent for studio work. A fair few pro wedding photographers have gone down the D750 route, definitely worth a look. Plenty of resolution in a lighter body and you still have that fantastic dynamic range and reliable autofocus.

A7Rii - battery life would one consideration though its not a huge effort to just take a bag full of spares and swap them out. Not having the 2 card resilience is a bit of a deal breaker for me for any pro work, though it's a calculated risk I guess so all depends how you roll. I'd also question whether the A7Rii can be trusted to nail focus each and every time in a fast changing environment, I've only had a day with one and that was mainly static portraits and landscape work (which is was excellent for). The EVF is brilliant, and it's the sole reason I'd ever consider moving to back to a mirrorless system.

Peronally I'd stick with Nikon and get hold of both a D810 and a D750 to try, but that's just my preference.
 
If the D700 is staying then it makes no sense to be running 2 different systems, keeping compatibility if equipment would be something I'd consider pretty important when dealing in paid work. What if the D700 has a fault?

Will you have the lenses available on the Sony to cover the focal lengths you need? If you do what's the point having the same focal lengths in differing systems?

There is also nothing wrong with the output of Nikon video, it's just that for some bizarre reason Nikon seem to leave out obvious options for videographers which lures people away.
 
Its a no brainer to me. Lack of dual card slots is a deal breaker to me, I've had a card fail on vacation once, and there is no way I want to have that worry or to constantly keep going back to some laptop to backup cards in case I miss anything.

Then there is the battery issue. Even with a DSLR you will need a stack of batteries, with a mirror-less you would need bucket loads of them and moreover, again there is the risk of running out of battery mid0shoot while something important happens. This would be a big step backwards, ideal on a DSLR you would get a vgrip and double down the battery life.


Then there is the lens and flash issues with the Sony NEX. Where is the 70-200mm F/2.8? 14-24mm f/2.8? 24mm f/1.4?


Then just the general dislike of using 2 different systems with different controls, ergonomics, menus, mount rotations, zoom/focus ring orders, control directions, and image differences (Nikon cameras and lenses all have consistent rendering and colour attributes, So does Sony and Canon, but they aren't all the same). This isn't a big deal but it is just one more issue I could do without, getting confused which way the lens needs to mount or where in the menu system this function is.

And then you are still not actually duplicating your camera system. What if the D700 stopped working, now all those Nikon lenses are left in a bag and You are down to one camera. So even if you did want to add a Sony NEX then I think you still have to add a second nikon body, and potentially a 2nd Sony, thats right, 2+2. the whole point of multiple bodies and lenses is to maximize cross-compatibility in case something goes wrong. E.g. you have a 24-70mm on 1 camera and a 70-200/135/14-24/24/ on the other. One camera dies, well, at least all your lenses are still good to go. What happens if you don't own a wide angle lens for the Sony and you intend to use the Nikon 14-24 for group shots. If your 1 Nikon camera dies before doing the group shot then you are up excrement creek. If you have 2 nikon camera then it is merely a case of swapping lenses quickly.


Then there is the question ff why. The A7RII and lens are not as light as you think:
Nikon 85mm f/1.4: 660g
Sony 85mm f/1.4: 820g
Nikon 35mm f/1.4: 600g
Sony 35mm f/1.4: 630g
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8: 900g
Sony 24-70mm f/2.8: 890g
Nikon 70-200mm f/4.0: 850g
Sony 70-200mm f/4.0: 840g


Add on the extra Sony batteries and you can easily find yourself lugging more weight with the Sony!


I would get the D810 or D800 and if you want to add a Sony mirror-less as a 3rd camera as a back-up to the backup then it may make sense if you can handle the costs.
 
D810.. for now. Or sell the D700 and get 2x D750's.
Long term though, I would be looking at making the switch to sony.. probably when the a7Riii is released. At their current rate of progress and innovation, sony'l be the go to system for most folk.
 
Something else to consider is both nikon and canon with have new mirrorless models including FF by the end of the year most likely, if mirrorless is really the deciding factor for you. Canon gave some almost definitive hints: http://photorumors.com/2016/02/04/c...ot-of-mirrorless-products-at-the-end-of-2016/

The issues has been that EVFs and on-sensor autofocus are just not competitive yet:
http://photorumors.com/2016/03/02/c...l-dont-have-a-professional-mirrorless-camera/
Epson have a 4MP EVF used in the newest Leica camera that is supposed to make the Sony EVF look like a cheap toy in comparison. That could be one major issue resolved. Both Canon and nikon have been working on sensor-based PDAF for some time now so may be close to a professional level AF system. The AF on the Nikon 1 cameras when released was miles better than anything else that existed for mirrorless at the time. Olympus and Sony have been slowly chipping away at that lead but perhaps a second big jump in performance can be made and the gap closed.
 
Can't see Mirrorless being of benefit in this scenario. Nikon and Canon support are leagues ahead of Sony's. The fact you're using Nikon already means it would be crazy to add another system/lenses on top.
 
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