Tuesday 22 November 2016

A Sony kit vs. A Fujifilm Kit

Recently I was reviewing the APSC Fujifilm kit which according to Fujifilm rivals the full frame cameras. Although currently, unless you are at high ISOs the X-T2 and Pro2 certainly rival the A7II in image IQ, this may change if the rumoured A7III includes a back-illuminated sensor. However, when it comes to the A7RII there is no real comparison, the resolution of this camera is well beyond the Fujifilm cameras. So it seemed to me of some interest to compare a prime shooters kit on both the X-T2 and the A7RII.

An Idea Travel Kit Cost and Weight

So let's look at what a travel kit might look like with both cameras, which should include a 35mm for street photography, a 25/24mm for landscape and an 85mm for detailRecently I was reviewing the APSC Fujifilm kit which according to Fujifilm rivals the full frame cameras. Although currently, unless you are at high ISOs the X-T2 and Pro2 certainly rival the A7II in image IQ, this may change if the rumoured A7III includes a back-illuminated sensor. However, when it comes to the A7RII there is no real comparison, the resolution of this camera is well beyond the Fujifilm cameras. So it seemed to me of some interest to compare a prime shooters kit on both the X-T2 and the A7RII.
So let's look at what a travel kit might look like with both cameras, which should include a 35mm for street photography, a 25/24mm for landscape and an 85mm for detail or portrait shots.


What is most interesting in this comparison is the Cost of the Sony kit is much higher than that of the Fuji kit, but the weight is identical! Although the Zeiss lenses are a little larger, the small Sony 35mm street lens is perhaps more compact that the Fuji rig. 

The Selection of Lenses

The selection of the lenses was quite easy for the Fujifilm camera as these three lenses, 16/23/56, all score very highly on the testing sites, and test very similar to Zeiss lens. This made the selection for the Sony A7RII a little easier because there was both a 25mm and 85mm Zeiss lens. However to find a street lens for the 35mm field of view I had to defer to the 2.8 Sony lens, because it was similar in size to the Fuji 35mm equivalent and small enough to not be too obtrusive. Now not everyone might agree with that call but the 35mm Sony lens does test very well.
The Fuji Kit

The Sony Kit

Ergonomics, Menus and Dials

The X-T2 has some advantages over the Sony in terms of its retro style controls, which keep you out of the menus and away from programming buttons. This tactile non-menu operation also extends to the lenses which have aperture rings and some also have lens shifting to manual focus. The two SD bays, which typically were only found in FF high-end cameras is also a big advantage. It allows for the backing up of critical shoots or the facilitation of dual separate storage during travel. Also of course it is much cheaper to upgrade your camera which these days seems to age enormously over 3-4 years. 
Sony on the other hand is a very high-resolution camera with a full frame sensor and in the same size and weight as the Fujifilm camera. If money was not really an issue and you can live without the manual none menu operation of the camera then it is hard to imagine not investing in the Sony. The Sony also has a much better hand grip on the front of the camera than the X-T2.

Conclusion

This comparison raises some interesting points in my mind. The two camera kits are significantly different in price but not in weight and perhaps not so much in size either. They are also significantly different in resolution.