IronFilm

Wish someone would bring out a 12mm to 120mm powered zoom MFT lens with that 10x zoom range (16x would be even better!) so as to make MFT that much better for such applications. As otherwise, the only reasonable way to do this is with adapted B4 lenses (where 16x lenses are quite common place). 

I agree with you except for the LX10 and LX100.
They are not cameras that fall into the category that can be replaced by a smarphone.
There is the whole audience of Youtubers/vloggers and both Sony and Canon have recently dropped machines aimed at this group of users. Basically a compact with perfect AF and good microphones.
Speaking of my niche: Sony has sold tons of RX100s (seven generations) widely used as compact solutions for underwater shooting. Panasonic proved that both the LX10 and 100 were far superior for underwater use but then they became obsolete and left completely the market to Sony and Olympus.
There are a lot of people who still use them with great satisfaction and would welcome an updated version that also competes with the newly released Olympus TG7 (another best-selling camera).
In short, it is true that smartphones have eaten a chunk of the market but there are niches where there is still great demand for more specialized tools.
Do all these users who buy action cams die with gopros or should they go straight to an R5C?

If the goal is to renovate all the cameras....
They started with the FF line. They probably were not ready for the flagship so they started with the entry level S5 model (perhaps the best selling).
They revamped the older flagship G9. In my opinion even if they had started with the GH6 the result would not have changed in terms of total destruction of sales of the other models.
Following this logic, the next step could be:
- a new PDAF machine in the rangefinder line (GX80 etc.) OR even in the smallest line, LX10 or LX100.
- new SH1x II flagships with PDAF

I understand the criticism of Andrew but rather true, kye : ) your voice, Andrew, is more prominent than any of us can estimate. And as you wrote, this format is much more important than people tend to see. Well observed. So, I don't exactly see it as a negative remark.
I guess Andrew is more disappointed with this specific camera release sorta glass half empty throughout their camera line and the way the management pursued by them along these years since the GH3 introduction, as exclusive responsibility of those who launched it, than anything else as far as this format concerns though. Or am I wrong on this idea of mine?

Respectfully, if you are a fan of the format, you wouldn't be shouting from the rooftops that it's dead.
I understand that tough love is a pillar of journalism (and one that is sadly lacking at the moment) but there's a point where it becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy.  Your blog likely has more influence than you think, and if so, you're adding nails to the coffin instead of making it stronger.

I agree with most of your thoughts Andrew except possibly two…
The ‘chonky’ S5ii is fractionally smaller and lighter than the GH6, thought a tiny bit more than the old G9. 
Leading on from that, maybe…just maybe, they went with the S5 architecture because by doing so, it allowed them to develop the G9ii at a lower cost than with its own unique body? And they may even have not developed a G9ii otherwise and the GH6 might have been their last ever 4/3 body?
But otherwise yes, totally agree. I would also liked to have seen 4/3 be a ‘micro’ sized camera, especially when some of the larger sensor stuff is getting smaller. Lenses aside, just look at a GFX 100S or Hassie X2D next to a GH6. The Fuji is only marginally bigger and heavier but the Hass is smaller and lighter! OK, different beasts I know, but anything bigger than the OM-1 is too big IMO for a 4/3 sensor camera.

IIRC, around the time of the GH6 release (18 months ago), there was live stream/press discussion with some senior Panasonic people, where one of them basically said that including PDAF hardware on the sensor would have delayed the sensor development too much (for the GH6 timescale). 
So my take on it is the sensor in the G9ii is effectively the 'fully developed' version of it, and the GH6 has an intermediate version without the PDAF hardware capability. I think it would have been commercially crazy to not launch the GH6 with PDAF if they could have - they'd have sold more in the intervening months at higher street prices.
We'll have to wait and see, but I think there just has to be a GH6ii or GH7 soon.

It seems to me a suicide decision.
It is bad enough that cameras receive fw updates, let alone hw. It would be the first time in history.
I simply believe that the sensor is a derivative of that of the GH6 and the marketing sells itself that they are identical. But the devil is in the details.
I've read too that they have the same sensor but who is the source? I guess it's just a PR statement. Nobody disassembled it.

It's simply not possible thay are the same sensor. A modern PDAF sensor ha specialized pixels on it. It's not something you are adding later. Only old real DSRL had the space to implement PDAF out of the sensor.
If G9II and GH6 have the same image It means that the G9II sensor is a derivation of the GH6 sensor but it's a completely different one.
So I think I'll pass the mic to Harry Callaghan
https://photo.stackexchange.com/questions/124306/confusion-about-the-principle-of-on-sensor-pdaf-technique
 
 
 

I think it's more about licensing ProRes. If the camera uses Braw, it doesn't cost them anything. And I'm pretty sure h264/5 are free to use. 
As Braw is pretty close to ProRes file sizes, I think I'd actually prefer to have Braw and h265 over ProRes. I often shoot in remote locations, and need to send files back to the big city. The small filesizes of h265 would be really great to have in camera.
So I'm quite excited about Braw and a proxy simultaneously... However, Blackmagic seem to enjoy the Goldilocks effect, so I'll wait for the one that's juuuuust right in about 2 years time. 

