- For the last week, I've been working
with the Sony FX3.
Now, this is Sony's version of the a7S Mark III,
built for video creators.
And I actually bought one a couple of weeks ago.
It's still brand new in the box.
I haven't opened it,
because as soon as it arrived,
I decided I wanted to rent one
and actually make sure that
it's a camera that I want to use.
So, for the last week I've been shooting
everything on this camera.
I've shot a few videos here in my studio.
And also, I went out and shot a little mini-documentary
for a new series that I'm putting on my channel.
I'm going behind the scenes with different creators.
And I want to take you on a journey as they do their craft.
Now, this camera is great.
It's got an awesome image.
You can see from some of this footage.
It just looks beautiful.
It's the same sensor as the Sony a7S Mark III,
which is a good sensor.
The Sony a7S Mark III is my go-to YouTube camera.
And it's also my running-gun style camera.
So I thought that this FX3 would be a good replacement
for the a7S Mark III,
but unfortunately it doesn't really fit
as a cinema camera in the cinema line.
There's just some weird quirks with it and,
basically, Sony just took an a7S Mark III
and put it into a new form factor,
which may or may not be appealing to you,
and it really comes down to the type of
content that you're creating.
So, let me go through some of the things
that I do really like about this camera.
On the camera, itself,
it's completely geared towards video creators.
So you'll see on all the buttons,
they're actually mapped out for video usage,
not photo.
And even for your iris and your shutter,
they're labeled as iris and shutter,
versus being TV and AV for time value and aperture value.
On the camera, you have tally lights,
which is super helpful for when you're
anywhere away from the camera.
It's just a quick indication that yeah, you're recording.
And this, you'll see in the FX6 and the FX9,
it's definitely a video feature that
makes it really easy to see your recording.
One thing that they added to this camera was
a long press on some of the buttons.
So if you press the iris, the shutter, or the ISO,
and you hold it, it actually locks that feature.
So if you accidentally bump one of the jog wheels,
then it's not actually going to change your exposure.
Now, how this is set up is
on the front is your aperture,
on the top is your iris,
and then on the back is your shutter speed.
So it's mapped out in a way where everything's accessible
by the buttons on the camera.
And then the few features that you might need beyond
what's physically mapped out on the camera,
you can find in the FN menu.
Now on the FX3, they've also improved the thumb grip
so it's much easier to hold when you're walking around.
It's just a little bit longer.
So it actually feels great when you're holding it.
And then where the power button is
on the a7S Mark III, they've added a zoom rocker.
Now you can take it or leave it,
you might use some zoom lenses where it will make sense,
but that just is a quick way to do some zooming.
For me, personally, if I have a zoom lens,
I'm using the 28-135,
and that actually has a zoom on the lens, itself,
and the way that you hold this camera,
I'm going to be holding it like this anyways.
So, the zoom, for me,
doesn't really make a whole lot of sense,
but it is nice that it's right there where your finger is.
Now, let's talk about this top handle,
and I want to start getting into some reasons why
I'm not going to keep this camera.
For me, this handle is kind of useless.
And I know there's a lot of people that are
super excited about this handle,
and it's like a killer feature for the FX3,
but for me, it's, it's awkward.
So, this top unit where the audio is, this doesn't come off.
This should be a hot shoe mount
on top of the handle so you can take this
on and off because I'm not always going to be using XLR.
And I've found when I'm actually shooting
in like a run and gun documentary setting,
I never actually used the XLR.
I'm either using my Rode Wireless Go for a lot of audio,
or I'm just using the Sony shotgun mic because
it's low profile and much easier to use
than setting up, like, the shotgun mic with the XLR.
It's just less on the camera.
And when I'm running around shooting like this,
I don't need a big setup.
I just need something simple that I can handhold
and get the shot.
Now, the other thing that bothers me with this handle
is that it's hard to put in a bag.
So when the camera's stripped down,
you take this handle off.
This fits easily in a camera backpack.
And then you have this awkward thing.
It's just not a good form to really fit.
So I had to kind of shove this in the top of my Shimoda bag
and it's just floating around.
If I want a handle, I'll just get a cheap $20 handle
and put it on top.
Now, the benefits, the XLR.
However, for me, I'm not really finding a whole lot
of use out of the XLR.
I just don't find myself using it.
So, having this as a key feature
makes a lot of sense if you're going to use the XLR,
like, this makes a whole lot of sense.
But if you're someone who's just going to be
plugging in the Rode Wireless Go,
or just a small, simple shotgun mic,
then the handle doesn't really make that much sense.
All right, so enough about the top handle.
Let's talk about mapping out the buttons.
So, on this camera you have like iris,
you have white balance, ISO,
it's all mapped out and it's labeled.
