Sony a7 III memory card suggestions and where to buy + other advice

LNoApostrophePlurals on 01/07/2019 - 03:24
Last edited 01/07/2019 - 03:24

Hi,

Just picked up a Sony a7 iii with a Sony FE 24-105mm F4 lens. I will be taking it with me whilst I backpack southeast Asia for 3 months.

Thread title is about memory cards but I have other questions as well related to gear.

First off, I am considering buying a SanDisk Extreme Pro 300MB/S UHS-II V90 card. I will only be using one card in the slot that supports this with no secondary card. I will be shooting photos mainly, with the odd 4K video.

Is this overkill? I just thought that I may as well get the fastest card since the camera supports it.

I looked at the Lexar 2000x cards but I have read that since the latest camera firmware update, the performance of the 2000x whilst in camera has dropped significantly.

Here is the link. Great comparison site. Speeds can also be sorted with a click of each option.

https://alikgriffin.com/best-memory-cards-sony-a7iii/

I haven't really looked into the other options. I assume the Sony cards will be very expensive and I've always used SanDisk and had no issues, with not much experience with the other fastest brands. Anyone here used them before like Hoodman Steel 2000x?

130MB/s in camera write speed would be the lowest I'd like to go.

The next part of the memory card question is what's the cheapest place to buy? I don't mind grey imports if they're genuine and don't have to wait more than 2 weeks delivery. Should I just stick to Amazon? I don't trust buying memory cards off eBay.

Finally on memory cards, will one 64gb card be enough? Should I up my budget and get a 128gb one? I will be taking my XPS13 with me and have a rugged portable HDD. I have an Aero 15x with RTX2070 and would be great with editing
and that has much more storage than the XPS but way too big and heavy to travel with. Do any of you find having a much more powerful laptop when traveling necessary?

Next up is lenses. I am thinking of adding a Sony 16-35 f4. I'd like a GM f2.8 but it's a bit pricey for an amateur like me for now. I wouldn't mind adding something faster for night shots and astrophotography at some point. Maybe something prime and fast to round off and complement the other two? Or is there a fast wide angle tele that is just a bit more than the 16-35 f4 but cheaper than the f2.8 GMaster?

I'll need a bag to hold it all in. I was thinking of getting a Peak Designs Sling 5L. It looks large enough to fit my camera, 24-105 and 16-35 plus small bits and pieces. This will also be small enough to fit in my main backpacking bag as well, or small enough to transfer to a medium sized backpack when the main backpack goes in checked luggage or under the bus/out of sight on the train/back of taxi.
Has anyone used both the 5L and the 10L?

Filters: necessary? Types? Brands? Where to buy? I am an amateur and haven't used filters before. Want to get one so it also protects my 24-105.

Will one battery be enough? I read that a7iii has much improved battery life. I don't go too trigger happy and I think I should be able to recharge almost every day. Maybe just buy non genuine for now to save a bit of money?

What other accessories do you guys find are essential or will help along the trip? I am still unsure if I will take a tripod along with me this time.

Oh, the only other thing I can think of is a peak designs swing strap. What other stuff do they make that's worth looking into?

Flashes. Any small ones worth taking with me? Unnecessary?

Have I missed anything crucial?

Thanks in advance!

Electrical & Electronics

Comments

  • mafmouf on 01/07/2019 - 07:58

    If you're going for 3 months, I don't know what your frequency of taking photos is but it seems like you could fill 64GB quite quickly. Do you have an option to backup along the way?

    I haven't checked the specs of it all, but may as well go all out on card speed if it's supported.

    I've regretted not taking a tripod. There have been shots I really wanted to setup decently and get the timing/exposure right but didn't have a tripod. Depends how much space you have.

  • whirlpool_guy on 01/07/2019 - 08:08

    Bring multiple SD cards. Reliability-wise, SD cards are at the bottom of the scale. Always have backups

  • John on 01/07/2019 - 10:01

    Amateur and you are using 24-105mm f4? Well, that's not very amateur like.. :)

    In terms of card, you are definitely going overkill with the first card you mentioned. You don't need that speed if you are not doing 4K (even if you are, its probably not necessary). If I were you I would get 64GB Sandisk Extreme (Ultra or Pro will do fine). You could take thousands of photo on that card, so will be okay if you are planning to backup regularly anyway. Although I still would not risk all in one card. I would double write to both cards and only format once I have back up the photos in the cloud. If you could afford a camera and lens that expensive, don't cheap out on the card!

    If you wan't a native lens, there's not much choice on the wide range for 2.8 apart from the GM lens. That is probably the only lens available out there for native . But wait a few more weeks you can probably get a hand on the Tamron 17-28mm f2.8. If I were you I'd wait for the Tamron.. not having a fast lens will make it difficult when you want to take general photos at night.

    If you gonna take astrophoto, get a tripod. You won't be able to do astro well without a tripod.

    Just get a UV filter more to protect lens. Don't overcomplicate it. B+W F-Pro are my choice.

