SONY Cameras
Sony A7R III Review
Sony A7R III was released in 2017 as a direct successor to the A7 II. It kept the same 42 MP BSI full-frame sensor, but introduced improved autofocus tracking, higher burst rates up to 10 fps, a much bigger buffer and expanded video capabilities. By also adding dual SD card slots and USB Type-C connectivity, it addresses many of the criticisms of the A7R II and feels like a more complete camera.
Sony A7R IIIA replaced the A7R III in April 2021. This is still the same camera, it just upgrades to a 2,359,296-dot LCD screen.
SONY E-Mount
Sony introduced the E-mount in 2010 alongside their first mirrorless cameras, giving them a huge head start. Over a decade later, there are over 100 native lenses and more than 200 if you include third-party options. Because the mount hasn’t changed, old lenses still work with newer cameras, creating a huge second-hand market. Compare that to Canon and Nikon, which only introduced new mounts in 2018, Sony users have had years to build and upgrade their kits without starting from scratch. For beginners entering the Sony system that means more options and much better prices.
SONY A7R III Price
Sony A7R III Specifications
General
Sony A7R III features a 42.4 MP BSI full-frame sensor paired with Sony’s BIONZ X processor. The same sensor was also used in the A7R II.
The body is slightly larger and more ergonomic compared to the A7R II. The camera has 3 customizable dials, a few additional buttons and it finally introduces the AF joystick.
Weather sealing is more robust than on the A7R II. According to Sony, the A7R series provides better weather sealing than the A7 series along with better build quality and higher mechanical shutter life.
In-body 5-axis image stabilization provides up to approximately 5.5 stops of shake reduction, benefiting both handheld stills and video recording. This might seem like a small increase over the previous model, but users state that this improvement is very noticeable in practice.
The A7R III features a higher-resolution EVF and a slightly sharper tilting LCD screen. It introduces a new menu system, but the touch screen does not function when in the menu (it only works for selecting and moving the focus point).
The A7R III finally introduces dual SD card slots, useful for backup-sensitive work, but only one card slot accepts faster UHS-II SD cards, while the second slot still accepts just older and slower UHS-I SD cards.
The camera upgrades to a modern USB Type C port and adds a new flash-sync terminal, for synchronization with external lighting equipment.
The A7R III also upgrades to larger batteries that provide about 2.2 times as much battery life as the older A7R and A7R II.
Autofocus
Autofocus performance is improved over the A7R II. The camera has 399 points for phase-detection that cover 68% roughly of the image area and 425 points for contrast detection that cover a larger part of the screen.
The A7R III uses a new version of Sony’s ‘Fast Hybrid AF’ system inherited from the ‘lagship Sony A9. According to Sony, AF tracking is 2x more precise compared to the A7R II and AF speed is up to 2x faster under dim lighting conditions.
AF performance degrades noticeably in video mode and there is no eye-AF when recording video.
It’s important to update the firmware as it brings improved AF performance.
Photography
Photography performance is similar to the A7R II since both models use the same sensor. Images are very detailed and according to Sony the A7R III provides 1 additional stop of dynamic range compared the A7R II. There is still a slight yellow or green hue, especially noticeable in skin tones.
Sony A7R III can shoot at up to around 6 fps in 14-bit RAW and up to 10 fps in compressed 12-bit RAW. According to official specs, you will get about 28 shots in uncompressed RAW and about 76 in compressed RAW, but this can vary based on what SD cards you use. Clearing the buffer can take a while and you cannot enter the menu or playback mode during this process. There is no lossless compressed option and uncompressed files can take up 85 MB of space.
Shutter options include mechanical, electronic front-curtain and fully electronic (silent) shutter modes. Using the electronic shutter when photographing fast moving objects will result in noticeable rolling shutter distortion due to the high-resolution senor with slower readout speed.
The A7R III also includes a sensor-shift mechanism that enables pixel-shift shooting, combining 4 exposures with slight sensor movements to produce high-resolution images of up to 168 MP. Its a useful and modern feature, but files are not processed in-camera, so you will need to create the final image later using dedicated software
Video
Sony A7R II already introduced 4K recording to the A7 series. The A7R III can record in 4K 30 fps without a crop, but the quality still trails behind APS-C and Micro Four Thirds cameras.
If you switch to a Super35/APS-C crop mode (1.5x crop) then image quality is increased since the footage is oversampled from 5K.
Keep in mind that rolling shutter distortion is visible due to the high-resolution sensor with slower readout speed.
Full HD (1080p) recording is available up to 120 fps.
Picture profiles include S-Log 2 and S-Log 3. It’s best to use the S-Log 2 option since the camera does not allow 10-bit recording (only 8-bit).
The A7R III still retains the strict 30-minute recording limit. Battery life allows for about 2 hours of 4K video recording.
