Dpreview (Click here) posted the full Sony A77II review. The camera earned the Silver Award for the following reason:
The Sony a77 II is the perfect choice for those seeking pro-grade shooting and AF speeds for well-under pro-grade prices. No moving mirror means the a77 II can successfully use continuous AF during both 12fps bursts and video capture, a major advantage over many of its DSLR competitors. And in-body image stabilization helps to keep both stills and video a bit more stable than the competition. Subject tracking, one of the a77 II’s most anticipated features, is unfortunately, not very reliable. And high ISO images have a tendency to be fairly noisy. Build quality and ergonomics, however, are very good. Overall, the a77 II offers a lot of camera, for a very reasonable price.
The A77II got announced exactly one year ago at the Sony World Photography Award. And today Sony will indeed announce new cameras again…but no A-mount today?
66 Responses
What is latest word Admin?
It is a great camera!
I bet everyone would be shocked if Sony does announce an a-mount lol #justsayin 😉
Would be a nice surprise, but I’m still betting on fall.
I’m still waiting fot the A99II
I have:
A99
A77II
Today is my birthday, so please Sony behave and bring A99II!
I’m still waiting for the A99II
A99II or A7RII or A7SII
Since the camera is already one year old I wonder which standards DPR applies for this review? Those from a year ago or from today?
Some guy from DPR commented that they took into account the latest firmware since he stated the camera performed worse a year ago.
That’s just a bogus/BS excuse DP used for not reviewing a77ii
Sony released the new 2.0 firmware way back in Dec/2014. Yet, they reviewed other brands first which were released much later.
Who’s in their right mind would review a year old camera then gave points scores against newer camera? Plainly stupid.
They had to give the other brands a head start of one year, otherwise… 😉
Dpreview is very anti-Sony. Or rather, anti-Minolta/pro-Nikon and Canon, they were pro-Sony when Sony made strange and awkward hybrid Cybershots. You can trust Dpreview to wait years to review Sony, not review them at all, or find reeeaaaally strange things to complain about.
Could Sony ever overcome ALL the Negative’s of the SLT system, it has it’s limit’s and they are reached a long time ago ? that’s the answer if the A-mount will eventually survive , any idea how Sony could improve the A-mount without using SLT system ? Mirrorless in the A-mount that’s compatible with A-mount lenses and perhaps even with E-mount lenses also ? is it possible ? thanks.
This is the best camera to receive the least love from Sony (aside perhaps from the DSC-RX1). The camera received almost no advance hype from Sony, and was essentially a stillborn as far as Sony was concerned from the day it was launched. It is so much different than my a77 that to call it an “a77 Mark II” doesn’t really do it justice. That said, while it has an extremely advanced AF system, Sony initially gave little guidance as to the purpose of the many different AF settings and no guidance how to best use them for different shooting situations. I for one am still struggling to get consistent AF results, although others report much better success. If anything gives me pause about the A mount’s future, it is the obvious lack of effort made by Sony marketing to sell this as a competitive offering. The lack of a comprehensible manual is more typical Sony behavior.
To me it seems like this camera(prototype) has already been in the pipe when sony decided to reduce SLT efforts and then just released it to cover the development costs.
That seems reasonable. I’m not married to SLT though I think its gets a bum rap. The loss of light is nominal and I actually much prefer an EVF to an optical. Sony’s EVFs have been outstanding on all of the Sonys that I own. I love technological advances, but like most photographers, I am all about the IQ, and would like to see Sony set the world on fire with a high IQ, full frame, a mount. I remember the buzz when they came up with the a900 and its full frame sensor and 24.6 MP. I think a new full frame a mount is coming, I think its going to be big, and no one outside of the Corporation has any idea what they are up to. So long live a mount, in whatever form.
I totally agree. There seems to be an SLT-phobia but it absolutely holds up to traditional DSLRs and even surpasses in situations where vibration needs to be kept to minimum. If a user can’t make a great image with one of Sony’s SLT cameras, the problem isn’t the camera!
BrianK, did any of the settings I gave you help at all?
