An adventure into the Panasonic GX85/80 begins - and a look at the Leica Nocticron for Micro Four Thirds

[mercer]

I think you're all wrong.

Haha.

If you are a beginner and know nothing about video, and don't NEED 4K, get a Canon or a Nikon. You will get better color out the gate, and in the end you will be happier about it.

If you really, really need 4K, and don't have a lot of money for lenses, then get the LX100.

[webrunner5]

Well I will state this and be done on here period, which I am sure will make a lot of people happy.

This whole forum has turned into basically a GH5, G85, 5D mkIII, with a little Anamorphic atmosphere, and that is pretty much it. I don't have any of those, I don't Want any of those. So I will go somewhere else. I know, I hear the applause.

It was fun to start with here, but this is more DPR than the EOSHD was, when I started. So enjoy, and I hope it all really works out for you. I really mean that. Goodbye.

[mercer]

Well that's just silly. Who cares what some anonymous person on an internet thinks?

[kidzrevil]

1 hour ago, webrunner5 said:

Well I will state this and be done on here period, which I am sure will make a lot of people happy.

This whole forum has turned into basically a GH5, G85, 5D mkIII, with a little Anamorphic atmosphere, and that is pretty much it. I don't have any of those, I don't Want any of those. So I will go somewhere else. I know, I hear the applause.

It was fun to start with here, but this is more DPR than the EOSHD was, when I started. So enjoy, and I hope it all really works out for you. I really mean that. Goodbye.

You don't need to leave man, soon we'll have the Sony A9 to love or hate lol. You should start threads for topics you are interested in, I will do the same

[mercer]

1 minute ago, kidzrevil said:

You don't need to leave man, soon we'll have the Sony A9 to love or hate lol. You should start threads for topics you are interested in, I will do the same

That's what I do... of course I'm a whore for positive affirmation.

[Bizz]

Unless you will use it professionally almost any camera nowadays will do the job. I had a D5300 (i loved the image) but i switch to a G80/85 because it seemed more user friendly. It was the only thing that made me switch. But thats me! I had a limited amount of money and tried to buy something nice with that amount. A camera is just a tool to express ourselves and we need to learn much more than waveforms and such unless you only want to be a great camera operator. Lets all be honest....anything we can buy nowadays with 1000usd (as he asked) will be good. Very good actually.

[Davey]

Started with a mobile, then a Panny TZ30 and for two years the wonderful Panny FZ200 - everything on auto for a year because I enjoyed capturing and editing, not knowing or caring for exposure or colour or audio.

If it isn't fun, it won't matter what you use. Technical stuff can sap the life out of some people (like me) but can inspire others. 

So advising newcomers as to what camera to buy is not an exact science.

[Cinegain]

I have the GH4. Tell you what, I like the G80 better. The G80 is more like a mini GH5 getting you 90% there at more than 50% off. Compared to the 3 years old GH4 it is so much more satisfying to work with for both process and results. Like the guys before me already said, the GH4 doesn't have scope/waveforms and it's silly to demand that out of a camera... or the operator. Most of it is overkill for most people anyways. Hell, you can let me shoot on film on a Panaflex Millennium XL2, give me a RED Weapon Helium, Sony F35 or ARRI Alexa SXT EV to shoot with and I would have no idea what the hell I'm supposed to do with that.

