📷 Sony a99 Mk II (on Amazon help.tc/a99ii) 📷 Sony a7R II (on Amazon help.tc/a7r2) 📷 Canon 5D Mk IV (on Amazon help.tc/5d4) 📷 Nikon D810 (on Amazon help.tc/d810)
I switched from Canon to Sony (A mount) 4 years ago, can't imagine looking through a ovf ever again. It should be mentioned that all the great Minolta glass fits the Sony's A mount. Thanks for the review Tony, as always you are fair and honest.
Adrian Pocea: Actually, I think our eyes work more like EVFs rather than OVF. Also I can't think of even one scenario that OVF would be better than EVF. I don't really understand your hype about OVF. Be open minded my friend.
" I prefer to see some dark image but my camera to focus fast in low light". Apparently you are a Canon fan boy and you are trying to hit Sony at everything. Of course Sony's AF sucks! There's no question about it. And the eyes work like EVF because what you see is what you see and you wont get surprised! And the lag is also due to Sony's software problems. Overall I think there should be no doubt that EVF is superior to the old OVF. They just have to perfect the technology.
Nice review. I'm a Sony shooter, and honestly think my A77ii has to be one of the best all-round APS-C cameras there is. However, there are definitely some issues with the focussing systems sometimes and the 3.5 auto focus limit for video, which it seems the A99ii still shares. Generally, knowing your camera will allow you to work around their limitations, and every single camera has some, so you can make it work for you. The areas where the A99ii and A77ii are great are numerous, and where there are problems are few, so it's nice to see people finally starting to believe! Thanks Tony.
6 years later I'm now shooting with 2 A99ii's, and have decided that there is no need to 'upgrade' any time soon. Even the very latest cameras from Sony, including the A1, A7RV & A99iii beat it in some areas, but not in others, especially ergonomics. Loving my A99ii's!!
What did you mean when you made the remark "look no other camera could have produced these results?" I am debated between an A7r II and A99 ii but leaning towards the A7r ii.
I think it's because Tony accidentally put a bit of a Canuck accent on "processes", and decided to throw the quick shot of the flag in there as a lighthearted shoutout/dig at Chris and Jordan.
I'm looking for a sports stills/video camera to upgrade from my Nikon D7000. I was considering the a99 II when I saw it announced, but from most reviews I've seen the AF just would not cut it for anything fast moving. I think I'll stick with Nikon and wait for their next FX body, just hoping it has better 4K without much cropping. Also I have very little faith in Sony's customer service and I don't want to invest in an entirely new lens system that might not be supported in the future.
Super review Tony! I almost pulled the lever on Sony Mirrorless last Fall. But had a camera store rep talk me out of it as he thought it would be too much to learn to quick to put it into our studio workflow. I have been a Canon guy for 17 years now. I do love my 5D4 but I am dying to try Sony!!
Kevin Hudson it will quickly pass once you spend a month dialing in the color to match your portfolio and over all workflow. There's a lot of pit falls and small annoying issues that will suck the life out of you when working with paid clients. Definitely try, but don't switch.
Good video. When doing "professional" work with a client looking over your shoulder some of the drawbacks of the Sony would be infuriating. For enthusiasts or for doing work that you can take your time with the Sony seems like a useful option.
Hi Tony, I repeat my question from your previous A99ii video. I am really interested in upgrading to the A99ii from A77ii camera, BUT the nicer lenses from both Sigma and Tamron are not made for the A-mount. The Tamron 70-200 F2.8 G2 or Sigma 14mm F1.8 ART or 24-70F2.8 ART just for naming a few. Do you think they will come with these lenses in A-mount later on, or is A-mount practicaly dead? Should I transform to E-mount and the A7r2 instead, just because I am risking to be burning inside with a really expensive camera that I can't sell later on when Sony is cutting A-mount. WHAT SOULD I DO??? I really REALLY fancy the A99ii but it is a lot of money to burn. Thank you very much for Podcasts and all of your reviews and coarses. You are both doing a great job 🙌🏻🌟🙌🏻 Best regards from a fan in Norway :)
lack off? u mean less off...? everything is there including classic Minolta lenses and third party such as Sigmas ART and then some... I shooting weddings and sports, all the lenses are available to complete ones work.. what exactly do you need?
SAVvAG3D Yes, most of the lenses are already there, but when I buy a new camera with 40+ Mpx I also want new lenses that gives the best results. If not I could easily live with the old A99. I do not wish to buy a 10 year old Tamron 70-200mm to a new A99ii. I bought the Tamron 150-600mm G1 to my A77ii, and this does not really handle 22Mpx well. It is clear distortion when zooming in on the pictures, and this is why newer lenses will have problems with higher megapixels. I do everything from macro to portraits and landscapes and wildlife, and I demand crisp sharp focus in my images. I am going to wait and see what happens during the summer, and maybe I rather go for A7R2 instead and keep the A77ii for speed shots.
you may be surprised with likes of the 135 1.8 .... 85 1.4 ..... 70-400 G2 and all the way down to the 16-35 II ... All perform brilliantly to well enough to resolve the details.. Yes I agree some lenses do require the update by then again many canon lenses require update to resolve the 50 mp.... it all comes down to ones requirements... I use the A7RII with the 90 2.8 G for macro works, fkn outstanding but then again the 135 1.8 A mount spanks anything for portraits. I love both systems, but over all the 99II is my jam and hopefully the updates required do eventually come to light if not Sigma or Tamron will make it so.
You very often mention the optics of the Tamron. From my practice has found out that lenses Tamron is one of the worst in quality. often The age of the lens does not affect on the 42 megapixel camera Sony 99ll. There already have been comparative tests of Sony lense 70-200 2.8 ll and minolta 80-200, which is already 25 years old. According to the results, the old lens did not differ much from the new one and even in the portrait shooting sometimes the old 80-200 was a little more preferable. Your doubts about lenses for Sony's a-mount photo cameras are pure prejudice
The A99II doesn't have USB charging? That seems like a strange omission considering it's on a lot of other/older Sony cameras. It's definitely come in handy on my A7RII.
