Sony or Canon for Photo/Cinema

[lukestechtips]

I was wondering about everyone's thoughts on the "Sony v Canon" debate. I do photo and video, and I'm wondering if it would be a good investment to switch to Sony from Canon. I've seen many YouTubers switching to Sony cameras, but I think that's primarily for video reasons. Would Sony (A7S II and the A7R II) be a good fit for photo/cinema?

 

Thanks for the help.

[shadowbyte]

What camera do you currently have?

[lukestechtips]

2 minutes ago, shadowbyte said:

What camera do you currently have?

I currently rent a 80D and the lenses that I need. I have rented a 1DX Mk II. I currently don't own a camera as I'm not sure what brand to invest in yet.

[shadowbyte]

Just now, lukestechtips said:

I currently rent a 80D and the lenses that I need. I have rented a 1DX Mk. I currently don't own a camera as I'm not sure what brand to invest in yet.

ah, alright

is this just for stills, or are you also interested in video capability?

[lukestechtips]

Just now, shadowbyte said:

ah, alright

is this just for stills, or are you also interested in video capability?

Both. 4k is ideal. 

[shadowbyte]

Just now, lukestechtips said:

Both. 4k is ideal. 

ok

I own a Panasonic G7 personally, and it's a fantastic camera for both. It weighs almost nothing, even with a mic, and has insanely long battery life. The downside to the micro 4/3 sensor is that it lets less light in than a full frame, which isn't ideal for low light shooting, but upping ISO and lowering aperture/shutter speed can compensate. By far my favorite feature of the lens mount is that it can be inexpensively adapted to fit 'vintage' lenses from older film cameras, such as the Canon AE-1, Zenit-e, and Pentax KM. I picked up a Canon FD adapter for mine for 18 dollars on Amazon, and it works flawlessly, producing fantastic images. 

some test footage I've shot at 4k with the G7

 

If you have a bit more room in your budget, then the Panasonic GH4 or GH5 are fantastic options if you don't mind micro 4/3. 

If you prefer a larger sensor, take a look at the Sony A6300. I don't have any experience with this camera personally, but from what I've seen, it's pretty good as well, and offers higher than 60fps recording below 4k.

[lukestechtips]

5 minutes ago, shadowbyte said:

ok

I own a Panasonic G7 personally, and it's a fantastic camera for both. It weighs almost nothing, even with a mic, and has insanely long battery life. The downside to the micro 4/3 sensor is that it lets less light in than a full frame, which isn't ideal for low light shooting, but upping ISO and lowering aperture/shutter speed can compensate. By far my favorite feature of the lens mount is that it can be inexpensively adapted to fit 'vintage' lenses from older film cameras, such as the Canon AE-1, Zenit-e, and Pentax KM. I picked up a Canon FD adapter for mine for 18 dollars on Amazon, and it works flawlessly, producing fantastic images. 

some test footage I've shot at 4k with the G7

 

If you have a bit more room in your budget, then the Panasonic GH4 or GH5 are fantastic options if you don't mind micro 4/3. 

If you prefer a larger sensor, take a look at the Sony A6300. I don't have any experience with this camera personally, but from what I've seen, it's pretty good as well, and offers higher than 60fps recording below 4k.

Alright, thanks.

 

Any particular reason why I shouldn't get a Sony or Canon camera? I wasn't really looking into a Panasonic camera due to my lack of experience of the brand, the limited choices of lenses and I'm not sure how reliable Panasonic cameras are. I'm leaning towards Sony cameras, but I'm not sure what the quality of photos is. 

 

I have a series of lenses picked out for both Sony and Canon and here are the bodies that I'd get if I were investing in either brand:

Sony:

a7S II

a7R II

RX100 V

 

Canon:

1DX II

5D III

S120

[cc143]

1 hour ago, lukestechtips said:

Alright, thanks.

 

Any particular reason why I shouldn't get a Sony or Canon camera? I wasn't really looking into a Panasonic camera due to my lack of experience of the brand, the limited choices of lenses and I'm not sure how reliable Panasonic cameras are. I'm leaning towards Sony cameras, but I'm not sure what the quality of photos is. 

 

I have a series of lenses picked out for both Sony and Canon and here are the bodies that I'd get if I were investing in either brand:

Sony:

a7S II

a7R II

RX100 V

 

Canon:

1DX II

5D III

S120

So you would be buying all 3 of the bodies you mentioned above for each camera system? 

 

I think you could probably do everything you need to do with the 1dx on the Canon side and probably the a7r on the sony side, provided of course you don't need a 2nd camera anyway. 

 

I personally find the Canon ecosystem to be more accommodating right now and that dual pixel AF is I hear a game changer for video. For stills, although I appreciate the merit of the high rez sony sensor, I wouldn't go past the 5d4, which would probably cover most of one's photography needs and then some. 

