Panasonic G85 Autofocus Hack that Works!

Wondering how to fix the face detection autofocus on the Panasonic G85? This fix works and it's easy to set up.
Settings:
1 - Select Face Detection Mode
2 - Shoot in 1080p 50p or 60p
3 - Set the shutter speed 1 click higher than double the frame rate:
50p = 125
60p = 160
4 - For static shots, you can adjust the autofocus sensitivity to - 2. (minus 2).
The only downside to this is that you are not using 4k but if Autofocus is important for a shoot this works far better than it did without these settings.
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My KZbin Audio/Video Setup:
►Panasonic GH5s - bhpho.to/371w6F5
►Saramonic Blink500 Pro - saramonic-usa....
►Panasonic GH5 - bhpho.to/2FEGl3H
►Panasonic Leica 15mm f1.7 - bhpho.to/2M6TeJu
►Panasonic G85 - bhpho.to/2FG8Opw
►Panasonic 25mm f1.7 - bhpho.to/2FEzuqD
►Wireless Microphone Pack - bhpho.to/2UcDoS4
►My Website - GeekyNerdyTech...
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#techreview #panasonic @PanasonicLumixVideo

[@johnheiser2604]

Hey Shane. I bought mine yesterday. Came with a 12-60 lens with s bonus 25 F1.7 thrown in. Can't wait to check it out.

[@bigdhav]

I found using auto area AF instead of face detect to work much better. The KZbin channel "the hybrid shooter" explains this. And it works in 4k!

[@BarryMaskell]

Thus is amazing - just tried it out on my LX10 improves the AF no end - the LX10 is already slightly better at AF than the g85

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

Great stuff, Barry! Thanks for the feedback mate! :)

[@lanceevans1689]

Old camera? They still sell them new on Amazon. I just bought mine a couple of years ago. And since I don't have GAS (gear acquisition syndrome), I only buy when I NEED some feature, or every 10 years otherwise. So from my perspective, the G85 is just out of the gate. ;-)

[@lanceevans1689]

@@JoeHan268 Well, as I've been a pro photog for decades, I have never bought into the whole "pro" camera thing. The best photos in the world were almost all shot on cameras that would look like pinhole boxes compared to today's computers with lenses (what we now call "cameras"). Plus, I hate how large and heavy pro cams are. Again, it's about features you may need, nothing more. And the only thing missing on the G85 is 10bit/raw. But I would not shoot that too often anyway.

[@jameshaworth981]

Agreed! Just upgraded from my Lumix 10mp fz50 to the g85 cuz I was moving more away from web content to larger display requirements. Even the old fz50 was a great camera. G 85 will do me fine for quite awhile!

[@wellnesspathforme6236]

There still is some pulsing going on in the background, though -- but probably only visible if you are looking for it. Thanks for sharing.

[@jlaws80]

I tried this a couple months ago on the S5, and it does work.

[@petermcginty3636]

Thanks Shane. I do corporate training and i use 2 x G85. Zoom only outputs at 1080p and the G85 does a great job. I have pretty good lighting and the autofocus works just fine.

[@maxkitaev3524]

I have 12-35mm 2.8 and was really upset with autofocus in 4K. I tried 1080/50p even without bumping up shutter speed. Autofocus did worked so much better. But 50p cuts down on bitrate so I tried 1080/25p with 1/50 shutter speed - same results. Really good. Therefore I suggest simply use 1080 for autofocus to work.

[@khiemnguyenau]

thanks, this worked quite well, even for me the 4k, it was really responsive at 4k 30

[@onnie1968]

I still have my G85 even tho I bought a G9 and Sony ZV-1, I just find single AF much better on G85. As I shoot a lot in 4k, thanx for the tip anyway Shane :). After using the Lumix menu system and you go to use the menu system on a Sony. It's like what the hell is this ? This menu sucks hahahaha.

[@Ronbc000]

Hello, I think his info has been around for a while. The best result with any Panasonic GH series cameras with AE/AF lock button in manual position (Button set in menu to function in Manual Focus) As the target advances to camera press the AF/AE button to lock focus on target. There is also Touch AF icon on right bottom corner of monitor when in M focus mode, as an option. I prefer the AF/AE lock button best.

[@supertrivella]

Really very useful, I have a g80, but I noticed that the lcd cannot always be kept on turns off after a while, do you know if there is some way to always have it on? Thank you!

