labirdman

I'm concerned by this too. Wolf is right--there are tons of examples out there, and it's ugly. Perhaps it will end up being an issue primarily with the RAW converters, but for now, it's a big red flag. Other than that, I can live with the compromises--lossy RAW sucks but isn't a dealbreaker for me, and I tend to shoot shorter video clips, so no huge worries WRT camera overheating either. But the long exposure noise, even with moderate push, is just gross.

So far, it sounds like it's going to be fine for the video hobbyist, like me, but problematic for professionals doing long shoots. When it comes to still shots, the same is true. Bulb mode drops to 12-bit and activates spatial filtering. Orange peel noise, lossy RAW which stinks with high-contrast exposure pushes, etc. Blah. It still ends up as the best FF all-arounder, but with some significant limitations that everyone just needs to be aware of.

That's the spirit! I really hope he, and you, are right. If you're able, could you please consider testing bulb mode, in non-silent mode, for the same thing? Also, Jim Kasson, on his excellent blog, has noted that the drop to 12-bit is typically only noticeable quite close to base ISO. So, 100 ISO appears to be the best setting with which to test, which probably almost goes without saying http://blog.kasson.com/?p=8586

One of the huge advantages of the exmor sensor is of course the ability to do extreme shadow recovery in scenes presenting a huge dynamic range. Nikon is able to use the sensor to its fullest potential; Sony, ironically, as of yet, cannot, even though it's their sensor. Lucky for you, you don't care. It matters to me. If it didn't, I'd still be shooting Canon.

http://blog.kasson.com/?p=8586 Your humble opinion is factually incorrect.

Be aware that fully electronic shutter drops the image to 12-bit precision. It's in the manual. Bulb, continuous, continuous bracket mode do the same. At low ISOs, this equates to about a 1-stop noise increase and a 1-stop loss in dynamic range. Bummer.

Davide, What makes you think it doesn't drop to 12-bit precision in fully electronic ("silent") shutter mode? All indications are that it does so, just like the other A7 series cameras that support this feature (there's no penalty with EFCS, naturally.) In fact, someone even posted a snippet from an A7RII manual a few weeks ago confirming this limitation. Bulb, continuous, and continuous bracket modes also drop to 12-bit precision. So for top quality super long exposure shots exceeding 30 seconds, where you must use bulb, you get 12-bit. That stinks, in a $3200 camera. Coupled with the fact that they're still using the somewhat crappy lossy RAW compression scheme, which does occasionally manifest itself in real-world shots, and this one's a skip, for me, for now. It seems Nikon is still the best when it comes to getting top quality out of Sony's sensors. But then, I'm primarily a stills guy--video is a bonus.

Strangely enough, the reports of excellent A7RII autofocus with Canon lenses could be Canon's saving grace. If that excellence finds its way into other Sony mirrorless cams, which seems inevitable, Canon can continue to sell their glass (which let's admit is their great strength, their zooms, TSEs, and long primes are just fantastic) to Sony shooters. These Sony shooters keep a foot in both worlds, and when Canon, as they inevitably will, once again offer a competitive sensor (it might take years!), the Sony shooters could switch back. In essence, you shoot Canon glass, and float between whichever company offers the body you like best. Nikon enjoys no similar advantage. They are fortunate to be able to offer Sony exmor sensors in their cameras today, but we don't know the nature of the agreement with Sony (does it expire?) And the Nikon lenses, with mechanical aperture adjustment, won't AF nicely with Sony bodies, correct? I'd almost be more leery of investing heavily in a full-on Nikon system, today, than I would be using a Sony/Canon hybrid. If these AF promises pan out, that is.

Surely they've not moved to a native ISO of 800, unless you're talking about something specific to video, somehow. If they did that, wouldn't it flatten the 50-800 iso dynamic curve, making the 14+ stops of DR we see from the D800/810, A7R, etc, impossible? And everything I've seen indicates we're still stuck with Sony lossy RAW and its limitations, although there is a guy on the I-R forums saying the head of Sony's mirrorless development efforts are aware of the request for lossless, and that it could be offered with a firmware update. Grain of salt, of course.