Trek of Joy

I was in Tokyo in April, went to Bic, Map and Yodobashi as mentioned earlier. Map is your best bet for used digital gear. If you're looking at vintage lenses, there are tons of shops all over, when you go to places like Shinjuku you will see lots of camera shops, just wander into them and start checking stuff out. There's so much camera wise in Tokyo - not surprising since its the largest metro area in the world and home to most of the worlds camera makers. Its so cool coming from the US where there are no camera shops in many cities. All Sony stuff is Japanese market only, languages are locked and no warranty outside Japan. They won't even sell you a body if you don't speak Japanese. International versions are more expensive. I got a long demo from a Panasonic rep at Bic, the GH5 could be switched to English. Same for the Olympus and Fuji. If you buy anything in Japan, you can avoid paying tax. Though as mentioned, HK is much cheaper for new gear and all the models are international versions. Bic is a gear slut's dream, every camera and lens on the market is on display - and you can try everything but the high end Leica and Phase One stuff out. I went there three times - each visit was a couple hours - just tinkering with everything from the PenF, to the FS5, to the Hasselblad Xd1. Also take your passport to Bic - you can buy a tourist metro card for unlimited travel on the Tokyo trains, it winds up being a really great deal and allows you to really explore Tokyo on the cheap. Google it, it winds up costing the same as just a few rides a day, we easily got out money's worth out of it. Also, Bic is more than just cameras, the one I was in had 8 floors of everything electronic, from phones to TV's to vacuums. Its total sensory overload. My wife even thought it was cool, and sh'e not into any gadgets. Here are a few photos from our time in Japan: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.752566191617450.1073741852.558979244309480&type=1&l=ae03370d02 Cheers Chris

Don't forget about the 16-35/4, its really good, used prices are really low, many seem to be moving them favor of the 12-24 - which is also a stellar UWA zoom. I've used the 16-35/4 extensively as a travel zoom over the last year, its a great lens.

I must be missing something because even 17:9 is still within the m43 image circle. Its a wider FOV compared to the GH5 which essentially crops the top/bottom off the m43 image for 16:9 video - hence the 2.18-ish crop compared to FF. But in DCI its still in the m43 image circle as seen below - which has a diameter of 21.63mm, or half FF which is 43.27. All aspect ratios are a 2x crop on the GH5s. So how is it 1.89 or whatever?

How is that possible when the image circle is a constant for m43? Look at the image circle and the various aspect ratios, they all have corners that touch the circle, hence the diagonal is identical. Its 2x relative to FF, always. DCI is no different than 4:3 or 3:2 with that sensor because the image is still coming from within the same image circle - per Panasonic. So yes 2 x 0.64 or 1.28 crop with FF lenses. My previous comment you quoted didn't make any mention about IQ or codecs, just the crop factor with FF lenses and a speed booster. chris

I like my 24-70z, its weaknesses are well documented, but it covers a really handy focal range that until recently was really the only compact option in E-mount. And the plastic kit lens is much worse. Below was at 26mm on the a7r2, I cropped out the rope barriers on the bottom of the frame which also gets rid of the worst part - the corners. That being said - the 24-105 looks absolutely stellar, its everything I wish my 24-70z could be. If you can get a good copy the 24-70z's are going for cheap used these days. When I'm done traveling around the world, I'm promptly dumping my copy for the 24-105, as its so much better on the wide end and across the frame. chris

As an exclusive mirrorless shooter, that's exactly the way I look at it.

