What Sony Cameras are Best for Shooting Sports & Action? 

I get a fair amount of parents asking me what I would recommend they buy to shoot their kids playing sports, and I typically direct them towards the venerable A9. You can’t go wrong with the price and it’s still a stellar camera paired with the 70-200 or 100-400. Great video!

I use a7iv E-Shutter for most of my photos. Except for indoor venues or when I need to reduce any rolling shutter artifacts in my images.

Love the video. Many ask about this, I always point them to the a7iii, especially for beginners starting out.

Cant wait until for the A1 MK2 comes out to see what new features it will have, Love my A1 and also have 2 A7IV and A6000 - have debated on getting the A9111 but think i'll wait to see the updated A1 has to offer. Great Channel by the way Del from UK

I'd say that the A9III has the edge over the A1 because of pre-capture mostly, but also 120fps, and whenever there are lighting issues (like LED panels), well the global shutter solves that. However, if the lighting conditions are fine and you don't need pre-capture and 30fps is enough then the A1 is better, but that's already 3 "ifs"!

I still use the a7c for hybrid motorsports, easy in the backpack for riding. The evf is too small though! Now have the a7siii. Thinking of finally going a9iii for the global shutter. And cameras are cheap in japan now.

A9iii is simply amazing So many things said about this camera but seriously just expose correctly and the results are incredible. 24 megapixels is plenty as long as you get close enough to fill the frame which is 90% of the time. I reserve the A1s for situations where I expect to crop. Sony just nailed it over the last 3 years

Very informative video! Thanks Patrick.

Definitely hope a video like this is coming on lenses pretty soon! Hopefully with some Tamron/Sigma alternatives as well

I would love it if Sony released a stacked, or even global APS-C sensor in an A9 style body, something like 30 mp. I think that would sell well for wildlife.

I do use the a7cr for sports. I shoot in lossless raw and/or jpeg and 8 fps is enough for a hobbiest. I will also shoot in APAC mode to keep the buffer from filling up to fast ..

I appreciated you mentioning that you use the A1 for food photography, I use the A1 for a wide range of assignments as a commercial photographer. In studio, I use it for product - tethered to C1 and paired with a Cambo Actus Mini using a Sinar Sinaron Digital 100mm HR f4 lens (a 20 plus years old lens), it renders extremely sharp and color accurate images in this configuration. I also do a lot of environmental portraits with the A1 using Sony GM lenses. I'm in the Portland area where Nike, Adidas and a few other sports, footwear and apparel companies are based so I also shoot some action shots for sports product with the A1. It's a good camera for a wide range of my clients. Do you have an opinion on the A1 as a video hybrid camera?

I shoot motorsports (semi-pro) with an A9 but can't justify getting an A1. I've really wanted the ability to punch in (even using a 600mm) more than what the 24mp A9 can provide. After a great deal of in depth (technical) research, I ended up with a 6700. It has been great so far. Only caveat (as you would expect) is it has to be a (mostly) sunny day to get the best out of the sensor. But since I only shoot outdoors, it's not a problem. Only wish the body would support 2 cards and FTP transfer.

Well now! Look at that!! Thanks PM-R!!!

Well I’m happy as I have an A6700, A9, A7IV and A93. I skipped the A1 as it was out of my price bracket, don’t do video except when hit the record button by mistake! So couldn’t justify. And the A7R5 allows one to crop in (punch in?) and is about 2/3 the price of an A1. I’ve shot wildlife, sports and performance with it, but I’m not a pro so is good enough for my needs 😊

I have used 3 Sony bodies for sports. A7iv is very limiting, to say the least. Tracking is a joke : excellent in the EVF, lost for the pics. Long story short , I used it at 6 FPS and fixed spot or sometimes zone for about 80 % sharps. You can take great pics but you will miss plenty. A6700 is unpredictable. Sometimes great hit rate but missing the key shots of the winner , sometimes plenty of shots slightly misfocused. But I liked this cute camera. A1 is the solution. 98% hit rate with 1.5% user error.

Thanks, Patrick. Good overview of the various generations of Sony cameras. I have the A7 IV, which I generally love, but I always struggle shooting fast shutter speeds under LED lighting. Even with mechanical shutter and anti-flicker turned on, I still get lots of banding that renders the images unusable. Ironically, my old RX10 IV has no issue with this due to having a stacked sensor (like the A1). Any suggestions for avoiding this LED banding with the A7 IV? BTW, I dream of Sony introducing the next generation RX10. I hear many people speculate it may never happen due to Sony's fears of the RX10 cannibalizing the other products. I disagree with this thought as, for me, the RX10 was the gateway that brought me into the Sony system and away from Canon.

