GH3 I'm skipping the GH3 and sticking with my GH2 (for now). Anyone else?

Jaime Valles

Jaime Valles

Veteran
After gathering all the info I could on the new GH3, and looking closely at the few videos posted online so far, I think I've decided to stick with my hacked GH2 for the time being.

Granted, not much footage has been made available yet, and it's still going to be months before anyone is able to purchase the camera, so my decision may be somewhat premature. But the bottom line, for me, is that I just don't see enough of a difference in the quality of the footage to make me plunk down $1300.

The GH2 + Orion V4b hack is giving me a super-high bitrate in an All-I codec right now, so the GH3's 72Mbps just doesn't excite me very much. We have yet to see how much more dynamic range the GH3 has over the GH2, but I'm guessing it's a marginal improvement at best (though I'd love to be proven wrong!)

The 60p at 1080 is verrrrrrry nice. But for my upcoming feature project it's not something I'm planning on using, so the feature is not as important to me.

If the GH3 had clean, recordable 24p output via HDMI at 4:2:2 (even if only 8-bit) I would buy this in a heartbeat to use with an external recorder. But apparently the output is only 4:2:0, so there's not much point.

The GH3 looks to be a fantastic camera wth many major improvements. Heck, the beefier, weather-sealed body alone is almost worth it. But at this point I think I'll wait a bit and see some more footage samples. I'm extremely happy with my GH2 footage at the moment, so there's no need for me to rush into a new model. If anything, I'd rather save some more money and get the Blackmagic Camera MFT. Having a true cinema camera and a GH2 as a B-Camera is probably a better way to go for me than just going the GH3 route.

Anyone else having similar thoughts?
 
I don't know, the weather sealed body and the battery grip options tempt me. I'm really cheesed off though at the lack of peaking and then calling it semi-pro, then hinting they *might* (and I bet don't) add it with a future firmware. The way it can be used with a tablet or iPhone is a nice feature, if it really does a lot more than an eye-fi card then again this interests me.

I'd be more inclined to get the GH3 than the Blackmagic to be honest, but I think I'd like a replacement to the AF100/101 more than either.
 
It's too early to say no. There's been hardly any footage and not all questions have been answered.

The price (especially in the UK where we always get shafted) is a big issue. On what I currently know about it, it's not worth the upgrade price.
 
The raw footage posted so far certainly hasn't wowed me, but there are many variables involved with that. Too early to say.

It'd be nice to eventually have a massive upgrade, rather than an incremental one though.
 
The camera hasn't been put into production yet, let alone available for sale, and you've already determined you're not gonna buy it? That makes perfect sense.
 
Only reason I'm going to use the GH3 is the form factor. For my handheld work the GH2 is to difficult to use. I currently have to use it with a cage and it makes it very awkward. GH3 will be purchased on form factor alone and when the hacking community gets a hold of it I know they are going to really make it a beast of a camera.

based on image quality alone though the GH2 with a Hack is a beast already and if you are fine with the form factor then spend that extra money on some lenses or advertisement for your business.
 
While I love my pair of gh2's to death, the noisy high iso's and the lack of dynamic range bothers me. I'm shooting in Vibrant mode right now, just to escape the noise, but it crushes the darks even more.

Had no idea how limited the gh2 DR was until I saw a DR shootout between the lowly gf1 and the gh2 somewhere in this forum. The gfi thrashes the gh2 in that test... so badly I considered buying a gf1!

If the GH3 DR improvement is SIGNIFICANT then I'll definitely want the Gh3.

If the DR is minor then I'll sit on my hands for the moment.

I've watched the available Gh3 footage so far and it's been.... meh... can't really assess the DR....
 
It's all academic, since we don't know when it will be widely available - yeah, Nov. 30th officially, but going by past history, probably not until sometime next year. So no sense making a determination right now - it's not an option to "buy" anyway. Of course, I'm not the kind to "put money down" on a bleeding edge gadget that's not even shipping, so I'd bid my time. Once the GH3 is widely available, and can be closely examined (and compared to the GH2), well, that's the time to make a decision about buying. So unless you're putting money down right now - not wise, IMHO, under any circumstances - it's not even an option.
 
b_k said:
The camera hasn't been put into production yet, let alone available for sale, and you've already determined you're not gonna buy it? That makes perfect sense.
Click to expand...

+1

I'm going to reserve judgment on this camera until some final production models are in the hands of testers. I put in a pre-order anyway at my local shot (no deposit required) in case it turns out to be the cam I think it will (realistic expectations).

The things people complained about on the GH2 was low light, ISO noise, colour, build quality,crap LCD, not ETC with hdmi monitor and Dynamic Range. All are supposed to be improved upon with this camera plus a hand full of other goodies. Not to mention much more powerful processors and infrastructure. Are we really that ready to complain about something that isn't even finalized?

When the GH2 came out everyone was complaining that it wasn't much of an upgrade over the GH1. Now its everyones favourite cam and everyone thinks the GH3 isn't much of an upgrade and the cycle goes on and on.

Great cameras out there and no one is happy.
 
All I know is I am getting one as soon as it is available. The GH3 is a brand new little beast and a I am sure is goona rock. I'll work a little harder next couple of months and save the $1300. It is a brand new tool for me and I am going to put it to use as soon as I get it. My GH2 will be used as back-up insurance everytime I go on a shoot.
 