Hello Tony, Which Camera do you think would be the best suited for wedding photography out of these 4 mentioned here plus: Nikon D5, Pentax K-1, Fuji XT-2, Canon 5DS/R, Canon 1DX II or New Sony A9 ???
good summary and good to see some feedback from people who have been using all the relevant competitors on the market. I opted out of A-mount and sold my A99 and A77ii - they are good allrounders but went to shooting E-mount and Nikon as they excel at their respective fields. Hopefully you dont get too much hate from the A-mount fans! :)
you've pointed out the weakness of the SLT system focus. that's why I changed from a65 to a6xxx series. though in good to great light focus can't be beat.
JP-Forum you don't know what lenses i used you don't know your sony cameras the a65 and a77 had same focus. it was the a77ii that upgraded focus engine. let's just say it was equal to my Zeiss lenses now with a6500.
BTW wow the a99 mk ii skin color was SO much better than the a7r ii. The a7r coloring looks so digital and "cooler", not pleasant. Way too much like nikon. A900 still has some of the best skin tones to date. Which they advanced that sensor.
Sony need to update their A mount lenses if they're really serious about it. The Sony Zeiss 135 f1.8 is probably the best portrait lens ever made, and it made many people switch to Sony just to use it. They need to update it with a better focusing motor though. The 70-200 f2.8 also needs an update.
@8:57 re: "Should you switch?" Tony says the A-mount future is still uncertain. As a Nikon user (D500 & D810), with a wide selection of lenses, I think "Why on Earth would I switch?" Nikon just this year announced that they are entering the mirrorless market (presumably using licensed Sony sensors). It's not hard to predict Nikon's future. Although I sometimes covet these smaller bodies, my current cameras provide all the range of features I need for my professional work. Why would I sell my lenses, when a Nikon mirrorless is (at most) two years away?
I totally agree with comments on AF.I find my D7100 has a more reliable AF! I do like the a99ii though, even with it's limitations . I also have the a77ii, which is very simular in it's AF performance to the a99ii.I can't fault the I.Q., because it's the best camera I own.I don't have anything better to compare it to.
I only shoot stills and am very happy with my Canon 7d Mk 2. However, this review has given us something to think about. Thanks for the unbiased review Tony.
Re: Sony 70 - 200 zoom. try the Minolta 80 - 200 zoom. It an extremely good lens, cost about $800.00 on ebay and reportedly focuses much faster. I''m stoll using the old a37 so I cans say from my own experience about how it works on an a99ii but I've seen reviews that say it focuses faster than the Sony.
I think Sony is getting closer to the perfect camera to cover both video and stills, the a6500 is close and I think the a99ii isn't far of either. Hopefully the a7riii or a9 (what ever they call it) will add a touch screen, bigger battery, slightly faster af and may be 50 megapixels and I think we will be there.
Airb 19 not really interested in your opinion, that's mine and I'm entitled to it. The perfect camera for me isn't going to be the perfect camera for everyone else.
+David Huxley I concur wid ur thoughts ..I think a7r2 is already close to the 'best camera ever" ... if it can have some improvements it would definitely be unbeatable ... I think all Sony world needs is a good lens lineup where it's the weakest ... and just to avoid angry guys - I m no Sony owner - I am very happy with my Oly Em5m2.
yep, we totally need 50mp on a small format sensor, how about we slow down the resolution race and make improvements in other places that matter... perhaps colour... or 4:2:2 video in a small body
hypocrisy police WHAT?! do you actually read, or do you just look at words? in the other comment i said i review pictures at chest level, REVIEW! that's the word you're looking for, wth will i not use a viewfinder if it lets me shoot for an entire day without even swapping out. occassionally i'll have a low battery on a casual shoot, and then i'll remember that i haven't charged my battery in 3 days of casual shoots, using the pop up as a flash commander, that's peace of mind. "And regarding the statement you made in the other comment about EVF being bad, I don't believe that you owned a mirrorless camera." I never said i'd owned a mirrorless, only used, and it was an a7r by the way, are you sure you don't want to go back and read my comment again (and perhaps comprehend it this time). I also NEVER said evfs were bad, just that i wasn't comfortable with them, and they're simply not the best fit for me, different strokes, different folks... all that noise. The mirrorless' i've used, are really good cameras in a lot of ways, cameras are hardly bad now a days, but they simply don't work where it matters for me and most other photographers. I'm definitely getting one as a second body sometime (i love old manual lenses and still hack some onto my nikon) but i'm not gonna hang my career on them. "you wouldn't argue that chimping is not a big deal" it's just a Label, that is what it is, some photogs have trust issues (me) but it's just the way they're comfortable shooting, you don't have to label people, some make backups to 5 hard drives, it's insurance. "Your connections between a small sensor and not needing high resolution doesn't add up to me" try comparing a 16mp samsung galaxy to a nikon d7000(2010) "Are you really a photographer?" i don't know you're the expert.
When was this made? I saw you mentioning how much you liked this camera on the podcast about Sony history but can't tell when that was. Have you done a long term use review and if not would you?
I'd like to see how sonys new uhs2 SD effects buffer clearing times. It's got ~300Mbps read/write speeds, that's 3X faster than the Sandisk extreme pro
Nicely balanced review Tony. Agree with virtually all of it and I think that you did a far better job of addressing the camera's strengths and weaknesses than DPR. IR review was also quite fair and balanced, and similar to yours. One issue though is that Sony's G2 70-200 is really, esp. for the price, a very disappointing lens. Both in terms of sharpness at 200, where it is just plain BAD wide open, and puzzlingly, in terms of AF, where it should, in theory, excell, in its access of H-AF. I have had much better luck with the Tamron 70-200 USD on that body. Both sharper, and better/faster AF, if you are using expand flexible spot. Many also report that the 30 year old Minolta G HS 80-200 is also better on that body, both in terms of sharpness and AF. Underscores that Sony has work to do on the lens ecology (UWA primes and telephoto primes in particular). Unclear if they intend to invest in that. Unclear if Sigma will even continue their limited line of Art lenses in A mount (35, 50, 24-105 - all great). Perhaps only the degree of sales success of the A99ii will determine both A mount future and lens ecology updates. Again, really nice job and thanks!
i changed from Canon to Sony some years ago. it was best choice ever. better, cheaper and wtf I don't need 400 lenses as a normal user who wants nice pictures from his sons.
