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Sony RX100 VII
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The Sony RX100 cameras are a series of very high-end compact “Point and Shoot” cameras. They are designed for people who demands high quality stills and videos, but need the camera to be portable.
There is a saying, the best camera is the one you have on you. While that statement is meant for your phone’s camera, it also meant to say that although you might not have the best image quality, it’s still better than nothing. Now you don’t have to make that sacrifice, if you have the RX100 in your pocket!
I recently had a need to purchase the latest version of Sony RX100 (the 7th version), so I can produce some great stills from the recent Minnesota Yacht Club Festival. Most music festivals or music venues won’t allow you to bring in large cameras with lens attachments, but will make exception for “Point and Shoot” style cameras. Not all venues will allow pocket cameras, so be sure to find out what is prohibited and what is allowed to be brought into the venue.
The truth is, I’ve been looking into these pocket-sized cameras for a while now. Recently it came up when I went to A Taste of Minnesota and was somewhat disappointed in the photos coming from my iPhone 15 Pro. The image quality just wasn’t there, especially from the 5x (120mm) camera.
Now that I have been putting the Sony RX100 VII through its paces from heavy usage in the last four days, I can tell you what I think. For its small size it can produces some great images and videos… but, of course, it is not going to compare to a full-sized Sony camera. It’s not possible, because the RX100’s one-inch 20MP image sensor won’t compare to a full-frame Exmor CMOS sensor. Comparing the same photo taken at the same focal length (200mm) with the same lighting condition and same manual setting… looking closely at the faces, you do lose some details. There’s also a little more noise, but you only see these things if you look very closely at it - pulling back, the two images do look similar.
Still, what we have to work with, the smaller sensor, it is still much better than what you will find in a high-end smart phone. Also, what you will find is that the latest RX’s ZEISS Vario-Sonnar T* optical lens can reach up 200mm (with an f/4.5 at the maximum), which is sometime that most phones can’t compete with. The advantage that the iPhone and Pixel phones has over the RX is that they do post-processing of the images, make for better low-light images. I have compared images, but do not look natural or real compared to what the RX can produce.
I can go on about the camera’s capabilities, such as the “unlimited” 4k video recording, the cool pop-up view finder, the 180-degree flip touch screen (for “vlogging”), the fast real-time eye auto focus, the pop-out built-in flash is a nice feature, the mic-in jack is a must for people who need high quality audio recording, the blackout-free burst shooting (this is pretty amazing), etc. You can read all the perks on any tech specs, so instead I’ll just address some of the things I don’t like about the camera.
Auto-Focusing: The camera struggles at night time/low light. It often picks the subject closer to you - so trying to focus on the person behind was hard for me. You can play around with the AF area, I had it set to Zone and sometime Center, if I absolutely need the center subject in focus.
Price: As usual with all Sony products, you are paying a premium. Is it worth $1,300? I would say no, but since there are never sales or discounts, it’s just the price of admission. If you don’t have a need for this small, compact camera, I would say use that money to buy a full-frame entry body, such as a the a7c (which you can get for not much more).
Physical Buttons: With a smaller body, there are fewer physical buttons. I couldn’t figure out a physical way of changing the ISO, so I had to go into settings to change ISO … it’s a pain in the butt. I think Sony wants you to set it to AUTO, but that’s not for me. Changing the F can be done via the ring on the lens, I only discover that accidentally. I’m so happy Sony added that physical ring (this was absent in previous version of the RX series).
Grip: The camera is small. There is not enough room to really grip the camera. I often think I am going to drop the camera by accident. I have ordered a third-party L-mount to add a wooden bump so I can hold it with comfort, so hopefully this extension will solve the problem.
Battery: Again, you’re going to make sacrifices when the camera is so small… so the battery is tiny. If you shoot 4k video, your battery is going to be depleted very quickly. The battery will not last you a full day of shooting, so you are going to have to buy extra batteries to keep a spare with you. I also recommend carrying an extra SD card.
Micro-USB: I know the camera came out in Jun 2019, but man, I wish this camera had USB-C instead. You have to use the Micro-USB cord to charge your camera. It’s very annoying, so I recommend just buying a cheap external charger (which is one of the first thing I did with two additional batteries).
