Tag: M43

Panasonic Australia: The LUMIX G9II, “Capture the Decisive Moment” – Press Release

The LUMIX G9II
“Capture the Decisive Moment”

Powerful new Micro Four Thirds flagship delivers accurate auto-focus, high speed response and outstanding photographic performance.

Sydney, 13 September 2023: Panasonic is proud to announce the launch of the LUMIX G9II digital mirrorless camera. This powerful new Micro Four Thirds flagship is the first G Series to offer Phase Detection Auto-Focus (PDAF) technology and features a brand-new sensor and engine.

Aaron Waters, Product Marketing Manager of Imaging at Panasonic said: “This camera’s impressive enhancements will delight G Series photographers with fast and reliable image capture in the field. Improvements spanning from Auto-focus to burst-shooting and stabilisation reward the shooter by empowering them to record fleeting moments. And it’s backed by our highly mobile and extensive Micro Four Thirds lens lineup. The two LEICA telephoto lenses announced today allow users to choose from a 32-strong lineup – making it easy to select the perfect kit.”

“The G9II is also a creative workflow dynamo, with REAL TIME LUT, Full Sensor 4:3 ‘open gate’ video recording, Apple ProRes video, 300fps slow motion & more on board.”

LUMIX G9II: Key Capabilities

The camera’s new 25.2-megapixel Live MOS sensor delivers high resolution and high-speed response, supporting V-Log/V-Gamut and 13+ stops of wide dynamic range (1). The new engine achieves natural, three-dimensional textured images and ensures high-speed processing of high bitrate video.

The hybrid PDAF technology on board the LUMIX G9II enables accurate auto-focus and high-speed tracking of fast-moving subjects. New AI-powered recognition technology (developed using AI deep learning) for real-time auto-focus now recognises cars, motorcycles, and animal eyes for improved precision.

To deliver fast action photography, the LUMIX G9II offers burst shooting at 60 fps (AFC) and Super High Speed (2) pre-burst recording (3) that can commence shooting up to 1.5 seconds prior to shutter release, including support for RAW files. A blackout-free Live View Finder means the user can continuously track and keep the subject in focus.

Providing incredible stabilisation for hybrid shooters, the excellent LUMIX image stabilisation system is further enhanced. For photographers, the in-body IS offers an impressive 8-stop at 60mm (4), and when shooting with ultra-telephoto focal length, the Dual I.S 2 system offers 7.5-stop (5) at 140mm (280mm 35mm equivalent). Videographers will appreciate the Active I.S. technology which is optimised for video shooting, offering smooth gimbal-like video even when walking with the camera.

These capabilities provide even greater support for handheld shooting at ultra-telephoto focal lengths, capturing difficult, dynamic subjects such as wildlife. Using the precision gyro-sensor and in-body stabilisation unit, 100-megapixel images can be captured in camera using the High Resolution mode both with a tripod or when handheld.

There are also several modes that expand the possibilities of creativity. The 13+ stop V-Log/V-Gamut capture offers a high dynamic range, consistent colour management and streamlined post-production. With in-camera colour grading via REAL TIME LUT, creative scope is increased while workflow is reduced – excellent for repeatable setups such as content creators who work in the same studio or are looking to repeat the same style in camera instead of applying the same LUT in post. The newly-added LEICA Monochrome mode provides deep black/white contrast.

The Live View Composite Mode takes away the guess work, allowing the photographer to set the desired exposure, take the shot, then view the image on-screen as it is being exposed in real time. Once they are happy with how the shot looks, they simply hit the shutter button again to stop the exposure. This mode is also great for light painting, shooting light trails and other long exposure scenarios.

The G9II is a launching point for video creation. It includes 4:2:0 10-bit 5.8K (4:3) full sensor recording/ 5.7K (17:9), enabling flexible framing options for various social media formats, as well as 4:2:0 10-bit C4K/4K 120p/100p to enable slow motion videos. Recording and playback are supported using an external SSD via USB.

It also offers Apple ProRes (6) video, which delivers high image quality at low compression, reducing computer load during post-production and allowing non-linear editing without transcoding, streamlining workflow from start to finish.

Panasonic is pleased to introduce a new optional battery grip (DMW-BG1E) equipped with an eight-direction joystick that is compatible with the LUMIX G9II and the already available LUMIX S5II and S5IIX.

LUMIX G9II: Pricing and Availability

  • DC-G9M2GN: Body only: RRP $3299
  • DC-G9M2M: Kit with 12-60mm F3.5-5.6 lens: RRP $3599
  • DC-G9M2LEICA: Kit with Leica DG 12-60mm F2.8-4 lens: RRP $4399
  • DC-G9M2LPRO: Kit with Leica DG 12-35 F2.8 lens: RRP $4799
  • DMW-BG1E: RRP $599

The camera and battery grip will be available in Australia from leading photographic specialists in late October 2023.

