Sony A9 vs Canon 1DXII

I own several 1DXII cameras and would like to evaluate pros and cons in direct comparison to the new Sony camera of specs and practical differences from working professionals' and advanced amateurs' perspectives.

I am very interested in the silent shutter, how its video quality compares, lens ecosystem compares (in price nd quality) with equivalent lenses, etc.

Considering the A9 as a supplement to current kit.

What are your thoughts? Canon and Sony users both invited.


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1DXII limitations:
- 4K video at 60p is 800 Mbps, 24p is 500 Mbps; no compressed codec for memory card and hard drive cheapsters
- two different card types with different read write speeds
- 14 fps with continuous tracking, 16 without

A9 limitations:
- two different card types and read write speeds (uhsii vs uhs I)
- 12 fps with raw files? Lossless raw files? Not sure about this one
- 10 fps with metabones adapter
- no lossless compressed raw files

It is healthy for us to understand not only the benefits, but also the limitations of gear. Nothing is perfect.
When the 5D Mk IV was launched, it was widely discussed, and the result was that many Canon owners decided that the 5DIV did not bring enough to the table to upgrade from their existing kit. Others came to a different decision.
It is good to question, it encourages exploration and better understanding. Just recently I questioned why Canon would offer a camera with focus good down to EV-3, yet it has a meter stated by Canon to be good only down to EV0...odd, you cannot meter in very dim light that you can focus a shot?! So I did a test and found that Canon merely failed to include a spec for metering that was accurate...I could meter in the same EV-3 light as I could focus in (yet barely see in, to operate the camera!)
Hopefully this thread can be objective discussion, and not a series of antagonism or perceived antagonism and subjectivism...in either direction!

20 fps demo, electronic shutter is not necessarily silent, you can set it to have an audio signal if desired.





AF comparison at 3:51

So no mirror blackout is a function only for electronic shutter, correct? And flash only works with mechanical? I wonder, are there differences in tracking with mechanical blackout vs electronic without blackout? 10 or 12 FPS ES vs 5FPS in MS and RAW compressed or uncompressed files?

Charlie wrote in post #18334892
20 fps demo, electronic shutter is not necessarily silent, you can set it to have an audio signal if desired.





AF comparison at 3:51

AF performance looks amazing

What about autofocus in low light? Does the camera sample at whatever aperture you set it at or a preset aperture?

What about exposure equivalence? I get the feeling that my fujifilm's t stops let in less light than my canon's at same ISO and exposures. Is this true of Sony as well?

idkdc wrote in post #18334903
What about autofocus in low light? Does the camera sample at whatever aperture you set it at or a preset aperture?

What about exposure equivalence? I get the feeling that my fujifilm's t stops let in less light than my canon's at same ISO and exposures. Is this true of Sony as well?

a9 has af sensibility of -3ev, low light AF should be fine.

nekrosoft13 wrote in post #18334908
a9 has af sensibility of -3ev, low light AF should be fine.

My XT2 has -3ev too. Its viewfinder is dark in a studio though and focus can hunt in the same situations where my 1DXII will hit focus. Does that have to do with the aperture that the camera is sampling focus at and generating live view through the viewfinder? Is there a setting to fix this on Fujifilm or Sony (if it is similar) or is it a physical limitation of EVF's?

Tony Northrup seems a offer a good, nicely balanced and realistic set of impressions about the strengths in the very awesome specs and capabilities of the camera, as well as even the ability to see what trade-offs there are, even vs. another Sony camera...not overly gushing and one-sided yet certainly impressed

https://www.youtube.co​m/watch?v=B7Z9ZvIZ2VE

• He addresses a question raised about whether the electronic shutter would exhibit any of the 'rolling shutter' phenomenon (question raise by a POTN member recently)...no rolling shutter!
  
• AF calculations (and AE calculations) happen at 60 times per second, even during 20 fps shooting.
  
• blackout free viewing,and totally silent captures!
  
