The full-frame Sony a7CR ($2,999.99, body only) squeezes the 60MP sensor and AI-assisted autofocus system from the bigger a7R V ($3,899.99) into a more compact camera body that costs significantly less. It’s a top option for high-resolution travel photography and studio work thanks to its excellent image quality, reliable subject detection, and effective stabilization. That said, the pricier a7R V holds onto our Editors’ Choice award and remains a better option for pros thanks to its dual card slots, dedicated focus joystick, and incredible viewfinder. If you can do without those advantages and prefer a lightweight kit, however, the smaller a7CR is a top option.
A Smaller a7R V
The a7CR takes inspiration from the first-generation a7C and fits right in with that camera's successor, the a7C II. Sony's high-resolution R cameras are the marquee models in the a7 series and have been since its debut. For its part, the a7CR has the same sensor and processing engine as the 60MP a7R V. It drops support for 8K video and uses a smaller viewfinder, but all the photo features are here, including the 240MP multi-shot mode.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)Sony bills the a7CR and a7C II (the two share the same body design) as the smallest full-frame cameras with an integrated viewfinder. That caveat is necessary not just because Sony's ZV-E1 vlogging camera shaves some millimeters off here and there, but also because Sigma's fp series exists. The viewfinder-less 24MP fp and 60MP fp L are tiny, at 2.8 by 4.4 by 1.8 inches (HWD) and 15.1 ounces. Still, the a7CR isn't much larger or heavier, at 2.8 by 4.9 by 2.5 inches and 18.1 ounces.
Even though the fp L offers similar picture quality to the Sony at a lower cost, I don't recommend it for most photographers because it relies on a fully electronic shutter with a slow readout; it's not good at freezing motion and is unusable for flash photography, and requires a very steady hand if you want to work without a tripod. The a7CR uses a mechanical shutter with an electronic first curtain, so it can freeze motion at 1/4,000-second and sync with flashes at 1/160-second. The fp L is best left to folks who like to tinker, whereas the a7CR is a camera most people can pick up and use to get good results.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)The Leica M11 (which is also available in a Monochrom edition with a black-and-white sensor) is another slim, high-pixel, full-frame camera you might want to consider for travel. But it costs quite a lot at around $9,000, is manual-focus only, and can't record video. Those are nonstarters for some photographers, but a subset won't mind paying for the throwback design and bright optical viewfinder.
As for construction quality, the a7CR matches up with Sony's larger cameras nearly point-for-point. A magnesium alloy chassis protects the internals and makes for a long-lasting device. The a7CR does not have an IP rating, but can still resist dust and splashes. I didn't get a chance to use it under rainy skies, but would not hesitate to do so.
Strong Ergonomics for a Small Camera
Despite its compact dimensions, the a7CR doesn't feel cramped. The sizeable handgrip plays a role there, and I like that it now has a command dial on the front like many of Sony's other recent smaller mirrorless models. The camera is comfortable to hold overall, though there's not enough space for my pinky finger at the bottom. I don't mind adjusting my grip for small lenses, but it's not ideal for larger zooms.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)Sony includes a basic add-on grip for the a7CR that screws into the tripod socket and adds about three-quarters of an inch of height. The accessory makes it easier to handhold the camera and get long exposures, but I admit that it detracts from the streamlined design. And since it's a purely mechanical add-on, it doesn't add controls or extend the battery life.