Footnotes

  1. When shooting video at a setting of over 60 fps (including slow and quick mode), the luminance range provides 12+ stops. The dynamic range boost will not function when shooting video at a setting of over 60 fps (including slow and quick mode), when using the SH burst function for still images, and when combining slow shutter speeds of more than 1/15 seconds with ISO.
  2. Available in electronic shutter only.
  3.  When the ambient temperature is high or Pre-Burst recording is performed continuously, even if you press the shutter button halfway, Pre-Burst may not operate to protect the camera from overheating. Wait until the camera cools down.
  4. Based on the CIPA standard [Yaw/Pitch direction: focusing distance f=60mm (35mm film camera equivalent f=120mm), when H-ES12060 is used.
  5. Based on the CIPA standard [Yaw/Pitch direction: focusing distance f=140mm (35mm film camera equivalent f=280mm), when H-FSA14140 is used.
  6. Apple and ProRes are trademarks or registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.- Please see the website for video performance information, details, and specifications of the LUMIX G9II.

Micro Four Thirds™ and Micro Four Thirds Logo marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of OM Digital Solutions Corporation, in Japan, the United States, the European Union and other countries.

Images

Commentary

I can’t comment in depth about the long-awaited G9II as I am still digesting the product pages, reviews and videos for all the necessary fine details.

However, a couple of respectful suggestions and some questions for the creators of the press release:

  • This is a key capability that cannot be assumed but needs to be stated – C4K/4K 60p 4:2:2 10-Bit Video Recording – stating just “4:2:0 10-bit C4K/4K” risks readers assuming that the camera may not offer 4:2:2.
  • Thank you for the large collection of product and lifestyle photographs as always but please strive for representational equity with half featuring females and half being of males using the camera and lenses.
  • May I suggest supplying some in-studio product photographs like the ones used in the Panasonic Australia press release page in the Links list below?
  • There seems to be one product photograph missing, the camera-only right-side view with doors opened.
  • May I also suggest dusting cameras and lenses off before photographing them, especially when on location?

Links

We Recommend Lumix USA’s Lumix Live Live Stream Webinars for In-Depth Information About Panasonic’s Latest Releases

Press releases, brand ambassador short movies, video reviews and good old-fashioned reviews written by hand and illustrated are all very well and good but really in-depth information beyond the stuff that’s written in the user manuals is even better and the best source we’ve ever found for Panasonic Lumix cameras and lenses is Lumix USA’s Lumix Live live stream webinars. 

We live outside the live stream timezone so we depend on catching up later with the archived videos. 

Sean Robinson is a great presenter and his special guests like Emily May Lowrey are especially welcome. 

Lumix USA: Lumix Live live stream webinar archive playlist

Panasonic Lumix S5II, S5IIX and GH6

We’re still catching up with all that is to be known about the Lumix S5II so we’re ready for when the Lumix S5IIX is released later this year, and there’s still plenty to learn about the GH6.

We look forward to touching and trying a GH6 and eventually S5II and S5IIX when they finally arrive at our local camera store.

Links

Fujifilm House of Photography High Speed Photography Workshop with Fujifilm X-H2S on Saturday 4th February 2023

We attended the Fujifilm House of Photography high-speed photography event in Sydney after a harrowing ride on a train replacement bus and got there late as a result, losing the opportunity to make pre-event photographs. 

For most events that we cover the before and the after are often more photographically rich than during the event itself unless it turns into a riot or a confrontation with the authorities. 

Stephen Pierce made an in-depth presentation on using and getting the best out of the Fujifilm X-H2S camera before illustrating how one Western Australian photographer, Shelley Pearson, uses it in combination with the Fujinon XF 150-600mm f/5.6-8.0 R LM OIS WR super-telephoto variable focal length aka zoom lens for bird photography. 

Unless you’re Fujifilm Australia staff member and motorsports photographer Andrew Hall or bird photographer Shelley Pearson then you don’t need a Fujinon XF 150-600mm f/5.6-8.0 R LM OIS WR super-telephoto variable focal length lens.

Until you do.

Or at least you need to be able to give one a serious tryout.

We’re often asked to recommend cameras and lenses by friends, acquaintances and complete strangers as we were recently by a former neighbour who’s now living in a bird-rich region north of here.

We gave him some pros and cons for looking at current APS-C and Micro Four Thirds cameras and their long focal length lenses but had no hands-on experience to go by.

He chose Fujifilm.

This suburb where he lived from when it was mostly bush has lost most of its wildlife due to ongoing overdevelopment but we’ve turned our little patch of paradise into a haven for brush-turkeys, so-named for the shape of their tails that can morph from filbert-shaped to fan brush and back.

We’d love to photograph them but doing it well depends fast and deal accurate autofocus with really long lenses for when they fly up the gum trees at dusk or flutter down from them at dawn to gather, chat with each other then forage for seeds from the native plants we love so much.

