any wedding videographers using a7riii cameras or have used them?

R

rocketman122

Active member
so looking to buy a a7riii for video work as a gimbal camera. whats its max iso youd suggest to use with it?

so saw this video comparing side by side a7iii and a7riii with the exact same gear. a7riii no crop in 4k, seems to be sharper too in 4k, very sharp in S35. I think its max decent amount is 6400. riii took a split second longer to lock focus but overall between them, not so much difference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5IQLQcRnIM&t=1s


this video shows comparisons between them all. color on a7riii seems to get more flatter and needs a little boost in saturation, but overall I think the camera can still deliver super relevant video and quality. guy also says around 6400, I think good glass will help the grain look better. some lighting as supplement when needed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-sJnw8A69I
 
I once shot a wedding with an a73 and a7r3. besides the R having a higher resolution sensor and lcd/view finder they were close to identical.
 
Why this model? (Just wondering because for a bit more money you could get a really much better Sony camera for video work...pretty much everything has drastically improved in them since the III).

Maybe you'd like stills too?
 
Ironically, I remember you once asking about the a7III but you didn't buy it yet...you were just on a budget and possibly interested in adding a mirrorless to accompany your camcorders for theater work or something like that, IIRC.
 
A friend of mine let me borrow A73 to film a wedding but I found I didn't like the stress and long hours so I opted not to buy the camera despite liking it. Shortly after the pandemic came where I was more concerned with paying my bills and surviving. I occasionally get the desire to buy a mirrorless camera but on the whole it was a good financial decision not to get one. I use camcorders which are better for theater events and they good enough for interviews.
 
I have an a7riii client (a dance photographer who also makes videos). I've shot with her dozens of times over the past 6 years. She uses 2 a7riiis and an a7sii. Pretty obvious differences - a7riii is sharper, a7siì better in low light. I've never noticed any real problems from shooting video with the a7riii. If you want to nitpick, there is better processing and codecs on newer models. But there's no reason you can't get good results with an a7riii. I'm not sure where I'd max out on ISO, but that's easy to test for yourself
 
I still have fun testing lenses out with my original A7S and from what I understand, aside from better processing in newer models, the 8-bit models haven't gotten too far away from each other. The A7S III is the big improvement with 10-bit and RAW output and, I feel, is what the A7S II should have been and should have been released a lot sooner than it was, however, remember that whole features have been filmed with the A7S II despite the 8-bit limitation so the A7R series wouldn't be too far off (at least for 4K with the A7R II and beyond). The limit of ISO I would use would be ISO 3200 but for events or family stuff when I need to push it, I'd be fine with ISO 6400 but even with my A7S I wouldn't go past that. Only with newer models like the A7S III, FX3, or FX6 would I push it to ISO 12800 as the upper limit and that's just because the far better processing has made that much more usable.
 
you are all very helpful and I appreciate it

I didnt buy it yet. im waiting for around christmas time when there is less work and people may want to upgrade and sell theirs at a good price. summer, prices are always high and in demand. less in winter. lenses are a bigger problem, as I have a list of a few and not sure what to go with.

I wanted the a7riii over the a7iii for better lcd/evf ,sharper 4k, shutter durability and to do crop mode stills at 18mp. with sigma 18-35 1.8 art lens. also dual card video recording and out of all the cameras available and in my budget, the only ones were the a7iii, and a7riii. anything above is too much money and older gen isnt good for dual card recording. it was the only 2 options available. the a7riii is perfect, except the smaller photsites which means more grain. if I can work within its limitation of that, it will give me all I need for good video work.

pandemic really hit me and even though lockdowns are no longer, everytime there was a wave, there were tons of cancelations for weddings. I am really hurt from this. I had to take a security job at night at some times of the pandemic as there werent many essential jobs available.

I have to start somehwere. its not just the camera but a new system with lenses. I would have loved to be with nikon z but no dual video recording and lethargic AF system. its not as good as sony. I dont like the small sony body, the way it looks, the fact they have a huge area on top of the body they could have moved dials there and add a small lcd screen instead. I would have gone to panasonic but dang, their af is bad for gimbal work. so no options. I was basically pushed into 1 choice.

I know that everyone has some judgement when youre asked what gear you use and you say you have an older gen camera. some kind of snobbery of old gear and admiration if you have new gear

but I feel the a7riii can do good work still today. Im not sure I will stay with sony if nikon puts out a z6mk3 that can do great video work and dual card video recording. they have fallen asleep at the wheel. making way too many mistakes too. they completely stopped pushing for video. when your most expensive flagship dslr camera does softer video then your cheapest dslr apsc camera, you messed up big time.