The issue is you have to use Sony's layout of the buttons.
Otherwise the labels just don't make sense.
And personally, I've changed where all the buttons are
for usability.
And so, the button layout is great,
but you can do the exact same thing on the a7S Mark III.
So there really is no difference.
It's just the way that this camera looks
where you actually see, you know,
ISO, white balance, shutter, peaking,
all the labels are on the body,
but I don't really think it's that important
because as soon as you use this camera for a day,
and you actually work with it,
you'll memorize where all the buttons are anyways.
The look of it is nice.
I do like the gray.
I have two Sony FX6's
and it's nice having a camera that looks seamless
across the entire lineup,
but that's not a reason to buy a camera.
Now, looking at the camera,
there is a record button right here on the front.
Now I've found when I was shooting this documentary,
I kept hitting this when I was adjusting the lens,
and I kept stopping my record.
I can easily take off the functionality of that
but it is kind of annoying because it's in a spot
where your hands going to rest
when you're shooting in this kind of style.
I would have liked to seen some buttons on the other side
where the grip is, where your fingers are.
And when you're working with the FX6,
there's buttons on the hand grip behind
so that your fingers can press them.
And this hand grip could have been built in that same style
where everything is where your right hand is,
and that way you don't hit anything with your left hand,
no matter how you're holding it.
Now, let's talk about the biggest issue that I've found,
and that is there's no eyepiece.
So you have to rely on the monitor,
which, in a lot of situations, this is fine.
If you're indoors, if it's not super bright out,
this is fine.
But as soon as you get outside and there's bright sunlight,
it's hard to use this monitor to get your exposure proper.
Now, you can use your zebras and your histogram,
which obviously that's what I use when I'm filming,
but I still like to be able to put it
up to my face and look at the eyepiece.
I found that when I was shooting this documentary,
we did two days of shooting outside,
on a mountain,
running gun, mixed lighting,
it just became super frustrating
that I couldn't stop and look at a shot.
And when I have the a7S Mark III,
I'm always putting my eye to that eyepiece.
And the second benefit of having an eyepiece
is that when you're shooting,
especially if you're using, like, a long lens,
you can put it up to your face
and it's actually a point of contact on your body.
So it stabilizes it even better.
So when you're always out front shooting like this
there's going to be more shake, just because
it's a little bit more free flowing.
Whereas when you stick it up to your face,
that's a solid mass.
Like your head is going to keep it stable,
so that you can get a much better shot.
Even on the Sony a7C, there's a little eyepiece,
and yeah, it's not the most functional,
but it's still there so that you can put your eye
and actually see your exposure and colors and everything,
where you don't have to have an external monitor,
or you're sitting there like this
trying to see the exposure of the screen.
Now I will say,
if you are someone who uses an external monitor,
this top handle is great because you
can mount it right here.
I definitely think that there's plenty
of creators who will like this setup.
But if you're someone who does strip it down
and you just want a lens and a simple mic,
it's just not going to be as easy to use
as the a7S Mark III.
Now, one of the huge things that really bothers me
is no ND filters.
Again, a cinema camera should have ND filters built in
and that's why I like shooting with my FX6
because the FX6 is just so easy.
I put a lens on, I'm good, I can go shoot.
I don't need anything else.
The FX6 doesn't have an eyepiece,
but the way that the monitor's built,
it comes with a sun hood.
So it's really easy to see wherever you're shooting.
Taking my FX6 in bright sunlight situations,
and it works great, like it's easy to use.
Whereas for some reason, working with this monitor,
it's just not.
And even if I was to get like a sun hood for it,
it could work, but it's not built-in.
So every time you flip the screen out,
you'd have to add the sun hood on.
It's just another step that I don't want to deal with.
So the only reason to upgrade to this camera
or get this camera
is if you really need this top handle
and you want these XLR's.
Or, if you have a situation where you actually
need these mounting points,
that would be the reason to get this camera.
But otherwise, it's pretty much the same camera
as the Sony a7S Mark III.
It does have an internal fan which allows it to stay cooler.
However, I've used my Sony a7S Mark III
in hot studios, running all day.
And the only time that I've ever seen an overheat warning
is when I had the monitor pressed up against the camera
and I forgot to flip it out.
As soon as I flip it out, the overheating goes away.
So I'm not super worried about the a7S Mark III
overheating at all,
but it is something to consider, that
you don't have that fan that's built into the FX3.
So regardless, both these cameras are amazing cameras.
They shoot awesome looking footage and they work super well.
Now let me know down in the comments
if you're planning on getting the FX3,
or if you've already purchased one,
and why you actually chose this one over the a7S Mark III.