Sony released firmware updates for a9, a7R III, a7 III, a7R II, a7 II, a7S II, a6500 and a99 II cameras.

‘Benefits and Improvements’ list the rather vague “Improves the overall stability of the camera”. I suspect this relates to wireless flash systems since these cameras (and only these cameras) share the same wireless flash protocols. It’s likely not a coincidence that these updates were released one day after the Profoto A1X AirTTL-S flash for Sony, which just happens to be compatible with these exact cameras.

Bear in mind that there are often additional improvements included in each firmware update, so I highly recommend these updates for all users.

Download Links

Sony a9 Firmware 5.01 for MAC | WIN
Sony a7 III Firmware 3.01 for MAC | WIN
Sony a7R III Firmware 3.01 for MAC | WIN
Sony a7 II Firmware 4.01 for MAC | WIN
Sony a7R II Firmware 4.01 for MAC | WIN
Sony a7S II Firmware 3.01 for MAC | WIN
Sony a6500 Firmware 1.06 for MAC | WIN
Sony a99 II Firmware 1.01 for MAC | WIN

MAC USERS PLEASE NOTE:

The latest Sony Firmware Updates are only compatible with Mac OS 10.12 – 10.14

You must first run UpdateSettingTool and follow the prompts to run it.
[UpdateSettingTool replaces Mac OS 10.13 Driver Loader from earlier firmware versions.]

1. Make sure the camera’s USB Connection is set to Mass Storage

2. WITHOUT CONNECTING THE CAMERA, Click on UpdateSettingTool.

3. Once you see this message, connect the camera.

4. When the above message goes away, click on the Resources Folder, click on “SystemSoftwareUpdater” and follow prompts to begin the firmware update.

Before Updating Firmware Please Read:

Bulletproof Guide to Sony Camera Firmware Updates

Order Sony a9 from B&H Photo | Amazon
Order Sony a7 III from B&H Photo | Amazon
Order Sony a7R III from B&H Photo | Amazon
Order Sony a7 II from B&H Photo | Amazon
Order Sony a7R II from B&H Photo | Amazon
Order Sony a7S II from B&H Photo | Amazon
Order Sony a6500 from B&H Photo | Amazon
Order Sony a99 II from B&H Photo | Amazon

Who’s the winner in the battle between Sony’s 42MP fullframe cameras?

Here’s a look at how the A-mount Sony a99 II and E-mount Sony a7R III fullframe cameras compare depending on the way you shoot and the lenses you may already own.

OBJECTIVE: Sports or Wildlife Photography
WINNER: Sony a99 II

Sony a99 II’s Hybrid Phase Detection AF system with 79-point dedicated AF sensor working in tandem with a 399-point on-chip focus system and its 12 FPS with continuous AF and tracking gives a99 II an edge for action. Besides, when shooting with a massive 500-600mm lens the weight savings of the lighter E-mount body is rather negligible and the slightly larger size of the a99 II camera body is actually a plus since it makes it more grip-able when shooting with big glass – though you better be using your left hand to support the lens and only using your right hand the camera to guide it.

OBJECTIVE: Landscape Photography
WINNER: Sony a7R III

For maximum resolution when shooting landscapes, I’d rather not shoot through a translucent mirror if I can avoid it. Image quality loss from translucent mirror is about the same as using a high-quality UV filter (you’d be much worse off slapping a $15 UV filter over your lens.) You also don’t need lightning fast AF when shooting landscapes. Unless you have another compelling reason for choosing the larger a99 II body, save yourself half a pound and go with a7RII. Your shoulders will thank you!

OBJECTIVE: Portrait Photography
WINNER: Sony a7R III

Sony a7RII and a99 II are both great choices for portrait photography each offering great lenses for portraits but E-mount has the best glass. The FE 24-70mm 2.8 G Master, FE 85mm 1.4 GM, FE 90mm 2.8 Macro and FE 100mm F2.8 STF GM are all substantial upgrades over the A-mount versions. A-mount gets points for the incredible 135mm 1.8 ZA, but with a Sigma FE 135mm F1.8 DG HSM Art lens on the way to slam the door on that argument.

