One camera, One lens

I am currently travelling in Bali, Indonesia with the A7CR and A7CII cameras, plus the FE 20-70 F4G and FE 70-200 F4 Macro G OSS II zoom lenses. This gear (plus 1.4x Teleconverter) all fits neatly into my Wotancraft Pilot 7L medium-sized messenger bag. There are times, however, when I just want to carry a single camera body and one small compact prime. For these times I choose the A7CR and FE 50mm F2.5 G. I zoom with my feet or crop to get a tighter angle of view. I program the custom button on the lens to apply the APS-C/S35 crop so that I have a 75mm full-frame equivalent angle-of-view with a resolution of 26 megapixels. This crop option allows me to frame both full-length and head and shoulder portraits in the camera. If I use this in-camera crop option, however, I can't then un-crop the image in post-production editing, even when shooting in the Raw file format. The new RX1R III has an interesting development on this feature. Instead of the 1.5x APS-C/S35 crop (a little irrelevant when you can't change to using an APS-C lens on a fixed-lens camera) we now have a 1.4x and 2.0x 'step-cropping' option to emulate the use of Teleconverters. This step-cropping feature used to be called the 'Smart Teleconverter' feature on the RX1R II but could only be used when shooting JPEGs.

When reviewing prime lenses, I will often just shoot with the single angle-of-view that the lens provides for many days. It forces me to be a little creative in the way I approach and frame my subjects and sometimes I may need to perfect the composition by cropping in post-production editing. So, the idea of using a fixed-lens camera, such as Sony's RX1R III (I own a second-hand RX1R II), is not a deal-breaker when it comes to choosing gear to carry on any given day.

Sony's RX1R III features a fixed 35mm Zeiss F2 lens. The step cropping on the RX1R III reduces the angle of view (and resolution) to a full-frame equivalent angle-of-view of 50mm and 70mm when using these 1.4x and 2.0x crops. When shooting in the Raw file format these crops are now 'non-destructive', meaning that you can un-crop the images in post-production editing. The crops provide the photographer with a useful framing or composition tool. For those that are worried about losing resolution when cropping, it is important to note that it is possible to apply a 2.5x crop to an image when using a 60 MP sensor and still have a file with enough pixels to fill a 4K screen, so photographers using the 2x in-camera crop can still crop a little further in post-production editing. This is one real advantage for photographers who have the ultra-high-resolution 60 MP sensors, i.e., the ability to crop more in-camera or in post-production editing and still have 'enough' pixels to meet their needs.

Balinese monkeys lick walls for a variety of reasons, including seeking minerals, salt, and other nutrients, or simply as a learned behavior. They might also be attracted to moisture or residue left on the walls.

The images above were captured with the A7CR and FE 50mm F2.5 G lens. The first image shows the use of the full angle-of view offered by the 50mm lens, while the second image shows what the monkey would look like if I were to apply a 2x crop in camera (now available on the RX1R III by pressing the C1 custom button). This 2x crop now creates an image which emulates a 100mm full-frame angle-of-view.

The third image was captured at night at 1/60 second with the F2.5 maximum aperture of the lens and an ISO value of 5,000. With the sophisticated AI denoising tools we now find in applications made by Adobe, DxO and Topaz, the need for a bright F1.2 or F1.4 aperture lens is no longer the issue it used to be just a few years ago. In my opinion the 60 MP sensor found in the A7CR and RX1R also performs well all the way up to ISO 12,800, and if the photographer is not averse to seeing a little texture (noise) in their night images there is really no need to 'denoise' the images in post-production editing.

In conclusion, I would love to see Sony provide the 'Step Cropping' option for Alpha users on future firmware upgrades. If you have never photographed using just one camera and one prime lens then now is a good time as any to give it a go, and see if you would be a good candidate to own a fixed-lens camera to supplement your interchangeable lens camera.

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Link to see ultra-high-resolution images as I post them to my Flickr Pro account: https://www.flickr.com/photos/markgaler/
Bali 2025 Album: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCnjor

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A few products that are making my lightweight travels and little easier

As well as my Wotancraft Pilot 7L Messenger bag I am also travelling with their medium and large camera pouches and leather wrist straps. The large camera pouch can carry two compact lenses while the larger pouch can carry the A7CR with compact lens + lens hood attached.

Purchase Links

• A7CR (Black): https://bhpho.to/3EdvJaF

• A7CR (Silver): https://bhpho.to/3swlYSb

• FE 50mm F2.5 G: https://bhpho.to/4oDtdAq

• Medium Portable Camera Pouch (to carry two compact lenses): https://www.wotancraft.tw/en/product/bcp02-m-blackC

• Large Portable Camera Pouch (to carry an A7CR/A7CII): https://bit.ly/41KlUwO

• Pilot Bags: https://bit.ly/3R1LecX

• Leather Wrist Straps: https://bit.ly/4cNajB3

• SmallRig Base Plate: https://bhpho.to/3Jf7ZbU