Funny you state the a7rII + 70-200 f/2.8 is faster than a99II + 70-200 f/2.8. I tried the a9 and the a99II with their native 70-200 f/2.8 lenses. The only camera that had problem focussing and actually continued to hunt was the a9/7-200 GM combo. The a99II/70-200G had no problem. Regarding speed they are very close. Maybe the a9 is a hair faster , but it's almost inconceivable.
excellent well balanced review. I'd like to be given a reason to switch but both Nikon and Canon are for me better value especially with 3rd party glass.
I am a big fan of your videos, but as an audio guy...I would advice you guys use a deEsser when you guys mix your sound. This seems to be a problem when doing VO with your large condenser mics if that is what you are using. Sometimes it's just really really harsh. Just a thought...I am a fan regardless.!
Here I am waiting for a sony "A85". Some sort of Full Frame A-mount body that is slotted below the A99mk2, and above the a77mk2. A body that will compete with the D610 and the 6D.
Did you run test for A99II over-heating when shooting 4K? Sony told me it should run 30 minutes before overheating. I get about 12 minutes and then it gets progressively worse after shutting down to cool off. I got it just over a month ago but they're trying everything to get out of fixing it... I'm suppose to turn off stabilization, tilt the viewer up so the back gets more air, turn off the viewer, or basically turn off all the function you need for shooting video.
This attention on the A99II gives me the feeling that Sony will delay the A7RII replacement (with hopefully bigger battery, dual SD, better AF, improved colour science, faster buffer, touch screen, etc) until much later in the year..
It was a "problem" with the original A99, and that never got fixed, so I doubt it'll ever be fixed on the A99 II. To quote YTMND regarding another Sony product: "It's not a defect, it's a feature!"
Great review! Looks like a pretty compelling camera. I already own a D500 and probably won't pick this one up, but it's nice to see Sony continually upping their game. I may end up switching to mirrorless at some point when they can iron out those few remaining issues that keep the SLR's out ahead in some areas like the autofocus. Fortunately, I don't have tons of money invested in glass as of yet, so switching to another system wouldn't be too bad. We'll see what happens in the next year!
tony i tried a a77ii and d500 with the exact same focal length, aperture, shutter speed, and iso, and ended up with the exact same meter reading. i think this whole it loses light is completely overblown
Why does Canon with the 5D Mark IV and Nikon with say the D810 just leave the cameras the same but take out the mirror and add an EVF,,,,,having the same model one with an optical viewfinder and one with an EVF ? Or as EVF's get better just switch to an EVF only ?
Tanaka-san assured us that *the A-mount customer base is small, but loyal, and we need to serve them* While Sony does not intend A-mount users to transition to E-mount, it does see the a9 as a potential body for A-mount lenses, via adaption. To that end Sony assures us the disadvantages associated with adapters - like the lack of proper subject tracking - are addressable, though it won't officially support or offer a solution for Canon lenses natively. *Kenji Tanaka* Sony Digital Imaging, Marketing Manager Sept 2017
Love your commentaries Tony always useful, truthful and practical at the same Tony. I haven’t found Any other place to find more informative, accurate, reliable information on most cameras today. Well at least any camera you would want to buy. The others don’t matter. Thanks again Tony. To be honest YOU are the “RUclips Tech Guy” the other is a great authority on Sony gear but not other brands. You cover all or most brands....very kool indeed Tony.....(waving) Hi Chelsea:) much love y’all from Dahood in LA
I don't know why someone would splurge so much money on an A mount camera, when Sony is obviously investing much more in the E mount. Furthermore, I find that for this camera's target audience, Canon and Nikon's offering us just better and more reliable. Better autofocus and more lens selection are the winning points in my book.
Tony, what does Canadian flag do with massive amounts of efforts to improve assembly and quality assurance processes? (00:52) 5D mark IV with less crop factor now with firmware update, it's a better 4K video camera than Sony full frame cameras if one accepts huge file sizes.
Got an A7Rii ($1598 sale @B&H) and compared to my A99ii. The A99ii is WAY better in terms of focus and overall speed. Image quality is a toss up. My plan was to keep the A7Rii and sell the A99ii but after running extensive tests the A7Rii is going back. The A7Rii is too slow in comparison to the A99ii and A mount lenses don't work as great with the LA EA4 vs what you get on the A99ii.
Tony, I love your videos, you are the only trustworthy camera guy on youtube, so I only trust your opinion, I know you normally dont test point and shoot cameras, but could you make an exception and test the sony rx100 V? its the very best in class... I would really appreciate it. Thanks for reading!
Thanks for this review. I've been contemplating switching from my Nikon D4 + 6 Lenses to mirrorless and waiting for when to pull the trigger. This tells me it's still not the time. I'm waiting for the next a7r model or, I'm still hoping for Nikon to come out with something comparable to Sony, so I can keep my lenses (not going to do the adapter dance - I'll get all new lenses). I guess I'll wait - and hopefully later in 2017 something (either new a7r or new Nikon) will come out that meets my requirements.
Nothing at all. The D5 is awesome. I'm not a pro photographer, so it isn't worth it for me to upgrade to EVERY flagship Nikon comes out with. Prior to the D4, I had a D2x. I'm just ready to switch from DSLR to full-frame mirrorless.
