GH5 10-25mm F1.7 OR 12-35 and 35-100mm F2.8??

C

CustomerGH4

Well-known member
Hello,
I was super sure that I will buy 10-25 F1.7 that I even bought an expensive ND filter to it, but now I realised for the price of 10-25 I could get both
12-35mm AND 35-100mm F.28. So I need help persuading...
Should I stick to the plan and wait for the sequel of 10-25 so I would have two 1.7 lenses,, or take both 12-35 and 35-100 OR maybe 10-25 and then in the future the 35-100?
Please help me.
I film videos daily.. I would take the two 2.8 moneywise, but I often have trouble needing more light , also Ive noticed I sometimes need to go wider than 12mm to fit things so 10mm would be good..

All input appreciated.
 
The 10-25mm is 1.5 F-stops faster, so for shallower DOF and better low light performance it's the one to beat.

On the other hand the two f/2.8 zooms have optical stabilization which will make DUAL possible with Panasonic cameras, which will make your handheld shots a little smoother.

I own both of these f/2.8 zooms and they are great workhorse lenses to have, but sometimes faster glass and less DOF is very nice to have.

You might consider something like buying the 10-25mm f/1.7 zoom and a 45mm f/1.8 Olympus ( or Panasonic 42.5mm f/1.7 ) lens to have something longer to shoot with. ( I own the Olympus which is great for interviews )
 
TheDingo said:
The 10-25mm is 1.5 F-stops faster, so for shallower DOF and better low light performance it's the one to beat.

On the other hand the two f/2.8 zooms have optical stabilization which will make DUAL possible with Panasonic cameras, which will make your handheld shots a little smoother.

I own both of these f/2.8 zooms and they are great workhorse lenses to have, but sometimes faster glass and less DOF is very nice to have.

You might consider something like buying the 10-25mm f/1.7 zoom and a 45mm f/1.8 Olympus ( or Panasonic 42.5mm f/1.7 ) lens to have something longer to shoot with. ( I own the Olympus which is great for interviews )
Click to expand...

I actually do own the 45mm 1.8 and I love it a lot, but I need sometimes to go even more telephoto, also Im tired of chaning lenses.
So now I have a new plan.. Maybe take the 10-20 F1.7 + 35-100mm F2.8? I also have a 30mm macro, so I would have 10-100 covered? What do you think?
 
CustomerGH4 said:
So now I have a new plan.. Maybe take the 10-20 F1.7 + 35-100mm F2.8? I also have a 30mm macro, so I would have 10-100 covered? What do you think?
Click to expand...

That would cover just about anything. You've got the fast lens for low-light and shallower DOF, you've got the longer telephoto with DUAL IS, and then the macro for any detailed close-up shots. :thumbsup:
 
CustomerGH4 said:
Will you be getting the 10-25 1.7 yourself as well?
Click to expand...

I don't shoot much low-light, but the shallower DOF would be nice to have. Right now I want to see what the Panasonic S1H brings to the table ( I would like to be able to shoot both MFT and FF formats ), and see if Panasonic announces the GH6 this Fall. ( going by their release schedule we should see a GH6 next year ) I would like to buy it all, but realistically that's not going to happen, so I have to choose what I want to invest in next.

If I was buying lenses for the first time I would be very tempted to skip over the 12-35mm f/2.8 and go for the 10-25mm f/1.7. The difference in price seems definitely worth it.
 
It's a tough choice for sure, I was really interested at one point in the 10-25mm but I already own the 12-35mm/35-100mm combo and can't see myself going without the 12-35mm. At one time I did try to use the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 with speedbooster as a replacement to the 12-35mm and regretted it immediately. For me the 12-35mm is the lens that hardly ever comes off my cameras (GH5/GH5S). I deal with a lot of moving subjects so rarely want to shoot below 2.8 and the GH5S has been terrific in low light. When I do need shallow DOF I go to the Voigtlander 42.5mm f/0.95. I guess it just depends on what you are shooting and personal preference.
 
Last edited:
homerc67 said:
It's a tough choice for sure, I was really interested at one point in the 10-25mm but I already own the 12-35mm/35-100mm combo and can't see myself going without the 12-35mm. At one time I did try to use the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 with speedbooster as a replacement to the 12-35mm and regretted it immediately. For me the 12-35mm is the lens that hardly ever comes off my cameras (GH5/GH5S). I deal with a lot of moving subjects so rarely want to shoot below 2.8 and the GH5S has been terrific in low light. When I do need shallow DOF I go to the Voigtlander 42.5mm f/0.95. I guess it just depends on what you are shooting and personal preference.
Click to expand...


