GH4: 29min 59sec

[pietz 25]

i just got my gh4 yesterday and one of the first things i noticed is that mine comes with a 30min recording cap. didnt quite a few people agree that there is no recording cap on the GH4? switching prom PAL to Cinema didnt fix the problem. is there a workaround with an american firmware version or something?

[bunk 130]

As far as I understand you can continue filming. All that will happen is that after 29:29 a new clip will be created. So if you have a continuous shoot for 75 minutes, 3 clips will be created instead of one long one. Haven't shot anything for longer then 5 min so no guarantees.

[Edit]

I should have add ...when you record in 4K.

[pietz 25]

I'll try that, thanks

[aldolega 248]

EU cams have the recording limit. Cams from other PAL regions and NTSC regions do not.

[bunk 130]

EU cams have the recording limit. Cams from other PAL regions and NTSC regions do not.

I 'm afraid you're right. Text below is from the manual:

•When the motion picture size is set to [FHD], [HD] or [VGA] in [MP4], you can continuously record a motion picture up to 29 minutes 59 seconds or until the file size reaches 4GB. You can check the recordable time on the screen.–Since the file size becomes larger with [FHD], recording with [FHD] will stop before29 minutes 59 seconds.
•You can continuously record a motion picture with its size set to [4K] in [MP4] without a pause even if the motion picture exceeds 4GB. However, the recorded content has to be played back as multiple files

Second part got me confused. Looked like a smart way of Panasonic to get around the situation. Each new files is the start of a new recording, in effect bypassing the limitation.
Alas not the case.

[leeys 98]

i just got my gh4 yesterday and one of the first things i noticed is that mine comes with a 30min recording cap. didnt quite a few people agree that there is no recording cap on the GH4? switching prom PAL to Cinema didnt fix the problem. is there a workaround with an american firmware version or something?

Not until there's a hack to to disable the EU limit. I am assuming you're from the EU!

[pietz 25]

Not until there's a hack to to disable the EU limit. I am assuming you're from the EU!

 

i am, but i remember quite a few people saying that there is no recording limit in europe with the gh4. wasnt it also andrew who said this?

 

i tested it today with C4K in a MOV file: after around 6.30-7min the file reached the 4GB mark and created a new file on its own. however this only worked three times. the fourth file recorded only a couple of minutes before it stopped. now i assume this might be because im not using a UHS3 card (although im using a 600x transcend one), i'll try out a few more things on the weekend.

[bunk 130]

I had the same experience yesterday, I got 4 files around 7 minutes and one around 2 minutes, more or less 30 minutes total. Happened each and every time I tried. Personally I don't mind the limit for 'normal' usage as I never record more than a couple of minutes ...but it sucks big time that it does the same with variable frame rates. In effect it renders that feature useless. If you record with two frames per second you get stuck with 3600 frames or two minutes 24seconds of footage ...which doesn't come close to 29 minutes 59 seconds of footage.

[pietz 25]

I had the same experience yesterday, I got 4 files around 7 minutes and one around 2 minutes, more or less 30 minutes total. Happened each and every time I tried. Personally I don't mind the limit for 'normal' usage as I never record more than a couple of minutes ...but it sucks big time that it does the same with variable frame rates. In effect it renders that feature useless. If you record with two frames per second you get stuck with 3600 frames or two minutes 24seconds of footage ...which doesn't come close to 29 minutes 59 seconds of footage.

 

youre right. i cant count :D it was the fifth file that was 2min long. so yep, 30min recording cap.

 

has anybody had experience with US firmwares? maybe they dont come with a recording cap.

[pietz 25]

i contacted panasonic and was told that its not possible to reinstall the 1.0 firmware from the US as a firmware update to get around the recording cap.

 

so if anybody has an idea or solution for recording longer than 29min59sec, i would highly appreciate it.

[funkyou86 153]

14th of October 2016. Still can't hack the 29min 59 sec recording time

[Samin 16]

On 6/19/2014 at 1:41 AM, pietz said:

i am, but i remember quite a few people saying that there is no recording limit in europe with the gh4. wasnt it also andrew who said this?

In EU if you want GH4 with unlimited record time you should get GH4R

[Cinegain 1,744]

1 hour ago, funkyou86 said:

14th of October 2016. Still can't hack the 29min 59 sec recording time

You mean, with like

?

[funkyou86 153]

5 minutes ago, Cinegain said:

You mean, with like

?

So, have you tried this on you GH4, because it's not working  

I meant, that 3 years after releasing this camera, it's firmware is still not capable of restarting your recording after 30 minutes. Damn shitty if you're doing long interviews... Of course GH4R upgrade is an option, Alexa Mini is an option as well :D

[Cinegain 1,744]

6 minutes ago, funkyou86 said:

So, have you tried this on you GH4, because it's not working  

I meant, that 3 years after releasing this camera, it's firmware is still not capable of restarting your recording after 30 minutes. Damn shitty if you're doing long interviews... Of course GH4R upgrade is an option, Alexa Mini is an option as well :D

If the Alexa Mini was an option, I would have one by now. No. Two! Haha. I get where you're coming from. Some are reporting success with it on some G7 bodies. Not sure what the key is there. I don't really need 30+ mins recording per se, and as I didn't want to set-up my cameras again from scratch after checking out how legit it would be... and being scared of losing the installed legit V-Log L... I haven't tried it myself. You can try recording externally... but yeah... that's not really 'solving' the real problem.

[mkabi 158]

Here is my take on the limit...

If you need longer than 30 minutes, chances are... you are not changing lenses either for those 30 min. and longer. Right?

So might as get a fixed lens solution without the 30 min. limit. I know many people want an all in one solution, but... if you have to pick... choose your weapons carefully.