Panasonic Teases New Compact Cinema Camera

[AaronChicago]

51 minutes ago, PannySVHS said:

Yeah, Aaron, thats what I was saying! That would be super awesome, combined with the full! dynamic range VLOG, not just the GH5 Log.

Please MFT mount too! I think you could sell your FS700 and Odyssey then Do you still own that combo? Have you been enjoying it?

I've actually been using the Ursa Mini 4.6K for about a year now. I love it. I did trade my GH4 for GH5 as a B Cam.

[ade towell]

A well respected member at dvxuser wrote this earlier

"Just got this info about the new camera. It will have a S35 sensor and 14 stops of dynamic range. 4k up to 60fps. 1080p up to 120fps. All the usual stuff like ND, SDI/HDMI out. The body is very light weight at about 1 kg. Media used will be SDXC cards with dual slot capacity.

The camera pars can be broken down and the shape of the camera is a mix of C100 and FS5. As is the price in the league of a C100 mkII."

 

Would be pretty amazing if true

[Cassius McGowan]

14 minutes ago, ade towell said:

A well respected member at dvxuser wrote this earlier

"Just got this info about the new camera. It will have a S35 sensor and 14 stops of dynamic range. 4k up to 60fps. 1080p up to 120fps. All the usual stuff like ND, SDI/HDMI out. The body is very light weight at about 1 kg. Media used will be SDXC cards with dual slot capacity.

The camera pars can be broken down and the shape of the camera is a mix of C100 and FS5. As is the price in the league of a C100 mkII."

 

Would be pretty amazing if true

Welp glad I didn't get the gh5. Can save my money for this camera. 

[hijodeibn]

42 minutes ago, Cassius McGowan said:

Welp glad I didn't get the gh5. Can save my money for this camera. 

I can see the jaw falling in most of the GH5 early adopters….

[Cinegain]

Depends. Different purpose cameras. If you needed all that, chances are you already have something like it. If not, it's a very nice upgrade path! Agreed.

But... the GH5 still makes for a nice handheld compact shooter with IBIS and all that. Certain advantages the new other camera won't have. They probably compliment eachother really well.

[Kisaha]

GH5 is a video orientated mirrorless m43 camera that costs 2000$. What it has to do with a -supposedly- S35 entry level Cinema camera that will cost at least 2 or 3 or 4 times those money? I am really excited about this, but if a C100markIII has most of those and the usual Canon AF, then I am going Canon! Very excited with Panasonic nevertheless.

[ade towell]

If they can somehow squeeze the Varicam sensor into this camera and sell for $4k - the price of a Canon c100 mk2 - then it will blow everything else away...Canon won't offer anything of comparable spec at a price anywhere near that, that's not their way.

[Kisaha]

Indeed, but Canon can offer Canon-magic (silly bitrate files that are nicer to look than others 4 times their size)/best AF in business that I would like to use more/excellent 18-80 and 70-200 CN-E lenses, things work with Canon (even though I have the outmost respect for Panasonic) etc

Pana won't offer their Varicam sensor for a fraction of their highest Varicam cameras, not for 4K$ at least. I would hope something like the variable sensor of the JVC LS300 (in reality, I would like to see something similar to the GH5 too).

[ade towell]

I would be amazed if they put the Varicam sensor in at that price, is mainly wishful thinking on my part - but I guess if they really want to get back into the C100, fs5 territory they need to come all guns blazing...I have no worries over Panasonic reliability, have had their dvx100 through to af100 and gh cameras and never had an issue

I use c100 as my main camera still and as you say it just works - am sure their next iteration c100 mk3, c200 or whatever will be good and integrate well with their new zooms - but I also expect it to cost a lot more. I'm not going to spend more than £3-4k on a camera again, what we have already is good enough for most work, and tend to rent if I need higher frame rates...still not been asked to shoot 4k yet

[ntblowz]

Comes with Electronic Image Stabilizer?

[Kisaha]

@ade towell I agree, I haven't shoot any significant 4K either, but with 3-4 thousands you are not getting the latest, or the greatest, it is just too low. JVC LS300 just currently fall under 3000$, and that is only in US, everywhere else in the world is significantly more expensive (even here that is around 3500$, I consider it an excellent option).

