Panasonic has released firmware updates for its Lumix DMC-GH3 and DMC-G5 mirrorless cameras. Version 1.2 for the GH3 adds a ‘Low light focus’ mode that works down to -3 EV, a ‘Silent Mode’, and an ‘Exposure Compensation Reset’ function. Meanwhile version 1.1 for the G5 only corrects wording of the Motion Picture menu on cameras sold in PAL broadcast regions, and therefore isn’t required by US owners. Click through for download links.
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Panasonic has announced the Lumix G 20mm F1.7 II ASPH, a revised version of its classic fast pancake lens for Micro Four Thirds. The H-HS020A, as Panasonic likes to call it, features a metallic exterior and slightly reduced weight, and will come in a choice of silver or black finishes. The optical design appears to be unchanged, with 7 elements in 5 groups including 2 aspheric elements; not a bad thing as its predecessor is one of our favourite lenses. The 20mm F1.7 II will be available from 29th July at an RRP of £349 (US pricing and availability has not been confirmed).
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
The advance of mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras is still a developing tale.
The GF6 is a good example of where we’re at, but don’t think for one moment that what the camera offers is indicative of what a MILC camera should offer.
The beauty of this style of camera is that it’s small, with access to a range of lenses that are similarly compact in size. It can be used as a point-and-shoot, it’s pocketable (with lens removed) and equipped with a sufficient number of controls that most people will cotton on to.
One price you pay with the GF6 is that there is no turret viewfinder, a big help in bright ambient light, nor is there access to an optional finder. There is however, a vari-angle touch screen LCD that tilts vertically through an approximate 180 degrees arc.
The CMOS captures a maximum image size of 4592×3448 pixels, leading to a 39x29cm print.
Video can be shot in AVCHD or MPEG4 formats, up to Full HD 1920×1080 pixels resolution. And you can shoot stills during a video recording.
At first sight, the camera is attractive. A soft chrome top deck and the rest in black.
Top deck: at left is a button to activate the flash cell; just right of the latter is the mode dial holding positions for auto, PASM, ‘creative’ video; two custom settings; panorama shooting; scene modes (23 in all) and a creative control mode that takes you into a magic world of 19 shooting styles that include a retro look, high and low key effects, mono, cross processing etc.
If you get the feeling, from the scene modes and creative control effects in the GF6, that this is a dabbler’s camera … you’d be right! The more expert may scoff at this situation but, if it helps photographers to get more out of their camera, I’m all for it.
Moving further to the right you see the shutter button, on/off button, direct access to the intelligent auto mode and the video record button.
One annoyance: the video record button is only mills away from the iAuto button … too easy to hit the latter when you really wanted to activate the former. Far better to have placed the video button on an edge as most other camera do.
The camera’s rear is fairly simple in layout: replay; screen display options; four way control dial offering exposure variation, AF modes, white balance options, single/continuous shooting and self timer. Central is the menu/set button.
Beneath the control dial is a quick access menu button and a Function button.
My main gripe with this arrangement is that the control dial has four positions (AWB, etc) but each of these is identified by tiny white text on a silver background. Impossible to see!
The menus are clearly laid out.
But there are some novel aspects to this camera that are unique: one is the stop motion feature. You can set the camera to shoot images at predetermined intervals or fire them off manually.
There is easy wireless connectivity via Wi-Fi with compliant smart phones and tablets that lets you monitor the camera’s view from a smartphone and set zoom, focus, shutter release, shutter speed, aperture and exposure compensation.
With High Dynamic Range, the camera merges three shots with differing exposure levels into a single picture; this will help with subjects of an extreme bright to dark brightness range.
The Instant Transfer feature allows data to be transferred automatically to the device whenever the shutter is fired. You can also do this via the touch screen.
Only at ISO 6400 did noise begin to intrude. At ISO 25600 the noise was much higher but resolution held up surprisingly well.
Quality: above average with precise colour rendering and fine resolution.
Why buy the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF6: budget level entrée into the world of interchangeable lens photography.
Why not by the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF6: no viewfinder.
In other respects I found the camera to be quite spiffy and easy to use. If you’re keen to dip your toe into interchangeable lens photography, want to post process RAW files, shoot decent video etc … this one’s for you!
The beauty of the GF6 is that you can get around the various modes with great ease. Not too challenging.
Image Sensor: 16 million effective pixels.
Metering: Multiple, centre-weighted and spot.
Effective Sensor Size: Four thirds 17.3×13.0mm CMOS.
Lens Factor: 2x.
Compatible lenses: Micro Four Thirds.
Exposure Modes: Auto, Program AE, shutter and aperture priority, manual.
Shutter Speed: 60 to 1/4000 second; flash sync 1/160 sec.
