IronFilm

For professional photography, which requires AF most of the time, I can understand. However, if they were to invest in Nikon-F mount lenses, there would be no probably with system jumping. It's actually why I invested in a bunch of Nikon AIS lenses years ago. They've survived the jump from my 7D, to NEX-5, to D7100, to GH3 to BMCC and BMPCC, to GH4, to A6000 and A7s. In fact, I'd say the Nikon 28mm AIS F2.8 is the best lens I've ever owned. Not only in build-quality, but in optics. Masterpiece of a lens.

I pretty much agree with the sentiments of this article.
1st off...I have owned the GH4 for about a year now, and actually I love the Camera, I have become a lot more skilled in how to set it up and use it over the last few months.
I love what I am now getting out of the camera, and yes there was a learning curve with the GH4 to get the best out of it...I found that despite the fact that I used the GH2 for a long time as well.
BUT (And I am not pissing in Andrews pocket here) there were 2 sources that really helped get the GH2 a lot of recognition...and that was EOSHD and Personal View, plus the Vitaliy / Driftwood hacks.
Now Panasonic appear to have given Nick Driftwood a copy of V-Log2,(thats good)  yet not Andrew?
I know Andrew and Vitaliy appear to not get on...but that aside, to not give Andrew or Vitaliy a copy is nuts.
Now both parties dont speak of Panasonic that favorably...can you really blame them? they gave Panasonic free advertising for several years, by virtue of genuine enthusiasm and some honest criticism as well.
Now Panasonic more or less snub them and give copies to others, ...Seriously!!  they get a D or lower for marketing!!
PLUS...The current users of the GH4 have recieved no information why it has taken sooo long to get the V-Log L right...apart from Ilya Freedman saying once or twice...its coming sometime, cant say more than that tho...once again Panansonic gets lower than a D for marketing...possibly a Z for ZZZZZZ.
Yes I know...They cant give away secrets and all that (I have been a 3d beta tester and builder for years...I know about this stuff) and I know crap when I see it, and Pannys marketing is crap!! with a capital C.
They could easily say "We value our users, and we are developing V-Log L. we want to get it right and this V-Log  that will increase this or that in the Camera...they could easily do this and not give away a thing...but nope.... [...] corporate silence and seat warming....and the occasional Youtube vid showing a flat vs some LUT applied along with Youtube compression...so GH4 owners can guess away...seriousy this is BS!!
Meanwhile Sony has been chomping at the bit and moving into overdrive with mirrorless cams , BMD has created some really exciting new cameras coming up (yes they are generally more expensive...and they are only on paper right now, but they are still competition)...and of course Samsung has entered the market and made aggressive firmware updates to the NX1.
Meanwhile Panny has done a little, but probably Too little...and Too late, they really need to get off the collective corporate arses and do something ..or say something thats solid.
And give the firmware to some of the bloggers like Andrew!!
[...] As I said I am a fan of the GH4, but if they dont get a clue soon..I for one will be looking at Sony, BMD or Samsung for my next cam for certain.
 

A couple of reasons why the market needs to be pro-active about this.  First users are tired of paying good money for camera bodies that are obsolete in 12-18 months.  Second, imagine your a rental house and your faced with having to keep your inventories current, its getting to where its not going to be sustainable.  Keeping your current camera body for 36 months and leveraging firmware (even paid) to keep it updated for that period of time makes much more sense. 

The A7RII isnt even out yet, and for some reason this makes the GH4 (which is now over a year old and a third of the price) insignificant? Do brand new camera releases suddenly mean the previous awesome camera (GH4) isn't awesome enough to film with? 
I haven't bought a GH4, A7S, NX1, FZ100, LX100, G7.. (or any other 4k mirrorless). Still using my GH3 as the small camera. It does fine, still makes money. Doesnt have V Log or 4k and is just as good as when I bought it 2 and a half years ago. All on cheapo FD lenses. 
Firmware is a simple equation. Either crippled for product segmentation or promising the world (whilst delivering poorly in other key areas such as battery life!). Let's just buy ALL the cameras and we can have all the firmware we want! 
I do agree firmware is very important though. Poor firmware affects my creativity. The slow, sluggy speed of the FS7 menus means I have less time to work on the shot. The Monitor LUT dissapears. WHY!? The 1DC (official cinema DSLR champion) doesn't have peaking. And this camera launched for $634,000,345 as a Cinema EOS whatever thingy. 
"Modern" firmware is the way forward. Samsung has ideas and Blackmagic really seem to be onto a really simple, inutitive, elegant system. Sexy. 

