Is the Sony A7SIII good for photography too? (+ a POV street photography session)

[@BenjaminVasquez]

YOU JUST SAVED MY LIFE! I'VE BEEN SEARCHING FOR A VIDEO LIKE THIS AND DUDE I OWE YOU ONE, REALLY... MUCH LOVE FROM THE PHILIPPINES! Been having a dilemma whether to get an rIV or sIII for social media purposes only, I'ma get the sIII for its ergo, photo and most importantly, its outstanding video features. Keep it up man! You deserve a sub.

[@uphdennyalexander]

Should i consider to buy a7r5 or a7s3?

[@greasyflight6609]

@@uphdennyalexander a7RV...I guess... A7S III is my Camera...it just works

[@makatron]

I did a ton of gigs with my d3s, d700, and d90 back in the day and the 12mp doesn't really limits me.

[@bigfishstudio2575]

That's a fact.. What was your biggest print size?

[@foljs5858]

@@bigfishstudio2575 You can do a fine A3 with 12mp

[@greasyflight6609]

Paired with the A7R V (waiting) the Sony A7S III is a perfect compliment. If you want one body with great video specs and 33MP the Sony A7 IV is all you may need and very reasonably priced. Thank you for the review.

[@smilinkylen5621]

One of the best dslrs i ever shot on (at the time) was only like 11mp, and was canons top dog. The images had SO much more juice (color saturation, dynamic range) and they literally just popped out of the camera. Having larger pixels is a HUGE blessing, it literallly absorbs more of lights true essence. It makes for an image thats not the sharpest ever but has an unexplainable magic to it.

[@joetrujillo639]

Thank you for this, it was very helpful. I'm planing on getting into videography and the A7SIII looks like it'll work much better than the A7RIV for me due to its slow motion capabilities. Other reviews had me concerned that it wouldn't be adequate for photography I'd like to do as well, but almost all of it will go on Instagram. Seems like this is the camera for me.

[@mjack745]

Recent subscriber and I must say your quality of content and expertise and knowledge is heartbreaking! Keep it up!

[@philenforce]

Your editing workflow must feel SO good jumping from the monstrous R4 filesize to the S3!

[@patkay]

omfg, i literally forgot what speed is like 😂 not waiting 5 seconds per action is great haha

[@alexcortez8909]

I still use a 12MP Nikon D3S in 2024 for event photography. That’s a 2010 era camera. It’s totally enough if you know what you’re doing. The A7SIII has all the best technology you can ask for in a modern photo camera + it shoots tremendous video. If you’re not printing large or doing commercial photography with high-end retouching, 12MP is all you need.

[@soumyasharma9662]

Have been waiting for an analysis on Photography from this camera Thanks a lot :)

[@patkay]

No problem! Thanks for watching!

[@SNTMoto]

Looking at the video I thought you had like 200k, amazing quality keep this up and you'll be going places

[@patkay]

Thanks for the motivation! I'll try!

[@thomasleonczik1453]

a high MP count is one of those things that camera companies have done a great job at convincing people that it's absolutely necessary. especially in today's world of social media, the average joe will never tell if there's less pixels in a photo. high MP counts are really only for very specific parts of photography, 99% of which don't apply to a consumer photographer

[@guavaberry]

as a photographer trying to transition into focusing on my video work this is exactly the kind of video I was looking for but couldn't find so thank you

[@roflbot101]

Great video! It's inspiring to see what my a7S III is capable of. Loved the breakdown for how far 12mp really goes. PS: Sydney looks like a different planet... so sunny and relaxed compared to the Seattle right now!

[@GaryJahman]

Really enjoyed this video! Going to steal your idea of that POV style footage haha Greetings from the Netherlands!

[@patkay]

Thank you for watching!

[@vicluistudio3320]

I just received my a7Siii, and having the exact same question in my mind. This video answered me, with photos example. Thanks

[@patkay]

Glad I could help!

[@sachintharanatunga700]

Loved the video, so informative! Highly underrated channel.

