Hi from the UK. All advice gratefully received

[Telefan]

Ladies and Gentlemen.

I have just made the leap from Pentax to an a7iv.

Some very fond memories of my Pentax. The last was of seals on a Norfolk beach in December. A great day. One of the memories from that day is just how heavy the Pentax is. A solid camera built like a tank weighs just as much, with a 150-500mm lens and it was hard going. It takes a huge amount of punishment, covered in sand and rain just kept going. But the weight is becoming tiresome. I also want that full frame goodness and the functionality that comes with a mirrorless system.

So after much consideration wailing and gnashing of teeth and permission from the wife, I am awaiting delivery of an a7iv, a secondhand Sony f4 24-105mm and a shiny new 200-600.

I tend to shoot some landscape but increasingly more wildlife.

I did try the menu system while I was shopping for a new camera, feels a little overwhelming.

I would appreciate any advice from wildlife shooters on their custom settings, similarly from landscape guys. I have a wildlife shoot coming up at the beginning of Feb. I’ll have a couple of weeks to set up the camera and get used to it.

I have on order a LensCoat for the long lens, I would be grateful for any suggestions for similar protection for the camera body. I have seen silicone cases for the body, if anyone uses one? Does it interfere with buttons?

I hope to be posting images soon instead of questions.

With Thanks

 

[Telefan]

Welcome.

I think you'll get better answers if you ask specific questions in the forums, but I can make one recommendation. Use two of the three available custom modes on the mode dial to set up for animals and birds. Once you set the recognition and eye focus for one, it won't do the other. I'd do this at least until you're comfortable with the camera. Of course you can always program one of the function buttons, but you may want different settings for AF, Tracking, Bursts, etc.

I have a silicon cover for one of my cameras. I hate it, but it works. I only use it for certain conditions and remove it as soon as possible.

Thank you

 

[Tim Mayo]

Welcome Telefan and thank you for joining up here. I'd recommend learning the basics of the camera first and getting your head around the menu system and customisations before tweaking anything for a particular genre. There are lots of videos out there on the a7IV but this one from Jason is a really good one to start with:

 

[Telefan]

Tha

Welcome Telefan and thank you for joining up here. I'd recommend learning the basics of the camera first and getting your head around the menu system and customisations before tweaking anything for a particular genre. There are lots of videos out there on the a7IV but this one from Jason is a really good one to start with:

that is fantastic thank you