John Matthews

I feel your pain. I think the A6500 launch was botched. It should have been in 2017. Between Sony and Apple, we can see the extremes of product timing. I'd actually prefer the Apple method to the Sony one. Sony needs to perfect their current features, get their cameras to run reliably, and invest in pro-level help. Unfortunately, I don't believe Sony is built that way... it's just the way it is. As for color, I think @Andrew Reid is simply saying he likes Canon's colors best. Don't feel bad if you have a Sony and you like the colors- it's all subjective anyway, as was clearly stated in The Camera Store TV video.

Yes... maybe, but why did they change it and market it was an upgrade to the GX80/85? I'm not getting that "upgrade" feeling. Is this just a case where a camera manufacturer launching a product that's not quite ready? It was the USP for the G80.

I don't think it's a question of expectation if that's what you meant. Although I believe expectations are too high with IBIS in general, this is more a question of behavior when panning and I guess it can only be described as a subtle "bounce" effect. Also, I'm not completely sure the GX80 wouldn't do something similar. At 400mm, it's a long way away for things to not go somewhat wrong.

That's too bad, but it was also my suspicion- the G80's IBIS problem isn't fixed with firmware version 1.1 with certain lenses according to 43rumors.com. I guess the GX80/85 is still top dog for Panasonic when it comes to IBIS. Hope the GH5 won't have that same issues as the G80/85.

I had a Pentax K5. Loved it... the best stills camera (in RAW) I've ever had. The video, not so much. I hear people complain about the 5DM4's Motion jpeg, the Pentax had similar problems and the DR wasn't so good. In fact, the modern Pentax's would be OK if they could just get their CODEC right... I'd probably still be using them if they had. I just gave up on them. Anyway, I think you're right about colors being VERY subjective. Then again, people on EOSHD seem only to prefer Canon and Fuji most of the time, but in fact, in terms of audience, their preference would probably be all over the place. As long as you're not shooting in log, someone will probably prefer the colors.

Everyone talks about color and this video reminds us how subjective this is. Here's The Camera Store TV comparison of the out-of-camera jpegs in facotory default settings. Many cameras were tested and they found the Panasonic (G80, arguably identical to the GX80) standard profile to be ahead of the Fuji, but lower than Nikon and Canon.

Get two and you have a nice pair of maracas.

Sony's go down to 1/4. Actually, I meant my question to be: why don't Panasonic cameras go down to only 1/25? Cool. I didn't know that! Thanks!

Does anyone know why Panasonic has limited its shutter speed to 1/30 in video mode? Here's an interesting video I picked up today... a lot of it was review for me, but I learned one or two things from it that made me rethink how I shoot.

Are you sure that the Sigma 18-35 communicates the focal length to the GX80 for the IBIS to adjust? Does it do it on the fly? That would seem like a huge usability concern. I can see the convenience of simply slapping a lens on and forgetting about it. For longer shots, you'd still need to remove the speedbooster; so, I'm not sure you're gaining much time or simplicity on that. IMO, simplicity would just be to put on one prime and that's it- many great directors have shot major films like this. Anyway, I look forward to seeing your future videos whatever the lens. I agree about the SIZE of the Sigma. I found a couple of videos on Youtube for the Samyang. I doubt sharpness would be any issue in video... After all, they make a cine version T2.2 of the lens too, I believe.

I thought I might weigh in on this lens discussion. First, the GX80 is small and IMO it deserves a lens that is small. Isn't that a major reason to go MFT anyway? Secondly, I agree with @jase that focus by wire isn't the best for video, but I think it would easily work in a pinch. When you look at the Sigma 18-35 with a Speedbooster, it would probably be the last lens-combo you buy, especially if it works flawlessly with IBIS (not sure about that). However, it'd be $1000-$1500 for the Sigma/Speedbooster combo and you can't really go "small." I find it unfortunate that you almost have to buy the Metabones Speedbooster if you want communication between a zoom and the GX80. Otherwise, I'd buy a cheap Speedbooster and a cheap/good Canon zoom. Personally, I've decided to go with: Panasonic 25mm F1.7 - $180 (new) Pentax 50mm F1.7 - $30 (used), $15 adapter Samyang 12mm F2.0 -$309 (new) The total comes to less than the Speedbooster new or even a used Sigma 18-35. These 3 lenses are small enough, are arguably fast enough, cover the majority of focal length situations, and at least two of them offer great manual focus rings. I have yet to buy the Samyang 12mm, but 99% sure it'll be the one. Does anyone else have any experience with it?

