Panasonic GH5 - all is revealed!

[webrunner5]

I think we can all be pretty confident that Panasonic will keep their promise, yeah maybe in September instead of June but..

This camera with a Speedbooster on it is sort of becoming a poor mans Sony FS7 for 1/4 of the price.

[Andrew Reid]

1 hour ago, webrunner5 said:

"Color depth is improved and the GH5 will eventually shoot internal 4:2:2 10bit, compared to the 4:2:0 8bit of its predecessor, but launches with 4:2:0 8bit only in IPB compression. 4:2:2 10bit color is double the information of 4:2:0 and provides greater grading flexibility in the post process before the image falls apart."

That refers to the 1080p.

The 4K is 10bit 4:2:2 from launch.

[Fritz Pierre]

1 hour ago, webrunner5 said:

I don't really think people are going to be selling their Tripods using this camera! You are not going to hold a camera for minutes, hours and be a happy camper, and I would bet you would want a Barf bag when you watch it After a few minutes.

Now the Rolling Shutter, this does look like a big improvement. Do we want to make movies where we are Flying all the time, I Really doubt that. That shit gets old quick, just like VR does. I have 2 electronic Gimbals and to be honest both have not been out of my house in 2 months. It is by no means realistic, it is phony looking and it shows.

Just because we can do it, does not mean we should! Just write out the part where we are running down a path crap for 10 minutes, and do short takes at different angles like we have been doing for years. Short duration flying well yeah, half the movie hmm...

OK....I guess I should clarify my post....by traveling, I mean exactly that...TRAVELING...and I would never have any camera going down a river in a speedboat (though the fact that the GH5 can, does not seem like a negative to me!)...and as a sailor  the only power boats I ever go in, would be a dinghy with a little outboard motor to get me from anchorage to shore...but I'm still impressed by the lack of RC in the GH5 and this footage help me arrive at that conclusion...for shooting in a work situation (whether traveling for it, or not) I use a Miller 22lb fluid head on a heavy duty tripod as my rig weighs in around 18lbs...I can however see grabbing a shot with the GH5 that lasts only seconds though, in an inconspicuous manner and that's one of the ways for my use, that the camera would distinguish itself...I would never walk with it....would never use it on a gimbal and if I wanted movement, would do so on a dolly...I don't even zoom on zoom lenses while rolling...so...different needs for different people...but for my use, this is exciting!

 

 

[mercer]

7 minutes ago, Andrew Reid said:

That refers to the 1080p.

The 4K is 10bit 4:2:2 from launch.

Right, but the 4K is long form gop, correct? Am I also correct that there is no All-I at all at launch... not even 1080 8bit 4:20?

Dont get me wrong this camera is a beast at launch and I am seriously considering using my BH credit to buy one, but with the All-I in 4K and 1080p... this could be an epic camera at that price point. 

I am really excited to hear your first impression review, Andrew. Please post lots of updates. It doesn't start shipping from BH until the 30th, so that extra week should really shed a shit load of light on this camera!!!

[webrunner5]

I don't want to derail this thread, and maybe 60% of you have seen this video or more, but it is very informative to what we are talking about on this thread, as well as this web site. I know it is 3 years old, and the end of it is well, Arri based, but I think it tells us we don't need as much as we think we need resolution wise, or can Afford to storage what we shoot.

Long story short is, I think if you can live with the form factor of the GH5, you have to be crazy not to buy one. It appears to be that good once the firmware updates are released.

http://www.moviemachine.tv/video/rodney-charters-bm-pocket-camera,-4k-acquisition-and-alexa/112820539/

12 minutes ago, Fritz Pierre said:

OK....I guess I should clarify my post....by traveling, I mean exactly that...TRAVELING...and I would never have any camera going down a river in a speedboat (though the fact that the GH5 can, does not seem like a negative to me!)...and as a sailor  the only power boats I ever go in, would be a dinghy with a little outboard motor to get me from anchorage to shore...but I'm still impressed by the lack of RC in the GH5 and this footage help me arrive at that conclusion...for shooting in a work situation (whether traveling for it, or not) I use a Miller 22lb fluid head on a heavy duty tripod as my rig weighs in around 18lbs...I can however see grabbing a shot with the GH5 that lasts only seconds though, in an inconspicuous manner and that's one of the ways for my use, that the camera would distinguish itself...I would never walk with it....would never use it on a gimbal and if I wanted movement, would do so on a dolly...I don't even zoom on zoom lenses while rolling...so...different needs for different people...but for my use, this is exciting!

 

 

I sure as hell can't argue anything about your post. Very well thought out reply. 

[matthere]

 

[fuzzynormal]

38 minutes ago, webrunner5 said:

we don't need as much as we think we need resolution wise

Yeah, my claim is that we've been there for a few years already with various brands, but it's nice to keep getting new tech that's even better.

