theSUBVERSIVE

I wrote 5 articles speculating about the GH5, talking about possible codecs, what else can we expect but the most intriguing part is obviously the Photo 6K.
Actually, from Photo 6K you can speculate about the sensor as well. In summary my conclusion is that it will be a multi-aspect sensor.
Panasonic GH5: the Sensor has to be multi-aspect!
My best guess is a 22+MP multi-aspect sensor, possibly based on DCI (1.8x crop) instead of 16:9 (1.85x crop*) for a bit more than 5760px wide and a Micro4/3 area of 20MP, possibly the same pixels size and count than Olympus E-M1 MK II.
*we usually say 1.86x crop but if you do the math, it's much closer to 1.85x, but let's not get lost in technicalities because that's not the point and nor that important
If Photo 4K has that name based on UHD at 3840 x 2160, then we could expect Photo 6K to be something around the 6K version of 16:9, so 5760 x 3240px.
On Panasonic's press release, it says that Photo 6K is 18MP (6000 x 3000px) still grabs from video footage - which is a generic way to say it will have a video-like aspect ratio. But they also mention that the source of the video can either be 4:3 or 3:2, which is quite weird. Why wouldn't Panasonic even mention 3:2 as the video source? This is a clearly indication of full sensor readout, but why 3:2?
The 16:9 multi-aspect sensor used in the GH1 and GH2 are almost 3:2 and a DCI based multi-aspect is 3:2, for me, this is another argument that it might be multi-aspect, otherwise, I don't understand why being a 4/3 sensor Panasonic would mention 3:2 aspect ratio as a full readout video source for Photo 6K.
But why did they mention 4:3 then? Simply because they didn't want to confirm multi-aspect sensor, wouldn't people start asking themselves why a video from a 3:2? There is a possibility of Panasonic using a 4:3 of 25MP to 28MP? Of course there is, it's just very unlikely.
More importantly, there were rumors saying it was going to be multi-aspect and also rumors saying 20MP. But why 20MP? Because the Micro4/3 portion of the sensor is 20MP, just like the GH2 was called a 16MP camera, when in fact it had more than that for the whole sensor. Plus, because part of the sensor is outside the image circle, the max resolution you get with the GH2 is indeed 16MP in 4:3, 15MP in 3:2, 14MP in 16:9 and 11MP in 1:1, therefore a 16MP camera.
I said that the 20MP portion could have exact same pixel count as Olympus because I suspect they were developed together, the same way the E-M5 and GH3 had the same sensor, E-M1 and GH4 and also GX8 and Pen-F. It makes sense for the E-M1 MK II and GH5 to be based on the same sensor tech, plus, there were also rumors about Panasonic and Olympus sharing technology and even LSI components. Having the same pixel count and size, it's possible to share the sensor wafer, micro lens, color filter, etc. it saves you production cost money because you can both use the same parts, just different sized sensors.
The greatest thing of multi-aspect sensors is that for lenses, nothing changes since it's all within the same image circle, so you can either use native lenses or focal reducers like Speed Booster without worrying about the extra FOV of the multi-aspect sensor. So yeah, when using the 0.64x Speed Booster, you could get less than 1.2x crop, even closer to 1.15x crop with the Speed Booster and multi-aspect sensor combo. I would still prefer less crop to use APS-C lenses like the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 and 50-100mm f/1.8, even more with IBIS, but for those wanting the 1.33 extra stop of light and closer to FF, then the 0.64x will get you pretty close to FF.
Again, this is my best guess:
22+MP multi-aspect sensor DCI based (approx. 1.8x crop) or 16:9 based (approx. 1.85x crop) at least 5760px wide, probably a few pixels more to accommodate DCI 4K and Photo 6K the Micro4/3 portion and max resolution of the camera will be 20+MP, so the GH5 will be a "20+MP camera" 20+MP will be possibly the same pixel count and size as the E-M1 II I also wrote about other possibilities including other resolutions like 6114px or even the scenarios of not choosing a multi-aspect sensor. Just like I also countered the idea of Panasonic straight out deceiving consumers with nothing like 6K in Photo 6K but just 18MP, which I find kind of odd since there is no need to Panasonic to deceive consumers and they haven't done anything like that ever before. Photo 6K is not the main feat of the GH5, it's 10-bit 422 and 4K 60fps, why mention 6000 x 3000px if they were simply going for 30fps full sensor burst?
There is always that possibility, but logically speaking that has to be less likely than going back to the GH line up roots of multi-aspect sensor. I mean, this line up was developed with multi-aspect in mind from the get go. But sure, this is still just speculation, but I like the odds of a multi-aspect sensor.
If anyone is interesting in getting more in-depth about this, you can read the other articles.
I think that the article about codecs or ProRes/DNxHR is also pretty interesting, even more for those wanting those codecs. My conclusion is that it's better to buy a proper 4K recorder with SSD than buying expensive high-speed UHS-II cards for such high bit rate, I don't think Panasonic would leave their trump card for just a few people that can afford that - the high-speed UHS-II would cost more than the GH5 or several GH5s).
Panasonic GH5: Overheating and IBIS rant (part1)
Panasonic GH5: Codecs and AF improvements speculation (Part2)
Panasonic GH5: Mysterious Photo 6K and Sensor (Part3)
Panasonic GH5: Slow Motion and ProRes/DNxHR (Part 4)
It's worth noting that the E-M1 II full announcement is quite imminent and giving that the E-M1 II will have the same 200mbps Full HD All-I codec as Panasonic already use, the full specs of the E-M1 might gives a few hints about whether or not Panasonic and Olympus are really partnering up or how deep they are sharing and developing technology, and of course, hints about the GH5 as well.
Anyway, this topic is about those wanting to really get in-depth about the speculation and possibilities of the upcoming GH5.

