Sony Alpha a7II Mirrorless Digital Camera with 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens

This is a fantastic camera and I've been through plenty of cameras. This is the one I'll be keeping. A little history... My first DSLR (9ish years ago) was a Nikon D40. I quickly outgrew that and bought a D90. After I while I wanted more. I got myself a D700 and that was a fantastic camera. At some point I got sick of the weight of heavy cameras and lenses. I sold all of my Nikon gear and bought a Sony Nex7. I loved the light weight...but I was never happy with the image quality. Sooo...back to Nikon. Bought a D7100 and a bunch of lenses. I took a trip to Italy and midway through the trip decided that I needed to look at other options. Once again I was sick of carrying around all that weight. I planned to sell my Nikon stuff (again) and look back at the mirrorless options. I never got the chance because my camera bag was stolen on the way to Milan. Once I got home I started investigating my options. I tried an Olympus E-M1 but that didn't suit me. It's a nice camera but just wasn't up to the standard in image quality that I was used to. Next, I tried the Fuji X-T1. That is a beautiful machine. I would've been happy with it...If I hadn't also tried out the Sony a7. I was happier with the image quality from the Sony, but happier with the feel of the Fuji camera. In the end, image quality won and I kept the Sony. For my type of photography (landscapes, portraits) the Sony fit me very well. The autofocus was acceptable, but not great. But with my kind of work this isn't that big a deal. But I was never happy with the quality of the actual camera body. Just felt a little cheap. Then the a7ii was announced and I decided to trade up. While the camera is a bit heavier, the trade off of AMAZING handling makes it well worth it. The camera oozes quality and feels much nicer to hold than any other mirrorless camera I have tried. The in-body image stabilization is also great. I can handhold with the 55 1.8 at 1/4 second pretty consistently. I can get good images slower that that too, but they are more hit-or-miss. Still, the fact that I CAN get clear images at 1 second is insane. Autofocus is also noticeably better than on the a7. It's not in the same league as a Nikon DSLR like my old D7100, but for me that's not a big deal. If I were shooting sports then the Sony would be out...simple as that.For me, this is pretty much the perfect camera. I'm using it with the FE 55mm f1.8 and FE 16-35mm f4. I also have a Rokinon 85mm f1.4 (replaced my Nikon 85 1.4G that was stolen) and I just ordered a Canon FD 135mm f2.0 for portraits. That pretty much covers all my needs. Very very happy with this camera.Oh, I also got a Nissin i40 flash for Christmas and it is a great match with this camera when you need it. It's remarkably powerful for its size and doesn't look ridiculous on the a7ii.

Firstly I I have no prior experience in cameras besides Point&Shoots. I have been using a Cannon S90 for the last 4 years honing my skill in composition and exposures before making the investment in the big leagues. My friend who is a professional residential photographer who uses DSLRs recommended me to go with Mirrorless. I mainly wanted a camera for night photography/exploring/traveling. He pointed me to Mirrorless cameras as it is more compact & light weight, yet having specs that rivals DSLRs. For the kit lens I went with online reviews that all said it was a fair lens for the cost.I fell in love as soon as I shot for the first time & realized what I've been missing out on all these years. This camera has allowed me to explore a different style of photography as I can do things that I previously couldn't. I have taken some amazing shots with this relatively intuitive camera.You can see some of my Sony A7ii Kit Lens pics on my Instagram account --> @Parker.ChanAlthough the kit lens is pretty decent for low light as the INTERNAL STABILIZER in the body helps a lot, if low light photography is what you are into you should invest in a better lens - as I feel like I have already outgrown the lens (though not taking anything away from it. Just look at my low light shots 'Lightroom Edited.')Overall the A7II is a YES.- Light weight yet solid feel- Sleek- Relatively intuitive to use, yet highly customizable functions- Pricing: well worth every penny if you enjoy photographyThe kit lens is a YES for beginners.- Good lens to start for beginners who have no idea where to start. Very versatile range for both landscape & portraits.- Paired with Internal Stablizing function of the A7ii, you can pull of fairly low shutter speed shots by hand @ 1/25 maybe 1/20.- I really enjoy it and will continue using it for daytime photography.