They absolutely did DW, thanks!. Two lingering issues. I want to reliably determine the AF’s starting point. Even in zone it is jumping on targets I don’t want. Mostly a problem in team sports (like soccer) where there may be multiple players in view, but also sometimes grabbing at patterns like a net or a fence instead of a player. And I want it to more reliably stay on my target point instead of jumping away to something apparently more attractive to the algorithm. As far as my own style, I am going to make more effective use of the range limiter and give up on some of those really far shots that are rarely up to snuff anyway given sensor and lens capability. That will probably help some with the second issue. Lock on center may help the first issue.
Brian, that so good to hear!
A few things:
I definitely would NOT use Zone for soccer. Zone is made to prioritize depth tracking for on-coming subjects: cars, cyclists, runners, bikers, etc.
Also, I think I said to turn on E Front Curtain Shutter, I would actually turn that back on unless your shooting faster than 1/2000 as it increases shutter response speed and those weird ghosting artifacts & I have noticed those artifacts as much under 1/2000.
Last but not least, definitely experiment a lot with AF Tracking Duration. If you want it to really stick to one player, keep it on 2 or even 1. As long as I get a good initial focus lock, it works pretty good.
Lock-on AF: Center may work better depending on your shoot style. They definitely gave us no shortage of options, that’s for sure!
I’ll put those suggestions in place this weekend. I’m not sure if I have seen “weird ghosting artifacts.” I am experiencing some strange artifacts on the long end of my SAL20400G2 at 1/1000. Faces look mushy and some of the backgrounds remind me of Van Gogh’s “The Starry Night.” Not sure what to attribute those to. It may be my imagination, but i think that issue is showing up in relatively sunnier, warmer weather but I don’t think its heat shimmer, its much more pronounced.
That could be the E-Front Curtain Shutter, but I totally had that effect shooting at 300mm at 1/8000 w/E-Front Curtain Shutter “Off”. Try turning SteadyShot off — image stabilization can cause weird artifacts:
https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/solved-me-thinks-strange-bokeh-on-new-nikon-70-300mm-vr.232865/
Good thought. I will try that too.
Seeing how lackluster Sony’s advances in the A-Mount APS-C field are, I’m not altogether devastated now that I didn’t choose A-Mount as the replacement for the Four Thirds equipment with which I used to be sometimes a bit frustrated, but mostly happy through the last ten years, and went to an Olympus E-M1 instead, which may even have better low-light capabilities than this new Alpha SLT.
I have FE, A mount and Olympus. I use the Olympus the most.
Same, though I use the Olympus the least.
Yeah, I got this weird thing for M43. I thought it would be over by now. I’m waiting for an A7 series camera that does it for me.
It doesn’t.
I think it does. As I see it, from ISO 6400 on upwards, the E-M1 shows less noise and retains more detail in 16 MP than the A77II manages to retain in 24 MP. (Source: dpreview comparison tool.)
Whatever you want to believe.
Well, take and A7II and the LEA4 adapter, and you have already a system that is going in that direction. Still SLT in the adapter, but already fully compatible with all E and A mount lenses and with IBIS. Sony should also offer an E2A adapter with the autofocus unit of the A77II or A99, because the unit in the LEA4 is limited.
There are several issues they need to address more than just releasing a new adapter with A77II af module.
The only way I see Sony improving the SLT concept is by using a moving mirror mechanism. How is this a good idea? You would still benefit from having LiveView with tracking if you want to (for high FPS tasks), but if you need single shot, single AF tasks, or low fpsAF-C operation (3fps) the camera gives you the option to move the mirror away from the light path.
How is this a bad idea? Seeing how the mirror is so fragile, they would need to make a very strong frame and mirror capable of withstanding continuous operation of at least at 3fps to make it a good feature.
That way, you have all the benefits of the SLT concept (12fps), but if you don’t need speed, and you want the best ISO performance, you can move the mirror move away and enjoy A850-like AF-C performance (3fps). EVF is here to stay.
No A-mount today?
