Let’s compare the Sony FX30 camera with the Sony A7 IV camera. Do share your thoughts with us
Design-wise
Design-wise Sony A74 is more inclined towards photographers, with a LARGE handgrip design and a high res 3.6Millionb dot EVF, you easily able to shoot your subjects. The FX30 is made for cinematographers, look at the number of mounting threads we have on the FX30 body.
Imaging
| Lens Mount | Sony E | Sony E |
| Sensor Resolution | Actual: 27 Megapixel Effective: 26 Megapixel (6192 x 4128) |
Actual: 34.1 Megapixel Effective: 33 Megapixel |
| Sensor Type | 23.3 x 15.5 mm (APS-C) CMOS | 35.9 x 23.9 mm (Full-Frame) CMOS |
| Image Stabilization | Sensor-Shift, 5-Axis | Sensor-Shift, 5-Axis |
| Camera Type | Video | Stills & Video [Hybrid] |
Sony A7 IV is a Hybrid Camera and more Photography Oriented
The Sony A74 advantage
With the Sony A74 camera we are getting Sony’s latest 33MP Fullframe sensor. Undoubtedly with a full-frame sensor-based camera, you will get better results while shooting your subjects than with an APS-C sensor.
More for Photographers
Dynamic Range graph of Sony A74 – DR Boost at ISO 400 – Sony Fullframe cameras do carry a Dual Native ISO circuit for photography too… but Sony never talks about that officially.
The A7IV has a dual-gain for photos at ISO 400. So ISO 400 has more DR and should have slightly better noise than ISO 320 and ISO 250. ISO 250 is very close…just slightly below ISO 400. The only ISO to avoid is ISO 320
Via test when came to know about the boost for still photography. In the video as per a few expert’s options, the Boost is available @ ISO 1600 in A7 IV.
Less Rolling shutter with Mechanical Shutter
Sony A7 4 camera features a mechanical shutter and a TOP speed of 10 FPS, while ur using your camera in burst mode if u have mechanical shutter ON you will comparatively faceless rolling shutter than a camera that only uses an electronic shutter. either way, the Sony A7 IV is the best camera when we talk about shooting still subjects.
Internal Video Capture
| Recording Modes | XAVC HS 4:2:2 10-Bit UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p XAVC S-I 4:2:2 10-Bit UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/119.88p XAVC S UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/119.88p XAVC Proxy Full HD (1920 x 1080) HD (1280 x 720) |
H.265/XAVC HS 4:2:2 10-Bit UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/50p/59.94p [50 to 200 Mb/s] H.265/XAVC HS 4:2:0 10-Bit UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/50p/59.94p [30 to 150 Mb/s] H.264/XAVC S-I 4:2:2 10-Bit UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [240 to 600 Mb/s] Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [89 to 222 Mb/s] XAVC S 4:2:2 10-Bit UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [100 to 200 Mb/s] Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [50 Mb/s] XAVC S 4:2:0 8-Bit UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [60 to 150 Mb/s] Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p [16 to 100 Mb/s] |
| Variable Frame Rates | UHD: Up to 119.88 fps 1080p: Up to 240 fps |
4UHD: Up to 119.88 fps 1080p: Up to 240 fps |
| Gamma Curve | HDR-HLG, S Cinetone, Sony S-Log 3 | HDR-HLG, S Cinetone, Sony S-Log 3 |
| Built-In Microphone Type | Stereo | Stereo |
| Audio Recording | 2-Channel 24-Bit LPCM Audio 4-Channel 24-Bit LPCM Audio |
2-Channel 24-Bit 48 kHz LPCM Audio 4-Channel 24-Bit 48 kHz LPCM Audio |
Sony FX30 is a Video Camera from the inside out
If we talk about the body desing of the FX30 camera which include ehnaced telly light, timecode input ports & dedicated fan for cooling camera body, if we talk about the Tile based Menu system that directly arrived from FX9 or FX3, Up to 16 user-created LUTs, Timecode funcintlaity or Quick Exposuer index mode for boosting up the perfomance of the Sony FX30 while shooting log or with S-Cinetone.
Even if they share the same codec range
XAVC HS, which uses HEVC/H.265 encoding to retain more detail at smaller bitrates, and XAVC S-I, which is an intraframe codec for consistent performance and quality.
X-AVC HS (H.265 Long GOP)
X-AVC I (H.264 All-I)
X-AVC S (H.264 Long GOP)
It also highlights the key difference between what we now call Long GOP compression (smaller files, potentially lower quality) and All-Intra, or All-I compression (larger files, potentially better quality)
Exposure Index Mode and Dual Native ISO available in Sony FX30 Only
| Base ISO | Upper gain step | |
|---|---|---|
| Std color mode / HLG | ISO 100 | ISO 320 |
| S-Cinetone | ISO 125 | ISO 400 |
| S-Log3 | ISO 800 | ISO 2500 |
Recording at the base ISO enables you to take full advantage of the image sensor performance. You can capture material that withstands color grading better, without becoming degraded.
Two base ISO options are available for FX30 also as you can see in the table above, for low or high sensitivity. Choose a base ISO to suit the scene you are shooting.
