Sony Unveils the a7II & 70-300mm f4.5-5.6 G SSM II A-Mount Lens

Sony seems to be stealing the show this week, first with the US release of their new 16-35mm f4 and then the announcement of the world’s first stacked CMOS sensor, they just keep bringing the fire with today’s announcement of the a7II by Sony Japan. The a7II builds upon the already stunning a7 lineup with a plethora of upgrades, most notably its in-body 5-axis image stabilization, the first of its kind in a full frame body.

Like the rest of Sony's recent releases, the a7II boasts some impressive key features and upgrades from the previous models, including internal 5-axis image stabilization which provides up to 4.5 stops of image stabilization independent of any lenses or other external devices. This means that users get full image stabilization with any lens attached to the body, including fully manual and adapted lenses.

Even though the a7II features the same 24.3MP Exmor CMOS sensor and BIONZ X processor, they have upgraded the camera's autofocus algorithm. This utilizes the camera's 117 phase-detection points and 25 contrast-detection points resulting in a 30% increase in autofocus speeds. On top of upgrades for still photography, the a7II now includes the XVAC S codec with a bit rate of 50Mbps for video shooters, as well as the availability of time code, user bit, and REC control functions when used with an external recorder. Sony has also included several upgrades to the a7II's body including 10 customizable buttons with 56 different functions, an upgraded 3.0" tilted LCD monitor with 1,228k-dot resolution, a more comfortable grip, and improved weather sealing.

 

70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G SSM II lens

Sony also announced their new 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G SSM II lens. The updated telephoto zoom uses a new nano AR coating to better reduce flair and ghosting. The AF motor has also been upgraded to improve overall performance.

 

For more information on the announcement or to receive updates as to when the lens will be available, head over to the original release on B&H.

[via B&H]

Sam Merkel's picture

Sam Merkel is a 19 year old photographer and student living in Madison, WI. He spends his winters traveling the midwest photographing various crews of snowboarders and his summers enjoying having feeling in his extremities.

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7 Comments

The A7's lackluster video performance and the A7s limited 12mpx sensor didn't fulfill hybrid photographers dreams. Now Sony has it in spades with a 24mpx sensor, XVAC-S, S-Log2, and IBIS! Let's hope Sony announces some cheap primes to make this even more of a deal.

Sure, if they could get the same video quality and light sensitivity AND have double the resolution I'd take it; but the 12mp directly relates to it's sensitivity. I bought an A7s because not only is the image quality great, but it can see in pitch blackness.

When is Sony planning to put a touch screen into its cameras? In 2050??? Touch to focus is available on any phone. Why not in a video centric camera? Why? Why?

Because most professional productions are focused by hand.

I guess they licensed that technology from Olympus.

Actually no. Its their own design according to Sony. Nothing to do with Olympus.

slow down . i know technology never does, but i just brought the a7r let me enjoy it at least for a couple of years . be more like canon or nikon . give the consumer some time to enjoy your product . fk i also purchased a strap and third party leather case for it .