What do you want to know about the new GH2?

A

AKED

Well-known member
Hi all,

if the new GH2 is announced on the Photokina at the 21st of September, I will visit the IFA in Cologne this week.
It is only 1 hour drive away from my home.

So if you have questions, that I shall ask there or that I shall find you, please post them here so I can make a list so we know all we need afterwards.

I would like to know about:

earphone jacks,
sound control,
HDMI out,
fps in 720 and 1080 the bps there as well,
Follow focus also in video mode.


What are you interested in?
 
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I have few specific questions.

1) Why 60p mode had been eliminated and only 30p is available?
2) Why fixed patern noise is still visible.
3) Why same 2.5mm audio jack?
4) H264 codec is still much worse compared to video cameras. Why is this?
5) No HDMI output during recording. Is this Panasonic policy fo VDSLRs?

This is questions according to data I have now (of course, they are nto certain).
 
AKED said:
... I would like to know about:

earphone jacks,
sound control,
HDMI out,
fps in 720 and 1080 the bps there as well,
Follow focus also in video mode.

What are you interested in?
Click to expand...

Hi AKED: My list of questions for Panasonic is very similar to yours, especially your first 3. I want to know if the "GH2" supports live audio _and_ video monitoring while recording. I'd love it if the camera has a headphone jack, but it would be OK with me if the live audio only comes out through the USB/AV jack via adapters. I don't care so much how they implement monitoring output during recording, just as long as it's there!

Are there audio record level settings in the menu? And can you set the audio input to line level (instead of mic level)? If there's a headphone jack, can you set playback level?

If you already own a GH1 or similar cam that uses that special USB/AV cable, bring it with you to the expo, and also headphones & a few plug adapters (and a SD card) so you can try it with the new camera at the show! It would be awesome if you are able to verify live audio output while in record mode. Note: It's possible/likely the Panasonic salespeople at the expo won't know the answer to this question since it's not a typical "consumer" question.

As for live video monitoring ... of course there will be a million HDTVs all over the expo, including a few in Panasonic's booth. So, just in case they don't have an extra HDMI cable available for you to try, maybe bring one with you! :-) Likewise, since the live video output might only be composite video, not HDMI, bring an RCA cable (and the special USB/AV adapter) with you too.

Since the "GH2" may have a higher res sensor than the GH1, try to do some simple tests of its 1080p video aliasing & moire performance. Again, bring a SD card, and shoot some video of fine textures in things such as clothes, carpets, fabrics, and grid patterns like brick walls, etc. Then play the video back on a 1080p monitor. How's it look?

EDIT: Also, record some pans/tilts at different speeds and play it back on a monitor to see if the "mud" compression artifacts are better (much less) than an unhacked GH1.

I've worked as a salesperson at many trade shows myself in the past (including Photokina), and usually customers can't "try" things out like I'm describing above, but sometimes you get lucky and a salesperson really wants to know the answer to a question. Especially since they're going to be asked these same questions a thousand times throughout the several grueling days of the Photokina expo. So, it's better for them to try it themselves for real rather than take the word of one of their co-workers who never tried it for themselves.

If the first salesperson you ask says no, you can't touch the cam or try anything with, try again later. You might get a different salesperson who is happy to help. Be persistent but pleasant. Tell them that several thousand folks on DVXuser want to know the info.

Thanks for your kind offer. Whatever you learn will be great to hear.

P.S.: Usually salespeople can't answer "why" questions, especially if the answer is "Because my bosses are idiots!" ;-)
 
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Sarcasm-the-big-bang-theory-8135257-500-281.jpg
 
Vitaliy Kiselev said:
I have few specific questions.

1) Why 60p mode had been eliminated and only 30p is available?
2) Why fixed patern noise is still visible.
3) Why same 2.5mm audio jack?
4) H264 codec is still much worse compared to video cameras. Why is this?
5) No HDMI output during recording. Is this Panasonic policy fo VDSLRs?

This is questions according to data I have now (of course, they are nto certain).
Click to expand...


Wow you know that GH2 will have fixed pattern noise? You have already shot with GH2?
:Drogar-BlackEye(DBG
 
Vitaliy Kiselev said:
I have few specific questions.

1) Why 60p mode had been eliminated and only 30p is available?
2) Why fixed patern noise is still visible.
3) Why same 2.5mm audio jack?
4) H264 codec is still much worse compared to video cameras. Why is this?
5) No HDMI output during recording. Is this Panasonic policy fo VDSLRs?

This is questions according to data I have now (of course, they are nto certain).
Click to expand...

Is this some sort of a worst case scenario?

My questions again:

-have they improved the codec, e.g. the mud issue, B-frames?
-is AF faster/better in video than GH1?
-is improvement in high ISO performance real or because of increased noise reduction?
-the banding problem fixed?
-bit rates and fps?
-details about the 40fps burst mode?
-NTSC PAL switchable?
-29min recording limit on PAL still there?
-have they improved video low light sensitivity (how many lux of light needed)?
-we want to know everything that has been improved from the GH1! :)
 
Hi AKED,

thanks for doing this! Just to add -

1. During recording, in manual focus mode, will there be focus assist?

2. Is there a more elegant way to lock focus during recording?
 
All I want is AF-S in video mode (that would be awesome for me)...
an improved codec...
and HDMI out...or a 7" LCD built in. :D
 
Are they going to be available in quantity or stuck in dealer allocation (list price+) like the GH1?

Thanks.
 
Crosby! said:
Are they going to be available in quantity or stuck in dealer allocation (list price+) like the GH1?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Ugh, they better not bungle the launch as badly as they did last time. That said I will likely be in less of a rush to run out and buy one this time. GH13 is working pretty darn well and I'd have to see some nice improvements, and not a lot of changes I don't like (I hate some of the aspects of the G2 control layout) for me to buy one, at least at launch. I think the obvious reason for blocking the hack would be that they were afraid it would outgun the GH2...of course they could have just kept the GH2 open but noooo. Well, maybe they will ;) No. Probably not.
 
OK, the GH2 is officially released.
http://www.dpreview.com/previews/panasonicdmcgh2/
Many questions have been answered already due to the now available information.

I will go to the Photokina tomorrow.
Interesting for me would be, what questions do you still have after you have read the news about this camera.

I will try to film with the GH2 and to get original footage.
See if it works out.

So if you still have questions that are not answered, send them today still.
 
Thanks. I guess the 2 most obvious ones are how the HDMI output works- maybe if one is hooked up on the stand to a monitor you could try this out?
The other is the framerate. It seems like the EU model will have 24p at 24mb/s. It would be nice to get confirmation on this and how the framerates work in general.

That and point the camera at someone wearing a check shirt and see what happens!
 
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