OBJECTIVE: Shooting with Adapted Lenses
WINNER: Sony a7R III

Because of its thin 18mm Focal Flange Distance, Sony a7RII allows you to adapt virtually any fullframe lens. The same cannot be said for a99 II since A-mount has a 44.5mm Focal Flange Distance that makes it far less viable for using adapted lenses. (Read More: Guide to Understanding Flange Focal Distance)

OBJECTIVE: Shooting with Minolta AF Lenses
WINNER: Sony a99 II

Sony a99 II is the clear winner if you’ve got lots of Minolta AF lenses (or screw drive Sony A-mount glass). While Sony’s LA-EA4 adapter will allow AF with screw drive lenses on E-mount bodies, LA-EA4 uses the rather antiquated AF system from a65 which is not nearly the speed or coverage you get from a99’s Hybrid AF that combines a dedicated 79-point PDAF + 399-point on sensor PDAF system.

OBJECTIVE: Shooting with E-mount Lenses
WINNER: Sony a7R III

If you’ve got lots of E-mount glass stick to Sony a7RII. While Sony E-mount’s thinner bodies allow you to use of A-mount glass on E-mount cameras, the reverse is NOT true. You can’t use E-mount lenses on A-mount cameras.

OBJECTIVE: Battery Life
WINNER: Sony a7R III

This used to be a win for Sony a99 II but the new Sony NP-FZ100 Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery used in a7 III, a7R III & a9 actually beats the battery life of a99 II’s NP-FM500H Rechargeable Lithium-ion Battery.

OBJECTIVE: Lowest Noise at High ISOs
WINNER: Sony a7R III

Sony a7R III wins by 1/2 a stop. Light loss from Sony a99 II’s translucent mirror is roughly 1/2 stop, but with this excellent back-illuminated senior, that’s barely visible.

OBJECTIVE: Low Light AF
WINNER: DRAW

Sony a7R III focuses stopped down, a99 II focuses wide open. While a7R III’s -3 EV metering sensitivity is one stop better when shooting wide open, a99 II rules when shooting stopped down in low-light.

OBJECTIVE: Street Photography
WINNER: Sony a7R III

Weighing in at 22.05 oz, Sony a7R III is nearly half a pound lighter than the 29.92 oz Sony a99 II. Plus a7RII is thinner and smaller for a stealthier appearance on the street so it won’t attract as much attention from the people you want to photograph…or thieves…

OBJECTIVE: Street Photography with a Fast 35mm Lens
WINNER: Sony RX1R II

Sorry, a99 II and a7R III, but Sony RX1R II was MADE FOR THIS!!! What? You forgot there was a third Sony camera rocking this 42.4 mp sensor??? If 35mm is the perfect focal length of you, you won’t find a higher quality 35mm F/2 lens than the Zeiss lens built-into RX1R cameras.

PRICE AND AVAILABILITY:

Sony a7R II ($3,198.00 – Order from B&H Photo | Amazon)
Sony a99 II ($3,198.00 – Order from B&H Photo | Amazon)
Sony RX1R II ($3,898.00 – Order from B&H Photo | Amazon)

And the Winner Is….

Sony shooters who can choose Sony’s top-of-the-line 42.4MP back-illuminated sensor in both A-Mount and E-Mount…or even in fixed lens RX1R II if you prefer.

Who’s the Winner in the Battle Between Sony’s Flagship Fullframe Cameras?

Here’s a look at how the fullframe Sony a9 E-mount flagship and Sony a99 II A-mount flagship cameras compare depending on the way you shoot and the lenses you may already own.

OBJECTIVE: Sports Photography or Birds in Flight
WINNER: Sony a9

While Sony a99 II’s Hybrid Phase Detection AF system with 79-point dedicated AF sensor working in tandem with a 399-point on-chip focus system and 12 FPS with continuous AF and tracking gives a99 II is extremely impressive…but Sony a9 has a BIG edge for action thanks to 20FPS continuous shooting up to 362 fullframe JPEGs or 241 RAWs before hitting the buffer all with continuous AF and best-in-class AF tracking with no blackout across a whopping 693 Phase Detection AF points that cover 93% of the sensor. WHEW!!!

OBJECTIVE: Landscape Photography
WINNER: NEITHER

While a99 II tops a9 in resolution 42mp-24mp, I’d rather not shoot through a mirror if I can avoid it. Image quality loss from translucent mirror is about the same as using a high-quality UV filter (of course you’d be much worse off slapping a $15 UV filter over your lens). Sony a9 also has sharper lenses for landscape. The G Master trinity FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM, FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM, FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS all top the optical performance of their A-mount counterparts. Add in the new FE 12-24mm F4 G and E-mount simply offers the best glass for landscapes – but for those of you who want to argue it’s all about the pixels, let’s call this a Draw. Of course to be honest, Sony a7RII is a better choice for landscapes than either of these…

OBJECTIVE: Portrait Photography
WINNER: Sony a9

Sony a9 and a99 II are both great choices for portrait photography each offering great lenses for portraits, but the FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM, FE 85mm F1.4 GM, FE 90 F2.8 Macro G OSS, FE 100mm F2.8 STF GM OSS and FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS all top the optical performance of their A-mount counterparts. A-mount wins with the incredible 135mm 1.8 ZA, over the Zeiss FE Batis 135mm 2.8. Huge edge goes to a9 for Eye AF that’s FINALLY fast enough to really work!

