Recommended Sony A9 Settings

Last Updated on November 6, 2023 by Sharon Advik

Here is a full guide on how to set up your Sony A9 camera that is good for both beginners and experts.

I am a professional shooter who has used the Sony A9 a lot for landscapes, travel, fashion, astrophotography, weddings, sports, and portraits.

In this guide, I will share my own experiences with the camera.

Recommended Sony A9 Settings:

## Setting suggestions for the Sony A9

I know how important it is to have the right settings on your camera to get the best pictures because I’m a skilled photographer.

The Sony A9 is an excellent camera with many features and settings that can be changed to fit different shooting situations.

From all the time I’ve spent with this camera, let me show you how I like to set it up for the Sony A9.

### Dials and buttons on top

1. The shutter speed dial: When I need to set the exposure time manually, I usually set the shutter speed dial to “S.”

This setting works great for taking pictures of moving objects in sports photography or astrophotography when I need to control the exposure time for long shots.

The second thing you need to do is set the aperture ring to the number you want if you have a lens with one.

When I take pictures of landscapes and people, I usually choose a wide aperture (lower f-number) to get an excellent shallow depth of field.

But when I take photos of the stars at night, I might pick a narrower aperture to get a clearer starburst effect.

3. **ISO Dial**: The ISO dial helps make quick changes. When there isn’t much light, I usually set it to Auto ISO and let the camera figure out how sensitive it needs to be. I choose the ISO number by hand, though, when I need more control.

4. The **Exposure Compensation Dial** lets me change the brightness or darkness of my pictures when I need to fine-tune the exposure, like when I’m taking portraits.

Buttons on the back

You can change how the Sony A9’s back buttons work to work how you want them to.

These are the values I use for these buttons most of the time:

1. **AF-ON Button**: I set this button to turn on focusing. It helps me a lot when shooting fast-paced sports events or parties where moments disappear quickly. I can get better focus control by removing the button that turns on the focus from the button that turns on the shutter.

2. **C1 Button**: This is the button I use most of the time to change the focus area quickly. It helps me make artistic compositions when I’m taking portraits and want to switch between different focus places.

3. The **C2** button: I set this button to get to the White Balance settings quickly. It’s essential to change the white balance on the fly because different lighting situations can have a big effect on the colors in your photos.

4. **C3 Button**: This is the button I use most of the time to switch between the different drive modes, like single shot, continuous taking, and self-timer. This versatility is helpful when taking sports or a bunch of pictures quickly, one after the other.

### The Fn or Function Button

With one press of the Sony A9’s Function button, you can get to settings you use often.

This button is often set to open the quick menu, which lets me easily change settings like picture profiles, focus modes, and more.

This quick choice saves time, especially when you’re shooting in places that are always changing.

## Menu for Camera

You can get to all of the camera’s settings and make your shooting experience better in the menu.

Let’s go over some of the most important menus and settings I use all the time:

List of Menu1 (Camera Icon 1)

Picture Quality: This menu lets you choose the choices for picture quality. If you want the most editing options afterward, I suggest shooting in RAW. You can shoot in RAW+JPEG, though, if you want to share your photos fast.

2. **Drive Mode**: This is where you can change the settings for the drive mode. When I want to take pictures of sports, I usually use the high-speed continuous-taking mode. For panoramas, on the other hand, I use single-shot mode to make sure the camera is stable and accurate.

3. **Autofocus options**: The autofocus options are essential, and they change based on what you’re shooting. The continuous autofocus (AF-C) mode is what I usually use for sports photos. For portraits, I choose the single-shot autofocus (AF-S) mode because it gives me the most accurate results.

4. **Metering Mode**: This mode controls how the camera reads the light in the scene. I usually use evaluative) metering to get proper exposures, but sometimes, I may switch to Spot metering when I need accurate exposure measurements.

#### Menu 2 (Shooting Star 2)

1. Picture profiles: These let you change how your pictures look right in the camera. For post-processing freedom, I often use the “Neutral” option. But for some types of photography, like fashion photography, I might use a unique profile that fits the look I want to achieve.

2. **SteadyShot**: If you’re using a lens that doesn’t have built-in stabilization, you need to turn on SteadyShot to make the camera shake less noticeable.

3. **Color Space**: When I shoot scenery and portraits, I like to set the color space to Adobe RGB because it shows colors more accurately and with more depth. Most of the time, sRGB is enough for web or casual sharing.

Number 1: Network

People don’t always use the Network settings, but they can be important in some photography conditions.

For instance, I often use the “FTP Transfer Function” to quickly send pictures to a remote server during sporting events so that the news can cover them immediately.

This is Playback1 (Play Icon).

1. **Protect Images**: I suggest you use this feature to keep your favorite photos from being deleted by accident. This helps you keep essential pictures from getting lost when reviewing your photos in the field.

2. **Zoom Settings**: Change the zoom settings to quickly look at small details in a picture while reviewing it. This feature is helpful when you want to make sure that your photos are sharp and in focus.

### Setup (Icon for Toolbox)

1. **Date and Time Settings**: Make sure the internal clock on your camera is always on time to keep your photo records in order, especially if you’re taking pictures at a wedding or other event.

2. **File Format**: Change the settings for how files are named to make it easier to organize your photos. I suggest using dates and series numbers to make it easy to sort things into groups.

3. **Custom Key Settings**: You can change how buttons and dials work in this area. You can quickly reach different functions by assigning the buttons to different shooting styles and preferences.

4. **Cleaning Mode**: Clean the sensor on your camera often to keep dust from showing up in your pictures. Before big shoots, I use this function to start cleaning the sensors.

Final Thoughts

As a professional photographer who has worked in a lot of different types of photography, I’ve found the Sony A9 to be a reliable camera that can be used in a lot of different settings.

By using the suggested settings I’ve talked about, you can get the most out of this camera and take beautiful pictures.

Don’t forget that these choices are just the beginning.

Because photography is an art, these settings may need to be changed to fit your style and the situations you shoot in.

Don’t be afraid to try different choices and make them work better for you.

During my time with the Sony A9, I’ve taken it to many different places, from the peaceful scenery of Iceland to the busy fashion shoots in Paris and from starry nights in the desert to the exciting action of sports.

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