69 replies to this topic

[Emanuel A Guedes]

I stand corrected, Jim Jannard made known the replacement of the announced Scarlet S35 for a new model to be known as Epic Light.

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

Philip Bloom's second GH2 video using the Voigtlander 25mm f0.95 lens, "Movember Gala Party".

His blog post describing it is here:
http://philipbloom.n...7/movembergala/

Refer to the Vimeo page for details (watch the "HD" version):


Also available on YouTube (watch the "HD" version on YouTube):
http://www.youtube.c...player_embedded



Vimeo members can also download the less-compressed, original edited version of the file.

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

Hunter Richards has posted a truly useful GH2 vs. hacked GH1 camera test, comparing their video quality & and also preliminary comments about GH2 live HDMI -- all the more impressive because he got out of his sick bed to do it!

See:
http://www.dvxuser.c...h13-perspective)

Thanks again, Hunter!

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

There's some very preliminary GH2 firmware hack news today from Vitaliy Kiselev:
http://www.dvxuser.c...l=1#post2177049
http://www.dvxuser.c...l=1#post2176988

But, note this important _caveat_ from Vitaliy here:
http://www.dvxuser.c...ht=#post2177072

So, it appears there'll be a bit more of a wait for a hack for the GH2.

[Phil Rhodes]

Still can't get a straight answer on the 25p.

P

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

I nominate this for best GH2-related tweet of 2010:

http://twitter.com/5...884169969795072

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

Oh. My. Gosh. :-)

I'm not 100% certain, but I believe externally _recordable_ 1080p24 HDMI out of the GH2 has been confirmed. Maybe.

Read from this post here:
http://www.dvxuser.c...l=1#post2184540

I think this is a big deal, yes? (True, no 1080p25 yet, but perhaps that's only a firmware update away?)

Maybe there is a free pony with every GH2 after all?


EDIT: Um, no. Read the thread linked above for all the gory details, but things are not looking good for recording or capturing GH2 live HDMI output. The HDMI signal is fantastic for live full HD monitoring (including when the camera itself is recording), but it appears to be confirmed that the live HDMI signal is subtlety screwed-up so that it's not suitable for capturing or recording to an external HDMI recorder. Unless someone can figure out a magic fix ...

Edited by Peter J DeCrescenzo, 20 December 2010 - 10:03 PM.

[Phil Rhodes]

I thought we knew this?

[Mark Roberts]

Hi All:

I have a GH2 on order as well and have been monitoring the thread to learn from the pros. I will be a bit like a hog with a wrist watch when I get it: I know it is the pro tool I want to grow with, but I will have a steep growing curve!

I hope to do broadcast video with it eventually for a travel program I have written. However, one must have the ability to get one's hands on it in order to use it, so when is the sucker gonna be available in the US? Harumph!

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

After waiting since placing an order for one in mid-September, a GH2 was finally shipped to me a few days ago. Woo-hoo. As of today, GH2 cams are almost impossible to obtain in the US unless you buy one from outside the country (Canada, Japan, etc.). The one I finally received was purchased from PanasonicDirect.com (US), but as with all sources for this GH2, availability is sporadic at best.

My first impressions are very positive. Since I now have both a GH1 (with hacked firmware) and a new GH2, it's interesting comparing the two.

The button placement and menus are slightly different between the 2 cams, which makes it a fun challenge using both. :-)

I love that I can shoot with the GH2 in 1080p24 progressive mode f-o-r-e-v-e-r without worrying about the camera crashing, unlike with a hacked GH1 in 1080p24 mode. To my eyes the GH2 recording 1080p24 AVCHD @ 24 megabits/sec looks much better than the GH1's 1080p24 AVCHD @ 24 mbs/s. Even moderately fast-moving scenes look quite good in GH2 recordings. But, sure, you can break the GH2's codec if you push it far enough, but for for a <$1K US cam with a large sensor (plus all its other features), currently the GH2 is a bargain & a great value.

The GH2's "Exra Tele Conversion" feature seems genuinely useful, giving a big focal length boost to any lens, with the minimal negative side effect of a very slight increase in noise. I just did some informal night shooting with the GH2, and I was surprised that the ETC footage looks as good as it does. I'll be testing this feature further. Here's a very brief example (details on my Vimeo page):


When I have some GH2 footage worth showing I'll post additional clips to my website.

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

FYI: The GH2's CMOS rolling shutter "skew" artifact performance is shown to be as good or better than the GH1 (hacked or not). In some operating modes, the GH2's skew performance is significantly better than the GH1.

Verified by 3 different testers commenting in this thread (including correctly-done test videos):
http://www.dvxuser.c...232220-Gh2-skew

[Tim Tyler]

Peter,

Have you tried mounting a 16mm or Super-16mm lens to your GH2 in ETC mode?

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

Hi Tim: Sorry, but I don't have easy access to 16mm lenses or appropriate m43 lens mount adapters, regrets.

I've seen discussions on DVXuser & elsewhere where folks claim to have used these with the GH2's Extra Tele Conversion mode. Apparently many lenses designed for 2/3" video or 16mm film cams work w/o vignetting, as will some C-mount lenses designed for 1/2" video cams.

