Sony a6300 Review - Frustratingly Awesome 

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The title of this review says it all. Quantum leaps from my trusty 7D; for the price point, I couldn't pass this up. I purchased the A6300 for auto focus video tracking and 4K. (My videos are gardening tutorials, not a lot of high speed stuff happening) Great review, fair, not over hyped, well done. Thank you!

BEST UNBIASED REVIEW! Summed up everything I needed to know after spending over two weeks binge watching reviews! Getting the a6300 wouldn’t mind spending extra time learning the operating system to get amazing quality in that price range. thanks 🙏🏽

Your title nailed it. Completely agree Dan!

I watched this video (and a couple others) several times before I ended up making a decision. I bought one! I'm very happy with it, and content with it's restraints for what I can do with it. Thank you for making such an in-depth honest review on this camera, it helped me out a lot before making the decision! P.s . For anyone who might like to see, I just posted my first video shot with it, taking advantage of the 120fps video.

I'm saying this as someone who returned his but for a lot of your complaints you don't balance it out with a potential workaround. For a professional shooting video at weddings, I have no idea why you don't run a monitor or at the least use the app to connect to the phone and have a liveview feed, even if it's delayed. Yeah, I do wish the screen was more akin to the GH4's myself too, but I'm looking at it for what it is. The overheating seems completely random on the new firmware. I think whatever sensor's being triggered is oversensitive or placed in a spot that's too susceptible to the shorts moments of warmth caused by sunlight. In two identical scenarios on the same day, I managed to overheat it only for it to be cold as fuck afterwards. I feel this would be less of an issue if Sony had a white body for the camera like they do on the a6000. The battery [life] *is* a joke, but this camera has a benefit few camera's I'd use in professional circumstances has: you can charge your batteries internally via microUSB and you can keep the device powered using an external battery bank at a fraction of the cost and you're good to go for as long as the camera stays on. I agree with you on the lack of a touchscreen. But the 80D better for AF? God no. Maybe in those wedding shots, but you're talking to someone who's used this for Bungee videos (I have a lot more to say about the rolling shutter but even then, I managed to mitigate it). Ergonomically it's crap, but it comes down to the body's format... Except the screen, that's just silliness.

Getting this for underwater photography and videography. The problems of overheating and the lack of touch screen won’t really affect me because the water is so cold and the housing will obviously be in the way. And I also mainly shoot photos so it’s a perfect fit

One of the best reviews Dan - all the other reviews didn't talk about a feature, then show examples (videos and photos) of the A6300 in action, so that we can see what it actually looks like. I bought it for vlogging, my new Zero Point Horizon: Sci-Fi Talk podcast, so if as you say the A6300 can record just fine for an hour to hour and a half then this is still a great fit. From what I've read online most people don't prefer the A6300 for photography, mainly for video, which works for my purposes if you are streaming, vlogging or podcasting.

Great review Dan! Our timing is very close, as I'm editing my a6300 review right now :) lots of similarities as well! (I wrote my review 2 weeks ago, so no copying lol) I guess we just think alike! What I have to say is I'm really excited for the A7000 (a6300 in A7ii size body with much better touchscreen LCD)

A home made spacer lifts and shifts the camera LCD screen for clearance from the tripod mount. NOT a problem.

I agree, the rear navigation wheel is too small and should be made larger lie the Canon. Also, the location of the movie button should be placed on the rear of the camera with an on/ off switch such as on the Canon. A touch flip screen would make this camera hard to beat for most needs. Combined with the Sony EP Z 18 - 105 G lens, this would make this one of the better, if not the perfect street still and video camera.