I hope we will find out soon, but this is not going to cost south of 4500$, and it won't have dual pixel AF! Since I did a lengthy and low budgeted run and gun travel series, I appreciated dual pixel AF vastly, I haven't incorporated it in my general workflow, but I believe with a newer camera I will be more willing to try.

E-IS is of very limited use, I wonder if anyone will ever put a real IBIS in there, maybe FS5mark II?

[ade towell]

I'm talking £3-4k not $, I'm in the UK, and no I'm not looking to buy the latest and greatest - I tend to wait a year and buy used cameras once all the initial glitches are sorted...

Have no idea how much this new Panasonic will cost or what features it will have - this is all speculation on my part - am not sure where the EIS suggestion has come from, IBIS is a great thing and to be honest Panasonic's version of it is a lot better on the GH5 than Sony version I tried on the A6500. Sony are on catch up there. The DPAF on the Canon's is really useful at times and they have a step up on panasonic there. Is great there will be another choice in this price bracket - the FS5, C100 and I'm sure this new Panasonic will all have strengths and weaknesses - choose what suits your needs

more from the fella at dvxuser

"The specs I was given is from a trusty source but hey it can contain a few faults for sure. The codec is a 10-bit 4:2:2 format with lower quality options at hand. There are a few similar features to the DVX200 also"

[Jimbo]

12 hours ago, hijodeibn said:

I can see the jaw falling in most of the GH5 early adopters….

Nah, different beasts. The GH5 is phenomenal. I can do pretty much any work I need to with it. IBIS + VLOG + those data rates in such a small, reliable package; Panasonic nailed it.

However, down the line, something 2/3 times more expensive with better DR + 35mm sensor in a video-centric body would be a nice step up.

I think the challenge for Panasonic is offering a proposition that will pull people from Sony FS5 or Canon C100. If it's got Varicam colour science then it will tempt Sony users, and we know it will blow Canon away with respect to feature set. That leaves dedicated lenses (and the new awesome offerings from Fujifilm) + electronic ND as the final bastions of Sony and dedicated lenses + DPAF the final bastions of Canon in my opinion.

Going to be a fun June.

[BTM_Pix]

59 minutes ago, Kisaha said:

@ade towell I agree, I haven't shoot any significant 4K either, but with 3-4 thousands you are not getting the latest, or the greatest, it is just too low. JVC LS300 just currently fall under 3000$, and that is only in US, everywhere else in the world is significantly more expensive (even here that is around 3500$, I consider it an excellent option).

That bundle that I suspected JVC might do with the Atomos Ninja Inferno they are now doing. It's $1000 instant rebate and $150 credit against accessories. So it's $3500 for the whole thing but it's a few weeks wait for the 4k60p upgrade.

I see no reason why they won't bring the same offer to Europe as they seem intent on the LS300 having a new lease of life. 

Or an actual lease of life considering how low key it's been thus far! 

[Fritz Pierre]

I think if Panasonic put a s35 sensor with a m3/4 locking mount capable of cropping to m4/3 also for use with their native lenses (ala JVC LS300) and some nd, xlr connections....kept the price point reasonable and made all other aspects modular...and SSD media instead of SD, they would hit it out of the ballpark, just as they're doing now with the GH5....I suspect the response to the GH5 which, if you ignore the AF crowd, and just look at how difficult it is to even buy one now, has been overwhelming and has affirmed for them that there is a market for this camera...and I suspect that they will come out with a camera that far exceeds the features and image quality at the price point they release at...they are already doing that with the Varicam LT...that camera produces image quality and features that can go up against any camera out there in the world....the Varicam 35 & LT are both Netflix accepted production cameras (Netflix is rapidly becoming the largest "studio" producing content if not there already), so Panasonic is well positioned with their Varicam line, the astonishing features and IQ they released in the GH5 (because they pay attention to what shooters really want and need) and now with the pending release of this smaller Cine camera, they will firmly establish themselves in the marketplace in that middle pricepoint that Sony and Canon are grabbing now.

[webrunner5]

I don't think it will have anything m4/3 related. I think they are gunning for the Canon mkII, Sony FS5 crowd. Canon has sold a heck of a lot of 100's, and god only knows how many FS5's Sony has sold. I don't think Panasonic can continue to ignore that market. So I think it will be s35 with a s35 mount.