If you had to choose one between the A1 and the A9III, which one would it be? I can afford only one by trading in equipment. And that’s the question that has been been giving me pause. With the release of the A9III and its global shutter in a 35mm size sensor, I feel like scanning digital sensors like the A1 are dated technologies. We now have the opportunity to capture the moment in time when it happens with a global shutter. This is unlike scanning sensors that do not capture the exact moment through its sensor, no matter how minuscule the time difference is. Global shutter, as you mentioned also negates technical limitations like banding, flash sync issues, jello effect in video, etc in scanning sensors. This makes the A9III not just a great sports and action camera but a great hybrid, for general use photo and video reportage. I feel extremely reluctant to purchase older limiting technology when a global shutter camera is cheaper than the A1. This makes the A1 obsolete to me. And yes I still have 2*A7R3 bodies. I feel that the sensor on the A7R3 is the best scanning sensor made for dynamic range and noise levels. The output from these sensors are simply superior to the A1 or I would have replaced them with the A1.

Thank you for your video! I have been shooting wildlife and kids sports with my A7RV for about 6 months. It could be better for action, but it works okay. However, I recently acquired an A7CR, which I also love. I buy ALL my cameras used on eBay when I can find a really good deal, so I came across both of these cameras because I got them for really cheap. Now that I have the a7CR, I am second-guessing whether I should keep the A7RV. What sports camera would you recommend I purchase to replace the A7RV and pair well with my A7CR? I have been eyeing the A1, but it is still expensive, and I wonder if they will come out with an A1ii soon. I would appreciate your suggestions!

PM-R thanks for the video. I also own two A1’s but still upgraded my R body and bought a A7RV for non sports. Now however you turned me own to the A7CII and A7RC for smaller travel cameras. Love them all but wish the compact C bodies had full mechanical shutters like the A6700 which I bought before the newer compact C bodies came out and wondering if I should keep it at this point? What do you think? Take care.

A9III Base ISO is 250 may pose a challenge in areas with low light conditions and needing to freeze the action at high shutter speeds

Sony APSC Stacked sensor PLEASE!

🎉good video but a bit misleading. The a7iv can only do 6-8 fps in uncompressed raw.

I have been using the A7III for shooting sports for the last 3 years, I no professional but do have lots of experience. Id like to upgrade and looking at the a7iv . I only have a 70 to 180 2.8 but punch in to apsc mode to get more reach however i still have to punch in in post. I am open to any suggestions on what my best and budget friendly move would be to upgrade .

Thx Patrick…appreciate your effort! Since you have both A1 and A93…how would you use them with what lens to shoot outdoor field sports like soccer or American football as I assume you are at least a 2 camera shooter at these types of events.

Great info, love your videos! I would appreciate your opinion. I'm a complete amateur and basically only shoot rec baseball games (full auto mode). Currently use a A6400 which I enjoy, but stuggles with low light using a 70-200 f4 OSSi. Would the 70-200 F2.8 OSSii make a big difference in low light performance or I'm I better off upgrading to the A7iv? Thank you

Im an amateur, who shoots my daughters soccer academy team. Would you recommend the new Sony 70-200 F4 II the 2.8 II or the 70-200 2.8 version 1? I don't get paid to shoot btw

here a sony shooter for more than 12 years.... if you are rich then a9iii or a1. if you are not rich then canon a6 a5 a7 or a8 wirh a old lens ed to new rf lens adaptor would be budget friendlier

Is there any truth to the rumor I'm hearing that the mps drops from 25 mps as you throttle back on the shutter speeds ?

also a7 c ii has shutter speed 4000 in mechanical...

Have you updated your a1 yet? I have not and don’t plan on updating. 1.35 works just fine for me.

Any idea when the A1-2 will be coming?

I would like to know how I can trun my love for photograph, in to some cash as I have invested almost 200 K in photography in the last five years I need help I’ve never made a penny with it, but I love all aspects of photography. I love sports landscaping, wildlife portrait. I need someone to explain to me how to start charging and booking clients.before my wife leaves me,lol she said she could fly to the moon before I would ever get my money back. Who knew cameras and lens, and lighting could be so expensive. Help help help I need your help. I love all your work.

Hi! My question is: how do i flash in for example 1/80000 in daylight without using "H" (high flash sync) with my Godox X2T + AD200. Without "H" i only get to 1/500 with my A9III. Thanks

My a7Riv has way better focus than my a7Riii did. I can use it with great results shooting diving osprey. i could never do that with the a7Riii Not to the levels of my a9.

A9iii not good for night sports because of low dynamic range/high ISO noise.

Would you suggest a used A7.3 or A7R III or A7S III for college sports.