Panasonic GH4, the ultimate hybrid for processed video and 4K
It is no coincidence that over the years the Panasonic Lumix GH hybrid devices have become more popular with media professionals; what little consumer devices can boast. The GH4 drives the point in agreeing the leitmotif of his elders: combine in a single frame all the know-how of the brand at a time T. Alongside the CMOS sensor 4/3 “16 megapixel processor Venus Engine, Wi-Fi and NFC, we retain only the most GH4 is the first interchangeable lens system public capable of shooting 4K internally.
A: The barrel selection modes has a lock button. Two: the same barrel loses the “Scenes” position. Three: on the left shoulder, the barrel selector pace wins the position “Interval.” Four: the rubber eyecup is a little bent and better protects entries light side. Five: uh … and that’s it, that’s all. The physical differences between the Lumix GH3 GH4 and its predecessor can be counted on the fingers of one hand. This relative stagnation is not a problem as the GH have become, over time, very complete from an ergonomic point of view. We meet up with the steering wheel double the trilogy buttons WB-ISO exposure compensation level of the index and five programmable keys Fn whose distribution does not move one iota but supplemented by five keys virtual (three more than before). Moreover, these Fn keys can now receive any function from a list of 14 pages, Wi-Fi controller depth of field, through setting the directivity of the microphone or the setting of zebras. Plugs are also very comprehensive, USB 2.0 (only), uncompressed HDMI, headphone and microphone are at the rendezvous. For professional productions, complement DMW-YAGH adds HD-SDI outputs, XLR inputs, the ability to connect an external 12 V power supply, an input for the time code, monitoring of stereo sound on two channels - but we do not have to test.
However, some small absences are felt. If the steering Lumix GH4 will not disappoint users accustomed to reflex experts and professionals, they will not recover their expensive LCD screen on the hood and will settle for a single SD slot, what we are asking for many years . In return, they will enjoy the totally silent operation of the electronic shutter that goes up 1/8000e second - a strange limitation when the tiny GM1 climbs 1/16000e. Flash sync at 1/250th of a second pass but the flash still works with the mechanical shutter. Apart from that, it will really be choosy not reach the GH4 set to his liking and according to his needs. The menus have small side Jumanji and Paic Lemon: Every visit to discover hidden features and “when there are more, there still.” Maybe here do we find that the Focus Peaking deserved to propose the highlight red. Here, it is not possible to finely adjust the automatic sensitivity. Impossible to set a floor, ceiling, or a speed limit, a particularly strange absence Leica partner that offers this kind of refinement yet very useful for almost ten years … Elsewhere, some may regret that it is not possible to save RAW files compressed. Finally, unlike GX7 the sensor GH4 is not stabilized. Oh, and then there is no panorama mode (GH4 be too serious for that).
The definition of multitouch OLED 3 “(7.6 cm) screen on ball rises to 1,036,000 dots (previously 610,000), the OLED viewfinder jumped to 2.36 million dots (1.744 million previously). both offer a precise and comfortable viewing but as often with Panasonic, the colors are too saturated and contrast too hidden. therefore the pickiest rant menus to adjust the brightness, contrast and tone of the screen, many settings which, surprisingly, does not exist for the viewfinder, however latter remains at the top of the list, even if the Fujifilm X-T1 remains wide, comfortable and responsive..
Panasonic GH4, the ultimate hybrid for processed video and 4K
Grandmother knows how good coffee and Panasonic knows how fast APN. The GH4 is no exception to the rule and goes fast, very fast, faster than GX7 two times faster than the GH3, so fast, in all situations, it would almost want to complain about it start “in” half a second. But also bright it is, SLR entry and midrange as the Nikon D3300 or Canon EOS 100D, light and chain triggers faster. Side of the burst, by cons, the GH4 fights with the gratin SLR experts and professionals. Whether JPG or RAW + JPG, clichés are linked to 11 frames per second. In hybrids, only very specific Nikon 1 know how to go faster.
Significant novelty side of the autofocus in addition to the traditional face detection, subject tracking AF 49 zones, spot and point, a way “FREE” is to say “Multiple custom” made its appearance . Of the 49 grid areas by the AF, you can choose freely, fingertips, as you want, wherever you want. And as a video is worth a thousand words:
The GH4 is also the first device to ship the Panasonic AF system DFD (Depth from Defocus) which, as the acronym suggests, is based on the profile rendering depth of field of the lens. Said like that, it’s pretty barbaric, but to summarize, the DFD uses the detection of blur to know in which direction it should move its focus to more quickly find the sharpness.
The CMOS sensor 16 megapixels and the Venus Engine processor are new, but Panasonic did not yet put forward especially photographic skills of its GH4. Just simply he a terse “is both a GX7 even a bit better.“ Duly noted.
Compared to GH3, it is mostly the highest sensitivities beyond ISO 3200, benefiting from technological advances. Below, the GH4 will work without betraying you and deliver images actually as good as the GX7. However, we regret that the smoothing supported JPG, characteristic of Panasonic products, is still in the game, but we’re willing to bet that the overwhelming majority of users GH4 will have eyes only for RAW files. If necessary, it is possible to adjust from shooting the curve levels, with four conventional configurations pre-recorded, which three settings “custom” can be added.
