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A7sIII vs R5(fw 1.6) vs others for run 'n gun?


Owlgreen
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I'm looking for a camera which produces a good, wide-DR image at moderate file sizes, is hand holdable with effective built-in stabilization, has decent battery life, has an EVF, and has reliable video autofocus.

The A7sIII and R5 seem to fit the bill. Of these two, do you prefer one over the other for video? I like the option to gyro-data stabilize footage in the Sony, but I definitely prefer Canon color. Are there advantages of one mount over the other? I mostly own EF glass. Has anyone directly compared the 4k 120p modes on these two?

Are there other bodies I should consider? Is the Xh2s' autofocus reliable? How is the S1H/S1/S5 autofocus after recent firmware updates?

Thanks for taking the time.

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EOSHD Pro Color 5 for Sony cameras EOSHD Z LOG for Nikon CamerasEOSHD C-LOG and Film Profiles for All Canon DSLRs

I've owned both over the last two years and the Sony wins for me due to the consistency across frame rates (Canon image line skips when in higher frame rates), the full sized HDMI and its better battery life. I don't particularly love Sony colours in general but the A7SIII image is really flexible and has loads of dynamic range. I wouldn't necessarily choose to shoot the Sony for narrative work but for the corporate work I generally do it is really capable and has been rock solid so far. 

I choose the A7SIII over the FX3 mainly due to the EVF, I recently bought an FX3 handle for cheap on Ebay and use it on the A7SIII when needed. You can buy an adapter from small rig and it works well.

 

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If you dont need to shoot longer than 30min than R5 will be good as EF lens will work fine with adapter, on APSC mode the R5 supersamples from 17MP so image will be sharper than non HQ FF 4K60P, if you want sharpest 4K then the 4K HQ is definitely nice. For me I mostly use 4K HQ now and occasionally uses 50P or 120P for broll or specific slowmo.

Also IBIS is even better after 1.6 which I can totally use handheld in replacement of gimbal on some moving shot, saves time in post or setup..

 

But if it were for me now I would probably choose either FX30 (if need 4K120P and dont need much photo) or R7 (hybrid) lol.

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Thanks, everyone, for the great replies. I'm leaning towards the A7sIII, mainly because, as Fairkid said, the 4K 120p IQ is consistent with the other framerates. If the R5 didn't line-skip in 4k 120p it would likely be the most compelling camera to me.

The gyro data recording on the Sony is a big plus in my mind, as I've used the SteadXP to very good effect, but it is a little clunky as an external system. The FX30 is not on my radar as I feel a good, built-in EVF is worth its weight in gold.

My only misgiving about the A7sIII, and most Sonys generally, is "unflattering" greenish skintones. I mostly only perceive them this way when doing A/B comparisons with other brands. Nonetheless, I guess I need to go into a shop, shoot a few skin tests and try grading them before I buy a Sony. Has anyone here found a way to make the A7sIII look as good as or better than the R5 in the skintone department? Obviously my criticisms are completely subjective and I'm curious what other opinions are out there. 

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I shoot on both Canon & Sony systems. It's a tough call and does come down to personal preference. 

I favour Canon for camera ergonomics, UI, AF (both in stills & video), colours (especially skin tones).

Lens wise, I find EF glass has more mojo (I just love my 35mm F1.4 L & 50mm F1.2 L). But I also love my Zeiss Batis primes that are more compact. RF has some amazing glass also, and even the affordable STM line is really good (I think I'll go for the 24mm & 85mm STM next). Lenses is really what ties you to a system so don't underestimate that aspect!

Now specifically when comparing A7S3 to R5, well R5 does have 45MP stills, 8K, oversampled 4K & internal RAW.

A7S3 has non oversampled 4K, only 12MP stills & a lot of NR at high ISO.. but better DR & less RS. 

The lowlight used to be where A7S series killed it but that's not the case with A7S3 since it is in fact a 48MP quad bayer sensor. Also the 1:1 4K doesn't allow super35 crop or focus breathing compensation. Bummer.

4K120p I dunno, it looks great on the R5 but haven't A/B it with A7S3. 

I think with 1.6 R5 wins on overall specs but if you really need that extra DR, super low RS & better 4K120p then it might tilt you over. Both I think are mirrorless workhorses.

