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

[PannySVHS]

1 hour ago, mickachiste said:

Hi guys, with all the advices readen on this topic, here is my last work with the gx80. I hope you will enjoy ! Any feedbacks are very welcome... and I know there are still many things to work on ;-)

 

 

Hallo Mick, nice filming. The moody start at the beginning was in the known manner of such mood/people pieces,

nonetheless solid. Out of that I really liked the cheerful part with the youngsters having a great time at the beach- nice perspective and framing and focal length.

I really liked the energy of the surfing stuff. Maybe a little story or storyline would be nice to give it some narrative interest.

Something like preparation, collective cheering afterwards about the great surf moves. The music I found rather of the generic moody style, typical

modern video soundtrack style. Anyhow, good camera work and exiting surfing footage and filming!

[mickachiste]

4 hours ago, PannySVHS said:

 

Hallo Mick, nice filming. The moody start at the beginning was in the known manner of such mood/people pieces,

nonetheless solid. Out of that I really liked the cheerful part with the youngsters having a great time at the beach- nice perspective and framing and focal length.

I really liked the energy of the surfing stuff. Maybe a little story or storyline would be nice to give it some narrative interest.

Something like preparation, collective cheering afterwards about the great surf moves. The music I found rather of the generic moody style, typical

modern video soundtrack style. Anyhow, good camera work and exiting surfing footage and filming!

Thanks Panny for your feedback. Giving a storyline is in my mind for the next clip, but it needs much more time. Here were just frame grabs from our last trip...

Just to let you know,  we were using the pana 14-140. I reckon this lens is really sufficient for my needs. Next step, gh5 to get better results on the slo-mo :-)

[Yannick Willox]

Can anyone confirm if the ntsc hack for gx80 also gets rid of the 30 min limit ?

i cant find this anywhere on the web, dont want to fiddle around too much without confirmation...

thanks.

[Grimor]

22 minutes ago, Yannick Willox said:

Can anyone confirm if the ntsc hack for gx80 also gets rid of the 30 min limit ?

Probably not, but you can try. Its easy

[BTM_Pix]

34 minutes ago, Yannick Willox said:

Can anyone confirm if the ntsc hack for gx80 also gets rid of the 30 min limit ?

i cant find this anywhere on the web, dont want to fiddle around too much without confirmation...

thanks.

I don't think the Australian version has the 30 minute limit so you can use the octopus boot up hack to change the region. If you don't want to keep the PAL based rates then you could also change it to the US region and get the bonus of 60p in HD.

You'll need to do a google to find the correct code for Australia but there are tons of videos on YouTube showing you how to do the procedure like this one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxmVDdU1xf0

[7 Lakes]

Hello. Here is my new music video, shot mainly with Lumix GX80. And also with DJI Phantom 3 and B-Cam Canon 70D.

 

[Thpriest]

31 minutes ago, 7 Lakes said:

Hello. Here is my new music video, shot mainly with Lumix GX80. And also with DJI Phantom 3 and B-Cam Canon 70D.

 

Great video. A lot of work went into that. amazing what you can do with a GX80 and a bit of imagination!

[Chris Oh]

Ok so I found a GX85 repair manual online and also found this http://www.instructables.com/id/Add-external-Mic-jack-for-Canon-T1i500d/

I found youtube videos for this hack with other cameras too.

I am very close to pulling the trigger for GX85 and I would like to try this.

Anyone crazy enough to try this? @jase ?

My soldering skills are very basic and I would probably have to practice a bit more before trying.

Also found this maniac who made his own battery grip!

 

[jase]

I also have this manual and found a guy on dpreview who did this mod to the LX100. I really would like to do it and i can solder, but the mic out will always be a weak point and it is very questionable how good the quality will be without a dedicated mic-in.

[jase]

this camera continues to amaze me. Please panasonic, give me the GX90 with mic-in and 4k teleconverter!

 

[jonpais]

@jase Beautiful work.

[ntblowz]

3 hours ago, jase said:

this camera continues to amaze me. Please panasonic, give me the GX90 with mic-in and 4k teleconverter!

 

Yeah, even 2.5mm is fine for me as long there is mic-in! if Sony can do it Panasonic can definitely do it

[Chris Oh]

Better than no windscreen.

 

 

[BTM_Pix]

Also available in blonde.

 

[Nathan Gabriel]

I just bought a Gx85 and cannot get the colors looking right when I record 4k video. My computer keeps displaying red as orange. I do not think it is a problem with the camera itself because when I record to avchd my computer can read the red as red. Has anyone encountered this problem? Is there anything about the Panasonic recording format that I might need to account for? My NLE is using ITU-R 709 color space. Thanks

[jase]

Ok guys, I need you guys to help me with a decision:

I am desperately in need for a Mic-in. I am not willing to switch to sth like the A6500 because I went the Sony route twice only to return back to Panasonic (although the form factor is appealing...). I am also not in the market for the GH5.

