GH4 Focus magnification in MF?

NeedCreative

NeedCreative

Well-known member
On the Gh4 - am I losing my mind or can you not punch in while recording? I am used to this on the Canon Cinema cameras and it's a bit maddening I can't seem to figure out how to do it on the GH4. I can focus pretty well without it, and the peaking helps, but peaking doesn't work well in low contrast situations.

What am I missing?
 
You're not missing anything. It seems that function just isn't there while recording. I find the small magnified "window" on the GH3 useless for MF ASSIST, I just can't even begin to see focus in it. So on that camera I set the MF ASSIST to full screen with something above 5x magnification. I guess the engineers did not want us losing the ability to see and adjust framing while recording, if full frame MF ASSIST kicked in that's all you see.

On the GH4 the magnified assist seems to have only that "window" in the frame, and the EVF is enough improved I can see focus. But that MF ASSIST is still not available once you started recording.

I guess we have to learn to live with it that way.
 
Thanks much Bruce. You actually can zoom the magnification on the GH4 to full screen by pressing the button twice. Shame you can't punch in while recording... I've been used to doing that on the C300/100 for years, and recently they added the ability to move around that frame too while recording. The GH4 EVF is pretty good, but it's not perfect.
 
yslee said:
Just curious; what's your basis of comparison? I find it very good but that's from my stills experience. I took a peek at a trade show and I'm now struggling to not buy it!
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Don't get me wrong, it's pretty damn good. I'm just used to a 5D Mark III in size, or my C300 where the viewfinder view is much bigger. But it's pretty good on the GH4. I'm just used to working with magnification, so I wish it was included, especially when dealing with 4K which critical focus is so important for.
 
yslee said:
what's your basis of comparison? I find it very good but that's from my stills experience. I took a peek at a trade show and I'm now struggling to not buy it!
Click to expand...

One basis of comparison would be from those who are more "tuned in" to the "optical" viewfinder with mirror, focusing screen, and pentaprism or Porroprism (mirrors instead of a prism). The prism finder is the brightest and clearest (what you find in Nikons and some Canons like the 5D MkII/III and the 7D. The Porroprism (mirrors) in the APS-C Canons are not as bright.

If they do not adapt well to an EVF, they will find the GH4 EVF "not perfect".

The other comparison would be between the GH3 and GH4. Many of us felt that with the GH3, Panasonic took a step backwards from the EVF in the GH2. They seem to have made the optics smaller even tho the resolution of the GH3 EVF is higher. You had to get your eye exactly "in the channel" or some experienced a blurry "tearing" effect on the sides of the image. I "adapted" to it fairly well, I've always been able to "adapt" to whatever I had to do to use photo gear. I had to be able to "pick up" anything in the dept and come back with images that worked for the agency generating the work order.

But the GH4 EVF is significantly improved, however I can work equally well with either GH3 and GH4 (which is a good thing because I have both).
 
Bruce Foreman said:
One basis of comparison would be from those who are more "tuned in" to the "optical" viewfinder with mirror, focusing screen, and pentaprism or Porroprism (mirrors instead of a prism). The prism finder is the brightest and clearest (what you find in Nikons and some Canons like the 5D MkII/III and the 7D. The Porroprism (mirrors) in the APS-C Canons are not as bright.

If they do not adapt well to an EVF, they will find the GH4 EVF "not perfect".

The other comparison would be between the GH3 and GH4. Many of us felt that with the GH3, Panasonic took a step backwards from the EVF in the GH2. They seem to have made the optics smaller even tho the resolution of the GH3 EVF is higher. You had to get your eye exactly "in the channel" or some experienced a blurry "tearing" effect on the sides of the image. I "adapted" to it fairly well, I've always been able to "adapt" to whatever I had to do to use photo gear. I had to be able to "pick up" anything in the dept and come back with images that worked for the agency generating the work order.

But the GH4 EVF is significantly improved, however I can work equally well with either GH3 and GH4 (which is a good thing because I have both).
Click to expand...

I'm pretty familiar with pentaprisms, thank you. In fact I still contend the last generation of high end film SLRs have much better viewfinders because they did not use a LCD display for their AF points. Compare the view between a 5DIII and a 1DX.

Personally I'm pretty down on EVFs now, provided they are good. I have a GH3 and that's why I'm now trying to resist buying the GH4 - business doesn't really call for it yet, but that EVF is so much nicer...

NeedCreative said:
Don't get me wrong, it's pretty damn good. I'm just used to a 5D Mark III in size, or my C300 where the viewfinder view is much bigger. But it's pretty good on the GH4. I'm just used to working with magnification, so I wish it was included, especially when dealing with 4K which critical focus is so important for.
Click to expand...

Oh yes, the C300 EVF is large. Or at least, the C100 is - I assume they're using similar EVFs?

Panasonic has always made a few frustrating decisions when it comes to the Lumix cameras. Not having magnification when recording is one.
 
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