The body has plenty of buttons and dials for tactile control. Its top plate houses a standard PASM Mode dial with three custom setting slots and an integrated toggle to swap between still, movie, and slow-motion modes. The On/Off switch encircles the shutter release as is typical for Sony, while a Record button and a flexible command dial round out the top controls. The top dial handles EV compensation in most exposure modes, but you can customize it and many of the other controls to your preference.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)Controls take up most of the rear's usable surface space, but they don't feel cramped. Menu and C1 buttons, as well as a command dial run in a row at the top. The rest of the buttons squeeze in between the raised thumb rest and the LCD. The AF-ON, Fn, Play, and Delete/C4 buttons sit above and below the flat rear command dial. The dial supports four directional presses that you can use to adjust the focus point or otherwise set options. You can also set focus by touch, either by tapping on the rear monitor or using it as a touchpad when the electronic viewfinder (EVF) is at eye level.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)How often you need to manipulate the focus point largely depends on the type of subject matter. If you're a full-time portrait photographer you can simply rely on the face and eye detection modes. But some sports and wildlife subjects are harder to pinpoint, which is where a focus joystick becomes critical. If that's the type of photography you care about and you need a high-pixel camera, the a7R V is a better choice because of its dedicated focus control, huge viewfinder, and CFe memory support. I discuss those last two aspects in more detail later.
Touch to Control
Long-time Sony owners should note that the a7CR uses the company's newer menu system, a color-coded, side-tabbed interface that's fully operable by touch. The change requires a bit of an adjustment if you're upgrading from an older model with top-tabbed menus, but it's an improvement overall. To make the most of the new interface, add your most frequent options to the My Menu page.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)The Fn overlay menu continues from past models. Tap the Fn button to bring up that transparent array of 12 customizable icons at the bottom of the screen.
Sony's always-on touch controls now cover subject recognition, drive, white balance, creative style, and focus settings. These touch icons run down two columns on the left and right of the screen; they don't get in the way too much, but if you want to make them disappear you need to turn off touch input entirely. Thankfully it's quick to toggle—in capture mode, tap the Delete/C4 button.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)Both the Fn and the always-on overlays are split between photo and video functions by default. Some exposure settings aren't, but it's easy enough to separate them via the menu.
A Middling Monitor and Viewfinder
Sony has a reputation for using lower-quality displays than its competitors and the company has not changed track with the a7CR. The 3-inch, touch-capable LCD has a resolution of 1.04 million dots, which is underwhelming for fine manual focus and image review with a 60MP sensor. The a7R V uses a 2.1-million-dot display for a good reason, as do competitors like the 45MP Canon EOS R5 and Nikon Z 7 II.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)The a7CR also has a significantly smaller EVF (0.7x, 2.4 million dots) than the a7R V. That's not totally surprising, as the a7R V's EVF is the largest in its class with a 0.9x magnification rating and resolution of 9.4 million dots. On the plus side, the EVF is bright, refreshes smoothly at either 60 or 120fps, and shows a larger image than the original a7C's 0.59x EVF. Size and cost are certainly factors here since the a7CR is much smaller than the a7R V and costs around $1,000 less.
Power, Storage, and Connectivity
The a7CR runs on Sony's NP-FZ100 battery, one of the best in the market for endurance. Here, it should get you around 490 photos per charge with the EVF or 560 with the LCD. Video creators can expect around 155 minutes of continuous recording. Those are excellent figures for a small camera and I expect many photographers to get a full day's use out of it. If you do need to recharge, you can do so in-camera via USB-C. Just keep in mind that you need to provide a USB-C cable and charger because Sony doesn't include either in the box.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)The USB-C port also connects the camera to a computer for offloading files or acting as a webcam; the latter doesn't require any extra software or drivers thanks to support for the standard UAC/UVC protocol. Just pick the camera from your meeting or streaming software.
The camera includes 3.5mm microphone and headphone connectors, as well as a micro HDMI port with 16-bit 4:2:2 output so you can add an external recorder for Raw or ProRes recording. A single UHS-II SDXC memory card slot handles storage. It's a shame Sony didn't work support for faster CFe cards into this camera like it does for the a7R V because the camera creates a lot of data in burst and multi-shot modes. The lack of a second slot might also be a concern for pros who worry about card malfunctions during events or weddings.
FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM II, 16mm, f/5.6, 1/4-second, ISO 200 (Credit: Jim Fisher)Bluetooth and dual-band Wi-Fi radios are on board for connectivity. The camera pairs with the free Sony Creators' App (available for Android and iOS). I used it on my iPhone to copy pictures over and as a wireless remote for the camera with a live view.
