Sony A7S II Image Quality Comparison

Since the Sony A7S II has a relatively low-resolution sensor by today's standards, we've decided to do something different this time around for our image quality comparison page. First, we'll do our standard in-camera JPEG comparisons to its predecessor, the A7S, to see what, if anything, has changed. But instead of comparing to much higher resolution full-frame cameras at 100%, we'll compare them all normalized to the A7S II's 12-megapixel image size. However, because we needed to resample the higher-resolution images anyway, we've decided to compare raw files processed via Adobe Camera Raw with no noise reduction or sharpening applied. This should give a more accurate representation of how the various sensors compare in terms of noise and detail when normalized to the same size. But remember, you can still always go to our world-renowned Comparometer to compare our standard Sony A7S II JPEGs to any camera we've ever tested across all ISOs.

As mentioned above, we'll first look at in-camera JPEGs at the usual ISOs to see if the A7S II's image quality has changed compared to its predecessor.

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7S at Base ISO (JPEG)

Sony A7S II at ISO 100
Sony A7S at ISO 100

As expected, the Sony A7S II produces in-camera JPEGs that are very similar to its predecessor at base ISO in terms of noise and detail, however we do see the difficult red-leaf fabric is rendered slightly better by the A7S. This is likely related to the slightly lower color sensitivity scores reported by DxOMark for the newer model.

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7S at ISO 1600 (JPEG)

Sony A7S II at ISO 1600
Sony A7S at ISO 1600

Again, very similar image quality at ISO 1600, but we continue to see the A7S do a little better than the A7S II in our tricky red-leaf fabric.

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7S at ISO 3200 (JPEG)

Sony A7S II at ISO 3200
Sony A7S at ISO 3200

Once again, it's the older model with a slight edge in the red-leaf fabric, but both do extremely well at this sensitivity.

 

As mentioned previously, 12 megapixels is a pretty low resolution these days, and a lot of readers are probably wondering how the A7S II compares to higher resolution full-frame models. However, directly comparing cameras with pixel counts that vary by more than 2x is quite difficult at 100% and doesn't really make a whole lot of sense. So below we've decided to compare normalized high-ISO raw files processed in Adobe Camera Raw with no noise reduction or sharpening applied and with other settings left at their defaults. After conversion, we resampled the higher resolution cameras down to 12 megapixels for a more meaningful comparison, using Photoshop's standard bicubic interpolation. We didn't use the "Sharper" or "Automatic" options as is often done for downsampling, because it tended to oversharpen the images. The native 12-megapixel A7S II and A7S converted raw files also have no noise reduction or sharpening applied, so keep that in mind.

On to our RAW comparisons...

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7S at Base ISO (RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 100
Sony A7S at ISO 100

Comparing A7S II and A7S converted raw files at base ISO with no noise reduction or sharpening applied shows results similar to what we saw with the in-camera JPEGs: Almost identical images in terms of detail and noise, but the A7S does slightly better with our tricky red-leaf fabric with higher contrast and lower noise, while rendering some colors slightly differently as well.

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7 II at Base ISO (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 100
Sony A7 II at ISO 100

Here we're comparing the 12-megapixel A7S II to its latest 24-megapixel sibling, the Sony A7 II, resampled down to 12 megapixels. As you can see, even after being converted to 12-megapixels, the A7 II renders fine detail noticeably better than the A7S II with better sharpness, but moiré patterns are evident in the red-leaf fabric. However, if you click on the crops and view the full target, you'll see it's the A7S II's image that has more aliasing artifacts in the form of color moiré in the Pure Brewed label. This is mostly because the distances and frequencies involved are such that moiré happens to generated from the finer thread pattern in the red-leaf fabric by the higher resolution A7 II, while the A7S II generates it from detail repeating at a lower frequency in the Pure Brewed label. Bottom line, though, the A7 II produces better detail and just slightly higher noise levels at base ISO when normalized like this. And keep in mind the A7S II's images will require additional sharpening to match the sharpness from the A7 II, which will increase the appearance of noise. (You can view the A7 II's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7R II at Base ISO (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 100
Sony A7R II at ISO 100

In this comparison, we pit the 42-megapixel Sony A7R II normalized to the same image size against the A7S II. As expected, we see much better detail and crispness from the much higher-resolution A7R II which has no AA filter, though again, it generated moiré patterns in the red-leaf fabric as well as in the Samuel Smith logo (click the crops to see the entire target). Noise is a bit higher from the A7R II, but it's still quite low at base ISO and keep in mind: a) the A7S II requires sharpening to match the A7R II's sharpness which exacerbates noise and b) the added detail from the A7R II will allow you to get away with stronger noise reduction before impacting detail to the point where the A7S II's detail is better. (You can view the A7R II's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Nikon D810 at Base ISO (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 100
Nikon D810 at ISO 64

It's a similar story compared to the AA-filterless 36-megapixel Nikon D810. Again, better detail from the higher-resolution camera even after resampling, but with aliasing in the red-leaf fabric and bottle labels. This time, though, noise levels are quite comparable. (View the D810's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Canon 5DS R at Base ISO (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 100
Canon 5DS R at ISO 100

Here's a comparison with the highest-resolution full-frame DSLR currently available, the AA-filterless 50-megapixel 5DS R. Again we see stronger, crisper detail from the resampled 5DS R image, but with aliasing artifacts in the red-leaf pattern and Samuel Smith label. Noise levels are however noticeably higher from the Canon, but again, keep in mind the difference in sharpness and detail. (View the 5DS R's full-res version by clicking here.)

