Anyone still not upgrading?

Trucci

Trucci

Well-known member
After mulling it over for a month, I've decided not to upgrade (cancelled my order). It was a hard decision since the GH2 has some great features. The picture has significantly improved at ISO 800+ and the tele crop feature opens up so many possibilities. Some things that I was looking forward to kind of fell through though. The rolling shutter seems to not have changed and the follow focus feature has been pulled. There are also some features added that weren't that important to me like live monitoring (I do know how important this is for other people). Manual audio is a plus, but it doesn't really matter for me since I have a separate system for sound. The improved AF is great, but I'm just a casual still shooter and the current AF speed isn't slow for me.

The banding on the GH13 didn't bother me so much since most of my shooting is done at ISOs under 800. It also didn't help to see reports of horizontal banding on the GH2 at 1600 and 3200. One post that was swaying me towards the GH2 was Hunter Richard's test while he was sick (great post btw). The GH2's static shot looked much better, but I've seen other comparisons where both cameras looked nearly identical (http://vimeo.com/17491529). I like how the GH2 resolves more detail and the dynamic range is a hair better, but these factors weren't enough to make me switch and spend another 400-500 dollars.

I'm not trying to start a GH1 vs GH2 war, but I just wanted to see if there were other people in the same boat as me. Maybe this post will help people who are still on the fence.
 
Trucci said:
After mulling it over for a month, I've decided not to upgrade (cancelled my order). It was a hard decision since the GH2 has some great features. The picture has significantly improved at ISO 800+ and the tele crop feature opens up so many possibilities. Some things that I was looking forward to kind of fell through though. The rolling shutter seems to not have changed and the follow focus feature has been pulled. There are also some features added that weren't that important to me like live monitoring (I do know how important this is for other people). Manual audio is a plus, but it doesn't really matter for me since I have a separate system for sound. The improved AF is great, but I'm just a casual still shooter and the current AF speed isn't slow for me.

The banding on the GH13 didn't bother me so much since most of my shooting is done at ISOs under 800. It also didn't help to see reports of horizontal banding on the GH2 at 1600 and 3200. One post that was swaying me towards the GH2 was Hunter Richard's test while he was sick (great post btw). The GH2's static shot looked much better, but I've seen other comparisons where both cameras looked nearly identical (http://vimeo.com/17491529). I like how the GH2 resolves more detail and the dynamic range is a hair better, but these factors weren't enough to make me switch and spend another 400-500 dollars.

I'm not trying to start a GH1 vs GH2 war, but I just wanted to see if there were other people in the same boat as me. Maybe this post will help people who are still on the fence.
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I will say that I'm on the fence, but I'm coming from a 5D2. One thing I wish they improved on is dynamic range. I hate clipped highlights, and I don't like having to underexpose not to blow the highlights. The GH2 is a marvelous camera, but that doesn't mean it will be the perfect fit for everyone or worth the upgrade from happy GH13 owners that don't need cleaner high ISOs.

I would say if a user doesn't need the extra features for serious work, just relax with the preorders. See how this camera shakes out after the dust settles and see if there are any issues that come out of it. I never preorder a new product unless I really am being held back by something that the new item addresses.
 
I get banding only on ridiculously underexposed shots at ISO 1600 On my GH13 - for now, I'm happy to wait and see.
 
Im not going to jump on you.
For me there just isnt that much of a upgrade on offer...Im not bothered about some of the new features of the GH2...I never shoot over 800 iso and have no banding issues that I can see of with my GH.

Im on a tight budget anyway... and have recently bought a brand new Red hackable GH1 for £199 as backup...nope I am not joking £199...so you could say Im taking the financial benefit from the GH2s release.

Here in the uk the GH2 goes for £750 with basic 14-42mm lense kit...so the extra cost for what new features that the GH2 offers right now...nah...Id rather put any new money towards a kick ass lense.

Maybe a year down the line when the dust has settled...the GH2 hacked...and cheaper ;-)

I think the GH2 is a great camera...faults and all...and a great upgrade for those wanting the new features...But I own1 GF1 & 2 GH1's plus a SD700...thats good enough for me.
 
