A review of the Sony RX100 VII

 

The Sony RX100 Mark VII is an exceptional camera that combines powerful features with compact portability. Its 1-inch Exmor RS CMOS sensor and Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* lens deliver stunning image quality, capturing details and colors with remarkable clarity. The camera's autofocus system is incredibly fast and accurate, making it ideal for capturing fast-moving subjects or shooting in challenging conditions.

One of the standout features of the RX100 Mark VII is its impressive burst shooting capabilities. With up to 20 frames per second continuous shooting speed, you can easily capture fleeting moments and choose the perfect shot later. The advanced tracking autofocus ensures your subjects stay sharp, even when they're in motion.

The camera also excels in video recording, offering 4K UHD and super slow-motion capabilities. The built-in microphone captures clear audio, and the ability to shoot in high frame rates adds a dynamic element to your videos.

In terms of usability, the RX100 Mark VII features a tilting touchscreen and a pop-up electronic viewfinder, providing flexibility in composing your shots. The menu system is intuitive, and the camera offers customizable controls, allowing you to tailor it to your shooting style.

While the RX100 Mark VII is an exceptional camera, it does come at a premium price. However, if you're a serious enthusiast or professional photographer who values both portability and image quality, this camera is definitely worth considering.

Overall, the Sony RX100 Mark VII combines impressive image quality, advanced autofocus capabilities, and versatile shooting options in a compact package. It's a top choice for those seeking a high-performance camera that can fit in their pocket.

Just black and white from now on

 

I'm currently shooting with a Sony a7R Mark III and a Sony FE f1.8 35MM prime lens just in black and white.  When I get my next I.T. contract here in Ottawa, I'll be pumping some money into a savings account and save up for a Leica Q2 Monochrome.  In Canada, specifically Ottawa, you can buy that camera for $7,399.99 before tax.  After tax, it's roughly $8,400.  I want to get a grip, an extra battery and the RGB filters.  I'm looking at roughly $9,100 for a black and white camera with an f1.7, 28MM lens that only shoots in black and white.

If you haven't heard anything about Leica, than you're really not a photographer.  Leica is a German company that's been producing cameras for over 100 years.  All Leica cameras are handmade in factory.  Once you go Leica, apparently you never go back to using any other camera system.

I've had a fascination with shooting black and white for the past couple of months.  I am also limiting my shooting to just landscapes.  I've cut down the number of photos I've put up on my website from several hundred to just 8 of my best.  

In November, my fiancee and I are heading down to Arizona for 10 days.  It'll be another photography vacation for myself anyways.  The plan is to rent an RV for at least 6 or 7 days and go up to Monument Valley, the Grand Canyon and a few of the national parks.  If I could swing it by then, I could have the Leica Q2 monochrome and shoot everything in pure black and white.  Hopefully the weather will co-operate with us and provide us with nice blue skies and awesome colours.

Sony RX100 Mark VII photography and editing on the new M1, 1TB, 16GB Apple iPad Pro

So WWDC21 was a total crap show this year.  It was extremely boring and nothing innovative came out of it in my opinion.  iPadOS 15 was a total failure as far as I’m concerned.  On a side, I’m doing more and more photography with the new Sony RX100 Mark VII pocket camera.  It’s my second time owning till little camera.  It’s got the 24-200MM lens on it and that’s one reason I got it.  I’m still editing on the 2021 M1 base iPad Pro 12.9”.  The only reason I have it is I’m waiting to trade it in for the M1X or M2 based MacBook Pro, whenever they come out.  Hoping that will happen later this summer.  Hope I can pick one up at one of the Apple stores here in Ottawa before I permanently leave for Calgary in the fall.

In the meantime, I’m hoping to get another short contract here with one of the federal departments.  It will be my last one for sure.

More photos for sale

 

Last night, someone bought a picture of a timber wolf I took several years ago at Parc Omega.  Fine Art America just paid for itself and then some.  Thank you to the buyer in Colorado.  

 The above photos were taken in the Ottawa Valley on October 10, 2020.  No one around and it was very peaceful.  Even went out for dinner.  Considering Ottawa is in another lockdown, we had to go out of town to get something to eat.  Gotta love the draconian levels of government in Canada. 

Both pictures are available for sale here and here.  Hopefully they'll be approved on my Adobe stock portfolio and my Deposit Photos portfolio.