We’ve had some remarkable experiences over the years with our brush-turkey friends and often converse with them in a call and response fashion when they’re carefully foraging through the leaf litter and grass seed heads.

Why we need the Fujifilm House of Photography

We dropped into the remaining – we used to have two of them nearby – local camera store to research for some articles about current generation gear for documentary video production made by Fujifilm, Panasonic and others and it was a stark reminder of why Sydney’s Fujifilm House of Photography is so useful, essential in fact.

Wouldn’t it be great if other brands did something similar to Fujifilm and then we wouldn’t have to keep asking for retailers to get gear we’re considering purchasing in from the different brands’ warehouses.

The brand reps, we’ve been told, justify the difficulty in getting gear we’re considering purchasing by the existence of online reviews, apparently telling camera stores that nobody wants to touch and try before they buy anymore.

We dispute that especially when we’re considering which camera and lens systems to go with when re-equipping with contemporary stills and video production hardware.

What next for Sydney’s Fujifilm House of Photography?

To our knowledge this is just the second event to be held by the Fujifilm House of Photography since it opened in June 2022.

Stephen Pierce announced there would be more events for genres including architectural photography and applications including video production as well as videos so we’ll keep our fingers crossed and will continue to attend and make photographs as long as they keep letting us in the door.

Next time there’s track work we’ll leave the house even earlier than usual and do a proper job of covering the event.

Fujifilm X-H2S & Fujinon XF 150-600mm f/5.6-8.0 R LM OIS WR

Links

The Many Joys of Small Cameras, As Proven by a Panasonic Lumix GX8 & Panasonic Lumix G Vario 12-32mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspheric Mega OIS Zoom

There’s been quite a bit of discussion online around Panasonic’s introduction of phase detection hybrid autofocus aka PDHAF or PDAF in its two latest cameras the Lumix S5 II and S5 IIX. 

Lumix camera users have been asking Panasonic for PDAF for years now instead of the depth from defocus aka DFD autofocus system upon which Panasonic has hung its hopes despite performing below par compared to other cameramakers’ autofocusing systems. 

Panasonic introduced its video-oriented Micro Four Thirds flagship camera the GH6 in 2022 and with it still relying on DFD Lumix users are asking for an upgraded GH6 with PDHAF, perhaps a GH6 II. 

Is a GH6 Mark II already on the slate for release later in 2023 or might Panasonic first be planning a return to smaller and more stills-oriented M43 cameras, this time with improved IBIS and the PDAF we’ve been wanting for so long? 

Some Lumix small camera, small lens snapshots from earlier today

olympus_omd_m.zuiko_pro_lenses_header_june_2021_01_1024px
The M.Zuiko Pro professional prime and zoom lenses from the Olympus Micro Four Third lens collection as of June 2021. Image courtesy of OM Digital Solutions Australia.

We bought our one small Lumix M43 camera, a GX8, not long after our first Lumix M43 camera, the GH4, for producing video for an unfunded global human rights charity where we were volunteering.

We chose the GX8 as a second camera primarily for video, for two-camera setups as well as a back-up for the GH4 if it went down on location.

We soon discovered the GX8 was an excellent stills photography camera as well as a fine video camera though without all the specifications of the GH4, and it had 3-way in-body image stabilization for stills only, Panasonic’s first venture into this essential feature for all cameras whatever their sensor size and intended use.

Then there’s the almost unique tilting electronic viewfinder aka EVF, rivalled only by Leica with its pricey Visoflex 2 detachable tiring EVF for its pricey M-System cameras.

Previously Panasonic had relied on IBIS for its zoom lenses but, with the exception of a couple of its longer prime at the time, not its single-focal length optics.

optimized_om-digital_m-zuiko-pro_12-40mm-f2.8-ii_02_1024px
OM System M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 II Pro zoom lens. Image courtesy of OM Digital Solutions Australia.

Although we defaulted to prime lenses for our pre-digital film work, zoom lenses have advanced in leaps and bounds since trying out and quickly returning our first one.

When we ordered our GH4 we had no hesitation adding an Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro standard zoom lens after comparing one to a Panasonic Lumix GX Vario 35-100mm f/2.8 Power OIS zoom.

The clincher for choosing the M.Zuiko Pro despite its lack of IBIS?

Its solid non-plastic body and its manual clutch focusing ring.

In our humble opinion every lens for serious documentary stills and video production should come with manual clutch focus aka MCF, no questions asked.

If Olympus could do it for its M.Zuiko and M.Zuiko Pro primes and zooms then surely all others can do it too.

We’ve been asking for MCF for Fujifilm and Panasonic lenses for years and, lo and behold, Panasonic’s brilliant available light and darkness zoom lens pair, the Leica DG Vario-Summilux 10-25mm f/1.7 Aspheric and Leica DG Vario-Summilux 25-50mm f/1.7 Aspheric came with exactly that.