When was the last time Sony actually released an A mount lens? If they're keeping their A mount alive shouldn't they release newer/faster focusing glass? Also I really hope they release an a6300/a6500 in an A-mount body with its strange flippy screen and a bigger battery.
looked on a store website here in Australia , no a-mount lens available not even an adaptor to utilise Canon lens as is the case with e-mount. as i do not have these lens this is a bit of a bummer for me in what otherwise looks like an awesome camera .
The F3.5 limitation was there since the A77 in 2011, so it really is absolutely no new thing, wonder why you are so suprised now. Even the E-mount cameras have this limitation once you effectively convert them into SLTs - which happens as soon as you put a LA-EA2 or LA-EA4 on it.
This video with the exception of video there seems to be many electronic issues you worry about. Those problems still persist in 2022 in all manufacturers. It sounds like digital shooters have to much thingsvto worry about Film cameras have none of those issues with the exception of video.
I'm guessing this camera is a stepping stone to the rumoured "A9" E-mount pro body. With the A99 II Sony is in the odd position of having its flagship stills camera on its older A-mount line. My guess is they don't want to be in that position for very long and we'll see an even more high end and much more expensive E-mount pro body.
To get the best of both worlds, the Panasonic G80/85 or GX8 is a valid choice. Too bad there's not a FF mirrorless camera that can compete with those two imo.
Interestimg to hear that the a7Rii is still a better camera in many aspects. I think the a99ii is an incredible camera but the technological approach of the trasnluscent mirror will slowly lose impact since the mirrorless Phase Detect Autofocus systems will keep on improving until they will be as good as the of sensor phase detect AF systems. If that happens the E-Mount system will become a better choice than A-Mount.
Yes, please keep bugging them about a firmware update for the video AF. Maybe one day they will do something about it. Also, I wonder why the 70-200mm SSM II lens is not up to snuff compared to the competition. Sony charges a fortune for it, and its not even close to their own 70-200mm Gmaster lens. What a bummer. Maybe they will release one similar to the G-master lens one day.
Sony is doing better. I just simpy believe that they (Sony) have some ways to go before they can seriously compete with Nikon and Canon. Experience and understanding how to make things better over time just take time and doesn't happen over night. Both Canon and Nikon have years and years ahead of Sony in the camera field and that's way it is apparent in the real world when you see professionals in the sports world, product photography, and commercial world using Nikon and Canon. In time, if Sony continues to improve, the future will look good for them.
📷 Sony a99 Mk II (on Amazon help.tc/a99ii)
📷 Sony a7R II (on Amazon help.tc/a7r2)
📷 Canon 5D Mk IV (on Amazon help.tc/5d4)
📷 Nikon D810 (on Amazon help.tc/d810)
A trick: you can watch series on flixzone. Me and my gf have been using it for watching lots of of movies during the lockdown.
@Brooks Maddox Yup, I have been watching on flixzone for months myself =)
@Brooks Maddox Yea, been watching on Flixzone for since november myself =)
@Brooks Maddox definitely, I have been watching on flixzone for years myself :D
I switched from Canon to Sony (A mount) 4 years ago, can't imagine looking through a ovf ever again. It should be mentioned that all the great Minolta glass fits the Sony's A mount. Thanks for the review Tony, as always you are fair and honest.
nice 500 f8 reflex af
yawn.
Adrian Pocea: Actually, I think our eyes work more like EVFs rather than OVF. Also I can't think of even one scenario that OVF would be better than EVF. I don't really understand your hype about OVF. Be open minded my friend.
" I prefer to see some dark image but my camera to focus fast in low light". Apparently you are a Canon fan boy and you are trying to hit Sony at everything. Of course Sony's AF sucks! There's no question about it. And the eyes work like EVF because what you see is what you see and you wont get surprised! And the lag is also due to Sony's software problems. Overall I think there should be no doubt that EVF is superior to the old OVF. They just have to perfect the technology.
Nima Momtahan I can think of a ton! one example is subject tracking in low light.
Well, senior Sony executive confirms A mount is NOT dead, and they will continue to bring out products for both mounts. Interview on DPreview.
I saw that! Great news.
Binnu Babu It's been months since they released that. What's the future of the A mount now
Seth Seth They have released a few lenes recently
0:51, im confused, someone explain why is there a Canadian flag on the screen for a sec ..
Nice review. I'm a Sony shooter, and honestly think my A77ii has to be one of the best all-round APS-C cameras there is. However, there are definitely some issues with the focussing systems sometimes and the 3.5 auto focus limit for video, which it seems the A99ii still shares. Generally, knowing your camera will allow you to work around their limitations, and every single camera has some, so you can make it work for you. The areas where the A99ii and A77ii are great are numerous, and where there are problems are few, so it's nice to see people finally starting to believe! Thanks Tony.
6 years later I'm now shooting with 2 A99ii's, and have decided that there is no need to 'upgrade' any time soon. Even the very latest cameras from Sony, including the A1, A7RV & A99iii beat it in some areas, but not in others, especially ergonomics. Loving my A99ii's!!
I'm really hoping Canon can pick up the ball within the next 1-2 years. Sony is close to picking me up as a customer.
A99 to A99II update was faster than Canon 5DmkIII to 5DmkIV
ObelixCMM 👍😉
Those fire dance shots are really good btw. Nice to see a reviewer producing some top shots.
I think many of the focusing and sharpness issues are from the lenses.
What did you mean when you made the remark "look no other camera could have produced these results?" I am debated between an A7r II and A99 ii but leaning towards the A7r ii.
When I say that I put up a screen that shows "Because" and lists all the reasons.
I see, thanks. I am also considering a K1 and then pairing it with a dedicated video rig. I'd probably still come in under one A99 II..
Best part of the video is 8:19. applies to all photographers from beginners to professional. Just know what you want and go out and shoot.
So was that flash of a Canadian flag during the Sony factory an easter egg from some unnamed TSCTV person?