 

Since ISO 1600 isn't really a challenge for this class of camera, we'll jump to ISOs 6400 and 12800. Remember these are raw files converted with no noise reduction or sharpening applied, with the higher-resolution cameras normalized to 12 megapixels.

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7S at ISO 6400 (RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 6400
Sony A7S at ISO 6400

As expected, at ISO 6400, the A7S II and A7S produce practically identical results with minor differences limited to color response.

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7 II at ISO 6400 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 6400
Sony A7 II at ISO 6400

Here at ISO 6400, we immediately see the A7S II has much less noise than the A7 II, but as expected, detail and sharpness are better from the A7 II, though moiré is still visible in the red-leaf swatch. (View the A7 II's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7R II at ISO 6400 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 6400
Sony A7R II at ISO 6400

Again, the A7S II produces lower noise levels at ISO 6400 but the A7R II is sharper with noticeably more detail, though moiré patterns are still visible. (You can view the A7R II's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Nikon D810 at ISO 6400 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 6400
Nikon D810 at ISO 6400

It's a very similar story with the D810, with higher noise but finer, crisper detail. Again, as we've seen from all the high-resolution cameras in the comparison, moiré patterns are quite evident in the red-leaf swatch. (View the D810's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Canon 5DS R at ISO 6400 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 6400
Canon 5DS R at ISO 6400

The Canon 5DS R isn't known for its high ISO performance, so it's no surprise noise is still significantly higher after being resampled down to 12 megapixels, however fine detail and sharpness is better. Again, we see some moiré patterns in the red-leaf swatch from the much higher-resolution Canon. (View the 5DS R's full-res version by clicking here.)

 

Now, let's compare ISO 12800, the highest sensitivity common to all six cameras in this comparison.

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7S at ISO 12800 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 12800
Sony A7S at ISO 12800

Once again, as expected the two 12-megapixel siblings produced nearly identical results at ISO 12800 except for minor differences in color and the red-leaf fabric.

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7 II at ISO 12800 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 12800
Sony A7 II at ISO 12800

The A7S II still produces lower noise at ISO 12800, but this time the higher noise from the A7 II interferes with detail to the point of making the A7S II the better performer at this sensitivity even with the A7 II resized down to 12 megapixels. (View the A7 II's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Sony A7R II at ISO 12800 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 12800
Sony A7R II at ISO 12800

This is a very interesting comparison. The Sony A7R II is definitely noisier, but not by a whole lot when normalized. And it continues to produce a sharper image with better detail, so in the end which one would produce a better image after noise reduction is applied will likely depend more on your software and workflow than which camera. For example, when using one of our favorite raw converters (DxO Optics Pro 10 with PRIME noise reduction) to convert ISO 12800 .ARW files from both cameras using the same default settings, we found the resized A7R II image contained noise levels very similar to the A7S II's, yet contained noticeably better detail. (You can view the A7R II's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Nikon D810 at ISO 12800 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 12800
Nikon D810 at ISO 12800

It's a similar story compared to the Nikon D810 at ISO 12800: Lower noise, but less detail. After running both through DxO Optics Pro with PRIME noise reduction, the A7S II still came out ahead in terms of noise, but only slightly, while the D810 still managed better detail. (View the D810's full-res version by clicking here.)

Sony A7S II vs Canon 5DS R at ISO 12800 (Normalized RAW)

Sony A7S II at ISO 12800
Canon 5DS R at ISO 12800

Noise levels are much higher from the Canon 5DS R at its extended high ISO limit, but its much higher resolution helps when images are normalized, and it does retain better detail. The A7S still comes out ahead overall at ISO 12800, but who'd have thought the 5DS R which isn't considered a great high ISO performer could even come close to the low-light champ when normalized. After the same treatment in DxO Optics Pro with PRIME NR, noise levels are just a bit higher from the Canon, but detail is also generally better, except in the red-leaf fabric. Be aware, though, that ISO 12800 is the Canon's top extended ISO whereas the A7S II tops out at a native ISO of 102,400 and an astronomical extended ISO of 409,600. (View the 5DS R's full-res version by clicking here.)