Thank you, Panasonic, and now please add MCF when you revise other lenses for the extra resolution demands the GH6’s 5.7K 60p option may well demand.

Panasonic Lumix GH6 with Vario-Summilux 10-25mm & 25-50mm f/1.7 zoom lenses, a core M43 kit for 4K documentary video production

If Panasonic comes up with a GH6 Mark II with PDHAF then we’ll add one to the top of our video production wishlist along with the two f/1.7 zooms, but they’re a little too large for daily carry.

Instead for that we want a radically upgraded version of our beloved GX8, one suitable for professional stills and video work and not aimed at “street photography” with a reduced feature set as happened with the GX9.

That request is not just ours alone: we’ve been amazed at how so many GX8 users are asking the same question as well as GX7 and GX9 users.

Panasonic GX8 with two zoom lens kit

panasonic_lumix_g_25mm_f1.7_aspheric_H-H025K_upright_01_1024px_60%
Panasonic Lumix G 25mm f/1.7 Aspheric prime lens. Image courtesy of Panasonic Australia.

Although we often carry our GX8 with Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro zoom attached as one and only camera and lens combo each day, when we want to be even more discrete we choose our Panasonic Lumix G Vario 12-32mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspheric Mega OIS collapsible zoom instead.

The 12-32mm’s optics may not be as advanced as those in the 12-40mm and the former lacks any form of manual focusing much less MCF, but its optics are good enough when the GX8’s raw files are processed in DxO PhotoLab Elite with its superb DeepPRIME XD denoising and demosaicing feature selected.

We’ve come to rely on DxO’s DeepPRIME XD function for all our M43 raw files and have seen some amazing results with it especially with images shot in available darkness with less than stellar lenses.

Video often benefits from less than razor-sharp optics based on the number of videographers adding softening filters to their lenses and there’s the benefit of the 12-32mm’s optical image stabilization aka OIS that works for video when the GX8’s IBIS does not.

If you’re considering the tiny 12-32mm zoom, only available secondhand these days or bundled with a lower-tier Lumix camera, then please also consider the Lumix G Vario 35-100mm f/4.0-5.6 Aspheric Mega OIS lens as its natural telephoto companion.

We don’t have one – we have an Olympus telephoto zoom instead – but we’d love to add one when we can as this smaller, more affordable and collapsible alternative to the Lumix GX Vario 35-100mm f/2.8 Power OIS zoom gains great reviews and was recommended by the late, great M43 reviewer and former Fleet Street press photographer David Thorpe.

Panasonic GX8 with Lumix three prime lens kit

rolleiflex_f2.8_fx-n_twin_lens_reflex_tlr_01_1024px_60%
Rolleiflex f/2.8 Twin Lens Reflex with standard lens. Photograph courtesy Franke & Heidecke.

Our GX8 came with a prime lens bundled as part of a promotion, the often-underestimated Panasonic Lumix G 25mm f/1.7 Aspheric prime lens, and a spare battery.

Although we’ve never been dedicated standard normal lens users whatever the sensor or film format, the 25mm f/1.7 comes in handy when we want the feel of a Rolleiflex twin-lens reflex camera with 80mm standard normal prime lens by flipping the GX8’s EVF up to 90 degrees.

Until their demise in 2015 with the dissolution of the successor to original manufacturer Franke & Heidecke, the Rolleiflex TLR 120-rollfilm cameras were documentary, portrait and fashion photographer favourites and they’re still in demand on the secondhand market.

Franke & Heidecke made a number of variants beyond the 80mm standard-normal Rolleiflex including the first we had with a 75mm perfect normal lens, a wide Rolleiflex with 50mm lens and a telephoto Rolleiflex with 135mm lens.

There’s two ways of simulating these four Rolleiflex TLRs with a GX8, the first by attaching one or two zoom lenses.

The second is by having a nice little set of matched primes such as the Panasonic Lumix G 14mm f/2.5, 20mm f/1.7, 25mm f/1.7 and the OIS-equipped 42.5mm f/1.7.

I’d opt to leave out the standard normal 25mm f/1.7 for stills as the perfect normal 20mm f/1.7 is so, well, perfect but the 25mm lens is better for focus pulling given its normal length and not pancake sized barrel.

All four Lumix G primes have lightweight plastic bodies and quality optics though I can’t vouch for their performance with 5.7K video production and their glass is excellent even if it wasn’t designed and branded by Panasonic partner Leica Camera.

I’ve certainly come across documentary movies and narrative shorts being made with these Lumix primes on GHn series cameras as well as the GX8.

Contax G2 with three prime lens kit

A little bit of a history lesson!

I’ve been a rangefinder camera user even from before our two Leica M System cameras and lenses dating back to discovering two Linhof 4″x5″ and 120-rollfilm cameras hidden in a closet at art school.

Two analog rangefinder cameras that I’ve had the pleasure of owning or using include the Contax G2 and the Minolta CLE which developed from the Leica CL.

