GH5 Internal Recording Quality Comparison

[Hugh DiMauro]

I asked this question in another forum but wanted to post it here since this is a Panasonic content website. The GH5 HD, 10 bit, 422, ALL-I, (intraframe) 200 Megabits per second, 24p codec is h.264 in an mp4 container. Is this the same codec as the AVC Intra 50/100, 10 bit 422 h.264 in an MXF conatiner which is what the P2 cameras capture at 50 and 100 Megabits per second? I owned an AG HPX370 and an HPX 250 which boasted "mastering quality." Does the GH5 exceed this resolution in HD mode? And is it really necessary to shoot Apple Prores externally on a Ninja V when the GH5 internal codec will suffice? I wonder about color grading the GH5 h.264 codec, which is a finishing codec, vs Apple Prores, which is an intermediate, editing codec with much larger file sizes. Has anyone any experience comparing the two in image quality before and after grading and image manipulation. I understand Panasonic's intraframe design is less processor intensive but does this fact help the image hold up better in grading or does it just help smoother playback vs long GOP. Thanks!

 

[NorBro]

I don't know the exact specs of those older cameras, but no one besides the engineers in Japan will really know the exact answer to that codec question. But even if two cameras both shoot the exact same H.264 format (or something else), the process of creating the pixels and information may differ based on the hardware.

'Mastering quality' was a term/phrase used back in the day and was mostly for marketing brochures. It's irrelevant today because there are so many different workflows, standards, formats.

The idea of grading ProRes was only made famous by ARRI (and later Blackmagic) since no other cameras ever offered it until many years later after those two. Atomos jumped on the opportunity but 99% of the world grades H.264 or H.265 because that's what most cameras have today (and RAW).

Now you might see a small difference when shooting ProRes externally, but nothing worthy (I'm talking like slight changes in color, or shadows, very minor and subtle differences that are simply there because you're creating an image through a cable via another device that's processing it differently than what the camera is doing internally).

If you would like more concrete answers to anything, test everything thoroughly and compare side-by-side, especially after drastic manipulation in post, and see what holds up, what doesn't, etc. But you'll find that both, the GH5's internal 10-bit 422 and external ProRes, will hold up well.

Overall conclusion...even if the same codec was used in the GH5 that was used in the P2 cameras it doesn't matter because there are a handful of other factors that will affect the quality, and your GH5's internal codec is more than enough for what you likely do if you're using a camera like that and you can obtain great results with it because people are creating just as nice motion pictures with 8-bit 4:2:0 cameras because of their modern high-resolution sensors and improved color science.

 

[Hugh DiMauro]

Thank you for the explanation. For the content I shoot now, I've noticed the internal codec, at HD and UHD, looks magnificent and I image manipulate very little, if at all, in post.