Sony’s stunning sports camera is a gold medal winner
If you’re into sports or wildlife photography, then the Sony a9 Mark II may very well be the camera of your dreams.
If you’re into sports photography or capturing stunning wildlife images, then the Sony a9 Mark II may be the camera of your dreams. It’s an update of the a9 which came to market nearly three years ago.
The a9 II is aimed at the Canon 1D X Mk III and Nikon D6 markets, which have been the gold standard of DSLRs for sports and wildlife photography. The camera is also an attractive option for weddings, event photographers and photojournalism.
I have no doubt the Sony a9 II is targeting the Tokyo Olympics, and with both Canon and Nikon releasing their four-year cycle updates, the A9 II has thrown down the gauntlet to the two heavyweights at a competitive price.
It has a tracking system that rivals a jack russell on the trail of a rabbit — it’s the best I have witnessed. You get a 20-frames-per-second shooting rate, as well as a focus lock.
The camera is positively tiny and weighs just 678g. Such cameras normally weigh double that.
The camera body is nicely finished, with clearly engraved markings on the body and dial. The menu is intuitive. You can navigate through options quickly and easily, and you’ll be taking pin-sharp photographs almost immediately.
The in-depth menu provides fine-tuning options to target your subject. You can also add your own customisations.
The camera body feels secure due to the large grip at the front. It’s nicely balanced. However, people with larger hands may find it hard to wedge their fingers around the grip due to its closeness to the lens. I have small hands and it felt secure.
The dial at the top offers M, S, A, P, Auto, 3 customisable functions plus video, and exposure compensation. The camera has quick aperture adjustment and rapid adjustment of the ISO. You can check settings in the viewfinder. There are controls for auto-focusing and bracketing. Back button focus can be maintained independently of the shutter button.
You can try this with your current camera, if it supports this action. You also have a joystick to set the focus point, a function button, command dial, image review button and delete image button.
Instead of reviewing an image on the back monitor in strong daylight, which is hard to see, you can see it in the viewfinder and this blocks out annoying light. Brilliant!
The camera is a joy to use. Images are clear and crisp with well-saturated and natural-looking colours. Image review is quick, and the ability to zoom in to check quality is rapid and reliable. Any adjustments after shooting can be applied quickly.
Your images can have a consistent look and feel when shooting in manual by employing auto ISO to keep a constant aperture and exposure when shooting fast-moving, unpredictable subjects in varying light.
Battery life is a problem for mirrorless cameras. However, the a9 II claims up to 500 shots on one charge. This is reasonable but lags behind the major competition. The buffer size is another area Sony should address; it is listed as 128 frames in uncompressed raw images, whereas the opposition cameras are around 200 images.
Sony’s decision to use SD cards instead of faster and more reliable CFExpress cards is puzzling. CFExpress cards offer a far faster read and write speed. It’s even harder to fathom Sony’s reasoning because Sony makes CFExpress.
You should use an SD card that supports U3 Class 10 when shooting video.
The a9 II has a built-in flash, but this can be useless on a pro spec body. There’s a hot shoe, so you can choose flash units from Sony, or from a reputable third party source.
Choose a lens that takes advantage of the full capabilities of the camera’s sensor. Sony makes an extensive range of E mount lenses and you can buy them from third-party manufacturers. There is no problem matching the body with a lens to suit your passion.
This camera, while not perfect, is mind-blowing. Recommended retail price is $7299 but shop around for deals.
You can view more Ron Bonham shots at photoaction.net.au
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