As much as I'd be loathe to admit, a lot of my best work was done 20 years ago on NTSC.  The reason it was successful is not because of the dynamic range of the camera or the limited resolution. 

[Chrad]

4 hours ago, Ken Ross said:

I never really thought about it, but I wonder if there's a difference in the effectiveness of the IBIS in HD vs 4K? I never really tried that on my G85, since I don't shoot in HD.

Based on videoDSLR.pl tests for noise, resolution and rolling shutter, it appears that the 1080p is just an in camera downscale, so the performance should be identical.

I'm very happy about this as it will mean I won't be so inclined to shoot in 4K and downscale as I am with the GH4, unless I really need to crop in. The 1080p looks superb. 

[webrunner5]

1 hour ago, fuzzynormal said:

Yeah, my claim is that we've been there for a few years already with various brands, but it's nice to keep getting new tech that's even better.

As much as I'd be loathe to admit, a lot of my best work was done 20 years ago on NTSC.  The reason it was successful is not because of the dynamic range of the camera or the limited resolution. 

Well I am no wizz on the math involved, but 1080p, ergo HD, all that is needed is only like 2mp delivery wise. So these new cameras I don't care if they have a 100mp, they are not using but a tiny bit of it to output 1080p. Now, 4k, 8k, that is different. 4k is 8mp, 8k is 33.4mp or something like that. But hell most everyone only has a TV that ouputs 720p and that is only is 1mp.

So yes, that is why stuff you shot 20 years ago still sort of works. Some of it then was only 480p. Heck Vimeo has a lot of crap on there that is 480p. We are blessed with what we can buy for hardly nothing now. My Panasonic G7 comes to mind, Hell 4k for less than 400 bucks, crazy.

[Chrad]

The best thing that's come out of 4K on consumer cameras is finally being able to make sharp and detailed 1080p. 

[zetty]

On 18/03/2017 at 5:09 PM, webrunner5 said:

For all you guys and girls in England, hell free money!

http://mathersoflancashire.co.uk/category.aspx?cid=0&id=173

I wonder what the vendor margins are on each unit, if they can easily afford giving £150 in cashback..

[fuzzynormal]

2 minutes ago, Chrad said:

The best thing that's come out of 4K on consumer cameras is finally being able to make sharp and detailed 1080p. 

I've also shot and edited 1080, uploaded it to vimeo/youtube as 4K, and it holds up quite well.  Looks good.  Also made DCP's from 1080 and it looks wonderful on the big screen.

[Cinegain]

I think it's why Simon Cade (DSLR Guide) sticks to a 1080p Canon. He can focus more on the content once he shifts his focus away from the camera itself towards what's happening in front of the camera, actor performance, lighting, sound, etc.

I appreciate that approach and statement that gives off that content is king. But... good content, with superb execution, I mean, like, technically, might even be better content than the content shot on a potato. Plus... tech advancement gives you more creative oppertunities. Slowmo, 4K, HDR, gimbals, aerial shots etc might be regarded as gimmicks, but it's just the progression of traditional filmmaking. Everything is a tool you can possibly put to good use. But as it is with any tool, it requires knowledge/instruction, experience and effort to apply. If you're a one man band, it might take a lot of your capacity away that could otherwise be spent on less technical camera related aspects.

[fuzzynormal]

49 minutes ago, webrunner5 said:

stuff you shot 20 years ago still sort of works. Some of it then was only 480p.

Yes, that old NTSC still looks great because those projects were co-lit by a colleague of mine that's really good at doing such.  Also, most of it was magic hour shooting.  Which is why, in my anecdotal experience, resolution and dynamic range ain't the main thing.  It's wonderful to have, but when you got solid craftspeople on set doing a great job, any decent camera should look wonderful.

Consider Arri.  Everyone loves the Alexa, right?  Footage looks awesome, etc.  Well, why wouldn't it?  Pros are using it.  People that access the upper echelon of cameras tend to be people that are already pretty good at what they're doing.  It looks great because it's shot great.

In the up coming months we're going to see a bunch of mediocre footage from the GH5. (along with some crazily impressive stuff too)  The weak footage won't be because it's a bad camera, but because it's affordable enough to be in the hands of people with rudimentary skills making mistakes and bad choices.

[mercer]

8 minutes ago, fuzzynormal said:

Yes, that old NTSC still looks great because those projects were co-lit by a colleague of mine that's really good at doing such.  Also, most of it was magic hour shooting.  Which is why, in my anecdotal experience, resolution and dynamic range ain't the main thing.  It's wonderful to have, but when you got solid craftspeople on set doing a great job, any decent camera should look wonderful.