Burst Speed: 4.2 fps.
Memory: SD/SDHC/SDXC cards.
Image Sizes (pixels): 4592×3448 to 1712×1712. Movies: 1920×1080, 1280x720p, 640×480.
Viewfinder: 7.6cm LCD screen (1,040,000 pixels).
File Formats: JPEG, RAW, JPEG+RAW, AVCHD/MPEG4, MPO (3D).
Colour Space: Adobe RGB, sRGB.
ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 160 to 12800 (25,600 with boost).
Interface: USB 2.0, AV, HDMI mini, WiFi, DC input.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery, AC adaptor.
Dimensions: 111x65x38 WHDmm.
Weight: Approx. 323 (inc battery).
Price: Get a price on the Panasonic DMC-GF6 16MP Mirrorless Compact System Camera with Lens Kit at Amazon.
Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.
Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF6 Review
For camera makers the bad news is that smart phones and their inbuilt cameras are hurting the sales of compact digicams.
The good news is that it probably means more people are taking more pictures and shooting video — but not with digital cameras.
Not for me. Ergonomics comes into it: I find holding a smart phone far from an ideal way to fire off a shot and even worse when it comes to shooting video.
With the latter in mind, let’s face it, a video camcorder is the ideal shape for shooting video, digicams/DSLRs and CSCs come in second and way down the list is a smart phone or, even worse, a tablet.
Then, when it comes to a camera like the TZ40 (or the ZS30 as it is known in North America), the game changes radically.
Let’s look at the specs:
The lens is designed by Leica. Its range is 20x, zooming from a 35 SLR equivalent of a wide 24mm to a tele 480mm focal length.
The camera is stabilised and compensates for five types of movement: horizontal, vertical, axis of rotation, vertical rotation and horizontal rotation. So there, smart phones!
The CMOS sensor captures a maximum image size of 4876×3264 leading to a 41x28cm print.
Video is captured at the Full HD resolution of the 1920×1080 pixels in either MPEG4 or AVCHD formats. And note: you can shoot stills mid video recording.
The DMC-TZ40 can easily ‘talk’ to a compatible smart phone easily, allowing still and video shooting to be controlled from the smart phone screen with the help of the supplied Panasonic
Image App for iOS and Android phones. Users can also see what the camera lens is seeing live from their phone at 30 fps, then set zoom, focus, shutter release, shutter speed, aperture and exposure compensation, as well as capture video remotely.
Level Shot is a feature new to the TZ Series which detects the horizontal angle of view and keeps the image straight: useful for shooting ‘blind’. The video is cropped to allow the feature to come into play. I managed to make this feature work but found the straightening effect to be relatively minor. Still, it may help many a topsy turvy videographer!
Besides this, there’s also an on screen indicator for camera level.
The TZ40 will shoot at 10 fps in full resolution using the mechanical shutter and 5 fps with continuous AF.
The GPS function shows the name of the country, state, city and key landmarks using an internal data library. The area information covers over 200 countries or regions and more than a million landmarks worldwide.
The 7.6cm LCD screen is a touch screen, which makes it very useful when you’re shooting in a tight corner.
The camera is small and light, only gaining depth when the lens protrudes.
Top deck: centre is the mode dial with positions for intelligent auto, PASM, two custom settings, panorama shooting, scene and creative control modes; the zoom lever is centred by the shutter button and flanked by the power and video record buttons.
Rear: WiFi button; map/exposure button; replay; jog dial with positions for exposure correction, self timer, flash options and macro … the menu button is in the dial’s centre; beneath this is a button for display options and another for quick menu access.
The scene and creative control modes are interesting.
The former offers 19 options: soft skin; scenery; babies or pets; starry sky; handheld night shots etc. Purists may scoff at these, but the options sure help novices to bring home the bacon!
Creative control: you get a choice of retro, expressive, high key, etc. Creative control lets users apply a filter effect while shooting, while another mode, creative retouch allows effects to be added to shots after capture.
In the creative panorama mode you can add the above filters post-shoot.
In High Dynamic Range (HDR) mode the camera takes an undisclosed number of shots at different exposure levels and then automatically merges them to preserve details in the highlights, mid-tones and shadows.
The menu display is clear and obvious.
Startup from cold took just over a second; follow on shots came as fast as the shutter button was hit.
A good performance, with no evidence of distortion at either the wide or tele ends of the zoom
Noise began to appear at ISO 1600 and the image became a little murky.
By ISO 6400 noise was well up, the image even murkier and definition far lower.
Quality: above average
Why you’d buy the Panasonic Lumix TZ40/ZS30: small, pocketable; 20x zoom is a useful range; wide range of features; good stabiliser.
Why you wouldn’t: can’t think of any reason!
