For this portrait photoshoot, I am using the Sony A7ii mirrorless camera body and the Canon 5Dmkiii DSLR. My current camera body that I use for all my photography work is the Canon 5D mk3, which I upgraded from the Canon 5Dmkii. While I love using my Canon camera, I am also very interested in the world of mirrorless cameras. Specifically the mirrorless cameras Sony has to offer.

I borrowed this Sony A7ii from a friend to test it out on the field, side by side with my workhorse camera. The 2 lenses I have with me include the EF Canon 50mm f1.2L and the EF Canon 35mm f1.4 mk1. Throughout the photoshoot, I switch my lenses around on both cameras.

There are a few things that interest me about mirrorless camera bodies. First and foremost, as a wedding photographer who shoots anywhere between 8-16 hours a day size and weight is very important to me. I am usually pretty sore the day after shooting a complete wedding day. The health of my neck, back and body are obviously something important to me. If I can shave off any weight from the camera equipment I use to shoot these weddings, without having to compromise on quality - then I am interested! The Sony A7ii is a significantly smaller and lighter camera body to the Canon 5D series.

The next thing I am interested in with mirrorless cameras is their autofocusing abilities. The Sony A7ii only has face detection, but even that made a difference in my focus accuracy. I am now a full time Sony shooter using the Sony A7iii as my main camera body. The eye-AF on that camera is fantastic. It allows me to capture shots with ease, I can spend more time talking and directing my client to get them comfortable in front of my camera. I also have a much better in-focus ratio. So I end up shooting less but have more photos to choose from.

The Sony A7ii is the first mirrorless camera body that could start convincing me to switch the mirrorless. There are a few downfalls with the A7ii that made me hesitant at first. The batteries on the A7ii don't last long, so you need a large collection of them if you are shooting for long hours. The autofocus is getting there, but isn't quite perfect yet. Lastly, something that everyone likes to talk about - colour rendition isn't quite there yet either. I don't think the Sony A7ii raw files look bad by any means, but Sony didn't get their colour rendition right until the Sony A7iii. I find that it takes me a little more tweaking and time to post process the A7ii files.

Watch the video below to see what it was like using both these cameras at a portrait photoshoot! I share my thoughts on the Sony A7ii and how it compares to my Canon 5Dmkiii. With my final images I shared below, you can't really tell the difference between each file. I have selected a few photos from the shoot that look similar and noted which camera it was taken with below.

Also, a big thank you to the amazing team I worked with on this photoshoot:

model  Jax

makeup  Lidija J

swimwear  TJ Swim

video  Dan @ I Make Films

Check them all out on Instagram! 
 

All photos are edited with my Amalfi Lightroom Preset!

All photos edited with my Amalfi Lightroom Preset!

If you enjoyed this blog post, you might want to check out my other portrait photoshoot on the Sony A7ii in a grassy, park location.