Kiana, sweet. I grew up in Alaska, never been there, but been to the area. Its a magical place. Enjoy. Chris

With the Z-mount or whatever it winds up being called - it would make sense to start with 3 primes and a zoom or two. And I think it'll definitely be FF, a new line with low margin bodies makes no sense. It would be nice if they did some combo of the 21/24/28/35/50/85 right off the bat. Make them all 1.8's, the uber 1.4 G's can come later. And a mirrorless version of the 24-120/4. A 70-200/4 would be a smart move too - that way you can get a relatively complete kit with a wide range right off the bat. Sony had the 28/2, 35/2.8, 55/1.8, 24-70 & 70-200/4 when the a7 was released. Plus that crappy plastic kit lens. Also, publish a damn roadmap so early adopters can have a little sense of what's coming in the next year or so. Put a long tele, a few fast primes and the 2.8 zoom holy trinity of 14-24, 24-70, 70-200 on it. P.S. Nikon should call the new mount 'MF' for mirrorless F mount. The tagline possibilities are limitless. Chris

Yes, aps-c/FF is a custom button function and you can now switch between them. Its awesome - I wish Sony would add it in a FW update but the r2 is now left for dead. I do it a lot on my a7r2 - that's my #1 complaint about the r2, #2 is UHS-1 on a camera writing 42mp raws. I have the r2/s2 - in FF 4k there is a world of difference, the r2 is softer and gets really noisy/mushy above 1600, the s2 is clean to 25600 or so. APS-c on the r2 closes the gap and is sharper since its oversampled, but its still noisier above 6400. Rolling shutter is bad on both. The r3 has improved that dramatically. It would be an easy buy for me if it had 4k60p. AF on the r3 looks vastly improved, but I'm still holding off to see what NAB brings - a 10-bit a7s3 with the new body, updated sensor with faster readout/less RS, and PADF would be my ideal video camera. But Sony will likely gimp it in some frustrating way. Chris

Canon 130 million https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/explore/product-showcases/cameras-and-lenses/130-million-ef-lenses Nikon 100 million https://www.nikonusa.com/en/about-nikon/press-room/press-release/iqtrpgbe/Glamorous-Glass%3A-Nikon-Celebrates-100-Million-NIKKOR-Milestone-and-the-Introduction-of-the-AF-S-NIKKOR-105mm-f%2F1.4E-ED-Lens.html Either way, a larger user base than any current mirrorless offering. Chris Can you cram the speed, IBIS and video capabilities into a small body with a large sensor - without it overheating? Doesn't seem like it. My XT2 doesn't overheat like my a6300/a6000/a5100 did. Then again the a99II has overheating issues and a much larger body, so its tough to say. But I'd be in favor of a slightly larger body with better controls than the a6500, and zero overheating. I don't think Nikon will be chasing casual users with its mirrorless, they're chasing enthusiasts laying out large sums of cash for a7r3's, a9's, and the $2500 GM zooms. Just speculation on my part, but I think high & mid spec FF comes first - mirrorless version of the d850 and the upcoming d750 replacement.

You know Canon already has a larger mirrorless market share than Sony, right? Olympus #1, Canon #2, Sony #3. In addition to having about 60% of the DLSR market and a overall market share that's almost as large as everyone else combined. A FF Canon mirrorless will sell very well, despite the inevitable hate from people on video boards. They have a larger user base than anyone else, more lenses sold, far more potential buyers. Instead of Canon shooters switching systems (something people don't like to do) or adapting EF lenses to Sony bodies, they can buy a Canon body. Cheers chris Sorry to go OT. My hope for the Nikon mirrorless is a GH5 size body with the d850 innards and great AF. Don't think they'll do APS-c after killing the small sensor Nikon1 system - which by the way still has some pretty amazing AF. Panasonic could learn lots from the little Nikon. They see where the enthusiasts are spending their money - on $3200/4500 Sony FF bodies. Nikon could release a a7r3 killer with the d850 sensor, and with the D5 sensor a a7s2/a9 killer, since they don't have to gimp video features to protect more expensive video cameras - but they likely won't.

