I have owned the DJI Action 4 for nearly a year, and my primary purpose for this camera has been to record both POV footage for street photography and vlog-style shots while shooting street photography. Having owned three different GoPros in the past, I believe DJI has elevated the action camera category to another level. More recently, they released the Action 5 Pro, which I have yet to try. From what I've seen, I don't see many reasons to upgrade from the Action 4.

A little while ago, I was sent the 7Artisans 35mm f/1.4 by 7Artisans, around the same time as a few other lenses they have made recently. This particular lens stands out among their more recent releases as a photography-centric, manual focus, wide aperture lens. This is the family of lenses they originally started making, focusing on more affordable manual focus options, but this particular model represents a nice step up.

I am extremely impressed that this lens comes from Viltrox because, for a while, their prime lenses were significantly larger than those from first-party or other third-party manufacturers. It is refreshing to see them going in the opposite direction and creating super small pancake lenses. This lens, along with the 40 millimeter f2.5, are probably the two most usable primes of theirs that I have personally had the opportunity to review and test.

However, I do have some complaints about the A7C as a content creator, starting with the lack of improvement in the electronic viewfinder (EVF). The EVF has been a source of frustration for me on the original A7C and the A6700, as all three of these cameras in Sony's high-performance rangefinder style have relatively lackluster LCD displays. It seems to be an area where they save costs, which is why Canon cameras tend to be more expensive. I find it quite annoying how dim and low-resolution their LCD displays are. While they are usable, they are frustratingly low resolution given the technology available today.

One drawback I want to discuss regarding the A7S III, compared to some of Sony's other cameras, is the inability to shoot in crop, Super 35 mode in 4K. This is an interesting issue. I have become accustomed to this feature on the Sony A7C, and I currently use it on the A7C II. The A7C allows cropping in 4K to Super 35 mode, as well as clear image zoom. The Sony A7S III still has clear image zoom, which allows you to zoom in by up to 1.5 times in 4K with seemingly no loss in video quality. However, the ability to switch to Super 35 mode is not available on the A7S III, and I would assume the FX3 and ZV-1 as well.

Getting into photography with the a7C, this is an area where people may mistakenly judge this camera. It only has a 24-megapixel full-frame sensor, but in my experience, that has been plenty for street photography and freelance photography. One disappointing aspect is that when we crop into APS-C mode, we go down to 10 megapixels. Fortunately, in video mode, in 4K and 1080p, we can switch to Super 35 mode, which is APS-C mode, and also add clear image zoom to crop in by an additional 1.5 times. This means you can achieve extra focal length and reach from your lenses without needing to change them. For example, if you have a 28mm lens, the 1.5 times crop of Super 35 mode will give you 42mm, and the additional clear image zoom will take you up to 64mm.

When we think of self-portraits, we might picture a photographer standing in front of their camera, the self-timer ticking down, or perhaps a candid reflection caught in a window, reminiscent of Vivian Maier's mysterious style. But the truth is, every photograph we take in the streets leaves behind subtle breadcrumbs of our identity, collectively painting our own self-portrait.

Looking back, that nifty fifty was one of the best, most affordable upgrades we ever made. It’s funny how the joy of that moment lingers, while each subsequent upgrade—a new camera or lens—feels a bit less thrilling. With new innovations often just trickle-down features from professional models, it can feel like we’re not getting anything fresh or unique in our smaller cameras.