Fall is here

 

I went to Mud Lake today to do some photography.  Also needed the walk.  This was the only usable photography I got today.  I was just thinking about setting goals and finishing goals.  I don't want my life to be meaningless.  Just like a leaf in the wind.  Just set one goal at a time and complete it.  Don't worry about the money.  Money will come if you enjoy what you're doing.  75% of people hate what they do for a living.  I am one of the 75%.  Photography is what I love to do.  I saw a very inspiring video today by a former California governor.  I think he's a RINO but this is not about politics.  It's about setting goals and finishing your goals.  It's a short video.  Worth your time. 

Why I love Sony mirrorless cameras

 

I've been shooting waterfalls the past couple of outings.  Ever since I got the 9 stop ND filter, I've been shooting long exposure waterfalls.  And I love it.  All my shots are taken during the day.  At least 6 second shots a ISO 50 and higher than f9.5.  Gotta love it.

Rainy day photography

I wanted to do some more long exposure photography with the GOBE 10 stop ND filter.  Today was a dark and dreary day.  Perfect weather for some long exposure photography like the picture above.  This small waterfall is located in Britannia Park located in the west of Ottawa.  I had forgotten about this park for about 5 years.  Rediscovered it a few weeks back Nd I wanted to photograph it again.  It’s really a small, beautiful and pleasant park with not too many people around.

I’ve had pretty much nothing to do since I can’t go back to my job because of the Kung Flu virus.  I’ve uploaded both of the above pictures to my own personal website.  Both pictures are available for sale there.  I’ve also uploaded both pictures to my Adobe Portfolio.  They are waiting for moderation. What I like about both shots is how crisp and sharp they both are.  I used ISO 100, f8 and a 30 second exposure.  Both were shot with the Sony a7R Mark II, the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens and the GOBE 10 stop ND filter.

Hi If you are located in Ottawa or in the Ottawa Valley and would like to learn how to use your DSLR, give me a shout here.  I charge $50/hour.  If more hours are needed to learn your camera, we can come out to a deal.  I started doing pro photography back in 2008.  I graduated from Algonquin College as a pro photographer in 2012 and I’ve been shooting ever since.

Algonquin Park - Landscapes

It is 23:15 on Saturday night.  Just got home from Algonquin Park maybe half an hour ago.  I transferred all my photography and videos from my various SD cards and here are the first two shots that I edited from our day at Algonquin Park along the Highway 60 corridor.  Quite the successful afternoon from the park.  3 moose and lots of lakes that were photographed.

From looking at most of the photography today, it looks amazing.  Tomorrow will be more video stuff from the Tulip Festival here in Ottawa.  Thankfully they opened up the city parks this past week.  Most people are social distancing thankfully.  I still think this whole corona virus is way overblown as pretty much all the deaths are in long term care facilities which everyone knew was going to happen.  But that's just my opinion.

Shooting with the Sony a7R Mark II and the Sony f3.5-63 24MM-200MM

Went out again with the Sony a7R Mark II and the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens today  I am really impressed with this camera and lens combination.  I went to Dows Lake which is centrally located in Ottawa, Ontario - Canada.  It's where the tulip festival is held every year.  Luckily this year, there aren't hoards of tourists from Toronto.  Typically there are 3-10 bus loads of Asian tourists and it's impossible to move.  Luckily this year the park is clean due to the lack of people.  Typically tourists just throw garbage everywhere and spit all over the place.

The Sony a7R Mark II comes with a 42.4 megapixel full frame sensor.  It outputs roughly 85 megabyte uncompressed RAW files.  So a lot of information to pay with.  I edited the above photos in Affinity Photo 1.8.3 on a Windows 10 based laptop.  The Apple iPad Pro 12.9" with the 512GB hard drive running iPadOS 13.3.1 has been acting funny the last two days.  I've reinstalled iPadOS once already and I'll give it another day or two to settle down.  The two images above are available for sale on my website. 

I really enjoy using the camera to take the photos.  I will post more photos once I am done editing them in Affinity Photo.