Something seemed odd with the claims floating around the speed booster brings it to almost FF FOV, its closer than the gh5 since there's no crop on the gh5s when shooting video, but its still basically 1.3 (1.28) relative to FF. If my math is correct, but no guarantees since I was a journalism major and skipped algebra for statistics. Cheers Chris

Question, where are you getting 1.15x crop? 2 x 0.64 = 1.28, or about aps-h. The image circle in DCI doesn't change the crop factor, its still 2, same for 4/3 or 3/2, the diagonal is alway the same - the diameter of the circle. The m43 diagonal in all aspect ratios is 21.63mm, that never changes, right? You can see from the image below, all the aspect ratios are still within the m43 image circle, so they all have the same diagonal. Unless I'm looking at this wrong, but people seem to be calculating things based on the horizontal width, not the diagonal. p.s. There's a mint GH5 'Classic' (my new name for the original) for $1500 on Fred Miranda if you prefer IBIS. This is a good time to buy. http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1525431

No to both. IBIS on the GH5s would impact GH5 sales, especially with the G9 now in the lineup. There are better m43 cameras for stills than the GH5, the EM1.2 and now the G9, now the GH5s is arguably a better video option unless you want IBIS. They needed more than the sensor to differentiate them. The price increase is the head scratcher for me, whack IBIS, but add the hotrod sensor - sell them both for $2000, not add another $500 to one. Feels like a page from the Sony playbook with the a6300/6500. If they were developed at the same time and the intention was to release the GH5s first as claimed in one of the interview videos posted, its really odd the GH5s wasn't announced or ever mentioned when Panasonic started teasing the GH5 at Photokina in late 2016, or when it was officially announced one year ago. Just like when they fibbed about the GH5 sensor not being a Sony - which was later proven to be a Sony - Panasonic just seems to go all Huckabee Sanders with their explanations. The individuals making talking point decisions are not very good. The G9 has a pretty wicked burst rate, raw photos at 20fps is more data than its video bitrate, don't buy that one either. Chris

A lot of people are in the same boat, doesn't seem like we'll ever see "the one" I've been bouncing between two systems - Fuji and Sony for the last couple years - after being a longtime Canon 5d2/3 shooter while dabbling in Nikon with the d750, the Samsung NX1, the GH4 and a few others. I dumped Canon when the a7rII was released, picked up Fuji to get smaller and a better lens lineup - but Fuji has no IBIS which I find to be really useful. M43 don't do it for me on the stills side, so it would be a video only solution. Everything else has its warts. The d850 is really appealing, but that would mean moving back to a DSLR and I don't like fiddling with a mirror and live view, and I don't like the OVF after using high spec EVF's. But for you, check out the Sony 12-24/4 - there's a fantastic comparison thread on Fred Miranda that shows some prime-like performance compared to Zeiss primes. Or get a Nikon adapter for the 14-24.

There are a couple GH5's listed at $1600 on Fred Miranda's buy and sell boards - one comes with 5 extra batteries, a double charger and Vlog. http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1525646/0?keyword=gh5#14317783 Not sure they're going to drop dramatically from there - 20% off in less than a year.

Not saying DPAF specifically, but a hybrid system with PADF like what Fuji, Sony, Olympus, and Nikon1 use - you know the rest of the camera industry. I've seen people say similar things to "the colour doesn't fall apart in the same way the Sony does," but it looks like the gh5s is worse to my eyes.

Nothing says cool like a fog machine. Nice footage from the Kine.

Personally I'm really interested in the DCI 4k60p and 240fps HD the GH5s offers - and I own the a7sII. Judging by the dpreview test shot - its nothing special as a stills camera, the recent Fuji's and Sony's with the 24mp sensor are better stills cameras with better AF - and cost a fraction of the GH5s' $2500 price. The a7sII is even a better stills camera, but I only have 1500 clicks on mine as it just doesn't have as much detail as my XT2 or a7rII (obviously) - IMO its stills aren't anything special either. As Ironfilm pointed out, Panasonic is doing the smart thing by chasing the niche's that CaNikon ignore. IMO, if Panasonic would add a top notch hybrid AF system, they could really put a hurt on the C1/200. Though Olympus and Fuji can't come close to Sony levels of AF-c, much less Canon's with the DPAF - so maybe that's a tougher nut to crack. I can live without IBIS (though I prefer it), but I'm not a fan of DFD at all. That's why I'll wait for used copies of the GH5s so I can take one for an extended test drive without losing any cash in the process.