John Roberts There's Literally Jordan Drake from TCSTV..
Yeah, but why a Canadian flag during a tour of a Sony factory? Seems suspicious.
I think it's because Tony accidentally put a bit of a Canuck accent on "processes", and decided to throw the quick shot of the flag in there as a lighthearted shoutout/dig at Chris and Jordan.
Good day, eh...
Hosers !!
Wow the photos you took look way better here than they did on Instagram.
I'm looking for a sports stills/video camera to upgrade from my Nikon D7000. I was considering the a99 II when I saw it announced, but from most reviews I've seen the AF just would not cut it for anything fast moving. I think I'll stick with Nikon and wait for their next FX body, just hoping it has better 4K without much cropping. Also I have very little faith in Sony's customer service and I don't want to invest in an entirely new lens system that might not be supported in the future.
Super review Tony! I almost pulled the lever on Sony Mirrorless last Fall. But had a camera store rep talk me out of it as he thought it would be too much to learn to quick to put it into our studio workflow. I have been a Canon guy for 17 years now. I do love my 5D4 but I am dying to try Sony!!
Kevin Hudson it will quickly pass once you spend a month dialing in the color to match your portfolio and over all workflow. There's a lot of pit falls and small annoying issues that will suck the life out of you when working with paid clients. Definitely try, but don't switch.
Kevin Hudson he talked you out because he was a Canon or Nikon Fanboi .
Good video. When doing "professional" work with a client looking over your shoulder some of the drawbacks of the Sony would be infuriating. For enthusiasts or for doing work that you can take your time with the Sony seems like a useful option.
Hi Tony, I repeat my question from your previous A99ii video. I am really interested in upgrading to the A99ii from A77ii
camera, BUT the nicer lenses from both Sigma and Tamron are not made for
the A-mount. The Tamron 70-200 F2.8 G2 or Sigma 14mm F1.8 ART or
24-70F2.8 ART just for naming a few. Do you think they will come with
these lenses in A-mount later on, or is A-mount practicaly dead? Should I
transform to E-mount and the A7r2 instead, just because I am risking to
be burning inside with a really expensive camera that I can't sell
later on when Sony is cutting A-mount. WHAT SOULD I DO??? I really
REALLY fancy the A99ii but it is a lot of money to burn.
Thank you very much for Podcasts and all of your reviews and coarses.
You are both doing a great job 🙌🏻🌟🙌🏻 Best regards from a fan in Norway :)
+Stian Hogstvedt sorry, I dunno. There's a rumor that Sigma will release an a-mount version of their excellent 85mm f1.4.
lack off? u mean less off...? everything is there including classic Minolta lenses and third party such as Sigmas ART and then some... I shooting weddings and sports, all the lenses are available to complete ones work.. what exactly do you need?
SAVvAG3D Yes, most of the lenses are already there, but when I buy a new camera with 40+ Mpx I also want new lenses that gives the best results. If not I could easily live with the old A99. I do not wish to buy a 10 year old Tamron 70-200mm to a new A99ii. I bought the Tamron 150-600mm G1 to my A77ii, and this does not really handle 22Mpx well. It is clear distortion when zooming in on the pictures, and this is why newer lenses will have problems with higher megapixels. I do everything from macro to portraits and landscapes and wildlife, and I demand crisp sharp focus in my images. I am going to wait and see what happens during the summer, and maybe I rather go for A7R2 instead and keep the A77ii for speed shots.
you may be surprised with likes of the 135 1.8 .... 85 1.4 ..... 70-400 G2 and all the way down to the 16-35 II ... All perform brilliantly to well enough to resolve the details.. Yes I agree some lenses do require the update by then again many canon lenses require update to resolve the 50 mp.... it all comes down to ones requirements... I use the A7RII with the 90 2.8 G for macro works, fkn outstanding but then again the 135 1.8 A mount spanks anything for portraits. I love both systems, but over all the 99II is my jam and hopefully the updates required do eventually come to light if not Sigma or Tamron will make it so.
You very often mention the optics of the Tamron. From my practice has found out that lenses Tamron is one of the worst in quality. often The age of the lens does not affect on the 42 megapixel camera Sony 99ll. There already have been comparative tests of Sony lense 70-200 2.8 ll and minolta 80-200, which is already 25 years old. According to the results, the old lens did not differ much from the new one and even in the portrait shooting sometimes the old 80-200 was a little more preferable. Your doubts about lenses for Sony's a-mount photo cameras are pure prejudice
Wow, cool camera. I really didn't have this one on the radar.
I wish to know if you can help me to decide: Sony A99 MKII or Canon 6D mark II ?
Thank you very much.
6Dii is nowhere near a99ii. Go for alpha.
Awesome, solid, realistic review as always! Thank you so much for your time Tony
The A99II doesn't have USB charging? That seems like a strange omission considering it's on a lot of other/older Sony cameras. It's definitely come in handy on my A7RII.
Where is Canon really going.....do they think that 4K is NEVER going to happen?
MrSnooooze the 5dmkiv shoots 4k - but it's terrible.
They have done a firmware update for the 5D mk IV for the 4k video. NOt sure if it has helped, as I don't use Canon anymore.
I don't count the motion Jpeg from any of the Canons that use it...I'd be buying a 6TB HD every month!
Completely agree :)
MrSnooooze
if you want to do video stuff or only video stuff then buy a video camera.
they aren't 2 separate products for a piss take.
Hello Tony,
Which Camera do you think would be the best suited for wedding photography out of these 4 mentioned here plus:
Nikon D5, Pentax K-1, Fuji XT-2, Canon 5DS/R,
Canon 1DX II or New Sony A9 ???
Nice fair review. I would say the Fuji X-T2 beats this camera in everything except not being FF and the IBIS.
Carl Ryan Well when I said except the FF sensor those are the things that obviously come with it as the benefit.
