Panasonic GH4 - the 4K revolution is here

[@gordosimmins2727]

Later that morning - Panasonic rep, "Hey somebody put almost 5000 actuations on our prototype in the last hour! Who would do that?" :)

[@dawhitecastle]

do you know what kind of lens is on that at 1:58??

[@iviaverick52]

GH2 to GH3 was mostly a body and hardware upgrade, with a slight improvement in image detail. GH3 to GH4 looks to be a massive image and software upgrade. Panasonic really decided to flex their muscle and make some massive image processing improvements.

[@jwcreativeservices]

"RAW out" is incorrect. The outgoing feeds are uncompressed video. Not the same.

[@Brownboy42069]

1:43 holy crap, that barrel says 11-16. Tokina 11-16mm T3.0 CINE LENS?!

[@175myles]

Hey Matt, it says GH4 vs GH5 in your info bar thing.

[@1BigBucks1]

i think Matt liked the machine gun burst mode :)

[@korneliuswinters6737]

Great vid. Does mirrorless have any advantages over other types of cameras?

[@njrivetelite]

I hear great things about panasonic... I wish I knew more about them

[@RNickeyMouse]

I wish they would put the GH4 in a AC90 like body. GH cameras are nearly impossible to use for sports video. For one, if you try to use shutter priority, aperture changes in noticeable steps for exposure changes. AE lock will just cause under and over exposed video. Stabilization, at least on the 14-140 does not do well in panning situations. It jumps around so you need to turn it off when panning, back on when you stop. Another problem, at least on the GH2, it will trim a little video off the end, just 1 second, but when you are shooting video clips in rapid succession this can be a problem. I will still probably purchase the GH4 but people need to know what they are getting into.

[@MarcusWolschon]

The 14-140 isn't exactly the current generation of OIS. The "power" OIS is in the 12-35 and 35-100

[@johnmichaelleslie4835]

***** I'm really not happy with the 35-100's OIS for video, for stills it's fine. IMHO the 14-140 is better for video stabilisation, the 35-100 just has this little shimmer...

[@MarcusWolschon]

I didn't know there was a new version.

[@MarcusWolschon]

Tamron *would* have an improvement on price ;)

[@mrwebber35]

What about the rolling shutter effect? Is it still 60p or at 4K it is stepped down to 24fps like the Sony FDR-AX100?

[@Bobster986]

Great! But will my Phantom lift it? ;-)

[@johansevrin]

how will you edit those files on a macbook pro???

[@skatertwig26]

I really like Lumix, they are very similar to Sony in alot of ways. Always wanting to try something new and setting new levels, instead of redoing the same thing with a few tweaks. If I ever got a different brand I would go with Panasnoic, but I love my Sony a65 too much, and I can't wait to see what Sony has coming for new cropped sensor SLT'S.

[@lsi624]

Matt Granger is the BOMB !

[@fellowcitizen]

This, or the S5IIx?

[@bigdhav]

I had a play on one of these (GH4 + Nocticron lens combo) at the photography show in Birmingham in the UK, and wasn't really that impressed, as the viewfinder was still laggy IMO, and was nowhere near as good as the one on the Fuji XT-1.

[@saadi703]

Really waiting for this camera to come in the market so that I can buy it. This camera is the reason that I am not buying black magic yet.

[@dawhitecastle]

I think this will be better...i am getting one for sure.

[@WHITELIONNYC]

The GH4 has many more amazing features than just recording 4K and great burst shot mode. It also has clean hdmi out, which my Canon 6D doesn't. It also has an amazing for the price range slow-mo recording I think at 96 frames, my Canon 6D doesn't have that either. Canon is frustrating the hell out of me because they are intentionally crippling their dslr lineup to protect their cinema line, and flagship dslrs like the 1D and 5DM3. I would jump ship in a heartbeat if it weren't for the cost of basically starting over, but I think eventually I will.

[@azuremain]

I can't even watch 4K videos on youtube without jerky motion. 4K is a marketing gadget to generate new demand for a saturated entertainment electronics market.