| Feature | Sony A7R III |
|---|---|
| Release Date | October 2017 |
| Megapixels | 42.4 MP |
| Image Resolution | 7952 × 5304 |
| Sensor Size | Full Frame |
| Sensor Type | BSI CMOS |
| Image Processor | BIONZ X |
| IBIS | 5-axis, 5.5 stops |
| Weather Sealing | Yes |
| Lens Mount | Sony E |
| Body Type | Mirrorless |
| PHOTO | |
| Native ISO | 100 – 32,000 |
| Expandable ISO | 50 – 102,400 |
| Shutter Speed | 1/8000 – 30s |
| Burst Rate (Mechanical) | 6 fps RAW / 10 fps compressed 12-bit RAW |
| Burst Rate (Electronic) | 6 fps RAW / 10 fps compressed 12-bit RAW |
| Buffer | 28 ~ 76 RAW |
| Shutter Types | Mechanical, Electronic, EFCS |
| Silent Shooting | Yes (Electronic Shutter) |
| Exposure Compensation | ±5 EV |
| High-Res (Sensor Shift) | Yes |
| Pre-Capture Mode | No |
| VIDEO | |
| 4K Video | 4K 30fps (no crop) / 4K 30fps (oversampled from 5K, 1.5x crop) |
| Max Frame Rate | 4K 30fps / 1080p 120fps |
| Bit Depth | 8-bit |
| Recording Limit | 29m 59s |
| Timelapse Recording | No |
| AUTOFOCUS | |
| AF System | 'Fast Hybrid AF' |
| AF Points | 425 |
| AF Coverage | ~ 70% Frame Coverage |
| AF Joystick | Yes |
| DISPLAY / VIEWFINDER | |
| Articulated Screen | Tilting |
| Touch Screen | Limited (focus only) |
| LCD Size | 3.0" |
| LCD Resolution | 1,440,000 |
| EVF Resolution | 3,686,400 |
| EVF Refresh Rate | 100 fps |
| EVF Coverage | 100% |
| EVF Magnification | 0.78× |
| MORE INFO | |
| Card Slot 1 | SD (UHS-II) |
| Card Slot 2 | SD (UHS-I) |
| Sensor Protection System | No |
| USB | Type C 3.1 Gen 1 |
| USB Charging | Yes |
| HDMI | Type D (Micro HDMI) |
| Microphone Port | 3.5 mm |
| Headphone Port | 3.5 mm |
| Built-in Flash | No |
| Built-in Microphone | Yes |
| Battery | NP-FZ100 |
| Battery Life | 550 ~ 650 frames |
| Wi-Fi / Bluetooth | Yes |
| Dimensions | 127 × 96 × 74 mm |
| Weight | 657 g |
Sony A7R III Alternatives
SONY A7R V
SONY A7R IV
Sony A7R II (2015) also used the same 42 MP BSI sensor as the A7R III, but it had an older autofocus system, worse continuous shooting performance (5 fps 12-bit RAW), a single card slot (UHS-I), a micro USB port and lower-resolution EVF and LCD panels. It also used smaller batteries resulting in much worse batterie life.
Sony A7R IV (2019) upgraded to a new 61 MP BSI sensor and a new highly capable autofocus system with 567 phase-detection AF points. It also introduced dual UHS-II SD card slots, a high-resolution EVF, a slightly larger and more ergonomic body and a 13 hour recording limit.
Sony A7R V (2022) retains the same 61 MP BSI sensor, but introduces a faster BIONZ XR processor paired with Sony’s AI processing unit, resulting in significantly improved subject recognition and tracking performance. The increased processing power also expands its video capabilities, including 8K 25 fps and 4K 60 fps recording. However, both modes apply a 1.25x crop. Internal recording is now limited to 10-bit (instead of 8-bit on older models), with an option for 16-bit external RAW output.
Other major upgrades include a new hybrid high-resolution LCD screen that combines tilting and fully articulating movement, as well as a high-resolution EVF with refresh rates of up to 240 fps. The camera also features dual card slots that support either UHS-II SD cards or CFexpress Type A cards, resulting in significantly improved buffer performance.
Nikon Z7 II
Nikon Z7
Nikon Z7 (2018) was Nikon’s original high-resolution mirrorless option and essentially an alternative to the Sony A7R III. It features a 45 MP BSI sensor, continuous shooting up to 9 fps, 4K 30 fps recording and oversampled 4K 30 fps recording with a 1.5x crop. It has since been replaced by the Z7 II which kept the same sensor, but upgraded every other aspect of the camera.
Just like the Sony A7R III, the Nikon Z7 is also no longer in production, because it was replaced by the newer model.
Nikon Z7 II (2020) keeps the same 45 MP BSI sensor with great low-light performance and great dynamic range. It features dual card slots (one SD and one CFexpress Type B), continuous shooting at up to 10 fps, 4K 60 fps recording and oversampled 4K 30 fps recording with a 1.5x crop. Video recording is limited to 8-bit with an option for external 12-bit recording. A new Nikon Z7 II is still much cheaper than the A7R IV (almost $1000 cheaper).
When purchased uses, Sony A7R III is slightly more expensive than the Z7, but cheaper than the Z7 II.
Canon EOS R5
Canon EOS R5 (2020) was Canon’s closest competitor to the Sony A7R III. It used a 45 MP sensor and offered dual card slots (one SD and one CFexpress Type B), continuous shooting at up to 12 fps (20 fps with the electronic shutter), oversampled 4K 30 fps recording and even 8K recording, but the camera overheated very quickly and it took forever to cool down.
It was much more expensive than the A7R III and is currently much more expensive than the Nikon Z7 II. The price is similar to the newer Sony A7R IV.
Canon R5 is also no longer in production, but it will still be offered as a new product for a while.
It has been replaced by the Canon R5 Mark II, that upgrades to a new 45 MP fully-stacked sensor making it Canon’s ‘flagship’ high-resolution model. It’s more advanced and much more expensive than all other cameras on this list. The price of the R5 II is even higher than the Sony A7R V. It could even be considered a cheaper alternative to the flagship Sony A1.
SONY A7R III Price
Final Verdict
Sony A7R III represents a major upgrade over its predecessor, the A7R II. Although it’s no longer in production, it remains a capable camera that can still be found at an attractive price on the used market.
Sony’s newer A7R-series cameras offer improved autofocus systems and significantly higher-resolution sensors, but they are also considerably more expensive and 60 MP may be excessive for many users.
It is also worth noting that other camera manufacturers offer strong high-resolution alternatives. If you are specifically looking for a high-resolution camera and are not yet committed to the Sony system, the Nikon Z7 II is often considered one of the strongest value options and has no competition at its current price.