Got my GH2 - Need help...should I keep it???

R

Roman707

Member
OK, after a year of waiting for the announcement of the GH2, I finally got my hands on one. During the wait, I have tried the following cams (GH1, GF1, NEX3, d7000). I must say the video is excellent. There are no issues with it at all. I really like the ex telle conversion feature, and the low light video shots with the 20mm are great. Also, I am using a Nikkor 35mm 1.8 DX and a Cannon 50mm 1.4 FD. Once again, video is great. I am using a Gini Rig for stabalization and manual focusing actually went surprisingly well. 20mm autofucusing during video was very unreliable as expected.

My ONLY problem with this camera is the lack of sufficient dreamy depth of field. I had a buddy let me borrow his full frame Sony dslr and I took a few snaps of my daughter, all I can say is that I was blown away.

I know I cant get that with the GH2, but I was hoping one of my lenses would be able to come close. No cigar, not even close. I have thought about getting an 85mm 1.2, but this would push me back further away from the subject and make it harder for portrait shots. Not even sure if it would yeild sufficient dof. I am starting to feel that lenses are a truley limiting factor with m43, even with the 25 1.4 and fast zoom on the horizon.

So my dilemma is, do I keep the GH2, or sell it and move on to something else? (d7000 or 60D) Or perhaps supplement it with an aps-c camera for photo shots, and share lenses between cameras. Perhaps a d3000, or nex3. Trying to keep a budget I can justify carrying two cameras.

I have tried the d7000, not too impressed with the stuck pixels in video mode, but now that problem has been solved with the latest firmware. Did not have a chance to use primes with this camera, but I would assume there would be a shallower depth of field (vs GH2) using my Nikkor 35mm 1.8 DX, holding all other factors equal.

I have even considered a used 5DMarkII, with updated firmware and magic lantern, I've heard many of the previous issues have been resolved.

PLEASE HELP, I DO NOT WANT TO GET RID OF MY GH2, WHAT THE HECK DO I DO????????

I use my camera for video and pictures 50-50. I only shoot casually, family stuff.
 
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I think you should consider the voigtlander 25mm f0.95, I've seen some really shallow DOF shots with that. It's not the cheapest lens but also not the most expensive either.
 
There's absolutly no reason you can't get shallow dof with the GH-2. The Canon 50 1.4 should give a nice shallow dof. Are you shooting wide open? Have you tried using an ND filter instead of stopping down the lens? Of course you need to actually set up a shot at times to utilize very shallow dof. How about some examples of your work so we can get a better idea as to what your trying to achieve.
 
You'll get about 2 inches of DOF with the voigtlander and it's spectacular.... You can also get some nice DOF from even the kit lens.. but you will have to know how to set it up. Have a wider aperature, suitable composure, etc... Personally I think the GH2 will knock the pants off a sony camera....

You can also get the 20mm 1.7 which is pretty reasonably priced....
 
Two words...moire and aliasing. I don't have a 5DII, but I do have a 60D and a t2i and both suffer from those two nasty words. The GH2 doesn't seem to. And, although I've only had mine since Christmas day, I'm happy so far! As far as DOF, the Canon lenses I've attached with an adapter provide enough for me...too shallow of DOF can cause real focusing issues.

Forrest
 
Roman707 said:
So my dilemma is, do I keep the GH2, or sell it and move on to something else? (d7000 or 60D) Or perhaps supplement it with an aps-c camera for photo shots
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D7000 and 60D won't make any appreciable difference. The difference in DOF between a GH2 and a D7000 or 60D is about 1/4 of an f-stop.
Full Frame is a different story. The difference in DOF between a GH2 and a "full frame" camera is about two f-stops, and that's substantial.

PLEASE HELP, I DO NOT WANT TO GET RID OF MY GH2, WHAT THE HECK DO I DO????????
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Get the Voigtlander 25mm f/0.95 lens. It has absolutely paper-thin DOF when shot at f/0.95. You would be able to get the same shallow DOF effect that a "full frame" camera gets on a 50mm lens at f/2.
 