[@JamesBenet]

Just as a side note the GH2 has better video than the 5D Mark III, the Mark II was bested even by the hacked GH1. The GH3 was in my view a step backwards in video due to aliasing compared to the GH2 but had better hi ISO performance. GH4 so far seems to be a good step up from the GH2 in handling artifacts and hi ISO noise. Loved to see the burst mode in action at 12fps, thank you!

[@andre1k28]

Panasonic is stepping up!

[@WayneHobdy]

Ok, that does it, I'm passing on my GH2 to my niece and getting a new GH4. Great review, sweet and to the point about 4K.

[@Brownboy42069]

Haha, agreed with Taras! Most people I've seen are going "that's it, my GH2/3 is hitting eBay for sure!". You've got a lucky niece :)

[@princecody3499]

Im just concerned about how Panasonic is gonna deal with Sonys 1 inch sensor?

[@LMGVids]

The sony's camcorder (hopefully its the fdr ax-100 or else this comment will be completely wrong) sensor size is NOT one inch. in square inches it is, but diagonally its only half an inch. The ax 100's sensor size is 13.2mm x 8.8mm while the panasonic's sensor size is 17.3 x 13.0mm which is a huge difference. also to note, the ax100's lens can go to a max aperture of f/2.8 while the HG4 (if you buy the correct lens) can go to a max of f/1.4. The last thing is the ax 100 shoots at a max of 3840×2160 at 30fps while the GH4 shoots at 4096x2160 at 24 fps. besides the image stabilization and the ir mode, i simply dont see a point in purchasing an ax100.

[@catha86]

4k is just a selling point. nothing needed. 1080p is what they should focus on and to make it second to none. Like Sony and canon is doing.

[@RichNikonMan]

People said the same thing for 1080p back in the day

[@skatertwig26]

RichNikonMan The main issue with 4k is the power needed to edit the footage, amount of space needed, and prices of 4k monitors/T.V's. 4k will take over but for now It's still new so its incredibly overpriced.

[@photographerjonathan]

you are wrong, it is not just a selling point, 4K is the future, and a must for anyone who is serious about cinema, and there are allot of people looking forward to getting there hands on a 4k camera at the price of the GH4, and Sony who already has 4k, is about to come out with some new 4k stuff any day now, and Canon already has 4k for $10,000 and up, and they are working on some more lower priced things also, so Sony and Canon are not just improving there 1080p

[@catha86]

photographerjonathan I am talking about the normal consumers here. For cinema quality then of course 4k is something you need to have. But for a 40-50" TV 1080p is enough. 4k is ONLY a selling point for 99% of the consumers today. There are lots and lots of 1080p TV that many many people can afford to buy. I think 4k will only be the future on cinema movies not like bluray at home.

[@MrChevypower]

Leon That is incorrect, 4K is the future for consumers also. This includes Blu-ray, Netflix, DirecTV. The only thing that will push 4K aside is 8K.

[@alexang9261]

FINALLY !!

[@samhamper9405]

Good preview but a bit off the mark. 1) The GH4 is not a replacement for the GH3, Panasonic will continue to market both cameras as the price difference puts them in different markets. 2) The OLED screen on the GH4 does have higher resolution than GH3 3) The video on GH3 was largely condisered better than the mark 2, maybe not mark 3 with ML. Not sure how much we should listen to a hybrid video/stills camera review with 10fsp slomo and shaky cam...

[@victoroliveira3256]

I can't wait

[@JacanaProductions]

EVF on the Gh3 is almost unusable for run and gun, it's really a joke and my GH2 EVF seems to be better at least to get proper focus. And the fact that there's no proper focus assist - how can you focus if the EVF is so soft .... SO let's hope my GH4 will solve those problems, looks like it will. Pity as GH3 has nice skin tones and ergonomics are better than the GH2. Hope that the display info does not disappear off the screen after 15sec, I hear it still does that. GH3 will be sold.

[@RealmsOfThePossible]

If you are going to go 4K be prepared to upgrade your SD cards, your processor, your graphics card and your ram. 4K will chew most modern computers to pieces when editing.

[@tkarlmann]

Sooner or later all old-timers like Matt are going to accept the EVF. Same could be said about Auto-Exposure, AF, Digital, etc.

