what are the cons of a G2?

J

Jitup

Member
I am looking at getting a new DSLR, and was looking at canon stuff. I have a bag full of really nice Fd mount glass so I decided that I should look for something that can utilize it. I am torn between getting an open box g1 or a g2. I know the g1 dose not do video but, I have a HVX200. I can get the G1 for about $300 and the G2 is going for about $500 right now with the kit lens. Is there any cons as far as video for the G2? Is the video feature alone worth justifying the g2 over the g1? Is the kit lens any good or should I just get a body?
Thanks
 
If you don't need 1080p video, the G2 has most every other feature of the new GH2 camera, including touch-screen focusing and Extended Tele Converter mode. What's even better is that the G2 is hackable. much like the GF1 and GH1 cameras. This makes the G2 a uniquely versatile bargain.
 
the more research I do on this camera the more I want it. It seems like a very powerful tool for both video and photography. I am amazed with the wide range of optics that can be easily made to work with this camera. After seeing some GH13 footage I am now trying to decide if I should get a G2 or Gh1 to do the hack. I have read some stuff about a G2 hack but I can not seem to find it or a link or thread for it. Currently the price for a Gh1 is $400 for the body and the G2 is a bit cheaper just for the body. Dose anyone have experience with both of these cameras? can someone please link me to the G2 hack info? Is the kit lens any good for these cameras? How dose the video compare from a hacked Gh1 to a hacked G2? what about either to the Hvx200? sorry for all the questions, but this is the first time I have considered any dslr/ still camera aside from a canon and I am a third generation photographer that grew up with only canon gear and I have never had a problem so I am a bit nervous about the switch.
 
Question please.

The current G2 that Panasonic ships today, still hackable ??? Or is it like the GH1s, and has to be an earlier version ???
 
I think I have decided to go with the Gh1. Dose the G2 hack allow for 24fps? what about 1080p?How do I get make sure I get a gh1 that is hackable? Is there I link somewhere?
 
The G2 can be hacked the same way as the GH1 or GF1: load the G2 firmware file from Panasonic into PTool, apply the desired patches, save the hacked firmware to an SD card, and update the camera's firmware with the SD card. For more info, check out the link in my signature.

As far as I can tell, all G2's are hackable, however, no G2 is capable of 1080p or 24fps in AVCHD mode. For that you would need a hackable GH1.
 
I'm pretty sure the G2 cannot do 720p at 50/60fps. Panasonic say that the sensor reads 25/30fps but then the frames are doubled and recorded as 50/60fps. So in effect it's not true smooth motion like a GH1 720p @ 50/60fps.

Despite what it seems to say in the manual, the Panasonic G2 is Program only, no aperture or shutter priority exposure control is available. Still, Peripheral Defocus mode is available, giving some depth-of-field control, and Flicker Reduction offers four shutter speed choices, from 1/50 to 1/120 second.

Not a good buy for sports or where you might want slowmo.
 
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All G2 cameras are now hackable but I don't believe the battery hack works. However, there are plenty of chipped batteries you can buy for really cheap prices.

The hack will not add 1080p or 60/50 FPS video to a GF1 or a G2. It will allow you to increase the bit rate dramatically for MJPEG and AVC-HD though. However, the video will always be at 30/25 FPS.

Hackable GH1s are really great cameras. However, they are extremely hard to find and they are actually getting expensive now. You would be much better off getting a GH2 esspecially since they are selling the body only for under $700 through the Panasonic facebook page.

If you only need 720p and you don't need 60/50 FPS then the G2 is an outstanding camera. It actually has the ETC mode from the GH2. It also has focus tracking while taking video. Even the mighty GH2 does not have that.
 
rambooc1 said:
...Despite what it seems to say in the manual, the Panasonic G2 is Program only, no aperture or shutter priority exposure control is available...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. Can you shoot video in full manual, i.e. manual focus, f/stop, shutter speed, ISO and white balance?
 
rambooc1 said:
Despite what it seems to say in the manual, the Panasonic G2 is Program only, no aperture or shutter priority exposure control is available.
Click to expand...
This is true for the stock G2, but with PTool you can hack it to provide the same manual exposure modes as in the GF1. In general, you can hack the G2 in exactly the same ways as the GF1, with the exception of the 4:2:2 color depth and NTSC<->PAL patches, which do not yet work properly.

