GH2 Still Photography with the GH-2 Can't Touch Canon / Nikon

Those are some nice stills. I'm going to do a comparison stills test with the T2i/GH2. I just picked up the GH2 and getting used to it. Dumb Q, What would be the best profile to match on each cam?
I usually use 'Neutral' for the Canon. On the Panny, would that be Standard since both have 0's straight through each parameter? Would appreciate any advice on doing this test if you have any for settings
or what not. It will not be a 'scientific' test by no means. Thanks.
 
TheDingo said:
Another reason I avoided RAW until now is that I don't own LightRoom, and did not want to get stuck processing a few hundred shots with SilkyPix.
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I passed on LightRoom since doesn't recognize MTS video files. However, the Adobe Camera Raw plugin works in Photoshop as well, and comes bundled with it. ACR rocks and I find its user interface far more efficient than Photoshop's. Most of the time I use Photoshop only to apply Neat Noise Reduction and/or resize and crop images. ACR's non-destructive image processing model is superb and its only functional flaw is its inability to work on multiple images at the same time.
 
when i had a 550D/t2i i used neutral as well, standard with my GH2 is not what would use,i find smooth similar.
 
Thanks Flinty. Will use 'Smooth' setting then. I just started taking some shots but it looks like already i would not say the GH2 'can't touch' Nikon/Canon.
It looks like it all depends on which LENS you use. I just started but if you use the same quality lens on both Canon and Panny the results look pretty much the same.
Colors are slightly different but tweakable. But i'll share pics later and they'll speak for themselves.
 
lpowell said:
ACR's non-destructive image processing model is superb and its only functional flaw is its inability to work on multiple images at the same time.
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You can open multiple images into ACR via Adobe Bridge or explorer and switch between them on demand. What I like even better is that I can process one image in ACR, right click in Bridge, copy the develop settings, and then apply the same settings to other images in Bridge. Very handy for quickly processing similar shots.
 
james thorpe said:
I just set up a gallery for a GH2/550D comparison. Just started and will add more.
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Where I noticed the big difference between GH-2 vs Canon/Nikon is low-light color reproduction at ISO 800 or higher, especially when subject had a very limited color range. ( I was shooting a government conference held at a 100 year old hotel, lit by dim tungsten lights, so lots of yellow / brown colors that made skin tone reproduction difficult, especially since I had to shoot in JPEG format )

BTW, I shot another government event a week ago and shot everything with my GH-2 in RAW format. Using the LightRoom to process the RAW images the results were much better than my other JPEG shoot. Still not as good as my old Canon 60D, but not too far off. I think I can live with the results of the GH-2 RAW format.
 
I've owned a 7D and a T2i, and I actually like the stills that I get from the GH1. Nothing to complain about except for banding past 1250, but that can be cleaned up with Dfine.
 
TheDingo said:
Where I noticed the big difference between GH-2 vs Canon/Nikon is low-light color reproduction at ISO 800 or higher, especially when subject had a very limited color range. ( I was shooting a government conference held at a 100 year old hotel, lit by dim tungsten lights, so lots of yellow / brown colors that made skin tone reproduction difficult, especially since I had to shoot in JPEG format )

BTW, I shot another government event a week ago and shot everything with my GH-2 in RAW format. Using the LightRoom to process the RAW images the results were much better than my other JPEG shoot. Still not as good as my old Canon 60D, but not too far off. I think I can live with the results of the GH-2 RAW format.
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I'll have to try a low light test. Yeah, i agree. If you are using a decent lens like a 20/1.7 or 14-140 in RAW, it turned out nice. I'm impressed with the Lumix lenses.
 
TheDingo said:
I shot natural light photos at a business retreat on Monday, and am now editing my shots...

Despite having fast lenses f/0.95 - f/1.4, the low-light photos are nowhere near as good as what I used to get with my Canon 60D. The images are sharp, but color has a consistent brown mush feel to them that is very hard to eliminate. ( I color balanced for each location, but the color is still not accurate )

I shot full resolution JPEGs for client convenience which is probably part of my problem. ( RAW would have likely produced a better result )

After this experience I am thinking of buying a Nikon body for any future stills work as Nikon lenses are easier to adapt for the GH-2, and I already own two great Zeiss ZF lenses.
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Never that problem. ISO is my main beef, but again, .95 lens and a flash will take care of that. JPEG is the issue - I suggest EVERYONE use RAW EXCLUSIVELY. It's NIGHT AND DAY by comparison. You can barely adjust photos at all on JPEG without noticing artifacts/grain. But RAW on a GH2 is VERY FLEXIBLE and have gotten impressive results editing photos 3 stops under exposed, which is impossible with JPEGs from m4/3
 
I was curious so I just ran the image compare on dpreview, RAW, low ISO between the Canon 60D and the GH2. To my eye, the GH2 was notch better. Especially, looking at the watch face in the corner the GH2 resolved noticeably more fine detail.
 
DrDave said:
looking at the watch face in the corner the GH2 resolved noticeably more fine detail.
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Low ISO images look great with the GH-2, especially if you shoot RAW. ( I have become a RAW convert, and will try to ONLY shoot RAW format from now on )

It's the higher ISO range, say 800+, where I find the GH-2 does not have as much color fidelity as an equivalent Canon or Nikon DSLR camera. ( the GH-2 is good, but the Canon / Nikons are a little better at taking high ISO still photos )
 
I switched from a Nikon DSLR D70 to a GH-2. While the new Nikons and Canons are great cameras, I'm very happy with my GH-2's still shots. As a camera to take on vacation, it's exceptional. Here are some shots from my Belize vacation: http://danclark.smugmug.com/Vacation/BelizeVacation/16524073_sQrDU. Great shots? Most show the deficiencies of the photographer. But I'm happy with them.

The GH2, 4 lenses (20/1.7, 14-140, 7-14, 100-300), flash, Rode VideoMic Pro, red dot sight, and several other accessories fit nicely into a LowePro Slingshot 202AW. If you're making a living at it, by all means get the best you can afford because you won't be worrying about lugging around all the large equipment. For the rest of us, the GH2 will beat the pants off of any awesome camera that is too big and heavy to lug around all the time.

Regards,

Dan.
 
Enjoyed those amazing pictures there Dan. Thanks for sharing! Were those pictures straight out of the camera?
 
Heartfelt said:
You guys mind sharing what flash(s) you are pleased using?
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I have been using nikon speedlights and the lumopro 160's when out and about. I like the lumopros. Really basic but super solid flash. I like the pictures I get out of the gh2 but have gone back to nikon for stills. This below was a gh2 with a nikon 50mm 1.8

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i have owned a nikon D300 a canon 5DMk2 & a canon 7d...i now own a GH2 using canonFD lenses (mostly a 24mm 2.8 SSC) & i would put it nowhere near the 5D2 but on a par with the 7D & way better than the nikon D300 for still images...video is astonishing using the Aquamotion V2 driftwood hack
 
I have a first gen 5D and a video camera that has been siting in the closet ever since I got the GH2. What a great combo it is. I take it everywhere. Size and weight makes you want to. The 5D stills and AF-100 video are for the big stuff.
 
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