Sony offers some accessibility options for users with visual impairments, something I haven't seen from competitors. Highlights include a screen reader feature that reads out menus and a screen magnification option to make menus more legible.
Autofocus With AI Assistance
The a7CR has the same hybrid autofocus system as the a7R V. Phase detection points cover about 79% of the frame and contrast focus points extend nearly to the edge. You can pick a focus point by yourself or select a narrower area of interest like with any other camera, but Sony's strength is in its subject recognition and tracking. The company's Real Time Tracking system is one of the most accurate, tenacious autofocus engines I've tested.
FE 20-70mm F4 G, 70mm, f/4, 1/1,200-second, ISO 100 (Credit: Jim Fisher)Here, Real Time Tracking gets an assist from the a7CR's processing engine, which devotes one of its CPUs to AI subject recognition and other machine-trained features. It improves subject recognition for people—the camera analyzes bodies and skeletal structures to keep focus on a model, even if they turn away from the camera—and enables dedicated modes for Animals, Birds, a combined Birds/Animals, Insects, Cars/Trains, and Airplanes. There's no auto mode to let the camera pick a subject type by itself (something the Canon EOS R6 Mark II and Nikon Z 8 can do), but it's easy enough to switch options via the always-on touch controls or the Fn menu.
Generally speaking, the subject recognition works well even if you set the camera to the wide area mode. I had great success snapping photos of hummingbirds stopping in at a feeder with Bird detection active. For tougher scenes, like an animal in brush or team sports, it's worthwhile to use a smaller box to pinpoint focus. It's situations like these in which the a7R V's eight-way focus controller beats the a7CR for handling,
Sigma 150-600mm Sports, 600mm, f/6.3, 1/250-second, ISO 800 (Credit: Jim Fisher)I expect the a7CR to appeal more to photographers who capture landscapes, fine art, portraits, or other stationary subjects. Just keep in mind that the electronic first curtain shutter (EFCS) mechanical shutter can clip bokeh highlights in combination with a wide-aperture lens. Using the fully electronic shutter sidesteps this minor concern, but prevents flash sync and introduces the potential for rolling shutter distortion. The a7CR's sensor readout speed also means you can't freeze subjects in motion without some distortion.
Sigma 150-600mm Sports, 600mm, f/6.3, 1/200-second, ISO 1000 (Credit: Jim Fisher)For bursts, the a7CR does up to 8fps mechanical or 7fps electronic with tracking and exposure, so you're better off with the former. In the JPG and Compressed Raw modes, the camera can respectively fire off 55 and 40 pictures in a row. It then requires about eight seconds to clear the buffer to a Sony Tough 299Mbps SDXC card. The capture rate drops to 6fps with Lossless or Uncompressed Raw. You also get fewer pictures in a burst with these formats (15 for Uncompressed and 22 for Lossless), but the card clear time remains the same.
A Whole Bunch of Pixels
The a7CR is the third Sony camera to use this full-frame 60MP BSI CMOS sensor, following the a7R IV and V. The latter got a big boost in performance thanks to a newer Bionz XR image processor, which also appears in this model. There are still some differences between the two, however. For example, the a7CR uses a sized-down image stabilizer system and I already touched on how the a7CR's EFCS shutter can influence the character of bokeh. But practically speaking, there's no downside to using the a7CR when it comes to image output.
FE 20-70mm F4 G, 20mm, f/6.3, 1/2-second, ISO 100 (Credit: Jim Fisher)Despite a slimmer design, the a7CR's IBIS system gets an impressive seven stops of compensation (compared with eight for the a7R V). I tried my hand at several handheld long exposures with the FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM II lens and got consistently good results at half a second and occasional hits at one second. The IBIS system also enables the camera's PixelShift multi-shot mode; it shifts the sensor with half-pixel precision to sample 16 exposures for 240MP output. PixelShift relies on the electronic shutter, so it works best for stationary scenes, such as landscapes. You need a tripod for PixelShift shots, the feature does not work for handheld photography. You also need to process these composites through Sony's Imaging Edge desktop software before you import them into Lightroom or Capture One.