For a second i thought the title said a6300 frustrating, i was ready to go ham but then it said awesome

I just ordered an a6300. I'm about as new as someone can be to photography and this camera came highly recommended by a couple of people whose work I really admire and appreciate. I think that because I've never owned a real camera before and haven't become accustomed to the way other manufacturers do things, a lot of the small ergonomic and button layout gripes probably won't frustrate me as much as they do people who have experience with many other cameras. Also, even if those things do eventually annoy me, I think that a superior end result will outweigh those small issues every time. I'm not a professional videographer or photographer, I'm not a vlogger or a RU-vidr. I just want to be able to take some very high quality photos without too much bulk or hassle. I plan to start dipping my toes into inanimate macro photography to start but I will also be doing some more general photography and recording the odd video here and there so I wanted something that could do both very well for a reasonable amount of money. Now I'm looking into macro lenses but it appears that those can be quite expensive themselves so hopefully I can get some decent images in the meantime while I save up for a really nice 90-105mm macro.

could you tell me sony a6300 or cannos eos 80d? i am a youtube content creator and willing to get into short films making😀

Great review Dan. Sums up my experience with it as well. Like Max said, a larger body would eliminate all the shortcomings of the a6300. The small form factor is great for walking around with the kit lens or pancake prime, but the majority of us are using bigger glass. The small body is irrelevant/unnecessary for most shooters, and it's holding it back.

If you lack touchscreen and "tap to focus", go ahead and try "Play Memories Mobile". It got a bit of lag tho, but otherwize its practically external touchscreen for your camera with full controll.

So basically more cons than pros?

I love my A6000. I think the biggest difference when compared to the A6300 is the 4k video which I am not all that interested in as I mainly do photography. The 1080P 60 FPS video on the A6000 is more than enough for me. I do think the A6000 and A6300 are great cameras without using any qualifiers. My camera performs as good or better than my wife's 70D on every occasion we have compared the two. I do wish there were more E mount lenses but the Sony adapter is very good with the A Mount lenses and that does open up quite a few alternatives.

Thank you for your honest video on this .

Thank You, this video helped to decide to stay with my 70D. The touch screen really helps me do a much better job of pulling focus in auto, than I can do in manual.

I've done some live broadcasting with my a6000 using a HDMI capture card for over 2 hours, and It never over heated. Idk if the camera get's hotter when it's processing and writing to memory or it's it's simple a legal declaration issue. Because legally it can't shoot more than 30mins or else it has to be classified as a video camera.

Overheating, rolling shutter no battery life makes it kind of half unusable for video... Regardless how good image or auto focus one gets. Fix that Sony and add a touch screen, image stabilisation and i get one. Nice G7 footage by the way ;)

Probably the most sincerely honest review I have seen on this camera. Thank you!

mind blowing camera thank u!

Hi Dan! Would you recommend this camera for vlogging? I have a Canon g7x but would like to upgrade to the a6300 with Sony 10-18f4. I would be shooting only 1080p 30/60fps. I like that it has the mic input (g7x does not) and it is weather sealed. Just wondering if I need to be concerned about overheating using 1080p for vlogging?

Superb unbiased review, Dan! Handling (ease of use and enjoyment of use) is almost as important as image quality. I'll sacrifice a small drop in IQ for a huge step up in usability any day of the week. If only this camera was made for larger hands and better button placement it would be a winner for more people than it already is now. Thanks for the great review.

Picture wise the a6300 is almost the same as a6000. I allmost ordered the a6300 but decided to go for the a6000 and use what i saved for the sony ax53. It is nice to have a dedicated videocamera - it will not overheat! I would only buy the a6300 for photo and video if total weight was a major factor.

Kinda wish they released an Alpha version with NO video and spent all the extra money on refining all the stills features and AF performance. I have had a 6300 for over a year and have shot video ZERO times so I don't experience any of the overheating or poor battery life. My only issue with this camera are the ergonomics. Then I think about it from a manufacturing standpoint, all these simple shapes are for cutting tooling costs. Would I pay more purely for ergonomics? Nope, intead I just got a smallrig cage, not ideal but it definitely adds some good bulk.

I have the Sony a6000 and I absolutely love it will I upgrade to the 63000 yes when the price point drops

One thing you forgot to mention was the rolling shutter issue this has. Its not a problem for me because I dont shoot video, so I'm really considering this. Also the form factor and weight make it ideal for hiking trips.

The best and the most comprehensive review so far of A6300. Great Job :-)

Best review! really covers all the important thing the consumer needs/wants to hear.

After watching this video, I have only one question for ask Mr. Watson. With all of your mentioned shortcomings, issues, ergonomic problems, along with all the other negative things you have found with this camera, would you please recommend the perfect all-in-one camera you would buy along with the price tag on that perfect all-in-one unit. You do seem to go into a lot of detail explaining why you don't like this camera.

