Jump to content

GH4: List of quirks and problems


pietz
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hello everybody,

 

i wanted to collect all the things where the GH4 doesnt quite work as it should. Those can be bugs, problems or things that are just worse when compared to the GH3. bugs or problems are something that need to be fixed and since panasonic seems to read around this forum, it might shorten the time to do so. quirks are negative aspects about this camera, that people need to know before buying it, since these things are not advertised:

 

 

-Very soft video in variable framerate mode: 1080p 96fps footage looks more like 720p which has been upscaled than actual full hd footage. 

 

-No auto focus in slow motion mode: when recording 96fps the auto focus is not available, which is understandable on my end. but its also not available when you havent even started recording, which is just weird. so once you set it to 96fps, you have to focus manually.

 

-Slow auto focus in video: its hard to detemine a definiton for "slow" in this regard but since its slower than the GH3 it cant be working properly. it should be faster, due to the new auto focus system used or at least the same than the GH3.

 

-Crop on 4k video: recording in 4k will give you a crop factor of 2.3 instead of 2.

 

-Rolling shutter is worse in 4k: rolling shutter is worse when you are filming in 4k compared to 1080p, which makes sense. but its also worse than 1080p on the GH3. i thought the sensor read out was supposed to me much faster on the GH4.

 

anything else? i heard there was some audio issue with humming when not in manual video mode. is that correct? please let me know other things i forgot or didnt know.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

EOSHD Pro Color 5 for Sony cameras EOSHD Z LOG for Nikon CamerasEOSHD C-LOG and Film Profiles for All Canon DSLRs
  • Administrators

The sensor readout is much faster on the GH4, by 50%. But 400% more data coming off the sensor, that isn't enough to compensate. Audio issue is a non-issue as far as I'm concerned. Who shoots video with audio in stills mode? That's what the movie mode is for!

 

AF is of no interest to me either.

 

The soft video in VFR mode, well treat it as a creative bonus tool... You could pay $15k for a camera today, and not even get 60p! (C300)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nothing wrong with this list so far, but why present it like this?

 



i wanted to collect all the things where the GH4 doesnt quite work as it should.

 

Of course I'd love 1080p96 with supersharp images. But it is understandable that Panasonic has to do some tricks to get so many frames of the sensor. Even though not as sharp as normal 1080p, I think it's perfectly usable.

 

Especially with shallow dof shots it looks lovely imo:

 

With deep dof and lots of detail, the resolution doesn't look as good indeed:

 

Is this a 'problem' of the GH4? Don't think so. I still think the 96 fps is a huge PLUS for the GH4. Which other camera has this possibility??

 

Regarding AF: I haven't seen any proper tests in video mode. Have seen an example where the GH3 gets it focus faster in AF-S mode, but is that a big deal? In AF-S you are shooting something static anyway, it's just to get the focus point right for the beginning of your shot. How about continious AF compared? GH4 should be better with the new focus system indeed, although I'm not sure if that works for video.

 

Anyway, I don't have a problem with a list of points that are worth mention, but don't present it like things that are wrong with the camera.

 

Also Panasonic is pretty open about things like the extra crop. You can see it as a downside, but also as a upside, because it gives you 1:1 pixel readout so no ugly artefacts from scaling.

 

Do you have a GH4? Or are you looking for reasons not to buy one? :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The sensor readout is much faster on the GH4, by 50%. But 400% more data coming off the sensor, that isn't enough to compensate. Audio issue is a non-issue as far as I'm concerned. Who shoots video with audio in stills mode? That's what the movie mode is for!

 

AF is of no interest to me either.

 

The soft video in VFR mode, well treat it as a creative bonus tool... You could pay $15k for a camera today, and not even get 60p! (C300)

Wait so this audio issue I've been reading about on here and m43rumors is only when in stills mode? Somehow I missed that. Not much of an issue indeed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nothing wrong with this list so far, but why present it like this?

 

 

Of course I'd love 1080p96 with supersharp images. But it is understandable that Panasonic has to do some tricks to get so many frames of the sensor. Even though not as sharp as normal 1080p, I think it's perfectly usable.

You mean it has about the same resolution as a regular 1080p camera would, which never has a full 1080 resolution.  :)   It looks pretty sharp.  You guys are already getting spoiled.  :P

 

Michael

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Having some menu quirks - for instance, if I am in video mode on the dial, and I go into the menu, then down to the Playback tab, and then into the playback menu itself (arrow over into the actual list of options), the screen goes black for a quarter of a second, the mic shuts off, and then the screen comes back on as normal. The audio comes back as soon as you exit the menus. Not an issue in any practical sense, but quirky.

Also, going into the menu system when I don't immediately start on the playback tab (so if the last time I left the menu I was in the, say, custom tab), the screen is ever so slightly dimmer. When I go into the playback menu itself, the screen brightens up by a very faint amount. This also happened on my old GH3 and I've seen (and heard of) it on GX7's, so, again, not any sort of issue, but quirky.

edit - Also, I've been stopped twice on the street while shooting photos and asked if I was using a GH4. As an introvert, I consider this to be a considerable flaw :lol:  

 

(Also also, I live in Austin, Texas in the United States, so I guess Panasonic does have some US market penetration!)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

edit - Also, I've been stopped twice on the street while shooting photos and asked if I was using a GH4. As an introvert, I consider this to be a considerable flaw :lol:  

 

They landed a big one by offering the first serious 4K camera that doesn't cost several thousand of dollars.

