Sony a7C II Video Settings: Frame Rates, Shutter, Switching

To set up the Sony a7C II for video, flip the lever under the mode dial to movie, pick your exposure mode, then choose a frame rate that fits the look you want. After that, set your shutter speed and keep an eye on the crop at 4K 60p, since it changes how wide your lens looks.

This guide walks through each step in plain language. If some of these words are new to you, that is fine. Each one gets a simple example the first time it shows up.

The lever that switches photo, video and slow motion

The a7C II has a dedicated lever beneath its mode dial that lets you quickly swap between photo, video, and slow and quick shooting modes. Sony's Help Guide calls this the Still/Movie/S&Q dial.

Think of the lever like a light switch for the whole room. The mode dial picks how the camera thinks about light. The lever picks what you are making: a picture, a moving clip, or a sped-up or slowed-down clip.

What each position does

• Still: the camera takes photos.
• Movie: the camera records normal-speed video.
• S&Q: short for Slow & Quick. Example: a dog jumping for a ball can play back slowly, or clouds can race across the sky.

A good habit is to glance at the lever before every shot. It is a small switch, and if it sits in the wrong spot you might press the shutter button expecting a video and get a photo instead. That happens to everyone, and it is an easy fix once you know where to look.

Pick an exposure mode for movies

Sony's Help Guide for the a7C II says the exposure mode you select determines how the aperture (F value) and shutter speed are adjusted. Exposure just means how bright or dark your picture is. Example: a photo of a sunny beach that looks all white has too much exposure.

Here is what the modes do, in simple terms.

Mode	What the camera does	What you control
P (Program Auto)	Sets both shutter speed and aperture automatically	Shooting functions such as ISO
A (Aperture Priority)	Sets shutter speed automatically	Aperture, to blur the background or keep the whole frame sharp
S (Shutter Priority)	Sets aperture for you	Shutter speed, set manually
M (Manual Exposure)	Nothing automatic for shutter and aperture	Both shutter speed and aperture, set manually

The S and M rows above come from Sony's Help Guide for the original a7C, which describes the same exposure choices for its slow and quick mode. That same older guide describes Shutter Priority as a way to shoot fast-moving subjects by setting the shutter speed yourself.

The aperture works like the pupil of your eye. A wide-open pupil lets in lots of light. A tiny pupil lets in a little. On the camera, a small F number like F2 is the wide-open pupil, and it also makes the background soft and blurry.

Mix auto and manual with custom keys

Sony's Help Guide says the aperture value, shutter speed, and ISO sensitivity can each be switched between automatic and manual using functions assigned to custom keys. A custom key is a button you choose a job for.

This is a gentle way to leave auto. You could keep ISO on auto while you learn to control shutter speed and aperture by hand. When that feels easy, take over ISO too.

Frame rates on the a7C II

A frame rate is how many pictures the camera takes every second while it records. Example: a flip book. Flip 24 pages in one second and you see smooth movement. Flip 120 pages in one second and you can slow it way down later and still see smooth movement.

Here is what the a7C II can record, based on published reviews.

Resolution	Top frame rate	Sensor area
4K	Up to 30 fps	Full frame, oversampled from 7K
4K	60 fps	Super 35 crop, about 1.5x
Full HD	Up to 120 fps	Full HD only at 120p

Videomaker reports that the a7C II records 10-bit 4:2:2 video in the XAVC S-I format, with bitrates that can reach up to 600 Mb/s. 10-bit means each frame holds more shades of color. Example: a sunset sky fades from orange to blue in smooth steps instead of stripes.

The 4K 60p crop

Videomaker notes that when you shoot 4K at 60 frames per second, the image area is cropped from full frame to a Super 35 field of view, a 1.5 times crop. A crop is like looking through a smaller window. You see less of the room, so everything looks closer.

So if you film yourself at arm's length at 24p and then switch to 4K 60p, you will suddenly look much closer. That is not a mistake. It is the crop doing its job. Plan for it by stepping back, or by using a wider lens when you want 60p.

120p is Full HD only

PetaPixel lists 120p video on the a7C II, but only at Full HD resolution. If you want the slowest, smoothest slow motion, you trade some resolution to get it. For many short social clips, that trade is perfectly fine.

Shutter speed for video

The shutter speed is like a door opening and closing. A door that opens for a long time lets in lots of light and shows movement as a smear. A door that snaps open and shut lets in less light and freezes movement.

In video, the shutter speed shapes how motion feels. A quick door makes moving things look crisp and a little choppy. A slower door makes them look softer and smoother. If you want motion to look the same from clip to clip, choose a shutter speed in S or M mode and leave it alone while you record.