[@patkay]

Thanks for watching =)

[@kjltube]

Well done, and informative without the hype. I enjoyed 12mp on my Nikon D700 but still think 24mp is the sweet spot.

[@melaku7344]

your videos are so clean, nice job man

[@patkay]

thanks man!

[@Jon_bodhi]

This was the video I was looking for! I kept thinking id have to bring a second body when I was traveling for photography.

[@marcof771]

Love the choice between JPG and HEIC files

[@areeszgandhistudios]

Great video man. Keep up the good work.

[@patkay]

I'll try! Thanks!

[@brandonmcmillan9641]

My first DSLR was a Nikon D40x 10.1 megapixel. I printed out photos for clients at 20x30. They were happy. 12 megapixel is enough. 24 megapixel is the best! Anything over is overkill, unless you are doing extreme crops or fine art extra large prints like 40x60. FStoppers did billboard photograph with 2 megapixel camera. Up close the photo was crap, however cars driving pass the billboard cant tell that far away

[@patkay]

Totally agree!

[@MagnetiqLabs]

i'm using my original A7S in pair with my A7III, and almost never feel lack of megapixels on A7S, even for printing

[@patkay]

yeah, i think it's definitely more of a mental barrier than anything else. it's been so conditioned in us that more megapixels = better, but that's just not the case 😂

[@Jorcap]

@@patkay i have a Gx8 (20mpx) and I think that the A7S has better photo’s because of its higher dynamic range. Other than that, we are spoiled now. My first phone had 2mpx camera and I was happy with that back in the day

[@stefanexplores]

Shooting videos on A7iii right now. Making me consider a switch to the S haha!

[@patkay]

the 10-bit 4:2:2 and 4k120 is a game changer imo haha

[@CAMTechChris]

Cool video thank you! My a7siii should be here any day now. I just sold my 6600, 6000 and several aps-c lenses. Now I'm left with the a7iii, zv-1 and soon the a7siii. What camera are you using on your chest? Subscribed.

[@patkay]

those 3 cameras are more than 99.99% of people will ever need! that's a great kit you've got there =). the chest camera is the new gopro hero 9!

[@CAMTechChris]

@@patkay👍👍

[@RoyaltyPlays]

I'm so excited to buy this camera for video but happy to know if I need some quick photos that it'll preform well 🤤

[@patkay]

100% it'll be great!

[@ZeroPointProductions]

I’m coming from a sony a9 and love using the a7siii for photos, granted I don’t make money from photos as I’m a video guy who enjoys taking photos for the fun of it, I don’t really miss much from the a7s vs a9 experience

[@patkay]

Yeah, at the end of the day, the Alpha series, regardless of what model you get, is going to produce fantastic results for most things!

[@WaleedDeeba]

I am debating either to get an a7c or a7s iii, i wonder if you would consider getting an a7c if you already have the a7s iii or would you consider selling the a7s iii to buy an a7c?

[@patkay]

It depends on your priorities! If you're more balanced photo/video, then the A7C is probably a better choice. If you're more biased towards video, over photo, then the A7S III =)

[@WaleedDeeba]

@@patkay awesome! thanks for the info, great channel btw, loving the vibe 💫

[@uphdennyalexander]

Is iy still worth it to buy a7s3 in 2024?or just go with a7r5?

[@salahsalem9448]

this really a great video, you helped me a lot and I think this review is the best on youtube.

[@TKNORTH]

ayyy nice vid man! Sounds like a great option for you along side the A7R4. Loving the POV vibes too. Pretty keen to try one out!

[@patkay]

would still prefer just the one body, for photo and video, but i guess that camera doesn't exist yet =(

[@DMProductions]

Very impressive, I swing daily between getting a74 or a7siii….if you could only have one..

[@mrchams]

Excellent review. Answered all the questions I had. Thanks Pat

[@EpitomePax]

I’ve got the a7riv, and instead of waiting for the A7IV to be released for my B cam, I might actually pick up the A7siii for events. I’m wanting to get into video, and so for video the a7riv can b cam the A7siii haha. Amazing video Pat, exactly what I was looking for.