OBJECTIVE: Using Minolta AF Lenses
WINNER: Sony a99 II

Sony a99 II is the clear winner if you’ve got lots of Minolta AF lenses (or screw drive Sony A-mount glass). While Sony’s LA-EA4 adapter will allow AF with screw drive lenses on E-mount bodies, LA-EA4 uses the rather antiquated AF system from a65 which is not nearly the speed or coverage you get from a99’s Hybrid AF that combines a dedicated 79-point PDAF + 399-point on sensor PDAF system.

OBJECTIVE: Using E-mount Lenses
WINNER: Sony a9

If youwant to take advantage of the superior quality of E-mount glass stick to Sony a9. While Sony E-mount’s thinner bodies allow you to use of A-mount glass on E-mount cameras, the reverse is NOT true. You can’t use E-mount lenses on A-mount cameras.

OBJECTIVE: Using Adapted Lenses
WINNER: Sony a9

Because of its thin 18mm Focal Flange Distance, Sony a9 allows you to adapt virtually any fullframe lens. The same cannot be said for a99 II since A-mount has a 44.5mm Focal Flange Distance that makes it far less viable for using adapted lenses. (Read More: Guide to Understanding Flange Focal Distance)

OBJECTIVE: Battery Life
WINNER: Sony a9

Until now, bigger was better, but Sony NP-FZ100 Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery changes the game! While only slightly larger than the previous much-maligned NP-FW50 E-mount battery it packs much more life than the larger A-mount battery.

OBJECTIVE: Lowest Noise at High ISOs
WINNER: Sony a9

Sony a9 wins again thanks to larger pixels and no light loss from the translucent mirror used in a9 II.

OBJECTIVE: Low Light AF
WINNER: Sony a99 II

Sony a99 II sensitivity rated at -4 EV @ f/2.8 AF is not merely best for Sony – it’s best-in-class – beating both Canon 5DM4 and a9 by a full stop.

OBJECTIVE: Street Photography
WINNER: Sony a9

Weighing in at 23.68 oz, Sony a9 is nearly half a pound lighter than the 29.92 oz Sony a99 II. Plus a9 is thinner and smaller for a stealthier appearance on the street so it won’t attract as much attention from the people you want to photograph…or thieves…

OBJECTIVE: Stealth Silent Shooting
WINNER: Sony a9

While Sony a99 II is very quiet with EFS enabled – it’s not silent. Sony a9 Silent Shooting mode (also found on a7s, A7RII, a7SII, a6500) makes it a much better choice for courtrooms, film sets, the back swing of a tennis serve or golf putt or anything such as a wedding where Total Silence is Golden!

OBJECTIVE: Video
WINNER: NEITHER

Both a9 and a99 II offer down-sampled 4K video – but if you’re serious about video, save your money and buy a Sony a7SII with native pixel-for-pixel 4K and S-Log3 instead.

OBJECTIVE: High Speed shooting with Studio Flash
WINNER: Sony a99 II

If you’re shooting fast action with a studio flash like Profoto D2 or Profoto Pro-10 2400 AirTTL that can support continuous high frame rate, Sony a99 II can sync at 12FPS while a9 tops out at 5FPS when using strobe.

OBJECTIVE: Connectivity
WINNER: Sony a9

Both cameras offer the same multi-terminal wired tethering and both offer WiFi connection but only a9 will allow you to transfer RAWs via WiFi. Sony a9 is the only Sony camera with an Ethernet port that allows remote editing used by many sports photographers, photojournalists, wire services and photo agencies.

PRICE AND AVAILABILITY:

Sony a9 ($4,498 – Available for Pre-Order Now)

Sony a99 II ($3,198 – Available Now)

And the Winner Is….

Sony shooters who now have great flagship cameras in both A-Mount and E-Mount!

