"Panasonic G series" Owners Thread

Cheers I had found it myself anyway. Wow. It seems an issue that many people are able to reproduce. For the benefit of others that do not want to read all the other threads on the subject I will try to summarize below on the EM5 vs 20mm banding issue.

The banding ONLY occurs with the Panasonic 20mm f/1.7 and ONLY on the new Olympus EM5.

On some of the examples posted it is very obvious. (Banding = Horizontal lines accross the screen). What a shame for EM5 owners, and in fact the future resale price of fellow 20mm lens owners perhaps?

Some people have posted interesting hypotheses based on simulation tests. The whole thing is very interesting. Initially people were going down the road of the conditions (fluorescent lighting) being the culprit. But now we have evidence suggesting that it is some kind of electrical interferance possibly based on the 20mm acting as some kind of arial to amplify certain radio frequencies (mobile phones etc). One person tested with the 20mm mounted to the EM5 body, but with the contact points taped up which should have meant that no electrical connection was being made to it. The very nature of the 20mm being "grounded" against the body could allow the issue to present itself. Perhaps the internal AF motor (is there a magnet inside?) or construction of the lens not being as shielded is causing it. People have tried various other lenses on the EM5 and could not reproduce the banding issue. It is limited to the 20mm prime. Surely a firmware fix for the EM5 is unlikely to address this kind of issue?

I wonder if Olympus have even been made aware of the issue yet. Forum users typically like to moan about problems, and often forget to inform the manufacturers.
 
Have purchased a wrist strap for my GX1 - but would look good on any lumix body

footprintstrap.jpg



http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/180879209462
 
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Just spotted the first s/h Olympus EM5 up for sale, it is over on AV Forums.......don't rush over there, you will not like the price!.
 
Just spotted the first s/h Olympus EM5 up for sale, it is over on AV Forums.......don't rush over there, you will not like the price!.

he has high hopes, he is also asking for more than the new price on his Oly 45 :cuckoo:
 
I'm happy with mine, not sure if you're familiar with canikon but it seems close in build and optical quality to the 55-200VR/55-250IS, although it's slightly more expensive than these.

I'm not that into zooms, bought mine as I thought I'd need one at some point... loaned it to a friend recently who's got an m43 as a trade up from a bridge, and he seems to really like the lens, has got some good shots with it so far.

big thanks...being new to micro 4/3 i am not so au fait with the options availiable in lenses
cheers
geof
 
big thanks...being new to micro 4/3 i am not so au fait with the options availiable in lenses
cheers
geof

It obviously depends what you're looking for in a telephoto, but I've found my 45-200 to be comparable to the 55-250 Canon I had in terms of build quality and performance.
I think that as its not my main lens and will only be used for certain things, its great value for money. I paid £160 for mine in the classifieds here (used and mint condition) and I'm happy with the lens I've got for the price, if that makes sense.
 
WD 40 cure it:D

If only it were that simple!! ;). When 3 in 1 oil didn't work I gave up! :lol:
I did some online research, and it seems like some copies of the 100-300mm can be very sticky. I phoned WEX, and they are picking my 100-300mm up on Monday. The guy on the phone said it may have to go back to Panasonic, which would be a pain, but as it's within a month of purchase, I am hoping they will take pity on me and give me a replacement. Watch this space!!
 
14mm or not. That is the question

That's the same decision I'm trying to make at the moment.
I'm getting ever closer to buying, but I keep thinking of other things I could spend the money on. Then I think that as I've just got a new job after being made redundant in January, I should reward myself with something special.
I'm not even certain that I need it though, but I'm getting a puppy in a few weeks time and I think it would be great for photos of the little chap indoors.
 
samems said:
14mm or not. That is the question

The answer is "yes"... Hundred odd quid used? That's essential! ;)

More realistically, 20mm or not. That'd be my question :)
 
14mm or not. That is the question

Having just purchased a gx1 with 14-42, 20 & 14 - and being a previous advocate of my little geoff (gf1) and 20mm combo.....

I think the 14mm is a better lens in all but focal length - the AF speed is amazing, it is indestinguishable in sharpness from the 20mm and although it is 'only' f2.5 you still get some really nice bokeh. 14mm is a little wide for portraits/people shots IMHO.

Go on buy one :thumbs: with cashback they end up a little over £150.
 
In the past I have always used a camera "bag" aka backpack with two shoulder straps and compartments for my camera and lenses. With my Panasonic G2, kit lens and 20mm prime, I think what I want now is just some sort of robust/sturdy but light weight leather pouch thing to put it in. This is because, with the whole kit being so small now, I tend to want to take it out with me in ANOTHER bag I am already taking with me to minimize stuff to carry. If such a leather pouch/bag had a shoulders trap as well, this would be ideal for the times I do just want to take only the camera.

Any (cheap) recommendations? I literally only want to store the body, kit and 20mm prime in it so as small as possible literally hugging the camera.

How do you guys find yourselves storing your Panasonic G series cams when out and about on the move? Do you keep lenses in the thin pouches in pockets/other bags you take with you? Or do you use a purpose camera bag for ALL your gear so you always take that bag in addition to other bags?
 
Nanneu Pro - it's too small for my current big digital kit (lens has to be removed from body!) but will accommodate 2 G series bodies with lens on each as well as spares, and there's a compartment above for lunch.

I also have a camlink shoulder bag which is big enough for a body and lens as we well as a flash unit or couple of lenses.

I don't know of anything truly figure hugging except those ever-ready style things.
 
Any (cheap) recommendations? I literally only want to store the body, kit and 20mm prime in it so as small as possible literally hugging the camera.

How do you guys find yourselves storing your Panasonic G series cams when out and about on the move?

