Sony A7V review: The best overall mirrorless camera

The second big update is in ISO. I’m one of those people who will shoot up to ISO 25,000 if I need to to keep my shutter speed and aperture where I want them. This may be an old shooter’s trick, but changing the ISO always seems like a miracle to me, and that’s my favorite thing about digital photography: when it works. With the A7V, I was completely comfortable pushing the ISO up to 32000. With the noise reduction algorithms found in post-production software these days, images still look great even at these insane ISOs. And yes, I try to keep the ISO low when I can, but it’s nice to know I can go that high if I need to to get the shot.

The third upgrade isn’t so much an upgrade as a change for the better. Sony’s color science has improved significantly, especially when it comes to skin tones, which are much more true to life across the full range of skin tones in this world. The auto white balance is also noticeably better, although I’m still a fan of good old sunlight white balance 95% of the time.

Finally, a bonus thing that I loved. I always wanted to improve bird photographybut this usually requires expensive lenses and a lot of time in the field. It still requires both of those things, but with 33 MP to crop, pre-burst capture, and 33fps RAW capture… even someone like me, with almost no wildlife photography skills and only a 200mm lens, can get some pretty decent images, which was fun to experiment with.

Photography: Scott Gilbertson

The one thing that still sucks about the A7V and has sucked for every Sony camera I’ve ever used, and it’s only getting worse: the menu system. They are disorganized, confusing and difficult to navigate. The only thing that saves you here is the number of programmable hardware buttons, which let you control things the way you want without having to dive into menus. Sony, seriously, hire a UX designer and fix this problem. Better yet, steal Leica’s Menu Designer.

Is the A7V worth upgrading? Yes, if you’re coming from a camera below the A7IV. If you already own the A7IV, this is less convincing. The new features are impressive on a specs chart, but whether you need them depends on what you’re shooting.

If you’re a wildlife or sports photographer, it’s worth upgrading to get pre-capture and higher burst rates. If what you’re shooting doesn’t benefit from these features (let’s say you primarily shoot travel, landscape, street images), the A7V is a less compelling prospect. It’s incredibly good for all of these scenarios, but if you already own the A7IV, it might not be worth upgrading for a bunch of new features you won’t use.