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Panasonic G85 review - is there any need to get an Olympus E-M1 Mark II for video?


Andrew Reid
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Panasonic g80 natural picture profile test.

I must say since I've been back shooting with Panasonic cameras there are a lot to appreciate about them. Very reliable across the board and now the noise issue that plagued the GH4 has been fixed ! The motion cadence can be improved but it is not noticeable and its probably a LONG GOP thing. Even though im big on ETTR or slightly over exposing I quickly noticed why people complain about ugly color on the camera. The top of the Panasonic gamma curves loses saturation and color accuracy FAST ! It's best to underexpose using the in camera metering by -1 to -2/3 of a stop. This puts the majority of the image into the midtone area (which Panasonic sensors,picture profiles and h.264 compression seems to favor).

Downscaling to 1080 from 4k and I can't tell you I've even noticed much grain in the image and when I do see it it has a nice pattern to it. Still working on better settings for the cam but so far so good

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EOSHD Pro Color 5 for Sony cameras EOSHD Z LOG for Nikon CamerasEOSHD C-LOG and Film Profiles for All Canon DSLRs

Shot this today at Penn farm---inside Cedar Hill, Texas St. Park. The farm was a working farm for over a century. I want to get some better shots--maybe in using a tripod, but this is just a quick set of images, all hand held all relying entirely on the 5 axis stabilization. I shot it using the metabones EF-MFT speed booster with a Sigma 18-35 1.8 zoom. Of course, I used a variable ND filter, and kept most shots below 2.4...but many are at F 1.1.

All shots are manual focus---difficult hand held, but possible. I shot this with a custom pic profile with sharpening all the way down, contrast all the way down, and sat. -2. No LUT-- I hand graded the footage just to correct exposure, increase dynamic range a bit and saturation. Very little was done beyond that. I wanted to try to preserve a natural look.

Let me know what you think.

 

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13 hours ago, kidzrevil said:

Panasonic g80 natural picture profile test.

I must say since I've been back shooting with Panasonic cameras there are a lot to appreciate about them. Very reliable across the board and now the noise issue that plagued the GH4 has been fixed ! The motion cadence can be improved but it is not noticeable and its probably a LONG GOP thing. Even though im big on ETTR or slightly over exposing I quickly noticed why people complain about ugly color on the camera. The top of the Panasonic gamma curves loses saturation and color accuracy FAST ! It's best to underexpose using the in camera metering by -1 to -2/3 of a stop. This puts the majority of the image into the midtone area (which Panasonic sensors,picture profiles and h.264 compression seems to favor).

Downscaling to 1080 from 4k and I can't tell you I've even noticed much grain in the image and when I do see it it has a nice pattern to it. Still working on better settings for the cam but so far so good

I'm finding the same thing, and all the shooting I do under exposing minus 2/3 or thereabouts the color is much fuller and richer. Over exposure makes the colors look washed out, and it's hard to recoup it in post.

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17 hours ago, kidzrevil said:

 The top of It's best to underexpose using the in camera metering by -1 to -2/3 of a stop. This puts the majority of the image into the midtone area (which Panasonic sensors,picture profiles and h.264 compression seems to favor).

I noticed occasionally the same, too. Do you raise the shadows in post? Doesnt this introduce noise? Unfortunately I dont have access to a computer currently to review it by myself..

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I have always under exposed by default about -1/3 with my Panasonic cameras. When I use idynamic low the camera automatically under exposes -1/3 when using normal exposure (0 EV with auto exposure). When there is lots of white (sky, snow, white clothes etc.) I may overexpose.

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8 hours ago, jase said:

I noticed occasionally the same, too. Do you raise the shadows in post? Doesnt this introduce noise? Unfortunately I dont have access to a computer currently to review it by myself..

I haven't noticed much of any noise and you don't have to raise the shadows just the midtones and highlights. Maybe its the updated sensor but even 1600 has a fine grain to it. 1 stop underexposure at iso 200 for example is like iso 400 if im not mistaken. 400 iso equivalence is not demanding on the newer panasonic sensors. Im currently testing 1/3+ overexposure for those not comfortable with underexposing the image

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With the great reviews and this price point, the G85 looks like a good starting point for a beginner. If I purchase this camera is there anything I will have to un-learn when I move to a different camera? Shooting techniques? Workflow? Post production?

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1 hour ago, smuncy said:

With the great reviews and this price point, the G85 looks like a good starting point for a beginner. If I purchase this camera is there anything I will have to un-learn when I move to a different camera? Shooting techniques? Workflow? Post production?

If you can use a smartphone, the G85 will be simple. Which camera are you using now?

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6 hours ago, markr041 said:

Firmware update! V1.2 reduces camera noise while shooting video, dual IS2 stability improvements.

Thanks, I just downloaded and installed the firmware update. The noise problem has been fixed. It used to be, whenever I shot video, the neighbors below would hit the ceiling with broomsticks and yell, "your camera sounds like a freight train pulling into the station!" Now, I can live in peace again. haha So I guess they tried to reduce the IBIS noise picked up by the internal microphone, huh? I guess we'll have to wait and see what the internet community thinks...

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3 minutes ago, Ken Ross said:

We were on vacation in Florida and spent a few days in Disney. This was my first opportunity to use the G85 and I tend to agree with most of what you say. Like you, my biggest ergonomic complaint is the shallowness of some of the buttons. However, I can also say that although the CAF is good, from a functional standpoint, it's the biggest weakness of the camera, IMO. I find the use of AF-L is called for in many shots or you run the risk of the focus drifting/hunting. With that said, the results are excellent and I find the image quality better than my A6300.

