GH3 Portraits with the GH3

EDV

EDV

Well-known member
Anyone knows of a good example of people portraits with the GH3?

The overwhelming majority of the clips I've seen are of parks, trees, nature, landscapes, buildings, factories, crowds... and , while impressive ( especially low light time-lapses ) I've yet to see a clip where the portrait makes my jaw drop. The closest I've come being amazed was a wedding video filmed on the AF100, which a lot of people claim is basically an accessorised GH3.

http://vimeo.com/69519799

Unfortunately this clip also includes a lot of 7D footage, so it's not a good example.

I am comparing the GH3 directly to the Letus Ultimate + Zeiss primes, and specifically for portraits or interviews, and honestly, so far, the Letus is winning...

http://vimeo.com/10551489

Perhaps it's the lens, or maybe it's the lighting, but my impression at the moment is that the GH3 isn't the best choice for portraits ( I am not particularly impressed by how the other DSLRs match up by the way, but it could also be the current trend towards a flat, desaturated look, which I loathe. )

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=as9W0cW3n5U#at=300
 
EDV said:
Perhaps it's the lens....
Click to expand...

It is about the lens when it comes down to anything, but particularily for portraits. Lens and camera choice obviously go together, but the lens will play the biggest role here. (And of course the talent in front of, and behind the camera.)

There are tons of choices for the m43 system.
 
As a retired professional portrait photographer, the result of a portrait session whether it be still or motion picture is ENTIRELY up to the person behind the camera.

Any decent camera with reasonably workable lenses will do however the person behind the camera must also have a solid knowledge of lighting, composition, and facial shapes. One must know what lighting patterns work with which facial shapes are encountered.

The biggest mistake I see is the use of flat or "broad" lighting on a person with a "full" face. "Broad" lighting is that which lights the broad side/aspect of a "full" face and often adds the appearance of 20-100 pounds of apparent extra weight. "Short" lighting takes the appearance of extra weight off.

Have a person sit in front of a camera and turn their face slightly to one side or the other (so the nose is not pointing at the lens). Then you can see that the part of the face on one side of the nose has a shorter "aspect", the other side is noticeably "broader". Faces are often non symmetrical so one cheekbone has a sharper profile than the other.

And you cannot use just any old light source, you have to know reflector types and how they affect the character of the light.

My studio's portrait product was characterized by professional lighting management and how I used lenses. I had one lens that was especially designed for varying degrees of softness, other lenses that were as sharp as medium format "glass" can get so I often used controlled diffusion filtration in front of the lens.

The GH3 is as eminently suited for both still and motion picture portraiture as any camera, perhaps even more so because you can adapt almost any lens made to it. It is up to how well you know (or can learn) basic photography and lighting, and how well you apply that knowledge.

Most (if not all) the Panasonic and Olympus m4/3 lenses are incredibly sharp so if you use diffusion you do have to test and evaluate. I have a set of 5 Cokin square diffusion filters (they made them in 2 strengths but samples could vary a lot) that range from very subtle to "don't even try to focus through this one". And I'm also starting to test and evaluate the Tiffen Black Diffusion series (the Cokins are OLD).

But the GH3 will do it...If you will.
 


This is the first project I've done in nearly 5 years. Though I will say the client wanted a home video feel to it, so stabilization wasn't an issue.

That said there are a few decent portraits shot with the GH3 and an SLR Magic 35mm T1.4 lens here.

Cheers
 
not an impressive video of what the GH3 can do but its the only "talking head" shot I have so far with this camera

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I AGREE



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfbig4JfYlk&hd=1
 
Excellent portraits are manageable with almost any large sensor camera... heck, they're even possible with my positively pre-cambrian HVX. Its far more about lighting and lensing than it's ever been about a sensor. People bag on the AF100 relentlessly yet, as you note in your post, it too can do an excellent job when used well.
 
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