I bought the A6300 back when it first came out purely for 4k video, I also have the Canon 80D which is an awesome camera but a wanted i bit more from my videos and 4k did that for me. The build quality and appearance of the sony is very pleasing but it was a let down after that i'm afraid. The very first day of using the a6300 at a wedding i had a serious overheating issue when shooting in 4k which shut down after 15-20 mins so had to revert back to 1080p on the 80D, its seemly a very common problem with them and a big one i my book. there were other frustrating things like the strap brackets rattle against the body, the LCD is not touchscreen nor does it swing out or rotate, so vloggers beware, and the setting menu is over complicated. Its a pity as the short 4k footage i got was fantastic. I stuck with it for 6 months but time after time it would overheat and shut down. In the end i sold it and bought a used panasonic GH4 with a 14-140mm kit lens, WOW what a camera, its just awesome for 4k video and unlike the sony the GH4 compresses the 4k footage in camera so you won't need as much storage. Even the cheaper G7 looks like it would be a better purchase than the Sony. Very happy man now. I'm not hear to right off the A6300 as some may love it, but its just wasn't for me in the end. Good video though.....

The overheating concerns me. If the camera overheats what happens? I assume it shuts off, but is the camera damaged even after it cools down? Are there ways to minimize this? Maybe using the viewfinder more and the screen less?

Great video and information, the 18 minutes flew by. You speak eloquently and to the point. Definitely subscribed, looking forward to seeing more content from you.

Great review, Dan, including the good, the bad and the ugly. Much appreciated. Giving this one second thoughts now as a B-camera. Strongly considering the a6500 now... but the price!

I have an RX100ii and I was wondering if you can assign the aperture control to the ring around the lens like on the RX100. I set mine up that way so I can change aperture there, press the dial button to the left for ISO changes and spinning the dial changes the shutter speed. That way I don't have to go into a menu for basic changes. After using it this way I can change setting very quickly. Just a tip if it works the same way. Also I have 3 user programs I can assign initial settings too that helps. For instance I have a setting for long exposures, another for timelapse settings. That also helps keep me out of the menu system.

Great review. You hit on some points that others have missed. I was looking at the a6300 for video, but may look elsewhere now. Thanks!

finally, a no nonsense review. As i said many times, canon should use sony sensors and call it a day.. or make soma aps body for sony and put ef mount on it, hehe.

Personally I can't compare this to the 80D or the D5500 just on size alone

4:02 Ditto! My A6000 isn't fun to use either. I'm constantly changing settings by accident with that crummy wheel dial in back. And ditto again 13:34. The poor battery life is a consequence of the small physical size. The battery is half the size of those on other APS-C sized cameras.

My a6300 overheated and froze up during an important unrepeatable shoot in Thailand. I was not even shooting movie but stills. I was out in a hot sun and everything felt hot to touch including the a6300. Later in the day it cooled off and the camera came back to life. At $1K plus, this is an inexcusable fault and means the a6300 is unreliable for important shoots in hot conditions. There's not much point suggesting I keep my shooting to cool days when I'm in Thailand, or other hot climates. Various bloggers offer solutions like upgrading the firmware, which apparently allows you to override the safety shut-off features, thereby putting your camera at risk of being fried. Plus you can mount a little fan on the back of the camera! What?! Add to that the utterly fiddly controls, with very sensitive dials and buttons that easily get thrown off chosen settings. Add to that the horrible video button. It takes 2-3 seconds for the video to start once you push the button (in itself a feat to achieve if you have normal sized fingers), and another 2-3 seconds to stop recording when you push video off. Meanwhile an important moment is being lost. The smallness of everything is why this camera is great for travel. However, it is all for naught if the camera is unusable. I think Sony is trying to achieve too much and doing so by launching unready cameras and then fixing bugs with uber-expensive upgrades (6000, 6300, 6500, 6800, 7000 etc). If they cut all the not-really-nessary features and made the a63000 more reliable it would be a dream. I would love to love this camera but I cannot. I even long sometimes for my old Canon kit which was so user-friendly and so reliable.

What lenses do you use/show in this video ?

One of the most insightful review on A6300. Thanks.