While I agree that V-log on the GH4 should be released Asap, since it is already late I kind of disagree on releasing lots of firmware updates.
I feel that Samsung should have done more to make the H.265 format more editing software compatible. That is doing its bit for greater sync. The biggest complaint of users was inability to use the codec either completely, or fast enough, and that workflow was seriously hindered.
Right now the GH Series only lacks in-body stabilisation and higher ISO. The higher ISO is partially dealt with by faster lenses, that with the new metabones adaptor go all the way up to f.0.8. That's 2/3rd of a stop more light that an f2.8 lens. While I am sure the next in the GH series may consider in-body stabilization, new pistol gimbals have mostly dealth with that too. 
One can add these, considering the Enormous Price difference betwern Panasonic and its Sony competitors.
 
About the Varicam, well it records in 3 different formats, simultaneously, and has some very interesting in-camera grading options apart from a host of other great features.
The good thing about Panasonic from GH2 onwards, is that they seriously listen to user feedback. Only if they would hurry up with the V-log now. 

I can't totally agree on this and weight on the final part sounds a bit bitter.
I do agree that Panasonic took a bit too long and that this delay may cost them but I think it's a bit unfair to call out Panasonic like that almost like they were Canon itself.
There is a reason why Samsung is doing this. First because they can, Panasonic does not have the same firepower and resources as either Sony or Samsung, Panasonic is much more like Fuji. Secondly because Samsung is the one racing from behind, the one that had no credit in the market so if they were any serious about video, they HAD to show that to the world, so the firmware guerrilla is a big part of that and a way to sustain interest from people.
I don't think Panasonic would had been able to offer V-long off the bat, I doubt they had resources or engineers for that, at the time they were already proving the first of its kind, they were the one pushing bounderies. Sony wasn't even able to provide internal 4K in time with the A7s, that's why they pushed the S-log. Sure, after that Panasonic should had start thinking more serious about providing V-log since it was clear that it was a matter of time before 4K was coming to Sony cameras.
Panasonic still provided the FZ1000, the LX100 and now the G7, which seems to be an excellent budget choice, all great cameras for the price and feats and only now Sony is catching up on that front. So, from my POV, this is back and forth and Panasonic is a bit late but just that.
Panasonic won't come up with a new GH camear every year like Sony is doing with the A7 family. The A7s still doesn't offer internal 4K and it will never do that, and as I said, Panasonic doesn't have that same power to push new products like that.
But Panasonic better wake up though. With Sony being able to provice internal 4K, S-log2, IBIS, etc. Sony basically took away most of Panasonic's upside. Panasonic still has the better lens ecosystem but with adapted lens with electronic connectors working as they are with the A7RII, anyone that have Canon glass can easily jump into Sony, just selling their Canon body. So Panasonic better come up with a new sensor, better sensitivity, faster readouts - possibly better slowmo -, IBIS, 4K/slowmo, etc. Panasonic still have a swivel screen, no overheating issue, better battery and some other things but that's barely enough now. Maybe not just a GH camera but an AF as well.
I would like Sony to make the rumored A9. They could use their new tech for faster readouts and improved low light. There are 2 alternatives. One would be something like a bigger brother of the A7s with that insane low light capabilities and DR, another, which I think might be interesting as well, would be to make a sensor with more pixels, which would allow them to have lots of PDAF - to work well with electronic adapters - but one that could do 1:1 pixel crop in Super35/APS-C mode in 4K. I think they would need a 24MP sensor, this way you have the option for FF or Super35, in Super35, you would get less rolling shutter and differently from the A7s or A7RII, a true 4K image output. You could even use Metabones to get more light and FF look. Plus, 24MP would be enough for photographers as well. With a bigger body Sony will be able to put a better shutter for faster burst, without the miniaturization limitation that the A7 family faces, it would have better battery life, zero overheating issues and a swivel screen as well.
I'm not sure Sony is ready to make the A9, but I think a camera like that would be pretty nice and it would make sense as well, it wouldn't be cheap though but I doubt Canon would be able to respond to that with a possible 5D MKIV or even upcoming EOS-C cameras.
Anyway, this is all about competition and this is great for consumers. What more can we expect from the A7s II, the GH5 and what's the next step for Samsung?

Panasonic disrupted everyone last year and this year they got disrupted. I don't think they deserve the criticism yet.
I do think you have a great point that firmware is the way forward as hardware is really solid now.

This reminds me of when everybody was falling over themselves for the Sony A7r when it came out!
But then along came the A7s....   I'll just wait :-D
History will repeat itself.