[@JulianLallo]

Great video homie!

[@patkay]

Cheers man!

[@andrewjclarke]

Love the video mate! I see we came to basically the same conclusion regarding resolution for digital content and print haha and I 100% agree with your comment that you can take a hit to effective DPI to print at A3 - my test print looked great at A3. Also love how we basically had the exact same idea (and format) for a video at the same time 😂 Looking forward to your next one!

[@patkay]

Ah man honestly I was so impressed that you went to the lengths to actually PRINT them. SO cool. And yeah, haha. Funny how things happen like that! Very different videos, but similar. Pretty cool that we came to the same conclusions though!

[@gadgetphilosophy8290]

Nice review mate. You’re a natural

[@patkay]

thanks mate :)

[@toddysurcharge771]

Well a 4k monitor can only really show around 8.5 megapixels anyway so 12 is more than enough when viewed on most people's monitors. Also due to the pixel pitch of an A7S series camera the print size can be decently large too without much noise. I printed a pretty large print before and it looked great. I think the higher resolution cameras are great for high croppage scenarios (I wouldn't use the A7S3 for wildlife photos for example), landscapes and portraits. I think a 1-2 punch of the Sony A1, A9 or A7RIV and A7S3 is a dream combo.

[@Akiidan]

Dude this is a really well composed video! Thanks for sharing!

[@patkay]

Glad you dig it! Thanks for watching!

[@Bellnjerry]

Great review Pat!

[@patkay]

Thanks man!

[@gaza4543]

If you know how to blow up your images and or let the RIP do it in print (which are very sophisticated more so than any piece of software ) this A3 "limit" is largely null and void (the online calculator is a little bit of BS tbh) printing is all about intended viewing distance which I'm sure you know. Natively at 300dpi you will only get a around about a meter out of a7r 3/4, there comes a point all camera files reach a limit as too where they they have to be blown up. I can get just under a meter out of a 12 mp sensor with a viewing distance of around half a foot view with no apparent lose of detail and it REALLY helps to have clean files for enlargements your not blowing pixels up then. Who the hell in blowing images up to a meter (outside of commercial work) to hang on there wall. The a7r4 (or what ever) is completely wasted on 98% of people in all honesty and your doing is wasting money on storage. The a7r4 actually has quite a lot of noise viewed 1to1 on the monitor at pretty low ISO and so there should they are cramming 5-6x the pixels on the sensor that's the same size as the a7s3, ive blown up some a7r4 files and they dont hold to gather nearly as well and it because of the noise. Not so long a go the a7s3 would have been considered one the best sports cameras in world! unlimited buffer, great in low light, auto focus that sticks like shit to a blanket. Heck its still one of the best sport cameras you can buy period. Poeple bang on about its video and rightly so but I think that's really underselling the camera a lot as you also rightly point out . For me regardless of resolution the a7s3 is probably the best camera in Sony's Line up. People chase MP's far to much and you hit the nail on the head "it's what they do with them" that counts. Future proofing MP is a load of rubbish too sorry, silicon is not the answer AI algorithm's are, like the Lightroom AI super enhance is one such tool. And this will become more prevalent and improved as phone's lead the way on image tech. There is no free lunch, The only camera in Sony's line up that outright surpasses the a7s3 is there top flight A1, the others are variations with specs added but something (a lot) taken away The a7 4. Low res view finder, extreme rolling shutter, crops it 4k footage meaning you have to recompose, no 4k 120, can't do 10 frames a sec in anything other than super compressed raw mode all others a 6 frames a second. All they have really added is 10 bit video and a 33mp sensor and better auto focus but still not a good as a7s3. The a7r4 pretty much the same as above but it line skips it 4k footage making the MP count next to worthless the 12mp of the a7s3 is actually sharper by and good long way. And that's just major differences, look at all those compromise's you have to make to get resolution. I've come to conclusion that id buy the A7s3 and rent the more niche hi res camera as and when a job calls for it. People have to pick there poison and I know what id pick and I currently use a fuji xt2 but have been heavily testing the Sony line up renting the cameras downloading test files and footage along the way.

