Guest fe4a3f5e8381673ce80017d29a8375f1 Posted September 3, 2014 Share Posted September 3, 2014 I actually really like the GX7 ergonomics. It works really well for small lenses like the Olympus 17mm f1.8 or even the Panny 12-35mm f2.8. The problem is my GX7 is actually a little damaged. There are several large dead pixels on the sensor as well as a black dot that gets bigger as I narrow my lens apertures. And yes the small grip is a problem for big lenses. And actually the other thing is that the viewfinder's colours are very off, not to mention the eyecup is very small and hard to use in daylight (ironically). I might join you and Andy in the G6 club afterall :) Yes the DR and noise is worse.. but it's at least >better than the GH2, which was loved by a lot of indie film makers. You should be able to get your sensor fixed/replaced if your hot pixels are that bad and your GX7 is under warranty. The black spot is almost certainly just dirt on the sensor. Cleaning it yourself is not as scary as it seems. Just buy the right stuff (I use VisibleDust). But go for the G6 - at the price it can be found at now you won't regret it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inazuma Posted September 3, 2014 Author Share Posted September 3, 2014 The camera is out of warranty; I sent it for a repair quotation and they said it needed a replacement sensor - £500! The black spot I can deal with because I rarely shoot above f2.8 and it's not visible at this aperture. After playing with the footage from the EM1, G6, GX7 and Nikon d5300 (+ my old d5200) more I'm just extremely torn. The Nikon gives the best tones and colour (and grades really well) but you can't shoot video casually and the noise tends to be very blotchy. The EM1 you can shoot very casually because of the nice EVF and stabilisation but the colours are no good, especially not for grading. It is less noisy than the G6 but resolves detail poorly and has a terrible highlight roll-off. More importantly I can't really afford it... The Panasonic G6 is a contender mainly because it's so cheap and a delight to use. But whilst it is very sharp and probably has a nice fine grain noise, it falls short in DR and colours compared to the Nikon, which is less than £100 more expensive. Since I plan to do less casual video shooting, I am inclined to go with the Nikon. Since my GX7 is unsellable now, I could keep it for use when I really want that sharp image or need to shoot at ISO 3200. Or maybe I should sod it all and stay with the GX7 :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utsira Posted September 4, 2014 Share Posted September 4, 2014 43 rumours reckons that a gm1/gx7 successor will be announced at photokina. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fe4a3f5e8381673ce80017d29a8375f1 Posted September 4, 2014 Share Posted September 4, 2014 I think you should stick with the GX7. It's a great camera. All the cameras in your list are starting to look quite similar compared to the new crop (GH4, A7S, and probably the GM2 and 7D MkII?) If you've already owned a D5200 and got rid of it, the D5300 isn't that different. The GX7 is better than the G6 in several ways, and the main perks of the G6 - sharpness and peaking - are present on the GX7. Spend your money on lenses and kit, which hold their value and can be used for many years. Then wait for the new tech to trickle downhill to the entry level cameras in a year or so. Or save for a GH4/A7S. It's a losing game trying to find the perfect camera, particularly if you're on a budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inazuma Posted September 6, 2014 Author Share Posted September 6, 2014 Ok this is unbelievable. I was using my GX7 just now and it made a sound as if it took three pictures very rapidly. It told me to turn off and on the camera again, so I did. But the image was black. After detaching my lens, it looks like the shutter is jammed shut! I was going to buy another camera anyway but now Im forced to and wont have my GX7 as a second camera :( BTW Matt, most of my money has been spent on lenses and kit, which is why my budget for the body is so unfortunately small. I'm thinking I will get the G6. The d5300 might have better stills and more DR at low ISOs but the Panasonics are just better handling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nikkor Posted September 6, 2014 Share Posted September 6, 2014 Well if you story about the gx7 is true and you have no way of repairing it you might try to remove the shutter by hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inazuma Posted September 7, 2014 Author Share Posted September 7, 2014 Just ordered the G6 :) There are so many great looking videos shot with it on vimeo that it makes me wonder why I ever doubted it https://vimeo.com/search/page:1/sort:relevant/format:thumbnail?type=videos&q=panasonic+g6 I'm going to get a repair estimate for my GX7... let's hope it's not as expensive as the sensor replacement! BTW here's a picture of the issue '> I can lift the shutter up but it just goes back down again. Makes me think actually, why they don't have a feature like this where you can lock the shutter down to protect the sensor when changing lenses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nikkor Posted September 7, 2014 Share Posted September 7, 2014 You don't need the shutter to take videos, tape it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inazuma Posted September 7, 2014 Author Share Posted September 7, 2014 That's a cool idea but quite impractical. I have to use a thin object to lift the shutter up and there's a high risk I would damage the sensor further by trying to tape the shutter up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ebrahim Saadawi Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Just ordered the G6 :) There are so many great looking videos shot with it on vimeo that it makes me wonder why I ever doubted it https://vimeo.com/search/page:1/sort:relevant/format:thumbnail?type=videos&q=panasonic+g6 Makes me think actually, why they don't have a feature like this where you can lock the shutter down to protect the sensor when changing lenses. Yes I have always wondered why mirrorless cameras leave the sensor exposed even when turned off. Why doesn't the shutter come down when turned off? My Canon DSLRs sensor is protected by the shutter whenever not exposing for a photograph or in liveview, and also by the mirror in front of the shutter. Quite a big barrier to cross to touch the sensor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utsira Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 That's a real shame about the GX7. I think Maxotics had an issue with the shutter breaking on his GM1. I suppose if the repair estimate comes back and it's unreasonably high, then maybe you have nothing to lose attacking that shutter. So you're not worried about buyer's remorse when the Photokina announcements come in? ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inazuma Posted September 8, 2014 Author Share Posted September 8, 2014 No.. I realised over the past few days that every camera has its drawbacks. Even the Sony a7s with its bad rolling shutter. If people on Vimeo are able to achieve such atmospheric/beautiful videos with the G6 then why do I need a better camera? I'm no more skilled than any of those guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utsira Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Congratulations on reaching step 3 of GAS anonymous ;) I know what you mean though, the Panny cameras are basically mature now, there's only incremental things they can improve with each new iteration. Enjoy peak Panasonic! I think we're still a few years away from peak Sony though. Apparently the OMD E-M1 2.0 FW has leaked already, and..... no new video features. 2nd time this year some kind of videography update was rumoured, and nowt delivered: http://www.43rumors.com/e-m1-2-0-firmware-already-unofficially-available-at-olympus/ I still might trade my E-M5 in for an E-M1 though. I don't mind 30fps, and I could use the extra mbps the E-M1 has. Inazuma 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quirky Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Yes I have always wondered why mirrorless cameras leave the sensor exposed even when turned off. Why doesn't the shutter come down when turned off? Actually, Ricoh GXR mount does keep the shutter blades closed when powered off. But that is indeed all the more reason to wonder why most of the MILCs don't do the same. It doesn't seem to make much sense. No.. I realised over the past few days that every camera has its drawbacks. Even the Sony a7s with its bad rolling shutter. If people on Vimeo are able to achieve such atmospheric/beautiful videos with the G6 then why do I need a better camera? I'm no more skilled than any of those guys. Congratulations, you have just grown out of the gadget nerd stage. Or reached step 3 (or should it be step 4?) of GAS Anonymous, as mentioned above. Or maybe it's completing step 1 on the path to enlightenment. :P Good luck with the new toy and with new filmmaking projects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inazuma Posted September 8, 2014 Author Share Posted September 8, 2014 Thanks guys, it only took me two years :p it seems like nearly everyone who starts doing a bit of research will end up going through this process. I am currently writing/directing a short series. Will put a link in my signature to a page about it in the next few weeks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fe4a3f5e8381673ce80017d29a8375f1 Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 I shot this entirely with the G6 two weeks ago: It really is an awesome camera. Lenses etc listed in Vimeo description ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inazuma Posted September 9, 2014 Author Share Posted September 9, 2014 Nice video Matt, I especially like the eye reflection shots :) Ok I received my G6 not long ago. Im having a problem - With the speed booster attached it keeps randomly going into focus magnification mode every few seconds. Anyone else experienced this? Edit: Also the iA is randomly turning on. God damnit... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fe4a3f5e8381673ce80017d29a8375f1 Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Nice video Matt, I especially like the eye reflection shots :) Ok I received my G6 not long ago. Im having a problem - With the speed booster attached it keeps randomly going into focus magnification mode every few seconds. Anyone else experienced this? Thanks dude :) Are you hitting the touch-screen without realising? That will bring up magnify. Or hitting one of the buttons set for magnify (e.g. pushing the click-wheel brings up magnify)? Go into the custom menu and turn a few of the focus tools off (can't remember which ones, but most aren't needed unless you have MFT glass). I just use the click-wheel to magnify (focus assist) and peaking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inazuma Posted September 9, 2014 Author Share Posted September 9, 2014 No it's happening just by me holding the body. I've turned off the touch screen and it still happens. I can also trigger it sometimes just by pressing into an empty space around the controls or grip. It's only happening with the speed booster or my other (non-optical) adapter attached. It doesnt randomly magnify with a native lens attached, although it does still randomly go into iA mode. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fe4a3f5e8381673ce80017d29a8375f1 Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Sounds very odd. Never happened to me with either of my adapters. I'd play around with the menu settings - I remember it took me a while to find a set-up that worked with manual lenses. The buttons are all quite easy to hit accidentally too, but it sounds like that's not the problem. In the custom menu: Do you have "shoot W/O lens" turned on? I have "MF Assist" set to the top icon (lens icon and focus-points icon together). I seem to remember that was important. I have "MF Guide" off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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