Which GH1 lens for African safari: 100-300 or 45-175?

[bbinnard]

I have a GH1 with the standard 14-140 and like it a lot. I shoot both HD video and stills; probably about an equal amount of both, and end up combining them into BLu-ray videos that I show on my HD TV.


I have an African safari scheduled in 12 mo. and would like a longer lens than the 140 for capturing wildlife. I had planned on the 100-300 which i think would be excellent for stills, but the manual zoom when doing video is not great. The features of the new 45-175 that appeal to me are the motorized zoom and the (apparently) improved stabilization.


I could get both I guess, but carrying and changing lenses on a safari truck is not at all convenient, and who knows what shots I'd miss during the process. I've seen lots of posted images from the 100-300 and they all look great so that's my current Plan A. But that lens does nothing to help my videos, which is what showing stuff on TV is all about.


Plan B is trading my GH1 for a NEX-VG20. But that's a huge change and big bucks.


Plan C is waiting to see if Panasonic will come out with a longer lens in the X series. But I have little hopes for this, especially considering the well-known availability problems Panasonic has had in the past.

 

[Phenixone]

In my experience, you may be frustrated with a "shorter" lens only. I would recommend to get the 100-300 and bring your 14-140 as well.

 

[Kin Lau]

Option D, get a GH2 + the new Lumix X 45-175. The extra 2.6x or 5x tele-zoom factor of the GH2 will be very handy. I'm quite pleased with my GH2 + 100-300 so far, the tele-zoom function is a huge jump over my GH1 for wildlife.

 

[sparky33]

Option D, get a GH2 + the new Lumix X 45-175. The extra 2.6x or 5x tele-zoom factor of the GH2 will be very handy. I'm quite pleased with my GH2 + 100-300 so far, the tele-zoom function is a huge jump over my GH1 for wildlife.

What is this 5x tele-zoom factor you speak of? I thought it was ETC 2.6 @ 1080, or ETC 3.9 @ 720p?

 

[Phenixone]

Well I think in MJPEG you can go closer if it is set to be VGA.
It is true that the EX. Tele Conv a big bonus. Just so you know it does not work in picture mode, only for movies but yeah it's awesome!!! it turns my 14-140 into a 364mm telephoto and would turn a 300mm into a 780mm lens enough to photograph ants from the safari truck.

 

[Kin Lau]

What is this 5x tele-zoom factor you speak of? I thought it was ETC 2.6 @ 1080, or ETC 3.9 @ 720p?

Sorry, my mistake, it's the 3.9x @ 720p that I was thinking of.

 

[brunerww]

What is this 5x tele-zoom factor you speak of? I thought it was ETC 2.6 @ 1080, or ETC 3.9 @ 720p?

Sorry, my mistake, it's the 3.9x @ 720p that I was thinking of.

Not really a mistake. I also use 5.2x to calculate "35mm Equivalent Focal Length" for ETC -- approximately 2x for the sensor crop and approximately 2.6x for the ETC crop at 1080.

By my calculation, that makes a 300mm lens into the equivalent of a 1560mm lens on a 35mm film camera!

And ETC does indeed work for stills at "Medium" JPEG size and below. It doesn't work for RAW or "Large" JPEGs.

Cheers,

Bill

 

[haakor]

I would put in another vote for the GH2 + 100-300 combo. I did a safari in Kenya/Tanzania in 2010 with the GH1 and kit lens which is alright for most mammals, but if you're keen on birds at all or there's anything happening farther away you will find yourself wishing for more and more reach. I upgraded to the GH2 + 100-300 recently and went whale watching and felt the difference enormously. Trips like that are expensive enough to go on that its worth doing them right, especially since you're into video as well as stills.

 

[K.M]

Couldnt agree more with the 100-300mm combo with the GH2. All i shoot is wildlife and i couldnt be more pleased, especially with the ETC! I considered trading the 300mm for this 45-300mm, if it is better optimised for hd video and not just a rumour! : http://www.eoshd.com/content/3670/pancake-sized-motorised-zoom-lens-coming-for-panasonic-gf7-gh3

Its mentioned somewhere in the middle, about if it could be designated an 'X' Lens. Who knows if we'll see it any time soon but Panasonic are releasing alot of lenses at the moment so maybe its in the pipe line.

 

[Lucas Adamson]

Whichever lens you go for, damn you're gonna need a good tripod!

 

[Kin Lau]

Tripod on a safari? You use a beanbag on a safari, you don't get out of the vehicle.

 

[Phenixone]

Tripod on a safari? You use a beanbag on a safari, you don't get out of the vehicle.

Beanbag or GorillaPod (check out the SLR-zoom http://goo.gl/DffHw ) attach it to the side of the open window and you are good to go.

 

[Thomas Smet]

Tripod on a safari? You use a beanbag on a safari, you don't get out of the vehicle.

Yes getting out of car is bad, very bad.

 

[Lucas Adamson]

I was thinking of a BBC crew on Safari, I guess.

 

[Kin Lau]

If you want to shot like the BBC, you'll need a budget like the BBC.

 

[fchris]

I've been on several Safari's and I found that more often than not the opportunities for taking shots of the animals will be taken from much closer than one would imagine. They too, find that it's much easier to travel on the roads than thru the brush, consequently they will be traveling much the same paths as you are in the vehicles. Some of the best photos I have taken were with wider angle lenses because of how close you will be to the animals. I have numerous shots of lions for example taken from as close as 10 to 12 feet. We had a person once on our vehicle who only had a long telephoto lens and was practically crying at times because of missed opportunities. Anyway, no matter what, you are going to take away memories of a lifetime. Have fun!