On 16 October 2013, Sony announced the world’s first full-frame mirrorless cameras, the Alpha A7 and Alpha A7R. This put in place a chain of events that led to the demise of the DSLR and established Sony’s position as a serious camera maker. So, what were the A7 and A7R, how did we get to them, why did they matter, and what have they led to?
Mirrorless cameras weren’t suddenly invented in 2013. They’d been around for a while, but principally as smaller-format, lower-cost enthusiast cameras. The Micro Four Thirds Panasonic Lumix G1 was the first mirrorless camera, arriving in September 2008, followed by the first APS-C model, the Samsung NX10 in January 2010 (remember Samsung?). Just a few months later, Sony’s NEX-5 and NEX-3 arrived, which debuted Sony’s mirrorless E-mount but used an APS-C sensor.
The Sony A7 and A7R were, however, the first full-frame mirrorless cameras, and were designed for enthusiasts and professionals, not just hobbyists. For years, DSLRs had ruled the roost for ‘serious’ photographers, and the new Sony models were the first to challenge this DSLR dominance.
Ten years later, mirrorless cameras have decimated the DSLR market, even in professional sports, press and wildlife photography, the traditional bastion of the big, tough DSLR design. Sony didn’t do this entirely on its own but, with the launch of the Alpha A7 and A7R, the firm kick-started a revolution that quickly became unstoppable.
Once upon a time, mirrorless cameras were a technological oddity with a small but vocal fan base, while DSLRs were the de facto standard for serious photographers.
Boy, what a change-around.
Sony A7 and A7R 2013
The Sony A7 and A7R were not just the first full-frame mirrorless cameras on the