Today's social distancing walk around Ottawa

Went out for my social distancing walk this afternoon in downtown Ottawa.  Ottawa is currently empty of government employees, locals and tourists.  Everything is being cancelled.  All the festivals and concerts are no more.  All the museums are closed.  Seems like the summer is cancelled in Ottawa.  The good thing is there are no people or cars in my shots.  If there are cars or people in my photos, I can remove them using Affinity Photo.  Today, I just had to remove some cars.  Some of these shots are available on http://josefpittner.photos/.  I know times are tough right now for everyone.  I was laid off from my job 3 weeks ago now because of this Covid19 virus.

My favourite camera. And why.

As a photographer, I've gone through a myriad of camera bodies and lenses.  Point and shoot cameras, cropped sensor cameras and full frame cameras.  Then there are the lenses.  Zoom and fixed focal lengths,  I can't count the number of bodies I've gone through in the past 15 years or so.  But the Sony a7R II body with its 42.4 megapixel full frame sensor has to be the best camera I've ever used.  The Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens is the most versatile lens I've ever owned.  It's no f2.8 70-200MM lens but I don't need the 16-35 or the 70-200 and another body to carry around.  

As I get progressively older, I do not want to carry around multiple bodies and lenses.  Like I've stated in the past, when I was in the Rockies, I carried around 3 lens, 3 bodies and a camcorder.  That was a pain the butt I can tell you.   I also switched to the Sony RX100 Mark VII which was an amazingly fantastic little pocket camera.  But I needed something a bit more versatile.  The Sony a7R II combined with the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM is just the right combination for a one man run and gun setup.

I was hoping I'd be moving out west to Calgary in the next couple of weeks but it looks like that is going to be put on hold.  With the corona virus, SSC is not bringing us on past March 31st of this year which sucks.  Photo sales are not picking up and I think things will get only worse before they get any better.

I am hoping at some point this year, we will make out west.  I want to do a lot more landscape photography with the Sony a7R II and the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens.  On a side note, iPad OS 13.4 came out today and it has made the iPad a little worse for wear.  The Files app is a huge disappointment   It now crashes whenever I try to copy over the 85 megabyte files from the Sony a7R II.  I am stuck using my Windows 10 laptop.  I'm thinking that I will try the 2018 Apple iPad Pro tomorrow again after the system settles down a bit.  In the meantime, I'll be using the Windows 10 laptop and Affinity Photo 1.8.2 to edit the photos.

My photography setup

During this self isolation period, I managed to clean up my desk and clean up my photography setup.  My setup includes the 2018 Apple iPad Pro with the 12.9” screen and the 512GB hard drive.  I have an external 2TB hard drive attached via USB hub and the Yeti Blue Mic.  I also have the Apple Keyboard Folio and the Bluetooth Apple mouse which will be connected via Bluetooth tomorrow whenever iPadOS 13.4 comes out.  The camera is the Sony a7R II which has the 42.4 megapixel sensor.  I am using the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens which is a great all in one lens.  Yes, it’s a little slower compared to the f2.8 lenses but it’s also a lot cheaper in price.  

The 2018 Apple iPad Pro is great for editing photos coming from the Sony a7R II camera.  It has more then enough power to edit the 85 megabyte files coming out of the Sony a7R II.  There are minuscule problems with the operating system of the iPad Pro which I hope will be fixed in iPadOS 13.4.  I am hoping iPadOS 14 brings in more features like a better and more stable File system.  The File App has crashed my iPad Pro twice so far when transferring files from the 128GB SD card onto the external hard drive.  Also missing for me is the copy status when transferring files between the SD Card and the external hard drive.  Once those two features are baked into iPadOS, I’d be really happy with the 2018 iPad Pro.  With the 2020 Apple iPad Pro, the GPU is only about 10% faster which is not a reason for me to upgrade.  I also don’t use the 2018 Apple iPad Pro as my primary camera so the new camera system on the 2020 Apple iPad Pro is totally meaningless.  Although the new keyboard folio looks interesting with the track pad, I was never a huge fan of the track pads on any device.  As long as the iPad Pro gets the Bluetooth mouse support tomorrow, I’ll be really happy.

I have noticed an uptick on visits to the site.  With everyone staying home and self isolating, if you are reading this and you see the ads running on this blog, I would appreciate if you would peruse the ads by placing your mouse over them and hitting the left mouse button or using your finger on your iPhone or iPad.  It would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks very much and be safe out there.