I actually tried the 12-35mm today at the store and this one I will not get for sure. I wanna go more wide than 12mm... Even if its just 10mm its still wider, also better at low light.
Also tried 35-100, with that one I was super impressed. So I think its gonna be 10-25 and 35-100.. Altough Im sure a similar lens like 10-25 will come out some day with telephoto capabilities.
 
Don't rule out the Sigma 18-35 f1.8 and the Sigma 50-100 f1.8. Just as fast and great lenses. If you use a straight electronic adapter the 50-100 can reach as far as the 35-100 f2.8 lens on the long end. Use a focal reducer and the 18-35 becomes a 12-25mm f1.2 lens so its almost the same zoom range but an entire stop faster. Two adapters and two lenses get you from 12mm to 100mm and never slower than f1.8.
 
Fast, yes. But also heavy, and also very short focus throw on the Sigma's so shooting wide open is difficult unless shooting a non moving subject. No doubt great lenses but I wouldn't use them on the GH series unless shooting mostly on a tripod. I have used the 18-35mm on a C300 with dual pixel AF and that was a great pairing.
 
My 2p:

I’ve just finished a gruelling 2 week shoot, using a GH5 and 5S combo. I used the GH5 for actuality and the S for tripod mounted interviews. Bearing in mind that any camera system is compromised with gotchas, here’s what I learned/settled on:

12-35 was principle actuality lens, with 35-100 swapped in for more discrete closeups. Constant aperture fabulous, essentially the same as the constant f4 I had on my FS7/18-110 combo.

25 would not be enough reach for me. The extra couple of mm on the wide end is rarely needed for me.

IBIS lock (the additional feature of GH5 plus the native IS lens) is a game changer for me and one of the reasons I moved from the FS7. Literally like having a built in tripod - but with just a tiny bit of movement to inject some life. Love it - just don’t try and pan or tilt with it switched on. Programmed Fn button allows me to switch between lock and dual IBIS. Fab.

For all but one interview, I used the PL 42.5 1.2. What a lovely lens. Also has IS, so got some lovely actuality one evening with it too. The one interview in a smaller space needed the wider 20/1.7, which was OK, but didn’t make me go “oooo” like the 42.5.

I’d like Panasonic to make more high quality PL fast primes with IS. The 10-25, for me, is s variable prime with neither the fast speed or IS of the 42.5, so I went for the 15 and 20 primes for now.

Ben.
 
I only use native lenses, also I have primes that cover 12 and 25, but with 10-25 I dont need to switch that often.
So right now my plan is 10-25 and 35-100mm... Sounds good or is there something I missed?
 
I think those will be a nice combo, but it’s your money. If you think the price tag of the 10-25mm is justified then by all means go for it. I personally see it as a novelty lens and would not spend $1800 on it.
 
I don't know what you're shooting, but for my weddings I have found:

1.) Weddings are tricky because you go from needing ND to needing lights.
2.) Outdoors are bright daylight and reception halls are dark with mixed lighting.
3.) GH5s shoots 2 stops higher ISO for the same noise as GH5. This is more valuable than lens speed because it's available for any lens. I may actually prefer F4.0 for DOF, keeping subjects in focus.
4.) Shallow DOF can be a problem with subject focus in the dark. GH5s sensitivity is the better tool here.
5.) IBIS causes warping/distortion however for static handheld, IS Lock on GH5 is very useful.
6.) But you can't handhold for the whole ceremony without killing your back.
7.) Tripods are not mobile enough and take up space on the floor you may not have.
8.) Monopods need a fluid head and feet so that you can pan and hold without jiggling the image.
9.) Monopods fall over if you rely on the feet or the ground is not level.
10.) A monopod with feet can be quickly repositioned. If you try that with a tripod, you may be fiddling during important camera action.
11.) But the GH5s needs some kind of stabilizer, tripod, monopod or gimbal.
12.) Countless weddings has taught me not to depend on image stabilization or auto focus.
13.) I shoot with two cameras, two tripods and a monopod.
14.) I set the GH5 from a fixed angle on the tripod, run and gun with the GH5s on the monopod.
15.) Once I've made the run and gun shots with the monopod, I replace that camera onto a fixed tripod, then I can go check the framing of the other camera on the tripod.
16.) Once set, I go back to the first tripod, and replace that camera back onto the monopod for more run 'n gun.
17.) The shots from the monopod are more stable than dual IS and still fairly stable if I pick it up and move, the length dampens camera movement plus I can raise it up to get an angle overlooking people standing in the way.
18.) The fixed angle is the safety shot.
19.) To the OP, just having complete focal length coverage and fast glass does not work for weddings. You are also juggling ND and the need to have low light AND a deeper DOF that keeps multiple subjects in focus.
20.) Auto focus is distracting in the footage, even when it works. For weddings, we decide what DOF we need to maintain focus at a fixed distance, say 5-10 ft, then as we move around we keep our subjects within that distance and they will be in focus without people going in and out of focus, without breathing and focus pulsing. Focus by keeping the distance instead of focus by ring.

