The Best Sony Cameras and Lenses For Night Photography

Sony has become one of the leading mirrorless camera manufactures. Their camera bodies are lightweight and produce spectacular image quality with large dynamic range and high ISO capabilities. A few drawbacks noticeable with Sony cameras are the battery life in previous versions (only 200 images per battery in some models), unfriendly user interface compared to Nikon or Canon, and physical ergonomics.

Capturing successful images of the night sky requires powerful camera equipment. Standard camera settings for night photography range from 10-25 seconds of exposure, an aperture of f/4.0 – 2.8, and a high ISO ranging from 1600-12800. These types of camera settings create ‘noise’ in the photographs, primarily due to the long exposure and high ISO. Therefore, it is important to select a camera body capable of shooting at high ISO levels to produce clean images. Below you will find links to all of the Sony camera bodies and lenses I recommend for night photography. All links navigate to the official manufacturer’s product webpage, followed by purchasing pages to B&H and/or Amazon.

Sony Mirrorless Cameras

This is a screenshot from DPReview using their free comparison tool. Please note, images shown were taken in a studio using the following settings: 1/20 second, f/5.6 aperture, & 6400 ISO. You can compare different camera bodies, ISO settings, focus on different portions of the image above, and download the original RAW images by visiting HERE.

My Top 3 Sony Camera Recommendations:

Lenses for Sony Cameras

Sony 16-35mm f/2.8 GM: [ B & H | Amazon ]
Sigma 14mm f/1.8: [ B & H | Amazon ]
Zeiss Batis 18mm f/2.8: [ B & H | Amazon ]

My Top 3 Sony Lens Recommendations:

Winner of the 2018 Astronomy Photographer of the Year
“Two great passions of mine are wilderness travel and experiencing the drama of a night sky. I combine my passions with photography by teaching night sky workshops to people just like you. Come explore the magic of the Milky Way with me as it travels each night over unique landscapes within the Western US.”