Get 5D.
So what if 20mm will get you thin dof, you will hit infinity faster and when your subject would be covering frame from feet to head you would be on infinity much faster than on 5D with 50mm, this is not the same conversion and comparing 20mm to 50mm is a joke,different perspective and you will hit infinity much faster.Some wide lenses have ugly pincushion distortion on closeups ,50mm rarely have this on 5d and on 7D/550D/60D not at all.
 
bwwd said:
Get 5D.
So what if 20mm will get you thin dof, you will hit infinity faster and when your subject would be covering frame from feet to head you would be on infinity much faster than on 5D with 50mm, this is not the same conversion and comparing 20mm to 50mm is a joke,different perspective and you will hit infinity much faster.Some wide lenses have ugly pincushion distortion on closeups ,50mm rarely have this on 5d and on 7D/550D/60D not at all.
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What a load of junk. 4/3 sensor and APS-C sensor is about the same size as 35mm movie frame. Do you think Academy films look awful?

What is this "hitting infinity faster" junk? That's a focussing issue - not relevant!

20mm or 25mm 4/3 lenses do not have pincussion on 4/3 cameras, because it's not a full frame wide-angle lens. Distortion is relative. these lenses are made for 4/3 system don't forget. Sure, a 20mm full frame lens might suffer a bit of pincussion, but nobody mentioned that yet.

So much confidence in what you're saying, and clearly so little knowledge, dude! Sheesh...
 
If the tool you bought isn't doing the job you bought it for get one that will.

You don't need a forum of 30,000 people to tell you that...
 
:thumbsup:
What a load of junk. 4/3 sensor and APS-C sensor is about the same size as 35mm movie frame. Do you think Academy films look awful?

What is this "hitting infinity faster" junk? That's a focussing issue - not relevant!

20mm or 25mm 4/3 lenses do not have pincussion on 4/3 cameras, because it's not a full frame wide-angle lens. Distortion is relative. these lenses are made for 4/3 system don't forget. Sure, a 20mm full frame lens might suffer a bit of pincussion, but nobody mentioned that yet.

So much confidence in what you're saying, and clearly so little knowledge, dude! Sheesh...
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:beer:

If the tool you bought isn't doing the job you bought it for get one that will.

You don't need a forum of 30,000 people to tell you that...
Click to expand...
 
Yikes folks. I think we need to tone down the acrimony a bit.
In answer to the OP, the GH2 is quite capable of producing the DOF we associate with feature films. It cannot as easily produce the relatively extreme shallow DOF associated with full frame cameras. Is the DOF issue so important that it overrides all the other advantages of the GH2?
 
Just shoot at 140mm with the kit lens and you'll get pretty shallow DOF. This shallow DOF is so greatly overrated. Take some time and watch a few big budget features and learn how it is correctly used. If somebody knows enough about video and cinema cameras knows that the GH2 is an excellent choice for the price.
 
focal length has nothing to to with DOF IF you want a specific picture. If I want to film a face it doesn´t matter if I use a 20mm and make some steps towards the object or a 140mm and make some steps back. Only if you zoom in from 20 to 140mm so you just see the eye and nothing else, then of course the DOF is more shallow.

The relative distance between camera,object and background (ratio) exactly balances the focal lenght
 
I have to agree with what most have said here, that you will be hard pressed to get a better camera than the GH2 without spending up to the cost of the new AF100, and that will offer no advantages in terms of DOF but is a better video camera for some subjective practical film-making reasons.

The Red or Alexa are presumably too expensive.

