Sony A7 III vs Sony WX500: The Expert's Guide to Choosing Your Next Camera

When Sony launched the Sony A7 III in early 2018, it swiftly set a new standard for full-frame mirrorless cameras among enthusiasts and professionals alike. Around the same time, the Sony WX500 offered compact portability with a superzoom reach for casual shooters and travelers, but how do these two cameras compare beyond their surface specs? One is a powerful full-frame system camera; the other, a pocket-friendly superzoom compact. Both carry Sony's reputable Bionz X image processors, yet target distinctly different photographic users.

After hundreds of hours of testing both cameras across varied scenarios, lenses, and shooting conditions, I’m here to walk you through a comprehensive, detailed comparison. Whether you’re a landscape shooter contemplating an upgrade or a street photographer needing compact versatility, this guide will clarify each model’s strengths, limitations, and best use cases.

Designing Your Experience: Build Quality and Ergonomics

Right out of the gate, size and handling are primary considerations. The Sony A7 III is an SLR-style mirrorless camera with a robust magnesium alloy body, measuring 127 x 96 x 74 mm and weighing roughly 650 grams (battery and memory included). Designed for professional-grade handling, it boasts weather sealing - a feature I highly value for on-location shoots in unpredictable environments. Its heft is balanced ergonomically, with a deep grip that facilitates secure shooting for long sessions.

In contrast, the Sony WX500 shines in the compact department at only 102 x 58 x 36 mm, weighing a mere 236 grams. It’s the kind of camera you can slip into any jacket pocket or purse, encouraging spontaneous shooting throughout your day. The WX500’s lightweight plastic construction, while less rugged, does feel solid for a compact. However, it lacks dust or moisture resistance, limiting outdoor robustness.

Control-wise, the A7 III offers a thoughtfully laid-out interface with numerous physical dials and customizable buttons, giving you precision and swift access to exposure adjustments. The dedicated exposure compensation dial is a favorite among field photographers who adjust lighting on the fly. My workflow was accelerated by these physical controls, especially when paired with the tilting 3-inch touchscreen that responds quickly to touch focus and menu navigation.

The WX500, due to its compact nature, leans on a simplified button layout with no touchscreen capability. Its tilting screen is great for selfies or low-angle shots, but menu navigation and exposure tweaks require more button presses, which can slow down responsiveness in complex shooting situations. However, for casual users, this streamlined interface avoids being overwhelming.

Seeing Clearly: Sensors and Image Quality

From the image quality perspective, the sensor size and technology form the heart of the conversation.

The A7 III sports a 24.2MP full-frame BSI-CMOS sensor measuring 35.8 x 23.8 mm with an area of approximately 852 mm². This sensor size enables exceptional light gathering, outstanding dynamic range, and superior low-light performance - crucial factors for professionals and serious enthusiasts. The sensor pairs with Sony’s Bionz X processor, delivering clean images with accurate color reproduction and a DxOMark overall score of 96 - which is impressive.

In contrast, the WX500 features a much smaller 1/2.3-inch sensor (6.17 x 4.55 mm, ~28 mm²) with 18MP resolution. While this smaller sensor is consistent with its class of superzoom compacts, it inherently limits dynamic range and low-light capability. The sensor still uses BSI-CMOS technology, which helps with sensitivity but cannot fully bridge the physical limitations in image quality compared to a full-frame sensor. Unfortunately, DXOMark hasn't tested this particular sensor.

In real-world shooting, the A7 III’s images exhibit far richer tonal gradients, smoother transitions, and better noise control up to ISO 12800 and beyond. The WX500 images show more noise and less clarity, especially in shadows and high ISO scenarios. Yet, the WX500 performs well in ample daylight and produces good JPEGs straight out of the camera - great for casual sharing.

Viewfinder and LCD Screen: How You Frame the World

Sony equipped the A7 III with a 0.78x magnification electronic viewfinder (EVF) boasting 2,359,000 dots and 100% coverage. The EVF is bright, detailed, and fast enough to track motion smoothly. For quick composition and focusing in bright daylight, I found the EVF indispensable. It offers a comfortable eye relief and zooms gracefully for critical focus checks.

The WX500 lacks any viewfinder whatsoever, offering only a rear 3-inch tilting LCD screen at 921k dots. While the screen tilts for creative angles and selfies, it can be difficult to view outdoors in very bright sunlight. Touchscreen control is absent, which can make focus and menu navigation slightly less intuitive.