Why slow motion gets dark

Sony's Help Guide for the a7C II warns that in slow-motion recording the shutter speed becomes faster, so you may not be able to get proper exposure. The door is opening and closing more often, so each picture gets less light.

Sony's fix is to decrease the aperture value or set the ISO sensitivity higher. Decreasing the aperture value means a smaller F number, which opens the pupil wider. ISO is like turning up the volume on the light. It brightens the picture, and very high settings can add grain, like static on a radio.

Rolling shutter

PetaPixel found that rolling shutter is still an issue on the a7C II because of a somewhat slow-reading sensor. Rolling shutter is when fast movement makes straight things lean or wobble. Example: a quick pan past a doorway can make the door frame look tilted.

You do not need to fear it. Just move the camera smoothly and a little slower, and most of the wobble stays out of sight.

Slow and quick motion (S&Q)

Sony's Help Guide says S&Q Settings selects the frame rate of the movie and the shooting frame rate. The playback speed changes depending on the value you set for Frame Rate Settings.

Here is the simple version. The camera records at one speed and plays back at another. Record fast and play slow, and you get slow motion. Record slow and play fast, and you get a sped-up clip.

Sony's guide also says the Rec Frame Rate choices in Frame Rate Settings and the Record Setting values are the same as the ones in Movie Settings. So once you understand your normal movie choices, S&Q will feel familiar.

Videomaker points out that the a7C II brings S&Q mode for capturing varying frame rates. In its testing of the 4K 60 fps mode, Videomaker's reviewers said the camera did a great job keeping a subject in focus, even at higher frame rates.

Picture profiles: S-Cinetone, S-Log3 and HLG

A picture profile is the camera's recipe for color and contrast. PetaPixel lists HLG, S-Log3, and S-Cinetone on the a7C II, along with the ability to apply LUTs in the camera.

• S-Cinetone: Videomaker says Sony touts it as a happy medium between Rec.709 and Log, while keeping pleasant skin tones. Good for when you want nice color straight out of the camera.
• S-Log3: Videomaker says it gives more than 15 stops of dynamic range. Example: footage looks gray and washed out at first, like a coloring book page before you add crayons, then you add the color while editing.
• HLG: PetaPixel lists HLG among the a7C II's video options.

If you are just starting, S-Cinetone is a friendly first choice. Save S-Log3 for when you want to practice color editing.

Save your setups with Camera Set. Memory

Sony's Help Guide says Camera Set. Memory lets you register shooting settings such as the exposure mode (P/A/S/M), aperture, and shutter speed. Sony's guide for the original a7C describes memory recall positions 1, 2, and 3 for calling up often-used modes or settings you registered in advance.

This is how you make photo and video switching feel calm. Build one setup for interviews, one for slow motion, and one for photos. Then call up the one you need instead of turning every dial again.

Things to plan around

One card slot

Videomaker notes that the a7C II keeps a single UHS-II SD card slot. Videomaker called this a bit of a disappointment for video shooters, though not a dealbreaker. Copy your clips to a computer or drive soon after each shoot so you always have a second copy.

Battery

The a7C II uses the NP-FZ100 battery. According to Sony, as reported by Videomaker, you can get about 165 minutes or 530 stills per charge. Videomaker's reviewers said they shot on and off throughout a day and still had battery left at the end.

Stabilization

PetaPixel reports that the a7C II's image stabilization promises up to seven stops of compensation with a stabilized lens. Videomaker found the stabilization helped at slow movement but not much once things moved quickly, and said it will not replace a gimbal for handheld shooting. For walking shots, keep your arms close to your body and take slow, soft steps.

Audio and controls

PetaPixel lists separate mic and headphone jacks and a new front command dial, which gives the a7C II dual command dials. Two dials make it easier to change shutter speed with one and aperture with the other, without digging through menus.

A simple starting setup

Here is one calm path from auto to confident video. Treat it as a starting point, then adjust as you learn.

1. Flip the lever to Movie.
2. Choose A mode for your first clips so you only think about aperture.
3. Pick 4K at 24p or 30p for the full-frame view.
4. Choose S-Cinetone for color you can use right away.
5. When that feels easy, move to S or M mode and set your shutter speed yourself.
6. Try 4K 60p or 120p for slow motion, and remember the crop and the darker picture.
7. Save each setup to Camera Set. Memory.

Every clip that comes out too dark, too bright, or too wobbly teaches you something. Keep those clips. They show you exactly which setting to change next time.