Sony A7 II vs Leica SL Detailed Comparison

Sony Alpha 7 II vs Leica SL

Camera to replace

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Sony A7 II

24 MP | Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) CMOS Sensor

$1,548.00

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Leica SL

24 MP | Full frame (36 x 24 mm) CMOS Sensor

$7,450.00

Sony A7 II vs Leica SL Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two Mirrorless cameras. Both Sony A7 II and Leica SL cameras have 24.0MP Full frame sensors. We can expect this to be a close match up because both models are ranked amongst the best in Mirrorless cameras. Out of 152 cameras in this class, Sony A7 II is ranked #7 with an overall score of 89 and Leica SL is ranked #6 with an overall score of 90.

Let's have a brief look at the main features of Sony A7 II and Leica SL before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Sony A7 II Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2014-11-20

24MP - Full frame CMOS Sensor

ISO 100 - 25600

Sony E (NEX) Mount

Sensor-shift Image Stabilization

3″ Tilting Screen

2359k dot Electronic viewfinder

5.0 fps continuous shooting

1920 x 1080 video resolution

Built-in Wireless

599g. 127 x 96 x 60 mm

Weather Sealed Body

Replaced Sony Alpha 7 Compare

Leica SL Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2015-10-21

24MP - Full frame CMOS Sensor

No Anti-aliasing (AA) filter

ISO 50 - 50000

Leica T Mount

3″ Fixed Type Screen

4400k dot Electronic viewfinder

11.0 fps continuous shooting

4096 x 2160 video resolution

Built-in Wireless

Built-in GPS

847g. 147 x 104 x 39 mm

Weather Sealed Body

Also known as Typ 601

Reasons to choose Sony Alpha 7 II over Leica SL

Built-in Image Stabilization	Sensor-shift vs None	All the lenses are stabilized
Articulating Screen	Yes vs No	Flexible shooting positions
Number of Focus Points	117 vs 49	68 more focus points
LCD Screen Resolution	1.230k dots vs 1.040k dots	18% higher resolution screen
Weight	599 g vs 847 g	248 g lighter
Dynamic Range	13.6 vs 13.4	higher dynamic range
Low Light ISO	2449 vs 1821	better High ISO performance
Price	$1,548 vs $7,450	$5,902 cheaper
AE Bracketing Range	±5 EV vs ±3 EV	Wide Bracketing range is useful for HDR
NFC Connection	Yes vs No	Easy wireless connectivity with compatible devices

Reasons to choose Leica SL over Sony Alpha 7 II

Touch Screen	Yes vs No	Easy control of camera functions
GPS	BuiltIn vs None	track your location
Max ISO	50.000 vs 25.600	95% higher Max ISO
Continuous Shooting	11.0fps vs 5.0fps	6 fps faster
Battery Life	400 shots vs 350 shots	50 more frames with a single charge
Timelapse Recording	Yes vs No	creative shooting
Viewfinder Resolution	4400k dot vs 2359k dot	86% higher resolution
Color Depth	25.0 vs 24.9	higher color depth
Max Video Resolution	4096 x 2160 vs 1920 x 1080	Higher Resolution Video
Top LCD	Yes vs No	Help viewing and changing settings easily
Flash Sync Port	Yes vs No	Connect off-camera flash

Common Strengths of Sony Alpha 7 II and Leica SL

Wireless Connection	Yes vs Yes	Better connectivity
External Flash Shoe	Yes vs Yes	Better for flash photography
Viewfinder	Yes (Electronic) vs Yes (Electronic)	Better framing and control
RAW Support	Yes vs Yes	Better image quality
Face Detection Focus	Yes vs Yes	very handy for portraits
Max Resolution	24 MP vs 24 MP	Bigger prints and more details
Microphone Port	Yes vs Yes	High quality audio recording option
Headphone Port	Yes vs Yes	better video control
Environmental Sealing	Yes vs Yes	shoot at tough conditions
AE Bracketing	Yes vs Yes	Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR
Smartphone Remote Control	Yes vs Yes	Remote control your camera with a smartphone

Common Weaknesses of Sony Alpha 7 II and Leica SL

Built-in Flash	No vs No	Require external flash

Sony A7 II vs Leica SL: Physical Specs Comparison

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Sony A7 II and Leica SL. Sony A7 II is 20mm narrower and 8mm shorter than Leica SL but it is also 21mm thicker.

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Sony A7 II and Leica SL.

Sony A7 II vs Leica SL Detailed Size Comparison

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Sony A7 II is significantly lighter (248g ) than the Leica SL which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.

Also keep in mind that body weight is not the only deciding factor when comparing two interchangeable camera bodies, you have to also take into account the lenses that you will be using with these bodies. Since both Sony A7 II and Leica SL have the same Full frame sized sensor, their lenses for a similar focal length and aperture will be similar in size and weight.

Weight Comparison

Mirrorless Cameras

A7 II

Min

Average

Max

Thickness Comparison

Mirrorless Cameras

A7 II

Min

Average

Max

Sony A7 II vs Leica SL: Sensor Comparison

Both Sony A7 II and Leica SL have Full frame sized 24.0 MP resolution sensors so sensor size and resolution is not a differentiator between these two cameras.

Another difference between these two cameras is that Leica SL's sensor lacks anti-alias (Low-Pass) filter. Removing anti-alias filter increases the sharpness and level of detail but at the same time, it increases the chance of moire occurring in certain scenes.

Below you can see the A7 II and SL sensor size comparison.

Sony A7 II and Leica SL have almost the same sensor size so none of them has any significant advantage over other in this area.