I've become a bit side-tracked with an unexpected contender: the G2. After it recently became hackable, I picked up an inexpensive used blue G2 with the intention of having it modified for infrared photography. What I discovered, however, is that it's a brilliant upgrade of the GF1 packaged in a GH2 body (but with the same GF1/GH1 battery, thank you!) If you can imagine a thicker GF1 wth built-in EVF, fold-out LCD, touch-screen focusing, and 3X teleccrop mode, you'll get the appeal of this camera. While it lacks 24p and 60p, the fact that it can be hacked like the GH1 makes the G2 the only camera capable of anamorphic 1920x810 MJPEG mode with 3X-zoom C-mount lens compatibility. For my purposes, it's a nearly perfect solution.

As for the GH2, while I'm impressed by the 24Mbps 1080p24 videos I've seen, unless it becomes hackable it's not enough of an upgrade to justify the price for me. By the time I'm ready to make another major investment, I'll more likely be looking at the AF100.
 
I'm not upgrading till they put 1080p25 at 24mbs into the GH2. While I would love to be able to shoot at ISO 1600, I think I can live with GH13 at ISO640 using a faster lens.
 
I'm thinking about upgrading. The noise on my GH13 is just too much for low-light scenes. I would really like to have a camera that can shoot underexposed well, and dark scenes if at all possible. I'm hoping the GH2 can deliver, but with so many different opinions posted i'm not convinced yet.
 
yeah Im also sticking with the gh13 for now atleast.. I didnt know about the g2 hack - cool!
 
In daylight and at 1080p 24pn the hacked gh1 looks fairly identical to a gh2. If you shoot mostly 24p in the daylight, you probably wouldn't notice a difference.
 
How is image on g2 blue? Where is hack info? Does hack give more band width? Might be good back up camera. I never had hackcam. The hack goes on flash card?
 
I'm waiting for the mad rush for scarce cameras to die down.
Obviously 25fps would have created more of an incentive to upgrade, but as of now the GH13 fills my needs.
I most likely will buy a GH2, but maybe one, three, six months down the track.
 
I am also going to wait. I actually bought one and sent it back. Banding was really bad on it, and lack of 25p was my concerns. If panasonic do something about them with new firmware, i will consider again.
 
I have bought the GH2, and am keeping my GH13 as well.

The main reason I bought the GH2, is the ETC function, which effectively doubles the small lens collection I already have (Lumix 14-140mm, 45mm, 20mm, and the 100-300mm, plus a number of Canon FD fast primes). The ETC function is particularly effective for the primes, turning each one of them practically in to two primes. I actually save money.

I am keeping my GH13 mainly because of the 720P60 at 44 mbps (using the Ipowell hack setting), which is very useful for shooting sports or other fast moving objects, and can make very nice 2:1 slow-mo videos. In contrast, the GH2's 720P60 has a very low bit rate, not as good as that of the GH13. In addition, my particular GH13 has absolutely no banding issue whatsoever, even in very dimly lit scenes and at ISO=1600.
 
ghosttv said:
How is image on g2 blue? Where is hack info? Does hack give more band width?
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I have a GF1 as well as the G2, and even though they use the same sensor, the G2's low-light image quality is clearly better than the GF1's. With a well-lit scene, I would have difficulty telling the GF1, GH1, and G2 apart (using identical hacked settings of course). There is, however, a glitch with the G2 hack that hasn't yet been resolved: the NTSC <-> PAL patch doesn't work properly. Aside from that issue, the G2 uses the same PTool patches as the GF1, including manual movie mode. For more info on PTool patches, check out the link in my signature.
 
I am not upgrading either although all the hype makes me want to. I am waiting to spend my money on a camera that has IS built in and no rolling shutter.
 
Sure would be nice to have higher bite rates in 29.97p. I had a GH2 for a few weeks and I loved some of the new features but returned it because of noise issues. Hopefully it will get a hack in the near future. Until then my GH1 will do what I need for now.
 
EX-canon user, Current Red MX User.

I absolutely love my GH2.

I pretty much ignored the GH1 even after the hack because there were just too many caveats - no monitoring, interlacing/non-interlacing, blah blah blah... way too many compromises.

GH2 is Just Plain the bomb.

I am actually excited about making films with small cameras again and looking to put this little guy to work any chance I can.
 
I am gonna wait it out till there is a hack and 25p so I can buy a cheaper body overseas instead of paying through my tight arse for overpriced ones here in Australia.
 
MR Fanny said:
I am gonna wait it out till there is a hack and 25p so I can buy a cheaper body overseas instead of paying through my tight arse for overpriced ones here in Australia.
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I have to buy one sooner or later, i've invested so much in damn glass and adapters to fit on it. Lens Frenzy..... it get's you in the end.

Yup should be well under $900 aussie before long to bring one in.

R
 
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