RatLabProductions said:
+1

I'm going to reserve judgment on this camera until some final production models are in the hands of testers. I put in a pre-order anyway at my local shot (no deposit required) in case it turns out to be the cam I think it will (realistic expectations).

The things people complained about on the GH2 was low light, ISO noise, colour, build quality,crap LCD, not ETC with hdmi monitor and Dynamic Range. All are supposed to be improved upon with this camera plus a hand full of other goodies. Not to mention much more powerful processors and infrastructure. Are we really that ready to complain about something that isn't even finalized?

When the GH2 came out everyone was complaining that it wasn't much of an upgrade over the GH1. Now its everyones favourite cam and everyone thinks the GH3 isn't much of an upgrade and the cycle goes on and on.

Great cameras out there and no one is happy.
Click to expand...

Actually (speaking for myself) I think the GH3 is a GREAT camera... much improved over the GH2 which I love... would buy it in a heartbeat if it was the only new camera in town.

But then there's the BMC to consider with all the lovely DR I could ever want.

It's a terrific time to buy a camera.... the wealth of choices... don't think you can go wrong with either the Gh3 or the BMC... would want to get both but I can only afford one for the moment.... but which one do I buy first?

Sitting on my hands at the moment... but excited as hell.
 
John Caballero said:
All I know is I am getting one as soon as it is available.
Click to expand...

+1.

I will repurchase the 12-35. I'm not one for the hack and from what I've seen so far (yes it's rough but I know what to look for), if the GH3 even comes close to the best of the hacks (which I'm sure it will), I'm ahead of the game. The GH2 becomes a B cam and I have a new weather sealed camera with headphone out, battery grip, level gauge, improved EVF and Live View, Smartphone control, and all the flavors of video recording I could want. (And did I mention Timecode?)

So for me it's a no brainer. The BMCC is not something I'm interested in anyway. Looks beautiful but doesn't fit my needs.
 
RatLabProductions said:
+1

I'm going to reserve judgment on this camera until some final production models are in the hands of testers. I put in a pre-order anyway at my local shot (no deposit required) in case it turns out to be the cam I think it will (realistic expectations).

The things people complained about on the GH2 was low light, ISO noise, colour, build quality,crap LCD, not ETC with hdmi monitor and Dynamic Range. All are supposed to be improved upon with this camera plus a hand full of other goodies. Not to mention much more powerful processors and infrastructure. Are we really that ready to complain about something that isn't even finalized?

When the GH2 came out everyone was complaining that it wasn't much of an upgrade over the GH1. Now its everyones favourite cam and everyone thinks the GH3 isn't much of an upgrade and the cycle goes on and on.

Great cameras out there and no one is happy.
Click to expand...

Yep, history is repeating itself. I remember some of the "intense discussions" that would take place over the GH1 hacked with native 24p and the unhacked GH2. The GH2 that may or may not have an odd 24p cadence and how dare they get rid of the 4:2:2 in mjpeg sort of arguments. Then there was the debate on how the GH1 may have taken better stills and so forth. Lets not forget the I'm not buying a camera with a messed up HDMI port. Eventually the fear factor calmed down and considering the price is ungodly insane cheap in terms of the professional video world most moved to the GH2. Once the GH2 was hacked it was end of story for the GH1.
 
Due to the change in crop factor (it's larger) due to a different, smaller sensor (and no multi-aspect functionality like the GH2), people who have a nice collection of lenses based around the GH2's FOV will have to think long and hard before switching to the GH3.

If it has fewer usable pixels in video mode than the GH2, then the video will be inherently softer and no amount of extra compression bits are going to bring that detail back. This could be the GH3's Achilles Heel if this bears out.

Oh, and unless Panasonic can fix it via firmware, the alaising is worse than the GH2. Some of these tells are why it's been hinted that it's a Sony sensor.
 
JohnTollwannabe said:
If it has fewer usable pixels in video mode than the GH2, then the video will be inherently softer and no amount of extra compression bits are going to bring that detail back. This could be the GH3's Achilles Heel if this bears out.
Click to expand...
+
 
JohnTollwannabe said:
If it has fewer usable pixels in video mode than the GH2, then the video will be inherently softer and no amount of extra compression bits are going to bring that detail back. This could be the GH3's Achilles Heel if this bears out.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry but that is a nonsense statement.
 
It's at the end of a list of "stuff I need soon," so unless this falls bookings are exceptionally plentiful, I won't be an early buyer.
 
The want factor for me is huge. I love new toys. The need factor for me is virtually non-existant. I'll wait a year or more when I can pick one up for $600.
 
With your permission, I'd like to quote this in my Panasonic GH3 fb page. I think is really summarizes how a lot of us feel about this much anticipated 'upgrade', being mindful that Panasonic have made several things quite clear:
• The GH3 is meant to remain a pro-sumer / semi pro budget upgrade and not a Professional upgrade
• It's implemented upgrades to assist those fearful of hacks
• Panasonic has edged towards encouraging still shooters that were disappointed with the GH2 as a still camera.
• The GH3 is a robust hybrid and not a dedicated video camera.
Personally, I may well pick up a GH2 as I wait for a next-gen camera that has been bandied bout for a while, a diminutive ProVideo mini AF100 or other smaller 'boxy' M43... or S35, from Panny or Olympus? who knows what 2013 will bring other than a new presidential term in the USA ;)
 
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