Versiunea in limba romana este aici.
Since I got my hands on the new A7S II I was very curious if there is any difference between the new and the old model from the a7s series and hence this test: ISO A7S vs A7S II.
Added to that, I wanted to see if there is any difference between Uncompressed and Compressed RAW files at various ISO levels.
I really don’t like these comparisons tests and the proof to that is that I’m not an expert in doing them. Maybe I should have tried it at the interior, with controlled light, but since I was outside the moment it hit me to do this test (and somehow I had the tripod with me which I rarely carry anymore), here are the results.
I won’t repeat the test because is very time consuming, and to prepare such a file like the one below, it eats even more time :). Take it as it is.
Sun appeared out of nowhere in a stormy day, and kinda unbalanced my exposure, but if you look closely, the “Atheneul Roman” lettering have almost the same exposure everywhere. Lens used was the Sony Sonnar T* 35mm f/2.8 FE.
I bet no one could tell the difference or to exactly identify which shot is which if I wouldn’t have put the ISO information near the samples.
To check even more the “difference” between compressed/uncompressed raw file, I put below some other examples.
- Uncompressed (left – before) vs Compressed (right – after) converted from RAW files
- Uncompressed (left – before) vs Compressed (right – after) JPEG out of the camera (if it makes any sense, since the jpeg goes compressed already in-camera). In here I’ve changed the RAW setting in the menu, and shot RAW+Jpeg, so the files below are the jpegs out of the camera.
- Heavy process in LR on files of ISO 3200
- Heavy process in LR on files of ISO 100 for grass and foliage details check
So conclusions for this battle of ISO A7S vs A7S II ?
Call me an idiot, but I can’t see any difference or to be more correct any noticeable difference between the “old” model and the new. Don’t get me wrong, both are beyond everything you should expect from a camera that bites from the dark as I called the A7s in my review (read it here).
Letting the ISO wars aside, a new battle emerged on the internet over compressed and uncompressed RAW files. I’ve never screamed for uncompressed RAW and now I made myself even more clear that I don’t need uncompressed RAW at all.
So there is no difference between the two cameras? Oh hell it is!
But I’ll tell you my points in a new article. Until then just this: new focus rules and LUT assist on s-log video is so helpful.
14/12/2015
Dear Alin
Please make your ISO pictures downloadable.
Many thanks
14/02/2023
Hello and thanks for your opinion. But I can not see the furthermore comparison (under the nice chart you’ve made and over your conclusion). I closed the ad blocker but still cant see anything. Thanks again.