This difference matters especially for photographers shooting outdoors regularly or those requiring precise composition with fast action subjects. The A7 III’s EVF is a decisive advantage.

Autofocus Systems: The Speed and Precision of Your Eye

Autofocus performance is paramount in many photography genres, so let's dig into the systems.

The A7 III features a hybrid autofocus with 693 phase-detection AF points and 425 contrast-detection points, covering approximately 93% of the image area. This coverage empowers reliable subject tracking, eye detection for humans and animals, and consistent focus acquisition even in low-light conditions down to -3 EV.

During testing with moving subjects - sports players, wildlife in flight - the A7 III’s autofocus was impressively quick and accurate. Eye AF worked superbly for portraits, locking onto the subject’s eye with remarkable precision in continuous tracking mode. AF performance remained consistent even in dim interiors or complex scenes, bridged by Real-Time Tracking technology.

The WX500’s autofocus uses contrast detection only, with a smaller number of focus points (none disclosed by Sony). While autofocus responds reasonably quickly in bright light for standard point-and-shoot style captures, it lags noticeably in low light or complex scenes. It provides face detection, but lacks eye or animal eye AF. Tracking fast-moving subjects is challenging - it tends to hunt or lose focus faster than the A7 III.

For wildlife or sports, the WX500’s AF system limits shooting opportunities, making the A7 III the clear winner here for demanding focus needs.

Lens Ecosystem and Zoom Capability: Versatility in Your Hands

One cannot talk about Sony cameras without addressing lens choices.

The A7 III uses the Sony E-mount, opening doors to over 121 native lenses, including premium G Master optics, Sony’s Zeiss lenses, and top-tier third-party options from Sigma and Tamron. This extensive ecosystem allows customization for every photography discipline: ultra-wide landscapes, macros, portraits with beautiful bokeh, fast telephotos for wildlife, or stabilized zooms for video.

Lens mount compatibility alone justifies choosing the A7 III if you plan to evolve your kit or demand specialized glass. Moreover, the A7 III’s sensor-based 5-axis image stabilization helps tame both handheld stills and video, enabling sharp results with older lenses.

The WX500’s fixed lens covers a 24-720 mm (equivalent) focal range - that’s a whopping 30x optical zoom with a maximum aperture of F3.5 to F6.4. This versatility makes the WX500 a pocket superzoom marvel: from sweeping landscapes through tight telephoto reach, all without changing lenses.

While the fixed lens limits ultimate image quality and aperture control, it remains exceptionally convenient for travel and casual photography, where the ability to zoom in close without lens swaps is prized.

Real-World Photography Tests: Feature Highlights Across Genres

Let’s examine how these cameras perform across a variety of photographic disciplines:

Portrait Photography

The A7 III shines here, with its full-frame sensor offering excellent skin tone rendition, shallow depth of field options, and powerful Eye AF that tracks subject’s eyes for tack-sharp portraits. Combined with wide-aperture lenses, this camera produces portraits with smooth backgrounds and beautiful bokeh.

The WX500, with its small sensor and fixed modest aperture lens, struggles to achieve significant background separation. Its face detection is serviceable for casual portraits but lacks the precision and versatility for professional headshots.

Landscape Photography

Landscape photographers benefit immensely from the A7 III’s wide dynamic range (~14.7 EV), 24MP resolution, and robust weather sealing, allowing shooting in harsh conditions. Full manual controls and tethering support cater well to studio or outdoor workflows.

The WX500 remains functional for landscape snaps, especially in good light. However, its smaller sensor hampers capturing shadow details and dynamic range, leading to flatter images in challenging lighting. Plus, the lack of environmental sealing discourages use in adverse weather.

Wildlife Photography

Here, the A7 III’s autofocus, burst rate of 10 fps, and telephoto lens compatibility give it a commanding edge. Fast-moving birds or mammals are tracked effectively, and the body’s responsiveness ensures you capture tenths-of-a-second action.

The WX500’s superzoom is tempting for wildlife shoots, but autofocus speed and tracking limitations reduce practical usability. Only slow-moving or stationary subjects are reliably captured.

Sports Photography

Sport shooters rely heavily on fast autofocus, frame rates, and low-light sensitivity - all strengths of the A7 III. Its combination of 10 fps shooting, precise tracking AF, and excellent high ISO performance (native ISO max of 51200) makes it suitable for indoor and evening events.

The WX500’s 10 fps burst is competent, but slow autofocus and smaller sensor size lead to fewer usable frames. The max shutter speed of 1/2000 sec further restricts freezing action in very bright conditions.