Log shooting can be divided into three methods: “Flexible ISO,” “Cine EI,” and “Cine EI Quick.”
| Item | Normal movie shooting | Log shooting: Flexible ISO | Log shooting: Cine EI | Log shooting: Cine EI Quick |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type of shooting | ITU709/BT.2020 | Log | Log | Log |
| ISO sensitivity/EI (Exposure Index) | ISO sensitivity can be adjusted | ISO sensitivity can be adjusted | Shooting with EI (The ISO sensitivity for recording is locked to Base ISO) |
Shooting with EI (The ISO sensitivity for recording is locked to Base ISO) |
| Base ISO | ― | ― | Setting is required | Set automatically according to the EI |
| Amount of freedom of color grading in post-production | Low | Middle | High | High |
The above all clearly shows
You have amazing flexibility with the Sony FX30 camera if you are more into video rather than photography.
| Shutter Type | Electronic Rolling Shutter | Mechanical Focal Plane Shutter, Electronic Shutter |
| Shutter Speed | 1/8000 to 30 Seconds in Photo Mode 1/8000 to 1/4 Second in Video Mode |
1/8000 to 30 Seconds |
| ISO Sensitivity | 100 to 32,000 (Extended: 50 to 102,400) | Photo 100 to 51,200 (Extended: 50 to 204,800) Video 100 to 51,200 (Extended: 100 to 102,400) |
| Advertised Dynamic Range | 14 Stops (Log3) | |
| White Balance | 2500 to 9900K Presets: Auto, Cloudy, Color Temperature, Daylight, Fluorescent, Incandescent, Shade, Underwater |
Presets: Auto, Cloudy, Color Temperature, Color Temperature Filter, Custom, Daylight, Flash, Fluorescent (Cool White), Fluorescent (Day White), Fluorescent (Daylight), Fluorescent (Warm White), Incandescent, Shade, Underwater |
Video Resolution & Frame rate
| 4K 120 (1.6x / super 35mm look) | None |
| 4k 60 (1.04x crop) | 4K 60p (1.5x Crop) |
| 4k 24, 30 fps | 4k 24, 30 without crop |
| Full HD 240 FPS | Full HD 120 FPS |
External Video Capture
| Raw Output | HDMI In ProResRAW Mode: 4672 x 2628 16-Bit at 23.98/25/29.97/50/59.94 fps |
4:2:2 10-Bit via HDMI UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.98p/50p/59.94p Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 50i/59.94i 4:2:0 8-Bit via HDMI UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.98p/50p/59.94p Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 50i/59.94i |
| External Recording Modes | 4:2:2 10-Bit via HDMI UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.98p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p |
None |
| IP Streaming | None |
Autofocus System
| Focus Type | Auto and Manual Focus | Auto and Manual Focus |
| Focus Mode | Automatic, Continuous-Servo AF, Direct Manual Focus, Manual Focus, Single-Servo AF, Touch AF & Shutter | Continuous-Servo AF, Direct Manual Focus, Manual Focus, Single-Servo AF |
| Autofocus Points | Video Phase Detection: 495 |
Phase Detection: 759 Contrast Detection: 425 |
| Autofocus Sensitivity | -3 to +20 EV | -4 to +20 EV |
General
| Battery Type | Sony Z-Series | |
| Tripod Mounting Thread | 1 x 1/4″-20 Female (Bottom) | 1 x NP-FZ100 Rechargeable Lithium-Ion, 7.2 VDC, 2280 mAh (Approx. 520 Shots) |
| Accessory Mount | 1 x Intelligent Hot Shoe on Camera Body 5 x 1/4″-20 Female on Camera Body |
1 x 1/4″-20 Female (Bottom) |
| Material of Construction | Magnesium Alloy | 1 x Hot Shoe Mount |
| Dimensions (W x H x D) | 5.1 x 3.1 x 3.3″ / 129.7 x 77.8 x 84.5 mm | 5.2 x 3.8 x 3.1″ / 131.3 x 96.4 x 79.8 mm |
| Weight | 1.2 lb / 562 g (Body Only) | 1.4 lb / 658 g (With Battery, Recording Media) |
Conclusion
Budget means Limitations – But the limitations shouldn’t block your creativity – If you have a budget and looking for a cinema camera then go with FX3, the full-frame sensor cinema camera.
But at an Under $2000 body price if you are looking for a budget cinema solution then the Sony FX30 camera is best for you, Being an APAS-C sensor-based camera you can have sigma Trio lenses on the budget rather than investing in full-frame lenses.
For Hybrids, those who are into photography, as well as Video Sony A7 IV, is the best camera. But for cinematography, FX30.
Top 10 Best Mirrorless Cameras of 2022 – 2023
Sony A7 IV Camera a B&H Store and Amazon
Recommended Lenses Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 Lens Amazon | B&H Store
Sony Portrait Lens – Sigma 85mm F1.4 B&H | Amazon.com | Budget Lens Sony 50mm F1.8 Amazon
Best memory Card to prevent overheating
also, look at Best Lenses for Sony A7 IV Camera