There is little to fault with this camera, however I question the placement of the video record button a few mills away from the power on/off button. Too often did I hit the one when aiming for the other!
I may have gone overboard on this little device but I hope my review serves to remind people that there are well-featured digicams out there that are far superior to smart phones that seemingly offer similar capabilities. Go get ‘em!
Available in black or white.
Image Sensor: 18.1 million effective pixels.
Sensor: 11mm CMOS.
Metering: Multi, centre-weighted, spot.
Lens: Leica DC Vario-Elmar f3.3-6.4/4.3-86mm (24-480mm as 35 SLR equivalent)
Exposure Modes: Auto, Program AE, shutter and aperture priority, manual.
Shutter Speed: 15-1/1200 second.
Memory: SD/SDHC/SDXC plus 12 MB internal.
Image Sizes (pixels): Stills: 4876×3264 to 480×480.
Movies: 1920×1080, 1280×720, 640×480, 320×240.
Continuous Shooting: 5 and 10fps.
Viewfinder:7.6cm LCD screen (920,000).
File Formats: JPEG, MPO 3D, MPEG4, AVCHD.
ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 100 to 6400.
Interface: USB 2.0, HDMI mini, DC input.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery.
Dimensions: 1205x59x28 WHDmm.
Weight: 198 g (with battery and card).
Price: Get a price on the Panasonic Lumix TZ40 at Amazon.
Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.
Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.
Panasonic Lumix ZS30/TZ40 Review
Panasonic is now offering its Lumix DMC-XS1 compact camera – which was first introduced at CES in January – with ten custom ‘skins’. The themes for these skins include pop art, gift wrapping, floral nature, digital, texture, and Japanese traditional. The XS1 features a 16 megapixel CCD, 5X (24-120 mm) optical zoom with image stabilization, a 2.7″ LCD, and 720p video recording. Pricing for the new ‘skinned’ models isn’t available quite yet, though the traditional red, silver, and black XS1 sells for $ 129. We don’t know yet if these designs will be available outside of the US in the future.
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
For whatever reason it was a long wait for the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 — I counted about six months. Worth waiting for?
Yes, for a number of reasons, not all directly to do with image making either.
As a MILC (mirrorless interchangeable lens camera) this is as fully featured as you can get and then offers more in the rugged department: it has a magnesium alloy, full diecast body, coupled with splash and dustproof construction, achieved by tightly sealing sections of the camera body.
Test lens was the Lumix G Vario Power OIS f2.8/12-35mm, equating to a 24-70mm lens in a 35 SLR.
There’s a ton of external controls planted on the GH3′s body.
Top deck: at left is a tiny wheel that gives access to single shot or burst shooting as well as the self-timer and an auto bracketted exposure option.
The mode dial has eleven positions: PASM; ‘creative’ video shooting; three custom modes; stills creative control; 13 scene modes (inc portrait, backlit, children’s faces etc); intelligent auto; intelligent auto plus.
By now you will have sussed out that this camera attempts to straddle two levels of user: the expert who wants precise control of image capture and the dabbler, keen to fiddle with images.
Further along the top deck is the prominent on/off lever; three buttons that take you to ISO, AWB and exposure compensation; there is a front and a rear rotating dial that take you through a number of options; the shutter button is right at the front of the pronounced speed grip. And then there is the first of five Function buttons, with the other four sprinkled around the rear surface of the camera.
Rear: replay; Function buttons 2, 3, 5; auto focus and exposure lock button; video record; display options; a rotating control dial and concentric menu button.
So you can see, as I said: ‘There’s a ton of external controls …’
The 16.05 megapixel Live MOS sensor can capture a maximum image size of 4608×3456 pixels, or 39x29cm as a print.
Video? You can shoot Full HD in either MPEG4 or AVCHD. I was able to shoot stills while recording video with no apparent interruption to the latter. The AF tracked seamlessly mid video recording … a great performance.
Video users will appreciate the enhanced handling of the program material as it embeds SMPTE-compliant time code either in Rec Run or Free Run count-up methods; this makes it easy to synchronise multiple video shots or sound sources in post production.
In video sound recording, the DMC-GH3 has Dolby Digital for AVCHD Progressive /AVCHD videos, and linear PCM (LPCM) for un-compressed MPEG4 video. There are two 3.5mm terminals for an external microphone and headphone.
The camera uses OLED displays both in the rear LCD and the turret finder: while both displays are excellent, the former suffers in bright sunshine.
In the design of the GH3 great attention was paid to minimising sensor noise, preventing sensor noise from entering the output signal and preventing noise from entering the signal processing circuit, power supply and grounding lines. Sensitivity ranges from ISO 200 to ISO 12800, but you can extend this to ISO 25600 by accessing a special function.