I'm a 5dii user and i was planning to buy this camera for my 4k video works in near future. I watched lots of reviews about this camera on youtube and i examined the raw samples you provided. First of all, raw photos did not satisfy me. I opened all of them in Adobe camera raw with zero sharpness and noise reduction. I adjusted only the shadows to see the dynamic range. Dynamic range is better than 5dii, thanks to new Sony sensor and its capabilities. But photos aren't tack sharp. Even in the center of the frame. I suspected you used a kit lens but i saw that you have a 24-70 F2.8 which is a $2200 lens. I noticed motions also did not freeze in 1/3200 shutter speed. I don't have a 4K display yet, so i couldn't see the video in native resolution. As a result, A6300 has a fair performance as a camera to take professional photos but video features make this cam worth to buy for 4K footage.

Excellent. I have an A6000, love it. Really debating the upgrade as I mostly do stills but like having better noise performance (I've heard it's better by an entire stop). Things like the EVF, slightly better battery life, 4K option, and weather resistance are all very intriguing upgrades.

Have you tried the "dummy battery" work around to avoid overheating? I found it on youtube, forgot who it was, but I think it's a pretty cheap workaround, and someone else suggest recording 4K externally, but I think that is not cheap, to get the external recorder and drives could cost more than the a6300 it self... I'd like to wait for the a6500 but the price differences is pretty big

Great Review! What picture profile do you shoot in? The colors look great!

thanks for the great review, what lens should I get for 4k video considering fast autofocus, wide angle and shallow depth of field!!

Excellent and honest review. Thank you.

Thank you very much for the awesome video just one question is it good for portraiture works like wedding or studio shot I need backup for my canon 5dsr and can't choose between this and canon 80d which one you prefer for the work I mention???

Bought the A6000 yearssss ago but having issues with 1 pin stuck down on the body. I use my camera to take photos of birds in my park and that's about it. I got the 210mm kit lens with it but feel like it's time for a refresh. Is it worth buying a better lens (if so which one) or just go for an upgrade body but keep the lens so A6300 or A6500?

The flash button is not a digital button, its a release type of button. I agree about the touchscreen and dials. Sad for 2016

Thank you so much for this excellent review! I've got a6300 too after reading so many good things. I own also a canon 5d mk3 and a canon 7d2 which I use mainly for wildlife photography. I would love to use this Sony for travelling so to leave the heavy canon and lenses at home and travel lighter. Right now I only have the kit lens 16-50. What lens would you recommend for landscape and travel photography? I fear 16mm on aps-c is not good enough. I was looking for the Sony 10-18 and 18-105 for 16-50 replacement. Thanks!

Great review Dan as always! do you have a d500 review coming, would like to hear your thoughts on it. Btw, is that Tony and Chelsea at 13.49 mins?

Rergarding the battery life, another change from the a6000 is that the a6300 can be used while plugged into a usb power bank. I charge my a6000 a lot using mine but unfortunately you can't use it while charging.

Great review. Q. I have a Panasonic DMC FZ200 25-600mm which I use at 600. I need to have a camera with 24-36 megapixels. I agree totally on the ergonomics of the A6000...frustrating...any suggestions?

there is so much to like about the A6300 and the A7rll. but for me i cant get past the lack of touch screen. and they should also be fully articulating. i have been wanting to switch to Sony for a few years now. but i keep saying to my self that i will wait for the next generation so they can improve on its issues like there menu system. and lack of touch screen. but i am really sick of waiting for Sony to get things right. and at the same time Canon and Nikon are taking way to long to put out a top end mirrorless camera. and its a shame that after a great camera like the Samsung Nx1 that Samsung seems to be giving up. nice review

your 6300 footage looks great. which lens did you use? I tested a 6300 today at BB with the pancake kit and it looked worse IMO than the RX100 IV