The a7CR supports JPG and HEIF capture for out-of-camera sharing, or Uncompressed, Lossless, or Compressed Raw for photographers who want to tone and edit photos. It offers the option for smaller JPG file sizes like most other cameras but goes further with several Lossless Raw sizes: Large (60MP), Medium (26MP), and Small (15MP). Sony includes several Creative Looks as alternatives to the standard picture profile, so you can get out-of-camera shots with natural, vivid, black-and-white, instant film, or other artistic tones.
FE 85mm F1.8, f/1.8, 1/125-second, ISO 100 (Credit: Jim Fisher)The sensor covers a wide ISO range, 100-32000 natively and ISO 50-1020400 if you take extended settings into account. There are compromises in picture quality at those extended options, such as less dynamic range at ISO 50 and more noise at the higher settings. In JPG or HEIF mode, the sensor delivers crisp, detailed photos through ISO 3200. I see some signs of noise at ISO 6400, which adds some blur and smudging to the fine lines in my test scene. That effect gets slightly worse through ISO 25600, the top sensible limit for most photos. The extended options show rough and grainy results, so consider them emergency options.
FE 20-70mm F4 G, 20mm, f/8, 1/200-second, ISO 100 (Credit: Jim Fisher)Swapping to Raw doesn't do too much to change the look of photos. I see more luminance noise and less smudging at high ISOs, but you can tune noise reduction for a cleaner image at the cost of detail when processing, or dial it back for a grainier look. Working in Raw opens up editing possibilities thanks to the incredible dynamic range the sensor captures.
A Capable Video Camera, Too
The a7CR drops the a7R V's high-end 8K recording feature, likely due to heat concerns. It's still a capable 4K video camera, with some caveats. For instance, its 4K60 footage comes with a 1.24x crop and isn't as sharp as that from the 4K30 mode. The 4K60 mode at least does a good job suppressing rolling shutter, there’s a loss of sharpness due to subsampling footage.
FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM II, 22mm, f/8, 1/30-second, ISO 125 (Credit: Jim Fisher)Video is sharper in the Super35 recording mode, which uses the central portion of the image sensor to record oversampled 4K30 or 4K24 footage. The crop limits wide-angle coverage, but I see more detail and rolling shutter distortion isn't a concern because the camera takes longer to scan the sensor in this mode.
The video itself has a high bit rate and uses 10-bit 4:2:2 color sampling. Various picture profiles are available, including HDR HLG, S-Log2 and S-Log3 for grading, and S-Cinetone for filmic looks out of camera. Slow-motion is also an option in S&Q mode; here, the camera pushes 4K60 for up to a 2.5x slow-motion effect.
FE 20-70mm F4 G, 20mm, f/9, 1/2-second, ISO 100 (Credit: Jim Fisher)The in-camera mic works fine, but an add-on mic is a must if you are vlogging or recording professionally. Creators should appreciate the AI-powered auto-framing features that add various pans and zoom effects for more dynamic movement in scenes.
Look to the ZV-E1 or a7C II if you like the body style, but don't want to deal with some of the above downsides.
(Credit: Jim Fisher)Travel the World With a 60MP Camera
Despite the a7CR's compact, travel-friendly build, it still manages to integrate the sensor and AI-tuned autofocus system from the a7R V, one of the best high-pixel cameras available. It makes few image quality concessions, so we have no problem recommending it to photogs with an eye for landscapes, portraits, or other photo ops short of team sports and wildlife. But because it lacks the stunning EVF, dual card slots, and superior ergonomics of the full-sized a7R V, the latter remains our Editors' Choice winner for pros and most enthusiasts. Don't count out the more affordable a7C II either if you're more of a hybrid creator and can live with just a 33MP sensor.
