Sony Alpha 7R IV

It breaks the 50MP barrier, but how else does the A7R IV improve on the excellent A7R III? Michael Topham inspects Sony’s latest high-resolution marvel

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When Sony announced the A7R in 2013, full-frame mirrorless cameras were in their infancy. We knew the A7-series had potential, but we couldn’t have predicted how quickly the system would evolve and the impact it would have on tempting photographers to switch systems. No sooner had 36MP sensors been accepted as the norm for high-resolution full-frame cameras, Sony had manufactured its second-generation high-resolution model. The A7R II that arrived in 2015 presented a ground-breaking 42.4MP sensor, built-in 5-axis image stabilisation and an improved body design. Two years later Sony revisited its A7R series again. The A7R III upheld the same pixel count as its predecessor, but introduced many of the powerful features that originated in the Alpha 9, turning it into one of the best all-rounders we’ve tested in terms of resolution, speed and high-ISO image quality. Not one for taking its foot off the gas, Sony has listened to feedback from its users and made over 50 improvements to its new Alpha 7R IV. The question is: has Sony made the best high-resolution, full-frame mirrorless camera on the market?

Features

The A7R IV is the first camera to boast a 61-million-pixel, back-illuminated full-frame sensor, with on-chip phase detection for autofocus. It partners with Sony’s latest-generation Bionz X image processor and front-end LSI, with the aim of delivering unprecedented resolution, fine gradation and a 15-stop dynamic range at the low end of its ISO 100-32,000 range (that’s expandable to ISO 50-102,400).