- The ZV-E10 II is an APS-C camera with interchangeable lenses.
- It has the same sensor as the camera and costs almost twice as much.
- Still photographers should look elsewhere.
Sony's new ZV-E10 II packs the video capabilities of a much more expensive camera into a $999 model, but it's pretty bad for still photography. Shouldn't you just be on your phone?
There are many reasons to use a regular camera instead of a phone camera, and Sony's new vlogger-friendly ZV-E10 II includes some of them. Its selling point is that it focuses on what videographers need while ignoring everything they don't. This ruthless reduction of its features means Sony can pack the sensors of more expensive cameras into a body that sells for just $999. But it's definitely not for everyone.
"When recording documentaries and travel vlogs in the wild for YouTube, the ZV-E10 II has certain advantages over smartphones like the iPhone," professional adventure photographer Jackson Groves told Lifewire via email. “Swapping lenses allows for many creative possibilities: telephoto for capturing wildlife, macro for capturing details, wide angle for landscapes, and more. A larger sensor also allows for beautiful background blur and enhancement low light function.”
It's hard to imagine an uglier word than "blogger," but vlogger is definitely a contender. Today, vlogging means YouTube, and YouTube users have ratings on video quality. The bottom layer is someone using a phone camera, maybe even a fixed-focus, low-quality selfie camera, and recording via a built-in microphone. Then we look at those who still use the iPhone camera, but with good lighting and a proper microphone.
The iPhone has an amazing camera, and paired with the right apps, you have a ton of manual control. However, it still can't beat large sensor mirrorless cameras in terms of quality. It's not just theoretical quality. YouTubers love this quality so much that it has become an iconic look.
You've seen it. Beautiful but soft lighting. Maybe have some fun lights dotted around; a neon strip, a string of LED lights, a bunch of Christmas tree lights in a glass vase. The colors are rich, the focus of the host is clear, and the background windows are beautifully blurred. This is all a result of using a large sensor and a lens with a nice wide maximum aperture, which allows users to adjust the exact amount of background blur.
“With the ZV-E10 II, I can use different lenses to take different photos. Whether I need a wide-angle lens for stunning landscapes or a prime lens for crisp low-light photos, this camera can do it all Meets my needs. The iPhone, on the other hand, is stuck with the lenses they come with," travel vlogger Fiona Spinks told Lifewire via email.
The ZV-E10 II's sensor comes from the FX30, Sony's $1,800 camera that shoots in 4K and up to 60 fps. Just what you need to create beautiful YouTube videos.
Obviously, the stripped-down vlogger-first design is perfect for the target market, but there are better options out there for anyone who wants to take photos with an actual camera. While you can get great photos and enjoy the Sony's stunning autofocus, basic still photography features are missing. For example, it has no physical shutter and no viewfinder. You might be able to get over the lack of a viewfinder - after all, we're used to framing shots on our phone screens - but there's no mitigating the lack of a shutter.
When you take a photo, the sensor clears itself and the physical shutter closes, then opens again for a fraction of a second to capture the shot. This means that all pixels are exposed to light at the same time. The alternative used by the ZV-E10 II is to read pixels from a still-active sensor. This takes time, there is a small but noticeable delay between the first pixel and the last pixel. The result is what's called a "rolling shutter," which can cause some strange artifacts. For example, any moving object in the image is likely to be curved.
So while the ZV-E10 II is great for snapping photos in a pinch, there are better options, priced at $999, from Sony and other manufacturers. Fujifilm's XT-30, for example, comes in a kit with a lens for the same price. So unless you know why you want this cool new Sony, you should probably look elsewhere. For what it does, it's a complete steal, but that's partly because it only really does one thing well.
