Buying a GH1

A

Andor

Active member
Hey! I am a hobbyist who is about to make his first camera purchase towards filming. After looking around and considering a handful of other cameras first, I have actually decided on a GH1 (I think).

I have learned a lot from shadowing the dvx forums, but still don't know enough.

On top of the initial purchase of a GH1 I am curious how many accessories I should invest in? What are good filters to use? I am planning on purchasing a "Zoom H4N" to record audio. Is this a solid sound package to assist the H4N? (http://dvestore.com/products/rodeshotgun.html)

Any recommendations on how many batteries / memory cards I will need to do smooth continuous shooting?

Does anyone recommend DSLR bundles such as?: http://www.redrockmicro.com/redrock_dslr.html

And of course, if anyone has other cameras to point out that are amazing then I'll look into those too (unless I already have). Please give all questions / comments / purchase links / etc. I like to know all the options of what I'm looking into before buying anything.

Is transcoding fairly easy for the GH1? I have a Vista 32 machine (but can upgrade to a 64bit if needed) and a new Macbook Pro, so operating system doesn't matter.

At the moment I would like to only spend $4,000-$5,000 in a camera, but am able to go all the way up to $10,000. I would prefer to include the entire package in these figures though (video, sound, filters, etc). I have many friends who are into still photography and I can use their lens' if I find the stock GH1 isn't doing what I need it to.

Ultimately I am aware that a story is what sells a film, which is why I am leaning towards a GH1 over waiting for Scarlet. Thanks in advance for all responses an input!
 
I highly recommend the NTG-2 as a budget package, it's a great mic setup for the price.

The continuous shooting question is a hard one to answer without knowing exactly what you need. If you're doing full days of shooting, plan for a couple hours of footage sometimes. Be prepared to offload if you have a laptop.

Also be aware that it might be awhile before you can actually get this camera if you're an American.
 
If you wait for whatever Canon comes out with, if it's a 5D replacement, you're looking at twice the price easily just for the camera body. The other toys are more important, especially lighting options.

That said, Canon's products are generally better than the GH1 from what I can tell. The GH1 has the distinct advantage of being half the price. And you don't have to fight the oversized sensor.
 
But can you buy a GH1 yet? For retail $1,500 I mean. Until the GH1 is really available...I mean really available...as in "in stock" at stores like B&H, then I'm sure going to w8 to see what Canon does with the 60D or whatever they announce in the next month or so.
 
Thanks for the responses!

I'll get the NTG-2 bundle and the Zoom H4N then.

Also, I find out just the other day that I can get an amazing discount on Panasonic products because of a relative (GH1 only costs $1,201.50 and it comes with free shipping). This applies to the batteries, etc. However, the HVX200 / 200a / 170 are not listed as getting the discount. So this more or less means I'm destined to buy a GH1 it seems.

I would like to be able to film continuously for 6+ hours, so any recommendations there on Panasonic accessories to get with the GH1 will be awesome (also, any filters besides the "62mm PL Filter" that are a great help?)

And I take it since no one even mentioned the DSLR bundles such as (http://www.redrockmicro.com/redrock_dslr.html) then that's just a waste of money?

Sorry for all the spamming with noob questions, but I'm just trying to find the exact yes / no answers to my questions instead of the shades of grey.
 
I just watched some footage I shot on GH1 on my 19 inch monitor and all I can say is that I'm very impressed with what this 1500$ camera can deliver. I too was inclined towards scarlet, but then I saw GH1.

The 2 filters I'm going to get for it are Fader ND and Polarizer and I think that these 2 are a must have if you want to get some great footage outdoors...
 
I've never used a bundle and always thought they were silly. But I guess it depends on what you're doing. Just looks at what it does, and if you think that's something you need... there you go. I'm sure it's very well made and does what it's supposed to.
 
6 hours? You'll need an external battery pack. That is something you'll have to hack yourself.
 
I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that the battery lasts about two hours, I assume actively shooting. The manual should say, but you're on your own with that since I haven't been able to get it to download and open correctly yet.
 
Cassius said:
I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that the battery lasts about two hours, I assume actively shooting. The manual should say, but you're on your own with that since I haven't been able to get it to download and open correctly yet.
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I just checked the manual and it says roughly that (of course it depends on down-time, etc).
yslee said:
6 hours? You'll need an external battery pack. That is something you'll have to hack yourself.
Click to expand...
Er, I mean 6 total. Not 6 constantly. I can afford to exchange batteries, haha.

Thanks for the responses everyone! I will probably be making the purchase sometime tomorrow, so any "must have" Panasonic accessories you guys recommend besides spare batteries and filters would be great.

ps- Though it's on back order until September, I shall have tons of test footage uploaded when it arrives.
 
Oh. Just more batteries then. Don't forget that updating the camera to 1.1 means you can only use original batteries.
 
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