DPReview: Sony a7 III Has Better Dynamic Range and High ISO Performance than a7 II

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Compared with the a7 II (green), the a7 III (orange) shows much better dynamic range (at least 1.6 EV) at higher ISOs. Also, whereas you can see noise reduction being applied to the a7 II’s Raw at 25,600, it doesn’t kick in until ISO 64,000 (beyond the graph) on the Mark III.

The new Sony a7 III a comparatively affordable full frame mirrorless camera that incorporates a host of advanced features derived from the a9 and a7R III. DPReview has tested the dynamic range and high ISO performance of Sony a7 III mirrorless camera – The results show Sony a7 III has much better dynamic range and high ISO performance than a7 II.

Summary of the test results from DPReview:

ISO 100 (24MP) ISO 100 (8MP) ISO 640 (24MP) ISO 640 (8MP)
a7 III 13.8 EV 14.6 EV 13.4 EV 14.2 EV
a7 III (compressed 12-bit) 12.4 EV 13.2 EV 12.3 EV 13.2 EV
a7 II 13.9 EV 14.7 EV 11.8 EV 12.6 EV
a7R III 14 EV 14.8 EV 13.1 EV 13.9 EV
a7R II 13.6 EV 14.4 EV 12.9 EV 13.7 EV
a9 12.6 EV 13.4 EV 12.4 EV 13.2 EV

From DPReview:

The a7 III‘s image quality more or less matches what we’ve come to expect from modern, well-performing full-frame sensors. There’s really not much difference between the a7 III, the a7R III, the a7R II, or the Nikon D850 for that matter.

But if you’re coming from one of the original a7 cameras, you’ll notice the dramatic increase in low light performance. The a7 III bests its predecessors both in dynamic range and general noise performance at higher ISOs, thanks to a number of sensor improvements (efficiency, BSI, dual-gain). Interestingly, the a7 III, which we’d imagine shares a similar sensor to the a9 minus the stacked design, offers roughly 1 EV more dynamic range than that camera at ISOs 100 and 640 (the cameras even out at the highest ISOs). General noise performance of the a9 – if you’re not pushing your files – is similar though.

The a7 III offers great image quality performance at an affordable price point. That said, it’s not image quality that sets this camera apart from its contemporaries but, rather, its significant other capabilities like autofocus, silent shooting, video and a number of other things we’ll be delving into in our full review.

Sony a7 III body: $1,998 at Amazon, B&H, Adorama.

Read more: Best Lenses for Sony a7 III and Best Memory Cards for Sony a7 III.