A camera having or not having certain features doesn't mean anything without context and purpose. And then there's the subjectivity of an opinion or something even intangible like how the whole thing 'feels'. There's no definite right or wrong... after all: 'it depends'. For me, the G80 is awesome to work with, hasn't got anything to do with automatism. I usually go for manual settings with manual focus. I do go for handheld a lot, like quite a few of us we're roughly just one-man-bands doing a lot of stuff out in the real world opposed to studios. Sure you can carry a tripod with you at all times, but even with a fluidhead... the camera pivots around a stationary position. Movies are also called 'motion pictures', so there's a lot to say about the inclusion of motion and if you use lenses like SLR Magic, Voigtländer, cinema primes like the Veydra Minis or adapt third party lenses that you speedboost, you will know how to appreciate the sensor stabilization! Of course if you want to edit static shots together, that's one creative choice that can be made, but don't be so rash as to dismiss other approaches one might take either. There's no denying the GH4 is still a great tool for productivity, but it certainly isn't the end-all. Especially if you're just starting out, you really want to go for a 3 years old camera because it has some features that could benefit productivity, but you might likely not be using? Especially if your focus and passion lies with the creative aspect of storytelling and not the technical aspect of filmmaking. Btw, the G80 is a technical masterpiece in its own right, really. It has build upon the generations that came after the GH4... G7, GX80/85, GX8, so it's really up to snuff.

Again, no absolute right or wrongs here and no need to get worked up over nothing, would be sad to see someone go for no good reason! Just take a sec... a nice cold brewski a good night's sleep and put it behind you and let's move on together to new and better discussions!

[PannySVHS]

4 hours ago, webrunner5 said:

Well I will state this and be done on here period, which I am sure will make a lot of people happy.

This whole forum has turned into basically a GH5, G85, 5D mkIII, with a little Anamorphic atmosphere, and that is pretty much it. I don't have any of those, I don't Want any of those. So I will go somewhere else. I know, I hear the applause.

It was fun to start with here, but this is more DPR than the EOSHD was, when I started. So enjoy, and I hope it all really works out for you. I really mean that. Goodbye.

 

 

Hey, please stay. I too find some threads not as insteresting as some other ones. But this forum has a million awesome posts.

Just type eoshd plus your wanted information in google and you have a great and informative and cheerful read.

Just keep up the conversation with the people you enjoy about topics you enjoy. Having followed in the past some of your

posts, I can tell that you had a lot of fun here. So why not sticking around or at least dropping by once in a while.

cheers

 

Edit: I pressed the like button for agreeing on the thirst for more lively topics, NOT for the leaving part though!

cheers

 

[webrunner5]

OK I am back. I apologize for that BIG TIME RANT. Everyone on here has different views, different budgets, different goals and needs. So guess what, it means we are All different. Not what I want to impose on you, but to help with what you need, not me necessarily. So I will bite my lip, listen, learn, and well, hope top have some fun.

I am a old ENG guy as you know. It was old school back then, with nothing auto because nobody figured out them How to do anything auto. But it is a new age, era, whatever. Time for me to learn new things, but I find my old AF100A pretty old school, so I am happy. But If I was going to go on a vacation I guess she would stay home and the G7 goes on a trip. But my long term goal is to own a newer Red or Arri. And they are old school layouts also. So that is why I have sort of stressed learning things most don't want to or need. But I Need to re learn a lot of it to run one. so...

Nice to see X amount of people wanted me to stay on, means more to me than you think. Thanks and lets move on as they say.

[webrunner5]

Thanks Jon.

[Hanriverprod]

59 minutes ago, webrunner5 said:

OK I am back. I apologize for that BIG TIME RANT. Everyone on here has different views, different budgets, different goals and needs. So guess what, it means we are All different. Not what I want to impose on you, but to help with what you need, not me necessarily. So I will bite my lip, listen, learn, and well, hope top have some fun.

I am a old ENG guy as you know. It was old school back then, with nothing auto because nobody figured out them How to do anything auto. But it is a new age, era, whatever. Time for me to learn new things, but I find my old AF100A pretty old school, so I am happy. But If I was going to go on a vacation I guess she would stay home and the G7 goes on a trip. But my long term goal is to own a newer Red or Arri. And they are old school layouts also. So that is why I have sort of stressed learning things most don't want to or need. But I Need to re learn a lot of it to run one. so...

Nice to see X amount of people wanted me to stay on, means more to me than you think. Thanks and lets move on as they say.