Leaves me at two options:

1. Go for the G85 as an addition to my GX80 (I wont sell it, because size does matter to me).

2. Go for the Atomos Ninja Star to combine with my GX80.

Advantages for 1: still being able to record in 4k, no clumsyness, no HDMI cable, weather-sealing.

Advantages for 2: ProRes recording could yield better quality, I dont need to own a second cam and can totally decide whether it is worth it to bring the Ninja Star for a certain job or not, (might be a) cheaper solution,

 

Although I love 4k, when watching it in comparison with 1080p on a 65" TV, I didnt see a mind-blowing difference (of course this differs for everyone!) - so 4k isnt a must for me, for now. Also, as long as the ETC mode with 4k wont trickle down to something like G85 mk.II, I would prefer to wait. On the other hand, a used G85 can now be had with some luck for 500 euro in Germany. An Atomos can be had for arround 270 + CFast.. mh, tough decision.

My real concern with the Ninja star is that my GX80 will look like a spaghetti monster, when the star is attached next to an external mic with HDMI + Mic cable

Any thoughts?

[markr041]

What does this mean: "I am not willing to switch to sth like the A6500 because I went the Sony route twice only to return back to Panasonic." What exactly were you dissatisfied with? The A6500 actually puts out different colors than all previous models. It is compact, mic in, IBIS - has what you need and the best resolution 4K (you can really see the difference).

[BTM_Pix]

42 minutes ago, jase said:

Ok guys, I need you guys to help me with a decision:

I am desperately in need for a Mic-in. I am not willing to switch to sth like the A6500 because I went the Sony route twice only to return back to Panasonic (although the form factor is appealing...). I am also not in the market for the GH5.

Leaves me at two options:

1. Go for the G85 as an addition to my GX80 (I wont sell it, because size does matter to me).

2. Go for the Atomos Ninja Star to combine with my GX80.

Advantages for 1: still being able to record in 4k, no clumsyness, no HDMI cable, weather-sealing.

Advantages for 2: ProRes recording could yield better quality, I dont need to own a second cam and can totally decide whether it is worth it to bring the Ninja Star for a certain job or not, (might be a) cheaper solution,

 

Although I love 4k, when watching it in comparison with 1080p on a 65" TV, I didnt see a mind-blowing difference (of course this differs for everyone!) - so 4k isnt a must for me, for now. Also, as long as the ETC mode with 4k wont trickle down to something like G85 mk.II, I would prefer to wait. On the other hand, a used G85 can now be had with some luck for 500 euro in Germany. An Atomos can be had for arround 270 + CFast.. mh, tough decision.

My real concern with the Ninja star is that my GX80 will look like a spaghetti monster, when the star is attached next to an external mic with HDMI + Mic cable

Any thoughts?

What I would say about the Ninja Star is the same objection you've come up with yourself which is that it'll undermine the rocket in your pocket aspect of the GX80. Its a compact solution for a DSLR like a Nikon D800 etc but not for a GX80! The other drawbacks are carrying an additional battery (though it does only sip power) and charger if you're traveling and although the CFAST cards are cheaper now but still not without cost.

There is a third option if all you want to have is your GX80 to have a mic input for a small shotgun mic and that's to get a Tascam DR10SG integrated shotgun mic and recorder.

If you want to use other sources like lav mics then its obviously not going to do the job for you (although they do a version that is exactly that as well) but if you are just looking to get a G85 or Ninja Star to record a small Rode shotgun with or some such then this is a much cheaper solution (about £130). As it automatically records two streams at different levels, it will also be a bit easier to use if you are running about solo grabbing shots on the GX80. Quality wise its much of a muchness with the cheaper Rode ones IMO.

It can be used without the additional mount arm if you want to keep it lower profile by the way.

 

[Anaconda_]

2 hours ago, jase said:

An Atomos can be had for arround 270 + CFast.. mh, tough decision.

My real concern with the Ninja star is that my GX80 will look like a spaghetti monster, when the star is attached next to an external mic with HDMI + Mic cable

 

I also looked at this, but would prefer to stay 4K. I did think though, you could mount the Star under the camera and use a very short HDMI (both mini plugs anyway) so the Star is almost like a base plate. Then have the mic in the hotshoe. It wouldn't be too much a spaghetti monster, or make the camera much bigger than sticking a mic on the top anyway...

The problem I have with recording using that Tascam thing, or a Zoom or anything else like it. You have to press record twice. Chances are, you'll (or at least I would) just leave the audio running, which could be a hassle to sync. My temporary audio solution is to whack a GoPro on the hotshoe and have a mic going into that via USB. Then I can leave the GoPro recording, and also have a wide and a mid/close at any given time. It also means that as long as I'm holding the camera somewhat pointed in the right direction and kind of steady.

That also solves the FOMAS issue I battle with haha! 

 

[BTM_Pix]

The solution to that problem for Panasonic cameras is that the Tascam mic has a slate tone it outputs when you press record on it which can be used to automatically put the camera into record.

I just haven't released it yet .....