The Sony a1 II gives you all the tools you need to achieve a higher capture success rate and more, including 50 megapixels of resolution, AI-based subject recognition AF, high-speed continuous shooting, and an advanced workflow from capture to delivery that provides professionals with unrivalled efficiency and freedom.
A fusion of leading technologies delivers overwhelming performance
The massive volume of data from the approximately 50.1 effective megapixel full frame Exmor RS™ image sensor is processed in real time by Sony’s BIONZ XR™ image processing engine. An advanced AI processing unit applies high-level subject recognition to reliably recognize a wide range of subjects. These state-of-the-art technologies come together to make it easy to capture even the most challenging subjects in extraordinary resolution, with blackout-free viewing and full AF/AE tracking performance at up to 30fps.
Advanced AI processing unit for high-level subject recognition
The a1 II features a dedicated AI processing unit that helps to recognize people more accurately based on human pose estimation, and also supports recognition of a wide range of subjects other than people, such as animals, vehicles and insects, with high accuracy. This results in a dramatic improvement in Real-time Recognition AF and Real-time Tracking capability, and higher overall AF performance.
AF tracking response settable to match subject speed changes
Fast Hybrid AF provides 759 phase-detection points for tenacious tracking and pinpoint focusing, now with adjustable tracking response speed, useful for example in bird photography, and in light levels down to EV-4.0 in AF-S mode.
Flexible focus area settings
XL and XS focus area spot sizes are now available as well as L, M, and S. XS can be useful to avoid focusing on foreground objects such as branches. It is also possible to create a custom focus area of specified size and aspect ratio.
High-speed continuous shooting at full 50.1 MP resolution
High-speed continuous shooting at up to 30fps with full AF/AE tracking is possible at 50.1 MP resolution, with up to 120 AF/AE calculations per second. Blackout-free shooting with no loss of viewfinder image allows seamless framing and capture of the subject as if viewed with the naked eye.
Extraordinary detail with approximately 50.1 effective megapixels
Sony’s extensive high-performance G Master line work with the 50.1 megapixel Exmor RS image sensor and BIONZ XR image processing engine to create deep, lifelike, high-resolution rendering. The sensor’s high pixel count means that resolution is still a very impressive 21 megapixels when shooting in APS-C mode or cropping to APS-C size after shooting.
Consistently accurate exposure and colour
Exposure and colour reproduction are notably improved compared to the α1, with exposure optimized for detected faces in stills and movies, and exposure stability improved by approximately 20% even when the face is backlit, over-illuminated in sunlight, or not facing the camera. White balance is accurate even for subjects in shade.
Composite RAW modes for lower noise and higher resolution
Two composite RAW shooting modes are available. The NR Shooting Settings mode captures between 4 and 32 RAW images that can be composited to create a full-resolution image with very low noise even at mid-to-high sensitivities. Pixel Shift Multi Shooting captures 4 or 16 pixel-shifted images that are composited to achieve overwhelmingly high resolution in a single image. In both cases the compositing operations are performed using Sony’s Imaging Edge Desktop™ PC application.
Real-time Recognition AF for movies
Real-time Recognition AF utilizes advanced AI-based human pose estimation technology that recognizes and tracks not just eyes, but body and head position for human subjects with high precision. The range of subjects recognized with AI assistance, for both movies and stills, has been expanded relative to the a1, and now includes birds in movies, for example. Other subjects are acquired and tracked in real time by processing colour, pattern, and spatial data.
High-resolution 8K/4K recording for impressive realism
4K (3840 x 2160) movies can be cropped and edited from 8K source footage with overwhelming resolution from 8.6K oversampling. 8K 4:2:2 10-bit XAVC HS recording with optional Full HD proxy is available, as are 4K recording in XAVC HS, S, or S-I formats in full-frame, or Super 35 mm oversampled from 5.8K with full pixel readout and no pixel binning. XAVC S-I allows recording at up to 600 Mbps for outstanding image quality.
High-frame-rate recording at up to 120p
4K can be recorded at up to 120p right in the camera. 4K footage can be played back in up to 5x slow motion. The Slow & Quick Motion (S&Q) mode makes it convenient to play recorded footage back at slow or high speed in the camera. Full HD footage recorded at 240fps offers even greater range: up to 10x slow motion (24p) to create impressive sports movies, for example. The frame rate setup menu allows intuitive selection of frame rates.
Better S-Log matching with Cinema Line cameras
The S-Log3 gamma curve emphasizes gradation characteristics from shadows to mid-grey. Minimum ISO when shooting S-Log3 is 800, while the expanded ISO range is 200–640. Compared to the α1, detail reproduction has been improved and matching with S-Log3 output from Sony’s cinema cameras is easier. User LUTs can also be imported into the camera for preview.
Flexible LCD monitor positioning
The 4-axis multi-angle monitor can be positioned for optimal viewing in horizontal or vertical orientation. The extended monitor can be tilted upward by approximately 98 ° and downward by approximately 40 ° to the camera back, and sideways by a full 180 °. The hinge is unobtrusive but robust. The large 3.2 type 2.1 million dot display panel is touch sensitive, has a wide colour gamut, and is designed for clear outdoor viewing.
Advanced grip hold and ease of use
The improved grip ergonomics ensure comfortable and stable shooting over long sessions. A C5 custom button has also been added, and the grip design is replicated for prolonged vertical shooting with the optional VG-C5 Vertical Grip, which additionally offers extended battery life over the previous model.
Supplied charger charges two NP-FZ100 batteries in 155 minutes
The supplied BC-ZD1 quick charger can simultaneously charge two NP-FZ100 batteries in approximately 155 minutes when used with an AC adapter providing USB PD (Power Delivery). This charger is ideal for charging two batteries for use at events or in other applications that require continuous operation over extended periods of time.
Dedicated microphone for clear voice memos
A dedicated voice memo microphone is built into the camera’s rear panel, making it easy to record clear voice memos even in noisy environments. Voice memos can be transferred to an FTP server along with the corresponding images.
2.5GBASE-T support for efficient data transfer
Wired LAN connectivity allows stable, high-speed transfer of huge amounts of still and movie data at up to 2.5 Gbps to an FTP server. FTPS (File Transfer Protocol over SSL/TLS) is supported for secure transfer. Up to 10 sets of FTP transfer settings can be saved to and loaded from a memory card.