Sony colours have become much much better than in previous generations but I still find myself spending way more time in Resolve adjusting footage than with Canon where I pretty much can just slap a custom LUT and it looks simply amazing. Especially skin tones. To me this is a MAJOR advantage for Canon.

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I downloaded 20gb or so of original R5 files to run through Resolve. My 3900x/6900xt couldn't handle them. I'm not eager to go back to transcoding, so I guess the A7sIII is better suited to me right now. If I had Apple silicon I would be leaning the other way. They both appear to be amazing cameras to me. Hopefully at some point I can have both. 

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21 hours ago, Owlgreen said:

The gyro data recording on the Sony is a big plus in my mind, as I've used the SteadXP to very good effect, but it is a little clunky as an external system. The FX30 is not on my radar as I feel a good, built-in EVF is worth its weight in gold.

Get an EVF as an accessory? There are decent affordable options on the market now. 

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2 hours ago, IronFilm said:

Get an EVF as an accessory? There are decent affordable options on the market now. 

I prefer not having to rig something out I don't have to. What is it about the FX30 that impresses you? Does it do anything as well or better than the FX3? Also, am I missing something about the difference between the A7sIII and FX3? To me, the former has a high-res EVF, and the latter has more exposure tools and some more robust timecode options. In that trade-off I would take the EVF. What am I missing out on by not going with the "Cinema Line"? I agree the FX6 would be almost ideal for me if it had an EVF an was a bit cheaper.

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1 hour ago, Owlgreen said:

I prefer not having to rig something out I don't have to. What is it about the FX30 that impresses you? Does it do anything as well or better than the FX3? Also, am I missing something about the difference between the A7sIII and FX3? To me, the former has a high-res EVF, and the latter has more exposure tools and some more robust timecode options. In that trade-off I would take the EVF. What am I missing out on by not going with the "Cinema Line"? I agree the FX6 would be almost ideal for me if it had an EVF an was a bit cheaper.

FX30 has a number of improvements over FX3 (oversampled 4K, double LCD resolution, focus breathing comp) but also some cons mostly on the stills side (no mechanical shutter, no drive mode). So as a hybrid FX30 isn't interesting. The best thing is the price, half that of FX3 while in the same exact body.

FX3/FX30 vs A7S3: The FX line have TC, LUT support (allowing you to bake in a custom LUT), cine EI and of course the body with mount holes, tally lights, top handle with XLRs. And active cooling so less overheating. The only tradeoff is the EVF loss.

Another option is the XH2S. You get your EVF and full photo specs. And on the video side a stacked sensor giving you great DR, low RS as well as 6.2K open gate, DCI 4K, ProRes, Film simulations etc. 

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17 hours ago, Django said:

FX3/FX30 vs A7S3: The FX line have TC, LUT support (allowing you to bake in a custom LUT), cine EI and of course the body with mount holes, tally lights, top handle with XLRs. And active cooling so less overheating. The only tradeoff is the EVF loss.

Exactly. For purely filmmaking it is an easy no brainer decision to go with FX3/FX30 over an a7 series camera. 

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I have to admit I don't know much about timecode. I read somewhere the A7sIII can connect to a mobile app to get an accurate time-of-day from GPS, so that it can then run relatively accurate time-of-day Timecode. Maybe this isn't good enough for multi-camera shoots. What is the typical protocol on multi-camera shoots these days? Everybody jam syncs to a high quality TC generator several times a day? Or does every camera on a multicam shoot have a receiver that's constantly connected to the main TC generator, either wired or wirelessly?

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You need frame accurate sync, none of the a7 bodies support that. 

  

On 10/8/2022 at 12:47 AM, Owlgreen said:

Everybody jam syncs to a high quality TC generator several times a day?

 

You're playing with fire if you don't have a TC box for each game. You don't want to rely upon the camera itself getting TC right! Nope. 

 

On 10/8/2022 at 12:47 AM, Owlgreen said:

Or does every camera on a multicam shoot have a receiver that's constantly connected to the main TC generator, either wired or wirelessly?

Some people go with wireless timecode, fed from a master clock. (such as the Timecode Systems :wave that I've got, which feeds to the TCS Ltd USOs over the :blink network) But it is more normal you'd jam sync each at the start of the day to the Master, and let them run. 

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