• Apparently the DR of the A7RII is a bit better than the A9; along with the higher pixel count in the A7RII, one has to make a choice of 'DR+Pixels camera vs. faster camera with dual fast-SD cards and joystick' one is forced to prioritize between.
  
• X-sync is at 1/250, faster than most FF cameras.
  
• The classic beef among Sony users about battery drain is addressed both with 2x more life in a single battery, and in a grip option that holds 2 of the new battery.
  
• He commented about AF during video...'not great' it hunted a bit and was not as good as the dual-AF cameras.
  
• The HDMI connectors are 'micro' sized, which he hates.
  

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Does anyone know if the A9 will deliver the 20 frames per second if you use a Canon super telephoto, mounted via adaptor, while AF tracking rapidly moving subjects?

I have some doubt of this, due to things I read, but the things I read weren't really clear - they weren't even written in full sentence form - so I am left not knowing if it will deliver the full 20 FPS in situations when it is most needed.

Also, is it true that the 20 FPS will not work when shooting RAW?

.

Tom Reichner wrote in post #18334919
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Does anyone know if the A9 will deliver the 20 frames per second if you use a Canon super telephoto, mounted via adaptor, while AF tracking rapidly moving subjects?

I have some doubt of this, due to things I read, but the things I read weren't really clear - they weren't even written in full sentence form - so I am left not knowing if it will deliver the full 20 FPS in situations when it is most needed.

Also, is it true that the 20 FPS will not work when shooting RAW?

.

I don't know the answer, but t I'm starting a comparison list in my original post.

idkdc wrote in post #18334913
My XT2 has -3ev too. Its viewfinder is dark in a studio though and focus can hunt in the same situations where my 1DXII will hit focus. Does that have to do with the aperture that the camera is sampling focus at and generating live view through the viewfinder? Is there a setting to fix this on Fujifilm or Sony (if it is similar) or is it a physical limitation of EVF's?

depends on lens, there was a debate on that issue on FM forums. Some lenses focus wide open, some stopped down. Kind of sad there's no consistency on the issue. Adapted lenses focus wide open. I think most of the newer lenses trend to focus wide open. There's a live view setting for that.

Tom Reichner wrote in post #18334919
.
Does anyone know if the A9 will deliver the 20 frames per second if you use a Canon super telephoto, mounted via adaptor, while AF tracking rapidly moving subjects?

I have some doubt of this, due to things I read, but the things I read weren't really clear - they weren't even written in full sentence form - so I am left not knowing if it will deliver the full 20 FPS in situations when it is most needed.

Also, is it true that the 20 FPS will not work when shooting RAW?

.

only 10, but using the special mode with metabones adapter, I'm guessing 20fps is achievable, but the AF will be poor in that special mode. Not sure about raw vs jpeg.

Wilt wrote in post #18334914
Tony Northrup seems a offer a good, nicely balanced and realistic set of impressions about the strengths in the very awesome specs and capabilities of the camera, as well as even the ability to see what trade-offs there are, even vs. another Sony camera...not overly gushing and one-sided yet certainly impressed

https://www.youtube.co​m/watch?v=B7Z9ZvIZ2VE

He addresses a question raised about whether the electronic shutter would exhibit any of the 'rolling shutter' phenomenon (question raise by a POTN member recently)...no rolling shutter!
Apparently the DR of the A7RII is a bit better than the A9. Along with the higher pixel count in the A7RII, one has to make a choice of 'DR+Pixels camera vs. faster camera with dual SD cards and joystick' one is forced to prioritize between.
He comment about AF during focus...it hunted a bit

Interesting. I can't really view video right now, so thank you for summarizing a little. I didn't notice that much of an improvement with the A7S in low light (high ISO's). Does Tony compare the A9 to the A7S cameras?

Charlie wrote in post #18334941
depends on lens, there was a debate on that issue on FM forums. Some lenses focus wide open, some stopped down. Kind of sad there's no consistency on the issue. Adapted lenses focus wide open. I think most of the newer lenses trend to focus wide open. There's a live view setting for that.

Thanks for the reply!

Are there consistencies within each lens model or copy to copy variation?