Street Photography

Portability is king for street work. The compact WX500 scores highly here due to its size and weight, enabling discreet and spontaneous shooting. Its zoom range offers framing flexibility from wide cityscapes to street candids without drawing attention.

The A7 III is bulkier and more conspicuous, but some street photographers prefer the professional feel and superior image quality. However, the weight and larger lenses can be limiting for extended street expeditions.

Macro Photography

While neither camera specializes in macro, the A7 III edges ahead with compatibility for dedicated macro lenses and focus precision. Its stabilization helps handheld macro shots, a tough challenge on smaller compacts.

The WX500 supports close focusing down to 5 cm but image detail and sharpness are naturally limited.

Night and Astro Photography

The A7 III’s large sensor, superior noise control, and manual shooting modes (Bulb, long exposure) make it well suited for astro enthusiasts. I have captured detailed Milky Way shots with excellent star color and minimal noise at ISO 6400.

The WX500, constrained by smaller sensor and lack of bulb mode, struggles in very low light. Noise is pervasive at high ISOs, limiting its utility for nightscapes.

Video Capabilities

The A7 III offers 4K recording at up to 30p with full pixel readout and no pixel binning, providing stunning video quality. It supports S-Log profiles for color grading, external microphone/headphone jacks, and in-body stabilization for smooth handheld footage.

The WX500 maxes out at Full HD 1080p video, lacking manual controls and audio input, catering more to casual video users or travel vloggers with minimal setup.

Travel Photography

Here, the WX500's extreme zoom and small footprint make it a favorite. Lightweight and versatile, it handles everything from snapshots to distant subjects with minimal gear.

The A7 III excels in flexibility and professional image quality but demands more packing, plus investment in lenses.

Technical Deep Dive and Connectivity

The A7 III supports dual SD card slots - a professional feature providing backup or overflow storage. The camera leverages USB 3.1 Gen 1 for fast tethering and file transfers, Bluetooth, NFC, Wi-Fi, and HDMI output for versatile connectivity.

The WX500 uses one SD slot, USB 2.0 for transfers, Wi-Fi, and NFC but no Bluetooth. Faster workflows favor the A7 III’s modern ports.

Battery life heavily favors the A7 III at approximately 610 shots per charge using the NP-FZ100 battery. The WX500 typically handles about 360 shots with its smaller NP-BX1 battery. While compact, the WX500 demands more frequent charging on long days.

Putting It All Together: Performance Ratings and Value

After extensive comparative testing, I synthesized the performance data and genre-specific strengths.

Sony A7 III front Sony A7 III screen back Sony WX500 front Sony WX500 screen back

The A7 III scores near top in image quality, autofocus, build, and versatility, though it comes with a significant price tag (~$2000 body only). The WX500 scores well for portability and zoom reach but falls behind in image quality and professional features.

Final Thoughts and Recommendations

Who should buy the Sony A7 III?

• Enthusiast and professional photographers demanding full-frame image quality
• Portrait, landscape, wildlife, sports, and video shooters needing fast, reliable autofocus
• Users ready to invest in interchangeable lenses and advanced features for a long-term system
• Photographers valuing weather sealing, battery life, and dual card slots for reliability

Who is the Sony WX500 for?

• Casual shooters needing a powerful zoom in a pocketable camera
• Travelers who prioritize light weight and lens versatility without fussing over manual controls
• Street photographers wanting a discreet camera with wide focal range
• Budget-conscious buyers looking for simplicity and decent image quality in good light

Summing Up: A Tale of Two Cameras

The Sony A7 III represents a cornerstone in the mirrorless revolution - it’s a powerhouse combining technical sophistication, image excellence, and professional-grade versatility. If you seek a camera to elevate your craft and invest seriously in photography, this is a wise choice.

The Sony WX500, meanwhile, is an excellent pocket superzoom for casual users and travelers who prize convenience and range over ultimate quality. It complements smartphones by offering optical zoom and manual exposure options without complexity.

In essence, the A7 III and WX500 serve different photographic missions. Deciding between them begins with clarifying your priorities: premium image performance and system expandable for years, or high zoom flexibility and ultra-portability for everyday moments.

With this comparison, I hope you feel better equipped to make an informed choice tailored to your photographic aspirations.

As always, I recommend hands-on trials if possible, since feel and interface preferences are very personal. But with trusted specs and real-world performance in hand, you can confidently select the Sony camera that fits your vision.