Sony sucks at A-mount front. If no a99ii, atleast an a88 to be presented in the meanwhile.
4 or 5 A-mount bodies would make A-mount lenses viable.
Sony must have done a great job of locking down their leaks lately. Maybe they hired someone from Apple Security Division. I can’t believe that there are no leaks on today announcements, even 3 or 4 hours before the actual announcement.
Sony need to work on their image, I believe it’s the main thing holding them back. I think they should have kept the Minolta name and built on that, at least the brand had some credible history beyond walkmans. This looks like an amateur camera and it says Sony on it. Pro’s don’t buy it because it looks, to their clients, like they are cutting corners, going with the cheaper option. Unfortunately that is enough for people to lose confidence and go with Canon or Nikon instead. This stuff, unfortunately really does matter and they have a lot of work to do if they want to get up there.
Bad AF tracking? Is it true or they are BSing? I never used it, but i heard it was made for fast reliable tracking, many said it beats 7D mkII. Anyone with experience with A77II?
Nikola, it does beat 7D Mark II and the Lock-on AF tracking works beautifully, but like all sports AF systems, they ONLY work great when you set it to the right mode for your subject.
The reviewer did a lot of things completely wrong. For example, he shot a still focus target in AF-C Lock-on AF mode. First of all, doesn’t everyone know to shoot a still target in AF-S? Secondly, the algorithm for Lock-on AF is specifically looking for motion so this is going to confuse the camera. Additionally, his AF Track Duration should have been dialed back to “1” and I assume he left it on “3”.
Furthermore, the cyclist riding towards him should have been shot using AF Area: “Zone” — this mode is specifically designed for on-coming motion. Great for cars, cyclists, runners, etc.
The basketball game should have been shot in Continuous Priority 12 FPS in AF Area “Wide” or “Lock-on AF: Expand Flexible Spot” and he should have turned Smile/Face Detection “Off” to avoid confusing the sensor.
Again my experience, when used correctly, I get an average hit rate of 80%+. The problem is so many users keep setting the wrong mode for their subject.
The AF Settings Guide is here if you want to check it out yourself:
http://www.sony.net/Products/di/common/images/products/g2sw/ILCA-77M2_4DFOCUS_Camera_Settings_Guide.pdf
Quote: A77mk2 AF performance:
“it certainly subject tracks better than a 5D Mark III, which has little understanding of the subject other than the depth it was initially at and has no face detection AF at all, and even slightly better than the 7D Mark II’s ‘Intelligent Tracking and Recognition’ (iTR). ”
So the A77ii’s AF is not so bad 🙂
And every time someone states this fact in the comments they refer to all the awards Sony cams get.
Well duh. Sony gets just as many rewards as other brands. While they took a long time to review the a77ii, other Sony reviews have been very quick. For example, they did the a7ii review immediately.
There is zero evidence of this so-called bias. Just fanboys screaming, “dpreview must be biased, because they don’t think every camera from Sony is the greatest in the history of the world.”
If you go to Canon forums, you get fanboys saying that dpreview is biased against Canon and in favor of Sony. They moan that how dare dpreview only give the 7dii a silver. Nikon fanboys complain dpreview is biased against them, they complain about how delayed the reviews are on some of their cameras. Etc.
LOL – exactly my thoughts
LOL. Exactly.
In my own experience, the percentage of customers who are thinking about camera brands like you say, is very very small. Most customers give a f*ck about what camera brand you use. They just want results. They are almost entirely concentrated on their products and their campaign.
It is absolutely no issue that your equipment says Sony on the front. Professional cinematographers and broadcasters massively buy an use Sony gear for big budget productions because this gear is better than others for their needs. Professional photographers do NOT buy and use Sony gear because there is other gear (Nikon, Canon, Pentax, Sinar, Leaf…) that is better for their needs. That is my own experience from working professionally for 15 years.
I absolutely agree, that they should have kept the Minolta brand. But like i said, this would only matter in the consumer market.
It is no problem in the pro bradcasting/cinamatography market, and it would be also no problem in the pro photography market if the Minolta/Sony system were a good choice for pros (which it isn’t).
