Discussion
gingerpaul said:
Once you've used it a little would you mind posting up your thoughts on it? I'm seriously considering one of these myself so I'd be glad to hear any opinions from someone who has one. 
Well, it's quite a complicated beast so I am still stuggling to get my head around how it all works. It's not as easy to use as my 30D as many of the buttons have double functions and the menus are very deep. However, I suspect I shall get used to it eventually.My first impressions are:
- Whilst it's quite small (compared to an SLR) it is still quite heavy and doesn't have the nice secure hand grip you get on an SLR. This is a hand/manbag sized camera, not a pocket one.
- It's fast to start up, focus and take photos, even compared to an SLR. It seems to focus well even in very low light. Focussing is rather a different experience to an SLR as it has so many focus modes including face detection and face recognition (displays the name of the person when they are in shot!).
- The photos have quite a different 'look' to them compared to my 30D, sharper and more vibrant. I guess this is mostly down to the in-camera jpg processing.
- It does seem very expensive for such a small thing but, if you consider that it could replace a low end SLR then it doesn't quite seem so bad. The lenses are extremely pricey though but they do seem very good quality.
- Video seems decent, although I would love to have had the flexibility offered by the GH1. As it is you just get exposure compensation and a rather dumbed down 'peripheral defocus' slider. Also, the 20mm lens is rather noisy when focussing and this is picked up when recording.
The thing that's really exciting me about this camera is the ability to get adaptors to mount just about any lens imaginable. I am thinking about buying some nice old Canon FD lenses to use on it. You don't get autofocus or aperture but, if you can live with that, you can get a very nice selection of glass for not much money. Just bear in mind that all focal lengths are x2 on the micro four thirds systems so 50mm becomes 100mm.
Intresting to read about the GF1 as I'm about to purchase one shortly from my local camera shop. The owner says Panasonic cameras are right up there with the established brands and are now his best selling cameras despite being more expensive than most of the others but reliability is streets ahead of most other brands. Ofcourse he is mainly talking about compacts as Panasonic are fairly new to SLR type cameras but he seems to be selling a number of GF1s and having had a quick play with it I was well impressed.
JulianHJ said:
marctwo said:
Well the 14-140mm is around £900!
I'm thinking £50 for an old Canon FD 50mm or 28mm.
You can also get a C mount adapter and many people have been using cheap CCTV lenses.
I've got a Canon FD 50mm f1.8 if you want to try it out...I'm thinking £50 for an old Canon FD 50mm or 28mm.
You can also get a C mount adapter and many people have been using cheap CCTV lenses.
M4FFU said:
Have you used it @ f/1.7?
My 28 1.8 on my canon is pretty sharp @ 1.8. Have you used the GF1 @ f/1.7, if so, what did you think of the results?
I have, and it looks pretty good to me but you can read a full review here:My 28 1.8 on my canon is pretty sharp @ 1.8. Have you used the GF1 @ f/1.7, if so, what did you think of the results?
http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/panasonic_20_1...
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