There are two type of Speed Classes that matter for a SD Card.
Bus Speed and Video Speed (Minimum Sequential Write). UHS-II is Bus Speed and for video that means nothing, as for video, there are some standards, U3 means 30MB/s, the new Standards are V30 (30MB/s), V60 (60MB/s) and V90 (90MB/s). So far, there is no card with V60 or V90, so although there are cards capable of sustaining more than 30MB/s, I assume that if they could guarantee 480mbps or 720mbps, they would say so. Which is also weird since ProRes 4K 10-bit 422 should be more than 720mbps, so who knows?

New menus, 4K without overheating, Dual SD Card slots, articulated screen and some more dope Sony tech!
Everything E-mount users have been waiting in an A9 camera, but in an A-mount camera! hahahahaha...
Sony has sense of humor, I give them that!

I know this is the Internet, but for those that watched the presentation, this is still a product in development and one that isn't final nor they had released the full final specs, so unless Panasonic says so, omission is far from the same as a sure thing that it won't have some feat.
People need to be patience and wait for the full announcement, just be happy that the internal 10-bit 422 recording is true despite the odds, this camera is still a few months away from shipment.
That said, it would be wise for Panasonic to at least address the IBIS, so people can either freak out or calm down.
Don't Panic

Sony won't feat a internal 10-bit 422 recording anytime soon.
Sony is very protective about their higher end products, they haven't even offered 10-bit 422 externally, much less internally, something that is only available from the FS7 and above, not even the FS5 has internal 10-bit 422 recording.
There is a reason Sony still hasn't fixed overheating, why the A6300 doesn't even have IBIS or why despite people actually wanting one, there is no A7000.
Don't count on Sony to get the same feats as the GH5, even internal 4K took quite some time before Sony was able to catch up anyway.

I know this is the Internet, but for those that watched the presentation, this is still a product in development and one that isn't final nor they had released the full final specs, so unless Panasonic says so, omission is far from the same as a sure thing that it won't have some feat.
People need to be patience and wait for the full announcement, just be happy that the internal 10-bit 422 recording is true despite the odds, this camera is still a few months away from shipment.
That said, it would be wise for Panasonic to at least address the IBIS, so people can either freak out or calm down.
Don't Panic

Agreed. This didn't look like a full announcement with all the specs. Logically speaking there is nothing that should prevent the GH5 from having IBIS, even if it only works with some limitations. On the other had, the backslash for not having it will be tremendous, so I also think that omission isn't the same as sure thing.