Sorry, but I can’t detect any of that. I do trust DPreview pretty much. However, like with all reviews, they are subjective and may be influenced. That means you always have to use your own brain and your own experience too.
Shooting with A65 and want to upgrade only the A77II IQ isn’t much better than A65 at base ISO. Don’t much care for a Swiss army knife just want a great photocamera. Currently processing RAW files of both A77ii and D7200 anf the D7200 mops the floor of the A77ii in IQ In all ISOs.
On paper the A77ii is a real nice camera, despite the fact that I don’t like the EVF (compared to an bright SLR OVF). But there is a reason why the D7100 sells like hotcakes and the A77ii does not.
I used to like OVF until I realized it was holding me back.
Personally I prefer to see what the sensor will see so I could make adjustments and see the effect real time before I take the shot. Never do I have to check the image after taking the shot. It’s also far more helpful when shooting at night or using manual focus.
Also having the ability to see all my settings, histogram, grid, and balance leveling in the EVF is icing on the cake. The only drawback is studio shooting but it just took a little getting used to.
The D7200 is flat out a better photocamera with wider dynamic range and cleaner IQ(this from personally editing the RAW). Bumping the shadows is actually a pleasure where as with Sony and Canon you know it’s going to become crap quickly if pushed to far. Sony only fairs a better in the regard in FF. Canon FF or crop is crap….to me.
Brand name alone will make up about 30% of the D7200 sales another 50% is due to established lens investment. 20% will be for thos who are chasing the horizon that is best image quality.
The A77ii is meant to compete with the D7100 and 70D
I do not dislike EVFs because of all these functions. I like these. The reason I dislike EVFs is, that I get headches from the lag (especially in low light) and the still low res, pixelated image (compared to an OVF).
This I completely agree with.
Pixel density simply isn’t there yet. Next is refresh rate. This is a limit due to pixel density, read time, buffer and processing speed. And with all that it’s also affected by the amount of light hitting the sensor. One simply can’t side step physics. Nor can our eyes but what we do to compensate is our brains fill in the gaps and compensate for the limitations of our eyes.
I also would get a headache with extended EVF use in dark conditions. I like Fuji’s hybrid solution nd wish Sony would give it a try.
Not disagreeing with your sales figures, but your conclusion as to the causal relationship is questionable. Nikon (and Canon) are name brands when it comes to cameras. Sony lacks their cachet. That is why every soccer mom (and dad) I see has either a Canon or Nikon around their neck, set to auto mode, with an attached kit lens.
Please explain “wipes the floor”…those words don’t compute.
At base ISO the D7200 has a noted cleaner output and wider dynamic range when boosting shadows and recovering highlights. I never shoot JPG only in RAW and most of what I shoot is stock images of landscapes. With that clean smooth shades is my aim when editing my files. The D7200 has cleaner output with less grain in solid shades than the A77ii.
In higher ISO the D7200 is notably cleaner with far less color noise and is still able to push shadows higher with cleaner results than with the A77ii. This isn’t personal preference as I’m currently editing RAW files from both cameras side by side in ACR and am stating an observation.
Another reason that may explain the cleaner output could be due to the fact that Nikon. Is at 14 bit RAW. It makes for larger files and more for a cameras CPU to chew through but the end result is better. Sony on the other hand is at a lower bit rate thus smaller files, hence is always able to out shoot the Nikon in burst rate less to chew through.
Don’t get me wrong I prefer shooting with Sony but in this regard DP nailed it’s review of its IQ especially when compared to one generation ahead D7200 which is unfair of them. They should have compared it to the D7100. I. That Comparison I could tell you first hand that the two are neck and neck with D7100 slightly and I mean SLIGHTLY edging out over the A77ii.
We shouldn’t expect a replacement for A99 until September at the earliest.