You just have to accept the limitations of a small camera. Since you can take these pocket cameras anywhere, they are perfect for taking some high-quality concert photos with a 200mm reach. Once you understand this, then the trade-off is well worth it.
There is a saying, the best camera is the one you have on you. While that statement is meant for your phone’s camera, it also meant to say that although you might not have the best image quality, it’s still better than nothing. Now you don’t have to make that sacrifice, if you have the RX100 in your pocket!
I recently had a need to purchase the latest version of Sony RX100 (the 7th version), so I can produce some great stills from the recent Minnesota Yacht Club Festival. Most music festivals or music venues won’t allow you to bring in large cameras with lens attachments, but will make exception for “Point and Shoot” style cameras. Not all venues will allow pocket cameras, so be sure to find out what is prohibited and what is allowed to be brought into the venue.
The truth is, I’ve been looking into these pocket-sized cameras for a while now. Recently it came up when I went to A Taste of Minnesota and was somewhat disappointed in the photos coming from my iPhone 15 Pro. The image quality just wasn’t there, especially from the 5x (120mm) camera.
June McDoom (A7IV vs RX100 VII)
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Still, what we have to work with, the smaller sensor, it is still much better than what you will find in a high-end smart phone. Also, what you will find is that the latest RX’s ZEISS Vario-Sonnar T* optical lens can reach up 200mm (with an f/4.5 at the maximum), which is sometime that most phones can’t compete with. The advantage that the iPhone and Pixel phones has over the RX is that they do post-processing of the images, make for better low-light images. I have compared images, but do not look natural or real compared to what the RX can produce.
I can go on about the camera’s capabilities, such as the “unlimited” 4k video recording, the cool pop-up view finder, the 180-degree flip touch screen (for “vlogging”), the fast real-time eye auto focus, the pop-out built-in flash is a nice feature, the mic-in jack is a must for people who need high quality audio recording, the blackout-free burst shooting (this is pretty amazing), etc. You can read all the perks on any tech specs, so instead I’ll just address some of the things I don’t like about the camera.
Auto-Focusing: The camera struggles at night time/low light. It often picks the subject closer to you - so trying to focus on the person behind was hard for me. You can play around with the AF area, I had it set to Zone and sometime Center, if I absolutely need the center subject in focus.
Price: As usual with all Sony products, you are paying a premium. Is it worth $1,300? I would say no, but since there are never sales or discounts, it’s just the price of admission. If you don’t have a need for this small, compact camera, I would say use that money to buy a full-frame entry body, such as a the a7c (which you can get for not much more).
Physical Buttons: With a smaller body, there are fewer physical buttons. I couldn’t figure out a physical way of changing the ISO, so I had to go into settings to change ISO … it’s a pain in the butt. I think Sony wants you to set it to AUTO, but that’s not for me. Changing the F can be done via the ring on the lens, I only discover that accidentally. I’m so happy Sony added that physical ring (this was absent in previous version of the RX series).
Grip: The camera is small. There is not enough room to really grip the camera. I often think I am going to drop the camera by accident. I have ordered a third-party L-mount to add a wooden bump so I can hold it with comfort, so hopefully this extension will solve the problem.
Battery: Again, you’re going to make sacrifices when the camera is so small… so the battery is tiny. If you shoot 4k video, your battery is going to be depleted very quickly. The battery will not last you a full day of shooting, so you are going to have to buy extra batteries to keep a spare with you. I also recommend carrying an extra SD card.
Micro-USB: I know the camera came out in Jun 2019, but man, I wish this camera had USB-C instead. You have to use the Micro-USB cord to charge your camera. It’s very annoying, so I recommend just buying a cheap external charger (which is one of the first thing I did with two additional batteries).
You just have to accept the limitations of a small camera. Since you can take these pocket cameras anywhere, they are perfect for taking some high-quality concert photos with a 200mm reach. Once you understand this, then the trade-off is well worth it.
June McDoom (A7IV vs RX100 VII)
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