And Sony just comes up with external 4K...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i dont understand those people who go all "fanboy" on my idea. is the gh4 a great camera? yes. is it a good bang for the buck? absolutely. is it perfect? obviously not.

 

since its a new camera i thought it would only be fair to talk about things people should know before buying this camera. if you would only get it for the 96fps mode and then notice that its quite soft and auto focus doesnt work, youd be disappointed, correct?

 

im just here to list facts and information, if you feel you have to defend the gh4 for being super cool and i'm just a bad person for even talking about these things, i think youre being subjective and need to grow up.

 

anyway i did a quick screenshot comparison between 1080p 96fps off the camera and downscaling it to 720 and then upscaling it back to 1080p.

 

http://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/74686

 

as you can see there is more information in the 1080p picture. that means although the 1080p 96fps picture might be a little soft, it retains more information than a 720p picture.

 

id love to see a comparison like this between the GH3 and GH4 both in 1080p mode regarding sharpness and rolling shutter :) if anyone has the possibility to do this test, id highly appreciate it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

uhm, i wasnt actually including you in my fanboy phrase...? you just put yourself there :)

 

but let me rephrase more clearly and with a smile in my heart: if anyone is offended by facts, you should probably rethink your way of thinking. i started this thread to bring information to the table and help people making a choice. i never mentioned that i dont like the GH4, i actually only said the opposite.

 

AFS is very important to me. having an auto focus like the new A6000 is absolutely astonishing in my opinion: 

just because i dont do commercial shots with auto focus, doesnt mean that there arent many uses where it makes so much sense. maybe not for you Andrew, but for wedding videos or any kind of real time documentary, i cant always take the time to manually focus and set up my camera perfectly. and im just saying i would have loved the GH4 to have better video auto focus, since they made a huge fuzz abut the new focus system.

 

i found out that the soft image appears when you go from 62fps to 75fps. in case thats interesting for some. and i did just see your rolling shutter test, Andrew. exactly what i was looking for, thanks! it really did improve in 1080p! personally i think the 4k of the GH4 comes at too many other costs, which is why im only interested in the improved 1080p mode. if anyone has anymore input regarding this, id like to see.

 

until then ill stop posting in this thread, since my help wasnt really appreciated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Administrators

Complete an utter madness. The 4K mode does not come at 'too many other costs'. If you're shooting 1080p internally you're completely wasting the talents of the camera. I am shooting 4K on the GH4 for 1080p delivery. You can reframe in post, which is endlessly creative, no matter what you're shooting. The image quality for 1080p looks WAY better downscaled in post from 4K to 1080p than pixel binned on the sensor in 1080p mode.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is a god thread to have unless it turns into bashing cameras/users. This Camera is the hottest thing since toasted sliced bread, it's good to know the quirks before we have a gazillion threads moaning about how it doesn't turn everyone into Emmanuel Lubezki.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Complete an utter madness. The 4K mode does not come at 'too many other costs'. If you're shooting 1080p internally you're completely wasting the talents of the camera. I am shooting 4K on the GH4 for 1080p delivery. You can reframe in post, which is endlessly creative, no matter what you're shooting. The image quality for 1080p looks WAY better downscaled in post from 4K to 1080p than pixel binned on the sensor in 1080p mode.

 

What about those who want to shoot higher than 30p?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What about those who want to shoot higher than 30p?

 

At 4K? Buy a different camera for ten to 30 times the price of a GH4. The fact that it maxes out at 30p 4K is neither a quirk nor a problem, much like the fact that it doesn't have a full frame sensor isn't a quirk or a problem. At some point you're just talking about design choices, and if what the GH4 is doesn't align with what you need, buy something else.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not at 4k. 1080p. I am not against the samera, but listing its quirks hardly seems like something to get disturbed about.


As the only other person thus far who's listed quirks, I don't disagree. But much of what you've listed isn't a quirk or a problem - the 2.3x crop, for instance. That's just how the camera was designed. Perhaps this is a semantic disagreement, but if something is clearly listed in the spec sheet as being a certain way, I don't know why anyone would imply that it was unexpected or detrimental. Maybe in a "things I just don't like about the camera" thread, but then that's a different discussion entirely.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Administrators

Happy to have two threads actually...

 

One for problems.

 

And one for design aspects.

 

Slow-mo softness at 96fps and 2.2x crop in 4K is an aspect of the design.

 

A problem for me would be a bug or usability quirk.

 

Let's continue on the thread but be clear on what we mean...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • EOSHD Pro Color 5 for All Sony cameras
    EOSHD C-LOG and Film Profiles for All Canon DSLRs
    EOSHD Dynamic Range Enhancer for H.264/H.265
×
×
  • Create New...