- Table of Contents
- Intro
- Our Verdict
- Test Results
- Differences
- Deals
- Discussions
The Sony α7 III is a full-frame mirrorless camera. It's great for photography, as it takes sharp images that are remarkably low in visual noise, even at high ISO settings. It offers a superb battery life, allowing you to shoot for extended periods without interruption. There are also a few features that should please videographers, including 4k and FHD recording capability in a wide range of frame rates, a full complement of physical inputs and outputs, and exceptional autofocus performance. Unfortunately, the screen doesn't articulate fully, and the menu system can be very hard to understand.
Our Verdict
The Sony Alpha 7 III is great for travel photography. Images look sharp and are mostly free of noise and graininess, even in low-light conditions. It's also fitted with a quick, reliable, and efficient autofocus system. Its shutter speed range should suit a variety of uses, from capturing still images of fast-moving crowds to long-exposure shots. Depending on the settings used, it can supply enough battery life to last you the full day. It's quite comfortable to use for most people, but it's also a little on the heavy side.
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Superb image quality.
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Great build quality.
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Quick, reliable autofocus system.
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Slightly heavy weight.
The Sony Alpha 7 III is amazing for landscape photography. Images are detailed, color-accurate, and low in visual noise. The camera itself feels quite sturdy, too. Its lens lets in a decent amount of light, giving you a bit of extra flexibility in darker environments. Also, its screen is bright enough to be seen in direct sunlight. Unfortunately, it's not quite as portable as point-and-shoot cameras.
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Superb image quality.
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Great build quality.
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Slightly heavy weight.
The Sony Alpha 7 III is a decent option for sport and wildlife photography. While its maximum continuous shooting speed is only okay, it has a very high maximum shutter speed, allowing you to take photos of fast-moving subjects free of motion blur. Its autofocus system can quickly and reliably focus on moving subjects. Unfortunately, its kit lens' maximum focal length isn't sufficient for gathering clear shots of far-off subjects, like athletes in a stadium or race cars on a track.
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Superb image quality.
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Great build quality.
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Quick, reliable autofocus system.
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Slightly heavy weight.
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Long buffer clearing time.
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Maximum continuous shooting speed is only fair.
The Sony Alpha 7 III is okay for vlogging. It delivers excellent video quality in both FHD and 4k and superb face tracking autofocus performance. That said, its screen doesn't fully articulate, so you can't see yourself when the camera is pointed at you. Its image stabilization performance also isn't especially effective in regards to smoothing out camera shake.
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Great build quality.
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Great video quality with low visual noise, even in dark environments.
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Outstanding autofocus performance in both 4k and FHD.
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Slightly heavy weight.
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Poor video stabilization in 4k.
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Screen doesn't fully rotate.
The Sony Alpha 7 III is an excellent option for studio video. It has a full complement of inputs and outputs for videography accessories, records very high-quality footage in both 4k and FHD, and delivers superb autofocus performance. Unfortunately, its menu system can be hard to navigate and understand.
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Great video quality with low visual noise, even in dark environments.
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Outstanding autofocus performance in both 4k and FHD.
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Wide variety of inputs and outputs for accessories.
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Unintuitive menu system.
The Sony Alpha 7 III isn't designed for action video. It's too big to be mounted on a helmet rig and isn't water-resistant. While its image stabilization performance is poor in 4k, it performs better in this regard in FHD. It supports FHD recording at 120 fps, allowing you to create slow-motion videos.
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Great build quality.
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Slightly heavy weight.
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Poor video stabilization in 4k.
- 7.9 Travel Photography
- 8.4 Landscape Photography
- 7.4 Sport & Wildlife Photography
- 6.3 Vlogging
- 8.5 Studio Video
- 4.9 Action Video
- Updated Jul 16, 2021: Corrected camera and screen size measurements, number of command dials, and 'In The Box' contents.
- Updated Feb 08, 2021: Review published.
- Updated Feb 08, 2021: Early access published.
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Test Results
Update 07/16/2021: Our initial portability measurements were slightly off, so we've adjusted the measurements and score accordingly.
- Magnesium alloy and plastic construction feels robust
- Buttons, command dials, and wheels provide great physical feedback
- Screen mechanism is sturdy-feeling
- Door to its battery compartment and SD card slot is solid and mounted on a spring hinge
- Input/outputs are covered by hard plastic flaps
- Screen only tilts and doesn't fully rotate, so you can't see yourself when the camera is pointed at you
Update 07/16/2021: We've adjusted the number of command dials from 5 to 3, as we don't count mode dials or exposure compensation dials as command dials.
Update 07/16/2021: A few items shown in the photo were missing from the content list below. They've now been added.
- Sony a7 III mirrorless camera body
- Sony FE 28-70mm F/3.5-5.6 OSS lens
- Lens caps
- Sensor cap
- Lens hood
- 1x NP-FZ100 battery
- Shoulder strap
- USB cable
- AC adapter
- User manual
- Changing aperture, shutter speed, and ISO is easy with your right eye pressed up against the viewfinder, but slightly more difficult if you shoot with your left eye
- Controls are well-spaced, so you shouldn't accidentally make an input
- Users with very big hands can have their middle fingers pinched between the handgrip and the lens
- Menu can be customized to suit your needs and preferences
- All the physical buttons can have their functions remapped
- Camera has a guide mode to help explain the effects of certain features
- Quite a few features are buried within the sub-menus, like the face and eye-detection features and HDMI output configuration
- Can't use the touchscreen to navigating the menu, forcing you to rely on the less intuitive physical controls
Update 07/16/2021: We've amended the screen size measurement from 2.9" (7.3 cm) to 3.0" (7.5 cm). The score is unaffected.
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Sony Alpha 7 III only has one color variant: 'Black', which we tested with the Sony FE 28-70mm F/3.5-5.6 OSS lens, and you can see its label here.
The Sony a7III can also be purchased with several other E-mount lenses, including the Sony 16-35mm Vario-Tessar T FE F4 ZA OSS lens and Sony - FE 50mm F1.8 lens, but we haven't tested the performance of this camera with other lenses. It can also be purchased without a lens at all.
If someone comes across a differently-equipped variant, let us know in the discussions so we can update our review.