[@SnowboardMaterials]

BTW noting you were using the 25mm 1.7mm in some of those shots, it seems to be pretty slow to focus vs some others on both my GH5 and G85 (so is the 25mm Leica) - the 14mm Panasonic and 15mm Leica are both faster if you can go that wide. The 12-60 kit seems faster too. YMMV

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

The 12-60 will be a lot faster due to the far less depth of field. The focus system works a lot faster when it has less work to do :)

[@BarryMaskell]

Would be interested to see the 25mm f1.4 version 2 lens which has a new faster AF motor

[@germanevision]

Slow auto focus is not such a bad thing in g85 although sony is a master in the game. But what I hate most is focus hunting which can make your footage look amateurish. Focus hunting in nikon and bmpcc cameras are just intolerable. Nikon can be forgiven as it is a primary photography camera with video added as an after thought. But more expensive bmpcc known as the "best video camera in the world" has two major issues -- focus hunting and no continuous auto focus. Compared to that my g85 is streets ahead. I am happy with my g85 for the price I got.

[@cheeeeezewizzz]

That is really good for the g85, very impressive

[@LexTNeville]

Sounds interesting, ta. Bottom line I've noticed with these cameras is that if you give them some contrast, they will detect it. I tan pints operating a DfD A-Cam (1080p) and am happy to leave it be without the editors punching me up. Fun job w/o bruises. Sauce available upon request.

[@Mathew-vlogs]

Awesome video! Glad to see a video about an old, but still good, camera.

[@thuytrinhnguyen8497]

Thank you for the video. I have a quick question. Is autofocus on G85 good and stable enough to film 4k for interviews?

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

Just half press the shutter to find focus and then switch the dial on the back to manual focus. I wouldn't use autofocus for that situation with this camera if you don't want it second guessing. if you can't do it that way, turn the speed and sensitivity settings as low as possible and it should do an okay job with one area or face detection mode.

[@Greggie_D]

Oh I wonder if this will tidy up the minor issue on the G9? It’s very good but this may make it great. Thanks for sharing your findings. Cheers from a fellow Aussie.

[@JeepTJWheelin]

Great info. What settings do you recommend for a beginner with this camera shooting real estate video and stills?

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

Well it depends really a lot of "best" is subjective. For video, try the two Cine profiles they are usually favorites as well as the Natural profile. For stills - get a wide angle lens and go for it :)

[@SteveLedger]

Good stuff Shane. I've been using the same camera at our music club since 2018 for photography and video. It's been terrific, but suddenly last night all the video I shot has a huge amount of hiss in the background. I've updated to firmware 1.5, reset the camera and re-done my usual custom settings. Nothing has fixed it. It's quite bizarre. I have mostly always used the built-in mic as I have found it quite adequate. Seems like the pre-amp has developed a fault :( Anyone else?

[@AlexMcDougallPhotography]

Love my g80/85 its great, use it for most of my video on my channel. Great tip thanks.

[@hippiegamerchick5946]

Is this the camera we used? So awesome

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

This is basically the camera under the one you have :) (an older one that I still use from time to time)

[@Warren3carpentry]

Thanks for the tip! Just got a g85!

[@kenyontech]

Thanks for the Hack. DO you have any suggestion for extra Batteries and a Charger? I Need those for mine

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

Grab a dummy battery if you want to power it via a wall socket :)

[@tsenam3247]

May I know the brand n glasses u worn..price too thank u sir

[@mr.anirbangoswami]

That's just awesome, I'm on the fence about sl3 and g85, is there a way to get this kinda autofocus on 30 fps video?

[@JasonFoxLCB]

Old? I just "upgraded" to a G85 last March from a very long-in-the-tooth hacked GH2. Would love 10-bit, but am otherwise quite happy. Will definitely try this out. I typically shoot in 4K for the bitrate and then convert those files to 1080p ProRes for editing, but most of what I'm doing really doesn't require higher bit rates.

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

I love the G85, these are seriously great cameras :)

[@BarryMaskell]

Depth to Defocus on low f stops creates havoc with the face detection - hence why the kit lens works so well being a min of f3.5 -

[@NolanGunn]

Good stuff! I'll have to try this out 👍

[@Tim-Miller-]

So...I picked a couple of these for a budget podcast studio, along with my ZVE10. I was looking for a way to track faces and auto focus in a controlled studio environment. The Sony kills it at 4k. Are you suggesting I should lock this guy off in manual focus? or maybe just shoot 1080 for a host cam?

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

It's best to use the old Panasonic cameras with Manual focus. In good lighting the AF works better, but it's not Phase detection so you need to work around it's limitations. The ZVE10 is 8 or more years newer than the G85 :)

[@Tim-Miller-]

@@GeekyNerdyTechy Right on. Thanks!

[@TheDIYFilmmaker]

Thank so much, I will test it. I also saw that video from DPReview and thought about it, but I didn't test it out.