What types of Photography are Sony A7 II and Leica SL Good for?

In this section, we rank and compare Sony A7 II and Leica SL for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.

Sony A7 II for Portrait Photography

EXCELLENT

Leica SL for Portrait Photography

GOOD

Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Large Full frame (36 x 24 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Sony A7 II for Street Photography

EXCELLENT

Leica SL for Street Photography

GOOD

Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Tilting LCD Screen
Image Stabilization
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Medium sized Body
Read the details

Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Large Full frame (36 x 24 mm) sensor
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Sony A7 II for Sports Photography

EXCELLENT

Leica SL for Sports Photography

GOOD

Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/8000s
117 Focus Points
Good Low Light ISO
Wireless Connection
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Image Stabilization
Average Continuous Shooting: 5.0fps
Read the details

Fast Continuous Shooting: 11.0fps
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/8000s
49 Focus Points
Good Low Light ISO
Wireless Connection
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Sony A7 II for Daily Photography

EXCELLENT

Leica SL for Daily Photography

GOOD

Environmental Sealings
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Medium size Body
599g
Body Thickness 60mm
Read the details

Environmental Sealings
Large Full frame (36 x 24 mm) sensor
Medium size Body
847g
Read the details

Sony A7 II for Landscape Photography

GOOD

Leica SL for Landscape Photography

GOOD

Live-view
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Live-view
Built-in GPS
Large Full frame (36 x 24 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Leica SL vs Sony A7 II Comparison of Available Lenses

Which camera has more lenses?

Number of available lenses is a big decision factor while choosing your interchangeable lens camera. When we look at the available lenses for these two cameras, we see that Sony A7 II has an advantage over Leica SL. There are 65 lenses for Sony A7 II's Sony E (NEX) mount, on the other hand there are only 2 lenses for Leica SL's Leica T lens mount.

Another important factor is the availability of image stabilization. Sony A7 II has a big advantage in this regard because it has a sensor based image stabilization which means that all the lenses mounted to this body will be stabilized. On the other hand, Leica SL doesn't have this feature so you have to buy a lens with optical stabilization feature. Currently there are 0 lenses for Leica T mount with Optical Image Stabilization features.

Lens Type	# of Sony A7 II Lenses	# of Leica SL Lenses
Standard Zoom	6 (4 Full Frame)	1 (0 Full Frame)
Standard Prime	10 (4 Full Frame)	n/a
Wideangle Zoom	4 (3 Full Frame)	n/a
Wideangle Prime	22 (11 Full Frame)	1 (0 Full Frame)
Telephoto Zoom	5 (4 Full Frame)	n/a
Telephoto Prime	5 (2 Full Frame)	n/a
SuperZoom	8 (1 Full Frame)	n/a
Wideangle Fisheye Prime	1 (0 Full Frame)	n/a
Macro Prime	3 (2 Full Frame)	n/a
Perspective Control Prime	1 (1 Full Frame)	n/a
Telephoto Mirror Prime	n/a	n/a
TOTAL	65 (32 Full Frame)	2 (0 Full Frame)

Sony A7 II vs Leica SL: OUR DECISION

You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Sony A7 II and Leica SL, below you can find their scores in five different aspects. Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.

Here is a summary of how Sony A7 II and Leica SL scores compare:

Sony A7 II

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #7 out of 45 in SLR-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #16 out of 1112 in all Cameras

Leica SL

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #4 out of 45 in SLR-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #10 out of 1112 in all Cameras

Leica SL has a higher Overall Score than the Sony A7 II and would be our choice if we have to decide between these two cameras.

Sony A7 II

$1,548.00

Leica SL

$7,450.00

Leica SL vs Sony A7 II Specs Table

Detailed comparison of specifications

General	Sony Alpha 7 II	Leica SL
Brand	Sony	Leica
Announced	2014-11-20	2015-10-21
Body Type	SLR-style mirrorless	SLR-style mirrorless
Price	$1,548.00	$7,450.00
Sensor
Type	CMOS	CMOS
Size	Full frame	Full frame
Dimensions	35.8 x 23.9 mm	36 x 24 mm
Area	855.62mm²	864.00mm²
Megapixels	24 megapixels	24 megapixels
Max Resolution	6000 x 4000	6000 x 4000
Max Native Light sensitivity	25,600 ISO	50,000 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity	100 ISO	50 ISO
RAW Support
Autofocus
AF Touch
AF Continuous
AF Single
AF Tracking
AF Selective
AF Center
AF Multi Area
AF Live View
AF Face Detection
AF Contrast Detection
AF Phase Detection
Number of Focus Points	117	49
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount	Sony E (NEX)	Leica T
Number of Available Lenses	65	2
Screen
Type	Tilting	Fixed type
Size	3″	3″
Resolution	1,230k dots	1,040k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder	Electronic	Electronic
Viewfinder Resolution	2,359k dots	4,400k dots
Viewfinder Coverage	100%	100%
Viewfinder Magnification	0.71×	0.8×
Photography Features
Max Shutter Speed	1/8000s	1/8000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization	Sensor-shift	No
Built-in Flash
External Flash
Continuous Shooting	5.0 fps	11.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution	1920 x 1080	4096 x 2160
Video Formats	MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S	MPEG-4
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity	Built-In	Built-In
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight	599g	847g
Dimensions	127 x 96 x 60mm	147 x 104 x 39mm
Battery Life	350 shots	400 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS	None	BuiltIn
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score	90	88
DxO Color Depth	24.9	25.0
DxO Dynamic Range	13.6	13.4
DxO Low Light ISO	2449	1821
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