However, I do look forward to the GH5 for the improved CAF, 4K60p and improved low light. Those together should represent a nice upgrade.

Here's the video I shot with the G85:

 

You're going to hate me for asking this, but - did you perchance add any sharpening in post?

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28 minutes ago, Ken Ross said:

Only in a couple of the evening/night clips, where the softening was inconsistent with the other clips. The artist above, taken just after sunset, was one such clip. Otherwise no sharpening. 

Did you turn sharpening down in camera? The clips have a distinctly video look.

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4 hours ago, Ken Ross said:

We were on vacation in Florida and spent a few days in Disney. This was my first opportunity to use the G85 and I tend to agree with most of what you say. Like you, my biggest ergonomic complaint is the shallowness of some of the buttons. However, I can also say that although the CAF is good, from a functional standpoint, it's the biggest weakness of the camera, IMO. I find the use of AF-L is called for in many shots or you run the risk of the focus drifting/hunting. With that said, the results are excellent and I find the image quality better than my A6300.

However, I do look forward to the GH5 for the improved CAF, 4K60p and improved low light. Those together should represent a nice upgrade. BTW, the firmware update did a great job quieting the internal noise caused by the IBIS. Although I only heard this noise, pre-update, in a very quiet room, the upgrade really minimized the noise to a point where you really have to concentrate to hear it.

Here's the 4K video I shot with the G85:

 

Thanks for sharing. I liked the video quality and good stabilization of G85/14-140mm II. I liked the colors, sharpness and calm camera handling. Low light is quite good with f3.5. I have 14-140mm II/GH4 and the lens OIS is vibrating badly. Glad to know when I get GH5 I can use the 14-140mm with good quality.

Can you remember what settings you used in this video? Profile, contrast, NR, sharpen, exposure mode, possible idynamic etc

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10 minutes ago, Ken Ross said:

No, I used the Standard profile with its default settings. For shooting an event like this, the 'video look' is precisely what I want. Shown on my 65" OLED or 75" LCD, it comes the closest to recreating the event as I saw it, with stunning clarity. Unlike some, I absolutely enjoy the video look when I'm documenting an event like this. Obviously if I were trying to emulate the look of film, these are not the settings or profile I would have used. But the 'you are there', documentary look, is what I'm striving for. Different strokes. :)

I like too "video look" with clarity and sharp motion. In my eyes the blacks are little darker in your video than my eyes see in reality. I reduce contrast and use idynamic low to get more realistic tones with my 65" Panasonic 4k TV.

How did you expose the clips? Shutter speed, auto/manual, WB, etc?

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1 hour ago, Ken Ross said:

Thanks, Vesku. Interestingly I had the same GH4/14-140 lens (different version than I currently have) and had the same issues you have. The G85's IBIS in conjunction with the updated firmware of the new 14-140, works very nicely.

Thanks. One user in DPREVIEW m4/3 forum says the G85/14-140mm II combo has still the jitter/vibration issue. I cant see any jitter in your video. I think you shot hand held without any aids like monopod or rig.

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40 minutes ago, Ken Ross said:

I've found the AWB on the G85 is extremely reliable, perhaps the best I've ever used. So, for the most part, I went with AWB. Shutter speed I generally keep at 1/60th, but I didn't have my ND filter with me. So for a number of clips, shutter speeds were higher. As I mentioned, exposure was often 1/3-2/3 EV down from what the camera wanted. I always try to preserve highlights if they're important to the clip.

Yes, the entire video was shot hand-held, so I didn't find jitter to be an issue. The stabilization is far better than I've experienced with Sonys, including the IBIS of the A6500 I tried.

I had the A6500 and returned it. Using the 18-200 Sony lens, I found very little difference between the stability of hand-held shots with my A6300 with no IBIS and the A6500 with IBIS. I was very disappointed. The G85's stabilization is, IMO, worlds better.

I found the exact opposite with the a6500 and the a6300... it was night and day. I've found the a6500 to be as good as the GX85's IBIS... other than quick movements... but the Panasonic doesn't do them that great either... just less RS.

Of course I've only used non-stabilized, vintage manual glass with both, so it may not be a fair comparison. 

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I'm having trouble finding an adapter and DC coupler to continuously power the G85 with AC power from an electrical outlet.  I suspect the adapters that people use to power the G7 will work, since it's the same battery.  Is that a correct assumption?  Is there a notch in the battery cover that I can feed the wire through?
 

High school students will be using this camera for work with a green screen, among other things.  We'll be doing audio through a Zoom H6 with a splitter/attenuator (to deal with lack of headphone output of the G85). I'm open to suggestions if anybody thinks I'm making bad choices here.  We're open to the idea of using something with a camcorder form factor, but I'm not thrilled about the tiny sensors in everything that costs less than $2000.

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14 hours ago, jonpais said:

If you can use a smartphone, the G85 will be simple. Which camera are you using now?

My last video camera used full size VCR tapes. I am a still shooter just starting to explore video. My D200 is showing its age (no video) and I am ready for an updated system.

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9 hours ago, tomsemiterrific said:

Put his short video together. All hand held using third party lenses, metabones speed booster, and FD speed booster, shot in low light situations near sunset, holding ISO to 200 in every clip.

Nice! In some shots you used E-Stabilization right?

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