I sometimes use the 42.5mm F1.2 PanaLeica Nocticron for close up, portrait, slow motion, but it breathes badly when focusing. Auto focus is not great either, neither is lens stabilization. The Panasonic 25mm F1.4 is plenty fast, adequately good for a normal range lens, a bit boring, not always wide enough, not always long enough either, but versatile that you can sometimes compensate by backing away or going in tighter to your subject, and mostly can work in small rooms as well. The PanaLeica 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 is overall the most versatile lens, but manual focus is by servo and thus a nightmare. In all other respects, it is the most useful overall, just enough lens speed, focal length and stabilization. My PanaLeica 8-18mm F2.8 I have found virtually useless for weddings. My Olympus 40-150mm F2.8 has important reach and speed.

So choose your lenses wisely, but remember it's not all about the lens speed and lens coverage, you need low noise high ISO performance from the camera too, can make your job easier by working better with your slower lenses and focus control.
 
I agree with Tom. A second camera body will do so much more than just a limited range zoom lens. Having the ability to safely go back and forth between the cameras without losing anything is much more impactful. Plus you will likely find yourself swapping lenses just as much as you do with the primes. 10-25 is not a lot of range and even moving into 42-50mm territory will require you to swap lenses constantly. You only really save yourself from swapping between the 12 and 25 lens which to me just doesn't seem like a big deal. I find I only really need the 12mm for special situations and will use the things attached to the bottom of my legs to move around to make the 25mm work for me. Only time I really swap it is when I need longer shots and that's where the 10-25 isn't going to help very much.

Personally I still love the 14-140 lens if I have to use one camera. Sucks in bad lighting but it makes up for it in being able to cover just about anything. On a GH5s body that lens is suddenly much more useful which is why I'm very tempted to get a GH5s over the GH5.
 
I could not agree more with all of Thomas' points. As for the 14-140, it had seemed the lens reputation was so-so but the images I have seen from it appear excellent. Weddings halls are dark but ceremonies often in bright daylight, and that's where you don't need speed; you need reach, positioned unattended out of the way so the bride isn't tripping over it going up the aisle yet with the reach to capture the expressions, the emotions.

In the reception hall it's useful to have an unmanned fixed angle to capture the seated bride and groom reactions to the speeches and toasts given, the second camera live operator from the monopod, able to move about because the speech givers don't have a podium, they are changing positions and moving too. The name reception hall implies it's a vast an open place but usually they are extremely crowded with tables and chairs and people constantly moving about, knocking you and your equipment around. You can't have enough sturdy tripods, more than the number of cameras, so that you have open positions to plop down a camera on, set up in advance so at least the people seated nearby are aware of them early on.

A complication is when you don't have an assistant, how do you get all your equipment moved from the ceremony outside to the reception inside. I am also doing sound work, recorder plugged into the DJ board outside, the officiant or groom is lav mic'd , and another for the dj board at the reception. Not always easy to get all that done when the dj shows up late, or the groom. But one trick, the 40-150 Olympus lens has a lens support that for me stays attached to a tripod. When I need to grab that camera and go inside, I just grab the camera body and leave the lens on the tripod because I *usually* won't need that one after the ceremony. Then I put on a faster lens for indoors. I can put it away in a slower moment when things aren't happening such as during dinner, however those moments can be the time for the sunset shots, so I may put a bag over it with rubber band in case of rain, grab it when I can later. The wedding venue I shot last week was a ranch where the ceremony was in a field by a running brook, the reception and toasts in a tent somewhere else, the 1st dance/parent dances in a barn somewhere else, I was running all over and it poured rain for most of it. I still had the right preparation, poncho, rain protection for cameras to prevent disasters.

But Thomas is exactly right about the lens swapping, you don't need much between 12 and 25, it's not a lot of range, the 40+ territory is constantly swapping, 14-140 is something I may give more thought to.
 
+1 for the 14-140mm, I use it a ton outdoors and sometimes indoors if the room is well lit. I've also always been interested in the Olympus 12-100mm especially on the GH5s, but haven't gotten around to trying it out. That Olympus 40-150 is a gem, only had the privilege of using it one time but loved the results.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top