When we finished our teardown article for the A7R III last week, we didn’t anticipate just how badly people wanted to see the new camera body’s weather sealing. This may seem like a no brainer since weather sealing is something avid Sony mirrorless camera shooters like myself are pining for (not that it’s stopped my A6000 from weathering the occasional shower). But, the truth is that the A7R III is not sealed the same way as an underwater camera or the more extreme weatherproof DSLRs. If you open the new Sony up, you won’t find gaskets or air tight rubber seals on each individual button and screw like you might on a Pentax. Instead, Sony appears to have taken a subtler approach to protecting their latest full frame from the elements. A mix of some rubber, a tight fit, and rather large lips at the edge of each piece of the chassis seem to do the job when it comes to keeping the rain out of sensitive components.
Chassis Edges and Rain Barriers
The first thing we noticed was this long edge that the top cover attaches to the main body by.
In addition to a tight fit, this edge poses a fairly tight, sealed wall that should be difficult for any rain to climb through and get inside your A7R III.
Tight Fits Across the Camera Body
We noticed this design throughout the major parts of the camera body. From what we’ve seen, as long as all the pieces are fitting together properly and the camera hasn’t been submerged, water should have a tough time making it past these barriers.
Protected Ports and Modular Jack Design
The ports are also protected by tight covers similar to those found on the A9.
Moreover, the jacks themselves are their own individual components, protecting the integrity on the camera in the event that one gets waterlogged.
Dual SD Card Slot Rubber Stripping
The flip-open dual SD card slot (the unequivocal best new feature of the A7R III, admit it) has rubber stripping running along to edges to keep those memory cards nice and dry.
Top Cover Rubber Sealing
However, most of the rubber sealing is found on the top cover. This is the part we would expect to bear the brunt of any downpour, so it makes sense to have the most rubber and most aggressive edges here.
Sony went the heaviest on the rubber here by the shutter button, but there’s some rubber stripping throughout the frame of the top cover.
Here’s a little above the viewfinder…
…some more to the left above the LCD…
…and a fair amount here, around the main controls and dials.
Final Weather Sealing Takeaway
After taking a closer look, we found that there is indeed more than one way to skin a cat or, alternatively, to weather seal a camera. As this teardown suggests and as other sources online will tell you, do not expect the A7R III to be 100% weather proof or waterproof. With that said, do expect the A7R III to withstand rain much better than its predecessors. Whether or not it’ll handle adverse conditions better or worse than other weather sealed DSLRs should be left to testing.
Sony A7R III Weather Sealing FAQs
What Is The Sony A7R III Weather Sealing Examination About?
This Kolari Vision article examines the internal weather-sealing design of the Sony A7R III after a teardown. It looks at body edges, rubber sealing, port covers, SD card slot protection, and how the camera is designed to resist rain.
Is The Sony A7R III Waterproof?
No. Kolari clearly says users should not expect the A7R III to be 100% weather proof or waterproof. The article says it should handle rain better than earlier models, but it is not designed like an underwater camera.
How Does Sony Seal The A7R III Body?
Sony uses a mix of rubber, tight body fit, and large chassis lips instead of sealing every button and screw with individual gaskets. Kolari notes that these barriers should make it difficult for rain to reach sensitive components when the camera is assembled properly.
Are The Sony A7R III Ports Protected From Moisture?
Yes. The article says the ports are protected by tight covers similar to the Sony A9, and that the jacks are built as individual components to help protect the camera if one area becomes wet.
Where Is Most Of The Rubber Sealing Found?
Kolari says most of the rubber sealing is located on the top cover, which makes sense because that area would receive much of the impact during rain. The article also highlights extra rubber around the shutter button, viewfinder area, LCD side, controls, and dials.
2 Responses
“From what we’ve seen, as long as all the pieces are fitting together properly and the camera hasn’t been submerged, water should have a tough time making it past these barriers.”
This has to be checked in real situation, because capillarity can do the job, unfortunately.
Thanks for giving such a nice break down on the weather sealing.