Is it WORTH spending $15,000 on the Sony Alpha 1? | Sony a1

The Sony Alpha 1 is touted as the flagship camera from Sony, combining the high resolution prowess of the a7R line and the high speed photojournalist favored a9 line into one body. This is the Omnimon of the Sony lineup. But how does it stack up in the real world?

My main camera right now is the Sony a7 R IV, their current highest resolution camera coming in at 61 MP and seeing the evolution since then in the cameras between it and this flagship a1 camera is clear that they’ve refined a lot of key points.

Starting with the electronic view finder, you can see the change here to the bigger, higher resolution version found on the a7S III, which is beautiful to see.

Moving around to the left side of the body, the doors have gotten even better, and we have a full HDMI port underneath which is so much better than the micro-HDMI ports from earlier models, as well as a flash sync port and ethernet port. I love how, like the a7S III, the flap covering the audio ports is separate from the HDMI and USB-C ports. Separating the mini-USB port is great for accessories, like gimbals, that make use of that port for operation.

The backside buttons feel more responsive compared to the R IV, mostly tightened up to feel more clicky than before.

On top, hard mode wheels make it easy to change focusing and continuous burst settings without having to go into the menu, a detail brought over from the a9 line and improved upon.

On the right side is an improved memory card slot that, like other recent Sony cameras, can use both standard SD cards and newer, faster CF Express Type A cards. I use these from ProGrade Digital to have access to make the most of my FX3’s recording features. Testing out the burst modes, I personally would almost exclusively use CF Express cards when speed was an absolute priority, followed by v90 SD cards. The CF Express cards offer nearly instantaneous buffer speeds making it very hard to fill it up.

One of my favorite things about the Sony a1 is that it’s compatible on the bottom with the VG-C4EM, the same vertical battery battery grip that works with the Sony a7R IV. Another is the fact that we can now have the shutter close after shutdown which protects the sensor from dust when changing lenses. The new menu system from recent camera bodies is VERY welcome, especially in the middle of a show.

Now that we’ve gone over some of the basics, why don’t we put this 50 megapixel powerhouse to the test? To get the most out of it, all the photos and videos you’ll see in this video were shot with Sony’s G Master lenses.

Part of what made me want to test out the a1 was the use in concert photography. Zero blackout during burst shooting at 30 frames per second allows me to keep up with the talent as they move around the stage. While I was hopeful that the stacked sensor would make banding problems a thing of the past, I did find that pushing the shutter past 1/500 sec or higher did lead to banding on images. Not a dealbreaker but it’s good to know. Speaking of the shutter it’s super quiet. The a7 III’s shutter sounds like a clapboard in comparison. It’s a small detail but a much appreciated one.

Like 4K before it, 8K can be extremely useful for zooming when used on a lower resolution timeline.

Using the a1 spoils me. Between AF tracking, buffer speeds, burst modes all while still being able to create high resolution images with even better color science than before makes the a1 a complete package. I don’t feel like I’m compromising anything when creating an image. Quite the opposite, with all technical elements working together in concert, I feel like a daredevil, able to do things I never could before with full confidence.

So whose this camera for? Professional photographers who demand the highest level performance from photojournalists trying to get their images over to news outlets to music photographers who are trying to compete with strobing lights and need a camera with a fast sensor that can generally avoid banding issues. This can also be a powerhouse for those doing high end video work with its 8K performance, improved autofocus and support for multiple frame rates, especially when using the CF Express Type A cards.

For all these reasons, the Alpha 1 to me represents a damn near perfect camera for the work that I do. It has all the high resolution power I need for commercial work, the speed to keep up with any performance I might end up covering and a familiarity that makes it easy to just pick it up and focus on creating work without any limitations.