The debates about adding lights instead of bumping ISO's seem to be focused on controlled shooting environments. I don't shoot narrative, just short doc's and events - the only lights I've ever used is for interviews, and then its always a portable key/fill/back setup. Everything else is natural light and whatever is in the room where I'm shooting - I'm pretty much all run-and-gun. Cleaner files at higher ISO's are a big deal at times, that's why after breaking up with Sony and moving to Fuji with the XT2, I did the backslide into the a7sII - its just so much better than everything else in the 12800-51200 range. After 4 years with the a7s being the low light king, the GH5s looks to have closed that gap significantly, though the false color and color shift above 12800 doesn't look very good to my eyes. The a7sII can easily be found for less than the GH5s brand new - not to mention used - and it still has IBIS. I don't like the price hike combined with deleting IBIS - especially since Panasonic still pretends CDAF is as good or better than a hybrid AF system - combined with the fact that you'll have to float this on a gimbal or glide cam for stable footage. All the noise about "better usability" with the GH5 is just that, noise. Everything needed to shoot on each camera can be setup to custom buttons and control wheels, its not like shooting with the Blackmagic Pocket cam. Its always good to have options, if you want to shoot at 2.8 with deeper DOF, this is a perfect camera. It'll be interesting to see if Sony releases a aps-c and FF version of this sensor. Would love to see it in a Fuji. Despite being super impressed with the NYC footage, I'm still going to wait and see what NAB brings - its only 3 months away. Blackmagic always has something up its sleeve and Sony will have something new - whether its a E-mount cam is anybody's guess. By then early adopters that don't like the GH5s will be selling them and the Fuji XH1 will be out in the wild. These are good times in the video world though.

The a7s was introduced at NAB 4 years ago and now with Sony's newest sensor m43 has caught up, until the a7s3 gets a refresh similar to this. While the gh5s is impressive, I'm still waiting to see what Sony brings - since it'll have IBIS and likely PADF. Used a7sII's are selling in the $1700 range on Fred Miranda, for me that makes the gh5s a tough sell as I have no native m43 glass and would need a speed booster to get a s35 FOV. As always its great to have options.

Many cameras have 14-bit raws. Its pretty common.

But what we don't know are exact sales numbers, which those in the industry do know. We're at a time where all the hybrids released in the last couple years are very capable cameras - you really can't buy a bad camera from anyone. And the market has been in a freefall since the peak of 2010 - though it seem to be flattening out as mirrorless grows - for now. So now manufacturers are chasing niche's like slower bodies that shoot high MP, speed and video. Panasonic has been all over the map lately, outside of the GH line, the naming and categories each camera fills seem to change with each model. Olympus is #1 in mirrorless, the Em1.2 seems to be very popular, the g9 is competing with it on the speed side, something the GH5 doesn't do. The GH5 is still a better camera for video shooters. Nice to have choices. The GH5s makes a lot of sense - people have been asking for a video camera in a stills body for years. I prefer the camera for factor to a larger video body, and I'm sure many others do as well. I believe Canon would do very well with a c1/2/300 in a the 6d2 body, but like Sony with the gimped a7s, they're so protective of the cinema cams it'll never happen. Hopefully the GH5s is a huge success and other follow. The biggest complaints with the GH's seem to be AF and noise at higher ISO's. I don't shoot m43 and I'm certainly interested if its cleaner at higher ISO's. AF is a wash since Panasonic is stuck in DFD mode, but like the a7s it'll probably be better in low light.

And they'll wow everyone with a big NAB splash - then after the usual delays it'll ship in early 2019. Sarcasm. Sort of.

That's what I dislike the most about shooting video with the XT2 - the need to flip the mode dial switch in order to record video. Its a PITA when you're grabbing stills and video, if you're just shooting video then its less of a hassle. That's why I carried two bodies, one is mostly stills and the other is set for video. Why Fuji has this haphazard approach to controls is puzzling. Its as if a different group of engineers designs each camera without knowing what the others are doing - once body gets a touchscreen, one gets a record button, one gets a wonky ISO dial and so on. We'll see what the XH1 brings, if its really video focused we should see a dedicated record button.