Minolta CLE with three prime lens kit

In partnership with Zeiss, Contax G1 and G2 maker brand Yashica expanded the bundled 3-prime lens set comprising 28mm, 45mm and 90mm wider and longer and in-between with 16mm, 21mm, 35mm and 35-70mm lenses.

The Leica CL and Minolta CLE stuck to their core set of three prime lenses.

I’ve never had the pleasure of using a Contax G2 or a Minolta CLE but pictures of proud owners using those cameras remind me so much of the look and feel of our GX8 whether equipped with a 12-32mm zoom or a 25mm prime lens.

A radically updated successor to the GX8 can’t come soon enough.

Links

DxO PhotoLab Elite 6 With DxO FilmPack Elite 6 & DxO ViewPoint 4 Works Wonders for Older Digital Cameras

We’ve been frustrated by the lack of feature parity in DxO’s support for Fujifilm X-Trans cameras in the current version of DxO PhotoLab Elite so our older Panasonic Lumix Micro Four Thirds cameras have been our daily carry lately along with several Olympus and Panasonic zoom lenses. 

We bought into the M43 system more for video than stills when older Fujifilm X-Trans cameras proved suboptimal for the task and zoom lenses better suited our needs back then.

Olympus, now OM Digital, and Panasonic continue to provide remarkable zoom lenses well suited for video production and stills photography due to their manual clutch mechanisms, and we’re dead impressed by what we’ve seen of Panasonic’s Leica DG Vario-Summilux 10-25mm f/1.7 Aspheric and Leica DG Vario-Summilux 25-50mm f/1.7 Aspheric zoom lenses.

Today we still tend to prefer prime lenses for our Fujifilm X cameras and zooms for our Panasonic Lumix M43 cameras though we may well change that a little with what we hope will be ongoing production by Fujifilm of more stills and movie-capable prime and zoom lenses like the very promising Fujinon XF 18-120mm f/4.0 LM PZ WR zoom.

Our ongoing adventures with applying DxO’s DeepPRIME XD denoising and demosaicing to Bayer raw files from older low megapixel digital cameras with pro and consumer quality zoom lenses is bearing fruit and opening our eyes to what can be extracted from gear we’re encouraged to think is getting too long in the tooth to keep using.

We’ve often thought the the constant churn, churn, churn of stills and video hardware is not best practice for the hip pocket or the planet.

The world of digital is one where software and hardware intimately work together and while both continue to evolve, jumps forward in software can keep much older hardware relevant for years to come.

We’ll continue to experiment with our older Panasonic Lumix cameras and lenses for stills photography when their raw files are processed in the latest versions of DxO PhotoLab Elite, DxO FilmPack Elite and DxO ViewPoint, but we really wish that DxO would support Fujifilm X-Trans cameras with the same features we’ve come to love in its support for Bayer sensor cameras.

Today We Tried Out DxO PhotoLab 6 To Process Bayer Raw Files Made with Panasonic Lumix GH4 & Panasonic Lumix G Vario 12-32mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspheric Mega OIS Zoom

We carry at least one camera and lens with us everywhere we go every day and today was no exception with our choice of camera being two oldies but goodies, as they say, a Panasonic Lumix GH4 and Panasonic Lumix G Vario 12-32mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspheric Mega OIS Zoom.

The 12-32mm zoom lens is small and collapsible so it easily fits into most small camera bags or even coat pockets and it in combination with our GH4, GX8 or other Micro Four Thirds cameras always proves to be almost invisible where we live.

The local population is much more accustomed to seeing photographers wielding Canon or Nikon DSLRs with big, long zoom lenses so ignores people like us.

The GH4’s M43 sensor is 16 megapixels and the camera itself has no in-body image stabilisation so a stabilized lens like the 12-32mm with its Mega OIS is useful for making photographs or videos handheld in low available light.

For comparison purposes we made the top photograph outside one local café with the GH4 and Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro while the other two were made with the same camera and the 12-32mm.

We processed all three 16 megapixel Bayer raw image files in DxO PhotoLab Elite 6 with DxO FilmPack Elite 6 and DxO ViewPoint 4 using the Astia film simulation located in Color Rendering/Digital Films/Fuji Astia-Soft.

The Digital Films film simulation collection is based on Fujifilm’s own film simulations as used in its Fujifilm X and GFX APS-C and large sensor cameras.

It’s handy being able to process images photographed with Fujifilm X-Trans and Panasonic Bayer cameras so they have the same rendering of colour and detail regardless of what size sensors they have.

As camera and lens makers don’t offer the perfect choice of lenses in every camera mount, we often mix and match cameras and lenses from different brands in the same project over time.

DxO is renowned for profiling combinations of cameras, sensors and lenses and that data goes into its software to enable that in a way we haven’t found with other makers’ raw processing and image editing software.