I know where you're coming from. I started in this industry in the shipping and dubbing room which meant quality control from one format to another. All I looked at for years was vectorscopes and waveforms, and they are burned into my brain. Still, these days I shoot personal stuff with my iphone, old nikon, and a rx100 iv, and it's easy to use auto-iso and auto-focus everything that I know my images are worse for the wear, but I actually enjoy shooting more. Now when I do professional stuff I have to deal with a camera crew and sometimes they are younger and don't even use a light meter anymore which to me was just insane a few years ago. Now I see that it's much easier to dial in what you want from just looking at the monitor and using new tools like false color.

Still, I think we see the flood of crap online because a lot of people who are "pros" never learn the basics of image making because things are so easy these days. You really do like you say need a good foundation to be able to convey a mood or sentiment instead of the latest trend.  But I was also taught by older filmmakers that it was important to keep up with the times when I was dubbing tapes all day. This was in the mid 90s and these guys were in their late 50s to early 70s moving their workflow to Avids. It was interesting because I wasn't even an assistant editor but I was teaching them how to use macs, adobe and avid, setting up the computers. These guys were old award winning filmmakers, and it didn't matter to them if it was a flatbed, or tape to tape or a mac they were using as long as they could get the footage they needed and cut it. I remember sitting with them and showing them what the icons meant in Avid and that was it. They were editing tv shows, national spots and films in minutes. They didn't know the shortkeys like I did, but I still can't cut a story like they did back in the day. It showed me that when you master a craft the tools are just that and nothing more. But you need the tools to master that craft, but I think a lot of people are in a rush today because of the nature of how much content is needed and delivered these days, so the focus gets placed more on the means and the trends than on the craft. To me, the most interesting thing to film is a face telling me something, showing me something, an emotion, or hiding something, perhaps a secret. And what do we really need to do that? A decent camera and some lights? Is that it?

[webrunner5]

Wow Hanriverprod you get it. Cool. I guess we grew up in a different era. An era where it was harder I guess to get what you needed. But you still need to do that on top end stuff. I think that is what some people are missing. Sure you don't have to on a GH5, but you will on a Arri, or a Red, or heck even a GH5 on an important shoot. Now true top end cameras have 3, heck 4 people running each camera, but if you are poor, owning one, or renting one You are the one running all of it!

It helps to know more about what makes a video camera work than less, if you are serious about them big time in the end. But not everyone wants or needs to go that far, and that is OK. Like I said above, all us are different, and have different outlooks on things. And that is a good thing.

Ahh, I forgot to add, yeah this new False Color stuff on these new Monitors is really terrific tool to use. I have got to get one of them. Damn you are costing me money!

Oh and yes we all are lucky as heck that is a Lot of decent cameras and cheap LCD lights out there to shoot stuff with. And YouTube and Vimeo to put it up on. Man I wish I was 30 years younger just to be able to take advantage of what the future brings.

This was somewhat impossible years ago to do unless you spent a Lot of money on it which I did 20 years ago. Man the money I spent. And it came to no good fruitful output. Shit happens.  My daughter has a ton of my old Sony Extended Definition Betamax, top end Pro outdated stuff sitting at her house in California to this day. Not worth giving away now. Well it could still be used but not LoL. We are talking 500 lines of Resolution here! Great stuff in the day. That was up there with DVD's believe it or not which were 480 lines. How things have changed! I think a whole 3 2/3" CCD block was like 1 MP or less then. That is more than it took for 480i. That on paper was good for 720i, they down sampled it if I remember right. Might not have been that high? Long time ago. Sony was Way above the rest back then. Over scan was in then just like now. 6k down to 4k etc.

[Bizz]

11 hours ago, webrunner5 said:

Nice to see X amount of people wanted me to stay on, means more to me than you think. Thanks and lets move on as they say.

I dont post that much because, in my opinion, most of the times i dont have anything relevant to add but i read the forum on a daily basis and of course you should stay  

[webrunner5]

30 minutes ago, Bizz said:

I dont post that much because, in my opinion, most of the times i dont have anything relevant to add but i read the forum on a daily basis and of course you should stay  

Thank you. I have been known to add some COLOR on here!  But trying to clean up my act a bit.

