GH4 Panasonic GH5 coming in 2017

tosvus said:
we can all dream, eh? :) It's not like most of the items are crazy in themselves, but obviously asking for all of that in camera that will be very reasonably priced compared to other cameras with similar features is optimistic. If you think 6K is crazy, I actually think that would be doable - tough but doable. They have sensors with the correct resolution, the readout wouldn't be particularly fast, but of course there is a lot of data to chug, and compress in real time, so processing is the biggest question. Yet, with an optimized processing unit for it, it could be done, I'm sure. It would certainly give the new GH5 a claim to fame, whether it turns out to be a terribly useful feature - or not. Sony can push low light capability on their A7Sii. They can push a ridiculous amount of pixels for photography for the A7Rii, so it would be good if Panasonic had a standout feature..

PS: Nice demo reel on your site. It's cool you take the time to participate on the forum with amateurs such as myself. :)
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An "optimized processor for 6k" is called the RED.

Expecting that kind of processing in a GH5 package is just pure folly.

Hell, even the Sony A7RII overheats when doing 4k for longer periods of time, and you want Panasonic to do that in 6k in a similar sized body?
 
I hope they at least fix annoying GH4 limitations in everyday use:

-not showing exposure values during video shooting
-no ability to program most wanted menu items to FN-buttons
-badly working AE/AF lock button
-no autoiso in M with EV control
 
This is my 'list' of SW fixes that need sorting out:

Changing ISO - removes ALL exposure aids from screen (Zebras, Meter - the lot) - This needs fixing - Issue since GH2!!
While in P/S/M (Movie) modes. Display the shutter, aperture & ISO values. So we can see what it's doing.
Ability to assign a Fn button to do one touch WB (useful in movie mode)
Enable AutoISO in M mode (Movie) + plus enable upper ISO limit
While in A mode (Movie), limit shutter to 180' shutter angle
Ability to assign ISO control to wheel without need to press ISO button
While recording in MF mode, allow the back AF/AE button to perform AF

What I would like to see:

1. Ability to use focus ring on native lenses without the speed ramp
2. Much better C-AF in 4K mode, the hunting is bad
3. Gain/ISO - make it a more gradual in steps
4. Full width 4K, no more 2.35x crop (at least give us the option to use full width, even to the determent of quality)
5. Top request - Dual IS in 4K mode (I get a feeling we will only get it in 1080)
 
mcgeedigital said:
... Hell, even the Sony A7RII overheats when doing 4k for longer periods of time, and you want Panasonic to do that in 6k in a similar sized body?
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Apparently, not anymore (after the latest upgrade). And GH5 will come out more than a year after A7RII.

But, really, 6K in GH5??? I say, there's maybe a 1% chance. Maybe.
 
I'll say this again. Chances are - more than 1% ... and more than upwards of 75% - that what you'll see in GH5 is basically the DVX200 performance in an interchangeable lens (MFT) format and without the early teething problems of its fixed lens brethren. The other 20%-25% is that it might get an HEVC related codec and thus a higher "real life" recording bit rate and perhaps an internal 10-bit to the SDXC cards.

HEVC has been in a bit of a limbo over the past year, as the various patent holding groups have tried to present their cases to one another. It seems like everything was settled over the last couple of weeks and this should become the next dominant codec for the budget/entry to the mid-level pro lines.
 
mcgeedigital said:
An "optimized processor for 6k" is called the RED.

Expecting that kind of processing in a GH5 package is just pure folly.

Hell, even the Sony A7RII overheats when doing 4k for longer periods of time, and you want Panasonic to do that in 6k in a similar sized body?
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well, maybe the biggest limitation is indeed IBIS. If Panasonic still refuses to implement it, maybe 6K is doable, as it allows better heat dissipation than a moving sensor would. Panasonic has no issue with 4K overheating, so... besides we have cellphones that shoot 4k now, and tiny action cams. 6K is not out of the realm of possibility. The processor will of course need to be highly optimized (I know a thing or two about that subject). Oh, and the Dragon records in 100fps at 6K. Obviously 24fps would be far less taxing..

They could also time limit 6K for a photo mode only. After all, Panasonic has really been pushing the hybrid nature & photo mode of these cameras. I'd happy take 30 seconds or a minute of 6K. Plenty of shots can be done in that time.. My LX100 has a limitation of 15 minutes for 4K, so certainly a way to do it. I remember when people were excited about the readout on the nikon1v and could record, what 1-2 seconds of 24fps full quality raw files (the buffer was too small for more).

Heck, even if that poses too difficult, they could always just output it to external recorders. Sony had to do that for 4K with the previous generation of their cameras if I'm not mistaken...
 
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tosvus said:
... Heck, even if that poses too difficult, they could always just output it to external recorders. Sony had to do that for 4K with the previous generation of their cameras if I'm not mistaken...
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From a technological POV, it can be done. From the marketing one though, probably not for GH5.