So I am trying to start a photography business as well as begin making videos. I have a budget of around $1000 (I am 17) and I have a few wants/needs for a camera. These include: Sharp image quality, at least 6 fps shooting, at least 1080p 60fps (slow motion is something I will be doing) but 4k would be much better, at least 20000 iso, wi fi and bluetooth as well as time lapse mode would be nice, tilting display, good auto focus, microphone port (not necessary but it would be nice), a touch screen would be great, Environmental sealing would also be nice, lots of lenses to choose from. So those are my needs/wants in a camera, It will be for everything from landscape photography, to product photography, portraits and the video will be used just as much. I have narrowed my search to 2 camera that I have found and can get for the same price right now. They are the Canon T7i and the Sony a6300. The kits I found have the following: Canon T7i, EF-S 18 - 55mm IS STIM, EF-S 55 - 250mm lens, filter, battery charger, 2 batteries and camera bag or the Sony a6300, 16 - 50mm lens, battery and charger. Both kits cost the same. I am having trouble deciding, I like the T7i for the ease of use i.e. touch screen, fully articulating, lots of lens options, good button layout, classic dslr feel and the 60fps 1080p is the only reason I want to pay more for it over the T6i which is $500 off at the moment as I want to do slow motion. But I am disappointed that it doesn't have 4k which is why the sony a6300 is nice. I like the 4k capabilities and the 1080p 60fps. Really both cameras have similar photography capabilities. But I am disappointed that the sony a6300 doesn't have a touch screen and the numerous articles about sony a6300's over heating are worrisome as well as the poor button layout. Anyways, my question is which of these 2 packages is the better option for my needs as both are the same price and if you have a better option to recommend please let me know! Thank you very much and I hope to hear some replies soon as the deals are time sensitive. Thanks.

What type of lens is on the camera? Very interested in photography and wanting to purchase a sony A6300, but i'm not sure which lens to go with.

What setting did you use to match them? Was it difficult? Do you feel like you had to have different setting in order for them to match ?

Hi really good review. Would you say this is a good B camera for the a7s II for wedding/events?

what lenses were you using the most? It would be great to let us know on the video what lenses and settings were used. Thanks!

Very thorough review :-) Just curiosity though : many reviewers seem to take issue with the Sony a6xxx ergonomics. How much of this is simply because most of the reviewers are coming from Canon and Nikon and are used to that kind of layout ? As someone who has always primarily had Sony digital cameras I , for example, find Canon and Nikon ergonomics for photos to be less to my liking. The placement of the viewfinder on the left (as opposed to the middle) is much more comfortable if you are right eye dominant - your nose is not up against the screen. Similarly I like the fact that all the controls are on the right side of the camera. The button and wheels placement is such that I don't have to take my eye from the viewfinder at all while changing settings - I can do it all by feel with my thumb and index finger and never really hit a button inadvertently - meanwhile my left hand is free to hold the lens and operate the focus ring with never a need to take it away to operate buttons while setting up a hand held shot. That to me is a real plus especially when using a large lens. Perhaps I prefer the Sony layout because I shoot photos 99 percent of the time using the viewfinder ? When it comes to video I agree though - a fully articulating touch screen would be a real plus and the video button placement is a pain on the a6300. I preferred the position on the NEX 5. Of course I generally shoot video from a tripod or video monopod and use a wired remote so the button placement is not that big an issue - plus for extensive video shoots as opposed to filming little snippets I prefer a camcorder.

Canon 80D does not shoot 4K.. So when this heats up does the camera shut off? I thought Sony "fixed" that by just allowing the warning to be seen on the camera and disabling the actual shut down mode.

Thumbs up for the informative review. Made the decision to order this after watching.

Excellent review. I love my a6000 and the new a6300 I recently bought!

About the 6300 - What is the crop factor at 4k 30p? Does it uses a sensor area equivalent to the GH4? Is it still as good as the GH4 at 4k 30p? I am asking because I was told that it uses the full size of its APC sensor only at 4k 24p.

I'm surprised nobody recommends using the battery grip for the a6000/6300. It'll extend your battery life by 2-3x and should help with overheating too, as the batteries aren't heating up the body itself...

Loved your honest review. I own a basic Canon DSLR with couple of lenses. I was thinking of an upgrade to better ones. This is a great review. I may choose Sony this time. Thank you. :)

You make Miami seem like a completely different city than the Miami I live in

A6300 or olympus omde m 10 mark 3? I am confused between these two models. Can you please suggest me ?

Damn if only Canon could do a camera half as good as this but with Canon ergonomics and native EF mount support :D

can you tell me plz the lens u have mounted in the a6300?