What I'm really liking in this grade as well as what @mercer said is the way you really got the reds to pop... and it's not overdone either. I'm going to look a little at Davinci. Great work with the story too... keep it up! It left me wanting to watch more.

Here's an interesting comparison of the IBIS on the GX80 vs. G80. According to him, he prefers the GX80's stabalization. I find it interesting that Panasonic degraded IBIS in the G80. Is this an anomaly or a reality? He says in a following video that he thinks it can be fixed in a firmware update... I'm not sure about that. Any ideas? @PannySVHS, Love the grade on that video. How did you do it? Really nice look!

I've heard the AMD cards have a problem on hackintoshes in that they don't work on wake- they need a restart. I'd love for that not to be true, that's what I read on tonymacx86. The GTX 970 might be a solution, but it'll be outside my budget. Are you running the R9 280X? Can that handle 4k footage on the GX80?

Sure. It's an i7 3770 (not K), using HD 4000 integrated graphics (this is the problem). Recently, I upgraded the SSD to a 500gb Samsung 850 EVO. IMO the system needs a proper GPU. The 1050 is probably the one I can afford, but there still aren't any drivers for OSX yet. When I put it together 4 years ago (can't believe it's been that long!), I suspected it would last 5 years max, but I think I can get another 4 years if I put a good GPU in it. Thoughts?

I agree. I'm also using FCPX, but on a hackintosh. It also does very well with proxies, but I like to have WYSIWYG and it can't handle 4k until the 1050 or 1060 are supported in OSX. Also, proxies can take quite a bit of space; so, you need to work on fewer projects at a time. It works, but I would like a no-compromise system I guess.

Sorry, not so. I think many people would love that, but it's just not the case.

4k 60fps would be one of the GX80's weaknesses. Having played around with the 1080p 50fps, it looks quite nice... along the shots that you were making. I'm finding that the weakness of the 4k for me is the computer. I really need a video card and about two more 6 tb drives to make the experience go better. Those will probably be my next purchases. Also, I don't even have a 4k display to look at this footage yet; so, I'll add that to the mix too. There's no real rush though in that few can even tell the difference between the 4k and 1080p unless they're using a large 4k display and sitting within two feet. In terms of downscaled 4k, this camera performs very well. Right now, 4k is more about options in post (for the people who have computer that can handle it).

I've ran a hackintosh (desktop) since 2012. It's been one of the most stable systems I've ever used. The only real drawback is that you always need to reserve space for a bootable backup of the previous version of OS X that you were using. This way, if something goes really wrong, you can go back. Personally, I would just buy the MacBook if you absolutely need a mobile mac. For real power and value, go to https://www.tonymacx86.com/buyersguide/october/2016 I'm waiting and hoping for nvidea 1050, 1060, 1070, and 1080 support. Those cards are big jumps in performance over the previous generation.

No. I didn't test it. @Andrew Reid did in this article: http://www.eoshd.com/2016/05/an-adventure-into-the-panasonic-gx8580-begins-and-a-look-at-the-leica-nocticron-for-micro-four-thirds/ This is what he said: Panasonic has been very coy about getting back to us on 8bit vs 10bit, but everyone suspects a 8bit signal. I sent a question into Panasonic France, but they never got back to me. They're probably focusing more on sales, as they probably should given the dramatic downturn in camera sales. Let's just say it's 8bit 422 from the HDMI and 8bit 420 to the SD card. You CAN record video simultaneously on the SD card and an external recorder.

@jase, I think I read that you were mainly shooting 1080p 50fps. I would like to know if it was only because you thought you'd slow it down or because you thought it was a slightly more gradable image? ...or both. I'm just trying to get the best gradable image out of the 1080p options without transcoding the 4k.

Nice video. What was the wide lens you were using in the opening sequence?

In terms of value and "investment," this makes sense. Get a nice, decent, "good enough" camera and put your money in high-quality accessories and lenses- the latter will probably not be replaced next time the weather changes.

For me, the point of IBIS was to get a "usable" moving image. If you want to add shake in after, you can. Can you not?

Just saw some more photos of the A6500. Why do they continue not offering a front dial? Having two dials readily accessible seems like a "must" in ergonomics, especially when it costs 1700 Euros... or maybe they'll put that in the A6700 that's due in a few months. If I had all that cash to blow on a camera like this, it would be a deal-breaker for me.