They would look like they just copied JVC if they come out with a LS300 clone. But I guess we will find out soon. It probably is going to be what 95% of most shooters actually need. That is why the above mentioned cameras are selling so well. Hardly anyone Needs a Arri Alexa, or a Red Weapon to do Video LoL. They are mostly for making full blown movies for movie theaters. How many people in the world do that?

[Fritz Pierre]

3 hours ago, webrunner5 said:

I don't think it will have anything m4/3 related. I think they are gunning for the Canon mkII, Sony FS5 crowd. Canon has sold a heck of a lot of 100's, and god only knows how many FS5's Sony has sold. I don't think Panasonic can continue to ignore that market. So I think it will be s35 with a s35 mount.

They would look like they just copied JVC if they come out with a LS300 clone. But I guess we will find out soon. It probably is going to be what 95% of most shooters actually need. That is why the above mentioned cameras are selling so well. Hardly anyone Needs a Arri Alexa, or a Red Weapon to do Video LoL. They are mostly for making full blown movies for movie theaters. How many people in the world do that?

I think it would be smart for Panasonic to make this smaller Cine Camera usable with their native glass...you can still adapt any FF stuff but the M3/4 flange distance is attractive as would be s35 sensor size....and one could argue that JVC copied the m3/4 mount from Panny Oly...also the s35 to m4/3 crop would be something like etc. on their earlier GH cameras...technology they already use...and people talked about on this very forum, when speculation and features wanted for the upcoming GH5 were being posted a few months back...looking at the Leica fast primes that Panasonic's releasing now, why not...the glass is amazing...sell more of their glass for this camera and for those already invested in the M4/3 system, the attractive idea of buying a s35 camera with which they can use their already owned stock Panny glass....but hey, I could be wrong!...would not be the first time lol...??

[Kisaha]

I totally agree with @Fritz Pierre and actually I am pro "variable sensor" for Panasonic cameras since I realize that this is easily done, after the LS300 release! They can even implement a changeable mount, and that would be perfect. Imagine how much flexibility, and advantage that will offer to the m43 system, and how great an A-B system with the GH5 would be. I would call it an advantage.

 

[Fritz Pierre]

17 minutes ago, Kisaha said:

I totally agree with @Fritz Pierre and actually I am pro "variable sensor" for Panasonic cameras since I realize that this is easily done, after the LS300 release! They can even implement a changeable mount, and that would be perfect. Imagine how much flexibility, and advantage that will offer to the m43 system, and how great an A-B system with the GH5 would be. I would call it an advantage.

 

It would make Panasonic unstoppable in 2 markets....existing m4/3 owners and newcomers with lots of legacy glass who can't necessarily afford $20,000 Cine Lenses and are prepared to work around the limitations of stills glass.

[webrunner5]

3 hours ago, Fritz Pierre said:

I think it would be smart for Panasonic to make this smaller Cine Camera usable with their native glass...you can still adapt any FF stuff but the M3/4 flange distance is attractive as would be s35 sensor size....and one could argue that JVC copied the m3/4 mount from Panny Oly...also the s35 to m4/3 crop would be something like etc. on their earlier GH cameras...technology they already use...and people talked about on this very forum, when speculation and features wanted for the upcoming GH5 were being posted a few months back...looking at the Leica fast primes that Panasonic's releasing now, why not...the glass is amazing...sell more of their glass for this camera and for those already invested in the M4/3 system, the attractive idea of buying a s35 camera with which they can use their already owned stock Panny glass....but hey, I could be wrong!...would not be the first time lol...??

Problem is DR just sucks ass, and low light is nothing to write home about with m4/3 sensors. I think it would be a mistake to make it that sensor size on their part. My AF100A is Only between 10.1 to 10.3 on the DR part in reality. That is pretty damn terrible. And the newer ones are not really any better.  Not counting the crop factor problem. I sure as hell would not pay 4 to 5 grand for that kind of performance in this day and age. And I bet I am not alone.

Now making it like the JVC, well I guess it would work. Might be patents involved. Hmm, we shall see as they say!