[@sv3nska]

Thank you for such great analysis Pat! I find it more and more difficult over the years to pick the all-around hybrid reflex camera that would suit all your needs without investing a $$$$ amount. Your approach gives great clues on the compromises that can be made when photo and video are both important. Please, keep up the great work :)

[@MrsCap2]

Remind me the POV of Pierre Lambert. Thanks for sharing I am wondering if I should go for this camera or no, I have currently the a7III that I can keep for picture but I wanted something more Video and not to bad in Photo if I need. By the way, the purple fringing for the 85f1.4GM is so heavy on the shot 9:12

[@patkay]

I'll take that as a compliment! There will be more POV videos coming, so look out for that. 😊

[@giankoash]

Plissss i need more pat kay vlogs or street sessions like thisss

[@VRKtaka]

I am seeing color change on the photos when i swipe them on the screen.. slightly changes the color from dark to bright or bright to dark.. What might be the issue?

[@nightwalker8347]

your shutter speed is pretty fast. i always put iso 1600, 4000 at most, with fstop possible lowest at 2.8, i couldnt make my shutter more than 1/250.

[@FrankDiNardi]

So that dual native ISO that gets better at 16,000 for video also works for the photography setting?

[@patkay]

yup!

[@bradl2636]

In real world shooting high dynamic range scenes of A7Siii and A7Riv which gives you best latitude to recover shadow details at constant ISO with highlights correctly exposed (no blown highlights)?

[@patkay]

Honestly, it's so close that it's not worth nit-picking the differences. *That's* how good it is.

[@markshirley01]

I've done quite a few A3 prints from my old D700 12mp - no one said they were soft resolution wise.

[@xuchen1830]

Same here

[@rdrnd]

What are your photo settings? And are you using any filters during post?

[@humphreybrondy]

Great video Pat, I love the way you are explaining your workflow. You should do more of POV sessions! Great content, keep grinding :) !

[@patkay]

Thanks man! My most recent vid is the full version of the POV session! Check it out if you like =)

[@humphreybrondy]

@@patkay I've seen that, I'm going to watch it for sure! I'm pretty surprise by your High Shutter Speed during your session? I would love to hear your perception on that. Good luck Pat for next!

[@mastrorj68]

So it's 9 months later... I need a new stills camera and I'm thinking siii over the r4. It's 9 months later what do you now think I should do?

[@SpaceMiracleStudios]

Nice review. I also got one recently and after watching your video i have clarified many things.

[@patkay]

Oh great! Out of curiosity, what did you clarify?

[@BazliAli]

I needed to see this camera more from a photographer's perspective rather than a videographer so thank you for that :) Can't wait to get my hands on one to try for myself haha

[@patkay]

hope you got some value out of this man! it's a good photog camera too :)

[@simeonrf7047]

cant wait for the a74 to hopefully have a flippy screen and not an overly high mp count

[@patkay]

Hopefully that comes true!

[@timpolster]

Thanks for your nice video. Thinking of going this route for video & stills myself. Interesting to see the side by side with the a7RIV. The color on the a7SIII has been improved by Sony as the S did not have the magenta sky blue color.

[@jonagreyphoto]

that alley way! Good review man, keep em coming 🙌🏼

[@patkay]

cheers my homie!

[@chul9489]

Wow! I don't understand why those normal scenes turn out to be so amazing in your shots. How that happened? lol

[@patkay]

haha just a bit of experience 😊

[@AmoRock7]

Bcz he has the photographer’s eye.

[@dtibor5903]

Probably he cheated and he used a medium format camera. You can not take great photos with 12 megapixels.

[@nick_rotondi]

@@dtibor5903 LOL

[@SimonePontiggia]

@@dtibor5903 how can you tell was only medium format? Maybe even bigger!