The test generally shows what was known for the long time: that AF tracking is a crap. This is no surprise to anyone who ever tried to use it in real life situations like concert or gym with artificial lighting. What I’m surprised is how they praise AF-C – my experience is that AF-C most of the time is a crap too, and the only way to have a reliable AF operation is to stick to AF-S and central cross. That’s the way of operation I’m accustomed to, and I really don’t have high hopes that Sony would ever made it any better. It would be fantastic if they did, but I’ve learnt to live with the way it is and I don’t count on them. But still 95% of shots perfectly in focus with AF-S/central cross is better than 90% with AF-C and/or tracking, so as long the performance with AF-C is worse the old habits will win.
I’m a full time professional sports photographer and have had quite the opposite results. I find the tracking is incredible at this price point, BUT you have to be set to the correct mode optimized for your subject. For instance, I had AF Area set to “Lock-on AF: Expand Flexible Spot” for pro cycling and it was a disaster. The correct mode for fast on-coming subjects (cyclists, bikers, cars, runner) is AF Area “Zone” with AF Tracking Duration set really sticky to “2”. When I change my settings, my hit rate jumped from 40% to 82%. Also, when shooting sports, Smile/Face Detection should almost always be “Off”. If you’re shooting soccer, you should be in AF-C with AF Area set to “Wide” or the “Lock-on AF: Expand flexible spot.” If shooting in the “Expand flexible spot” mode you need to make sure that you have the right spot selected to focus on and that you correctly lock on your subject before you fully press the shutter.
Read the AF Settings Guide again:
http://www.sony.net/Products/di/common/images/products/g2sw/ILCA-77M2_4DFOCUS_Camera_Settings_Guide.pdf
my experience comes from the use of a99, not a77II, so maybe I should’ve indicated that in the first place, nevertheless it is more than less consistent with the findings of dpreview about a77II so I’m not surprised with them. That being said, I have no interest in APSC A-mount,but that is great that you find it useful. Hopefully A99II will positively surprise me in this matter too.
I use A99 too and find AF-D blows A77II tracking away but ONLY when your subject remains in the AF array. For sports, this means shooting in Tele Crop 8 FPS APS-C Mode and throwing away 1/2 your resolution — which is why I prefer using A77II for sports this point in time. If they can update AF-D for the next amount camera so they have 98% sensor PDAF coverage like A6000, and the dedicated module to be and updated version of A77II PDAF module with more cross points it would be unstoppable!
“Side-note – a lot of people think ‘reflex’ in ‘Single Lens Reflex’ refers to a reflexive movement (of the mirror) but this is false. In this context it means reflection so a camera like the A77 with a non-moving mirror is still technically an SLR.”
YESS!! THANK YOU DPREVIEW!!
It misses the part concerning the performance letting us know how long the bufer last
This camera would be great to get for some African safari trips with Tamron 150-600 lens. Can you imagine? 270-960mm reach with IBIS and 12 frames/sec? WOW!
I own the A77II since last August and at the beginning I had some problems as they described in their article. I played a lot with the paramters and the settings and in March I was at an ice dancing show kind of like “art ion ice” event and shot 1150 pix with the A77II and the 300mm/f2.8. I started out with two full batteries in the vertical grip and at the end I had one empty and in the other 18% left. In 50% of the time, there were smaller or bigger groups of ice skaters on the ice and the light was not that great, I had to use ISO1600 to get a short enogh shutter time. I used the continous shooting Hi (8Pix/sec) and subject tracking with lock on focus and in about 1020 pix the focus was right on spot. In 95 pix the focus was on the wrong subject or the background and in 35 pix the focus was off, that gives me still a success rate of just over 88%. The focus right on spot in close to 90% of the cases might not be good enough for you, but I am satisfied with the performance of the camera (especially whan you look at hte price tag) and do not agree a 100% with the article but you have to try yourself and form your own opinion.
Yeah, I rented it for a few days and had zero problems with nailing focus on pretty much anything. I didn’t do sports though, but I shot a wedding with it and some outdoor wildlife. Sweet camera.
I hope the next one is even faster. We should be able to get 20FPS at this point. Sure, it’ll have to be locked aperture but I’m ok with that. Put a buffer for the buffer in there. I have a need for speed.