Apparently the rumors were right about the internal 8-bit 422 recording for the G80 (2:20)
 
 

I don't really care about anti-MTF or any other anti-something. Even more because the behavior of those people are the same as a 5 year old kid that his friend has a new toy, he doesn't even know what it can or cannot, but even if he knows, he nitpicks and disdain, just so he can feel better about he has, covering his possible insecurities and jealousy. It's pointless to waste your time on that, just choose whatever works for you and that's it. Be happy and talk with your images or something! hahahaha...

New menus, 4K without overheating, Dual SD Card slots, articulated screen and some more dope Sony tech!
Everything E-mount users have been waiting in an A9 camera, but in an A-mount camera! hahahahaha...
Sony has sense of humor, I give them that!

Rumors are just that and most people are sure aware of that, but I can't agree with the rest.
It actually makes a lot of business sense for Panasonic, plus Panasonic's situation is quite a lot different from Canon and even Sony.
Panasonic doesn't have any sort of AF100 successor or anything like Sony or Canon do - FS5, FS7, C100, C300, C500, etc. So they don't have to worry so much about protecting that market and that way they can provide way more things that Canon or Sony would ever do. Despite everything and the lack of effort in innovating, Canon still has a comfortable margin in the market, Sony is growing and is still bigger than Panasonic in market share. So the one that has to take more shots and risks in no other than Panasonic. Oh, and Fuji is sneaking into video market as well and they have nothing to lose, they truly can go all-in.
A lot of Micro4/3 users become very tempted by bigger sensors so it's almost like Panasonic already starts in an disadvantage. Providing 4:2:2 internally, which is something Sony won't do anytime soon, is a way to get an edge over Sony, which is their main competitors in this market. Even if it's "just" 8-bit 422, it's something that Sony wouldn't do.
Canon did that but with the 500mbps MJPEG that not only has massive files but it still requires transcoding, which makes me wonder what's the point. Panasonic has a lot of different alternatives. 8-bit 422 would still work with H.264 and U3 cards, 10-bit 422 would probably either require faster cards or H.265 HEVC codec. So at least I'm sure Panasonic wouldn't choose MJPEG.
If you can get an edge over your competitors without sacrificing much, even more knowing that they might not be able to respond with the same features, this is a pretty good strategy.

I knew I had heard of something like this before:  http://www.43rumors.com/the-panasonic-gh5-rumor/
Back in March, this rumor said something very similar to the rumor that was released today:
– 6k recording at 30fps and 4K at 60fps
– Each 6K frame has 18 Million Pixels. this means you can screen grab 18MP photos from each 6K recorded frame
– If the camera records 6K than the Four Thirds sensor will have 20+ Megapixels in “normal still photo mode”
But at the same time, a few months later, in June, two new rumors denied that and stated that it would be the same sensor as the GX80:
http://www.43rumors.com/ft5-panasonic-gh5-will-have-same-gx80-sensor-but-better-performance/
http://www.43rumors.com/ft5-panasonic-gh5/
The announcement should be soon but rumors and still just rumors. Sure, the proximity to the announcement makes the latest rumor more likely despite being debunked in the past once but it can still be denied again until the actual announcement.

As long as at least 8-bit 422 is true it's all good, even better if it's 10-bit 422. I just want 422, IBIS and 1080p 120fps.

4K 60fps, no extra crop, multi aspect sensor and 1.86x crop, 6K Photo, etc. that's all bonus for me.

But isn't it a bit weird? I'm not sure Panasonic would offer or advertise this 6K 30fps burst only for stills, all stills things Panasonic has done has always had 4:3 as a priority.
For me 6K Photo Mode is just something the source called it by itself, in the end it might just mean that the GH5 can do a full sensor 30 burst in multi aspect for a limited buffer.
 

If Panasonic doesn't put IBIS in the GH5, a lot of people will be very mad about it. If the GX85 has it and it can record 30min of 4K, I don't see why the GH5 wouldn't. There should be at least the option to get no time limit in 4K without IBIS and 30min with IBIS if that's the case.