These three images were also all processed with DxO’s new DeepPRIME XD denoising and demosaicing feature, making it difficult to tell which lens was used for which photograph, whether a pro-quality zoom like the M.Zuiko Pro 12-40mm or a consumer-quality zoom like the Lumix G Vario 12-32mm.

The lower two images were made at the local café that is about to close down tomorrow.

We’re Having Fun Processing Bayer Raw Files in DxO PhotoLab Elite 6 & DeepPRIME XD & Wish DxO Would Support Fujifilm X-Trans Raw Files Too

We’re having more fun processing Bayer raw files in DxO PhotoLab Elite 6.0 and the new DeepPRIME XD denoising and demosaicing feature, and wish DxO would fully support Fujifilm X-Trans raw files too.

Not much happens in the suburbs where we live now and have lived before so photographs made here tend to be a little Edward Hopper-like, attempting to create “subdued drama out of commonplace subjects ‘layered with a poetic meaning’, inviting narrative interpretations”. 

We made these photographs with our beloved Panasonic Lumix GX8 and our Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro zoom lens and processed the Bayer raw files with DxO FilmPack Elite’s Astia film simulation preset for a painterly look and to emphasise the damp grey days of this third La Niña year in a row. 

DeepPRIME XD for M43 20 megapixels Bayer raw on Lumix GX8 at ISO 200

If the “XD” in DeepPRIME XD means “extra definition” then these unscientific tests appear to indicate that DxO PhotoLab Elite 6 is digging extra detail out of these 20 megapixel Micro Four Thirds raw files to produce results more reminiscent of APS-C-sized sensors.

That’s more noticeable in full-sized TIFF exports of these images from DxO PhotoLab Elite than these smaller JPEGs but we’re pleased at how low values in these images appear to benefit as well as better definition in all items in focus.

We’ll keep trying this latest version of DxO’s raw processor out while hoping for some good, strong sunlight but what we really want to see is full support for Fujifilm X-Trans raw files too.

If DeepPRIME XD is helping us get so much out of our M43 Bayer raw files then we can only imagine how much better our Fujifilm X-Trans are files might look compared to regular old DeepPRIME.

DeepPRIME XD for M43 20 megapixels Bayer raw on Lumix GX8 at ISO 3200

To further test DeepPRIME XD’s ability to dig extra detail out of images, I shot the two images above at a small clubhouse lit with uneven mixed light sources with the camera set at 3200 ISO and f/5.6.

Not bad for images from a Micro Four Thirds sensor with a base ISO of 200.

I’m rather fond of M43’s 4:3 aspect ratio and much prefer it to 35mm’s 3:2 aspect ratio for many subjects and genres, especially portraiture and documentary.

These results have encouraged me to consider carrying a Lumix GX8 or GH4 with me more often as my daily carry instead of a Fujifilm APS-C camera like my X-Pro2.

DeepPRIME XD has given both Lumix cameras extra life now.

I’m pleased that Fujifilm has finally listened to user requests and added two extra aspect ratios, 4:3 and 5:4, to its X-H2.

I hope that Fujifilm will do the same for the X-H2S, X-T5, X-Pro4 and all its future APS-C cameras.

DeepPRIME XD for APS-C 12 megapixels Bayer raw on Fujifilm X100 at ISO 800

We still have our original Fujifilm Finepix X100 though every so often we wonder if we should consider selling it considering its age and collectable status.

Our philosophy is that every bit of gear here should still be usable and not just sit there unused, so we got it out the other day and shot some images of the building activity going on around us.

It’s been a while since we made any serious photographs with it and when we did the results from processing X100 raw files in much earlier versions of DxO PhotoLab were good but not impressive enough to justify keeping the camera.

These images paint a very different picture when using DxO PhotoLab 6 Elite and DeepPRIME XD.

Next we’ll try making some images with non-M.Zuiko Pro lenses on M43 cameras and see what we get with DeepPRIME XD on 20 megapixel and 20 megapixel Bayer files.

Meanwhile, DxO, please radically update your support for Fujifilm X-Trans raw files to parity with its support for Bayer raw files!

Do any specific extra restrictions apply to images from cameras using FujiFilm X-Trans Sensors?

This information applies to version(s): 5, 6

For FujiFilm X-Trans images, the current restrictions are:

  • No Prime, and DeepPRIME XD support* (but DeepPRIME is supported).
  • No auto mode option in DxO Smart Lightning.
  • No dead pixels option in DxO Denoising technologies.
  • No maze option in DxO Denoising technologies.

*It is planned to add DeepPRIME XD support only with a later minor update of DxO PhotoLab 6.

We rely on our Fujifilm cameras for  discreet documentary photography in available light and more often darkness where we often have no choice but to set high ISOs then process for optimum quality results.

Fujifilm’s X-Pro series digital rangefinder cameras are well-suited to this type of photograph given their lack of resemblance to intrusive and noisy DSLRs and DSLR-style cameras.