[@QuickQuips]

I hope they get as hackable as the legendary GH2.

[@rurounix86]

Considering that Vitaly has yet to hack the GH3 successfully yet, I don't think that is going to happen. But with the GH3 and GH4, Panasonic is showing that they are willing to implement improvements on their cameras based on user feedback and from the GH2 hacking community.

[@QuickQuips]

I was suggesting the community might be able to give Panasonic ideas by hacking and tweaking the cameras. It may not be "improving" the camera by enabling higher bitrate recording, but they could tweak UI/interfaces, reprogram buttons, and provide some sort of unofficial beta models for the GH5. Anyway, love the camera and how it's shaking up Canon, Blackmagic, and RED. The best part, IMHO, is that new dock with XLRs and timecode.

[@MarcusWolschon]

Who operated your camera? It's shaky, the zooms and pans are jumpy and not smooth at all. You want to review a 4K video camera and the first thing you show is that you can't operate a camera properly? Comparing the GH4 with a 5DmkII? With an 8 bit H.264 FullHD camera with no AF during video of maximum 12 minutes? (GH4: EU: 30min, outside EU: no limit at all)

[@JasonRay]

Limited recording time is one reason I went with the G6 over the 750d or 100d

[@MarcusWolschon]

It's the reason I'm using BMPCC and 2 hacked GH1 and GH2 each but no GH3 or GH4.

[@azuremain]

Prolly one of his models, LOL.

[@y35n00b5]

4k is 90% hype at this time. There's barely any saturation of TV's to support it, yet alone people who are touching it for personal use with computers capable of handling the processing power for it. Also even lets say that there is THAT ONE guy who has it. People like me who have 1280x800 resolution monitors will only see it as that. 4k is just a marketing gimmick just like 3D was. Once the support is there thats when the companies should be producing these products, not years before the technology is even remotely ready for consumer usage.

[@MarkStevensonProductions]

I get your workflow issues with storage, it will prob be a couple of years before I output 4K, but what about cropping and stabilizing for HD output? It's something I wish for all the time in edit. It might even eliminate a second camera on a low budget shoot, if you went wide with a master shot. So monitor isn't so much an issue. At $2K (well $4k - pardon the pun - with the attachment), don't you think it's worth having that flexibility?

[@y35n00b5]

Mark Stevenson Then you should invest into good equipment. Serious videographers have stabilization rigs and the such already so shaky camera work is down to the camera man, which professionally speaking isn't really a factor. If you are an amateur then you should stop looking at cameras and start investing into equipment that can help make your videos shoot better.

[@MarkStevensonProductions]

DesoKPB So, "professionally speaking," I'm an amateur for wanting to crop and stabilize?

[@y35n00b5]

Mark Stevenson If you need to do it all the time then yes. Laziness should never be a reason why you need better equipment.

[@MarkStevensonProductions]

DesoKPB I'm impressed you know so much. I didn't realize they let you take cameras out of the classroom at Long Beach Community College.

[@davidconsumerofmath]

The GH3 is *the* legend? Sure, the GH3 is pretty famous, but obviously it was the GH2 that was the most famous of the whole GH range (well... until this GH4 gets released? It might change this), arguably even the GH1 is more famous than the GH3 (the GH1 was the first ever interchangeable hybrid camera to do 1080 24p, beating the Canon 5DmkII to the punch. Beat it in quality too). Also what is this about raw out? Not true at all, maybe you are referring to the clean HDMI out.

[@WhatTechShow]

Why is the quality of this video soo bad.....

[@1298s]

because Matt is not good at producing quality material of any kind.

[@goldenedge]

Is there anything in particular you would like to see improved?

[@WhatTechShow]

Justin HUSS the panning and whenever he moves the camera.. I think he's using a ballhead... The framerate in some parts, i think he's slowing the video down in post and it looks horrible.

[@mattgranger]

Kristaps Boris haha - awwww.... someone give Boris a hug.

[@BarnET0]

Matt Granger Matt is a great stills guy. Just give him credit for trying his best for video which is just an second thing for him

[@CHCHVideography]

raw out? um, no.