Shooting with the Sony A7R II and the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM

I picked up the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens today to complete the Sony setup.  I have the Sony a7R II body which has the 42.4 megapixel sensor.  I really didn't get to test it out today as the conditions weren't right.  High winds and hardly any light.

I have to say I am impressed with the Sony a7R II body and the 24-240MM lens combination.  The files sizes coming out the camera are spectacularly huge.  I am shooting uncompressed RAW files.  They are coming out at roughly 85.6 megabytes.  Those are huge files.  The dynamic range is just amazing.  I can hand hold the camera at 1/5 of a second and the pictures are tact sharp.  The colour science is just as good as any other camera brand although I find Canon's colour science just a tad ahead of Sony although I think Sony is catching up quickly.

I have to knock the image back a bit in jpeg format to 99% quality to get it just under 25 megabytes.  At 100% resolution, the JPEG file is about 42 megabytes in size.  

Tomorrow (March 14, 2020) is supposed to be nice and sunny with a high of 2 degrees Celsius.  I think a trip to either Algonquin Park or Parc Omega is due.  The only reason I want to go to Parc Omega is to go do some photography and got some fresh maple syrup right out of the trees.

I think I will have to take 2 128GB SD cards with me tomorrow.  I have to learn not to spray and pray  with the photography.  The early 2013 MacBook Pro can edit the photos easily.  I'm going to test editing the photos on my Windows 10 machine as well along with the 2018 Apple iPad Pro.

Mud Lake in winter

I went for a short walk at Mud Lake today located in the west of Ottawa.  Have not been there in quite a while.  I took my Sony RX100 Mark VII with me.  Spent about 45 minutes just walking the groomed trails there.

Yesterday I bought myself the Sony A7R II camera body with just one battery.  When I get paid next week, I will be buying the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens along with the battery grip and two additional batteries.  

I want to enjoy my time with the Sony RX100 Mark VII.  I'm not going to sell it.   I believe it's a fantastic little camera.  My photography is evolving.  This summer I want to do a lot more camping on the weekends and I want to do a lot more exploring.  I figured a high megapixel, full frame camera is what I need to accomplish my goals.

This summer I will be travelling a lot more on weekends.  I want to discover the areas farther around Ottawa before we move out west.  

The above photos were actually edited on my Windows 10 laptop using Affinity Photo 1.8.  I actually love Affinity Photo.  I cannot stand Photoshop.  Photoshop is bloated software.  I refuse to pay a monthly subscription to Adobe.  Just no Adobe.  Affinity Photo is about $50 and you actually own the software.  And you get the updates too.

Back to just doing phtotography

I think it's time to go back to just doing photography.  Not just your run of the mill wildlife and animal photography but high end landscape photography.

Yesterday I went to my local photography store and I bought a Sony A7R II camera body.  Just  the body.  I have to wait a bit to buy the specific lens I want.  I'll probably get it in the next week or two.  I was thinking yesterday that Parc Omega isn't worth going to anymore as the entrance fee just keeps going up and up and up.  The fencing is higher now that it ever has been so if I want to photograph the Arctic Wolves for example, it's virtually impossible to get them without having the fence in the way.

I want to get the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens for the Sony A7RII body.  I  think it's wide enough and it has enough reach for me to get most things.  The Sony A7RII has 42.4 megapixels so I can crop in to whatever I want.  I think it's going to be the perfect camera/lens combination.

It's early March now and the snow is starting to melt away.  It's supposed to be above zero starting tomorrow during the day at least.  I have pretty much all the camping gear I need.  Sleeping bag, mattress, pillow to sleep in the back of the car.  All I need now is just a cooler to put my food and water into and I can now leave for the weekends to go car camping and do photography on the weekends with the new camera.

I will need to buy an extra set of batteries for this camera as the battery life sucks on this Sony camera.  I'm seeing a picture of the Sony batteries not being so good on most Sony cameras.  But if I'm just doing landscapes, I can just fire off 300-400 shots over the weekend and work with just one battery.  I just want that lens.

