Sony A7R IV “Stealth” Mod

It is not uncommon to see cameras and lenses with Gaffer's tape covering up their logos. Maybe it's something started with street photographers; some say it doesn't attract much attention or even that helps to deter thieves because it looks beaten up and old with it… I don't know, but since my first camera, I'm used to hide the brading just because I don't like the look of it. For me it's like wearing clothes with those big logos, just not my cup of tea.

After the Leica SL2-S and Lumix S5IIX with blackened out branding and a "stealth" aesthetic, I was draw to the idea to DIY in my own camera.

Details

DIY

After some searching online, I've seen a few people that succesfully have done it by removing the white paiting with pure acetone with a toothpick applying on the letters several times until the white paint comes off. Even though I'm a DIY enthusiastic, I didn't feel confident enough to do it this way. After some research I found out painting the letters with enamel could work, and if it didn't, I could remove the black paint with alcohol — more of a non destructive attempt is always the best option if can choose.

I used a little piece of sponge and a lot o patience to paint the letters, and after that I carefully removed the excess. Ended up really good and I decided to to it over the rest of the letterings of the camera body as it can be seen in the images shared on this post.

Conclusion

This may seem unnecessary and won't impact at all on how my images will look in the end, I know. But I must say I like the feeling of having the camera looking more unconspicuous and elegant.

I've seen people applying skin decals with different colours and patterns on their camera and lenses, just to add an unique look to it, like people putting stickers on their notebooks and other things. In my opinion it is just like that. I liked it and I think it is cool.