I don't understand how it could be a firmware update.
Any paper on PDAF technology (on mirrorless/phones) explains that the sensor must have specialized photodiodes. The number varies with the accuracy and speed of the autofocus.

https://www.newsshooter.com/2023/09/15/sennheiser-previews-mkh-8030-figure-of-eight-rf-condenser-microphone/

 

Is that the Admiral Graf Spee in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me? 

Is that the Admiral Graf Spee in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me? 

There is no second channel: these are mono mics with a bidirectional polar pattern. For location sound they are usually used with a shotgun or other cardioid/supercardioid/hypercardioid mic to form a mid-side (aka M/S) stereo rig.

Apparently the new camera isn’t called ‘pocket’ anymore. Lots of people complained that it didn’t fit in their pockets I guess. Pretty silly really. 
I had a Kessler Pocket dolly many years ago…..it didn’t fit in my pocket either but I never complained about it but then I try not to take things too literally 😜

I feel far more affinity with my wedding clients than their parents but then the other day, realised I was born the year before the brides dad 🤪

Nobody cares but from a underwater video operator POV (mine 😁) Pana budget choice of reusing the same body could be a good one. 
It happens once in a blue moon that two camera share the same body and control layout and this seems to be the case.
Nauticam has already a reasonably priced uw housing for the S5 II (3350€ vs 4050€ of GH6)and this seems to be fully compatible.

To be seen the 120mm port diameter for the FF lens.
https://www.nauticam.com/collections/panasonic-mirrorless-housings/products/s5ii-underwater-housing-for-panasonic-lumix-s5ii-x-camera
 

5K global shutter, dual gain sensor and "the best dynamic range out of all their cameras". Shipping in October. People are already whining about the price of 3999 dollars ("ITS NOT FULL FRAME"). This is why we can't have nice things and I fear this might sell very badly of course.
https://www.newsshooter.com/2023/09/16/z-cam-e2-m5g-global-shutter-cinema-camera/

https://www.newsshooter.com/2023/09/15/sennheiser-previews-mkh-8030-figure-of-eight-rf-condenser-microphone/

 

I try to always say explicitly "P6K Pro" if I mean that. 
But yes, people might casually say "Pocket 6K" when meaning their P6K Pro. 
Or heck, they might even say their "Blackmagic Pocket Camera" and you're left confused if they mean the original Pocket 1080 camera? (some people don't even realize that exists!!) Or the P4K MFT?? Or one of the 6K versions? Who knows!

Say goodbye to filmic pro and their money grabbing subscription

So, the fact that BM joined L-mount makes me hopefull. DJI is rumored to produce an L-mount camera too which alltogeether will strengthen the alliance.. but this camera is not really ground breaking or anything like that. Form factor is meh, no NDs, no PDAF, frame rates are average. I can forgive it not having an IBIS as it has a very capable Gyro IS which you can apply in Resolve. But overall thats a postive move for all L-mount users. 
Eager to see what DJI cooks up. Those guys dont beat around the bush and deliver a banger straight away. A fresh take of their Ronin 4D in a camera form factor striped of a gimbal would be bonkers. 

I really hope that you're wrong, but your points make sense and it might simply be how the economics play out.
I'd hope that even if they released an updated GX camera, they could retain the same body/battery/EVF/etc, but offer improved bitrates / frame-rates / profiles.  A GX95 that took advantage of most/all of the modes on the new sensors would be wonderful.
In terms of the idea that smartphones killed cameras of this size, it's a fundamental misunderstanding of how things work, but one that the industry seems to make time and again....  the idea that serious people want a large camera and people who want a small camera don't want quality.
I shoot with the GX85 and iPhone 12 Mini, and I can assure you, the difference in image quality is night and day.  What do I mean by night and day?  I mean, the image quality of the GX85 shooting at night is better than the iPhone shooting during the day!

I don't think anyone is arguing that it isn't a very good camera, I think people just feel like the system is moving away from what it's potential is/could be.
It's a radically different time than 2017 and the years before spent developing a the GH5. You could overlook the larger size, compared to previous M43 bodies, because it was so much more advanced than anything else out there. 4K 60, 10-bit, IBIS, etc. were all groundbreaking features for the mirrorless market. 
Now though, releasing a camera that is the size of a full frame camera but with a smaller sensor and features that are not significantly better than what is already out there is a harder sell.
Like I said in a previous post, Panasonic probably has the marketing information to back up their decision making, and I absolutely understand that in many ways they are in a no win situation, but I just don't think they are able to compete when it comes to specs, at least not in a significant way. But size and affordability? Those are two things they absolutely could embrace and win some people over. An updated GH5 in a small, compact body at a very competitive price is a more compelling option for a lot of us vs. something like this. But again, it just might not be a feasible thing for them to do.