I would love to play around with 120 fps @ 1080p.
good summary and good to see some feedback from people who have been using all the relevant competitors on the market.
I opted out of A-mount and sold my A99 and A77ii - they are good allrounders but went to shooting E-mount and Nikon as they excel at their respective fields.
Hopefully you dont get too much hate from the A-mount fans! :)
you've pointed out the weakness of the SLT system focus. that's why I changed from a65 to a6xxx series. though in good to great light focus can't be beat.
JP-Forum you don't know what lenses i used
you don't know your sony cameras the a65 and a77 had same
focus. it was the a77ii that upgraded focus engine.
let's just say it was equal to my Zeiss lenses now with a6500.
JP-Forum it's cool don't care shot with both.
The fixed aperture for video mode when using autofocus was the dealbreaker for me and why I did not purchase this camera.
I love how professional Tony is but tilty flippy screen is still the technical term, haha. Oh and congrats on 700k
Always saying it like it is! I appreciated the unbiased breakdown.
BTW wow the a99 mk ii skin color was SO much better than the a7r ii. The a7r coloring looks so digital and "cooler", not pleasant. Way too much like nikon. A900 still has some of the best skin tones to date. Which they advanced that sensor.
Thank you Tony and Chelsea for your wonderful videos. I have learnt a lot about photography from you guys. Much appreciated. Cheers!
Sony need to update their A mount lenses if they're really serious about it. The Sony Zeiss 135 f1.8 is probably the best portrait lens ever made, and it made many people switch to Sony just to use it. They need to update it with a better focusing motor though. The 70-200 f2.8 also needs an update.
The lack of xqd cards is disappointing on a new release camera.
+mikaq19 yeah, especially when you're waiting 40 seconds for the buffer to clear before you can access the menus...
@8:57 re: "Should you switch?" Tony says the A-mount future is still uncertain. As a Nikon user (D500 & D810), with a wide selection of lenses, I think "Why on Earth would I switch?"
Nikon just this year announced that they are entering the mirrorless market (presumably using licensed Sony sensors). It's not hard to predict Nikon's future. Although I sometimes covet these smaller bodies, my current cameras provide all the range of features I need for my professional work. Why would I sell my lenses, when a Nikon mirrorless is (at most) two years away?
I have the A-99 MII and I pair it with my second gen 300 F/2.8 Minolta lens. Still sharp as a tack.
I totally agree with comments on AF.I find my D7100 has a more reliable AF! I do like the a99ii though, even with it's limitations . I also have the a77ii, which is very simular in it's AF performance to the a99ii.I can't fault the I.Q., because it's the best camera I own.I don't have anything better to compare it to.
I only shoot stills and am very happy with my Canon 7d Mk 2. However, this review has given us something to think about. Thanks for the unbiased review Tony.
Re: Sony 70 - 200 zoom. try the Minolta 80 - 200 zoom. It an extremely good lens, cost about $800.00 on ebay and reportedly focuses much faster. I''m stoll using the old a37 so I cans say from my own experience about how it works on an a99ii but I've seen reviews that say it focuses faster than the Sony.
I think Sony is getting closer to the perfect camera to cover both video and stills, the a6500 is close and I think the a99ii isn't far of either. Hopefully the a7riii or a9 (what ever they call it) will add a touch screen, bigger battery, slightly faster af and may be 50 megapixels and I think we will be there.
David Huxley . I think that you dont really know what you are talking about
Airb 19 not really interested in your opinion, that's mine and I'm entitled to it. The perfect camera for me isn't going to be the perfect camera for everyone else.
+David Huxley I concur wid ur thoughts ..I think a7r2 is already close to the 'best camera ever" ... if it can have some improvements it would definitely be unbeatable ... I think all Sony world needs is a good lens lineup where it's the weakest ... and just to avoid angry guys - I m no Sony owner - I am very happy with my Oly Em5m2.
yep, we totally need 50mp on a small format sensor, how about we slow down the resolution race and make improvements in other places that matter... perhaps colour... or 4:2:2 video in a small body
hypocrisy police WHAT?! do you actually read, or do you just look at words? in the other comment i said i review pictures at chest level, REVIEW! that's the word you're looking for, wth will i not use a viewfinder if it lets me shoot for an entire day without even swapping out. occassionally i'll have a low battery on a casual shoot, and then i'll remember that i haven't charged my battery in 3 days of casual shoots, using the pop up as a flash commander, that's peace of mind.
"And regarding the statement you made in the other comment about EVF being bad, I don't believe that you owned a mirrorless camera."
I never said i'd owned a mirrorless, only used, and it was an a7r by the way, are you sure you don't want to go back and read my comment again (and perhaps comprehend it this time).
I also NEVER said evfs were bad, just that i wasn't comfortable with them, and they're simply not the best fit for me, different strokes, different folks... all that noise. The mirrorless' i've used, are really good cameras in a lot of ways, cameras are hardly bad now a days, but they simply don't work where it matters for me and most other photographers. I'm definitely getting one as a second body sometime (i love old manual lenses and still hack some onto my nikon) but i'm not gonna hang my career on them.
"you wouldn't argue that chimping is not a big deal"
it's just a Label, that is what it is, some photogs have trust issues (me) but it's just the way they're comfortable shooting, you don't have to label people, some make backups to 5 hard drives, it's insurance.
"Your connections between a small sensor and not needing high resolution doesn't add up to me"
try comparing a 16mp samsung galaxy to a nikon d7000(2010)
"Are you really a photographer?" i don't know you're the expert.
8:45
"If I could see the future"
Oh, Professor Time Travel, you tease.
When was this made? I saw you mentioning how much you liked this camera on the podcast about Sony history but can't tell when that was. Have you done a long term use review and if not would you?
I'd like to see how sonys new uhs2 SD effects buffer clearing times. It's got ~300Mbps read/write speeds, that's 3X faster than the Sandisk extreme pro
Not at all the max write speed of the Sony is 40Mbps
hand hold 200mm w/ 1/5s? wow, that's truly amazing!