Consider Arri.  Everyone loves the Alexa, right?  Footage looks awesome, etc.  Well, why wouldn't it?  Pros are using it.  People that access the upper echelon of cameras tend to be people that are already pretty good at what they're doing.  It looks great because it's shot great.

In the up coming months we're going to see a bunch of mediocre footage from the GH5. (along with some crazily impressive stuff too)  The weak footage won't be because it's a bad camera, but because it's affordable enough to be in the hands of people with rudimentary skills making mistakes and bad choices.

If I get a GH5, I will probably fall into that latter category... ? 

Should I apologize now?

But seriously, you make excellent points. Over the past year, on this website alone, I have seen amazing footage that was shot with Canon Rebels to D5500s to GH2s to GH4s to BMPCCs to Sonys... etc... and the one thing they all had in common is that the operator knows what they're doing. Unfortunately not all of the content was great but visually they were beautiful and the ones that had great content... great stories, well obviously they were lifted to the next level.

I hope with the GH5's release this week that we see beautiful footage and great stories.

I am looking forward to it. I also am hoping, if there are enough early adopters, that Andrew starts a sub-forum just for GH5 footage. 

[funkyou86]

29 minutes ago, Cinegain said:

I think it's why Simon Cade (DSLR Guide) sticks to a 1080p Canon. He can focus more on the content once he shifts his focus away from the camera itself towards what's happening in front of the camera, actor performance, lighting, sound, etc.

I appreciate that approach and statement that gives off that content is king. But... good content, with superb execution, I mean, like, technically, might even be better content than the content shot on a potato. Plus... tech advancement gives you more creative oppertunities. Slowmo, 4K, HDR, gimbals, aerial shots etc might be regarded as gimmicks, but it's just the progression of traditional filmmaking. Everything is a tool you can possibly put to good use. But as it is with any tool, it requires knowledge/instruction, experience and effort to apply. If you're a one man band, it might take a lot of your capacity away that could otherwise be spent on less technical camera related aspects.

The last video i saw from Simon was the T3i "comparison" to Alexa, and I promised again that won't click to yt's recommended videos. He's a wannabe Coelho, making general statements while constantly being afraid of GAS. Sorry for the offtopic.

[fuzzynormal]

2 minutes ago, mercer said:

If I get a GH5, I will probably fall into that latter category...

Oh, I will as well.  I shoot a good chunk of "low-fi" stuff these days.  Quick and dirty run n' gun stuff.  But it's easy, fun, and pays some bills, so why not?

[mercer]

53 minutes ago, fuzzynormal said:

Oh, I will as well.  I shoot a good chunk of "low-fi" stuff these days.  Quick and dirty run n' gun stuff.  But it's easy, fun, and pays some bills, so why not?

If it pays the bills, then that's all that matters... it's a whole lot better than working a "regular" job. If I were even remotely skilled enough to make some extra coin shooting "low-fi stuff," I'd do it in a heartbeat.

Are you getting a GH5? 

[jonpais]

4 hours ago, webrunner5 said:

I don't want to derail this thread, and maybe 60% of you have seen this video or more, but it is very informative to what we are talking about on this thread, as well as this web site. I know it is 3 years old, and the end of it is well, Arri based, but I think it tells us we don't need as much as we think we need resolution wise, or can Afford to storage what we shoot.

Long story short is, I think if you can live with the form factor of the GH5, you have to be crazy not to buy one. It appears to be that good once the firmware updates are released.

http://www.moviemachine.tv/video/rodney-charters-bm-pocket-camera,-4k-acquisition-and-alexa/112820539/

I sure as hell can't argue anything about your post. Very well thought out reply. 

Thanks for sharing that, Ron. He talks about how when he was young, even going to the theater, what people were watching was actually only something like 1K and nobody complained about the picture. He also talks about intercutting footage from the BMPCC with the Alexa. And how resolution drops down once you begin panning the camera (at 6 minutes), something some still think I'm making up. One advantage of 4K is the ability to crop in on the image. 

And even if you're delivering in 1080p, if you shoot in 4K first, your image will be crisper and have less moire and aliasing. Which is the reason I shoot in 4K.

[Fritz Pierre]

2 minutes ago, jonpais said:

Thanks for sharing that, Ron. He talks about how when he was young, even going to the theater, what people were watching was actually only something like 1K and nobody complained about the picture. He also talks about intercutting footage from the BMPCC with the Alexa. And how resolution drops down once you begin panning the camera (at 6 minutes), something some still think I'm making up. One advantage of 4K is the ability to crop in on the image. 

And even if you're delivering in 1080p, if you shoot in 4K first, your image will be crisper and have less moire and aliasing. Which is the reason I shoot in 4K.

No question that shooting in 4K and downscaling to 1080 produces rich "thick" looking (for want of a better term) 1080 footage!