Johnny Behiri just posted his Leica SL video (this one is in 4K on YouTube). I assume Panasonic's own version will have a lot more by the time it is released (of course, it can be in a camcorder/pro camera, rather than a DSLR, style body)

 
DLD said:
The other 20%-25% is that it might get an HEVC related codec and thus a higher "real life" recording bit rate and perhaps an internal 10-bit to the SDXC cards.
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I think if Panasonic doesn't give us 200 Mb/s I-frame HEVC 10 bit 4:2:2 internal recording at DCI specs in the GH5, they will have missed an opportunity to dominate the DSLR-video market segment. (Assuming no one else does it before the GH5 hits, that is.)
 
Jim Simon said:
I think if Panasonic doesn't give us 200 Mb/s I-frame HEVC 10 bit 4:2:2 internal recording at DCI specs in the GH5, they will have missed an opportunity to dominate the DSLR-video market segment. (Assuming no one else does it before the GH5 hits, that is.)
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A big step for them would be to go to the CFast 2.0 cards, that are currently selling for ~ $3/GB. I believe, the fastest (H264) SDXC camera is LS300 at 150 (and even that isn't like to be constant). Sony lines top out at 100 and most (NX1, GH4 included) average about 80.

Of course, they could go back in time and record in halfsies to two cards, which is very unlikely for a jack-of-all-trades model.
 
More likely Sony would use a proprietary XQD card than Cfast.
I would rather see recording to two of the fastest SD cards and then upload to my computer with USB 3.x.
I also see no reason that they would not implement H265.
 
RRRoger said:
More likely Sony would use a proprietary XQD card than Cfast.
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There seems to be more than one person who believes that XQD is proprietary. It isn't. It is under the wings of the CompactFlash Association.

The inner difference between CFast and XQD is the bus. CFast uses SATA, XQD uses PCI Express.
 
The XQD might as well be proprietary as there is so little competition.
Also Sony (as far as I know) does not make/sell a CFast card or use one in any of their cameras.

Panasonic may surprise us and use a/several micro SD cards. I sure hope not.
I have a real problem handling and keeping track of those.
I would much rather they stuck with SDXC (but two of them).
 
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RRRoger said:
... I also see no reason that they would not implement H265.
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Somebody, somewhere down the line will enable HEVC. 2014/15 was too early, due to the need to transcode. Nowadays, and certainly by the time GH5 is announced, every major editing suit will do HEVC natively. The processors get more power efficient as well, meaning less of a problem with heat accumulation inside camera bodies.

A more pertinent question, however, might be, not whether Panasonic has the technology, but how much of it will have to be included at GH5's targeted price. One has to figure that Sony's A7SII/RII series will be going for a few hundred less by the fall of 2016 and there'll be competing 4K photo-video hybrids from Canon and Nikon as well. All those will have larger native sensors and GH5 might have to be priced closer to $1,200 rather than $1,700 of GH3 and GH4 (originally upon release). And $1,200 might mean a few missing features that could be included but won't be due to the budgetary restraints.
 
The biggest difference would be if the GH5 has better low light performance, 2 stops of clean good color capture in low light; not asking for A7S level, but better than the piss poor GH4 which in turn was barely better if at all than the GH3 - really the entire GH line has been weak from that point of view. And while in-body IBIS has been a dream for a long time, I think with the rise of better and more affordable gimbals, the importance of IBIS has somewhat fallen for video. Meanwhile, I want to be able to move entirely to LED lights that can be battery operated - small, cool, quiet, efficient and super portable... I don't want to be forced to use 1000W lights to light anything - I want to be able to light with small low powered lights, which means I want a camera that is sensitive enough that I can use small lights in almost any scenario which doesn't compete with other light sources (such as the sun in exteriors, heh). That is the biggest thing the GH5 could bring to the table for me, and for that I'm willing to pay more, because I'll save on lights. Everything else on the various wish lists I've seen is merely in the "nice to have" category, but unless the GH5 is a substantial upgrade in the low light department, I don't really see a reason to shell out for an upgrade from a GH4.
 
DLD said:
A big step for them would be to go to the CFast 2.0 cards
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I'm not sure I would complain if they did, but I also don't think they really need to. The GH4 currently offers 200 Mb/s for 1080p, so SDXC should be fine for that bitrate.

It's the processor/cooling in the camera that might need a major overhaul to make 200 Mb/s 10 bit 4:2:2 HEVC 4K I-frame recording happen.
 
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OldCorpse said:
The biggest difference would be if the GH5 has better low light performance, 2 stops of clean good color capture in low light; not asking for A7S level, but better than the piss poor GH4 which in turn was barely better if at all than the GH3 - really the entire GH line has been weak from that point of view.
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I expect the GH5 will have similar low-light performance to its predecessors. It's the limitations of a m43-sized chip.
 
I guess Panasonic was sort of given the m4/3rds sensor size as it was the only open market opportunity at the time, but it seems like the long way around from a performance point of view. It will probably never change though. The camera industry is filled with missed opportunities and could haves. Panasonic could have made the DVX200 a killer camera, but chose to make it middle of the road. Lets see if they make the GH5 a killer or just another. We have all told them what would make it great in the user's minds but I do not know how much that plays into it.
 
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