That the GH4 is good at video would be an understatement: he was born to it, hardly lives for this, and reading the loooooongue list of formats it can handle speaks volumes about his abilities that many professional camcorders would not deny him.
.mov 59,94 Hz 4K (3840 x 2160) 29,97p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 23,98p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 1920 x 1080 59,94p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 29,97p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 23,98p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 50 Hz 4K (3840×2160) 25,00p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 1920 x 1080 50,00p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 25.00p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 24 Hz [C4K] 4096 x 2160 24,00p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) [4K] 3840×2160 24,00p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 1920 x 1080 24,00p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) MP4 59,94 Hz [4K] 3840 x 2160 29,97p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 23,98p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 1920 x 1080 59,94p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 29,97p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 23,98p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 59,94p, 28 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 29,97p, 20 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 1280 x 720 29,97p, 10 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 640 x 480 29,97p, 4 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 50 Hz [4K] 3840×2160 25,00p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 1920 x 1080 50,00p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 25,00p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 50,00p, 28 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 25,00p, 20 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 1280 x 720 25,00p, 10 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 640 x 480 25,00p, 4 Mbps (IPB) (AAC) 24 Hz [C4K] 4096×2160 24,00p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) [4K] 3840 x 2160 24.00p, 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) 1920 x 1080 24,00p, 200 Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50 Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) AVCHD Progressig 59.94 Hz 1920 x 1080 59,94p, 28 Mbps (IPB) (Dolby) 59,94i, 24 Mbps (IPB) (Dolby) (Sortie capteur 29,97 fps) 59,94i, 17 Mbps (IPB) (Dolby) (Sortie capteur 59,94 fps) 23,98p, 24 Mbps (IPB) (Dolby) 50 Hz 1920 x 1080 50,00p, 28 Mbps (IPB) (Dolby) 50,00i, 24 Mbps (IPB) (Dolby) (Sortie capteur 25,00 fps) 50,00i, 17 Mbps (IPB) (Dolby) (Sortie capteur 50,00 fps)
The number of formats supported by the GH4 is staggering … and that‘s not all. For the technicians know that the GH4 can record 10-bit 4:2:2 with an external recorder - these are hardly available on the market …) - which offers picture quality including upper inlays on green or blue background. To end the recording modes, note that it is possible to record at high speed to produce smooth slow motion with 1080 HDTV modes up to 96 i / s. Nice, but beware, the autofocus seems more available in this mode. Another point to take into account the GH4 uses the center part of the sensor for 4K video, reducing the crossing angle of view; a 25 mm turning into 37 mm for example. Also note that a fast card, ideally UHS-III is essential to film in the biggest definitions and that, whatever the selected recording format (AVCHD, MP4, MOV) and regardless of the definition used (the 4K VGA), recording is limited to …. 29 minutes and 59 seconds. Petty. Fortunately, this limitation can be overcome using an external recorder (but we get there in a different domain).
But this small box offers a wide array of more assistants for the video, including the zebras to control exposure (in addition to the histogram of exposure), a master pedestal to play with the black density, a series of gammas (CINELIKE D CINELIKE V) to render more cinema, focus peaking (colored pixels around the net objects), a meter to ensure the sound level when recording - in addition to the helmet that you can plug … of course - an electronic level to keep the horizon … horizontal. The list is long and it lacks a built-in neutral density filter for shooting in bright sunlight with a bright lens.
The autofocus works perfectly video and is fast, flexible and relevant. The screen is touch, you can choose the subject‘s finger and track the subject even keeping an eye in the viewfinder.
Difficult to summarize the video a few lines GH4 test, but the results are really interesting, with a good dynamic and a very fine picture, especially during a transition to 4K HDTV 1080. Short, video, GH4 is a war machine!
Professional video skills (4K, 4:2:2 Full HD 100 Mb / s, zebras, gamma CINELIKE etc..).
Full connectivity (HDMI, USB, headphone, microphone, remote control, flash plug, Wi-Fi, NFC).
Highly responsive autofocus.
Excellent image quality up to ISO 3200.
Customizable interface to the smallest detail.
No built-in GPS (but geotag possible via the Image App application).
No fine-tuning the AUTO sensitivity.
No auto ISO in manual exposure in video.
Smoothing winded JPG files.
Menus, sub-menus, sub-menus to the sometimes confusing wealth.
Electronic shutter up 1/8000e “only”.
Video limited to 29 minutes and 59 seconds.
If the rating of E included a sixth star, no doubt that the Panasonic Lumix GH4 would be part of this elite. More than just a technological flagship, it is a tool especially videographic and photographic production formidable, implacable, a wild efficiency which it seems difficult to perceive the limits. If the GH3 could float some doubts, the GH4 is clear: it has no serious competition in the world nor in the hybrid DSLR, especially when it comes to video, and it will take a minimum of five budget figures to find better. Its only real flaw? Sometimes it may lack soul …
Panasonic GH4, the ultimate hybrid for processed video and 4K Panasonic GH4, the ultimate hybrid for processed video and 4K It is no coincidence that over the years the Panasonic Lumix GH hybrid devices have become more popular with media professionals; what little consumer devices can boast.