All this to say that significantly higher resolution full-frame cameras can give the Sony A7S II a run for the money when normalized down to the same 12-megapixel resolution. So if you need more resolution than the A7S II offers at lower ISOs yet still want great high ISO performance and are willing to work with resized converted raw files, a much higher resolution camera may make more sense allowing you to tradeoff resolution for high ISO performance.

Sony A7S II vs. Sony A7S, Sony A7 II, Sony A7R II, Nikon D810, Canon 5DS R

Sony
A7S II
ISO 100
ISO 6400
ISO 12800
Sony
A7S
ISO 100
ISO 6400
ISO 12800
Sony
A7 II
ISO 100
ISO 6400
ISO 12800
Sony
A7R II
ISO 100
ISO 6400
ISO 12800
Nikon
D810
ISO 64
ISO 6400
ISO 12800
Canon
5DS R
ISO 100
ISO 6400
ISO 12800
Detail comparison. In terms of high-contrast detail, we can see the higher-resolution models all produced better detail and contrast than the A7S II and A7S when normalized, even at ISOs 6400 and 12800. Interestingly, the A7S II and AS7 images both contain a lot more color moiré in the fine lines of the text, however this will vary with the subject, distance, and even what raw converter you use. Adobe Camera Raw's demosaicing algorithm tends to generate more false colors than some other converters we've tried, which is one reason we don't typically do raw comparisons. And as you can see, the other cameras also have false colors in the text at the higher ISOs, but because they are higher resolution, the patterns just happen to be less obtrusive with this subject.

 

Sony A7S II Print Quality

High-quality prints up to 24 x 36 inches at ISO 50-400; Nice 8 x 10 inch prints all the way up to ISO 12,800; and usable 4 x 6 inch prints at a whopping ISO 102,400!

ISO 50 through 400 prints all look practically identical, with great detail and vibrant colors, and we see no discernible noise as the ISO increases up to ISO 400. Despite the rather low-resolution 12-megapixel full-frame sensor, we nonetheless find prints up to 24 x 36 inches look very good across this range of sensitivities. At this print size, we are pushing the limits of the 12MP full-frame sensor, and at close inspection, you can see some pixelation. However, at normal viewing distances for prints of this size, they look nice and crisp.

ISO 800 images begin to show an increase in shadow noise, which is quite visible at 24 x 36 inches, however backing down to 20 x 30 inches shows excellent results. Again, there's a hint of pixelation visible at close inspection, but a 20 x 30 print is quite large, and nevertheless looks great, with nice detail and colors at a normal viewing distance.

ISO 1600 prints show a bit more noise than ISO 800, but detail is still quite good. We're calling it at 16 x 20 inches for this sensitivity, however a 20 x 30 inch print might be usable for less critical applications.

ISO 3200 images look practically identical to ISO 1600, and therefore print to the same size and still display the same level of fine detail and great color rendition.

ISO 6400 prints show an increased level of noise, but up to 13 x 19 inches, prints look impressive with noise remaining under control. Visible noise is still mainly constrained to the shadows, and detail elsewhere looks quite good; even the tricky red-leaf fabric of our Still Life target still shows detail at this print size.

ISO 12,800 images finally begin to soften detail in the tricky red-leaf fabric, as noise becomes stronger. However, a nice 8 x 10 print is certainly possible at this rather high ISO level with lots of fine detail.

ISO 25,600 prints still show a good level of detail at similar print sizes to the previous sensitivity, but noise is visibly higher, forcing us to limit prints to just 5 x 7 inches.

ISO 51,200 images show just a hint more noise than the previous ISO sensitivity, but we're calling 5 x 7 inch prints as the limit for this ISO, too, as we can't see a significant impact on print quality.

ISO 102,400 prints are normally unfeasible, but the A7S II bucks the trend with a totally usable 4 x 6 inch print! Though a small print, a 4 x 6 at this sensitivity shows surprisingly nice detail and good colors.

ISO 204,800 and 409,600 images are both too noisy and lacking in fine detail to be considered usable for making prints.

The Sony A7S II, as with its predecessor, manages a fantastic performance in the print department. Though it only features a relatively low-resolution 12-megapixel full-frame sensor, the Sony A7S II still manages some rather large prints, especially at the lower ISOs. Up to ISO 400 the A7S II can print all the way up to 24 x 36 inches. While you see some pixelation at very close inspection, from a normal viewing distance for a print of this size, detail is crisp and colors are vibrant and pleasing. Raising the ISO sensitivity to levels where other cameras struggle for sizable prints, the A7S II manages a pleasing 8 x 10 print all the way up at ISO 12,800. However, what's truly eye opening is the fact that you can get an acceptable 4 x 6 inch print all the way up to ISO 102,400! We've yet to come across another camera that can pull this off. Going higher than this ISO sensitivity, however, we do find prints are too noisy and lack fine detail to make acceptable prints.

 



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