Sony a7 IV Accessories: What to Buy First, in Order

The first accessories worth buying for a Sony a7 IV are a spare NP-FZ100 battery, a memory card fast enough for the video modes you plan to use, and a microphone if you record sound. After that, add a cage only when you start rigging, an ND filter for daylight video, a comfortable strap and a better lens, and leave CFexpress cards, gimbals and expensive glass until a specific job asks for them.

The buying order at a glance

Order	Accessory	Buy it now if...
1	Spare NP-FZ100 battery and charger	You shoot more than a short session, or any video
2	Fast SD card (or CFexpress Type A)	Always. Match the card to your video mode
3	Microphone	You record anyone talking
4	Cage	You are mounting a mic receiver, monitor or handle
5	Variable ND filter	You shoot video outdoors
6	Strap	You carry the camera all day
7	First lens upgrade	The kit lens is holding you back in low light or on background blur

1. A spare NP-FZ100 battery and a charger

Battery is first because it is the accessory that ends a shoot. PetaPixel lists the a7 IV at 520 shots per charge using the viewfinder and 580 using the rear screen. The a7 IV uses the NP-FZ100, the same battery as the newer a7 V.

Video drains it faster. Sony's spec sheet puts power draw with the viewfinder at about 3.8 W while shooting stills and about 5.7 W while shooting movies. If you record video, plan on a spare from day one.

Charger or in-camera charging

In PetaPixel's upgrade article, Jefferson Graham pointed out that the camera ships without a battery charger, only a USB cable. That means out of the box you charge the battery inside the camera, one battery at a time.

A separate charger lets you top up the spare while you shoot on the other. If you would rather charge in the camera from a power bank or wall adapter, check Sony's Help Guide for the USB power sources your a7 IV supports before you rely on it on a shoot. Sony's Help Guide also tells you to charge the battery sufficiently before recovering the database files on a memory card, which is one more reason to keep a charged spare in your bag.

For more on batteries and grips, see Batteries and Battery Grips Explained.

2. Memory cards that match your video settings

The a7 IV takes two kinds of cards. Sony's Help Guide says the camera supports CFexpress Type A cards and SD cards, UHS-I or UHS-II.

Slot	Cards it accepts
Slot 1	CFexpress Type A or SD UHS-II
Slot 2	SD UHS-II only

Which speed rating you need

SD cards carry a video speed class such as V60 or V90, and CFexpress cards carry a VPG rating such as VPG200. Sony's Help Guide lists which cards work with each movie recording format. These are the rules it spells out:

Setting	Minimum card Sony lists
Recording bit rate of 60 Mbps or lower	SDHC/SDXC Class 10
Slow motion at 120fps or 100fps, 50 Mbps, with 30p/25p/24p record rate	SDXC V60 or higher, or CFexpress Type A VPG200 or higher
Slow motion at 60fps or 50fps with 30p/25p/24p record rate	CFexpress Type A VPG200 or higher
Proxy recording	A higher-speed card may be required

Sony also notes that slow-motion recording uses a higher bit rate than usual. If you plan to shoot XAVC S-I, Sony's All-Intra format, look up its row in the card table in Sony's Help Guide and buy a card at or above that rating. Digital Camera World warned that the a7 IV's matrix of codecs, frame rates and crops gets more complex with a slower card, which brings its own limits.

Three card habits that save footage

• Use SDXC, not SDHC, for video. Sony says long XAVC S recordings on an SDHC card are split into 4 GB files.
• If you record to both slots at once, format both cards with the same file system. Sony says the camera cannot record simultaneously to an exFAT card and a FAT32 card.
• Buy two smaller cards rather than one huge one, so a single failure doesn't take a whole day with it.

For a deeper comparison, read Memory Cards: SD vs CFexpress and Best SD Cards and CFexpress Cards.

3. A microphone

If anyone talks in your videos, a microphone is the cheapest big jump in quality you can buy. Pick the type by how far your subject is from the camera.

On-camera: Sony ECM-B10

The ECM-B10 is a compact shotgun mic that mounts on Sony's Multi Interface (MI) Shoe. CineD describes the MI Shoe as a digital shoe that lets accessories be powered by and communicate directly with the camera.

• It is 7.9cm long and needs no cables or batteries.
• The camera's shoe powers it, and the mic converts sound to digital inside the microphone before sending it to the camera.
• It has three pickup patterns: omnidirectional, cardioid and hypercardioid.
• It is dust and moisture resistant and has a small shock mount near the shoe to reduce handling noise.
• All controls sit together on the back of the mic.
• CineD reported a launch price of $249.99, with a soft pouch, a windscreen and an MI Shoe cover in the box.