    A73 battery is amazing. It will last you a whole day (I use 2 per camera and that's shooting wedding where the camera is out the whole day). But bring a generic one just in case. Alternatively, you could charge using a portable charger too.

    Flashes are not really practical to use for travel photo, especially the small ones where you can only point it towards the person and you can't bounce the light off the roof. Sure it will light up the subject but it will look dull. I'd rather have a fast lens (eg. 28mm f2) than to carry a flash around.

    Hope that helps!

  • Caped Baldy on 01/07/2019 - 10:22

    Nice, I've got the same set up.

    If you're worried about storage get microsd cards with adapters. It will be more cost effective. Also consider a portable hdd with sd card slot such as https://www.jbhifi.com.au/wd/western-digital-my-passport-wir… or an adapter to transfer to your phone. Get 128gb or 200/256.

    You won't have to worry about sd card transfer speeds too much unless you're taking a lot of burst shots. I can do around 30 with an microsd+sd card adaptor (the Sony wireless transfer app is slow).
    Remember the a7iii has two slots. Make sure to set it up properly for RAWs, JPEGs and videos (can split RAWs and JPEGs on separate cards and videos on either).
    I've found ebay is okay, just get them from reputable sellers and run H2testw.

    I haven't taken my laptop to edit photos so can't comment much here. The weight and worrying about it will be a pain. You could use your phone for basic editing.

    The Rokinon is a highly recommended astro lens. For me the 24105 is pretty much permanently on my camera.

    I'd get a bigger bag.. You'll inevitably get more gear. I have the Lowepro Whistler 450 AW, which is heavy and overkill…

    I'd just get a filter from ebay. For me it's mostly about protecting the lens.

    Bring a tripod if you're doing astro or get a travel one.

    One battery is plenty. It was enough for all day shooting for me. Get a portable battery pack to charge via usb. And consider a separate battery charger device. Maybe get a cable bag and travel adapter with usb.

    I don't think flash is needed but it could be useful.

    Peak Design gear is great but pricey. I've got the slide and cuff. For the body and lens you want a wider strap.

  • NoApostrophePlurals on 01/07/2019 - 14:18

    Ok I'll get the part where I'm gonna get flamed out of the way. I just bought the Gmaster 2.8 16-35mm off Sony eBay refurbed for $2,149.30 with PRETECH discount code, taking $300 off the listed price of $2,449.30. Coupled with TRS, will bring it down to $1,953.90. I could't help myself! I didn't wanna wait for the Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 as I'm not 100% sure it'll arrive in time for me to play around with or even be released before I fly out. I was originally going to get the 16-35mm F4 and then buy a cheap fast prime, but this kind of kills two birds with one stone for astro and having a fast wide tele with the bonus of not taking up as much space as having two teles and a prime.

    I will now add a travel tripod to my kit. I did take one on my last trip and it fits perfectly on the side of my large Dueter backpack on the outside, though it did get broken in transit. It was a cheap China eBay tripod but worked great and was only around $120 from memory and carbon fibre, weighted about 1.2kg and collapsed to about 35cm. Any recommendations for good travel tripods?

    I don't think the Peak Design sling will cut it any more. I have decided to take my Mavic with me. I used it a bit on my last trip until it broke. I am considering buying the Peak Designs medium camera cube to put in my main backpack. It has a shoulder strap I can use if I need to take it out and take with me, or put into a medium backpack that can be folded up and stashed away. I did take a large LowPRo backpack with me on my last trip, but it was 10kg loaded, bulky and awkward. I'm a hopeless overpacker. THis time I will try and cut down on the weight as much as possible.

    Thanks for the advice on the memory cards, I guess I don't really need the fastest. I don't do burst shots much, if at all. Not taking many action or sports shots. I already have some old MicroSD cards I used with my old OMD EM5 setup and Mavic. My XPS13 has a micro SD card slot so I can transfer regularly + I'll bring my rugged HDD with me. Will also set up the slots as advised.

    Noted on filters. Will get some B+W F-Pro off eBay. Any specific type I'm looking for?

    Battery sounds like I will just need one. I have a USB-C PD 26,800mAh that also charges my XPS13 that has served me brilliantly on all my trips. So this can charge the battery when in the Camera? I haven't played with my camera yet lol

    SO I guess I can justify the spend on the lens as it was a good deal, plus I've saved money on memory cards and battery. Also not buying a flash. Has anyone used the Peak Design capture clips? Are they any good? Worth buying or is there an alternative product that is cheaper? Will these clips work on any backpack strap or only Peak Design Backpacks?

    Thank you guys for all your responses and spending the time with all the detail! If you have any more suggestions, please let me know!!

  • peco on 01/07/2019 - 18:07

    If you plan on taking any photos of waterfalls I'd suggest an ND filter, that way you can take longer exposures during the day to smooth out the water if that's your thing. Can't really recommend how many stops or what brand though.

    I'd also suggest having a second SD card in the camera even if all you use it for is a backup for your shots in jpg (can set that in the menu). Never know when one of those things will fail.

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