ALDI have cheap offers on now and again and I bought a really cheap bag from them. My G1+25mm f0.95 fits in with a little room to spare and a couple of ND filters and the smaler lens cap (you get two lens caps with the f0.95) go in a side pouch.
 
Been out for a little walk around Southend on Sea in the sun this morning with the GX and 14mm..

snip

Lovely shots Alan. :)

I've decided to get the 14mm now and see how I get on with it. I've never really used primes before so I want to give the cheaper one a go and then I can decide whether to go for the more expensive 20mm and 45mm later down the line to go with it, or stick with the 14-45mm.
 
Lovely shots Alan. :)

I've decided to get the 14mm now and see how I get on with it. I've never really used primes before so I want to give the cheaper one a go and then I can decide whether to go for the more expensive 20mm and 45mm later down the line to go with it, or stick with the 14-45mm.

Thanks Mandy - zooming with your feet instead of the lens is not all that hard :lol:
 
Yes, memory card slots have an expected insertion life. If you think about it it's obvious that a connection can only be made and broken a certain number of times before the connecting parts suffer some mechanical wear. Even cable connectors in electrical and electronic items have a life too but to be honest sometimes for internal connections it doesn't really matter as once the connection is made it probably wont be broken again during the life of the item.

I remember back in my computer days some had a life expectancy in the dozens which was a PITA as they suffered so many connection problems and needed a lot of reseating. It's not that bad these days with card slots but I wont commit myself to a number I can't quite remember at the moment so I'll keep quiet for now until I've done a bit of Googling to see if I can find a figure.

Of course just as an SD card slot has a life, so does a USB socket :eek: :D


Remember, so does the shutter button -you guys better take it easy!!
;)
 
I looked in 3 Aldi stores in the week of that offer and there were none left and because their hardware stock changes weekly they do not usually keep products from the previous week.


I saw them in ours and depending on the item ours does have some carry over.
 
I sort of want to start getting more serious about my photography and get into doing it professionally.
So I would like everyone to join me in this can of worm opening -
panasonic gh2 vs canon 60d vs 5d vintage edition.
I'm aware that gh2 is the smallest and has the best video. but I'm looking for universal solution - maybe weddings, portraits, fashion. I'll probably keep the hexar + film scanner for light weight. but if the gh2 is great I might think about selling it.

my gh1 takes stunning videos but I find the images a bit too soulless :(
5d is fine but high iso isn't great plus it doesn't have auto iso.
60d - I like it, apart from small things like - although it's comfy it's too big for discreet shooting. live view AF is pants and video is good but not as good as gh2.
BUT - for the 60d I could get the super sweet 17-55mm usm as panasonic lacks high end zooms. I love primes but for events etc, I would feel more comfortable with one zoom.
 
Like me, I am pondering as to wether or not to keep my G3 or buy a 40D. I like the compactness of the Panny but also love the range of lenses the Canon has and the best bit for me, the ovf.
 
bl0at3r said:
Having just purchased a gx1 with 14-42, 20 & 14 - and being a previous advocate of my little geoff (gf1) and 20mm combo.....

I think the 14mm is a better lens in all but focal length - the AF speed is amazing, it is indestinguishable in sharpness from the 20mm and although it is 'only' f2.5 you still get some really nice bokeh. 14mm is a little wide for portraits/people shots IMHO.

Go on buy one :thumbs: with cashback they end up a little over £150.

I'm considering upgrading to a gx1 body from the gf1, purely because I always thought the gf1 was a little noisy at higher ISO against my 50D. Would you say it is worth changing?
 
I'm considering upgrading to a gx1 body from the gf1, purely because I always thought the gf1 was a little noisy at higher ISO against my 50D. Would you say it is worth changing?

The noise is definitely improved on the newer body, on the gf1 I was disappointed with anything over 1600 - on the gx1 3200 is perfectly usable and 6400 is still just about ok.

Add to the improved noise with other things like the higher megapixel, faster autofocus and general improvements in handling, video and little features and it is a worthy successor to the gf1.

Would I upgrade from a gf1? Yes, but if you long for a viewfinder then no stick with a dslr :thumbs:
 
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So I would like everyone to join me in this can of worm opening - panasonic gh2 vs canon 60d vs 5d vintage edition.

I ditched APS-C and now only have MFT and a 5D.

I find that during processing I can alter the contrast and saturation etc and get low to middling ISO shots from my 5D and G1 to look pretty much identical. At the highest ISO's my G1 can't match my 5D although I suspect that a GH will be much closer. The only other thing that MFT can't match is full frame shallow DoF as for the same FoV you'll be using a lens which is twice as wide and a 25mm f1.4 on MFT is never going to give DoF as shallow as a 50mm f1.4 on full frame unless you reduce the camera to subject distance and that will of course alter the FoV.

I'd imagine that for lots of shots MFT will give you enough DoF control but when going for the thinnest DoF MFT can't match FF at the same FoV. I don't know how much this will matter to you, I'm a fan of thin DoF myself but for people shots something between f2.8 and f4 on FF is probably as wide as I'd need close up but as the distance to the subject increases I like to go wider.

This shot was taken on a 5D at f3.2, quite close up and when viewed at a large size you can see that the near eye is in the DoF and the far one isn't so the DoF couldn't really be much thinner, a MFT would be able to match this and indeed give slightly thinner DoF but at a greater distance MFT would maybe start to struggle.

IMG_8455c-1.jpg


The other side of thin DoF would be deeper DoF and MFT will give you deeper DoF for the same FoV and shutter speed. That's a real advantage sometimes and may enable you to use a lower ISO than you'd be using on FF.

The best solution would be to have two cameras. A 5D for the higher ISO and thin DoF stuff and a MFT for portability, movie making, low ISO and deeper DoF in low light.
 
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