[@edwintan73]

I recently migrate from nikon to Sony and bought this camera, not sure why but when I shoot with iso 1250, I found a lot of noise in the dark area and I didnt shoot with any profile set,, appreciate your advice

[@daveed4475]

Thank you for this excellent analysis, providing a nice pause for reflection in the fog of the megapixel race.

[@unclejezza]

This is a needed video - thanks for this!

[@patkay]

My pleasure! Thanks for watching =)

[@rvllvncnt]

I am really learning a lot from this video hahaha thanks Pat!

[@patkay]

my pleasure, thanks for watching! =)

[@deibot14]

Just came to say you are amazing!! Thank you for inspiring us with your content! Big shout out from Costa Rica 🇨🇷!!

[@patkay]

you're welcome! thanks for watching! 😊

[@x_jaydn]

What's your take on the ISO performance (with dual native ISO) and RAW dynamic range compared to the a7iii, a7iv, and/or a7Riv bodies? Also, do you know what the image stills fps is with this body?

[@AbrahamTario]

I would have loved to see the setting you use on the a7siii

[@markshirley01]

Pat how quick is it to move from photo to video. On my Nikon there is a button for this that automatically saves all the last settings. Ive heard this is not the case on Sony but had heard the A7S3 had made some improvements in this.

[@patkay]

Very quick! The video and stills modes are now right next to each other on the dial, plus there are options to customise which settings carry over for either when switching between the two. It's very fast now!

[@boyodeman]

Awesome review man. Thanks & keep it up..

[@patkay]

Thanks for watching!

[@louisejennings7439]

Does the Sony A7Slll have the option for in-camera double exposures? is that something you've played with?

[@NafisAhmed73]

great informative video..loved the simplicity

[@patkay]

Thank you! Cheers for watching =)

[@ShihanDissanayake]

Very informative. Keep up the good work.

[@daniellediamond5314]

What picture profile do you recommend for photography? Standard?

[@patkay]

For photography, don't bother with picture profiles and just shoot RAW instead =)

[@DonnieGQX]

Can you upload a file or 2 from this series so i can test upscaling the 12mp file.

[@JohnThaiFilmmaker]

very awesome shots bro ^^

[@akhilkulkarni3924]

Cant wait for you to vlog in japan!🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

[@patkay]

omg i can't wait to vlog japan too 😂

[@learndatawithshaheerkhan]

Could you tell us about the pov setup u have the gear etc! Please and thanks.

[@ryanvacation7319]

My first full frame digital camera was the 12mpx Canon 5D. Never needed more even when I needed to print.

[@LawrenceMcDanielEstler]

extremely helpful, and great analysis. thank you!!

[@vijeeshm7317]

GREAT EPISODE BUDDY ............... LOVE IT ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

[@patkay]

Thanks man! Cheers for watching!

[@bettadenu7]

Would of been good if you showed us your in camera settings for photography with the a7siii Like auto focus settings etc

[@saabastiana4111]

5:20 is that Melb??

[@Aidan_Davis]

Syd

[@patkay]

it's all sydney :)

[@DucatiSydney]

Sydney is in lockdown, innt?

[@tropicaldany9306]

I'd wait for the A7iV that would be the best video camera / photography camera. It will also be much cheaper.

[@patkay]

I'm waiting for it too! I'm sure it'll be a great all-rounder

[@miriammoriarty8588]

Me too.

[@timothyng5297]

I feel the the a1 is already what the a7iv would be...

[@22s22a]

It may not come out this year so just brace yourself

[@wannahockachewie897]

@@timothyng5297 The A1 is so much more expensive though

[@Jacob.Peer.]

I need advice please; how fast will the price drop in like a year? I want to buy MY first camera and can't try it before buying. Would it serve me well in your opinion for the long run?

[@Jacob.Peer.]

BTW, this video is very nice to watch..