Your only other option is the 5D Mk2, but as has been said many times, the image quality is not better than GH2. Yes, you will achieve shallower DOF at all apertures because your standard lens set will be longer focal lengths, but you will also get moire and aliasing issues arising from the poor Canon codec with it's line skipping formula, so yes, if super-shallow dof is the most important thing to you, get a 5D Mk2, but before you do, consider that ALL feature films are made with almost precisely the same options as your GH2 in terms of DOF. Sure, they use Zeiss Super primes, but you can get faster lenses still, just like Barry recommended - the Noktor f0.95 25mm. Awesome lens that!
 
sample picture with shallow depth of field

sample picture with shallow depth of field

baby2.jpg

Here is a scaled down image from the Sony Alpha full frame camera. The lens on the camera was a Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T 2.8-22 24-70mm. Please tell me if there are lenses for the GH2 that can give me this kind of result. I am willing to use legacy or non-native manual fucus lenses. I know the Voightlander 25mm 0.95 would probably give me good results, but is there anything else more available/affordable?

Just so you guys know, I would love to keep the GH2. I have been waiting for its existence patiently for a year. I am still pretty sure I am going to stick with it, however there are a couple of issues that are making me second guess myself.

Remember, I am not a pro videographer, or cinematographer. I do not even shoot weddings or events. This camera is strictly for home/hobby use for family and the kids, and photo ability is 50% as important.

So the question is, do I really need all the excellent features that the GH2 has over the competition? Will I actually make use of them?

Ex-tele conversion feature - YES
1080/24p Native mode - YES
Small and light - YES
Touch screen - YES
Swivel screen - YES
Best Autofocus for video - YES
Use of legacy lenses - YES
Cost of body - YES

Issues:

Lack of available fast lenses with fast autofocus and stabilization - this is what would make best use of the features in my opinion.

2X crop - this issue bothers me the most. It seems that in order to get the dof I want, I would need lenses that don’t exist, or cost a lot more and are larger/heavier.

Now I know that dof is not the most important element, but it just looks so nice and it’s a flaw that’s hard to ignore. I have already read debates on subject isolation on this site and photography forums, but the fact is that now after testing with the 3 lenses i have available, I am not able to get that same dreamy dof.

Once again, the dof issue only bothers me for photography, in video mode dof is more than sufficient. The real question for me is, do I really need all of the things that are better on the GH2 vs the other cameras mentioned for casual video use, or will something like the d7000 be sufficient, which will give me much better pictures and a much wider selection of native lenses?
 
I use a 5dII for video with Canon's fastest lenses(24/35 1.4, 510/85 1.2, 135 2) , and while the DOF is shallow and beautiful, as soon as you are off the tripod or the subject moves, focus becomes a real issue. I have all the RR FF, marshall screen etc. doo dads to make life easier. I was about to get a an XF300 and be done with SDOF for good, but thought I would give it another shot.

I got my GH2 last week, and I find it is a much more practical camera. I have an AF100 on order but reconsidering given the obvious size advantage of the GH2. I should mention that I am a stills guy for the most part so all this moving capture is new to me in experience, but certainly not in dollars spent :(.

I use mostly Leica on the GH2 - 24/35/50 1.4, 50/0.95, and 90F2. All are brilliant. With the Nocti, I have either a 50 or a 250mm F/0.95 lens with silky smooth manual focus. The smaller sensor + the practical aids to focusing available in the GH2 (MF Aid, tilt screen etc.) make all the difference for real world use.

There are a few quirks - focus assist on MF lenses is not available during record, Focus assist is not available on external monitors etc. But overall, its far more usable for me than my 5dII setup -- meaning, I actually use it which makes all the difference for me.

The 14-140 lens is an added bonus for auto focus stuff, and it works very well with my Merlin.

So bottom line is that while DOF on a 5DII or Sony FF may look great, the footage is extremely difficult to do well. The DOF is so shallow that it is almost impractical without a full crew and crap loads of real-time experience. Take a look at Laforet's "making of" documentary to get an idea of what the stunning production took to produce.

My 2 cents....
 
Canon FD 50mm f1.4 prime on a Panasonic GH1:

mt10102601280.jpg
 
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