It’s true that Panasonic’s Lumix GX8 rangefinder-style camera also tends to be ignored in public for its resemblance to compact point-and-shoot cameras and the results we are getting from processing its raw files in the latest version of DxO PhotoLab Elite are impressive.

But we often need to use both types of cameras on the same projects as neither system has every lens type and focal length that we want so its a question of mix and match cameras plus lenses while trying to process Bayer and X-Trans raw to look like they’re from one and the same system.

DeepPRIME XD for M43 20 megapixels Bayer raw on Lumix GX8 & Lumix G Vario 12-32mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspheric Mega OIS at ISO 500

With once normal bright and sunny spring and summer days a thing of the pre-pandemic past, I’m still working out how to effectively process photographs made in our now customary gloom.

Perhaps a more painterly approach may work?

If so, Panasonic’s Lumix G Vario 12-32mm f/3.5-5.6 Aspheric Mega OIS zoom lens seems to be a good match as its optics appear softer and more flattering than those of Olympus’ M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro zoom lens.

DPReview TV: What is ‘open gate’ video and why should you care? – Commentary

“Several recent cameras like the Panasonic GH6 and Fujifilm X-H2S are offering high resolution ‘open gate’ video recording modes. You may be curious, what is ‘open gate’ video and how can it help your video projects? Chris Niccolls will fill you in.”

Two affordable current open gate hybrid cameras: Fujifilm X-H2s & Panasonic Lumix GH6

Fujinon XF 18-120mm f/4.0 LM PZ WR stills + video zoom lens on Fujifilm X-H2S. Image courtesy of Fujifilm Global.
Panasonic Lumix DC-GH6 with Panasonic Leica DG Vario-Elmarit 12-60mm f/2.8-4.0 Aspheric Power OIS zoom lens. Image courtesy of Panasonic Australia.

Commentary

Panasonic added open gate video capability to the GH5 in a firmware update and interest in combining anamorphic lenses with open gate recording has been growing from then onwards.

Lens makers have been adding more and more anamorphic lenses in Micro Four Thirds, APS-C/Super 35 and for 35mm sensor equipped cameras, so-called “full frame” aka “full format”.

The latter two terms are marketing man talk intended to persuade consumers that 35mm sensor cameras are somehow the standard to aim for instead of there other two but they may be more useful in another context, the use of the full sensor for video recording instead of a segment cropped out of the sensor.

Jordan and Chris at DPReview TV have suggested a third term, “full sensor recording”, and it makes sense when used in place of “open gate”.

Digital cameras don’t have gates.

“Open gate” dates back to the days of analog movie cameras where one had to check the camera’s film gate for hairs or dust and then clean it out before the next take.

The term isn’t really applicable to digital movie cameras and hybrid cameras so we support a more sensible and realistic alternative.

“Full sensor recording” has value as an explanation in an owner’s manual, for example, but perhaps “full frame” makes way more sense as “open gate” is recording using the whole frame, the whole of the sensor, and not a part of it.

The absurd and wildly inaccurate use of “full frame” to refer to 35mm sensor cameras will need to be jettisoned, but frankly that’s no bad thing as marketing man gibberish like “full frame” and “full format” has done little but constantly bewilder the uneducated and confuse the unwary.

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A slow day in Pymble at the start of private and public school holidays

It was a slow day in Pymble running up to the start of private and public school holidays following the federal government’s national day of mourning for the late Queen Elizabeth II. 

Social class differences and similarities revealed themselves in play in another way through the window of our local hairdressing salon. 

The salon and the adjacent bakery are located on the edge of an old social housing estate in the midst of some of the wealthiest suburbs in Australia with rich and poor often living cheek by jowl in block-filling grey or mud-coloured multi-storey MacMansions next door to little old weatherboard cottages. 

This little stretch of pavement and street is usually densely packed with people and cars waiting to buy pastries and coffee during non-holiday periods but today it started off with a sparse crowd and grew very little by the time we exited the area.

A nearby suburb is one of the less wealthy around here but in recent years it has been invaded by large packs of corporate-liveried competitive cyclists using its streets as a training ground, to the dismay of the locals who have proven powerless against it.

Australia is not the egalitarian place it pretends to be and the conflict between rich and poor can be a bitter one with feuds and brutal power games occurring between neighbours of different social classes.

We moved out several years ago due to the packs of cyclists and mistreatment of locals by parents from the wealthiest suburb nearby dumping their skateboarding offspring off at the top of speed ramp-like streets to spend the day competing, fighting, urinating in our gardens and hurling their garbage into our front yards.

Complaining to the parents about their offspring’s misbehaviour drew threats of court action and worse, much worse – said parents turned out to be lawyers, judges or the spouses of lawyers and judges.

Old friends get a workout, as it were

Today I was carrying our beloved Panasonic Lumix GX8 Micro Four Thirds camera with tilting electronic viewfinder and Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro zoom lens attached.