Nicely balanced review Tony. Agree with virtually all of it and I think that you did a far better job of addressing the camera's strengths and weaknesses than DPR. IR review was also quite fair and balanced, and similar to yours. One issue though is that Sony's G2 70-200 is really, esp. for the price, a very disappointing lens. Both in terms of sharpness at 200, where it is just plain BAD wide open, and puzzlingly, in terms of AF, where it should, in theory, excell, in its access of H-AF. I have had much better luck with the Tamron 70-200 USD on that body. Both sharper, and better/faster AF, if you are using expand flexible spot. Many also report that the 30 year old Minolta G HS 80-200 is also better on that body, both in terms of sharpness and AF. Underscores that Sony has work to do on the lens ecology (UWA primes and telephoto primes in particular). Unclear if they intend to invest in that. Unclear if Sigma will even continue their limited line of Art lenses in A mount (35, 50, 24-105 - all great). Perhaps only the degree of sales success of the A99ii will determine both A mount future and lens ecology updates. Again, really nice job and thanks!
now that the a9 is out, what is a99ii's advantage? lenses?
The a9 is definitely the better camera, but it's also more expensive. I guess if you're an A-mount user, get the a99... otherwise go for the a9.
Definitely can get fixed in a firmware update the 4k video issue.
i changed from Canon to Sony some years ago. it was best choice ever. better, cheaper and wtf I don't need 400 lenses as a normal user who wants nice pictures from his sons.
LOVED the shots on the beach!!!!!!!!
Tony, how does this compare to the a9?
Great review as always Tony. Definitely sticking with e-mount. a6500 / a7r II is just too good of a combo and they share lenses.
Sony A99II beginning od review - best camera ever - end of review.
Funny you state the a7rII + 70-200 f/2.8 is faster than a99II + 70-200 f/2.8. I tried the a9 and the a99II with their native 70-200 f/2.8 lenses. The only camera that had problem focussing and actually continued to hunt was the a9/7-200 GM combo. The a99II/70-200G had no problem. Regarding speed they are very close. Maybe the a9 is a hair faster , but it's almost inconceivable.
excellent well balanced review. I'd like to be given a reason to switch but both Nikon and Canon are for me better value especially with 3rd party glass.
This was a great review! Awesome! Thank you so much.
I live in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
I am a big fan of your videos, but as an audio guy...I would advice you guys use a deEsser when you guys mix your sound. This seems to be a problem when doing VO with your large condenser mics if that is what you are using. Sometimes it's just really really harsh. Just a thought...I am a fan regardless.!
Here I am waiting for a sony "A85". Some sort of Full Frame A-mount body that is slotted below the A99mk2, and above the a77mk2. A body that will compete with the D610 and the 6D.
Did you run test for A99II over-heating when shooting 4K? Sony told me it should run 30 minutes before overheating. I get about 12 minutes and then it gets progressively worse after shutting down to cool off. I got it just over a month ago but they're trying everything to get out of fixing it... I'm suppose to turn off stabilization, tilt the viewer up so the back gets more air, turn off the viewer, or basically turn off all the function you need for shooting video.
"1980's LCD screen"!.... priceless.. Thanks Tony and the gang.. for the review!
This attention on the A99II gives me the feeling that Sony will delay the A7RII replacement (with hopefully bigger battery, dual SD, better AF, improved colour science, faster buffer, touch screen, etc) until much later in the year..
It's 2023. This thing is still dang well over 2grand!!! My Zeiss a mounts, and Sigma primes are waiting for this marble of a technology!
i wonder how likely is that sony will fix that f3,5 focusing thing with an update...
kaimelis no it's the SLT system vs DSLR vs mirrorless
It was a "problem" with the original A99, and that never got fixed, so I doubt it'll ever be fixed on the A99 II.
To quote YTMND regarding another Sony product: "It's not a defect, it's a feature!"
I believe it is a problem inherent to the limitations of that type of focusing technology (glass image splitter).
In the past, OSPDAF wasn't reliable, so I could accept that drawback. IMHO Sony should disable the 79 AF points in video to allow AF in manual mode.
Fair comparison, but the a99 ii is not for me. The thing that's on top of my list that makes for a good camera is reliability.
Great review! Looks like a pretty compelling camera. I already own a D500 and probably won't pick this one up, but it's nice to see Sony continually upping their game. I may end up switching to mirrorless at some point when they can iron out those few remaining issues that keep the SLR's out ahead in some areas like the autofocus. Fortunately, I don't have tons of money invested in glass as of yet, so switching to another system wouldn't be too bad. We'll see what happens in the next year!
tony i tried a a77ii and d500 with the exact same focal length, aperture, shutter speed, and iso, and ended up with the exact same meter reading. i think this whole it loses light is completely overblown
+seanimal3 it doesn't necessarily change metering, but it will increase the noise at a given iso.
been waiting for this one...boy!
Wow! Really nice footage in this video. The style of this video is somehow different. Cuts seem a bit choppy, but fast paced. I like it.
Honest & Unbiased review! I Loved it! :D
I love a99 more than a7 series or a9, sony SLT is the first camera that i love that motivated me to become a photographer.
yes thailand! im moving there in september and i cant wait! anyways cool review lol
In all honesty, how much longer will Sony sustain the a-mount quasi-dslr system??
Why does Canon with the 5D Mark IV and Nikon with say the D810 just leave the cameras the same but take out the mirror and add an EVF,,,,,having the same model one with an optical viewfinder and one with an EVF ? Or as EVF's get better just switch to an EVF only ?
Tanaka-san assured us that *the A-mount customer base is small, but loyal, and we need to serve them*
While Sony does not intend A-mount users to transition to E-mount, it does see the a9 as a potential body for A-mount lenses, via adaption. To that end Sony assures us the disadvantages associated with adapters - like the lack of proper subject tracking - are addressable, though it won't officially support or offer a solution for Canon lenses natively.