Well you need to go to a lot of forums and read a lot about video, cameras, equipment, etc. You will be amazed how fast you can learn a lot about all of them to help with comments. It takes time no doubt.

I must admit a lot of us, me included, have owned and used a lot of this stuff on here, I find most everyone seems to have a special talent, or experiences on here. Some are script writers who have no use for a camera LoL, and I can see why, or others who can't write, ME, and like cameras. Some are Colorist, Graders, which I am, ehh not too hot at either. So we all have lots to learn. Combine it with Photography and you can have a Hobby that lasts for a lifetime, or something maybe you can move into to make a living with. Or just putz around with it and just do it for fun. Pretty cool stuff.

But video can get damn expensive when you consider All the stuff you need. But plenty of used stuff around. And it all seems to last for years and years.

Gear wise I guess for the average person newer cameras are the way to go, but for tripods, heads, even lighting, best to go with better used stuff than cheaper new stuff.

[BucksterUK]

has anyone noticed any strange things with White Balance in Video please ? I'm assuming I'm in Auto which I know is a bad thing - but I've not noticed these quick colour shifts on previous panasonics

take a static scene, video of my daughter on a sunny day in front of a wall say - nice warm white balance for 95% of the video, but at one point the video goes noticeably cooler then back to "warm" again - you can see from shadows etc the sun hasnt' done anything and no clouds

any ideas please?

[webrunner5]

6 hours ago, BucksterUK said:

has anyone noticed any strange things with White Balance in Video please ? I'm assuming I'm in Auto which I know is a bad thing - but I've not noticed these quick colour shifts on previous panasonics

take a static scene, video of my daughter on a sunny day in front of a wall say - nice warm white balance for 95% of the video, but at one point the video goes noticeably cooler then back to "warm" again - you can see from shadows etc the sun hasnt' done anything and no clouds

any ideas please?

Got any screen shots?? Hard to get a diagnosis to anything without seeing it?

[jonpais]

6 hours ago, BucksterUK said:

has anyone noticed any strange things with White Balance in Video please ? I'm assuming I'm in Auto which I know is a bad thing - but I've not noticed these quick colour shifts on previous panasonics

take a static scene, video of my daughter on a sunny day in front of a wall say - nice warm white balance for 95% of the video, but at one point the video goes noticeably cooler then back to "warm" again - you can see from shadows etc the sun hasnt' done anything and no clouds

any ideas please?

You assume correctly - either manually white balance or set the white balance at 'sunny' or 'cloudy'. 

[tomastancredi]

Hey guys, for those who shoot solo, how have you been working around with audio so far?  I already have a G3 senheiser and a mic (audiotechnica at875r). So, any idea of the smallest phantom xlr audio setup? So far the tascam 70d looks like an option. The tascam dr-10 would be great but no phantom power. I have just stumbled into this, anyone knows it? https://www.amazon.com/Saramonic-SR-VRM1-Digital-Recorder-Microphones/dp/B01M6V955P...  I don't discard the possibility of buying the Shure vp83f... Do you have come to any other workarounds?

Cheers!

[PannySVHS]

shoot, after quiete a bit of testing the ibis with 14-45mm, tokina 24-40, 28mm FD I almost forgot to recognize how very nice the ooc color is and how

awesome it is to grade. Was a fan of the G6 and how with a few tricks I got the grading I liked. But GX80 is so easy to grade and gives me what

I´d call the graded Panasonic color sience. Best bang for the buck image quality wise, if A7S night owl is not necessary. For what you see is what you

get approach, this camera is also beautiful for senseful low light stuff like evening in living rooms, cosy restaurant lights and stuff.

oh, ibis is great for steady shots or handheld camera, but in my opinion not close in making a flycam or gimbal obsolete, not close unfortunately.

But color has something I would color creaminess, gradations, oil paint, beautiful! HD is looking fine, 50p plenty aliasing. For the perfect HD alone I would

love to get a GH5. And i will in a few months, because of this camera, the pretty, nifty GX85!