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Sony A6500 compared to 7D2

Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 5:42 pm
by David Osborn
I’m in the process (sort of anyway) of convincing my myself to jump completely from Canon to Sony.
I already have the A7r3 and 100-400.
My main hang up at the moment is in respect to my 7D2,which when the sun shines and because of the crop factor i find very useful.
My question is would the A6500 be a comparable and worthwhile replacement? Better or worse on no comparison.
Hope you can help.
Thanks 
David 

Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 7:24 pm
by E.J. Peiker
It depends on what your priorities and preferences are. On the sensor front it's no contest, the a6500 blows the 7D2 away. It also has IBIS so any lens, whether native or adapted is stabilized. On the other hand it is a small camera and those with larger hands may not be as comfortable with it ergonomically. In any case, a 10,000 word article could be written to discuss various aspects between the two. Rather than doing that, if you ask specific questions on the various factors you'd like to get comparative opinions on, I'd be happy to answer them :)

Re: Sony A6500 compared to 7D2

Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 9:49 pm
by Joerg Rockenberger
David Osborn wrote:I’m in the process (sort of anyway) of convincing my myself to jump completely from Canon to Sony.
I already have the A7r3 and 100-400.
My main hang up at the moment is in respect to my 7D2,which when the sun shines and because of the crop factor i find very useful.
My question is would the A6500 be a comparable and worthwhile replacement? Better or worse on no comparison.
Hope you can help.
Thanks 
David 
What E.J. said. Also, the strategy that works best for me to answer these kind of questions is to rent the gear I am interested in...

Good luck. Joerg

Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2018 5:48 pm
by David Osborn
Thanks EJ.
That certainly made me think!
On reflection I think the following comparison points are most relevant and important to me.
AF speed and accuracy. Image quality. High iso performance and efficiency at capturing action.
I do have large hands and appreciate that in itself could potentially be a problem, but I’m sure I could overcome that with time.
Thanks in advance.
David

Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2018 6:02 pm
by E.J. Peiker
AF Speed and accuracy - Speed is comparable but it is a VERY different AF system that takes some learning how to use properly. I can help with that once you get the camera. By definition accuracy, assuming you have properly captured focus, is superior on the a6500 since you are focusing on the sensor plane rather than a remotely located AF sensor. There is no need ever to microadjust for focus accuracy.

Image quality - there's no comparison. The 7D2's 2007 era sensor is several process generations behind the Sony sensor. You will get better sharpness, better acuity and much better dynamic range.

High ISO - much better on the a6500 - the noise is more like a natural grain than pattern noise and the additional dynamic range allows you to expose farther away from the deep shadows without clipping resulting in lower noise on the final processed image. Noise and dynamic range are closely related items.

Large hands - it's a very small camera comapred to a 7D2 - best to try before you buy to see if you can get used to it. I've gotten used to it but still find a camera like the 7D2 or the D500 easier to make quick changes on the fly. But for me, IQ is paramount and I'll overcome the ergo issues.

Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2018 4:29 pm
by David Osborn
Thanks EJ.
That’s exactly what I’d hoped you’d say - So thanks and that eases my mind into changing over.
I appreciate it’s quite a small camera, but echo your comments, for me also, IQ is paramount and I’m sure I can live with the ergonomics.
I’m going to get the camera on Sunday - Yes here in the UK our top stockist which is just down the road, is actually open and the stores a lot quieter, so any advice on set up or AF would be greatly appreciated.
One final point and out of curiosity, if I used the crop factor on the A7r3, how do the files between the two Sony cameras compare?
On another note re-renting gear, that’s no longer an easy option in the Uk, very few stockists offer rental and where they do the choices are normally quite limited, often the equipment isn’t in good condition and it’s also quite expensive. In truth these days it would probably be cheaper to buy and then sell on if it wasn’t what you wanted.

Re:

Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2018 6:17 pm
by E.J. Peiker
David Osborn wrote:Thanks EJ.
That’s exactly what I’d hoped you’d say - So thanks and that eases my mind into changing over.
I appreciate it’s quite a small camera, but echo your comments, for me also, IQ is paramount and I’m sure I can live with the ergonomics.
I’m going to get the camera on Sunday - Yes here in the UK our top stockist which is just down the road, is actually open and the stores a lot quieter, so any advice on set up or AF would be greatly appreciated.
One final point and out of curiosity, if I used the crop factor on the A7r3, how do the files between the two Sony cameras compare?
On another note re-renting gear, that’s no longer an easy option in the Uk, very few stockists offer rental and where they do the choices are normally quite limited, often the equipment isn’t in good condition and it’s also quite expensive. In truth these days it would probably be cheaper to buy and then sell on if it wasn’t what you wanted.
The biggest difference is that you are only getting about 18.5 megapixels on the a7R III in crop mode.  I actually think the AF with the a6500 is a bit better on randomly moving subjects than it is on the a7R III.  On the other hand the a7R III has a newer generation sensor and has somewhat better dynamic range although the difference isn't much.

Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2018 5:31 pm
by David Osborn
Thanks again EJ. I’ll let you know as soon as I have the camera and perhaps you could pass on some help and advice on the AF system and set up.
Thanks
Regards
David

Re:

Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2018 5:37 am
by Jens Peermann
E.J. Peiker wrote:On the other hand it is a small camera and those with larger hands may not be as comfortable with it ergonomically.

This problem can be mitigated - at least - by adding a battery grip to the camera. That's what I did with my a6500 that lives as a dedicated camera on the 100-400 GM.

Re: Re:

Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2018 7:49 am
by E.J. Peiker
Jens Peermann wrote:
E.J. Peiker wrote:On the other hand it is a small camera and those with larger hands may not be as comfortable with it ergonomically.

This problem can be mitigated - at least - by adding a battery grip to the camera. That's what I did with my a6500 that lives as a dedicated camera on the 100-400 GM.
That makes the camera bigger but doesn't change button spacing and size ;)