I plan to be a 2nd shooter. over here (to the east of the usa) 2nd shooter for weddings comes at 630pm and stays till around 2am. I have start somewhere.

my bigger issue is lenses and what to choose. go cheap with a zoom like the new tamron 20-40 2.8 and a 2nd lens like sigma 65 f/2 or just primes 20/35/65 setup
 
yes, but way too slow and way out of budget for the vast majority and the size is problematic. and for the price it must have it all. using one on a gimbal is hell. their d3s/d4/d4s and even d5 were horrible with video. but all people want for weddings is 4k 60p because for weddings, no one is shooting more and not every computer can handle it. mostly were shooting 1080p for weddings. and one doesnt have to spend so much to get a great camera that does excellent video and stills. no other camera at a $3000 price that does it. z6ii ? it doesnt record to both cards video. 2017, sony released the a7riii that did that...they could have released the z6ii to do that. but no, they didnt. eye tracking is still not great in video mode like sony. 2022 and no dual card video recording is not good.

they are still asleep in my book. it took them far too long to implement things that were already out with other mfr and now you have to wait and see IF it will even come to the next gen camera. they have failed in many ways though. I love nikon for their stills (mostly) but for video, they are a HUGE fail. and this is funny because they had mirrorless even before sony released the a7 cameras.
nikon has made a lot of mistakes on the way. d600 oil on shutter, d750 shutter recall, d800 af area issues, sb900 overheating, 300mm pf vr recall. z6/7 no 2nd slot, no battery grip (theyve confirmed it was a mistake on their part. they misjudged the market)

. remember the DF camera? they put out teaser after teaser, that got so many people excited on nikon rumors..everyone was waiting, the suspense and getting so excited. d4 sensor in a smaller body. then they dropped the specs and price and immediately, everyone went limp and forgot it existed. this is nikon. no video inside and garbage d600 AF system. you put a low light monster sensor inside but an af system that cant handle it..and no video? cmon...asleep as they were.

I love my d780 for stills and video im pleased with it, but its lacking for video.
 
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In general, I would agree about Nikon...took too long and mostly failed with video after the D750 (different world back then). The Z9 is hot right now so maybe things will change moving forward.

As far as dual-card recording, it's not really a priority for most people using those kind of hybrid cameras so it doesn't make it on top of the feature list in development. It's obviously great to have, but many will use small recorders when they need to if it means they can get better AF or better IBIS, or higher framerates or more resolution.

5 lbs on a gimbal...heaven...compared to 20-30lb cameras on a steadicam. lol

___

FWIW, if you don't need 4K/60p (and you don't expect the pixel-binned 1080/60p to be good from the a7RIII) and you're okay with Sony's color, it is an excellent camera for its used price. The 8-bit never bothered me much, especially if you're not heavily manipulating the footage, because the sensor is sharp and you can get great results from it with tweaked picture profiles.

The E-mount is the best mount you can use if you're on a budget. Incredible glass from every direction, but keep in mind that Sony glass might work best with its older AF system.
 
rocketman122 said:
my bigger issue is lenses and what to choose. go cheap with a zoom like the new tamron 20-40 2.8 and a 2nd lens like sigma 65 f/2 or just primes 20/35/65 setup
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samyang v-af primes. or their tiny series primes (same optics) for even less money. (also, only one samyang v-af has been released so far. they will release the others over the course of the next year)

https://www.cined.com/samyang-v-af-t...F%20features,9.

but you probably also need to worry about something like a 70-200 for ceremony and toasts coverage. or at least a 135. I think samyang v-af will only go to 75

I really like my tamron 70-180, which is around $1k.

so that's my recommendation - the tamron 70-180 + whichever samyang v-af primes you want, could even just be 20 and 45 since you have tamron at 70 (20mm, 24mm, 35mm, 45mm, and 75mm)

(I shoot a lot of weddings and I rarely go wider than 35mm these days. you could even just get a 35mm samyang and the tamron 70-180)
 
thanks for the feedback NorBro

in our country, its the stills photographer that also closes video as a complete package to couples. I wont get into it too much. the usa, you close video and stills seperately, but not here.

but there is pressure from them who give people work that they want FF cameras and a strong preference for sony. I dont like the sony colors myself but this is whats asked. im buying it only because if I say im using a d780 as a main video camera, everyone would laugh and say come back when you have competent cameras. there is a lot hype and psychology that sony are the best. and even using a sony camera, there is preference that you have the newest a74 or a7siii or even fx3 and such. as if the a7iii is old school that has somehow stopped being competent to do good wedding video. and lets not mention a7riii.
 
ahalpert said:
samyang v-af primes. or their tiny series primes (same optics) for even less money. (also, only one samyang v-af has been released so far. they will release the others over the course of the next year)

https://www.cined.com/samyang-v-af-t...F%20features,9.

but you probably also need to worry about something like a 70-200 for ceremony and toasts coverage. or at least a 135. I think samyang v-af will only go to 75

I really like my tamron 70-180, which is around $1k.