[@patkay]

No idea how much it will drop in price. However I wouldn't recommend this camera as your first camera. This is a niche camera that comes with very high-specs and a high price tag to match. As a first camera, I'd definitely try something more approachable like an RX100 or an A7C.

[@andresm645]

Hey Pat! Awesome to catch another one of your videos. Seeing the first part of this video was a bit crazy to me. From your POV camera you just see a street, or an alley, but then you show the photo and it's a BANGER. I guess that's what talent plus a lot of experience looks like xD Have you compared the 2 cameras on very low light situations (night photography for example)? I wonder if the SIII with the much larger pixels would fare better than the R IV in terms of grain on high ISOs for example. Also do you have any experience with Canon, or are you exclusively a Sony guy?

[@patkay]

haha thank you! i'll be releasing a more chilled video of the full version of that next week! hopefully you enjoy it. comparing the two is night and day; the A7RIV was never that great at low light (although it's still far better than some other brands), and the A7SIII pretty much sees in the dark 😂. for general photography, they're still both pretty comparable considering how good Lightroom is, but for video, that's another story altogether. oh, and i'm exclusively a Sony guy 😊

[@AdventureWithShannon]

great video pat

[@patkay]

thank you!

[@ricoananda8975]

You convert the ARW to DNG?

[@Boros777]

My problem is that 12mp can get a 60x40cm print only to 150dpi and the photo has to be perfectly framed without cropping... So while it’s enough for everything digital, it’s a bit lacking for normal wall prints :(

[@patkay]

I guess it depends on what your tolerances are; 150dpi is definitely not a bad density unless you're up super close to it so YMMV. Perhaps the A7III might be better for you?

[@TriWaZe]

Depending on what the image is, Gigapixel does wonders in upping the resolution. Anything outside of far away faces and a few other weird circumstances you can easily double if not triple the res and get great results.

[@DomChongVlogs]

Follow your instagram and I like that you make videos. A picture says a thousand words and a video is 24/25 pictures a second. So hell yes to your a7siii. I can't even see the benefit of your rIV on instagram but I sure as hell will see a difference in your videos in the low light now! And also 4k slow motion haha

[@patkay]

haha hell yeah! i hope so. images are far more forgiving when it comes to benefits. video though... another thing altogether 😂

[@stutuckerphotography]

This is great review. I own this camera. It’s an absolute blinder for photography!

[@SonicReverieBeats]

Awesome Pictures! Love it!! 🔥

[@patkay]

i'm glad! 😊

[@yuxi2424]

thanks. but what the iso performs at night when taking photos😂

[@francoismarc3]

Just shoot in slog...

[@maxfrisket]

More people should watch this review :)

[@patkay]

Haha you're too kind!

[@justinsiebert6952]

what light are you using in your opener

[@benjamincraib9647]

Clean and easy to watch videos Pat, also a great length. Just a question about using ‘general subject tracking’. I’ve always been really confused as to what settings to use for that kind of thing? Like, flexible spot, continuous etc. What did you have it set to for this video? Keep them coming dude!

[@patkay]

so tracking is only available on AF-C, which is autofocus continuous. I personally have the locking set to flexible spot so I can change the point around if I need to, but most of the time it's in the centre and i'm just locking there and recomposing 😊

[@AtDobrowolski]

Worth noting that the 2nd native ISO is only 12,800 in SLOG 2/3. For no PP the native ISOs are 80 and 1600

[@benldr]

Wouldn't pixel shift on this camera be a game changer?

[@soritchan7964]

Can you do bracketing in photo on this a7s3? I'm currently shoot on a7r Iv as well. My a7s iii is on the way, but I'm just not quite ready to let go of the r4. Great video. Subscribed!

[@a55tech]

what's the res / MP in APS-C mode?

[@LoriGraceAz]

I was cringing when I took the a7SIII for a day for photos, but came back extremely impressed with the usability of photos. I do a lot of timelapse work with my Sony alpha cameras as well, and the a7SIII is terrific for that.

[@lobsang_thungdok12]

I wanted to confirm this, Thank you from Tokyo, Japan.🙏