I am looking to start shooting weddings. I have a camera that I will have on me but I need two stationary cameras on tripods to capture the actual ceremony. What camera would you recommend for continual filming for an entire ceremony?

fixing the ergonomic side, it'd have been the best APS-C camera ever made. what a shame Sony. Amazing review btw, very honest, can't understand on the dislikes.

Touch screen focus, and I would buy it. Love to find out about the MC-11 and canon 28 f1.8, and 50mm f1.8 II, as these are some of my lighter weight glass, which either would be good for low light walk about shooting on such a light body.

great video. what camera did you use to film this video? great work ...

New to this whole video thing. I currently shoot with a a6000 and probably going to get a second camera (a6300). My question is you mentioned in this video of the f4 lens that's good for video. Can you send me the link for this lens. I have the kit lens and the 55-210 and want to get an all around better lens that I can switch between the two cameras. Thanks

so that with the auto focus on the camera its better on the 80d then sony or ? you went fast forth and back with all 3 products so hard to follow whats the point at the last with the auto focus ...

What camera would you recommend for somebody starting out in photography? I know next to nothing but it's recently sparked my interest. Thank you in advanced.

It would have been nice if we could have seen what you were doing. With the camera. Try getting closer to the lens

G7 video so nice!

Hi Dan, I have heard about the overheating problems with this camera. it shuts down after 12 minutes of video because it over heats. what's the word on that?

i love this camera to death. i dont like the record button or the focus tracking. in terms of the touchscreen it sounds good but i can do just fine without it and the dials im ok with. maybe its my hands being small or i adapted to them better. but i dont have much problems with their placements and i hardly press them when turning the back dial and i press in into the direction from the center more then just directly down on the wheel which i think helps me reduce the accidental scrolling. handled more point and shoot cameras so i cant say too much. I just want to say that Im with you on the frustrating stuff you point out for most. i just dont see them as flaw as i do something to adjust to. except the tracking focus. i dont use it. not reliable enough. and i dont really record in 4K its great when i might need stabilizing or tracking but outside that i feel its overkill. amazing quality but i dont need it in in most my recordings. Whats your take on keeping filters on your lens as an extra protection? and do you use FL-D filters for your work? i got a pack with UV, CPL, and FL-D filters, i use the CPL occasionally , but i dont know where or when the FD-L would be good. I dont use UV, my understanding is that it doesnt do any good with these modern camera lens.

If you use tamron 70-200 f2.8 lens using procore is it always freeze.

hey , i have sony camera a6300 i bought last day but the is right here when ever i click the picture the photo backround is not coming bluer help plz.

Hey Dan, great review thank you. I’m looking to buy an A6300 and primarily do landscapes, watched and read a few reviews now and I appreciate the image quality will be far superior to my Canon 700d but is the menu and ergonomics a deal breaker? I need a camera that is simple and quick to operate. Thanks Scott

Why is it that your 6300 seems to have so much better quality than others, especially during video? Is it the lenses? Do you have the overheating issue with this camera?

I am studying film in high school and want to know if this camera would be good for film, or if I should go the dslr route. What would you recommend?

Nice video. Can I ask what kind of speakers are those behind the computer monitor? Thanks 🙂

Great review Dan!!! The ergonomics and UI is something that has always kept me away from Sony. I remember years ago using a friends NEX and the ergo sucked. It was so bad that she kept accidentally changing the exposure comp and wondering what was wrong. Also, on the lens front... Is there any option to use the new line of Sigma lenses? If they mount natively they might be a good solution. Thanks for the great review.

very useful review!! which one is better between this camera and sony a7 for photography and also videography? hope you reply my comment, thanks man

The images are so amazing, such a shame the camera is so problematic. I'm gonna wait until the technology is more advanced. :(

Thank you so much! The frustration would kill my creativity and willingness to use the camera.

sony a6300 vs canon 80d which is better overall .

Nice. Comprehensive breakdown. Thanks

hi i do record video for half hr..i want this for both video n piks..i m not professional..its so compicated for me to understand so many terms u used ..i just wann good quality video n photo for my make up tutorial..will u suggest me this camera n what lense do u suggest...plz do reply i m searching for 1 month still not found:(((