 

You should be able to do the work with either system, unless you need specialty lenses, e.g. i don't believe sony TSE lenses are a thing. I personally find sony glass to be more expensive than Canon and the native ecosystem limited in general, although, for video applications and with the exception of some stills scenarios, Sony have their bases covered right now. I believe Canon is a more reliable brand for the time being, and I understand there are pro support issues as well where Sony lacks. Also, if the 1dx is in the mix, you have your video needs covered and you also get stuff like dual cards, (1 of them CFast even on the 1dx), a touch interface, the aforementioned DPAF, durability and a faster stills framerate. Also, there is the entire colour science debate. 

 

But since you are obviously going for a dedicated video camera and a great stills camera with video capability, why not look at something like a c100 isntead of the 1dx? a 6d mk2 should cover any needs for stills, better even than the 5d3 probably, while also being a pretty capable b camera for video. 

 

What sort of glass do you have picked out for either system? 

[MTROB]

I recently picked up the new Canon 5D Mk iv with the c-log upgrade. Before purchasing the camera I was in the same boat, the Sony A7R ii was very attractive. However, I was already invested too much in Canon class for the switch to make sense. Either brand is going to allow you to create excellent photos and videos. If you are familiar with Canon bodies, and invested in the glass like I was, it might make sense to stick with Canon. But, if there is a certain feature you need that is only available on Sony, such as zebras or focus peaking, it might be beneficial to switch. There are pros and cons to each brand, but in my opinion the 5D with the c-log upgrade is comparable to the A7R ii, other than the fact one is a DSLR and the other mirrorless.

 

I upgraded from a 70D and in the few days I have had with the 5D I have seen a massive improvements in my photos.

 

In the end, you will be able to capture great quality images and videos with either brand. It comes down to personal preferences, and if you are already invested in an ecosystem.

[xQubeZx]

Since you are not invested in any system I'd  say the Sony system is the clear winner for your usecases. The A7rii provides high resulution stills and the A7sii provides good video and log profiles. Maybe ditch the A7sii for a A6500 however if you don't need the FF sensor as you will get sharper 4K and faster AF on that one. (Downsampled 6K video makes the 4K look better on the A6500)

 

The Sony's have a lot more video features over the Canon part and if you are willing to invest in Sony and its lenses I'd pick Sony everyday. There is only two areas where I'd maybe chose Canon instead and that is if you do sports where you need very long tele lenses or wildlife photography. The A9 will cover all the AF problems Sony cameras have had before in the sports category however there is still a lack of long teles like a 400mm. 

 

If you are wondering about IQ on the cameras well, Canon is quite obvious they produce sick images. However I'd just take a stop by Chris Burkards website (http://www.chrisburkard.com/Stills/Adventure/) and you will be sold on the image quality of the Sony cameras.

 

Really between any of these kits the photographer will be the one that makes an image/video awesome or not tbh. 

[Mihle]

If autofocus in video is important, Panasonic is not for you. Just so you know.

[jkirkcaldy]

My thoughts for someone who works in the TV industry in the UK. 

 

You need to decide which part of video/photography is more important to you as each camera has it's pros and cons for both. 

 

My general rule of thumb at the moment is that Sony are doing more, and more interesting things with video than Cannon these days. Cannon used to be the go to camera for indie filmmakers but that is less the case now. 

 

If video is more important and 4K is a must then go with either the Sony A7Sii (or panansonic GH5) these cameras a great performers when it comes to video and you just can't beat the low light performance of the A7Sii. BUT for photography the sony will perform worse than the cannons or even the A7R. It has a much smaller pixel count - which is the reason it is so good in low light as each pixel has more surface area on the sensor to capture light.  But it means your photographs are going to be much less detailed. And I think the A7R only shoots 1080p video. With the a7Sii you can also attach an external video recorder to get higher bitrate 4K recordings which would be better for editing and grading etc. 

 

 

On the other side Cannon takes fantastic photos and has a great colour science. And nearly all of it's features these days are geared towards photographs rather than video. Especially for it's higher end DSLRs as they don't want to compete with themselves. For example the C100 cinema camera is cheaper than the 5DmkIV so if they were to give the 5D 4K and other video features they would sell less of the C100s. 

 

Even when they do add 4K to their DSLRs like the 1D they do it in a way that may not be what you want. The 1D has a full frame sensor but when you shoot in 4k it shoots in cropped mode meaning you aren't using the entire sensor and you get the "zoomed in" effect with all your lenses. 

 

Speaking of which,  lenses are less of an issue today than they were previously as you can get some pretty great adaptors and can pretty much put any lens on any camera these days. But this is where you need to think seriously about the camera system you want to buy as if you buy good lenses then they will outlast any camera you decide to buy. You don't want to buy a shed load of sony lenses to decide that you want to shoot on cannon next. My recommendation is that if you are going to be spending a lot of money on a lens go with a canon L lens as they are more versatile and have way more adaptors to connect them to other camera systems. They are also compatible with most entry level as well as some higher end cinematography cameras from the C100 all the way up to REDs

 

In the end it really depends on your use case and which side of the photo/video you are going to need more. As with most things one camera is not the better than the other at all things. You need to think long and hard about what your needs are, and also what your budget is. 

 

 

Hope that helps a little.