so that's my recommendation - the tamron 70-180 + whichever samyang v-af primes you want, could even just be 20 and 45 since you have tamron at 70 (20mm, 24mm, 35mm, 45mm, and 75mm)

(I shoot a lot of weddings and I rarely go wider than 35mm these days. you could even just get a 35mm samyang and the tamron 70-180)
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great info and thank you for the heads up. im waiting a bit before assembling the gear I need so will wait to see how these samyang lenses are. our ceremonies here in my country start around 9pm and video guys dont use 70-200, let alone own one. I, as a stills photog, use it for reach but for video, the max ive seen used is 85. one video guy usually. 1 camera on tripod with wa lens. around 20 from what I saw. and 1 on gimbal , 35mm for part of the ceremony, then handheld with 85mm sniping. our weddings are usually at least 250+ people and the dance floor gets crazy packed. so while I really love 24 over 20, I have no choice since it can get dense and ill need the 20. video guy I spoke to yesterday in wedding I shot, says he has a spare brand new unused sony 35 1.8 for sale. maybe will get that. but I will do my buying in the winter when there is less work and people are willing to sell for a bit lower. if it were only a nikon camera I needed to buy but its also lenses. Im going to be a 2nd shooter at weddings which means coming at 6pm and stay till 2pm, and I only need 1 camera and mostly wide. 1 shots gimbal and 20-35mm shots all the wedding, and one does special shots like 50/85. do you ever use monopod for shots? spoke to video guy and says he just does handheld shots or gimbal
and do you turn OSS off completely and just stabilize in post?
 
rocketman122 said:
thanks for the feedback NorBro

in our country, its the stills photographer that also closes video as a complete package to couples. I wont get into it too much. the usa, you close video and stills seperately, but not here.

but there is pressure from them who give people work that they want FF cameras and a strong preference for sony. I dont like the sony colors myself but this is whats asked. im buying it only because if I say im using a d780 as a main video camera, everyone would laugh and say come back when you have competent cameras. there is a lot hype and psychology that sony are the best. and even using a sony camera, there is preference that you have the newest a74 or a7siii or even fx3 and such. as if the a7iii is old school that has somehow stopped being competent to do good wedding video. and lets not mention a7riii.
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People will always want the latest and the greatest, in the USA or not in the USA. It's natural to want new things, it's in our nature. And it's only going to get more like that with YouTube's influence and more enlightenment.

I chased resolution and high-framerates most of my career. I was obsessed with having the latest and the greatest, and the thought of owning and using an older camera from yesteryear was forbidden. It disgusted me.

Life is funny in that now about 15 years later I'm using an Alexa Classic (which is going on 13 years since its introduction) shooting only in 2K and I can't get enough of it. I did try to sell it a few times so I can buy an AMIRA (pretty much the same camera) but just can't find a good price on it.

And as much of an absolute PITA it is to use, I don't see myself using non-ARRI cameras moving forward, it would be really difficult.
 
I dont mind that we want newer things. my problem is the hype of a new product that it all of a sudden makes the older gen product irrelevant and absolutely garbage and "thank goodness for this new one. how did we suffer for so long for such a crap product. this new one is the best thing since sliced bread. shame on X for even selling this old one" and there is a judgment of others when they use or own an older product. I have a few cameras I use in weddings. D4s, D750 and D780. with the d750 being made in 2015, I can tell you the difference between it and the d780 is very slight. af is only a bit better. but you could shoot a full wedding with the d750 and put out stellar images. I prefer the d4s for low light and the colors better though but it still does fabulous pictures. the increase between gens are not significant. I also feel the mfr do this on purpose. they dont make large jumps so to keep people hooked chasing after the next best thing because if they put everything needed into it, people wouldnt upgrade as often.
 
Hype is part of the business, life; it has to exist, especially on YouTube where it's part of everyone's existence (those who deal with products). You have to be a character, you want views/subs. Hype can be very good and bad for different reasons. (It's bad when it affects someone's career because their work's decision-makers keep asking for different cameras.)

The stills/video hybrids have had small changes for video for about 10 years until about 2018 (so you're right about that), and the main Japanese manufactures milked the cameras for as long as they could until the world changed.

It's only in the last 3-4 years much better cameras came with a more modern look because of better processing, pixels, colors, more resolution being used for the final recording, better specs/codecs/formats/HFRs, better lenses, everything. The cameras still spread their features around and you get to pick what you need and their hope is that you may need another feature so you jump ship and buy something else and then new releases force you to jump somewhere else again (it's a business model that has been around since the beginning of time in its simplest form; control the products so you can control consumers), but the hardware is SO much better in every single way possible than it was just 5-6 years ago for these kind of cameras.

Just wondering, why not the a7IV? I know you might save $1000 or more but that camera is so much better than the a7RIII for video and it's no slouch with stills either. Sometimes paying "a bit" more now will save you money in the future.
 
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