I haven’t been carrying this combination as much as I’d like lately given COVID-19, the locals’ lack of interest in social distancing and mask-wearing, our own illnesses and often dreadful La Niña cold rainy days and dim grey light.

I love how the GX8 can become a waist-level camera like our old Rolleiflex twin-lens reflex cameras with a simple tilt of its electronic viewfinder.

I really like the 4:3 and 3:4 aspect ratio of the Micro Four Thirds sensor format and how it works so much better than the 3:2 and 2:3 of the APS-C and 35mm sensor formats for so many photographic genres, subjects and styles.

I absolutely love the 12-40mm f/2.8’s manual clutch focus mechanism that’s shared by almost all the rest of the Olympus and OM System M.Zuiko Pro prime and zoom lenses as well as several M.Zuiko Premium range lenses.

I’m saddened and concerned that OM System appears to be abandoning the manual clutch focusing functionality that convinced so many videographers, cinematographers and Directors of Photography to invest in Olympus lenses for their Panasonic Lumix M43 cameras.

I’ve been waiting so long for Olympus and then OM System to expand their wide-aperture M.Zuiko Pro prime lens range beyond the initial three – the M.Zuiko 17mm, 25mm and 45mm f/1.2 Pro lenses.

I’ve been hoping for M.Zuiko 14mm, 20mm and 52.5mm Pro lenses with manual clutch focus and when OM System released its M.Zuiko 20mm f/1.4 it made it into a semi-professional lens at best by failing to include the legendary Olympus manual clutch focusing ring.

Little wonder, then, that videographers, cinematographers and even Directors of Photography have now turned their attention to Panasonic’s revolutionary Leica DG Vario-Summilux 10-25mm f/1.7 Aspheric and Leica DG Vario-Summilux 25-50mm f/1.7 Aspheric zoom lenses.

The final feature of the GX8 that makes me love it so is its in-body image stabilization, even if it’s an early version of IBIS that’s 3-way instead of the now more common 5-way IBIS.

It allows me to use low ISOs in poor light and slow shutter speeds in situations where our other daily carry camera, Fujifilm’s X-Pro2, would be challenged.

IBIS needs to be built in to every new hybrid “stills+movie” mirrorless camera from now on just as manual clutch focus must be in every new hybrid “stills+movie” prime and zoom lens.

My recurring question to Panasonic is, when are you going to release a professional-quality successor to the GX8?

My new and about to be recurring question to OM System is, when are you going to give up on these semi-professional “M.Zuiko Pro” lenses without manual clutch focus and go back to making real professional primes and zooms with the manual clutch focusing capability that we all love and that has proven its value for so long?

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DPReview TV: Panasonic cameras: The good and the bad – Commentary

“Chris and Jordan have primarily been using Panasonic cameras to shoot DPReview TV for years, but they still have some criticisms. What is Panasonic getting right and wrong with their camera lineup? Chris and Jordan have some thoughts.”

Panasonic Lumix DC-GH6 with Panasonic Leica DG Vario-Elmarit 12-60mm f/2.8-4.0 Aspheric Power OIS zoom lens. Image courtesy of B&H.
Panasonic Leica DG Vario-Summilux 10-25mm f/1.7 Aspheric ultra-wide to standard normal zoom lens. Image courtesy of Panasonic Australia.
Panasonic Leica DG Vario-Summilux 25-50mm f/1.7 Aspheric standard to short telephoto zoom lens. Image courtesy of Panasonic Australia.
Panasonic Lumix GH6 with Panasonic Leica DG Vario-Summilux 10-25mm f/1.7 Aspheric and Leica DG Vario-Summilux 25-50mm f/1.7 Aspheric zooms. Image courtesy of Compact Camera Meter.

Commentary

This video discussion about Panasonic Lumix G-Series M43 and S-Series 35mm cameras and lenses between Jordan and Chris of DPReview TV is well overdue and very welcome given they touch on most of the best and worst of what Panasonic is doing with both systems.

“Almost but not quite” seems to be an operational principle of so many companies making cameras, lenses and other hardware for stills photography and video production and Panasonic is no exception.

I can’t speak about Panasonic’s S-Series cameras as I’ve only tried the S1 and S1R out at a couple of Panasonic Australia launch events but here at Unititled.Net we’ve been using Panasonic Lumix GH and GX cameras for video and stills for years now.

Although we don’t expect to rely on autofocus when shooting most videos it’s good to have the functionality availability if it’s good enough.

Is the depth-from-defocus autofocusing good enough on the GH6? Perhaps, although we’ve yet to try a GH6 out or seriously consider adding one to our kit right now given how Fujifilm has suddenly leapt ahead on most of its features and presents a double threat – great APS-C stills capability as well as apparently excellent Super 35 functionality.

Lack of scopes and more development needed on IBIS aside.

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