Adobe Camera Raw 9.8 adds Sony a99 II, a6500, RX100 V Raw Support for Photoshop CC, Lightroom CC 2015.8 & Lightroom 6.8. Updates from Adobe roll out in waves around the globe – so yours should be available within the next 24 hours.

Camera Raw 9.8 is now available through the update mechanism in Photoshop CC and the Creative Cloud application. The goal of this release is to provide additional camera raw support, lens profile support and address bugs that were introduced in previous releases of Camera Raw.

New Camera Support in Camera Raw 9.8

• Canon EOS M5
• Fujifilm X-A3
• Google Pixel
• Google Pixel XL
• Hasselblad X1D
• Leica TL
• Nikon D5600
• Olympus E-M1 Mark II (preliminary support only)
• Olympus PEN E-PL8
• Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FZ2500 (DMC-FZ2000 and DMC-FZH1)
• Pentax K-70
• Samsung Galaxy S7
• Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
• Sony Alpha a6500 (ILCE-6500)
• Sony Alpha a99 II (ILCA-99M2)
• Sony DSC-RX100 Mark V

Installation Instructions

Camera Raw 9.8 – Please select Help > Updates to use the update mechanism in the Creative Cloud app. Please note: If you have trouble updating to the latest Camera Raw update via the Creative Cloud application, please refer to the following plugin installation: http://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/multi/camera-raw-plug-in-installer.html

Lightroom 6 users can access updates within Lightroom 6 > Help > Updates.

DNG Converter 9.8 download links: MAC | WIN

Sony A-mount camera bodies have had 2-axis image stabilization since 2006. Now following the lead of Sony a7 Mark II mirrorless cameras, Sony a99 II (Pre-Order Here) brings 5-Axis Sensor-Shift Stabilization to A-Mount for the first time so that any lens you can mount on a99 II – even legacy glass – can be image stabilized for both for stills and video. [SPOILER ALERT: It does NOT require chipped lenses.]

Here’s how it works:

When using native A-mount lenses with an electronic connection select SteadyShot Adjustment > Auto

Manual SteadyShot Settings

Manual SteadyShot settings are available for lenses without electronic connections. This does not require a “chipped lens” (as others have speculated). You simply need to manually enter the lens focal length via a menu setting for optimal performance with any lens.

When using lenses without an electronic connection select SteadyShot Adjustment > Manual

Then choose SteadyShot Focal Length to manually select the correct focal length of the lens you’re using (available for 8mm-1000mm)

It’s worth mentioning what image stabilization can and cannot do. In Body Image Stabilization (IBIS) can allow you to shoot at slower shutter speeds without blur from camera movement – but it will not freeze subject movement. Image Stabilization won’t stop Usain Bolt in his tracks, but it will allow you to shoot images of a still subject in dim light at slower shutter speeds without camera movement.

Here’s 5-Axis Image Stabilization Works:

Pitch & Yaw Compensation:

Requires the awareness of focal length. It is available from the camera if either the lens provides the information or it’s inputted manually in the menu.

Roll Compensation:

Requires nothing from the lens, and is always available.

X/Y Compensation:

Requires awareness of both focal length and camera to subject distance (focal distance). Bear in mind that X/Y compensation can’t be provided by a lens (with one exception – see below). If the lens can’t communicate focal distance, then the camera can’t provide it. This is the case for almost all 3rd party lenses.

8-pin A-mount lenses:

Sony 8-pin A-mount lenses communicate focal length and focal distance to provide 5-axis Image Stabilization from the camera.

5-pin A-mount lenses:

Sony lenses, without ADI (Advanced Distance Integration) – the ones with 5 pins instead of 8 – can’t provide X/Y Compensation. Because of this, lenses like the SAL 16mm F2.8, SAL 20mm F2.8, SAL 28mm F2.8 and SAL 500mm F8 lenses only get Pitch, Yaw and Roll stabilization – which is one more axis (Roll) than SteadyShot on any previous Sony A-mount cameras.

Lenses without Electronic Communication:

Third-party lenses will receive 3-axis IS from the camera IBIS using manual focal length SteadyShot settings as explained above. Bear in mind that 3-axis IS is one axis more stabilization than what’s available with almost any other image stabilization system. Lens-based image stabilization only controls Pitch and Yaw – with the exception of the “Hybrid IS” Canon 100mm macro and Pentax SR-equipped cameras with 3-axis IBIS.

Image Stabilization and Tripods

Conventional wisdom when shooting on a tripod is turn turn off image stabilization. From a power consumption standpoint alone, it makes sense to turn off SteadyShot when shooting on a tripod.