Most short films made by manufacturers to launch their new cameras are very bad. The Canon ones were terrible, the Nikon ones were lame, and the Sony demos are usually just razor-sharp pictures of leaves and temples.
I did glean from the behind-the-scenes footage that the director is some dude who works for Samsung. Possibly in a marketing capacity. I.e. not a filmmaker. No properly trained and experienced filmmaker who make a short that lame. My god, there's even a shot of the milk getting tossed into the trashcan! Ow my eyes!
I wish that manufacturers would at least be imaginative in who they choose to direct these things. Find some up-and-comer, someone who might have recently had a short in Sundance or some other major festival. Trust me, most of these people are broke as fuck. They'd totally do it. Find someone with a distinctive imagination, toss 'em a camera and some money, and release a decent short.
Just don't hire someone from the marketing department to direct your product launch video.

It's incredible that someone on Samsung financed and approved that shortfilm!!!

​I'm on a selection committee for a film fest.  Honestly, we see a lot more creativity from people working with a lot less.  Point is, this film is lame.  I'll agree with ya.  
Anyway, a good aspiring film maker will recognize that it's not the camera failing here.  Of course, many aspiring film makers don't always know what the hell they're doing, so they could be swayed negatively with lousy films.
I mean, "Reverie" wasn't exactly great narrative, but at least it used light in a good interesting way.  Yvonne's cinematography is sterile and ... well, just bad.  Samsung should've pulled the plug on this film and left it alone.  --And putting it on YouTube with an open comment section?  Whooo-weee....good luck with that.

Meh, just like the A7s. 
 
NX1 is still the king of ultra low budget slow motion, and soon the RX10mk2 too. 

My A5100 overheats on me, but nothing as bad as what I hear about from the older NEX models.

A webcam...

​​I'm no video expert, but I was amazed just how natural the colours out of the NX1 using the following settings that I think I read Andrew was using somewhere along the line ... Gamma DR, Contrast -5, Master Black Level +10 & luminance at 16-235. At 4k everything seems a bit too sharp though and now prefer it left at zero. But for colours looking natural, and usability SOOC, this camera is pretty amazing I think. https://vimeo.com/126548066 

​Can't speak for the A6000, but I have the A5100 (because of XAVC and the touchscreen) - I shot a dance performance indoors and it was my static wide shot with the 10-18 lens on a gorillapod. I did three consecutive takes of 25, 28 and 28 minutes and there were no overheating issues. This is so much better than my old 5n or Nex7 which would overheat in less than 10 minutes on the first take and usually about 3-4 minutes with each subsequent take. I live in Florida and frequently shoot outdoors in really hot weather, the A5100 has been great for me. Can't wait for its 4k replacement.

Samsung have set the bar high with the NX1 firmware updates. Makes everyone else look lazy and more than a little stupid.

Many are dismissing Samsung as irrelevant. This is a mistake, Samsung appears serious about the camera market. Their smartphones have the best cameras in the industry. This is proven true in numerous test. Their screens are also rated the best, and with the new color profiles are now also considered the most accurate. They create top hardware cpus etc... All of these technologies are readily applicable to high-end cameras. And they have financial muscle. At $200 billion they dwarf Sony $34 billion, Canon $49 billion and Nikon $4.7 billion. Samsung is the biggest player in the camera industry. The NX1 is not their end game... it's just the beginning.
If Samsung wants this market they certainly have the means to own it. 

​Yes, real ND filter. 

​This, if a person gets only one prime lens it should be that!

​The A7R II price is way out of league for most of people, the 4K APS-C will be priced more reasonable at least that most of us can actually afford it.

​Im thinking after this announcement, they will probably release a fw update with an "extreme" feature update. I also believe they dont need to go FF, but having an adapter (metabones or such) would be totally killer for the NX1.
I still dont get why this camera isnt being sold like hot buns, not many people know of it, and a lot of people who have it, seem to be using it as a "point&shoot" with the kit lens, im not sure if the camera was properly marketed or not, but it should be marketed as what it is, a pro-level camera.
 
I was thinking though, does anyone remember the 5Ds and 5Dr ?! Yeah, pretty much dead on arrival...

Hmmm...the RX10 IV can't be good news for fps1000 (kickstarter) which still hasn't shipped yet.

All very exciting news, but I'm more anxious to hear about the A7S II and GH5.

The new Sony offerings sound great. But I have to admit, I'm a little more excited to see what the new NX1 and A7sii will offer. On the other hand, it's possible that this new a7rii will have all the low light performance that is needed in practical filming. Between Sony and Samsung the old guard's days are numbered.
And hats off to Sony for getting the memo... if my smartphone can do internal 4k, my camera should also. Indeed, no camera sold today should be absent this essential feature. 
Soon I will be in the market for new gear, looks like I'll have a lot to choose from.