The camera’s HDR mode takes three shots at different exposure levels and automatically combines them to produce a single image. Other shooting functions include Time lapse shooting and multiple exposures using four shots to combine into one.
The rear LCD screen can rotate 180 degrees laterally and tilt 270 degrees vertically.
Continuous speed: the GH3 can shoot at 6 fps in full res of 4608×3456 (maximum 18 consecutive shots in RAW+JPEG) and 20 fps at 2336×1752 pixels (maximum 80 consecutive shots in JPEG).
I much appreciated the on screen distinct level gauge, which detects the horizontal/vertical angle of view as well as sensing if the camera is tilted forwards or back.
The touch screen can be more useful than you think: just by touching the subject you want as your point of focus, the camera will focus on the subject and take the picture automatically.
In Creative Control mode you can access a range of additional image effects. You set the effects to add by selecting example images and confirming them on the screen. Such effects as expressive, retro, high and low key, mono. etc.
Going well at ISO 1600. Still clean at ISO 3200. OK at ISO 6400. Noise becoming visible at ISO 12800 but colour OK. At ISO 25600 noise is well up and there are signs of a colour shift.
Quality: excellent colour, tops in the sharpness dept.
Why buy the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3: built in flash with a GN of 12 (ISO 100 in metres) that covers a 24mm range; access to a wide range of lenses, inc Leica’s optics.
Why not: too many pro-ish controls for some users; too many amateur options for pros!
To me, this would make an excellent camera for an ambitious beginner: you could start by using it as a point-and-shoot, then gradually move upwards as you learn the more complex controls.
Image Sensor: 16.05 million effective pixels.
Metering: Multiple, centre-weighted and spot.
Effective Sensor Size: Four thirds 17.3×13.0mm CMOS.
Lens Factor: 2x.
Compatible lenses: Micro Four Thirds.
Exposure Modes: Auto, Program AE, shutter and aperture priority, manual.
Shutter Speed: Bulb, 60 to 1/4000 second; flash sync 1/160 sec.
Burst Speed: 6 fps.
Memory: SD/SDHC/SDXC cards.
Image Sizes (pixels): 4608×3456 to 1712×1712. Movies: 1920×1080, 1280x720p, 640×480.
Viewfinders: Turret finder (1.74 million pixels), 7.6cm LCD screen (614,000 pixels).
File Formats: JPEG, RAW, JPEG+RAW, AVCHD/MPEG4, MPO (3D).
Colour Space: Adobe RGB, sRGB.
ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 200 to 12800.
Interface: USB 2.0, AV, HDMI mini, WiFi, DC input.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery, AC adaptor.
Dimensions: 133x93x82 WHDmm.
Weight: Approx. 550 (inc battery).
Price: Get a price on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 (body only) or the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 with Panasonic H-FS 45-150mm Lumix G Series Lens.
Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.
Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 Review
Panasonic has created the Lumix G Vario 14-140mm F3.5-5.6 ASPH Power OIS, a second-generation 10x zoom for Micro Four Thirds cameras. The lens offers a smaller, lighter, less-expensive alternative to the original G Vario HD 14-140mm F3.5-5.8 ASPH Mega OIS. The latest version features three aspheric and two ED elements and an internal focus design with linear stepper motors to make the most of the faster focus processing of the latest Micro Four Thirds bodies.
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Panasonic has announced the Lumix DMC-G6 – the latest in its mass market series of DSLR-styled mirrorless cameras. The G6 gains considerably improved movie capabilities, including full exposure control, an external mic socket and the sensor from the GH2. It also adds the NFC-aided Wi-Fi for simple remote control and image download that we first saw in the GF6.
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
Panasonic has announced the Lumix DMC-LF1, the first in a new line of Raw-shooting enthusiast compacts. The LF1 marries the sensor from the LX7 to a longer, slower lens and adds an electronic viewfinder. The camera combines a 12MP 1/1.7″ CMOS sensor with a 28-200mm equivalent F2.0-5.9 lens and finds room for a 202k dot-equivalent electronic viewfinder. It becomes the fifth Panasonic model to offer Wi-Fi for remote control and wireless communication that can be set up using NFC.
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
We’ve just posted our Panasonic Lumix DMC-G6 preview, covering Panasonic’s newest Micro Four Thirds mirrorless interchangeable lens camera. The G6 comes barely a year after the G5, and offers several updates, including a 1.44 million-dot OLED electronic viewfinder and the same sensor as the GH2. Its body has also been restyled and the touch-sensitive technology of its fully-articulated screen has been upgraded. Like its little brother the GF6, the G6 also includes built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with Near Field Communication (NFC). Click through for our hands-on preview.
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)