I thought I could do it with just the 2018 Apple iPad Pro

So I thought I could just run the photography business with just an iPad Pro and the Sony RX100 Mark VII.  The iPad Pro is a great device as is the Sony RX100 Mark VII.  I'm still using the Sony RX100 Mark VII as the main camera for now.  But the iPad Pro, not so much.  The only issue I'm running into is the space on the iPad Pro as I use the Apple Photos app to store all my photography shot with either the Apple iPhone Pro Max and the Sony RX100 Mark VII.  I think for now I will be using the early 2013 Apple MacBook Pro as a sort of server to store my RAW photo files so I can edit them on the 2018 Apple iPad Pro.

I'm noticing that a lot of my photography now is getting rejected for noise issues.  I honestly love the Sony RX100 Mark VII but for low light situation, I find the Sony A7 II is really good.  That is why I bought it again.  I will use it for my landscape photography.

And another long weekend with a trip planned

Caught this male deer at Parc Omega.  Available for sale on my Shutterstock portfolio.  It’s Valentines Day today and it’s a long weekend in Ontario.  So I’m taking my fiancé to Niagara Falls, Ontario for the long weekend.  Haven’t been there in a year or so.  I’m taking the Sony RX100 Mark VII with me. I can’t wait to do some long exposure photography of the falls.

Why the Sony RX100 Mark VII is the best camera (for me)

As a stock photographer, I carry my camera with me everywhere.  It’s either in my coat, jeans or shorts pocket when I’m out and about.  it’s just the perfect camera for me.  Some may say it’s just an overpriced point and shoot that’s a bit better than a phone camera.  I actually beg to differ.  Just because it’s got a one inch sensor with an attached 24-200MM lens, doesn’t mean it’s not a professional camera.  It is a professional camera because it’s with me every minute of the day.  I was going to buy the Sony A7RII with the 24-240MM lens.  But that combination would cost me about $4000.  And that combination would not be with me all the time just because of the size.  I carry the Sony RX100 Mark VII with me everywhere along with my 2018 Apple iPad Pro.

I can do all sorts of photography with the Sony RX100 Mark VII.  I can do portraiture, street, landscape and wildlife photography.  I can shoot during the day and at night as seen with the above photograph of the fireworks.  This was a 3.2” photograph at f9 and ISO 100.  No noise.  No shake since I had the camera on a tripod shooting with an intervalometer.  I can attach all the adapters I need to.  It is essentially the perfect camera for me.

I am a stock photographer

No weddings. No portraits.  No family shots.  Only landscapes of nature and wildlife.  With my Sony RX100 Mark VII and my 2018 Apple iPad Pro.  No huge cameras.  No heavy laptops.  If I need to get closer to something, I walk towards it.  If I need to be farther away from subject, I walk away from it.  Easy as that.  I enjoy my independence.  I would rather be in my car with my camera driving to somewhere new.  Photograph something new.  Experience something new.

I honestly don’t need the latest and greatest anymore.  I am truly happy with what I have.  I have the best camera.  I have the best computer.  Why?  They are always with me.  I have decided to just do photography and shoot footage with the Sony RX100 Mark VII.  High quality photography and high quality 1080p video.  4K files are way too big and take too much time to process.  The 2018 Apple iPad Pro just flies through 1080p footage.  I keep learning about the iPadOS everyday.  Learn something new with it.

April 2020, I have decided to move to Calgary and be near the mountains.  I want to pay off my debt and just live simply.  That is my goal.

More Parc Omega photography with the Sony RX100 Mark VII

So I took a day off from work last week to go to Parc Omega for the day.  We got our first snow fall of the season and I wanted to photograph some animals in the fresh snow.  I’ve been trying to convince myself that I need a full frame, high megapixel camera and a really fast computer to do landscape and wildlife photography.  That just isn’t true.  I’ve been using my Sony RX100 Mark VII camera and a 2018 Apple iPad Pro with the 12.9” screen and a 512GB hard drive for the past six months to do all my computing and photography work.  If I didn’t say what equipment I was using no one would know unless they asked and I told them what I was using.  It is not the equipment, but rather the photographer.  Photography is pretty easy to learn.  Anyone can shoot decent photos.  You just have to have an eye for it.  You have to see the composition.  You just have to take the camera with you.

The above photo was taken at Parc Omega in Montebello, Quebec.  It was taken with the Sony RX100 Mark VII, edited on a 2018 Apple iPad Pro in Pixelmator Photo.  Literally just one click and voila.  Does not take much.