[@kenyontech]

There is one thing that I have noticed. If I'm simply using the G85 as a webcam or for livestreaming with Clean HDM out without recording the Auto Focus doesn't work as well as if the Camera is actually recording while using clean HDMI. It seems to mainly work Ok if in tracking mode only. Have you observed this?

[@owenanderson8509]

It’s weird seeing you without a guitar

[@ScottOwens28]

Are you using the "Continuous AF" setting in the menu to "ON?" I have a GX8 and I'm betting this will work on mine as well.

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

I had it set to AFF on the back (not sure it matters too much in video mode)

[@Bestone974]

V good video, plz advise me best 4k photo camera for wedding videography under 1000$, plz reply.

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

If you need unlimited recording and you're happy with Manual focus its fine. If you need good AF the Olympus OMD EM1 MK II is a great choice because of Phase Detection AF but has a 30 minute recording limit.

[@Bestone974]

@@GeekyNerdyTechy thanks for your reply, any other one.

[@DopamineOverload]

Hi Shane! Does this hack work for the G7 as well? Would be wonderful if so...

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

I don't own a G7, sorry. If you own one give it a shot :)

[@DopamineOverload]

@@GeekyNerdyTechy Thanks, Shane! Any chance this would work one click higher when using 24p or 30p?

[@HaraldEngels]

Yes

[@truliapro7112]

Camera they released on 2016 not 100 years ago. For it's price this is very good camera still.

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

It's just a bit of Sarcasm. It's okay, not everyone gets it.

[@truliapro7112]

I was kidding... :) 😀 I have one and got new panssonic 10-25mm lens and one micro lens.

[@philiplewis1600]

Any hacks for tracking in photo mode

[@anakcucukakek3952]

Thank you master ✅

[@Hari-Photo-Videos]

It won't work out under electricity lighting conditions there this technique will get you banding problem.

[@vishnusreedar]

tell me about colouring of your video.

[@jalil.landero]

Have you tried the same hack at 25 or 24 fps? - What would it be the next shutter step for that frame rate to archive the same result?

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

I tired the other frame rates and didn't get the same snappy focus. Experiment around and see if you get better results in 4k 25 etc :)

[@aguTVeric]

will this trick work with gh5?

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

I haven't tried it just yet but I will for sure.

[@zeitwille]

@@GeekyNerdyTechy just quickly tested on gh5 with 14mm 2.5 and 14-42 3.5 old kit lens - AF setting 0, 0. and I have the slight feeling it has improved with the 125ss. less hunting and misjudging but need to run more test. will run test with 25mm 1.7 later.

[@zeitwille]

for 25p/30p it would be SS=60/80?

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

@@zeitwille Yep just go one notch up from where you'd usually set it depending on your frame rate. It'll get a bit darker but it seems to work really well.

[@GlennUpgraded]

Will this work on 24fps 1080p avchd?

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

I only found it worked at the higher frame rates but I didn't try 24 frames per second in HD.

[@CurtisZondag]

Tested this with the same lens indoors with 30p and 60p. No luck.

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

30p doesn't work great from my testing but It worked fine in 60p outdoors. I had a sample clip in this video.

[@ShineSpriteGamer]

I have a Canon M50 but I wish I got the g85

[@sangmojo]

is it work for GX85 ?

[@jimmydomunih7930]

Hi..is this trick can be used on gh4?

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

I don't own a GH4 but that AF system is pretty old so my guess is probably not. It's worth a shot if you can test it out yourself.

[@RyanLogan01]

Hmmmm might have to dust off my G85. jk still using it to this day, it’s a nice solid camera thank you for this hack

[@terryhatziieremias]

Hehehe

[@gordon3988]

Just set manual focus /use the app I guess for 4 k.

[@PSORIK]

В эру 4к контента никто не будет снимать в 1080р50 ради автофокуса, который адекватно работает только в этом режиме. Всем нужен 4к даже для вывода 1080р, для получения более резкой картинка, с лучшим качеством. Самое печальное, что адекватного автофокуса не будет в новой GH6.

[@fatoumfatoumeh]

It may have come out 100 hundred years ago, but I got mine less than a month ago 😅

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

These cameras are so good even in 2021! :)

[@fatoumfatoumeh]

@@GeekyNerdyTechy yes...it’s the best camera in its price range. I’m really glad I chose the G85 over Canon’s M50 (they’re the same price where I live).

The G80 video a little bit better(sharper) than the G90 video.

[@jb678901]

Well...don't feel too bad. I just got the G7 with kit lens...could've pass it up at US$400. Just for the M4/3 4K.

[@Noobsd]

You shoot video from

[@GeekyNerdyTechy]

I think you forgot to add a few words to your question lol?

[@DJILLEE]

Autofocus is the only reason my g85 isnt being used anymore. :(