*Kenji Tanaka*
Sony Digital Imaging, Marketing Manager
Sept 2017
Love your commentaries Tony always useful, truthful and practical at the same Tony. I haven’t found Any other place to find more informative, accurate, reliable information on most cameras today. Well at least any camera you would want to buy. The others don’t matter. Thanks again Tony. To be honest YOU are the “RUclips Tech Guy” the other is a great authority on Sony gear but not other brands. You cover all or most brands....very kool indeed Tony.....(waving) Hi Chelsea:) much love y’all from Dahood in LA
I don't know why someone would splurge so much money on an A mount camera, when Sony is obviously investing much more in the E mount. Furthermore, I find that for this camera's target audience, Canon and Nikon's offering us just better and more reliable. Better autofocus and more lens selection are the winning points in my book.
Tony, what does Canadian flag do with massive amounts of efforts to improve assembly and quality assurance processes? (00:52)
5D mark IV with less crop factor now with firmware update, it's a better 4K video camera than Sony full frame cameras if one accepts huge file sizes.
Got an A7Rii ($1598 sale @B&H) and compared to my A99ii. The A99ii is WAY better in terms of focus and overall speed. Image quality is a toss up. My plan was to keep the A7Rii and sell the A99ii but after running extensive tests the A7Rii is going back. The A7Rii is too slow in comparison to the A99ii and A mount lenses don't work as great with the LA EA4 vs what you get on the A99ii.
Tony, I love your videos, you are the only trustworthy camera guy on youtube, so I only trust your opinion, I know you normally dont test point and shoot cameras, but could you make an exception and test the sony rx100 V? its the very best in class... I would really appreciate it. Thanks for reading!
Still (2023) a sublime choice for people who own a good collection of A-mount lenses from Minolta, Sony, Sigma or Tamron!
i blame focus failure on the lens, unless i am in very low light, am i wrong?
Thanks for this review. I've been contemplating switching from my Nikon D4 + 6 Lenses to mirrorless and waiting for when to pull the trigger. This tells me it's still not the time. I'm waiting for the next a7r model or, I'm still hoping for Nikon to come out with something comparable to Sony, so I can keep my lenses (not going to do the adapter dance - I'll get all new lenses).
I guess I'll wait - and hopefully later in 2017 something (either new a7r or new Nikon) will come out that meets my requirements.
i'm curious, what's the problem with D5
Nothing at all. The D5 is awesome. I'm not a pro photographer, so it isn't worth it for me to upgrade to EVERY flagship Nikon comes out with. Prior to the D4, I had a D2x. I'm just ready to switch from DSLR to full-frame mirrorless.
oh cool, if you still don't mind dslrs i've heard only good things about nikon d750 and canon 6d
When was the last time Sony actually released an A mount lens? If they're keeping their A mount alive shouldn't they release newer/faster focusing glass?
Also I really hope they release an a6300/a6500 in an A-mount body with its strange flippy screen and a bigger battery.
you always can use these old nice and fine minolta lenses. I do that all the time on my sony alpha body's . and the resolts are great;
looked on a store website here in Australia , no a-mount lens available not even an adaptor to utilise Canon lens as is the case with e-mount. as i do not have these lens this is a bit of a bummer for me in what otherwise looks like an awesome camera .
How does an electronic viewfinder help when taking long exposures?
Generic Username it doesn't. It will just show you the exposure, noise(if any), focus, histogram, aperture preview which is pretty important
This video was perfect in every way.
The F3.5 limitation was there since the A77 in 2011, so it really is absolutely no new thing, wonder why you are so suprised now. Even the E-mount cameras have this limitation once you effectively convert them into SLTs - which happens as soon as you put a LA-EA2 or LA-EA4 on it.
This video with the exception of video there seems to be many electronic issues you worry about. Those problems still persist in 2022 in all manufacturers. It sounds like digital shooters have to much thingsvto worry about
Film cameras have none of those issues with the exception of video.
Thank you for the review. Thank you also for your honesty.
I'm guessing this camera is a stepping stone to the rumoured "A9" E-mount pro body. With the A99 II Sony is in the odd position of having its flagship stills camera on its older A-mount line. My guess is they don't want to be in that position for very long and we'll see an even more high end and much more expensive E-mount pro body.
To get the best of both worlds, the Panasonic G80/85 or GX8 is a valid choice. Too bad there's not a FF mirrorless camera that can compete with those two imo.
Interestimg to hear that the a7Rii is still a better camera in many aspects. I think the a99ii is an incredible camera but the technological approach of the trasnluscent mirror will slowly lose impact since the mirrorless Phase Detect Autofocus systems will keep on improving until they will be as good as the of sensor phase detect AF systems. If that happens the E-Mount system will become a better choice than A-Mount.
Great! TheCameraStoreTV's Video is coming :-)
I have a Mark i and I'm still happy with it. :)
Yes, please keep bugging them about a firmware update for the video AF. Maybe one day they will do something about it.
Also, I wonder why the 70-200mm SSM II lens is not up to snuff compared to the competition. Sony charges a fortune for it, and its not even close to their own 70-200mm Gmaster lens. What a bummer. Maybe they will release one similar to the G-master lens one day.
what is the leather strap on the camera? thanks
I want the 24 mp version of the a99 mk2 as A85 if you will.
Does a mount have any ultra wide tilt shifts? Like the Nikon 19 / Canon 17
Sony is doing better. I just simpy believe that they (Sony) have some ways to go before they can seriously compete with Nikon and Canon. Experience and understanding how to make things better over time just take time and doesn't happen over night. Both Canon and Nikon have years and years ahead of Sony in the camera field and that's way it is apparent in the real world when you see professionals in the sports world, product photography, and commercial world using Nikon and Canon. In time, if Sony continues to improve, the future will look good for them.
Maybe it's just the YT compression, but, many of those images didn't look sharp.