If Panasonic doesn't put IBIS in the GH5, a lot of people will be very mad about it. If the GX85 has it and it can record 30min of 4K, I don't see why the GH5 wouldn't. There should be at least the option to get no time limit in 4K without IBIS and 30min with IBIS if that's the case.

The GH6 might skip 6K since Panasonic is planning to have an 8K line up for Tokyo 2020 and by then, the organic sensor might be a real thing.
The table is just illustrative, the 20MP sensor in the table is probably the 20MP already in use by Panasonic and Sony, so the 27fps max frame rate is for that sensor. The specs of the rumour is not listed anywhere, 43Rumors's admin ended up causing confusion by posting the listed 4/3 sensor from Sony's page. If you read the post, you will see that it's just rumored, not proved, so obviously it won't be listed at Sony's page. Moreover, it's a multi-aspect sensor, it could have 20MP for stills but the total MP would be higher, around 22MP.

Money might be the only thing that will make Canon change anything. But there are still a lot of people praising and buying Canon for video - even DSLRs - and maybe things are starting to turn, but as long as there are people buying I don't see Canon caring.

Money might be the only thing that will make Canon change anything. But there are still a lot of people praising and buying Canon for video - even DSLRs - and maybe things are starting to turn, but as long as there are people buying I don't see Canon caring.

Money might be the only thing that will make Canon change anything. But there are still a lot of people praising and buying Canon for video - even DSLRs - and maybe things are starting to turn, but as long as there are people buying I don't see Canon caring.

It will be a clever solution to adopt H.265 for 10-bit, I'm not sure they would roll down the option for all video formats but if they can do that at least for the internal 10-bit that's enough to not need a higher bit rate card. But that's quite an advancement for Panasonic, I wonder if they will really do that. Does Panasonic have their own HEVC 10-bit codec?

But does the 0.58X Speed Booster work with the 2x crop instead of 2.2x?

Why would it? If you think about it, 10-bit means less compression than 8-bit, sure the bit rate is higher but I don't think there would be any overheating issue, even more if you consider that the GH4 is the coolest 4K camera out there. Processing is more important than bit rate, H.265 might be more processing intensive if they choose it, but 8-bit or 10-bit shouldn't change much.
Sony's issue is not just processing, it's the form factor. The NEX cameras overheated in 1080p! I had two of them and they both had overheating issue, the form factor is simply too small, Sony knows it, they just choose to ignore that and preserve the claim of the smallest and most compact FF cameras. Bottom line, there is nothing really that would indicate that it would be just 1080p because of overheating.

Well, for you then it would be good if Panasonic would offer a 10-bit 1080p then, you won't gain as much using a 10-bit 4K to 1080p as you do with 8-bit 420 files.

It's not really better specs, moreover for Cinema a H.265 codec is not something they would want, it doesn't match the Cinema workflow and as for the rest, the image quality of the GH5 will be nowhere near of the Varicam, no one that can buy or rent a Varicam will ditch that for a GH5, they don't really compete with each other in that aspect.
It's not even so much a matter of catching up. Having the FS5 and FS7, I really doubt Sony will offer internal 10-bit, Canon doesn't even care about video so much for their DSLR, so maybe no one else would even adopt it besides Panasonic. I would have more faith in Leica maybe even Fuji doing that before Sony and Canon or anybody else or that matter.
But that should change in the future, the new CPU, GPU are all compatible with H.265, the number of software and hardware that support H.265 should increase as well. An easy solution would be to transcode from H.265 to H.264 if you want, sure you would need and extra transcode before editing, but from there it would be all the same. But why downscaling to 1080p instead of keeping 4K?

It's not so much about having modest or high expectations, I'm just being realistic about Panasonic and how they are.
What I expect is the minimum Panasonic should do, the second part is what they should do if they actually want to step up their game against Sony. The Wishlist is just something they could do and people would appreciate but I just doubt Panasonic would be bold enough to pull that off, unfortunately.