The G2 works very well with my Fast Action 3-Frame GOP Patch. This converts the G2's faux-60p mode into true 720p30 video at up to 55Mbps bitrate, using a 3-frame GOP. It also works well in extended MJPEG modes, which I use to film anamorphic widescreen 1920x810 video at up to 75Mbps.

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?222791-50Mbps-AVCHD-Fast-Action-3-Frame-GOP-Patch
 
lpowell said:
This is true for the stock G2, but with PTool you can hack it to provide the same manual exposure modes as in the GF1. In general, you can hack the G2 in exactly the same ways as the GF1, with the exception of the 4:2:2 color depth and NTSC<->PAL patches, which do not yet work properly...

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?222791-50Mbps-AVCHD-Fast-Action-3-Frame-GOP-Patch
Click to expand...

I am not familiar with the GF1. With the hack can you run the G2 in manual focus, f/stop, shutter speed, ISO and white balance? I did read the post you linked to and it sounds like there may be issues with low light. Would the same issues be present with the G2 in low light? Thanks for your input.
 
Mark Von Lanken said:
With the hack can you run the G2 in manual focus, f/stop, shutter speed, ISO and white balance?
Click to expand...
Yes, those features all work on a hacked G2, just as they do on the GF1. More info can be found in this thread:

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?213482-GF1-testing-and-footage-goes-HERE

While the G2 uses the same image sensor as the GF1, it scans it with updated firmware that has similar features as the GH2. To my eyes, the G2's low-light image quality is much cleaner than the GF1, almost as good as the GH1. The unique value of the G2, however, is that it's the only model that has a hackable Extended Tele Conversion mode, with 3X optical focal length magnification. The GH2 has this feature as well, but its HD video modes are limited to 17Mbps bitrate. With the G2, you can use a 50mm f1.4 lens as a 150mm f1.4 at 720p30, with hacked bitrates up to 75Mbps.

Another updated feature of the G2, along with the GH2, is auto-focus support for most Panasonic and Olympus Four Thirds lenses (with a Four Thirds adapter). This makes it fully compatible with the only fast OIS-capable zoom available, the Panasonic 14-50mm f2.8-3.5:

 
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Hi,
Apologies for the thread resurrection but I was hoping for an update on the hackability status of new G2s. Is the G2 on sale today still hackable?
Many thanks
Nick
 
i've managed to hack my G2 from a 1.0 Firmware Version. I noticed that in order for full manual controls i have to constantly press menu and then exit to put it to video mode. I also noticed that when in manual mode, when i switch the Ext. Opt. Zoom ON (is this the same as ETC?) nothing happens, but when i use the dial for Video Mode without manual controls, Ext. Opt. Zoom Works. Also when changing the shutter speed on manual mode, it only changes from 1/50 upwards, it wont go below 1/50, why is this? did i hack it wrong? or is the G2 really limited to this range even with the hack for manual mode is on?
 
I just tested the Ext. Opt. Zoom again, it works in manual mode but it wont show it straight away on the LCD screen when you switch it ON, you have to press REC first and then it will show up. But for the Shutter Speed on Manual Mode is still not working under 50, it works on images but it doesnt on video, was this the case for GF1 aswell?
 
kainekainekaine said:
I can go down to 1/25th shutter which is visibly the brightest on screen but only once you hit record. If I go any lower than 1/25th it actually gets darker and is not actually a lower stuttery shutter, it seems higher. Does anyone know if you can go even lower shutter than 1/25th and get a ghost effect like on the GH cameras? With the hack or without? Or something like a video timelapse effect without actually having to use a remote timer using the still function. Cheers.
Click to expand...

just tried 1/25th and your right it just wont show it straight away. i wanted to go lower for the timelapse effect aswell without having to shoot it with a remote timer. i hope vitally would hack it but it seems like there's not a lot of G2 users for the G2 hacks to be further developed. thinking bout selling and going for the gh2 but i myt wait for the GH3
 
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