Sony's spec notes for the mic reference a DIGITAL/ANALOG switch. Before you buy, confirm your a7 IV is on Sony's compatibility list for the digital connection.

Wireless: DJI Mic Mini kit

An on-camera mic works best when your subject is close to the lens. For interviews, walking shots or anyone standing a few steps away, a wireless lavalier kit like the DJI Mic Mini puts the microphone on the person instead. Check how the receiver connects to your camera and which cable you need before your first shoot.

If you are working to a tight budget, see Best Budget Microphones for Beginner Filmmakers, or compare on-camera options in Top 10 Shotgun Microphones for 2026.

4. A cage, once you start rigging

A cage earns its place when you need somewhere to mount a mic receiver, a monitor or a top handle. If you mostly shoot handheld stills, you can skip it for now.

One handling note: PetaPixel's reviewer found the a7 IV's grip still not tall enough to be as comfortable as it could be. A cage with a side handle is one way to get a fuller hold when you are shooting video for long stretches.

5. A variable ND filter for daylight video

An ND filter matters as soon as you shoot video outside. The reason is the camera's limits. For movies, Sony lists a base ISO of 100 with extended settings only going higher, up to ISO 102400 equivalent. You cannot drop ISO below 100 to darken a bright scene when shooting movies.

If you want a slow, natural-looking shutter speed such as 1/50 for 24p video and a wide aperture for background blur, a sunny day will overexpose the shot. A variable ND lets you turn the filter to cut light until the exposure fits.

Match the filter size to your lens thread, which is printed on the lens barrel or inside the lens cap. If your lens takes 67mm filters, the K&F Concept 67mm variable ND fits it. Thread size also helps you plan your next lens: Digital Camera World points out that the Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 G2 uses a regular 67mm front filter thread, so lenses that share a thread size can share one filter.

6. A strap you will actually wear

Digital Camera World lists the a7 IV at 658g with card and battery, before you add a lens. A strap that adjusts quickly between sling and shoulder length makes that weight easier to carry all day, and a quick-release system lets you remove it when the camera goes on a tripod.

7. Your first lens upgrade

Sony's own spec sheet quotes several figures using the FE 28-70 mm F3.5-5.6 OSS. If that is the lens you started with, the two most useful first upgrades take different paths.

Tamron 28-75mm F/2.8 G2: one zoom for most jobs

Pick this if you want to keep the flexibility of a zoom but gain a brighter, constant aperture. It suits events, travel and run-and-gun video where you cannot swap lenses.

Sony FE 50mm F1.8: a cheap, bright prime

Pick this if you want background blur and better low-light shots for the least money, and you are happy to zoom with your feet. A single fixed focal length is also a good way to learn composition.

G Master or third-party

Digital Camera World built its a7 IV lens guide mostly around third-party lenses, which it calls great value compared with some of Sony's own glass. In that guide, a Sigma standard zoom was judged close to the Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 G Master II at about half the price. The same guide notes that fast primes, especially Sony G Master primes, come with price tags to match. For a first upgrade, spend less on the lens and keep money for the battery, card and mic above.

For more choices, see Best Lenses for Sony A7 IV and Best Beginner Lens for Sony A7 IV.

What to skip early

A CFexpress Type A card, unless your settings demand it

CFexpress does unlock real capability. Digital Camera World found the buffer effectively unlimited with a CFexpress Type A card, and Sony requires one for 60fps slow motion at 24p, 25p or 30p. If you don't shoot long bursts or that slow-motion mode, a fast SD card covers you. For context, PetaPixel's reviewer got 91 compressed RAW frames before slowdown on a Sony TOUGH SF-G SD card.

A gimbal

Sony claims 5.5 stops of in-body stabilization and adds Active Mode digital stabilization with a slight crop. Digital Camera World was not fully convinced by the stabilization, so test Active Mode on your own walking shots before spending on a gimbal.

An external monitor

PetaPixel found the 1.03 million dot rear screen too low in resolution to tell whether shots were truly in focus in playback. That is a fair argument for a monitor later, but zooming in during playback is free, and a monitor needs a cage and power before it is useful.

Expensive glass before the basics

A G Master lens will not save a shoot that ends on a dead battery or a card that can't keep up. Buy in the order above, then upgrade glass.

For a wider list of early purchases to avoid, read Accessories Beginners Buy Too Early (And What to Buy Instead). Once your kit is ready, How to Set Up the Sony a7 IV and Best Sony a7 IV Video Settings for Beginners will help you get the most out of it.