All Models Record video while pictures are still in the buffer ?

[Myrimma]

Hi everyone !
I've been using the sony A7iii for a while now, since I don't reall have the money to upgrade to something better like the A1 or the A9iii.
Latel i've been really fustrated with it. I'm trying more often, not only to take stills but also videos.

Context: I'm waiting for hours, days, weeks, the wildlife i'm after, and when it shows up I start taking pictures and at some points I decide to film the subject as well. So I press the record button and a error message shows like : "Operation not possible while writing to card".

I have set the recording to sort photo / video, with photo on slot 1 and video on slot 2.
I understand that given the way the A7iii is made, if some pictures are still in the buffer, even if their destination isn't the same as the video, you can't start recording otherwise there is the risk of overwriting the pictures that are in the buffer.

So my question is : I'm considering upgrading to a new camera, and I was wondering if all SONY cameras have the same issue ?

Thanks a lot !

 

[evacguy]

Hi everyone !
I've been using the sony A7iii for a while now, since I don't reall have the money to upgrade to something better like the A1 or the A9iii.
Latel i've been really fustrated with it. I'm trying more often, not only to take stills but also videos.

Context: I'm waiting for hours, days, weeks, the wildlife i'm after, and when it shows up I start taking pictures and at some points I decide to film the subject as well. So I press the record button and a error message shows like : "Operation not possible while writing to card".

I have set the recording to sort photo / video, with photo on slot 1 and video on slot 2.
I understand that given the way the A7iii is made, if some pictures are still in the buffer, even if their destination isn't the same as the video, you can't start recording otherwise there is the risk of overwriting the pictures that are in the buffer.

So my question is : I'm considering upgrading to a new camera, and I was wondering if all SONY cameras have the same issue ?

Thanks a lot !

Hi Michael, I'm only guessing here, but there is probably only one buffer that services both cards. So if the buffer is busy, it doesn't matter what card you use, you will have to wait until the buffer is clear. I don't know if this is correct, but if it is, then the problem is to do with the size of the buffer and the write speeds to the cards. Other Sony models will undoubtably have larger and faster buffers, but I don't know if this will solve your problems.

 

[Myrimma]

I assumed just liked you, so we agree on that. I was just wondering if maybe in more exepensive model sony had solved the issue. By for instance partitionning the one buffer into two seperate partitions. The picturs would then be stored in the first partition and overflow in the second one if needed, and the video (needing a smaller buffer size in theory) would go straight to the second partition meaning that you could have the first partition almost full it wouldn't matter you could still take a video onto another card without having to wait for all the unstored pictures to be stored.

Or simply having to buffer ... I couldn't find such information on the net, that's way I was asking the community to see if some people with better camera bodies had experience with this topic.

 

[evacguy]

I assumed just liked you, so we agree on that. I was just wondering if maybe in more exepensive model sony had solved the issue. By for instance partitionning the one buffer into two seperate partitions. The picturs would then be stored in the first partition and overflow in the second one if needed, and the video (needing a smaller buffer size in theory) would go straight to the second partition meaning that you could have the first partition almost full it wouldn't matter you could still take a video onto another card without having to wait for all the unstored pictures to be stored.

Or simply having to buffer ... I couldn't find such information on the net, that's way I was asking the community to see if some people with better camera bodies had experience with this topic.

I'm not sure if they have two buffers in the newer camera versions, but they probably have larger buffer sizes and quicker transfer rates so this may resolve the issue.

 

[AlphaWorld]

The other thing to keep in mind is that the older bodies (A7R up to A7RIV, A7 up to A7III, A9 up to A9II) had a somewhat underpowered CPU - when Sony brought out the new BionZ chip they could do things like change settings while saving the buffer.

Can a newer body start video while saving stills? I do not know (I don’t intentionally shoot video). But I think there’s a chance. If nothing else, it may start the video the moment it finishes emptying the buffer.

 

[evacguy]

I'm not sure if they have two buffers in the newer camera versions, but they probably have larger buffer sizes and quicker transfer rates so this may resolve the issue.

Another important point, what type of SD card are you using? For video capture, you want a very fast read/write speed on the card. If too slow it is also going to slow down the process. This usually means going with the more expensive SD cards.