[Phil Rhodes]

Hmm. I have a moderately usable 1/2"-format broadcast zoom lens that might be an interesting fit

What's this problem with the HDMI?

Edit - this problem with the HDMI is that it's interlaced up to 60i, at least on NTSC models. We sort of knew this. Notwithstanding the elaborate conspiracy theories over on DVX User, I suspect it's been done that way because 60Hz formats are by far the most widely supported and avoid dropping unsuspecting users into EDID hell with their HDMI devices.

As I've said before is entirely feasible to write recorder software to decimate frames back out of this, but the time involved in doing so is considerable and would require R&D funding.

P

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

Here are some nice little GH2 gifts for the holidays:

DP Emmanuel Pampuri used a GH2 to shoot this behind-the-scenes footage during a fashion shoot in France:


Vimeo members can download a higher-quality (less-compressed) 425MB version of the video from the Vimeo page.

Also:

DP Hunter Richards has posted a write-up on DVXuser (including photos & tech details) describing his using a GH2 on a corporate shoot:
http://www.dvxuser.c...the-application)

Cheers.

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

I've posted a series of ~10-sec. video clips showing grayscale & MacBeth charts depicting each of my GH2's so-called "Film Modes" (color profiles). There are ten clips, numbered 20-29.

In addition to the highly-compressed versions for viewing in your web browser, Vimeo members (free) can download the camera-original versions of the clips. I rewrapped the camera-original AVCHD .MTS files to QuickTime .MOV file without recompression so more people can use them.

I hope these are useful. Compare, contrast, discuss. No conclusions from me yet. Cheers.

Tech details are on the Vimeo pages, but to summarize:

Exposure was set using the GH2's "REC HIGHLIGHT" feature which has been shown to indicate white clipping at 100 IRE. The whites chips & cards on the charts where set _once_ (and once only) at or just slightly below 100 IRE while the camera was in STANDARD Film Mode. ISO was set at 320, and the Lumix 20mm lens was set at f2.0. Shutter 1/60th.

1080p24 "24H" progressive. Full manual mode, including the GH2's "iDynamic" & "iResolution" both OFF.

The camera was white balanced while in STANDARD Film Mode. Once set, this one WB setting was used for all the clips. Lighting was 4 tungsten bulbs through diffusion.

In these clips, all of the Film Mode sub-settings (contrast, sharpness, color & noise reduction) have been set to their lowest values (-2). These same -2 values were used for all the tests.

Any changes in exposure or color among these video clips is the result from switching among the GH2's Film Modes. No other changes were made to the camera settings between clips.

Standard:


Cinema:
http://vimeo.com/18203656

Dynamic:
http://vimeo.com/18203811

Smooth:
http://vimeo.com/18203954

Nature:
http://vimeo.com/18204031

Nostalgic:
http://vimeo.com/18204186

Vibrant:
http://vimeo.com/18204311

Standard B&W:
http://vimeo.com/18204424

Dynamic B&W:
http://vimeo.com/18204527

Smooth B&W:
http://vimeo.com/18204625

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

FYI: Vitaliy Kiselev, the Russian programmer who hacked the GH1, has recently hacked the GH2.

For information about how to download and use Vitaliy's free software, refer to his website:
http://www.personal-...ool-3.61d-topic

I've installed the hacked firmware on my GH2 and it seems to be "working". At least, I haven't experienced any crashes or deal-breaking issues. There are some known quirks, as discussed on Vitaliy's website and elsewhere (such as the DVXuser GH2 forum). YMMV.

I posted a couple of brief hacked video clips shot at 1080p24 AVCHD @ 42 mbits/sec (vs. factory-standard @ 24 mb/s) up on Vimeo, and you can also download the camera-original .MTS files to view them w/o Vimeo's encoding. See:



Cheers.

[Phil Rhodes]

Still no 25p, I presume.

[Peter J DeCrescenzo]

Vitaliy, Chris Brandin & their international testing team have created a new version (3.62d) of Vitaliy's firmware hack for the GH2 which enables further video quality improvements. See:
http://www.personal-...ol-v3.62d-topic

I haven't completed my informal tests yet, but what I'm seeing -- or what I think I'm seeing ;-) -- is fewer compression artifacts and improved detail in the shadows. Others report similar results, but as always: YMMV.

Increasing the bitrate to 32 megabits/sec or more appears to address the relatively small amount of compression artifacts ("mud") sometimes visible in standard GH2 high-motion video. A standard GH2 is much better than the stock GH1 was in this regard, but all cameras benefit from throwing more bits at the challenge of recording high-motion video.

The current hack software fixes an issue in the previous version which resulted in the first few frames of >32 megabit/s clips with extreme compression artifacts.

Importantly, the new hack allows you to select an overall preference for the GH2's codec ("Auto-Quantizer"): Should the codec use the "extra" datarate bits to record motion with fewer artifacts, or should it use the extra bits to record details (especially in low-lit areas) with fewer artifacts. You can preset this preference on a scale from 0 ("all to motion") to 4 ("all to details"). I'm currently testing "#3 Most to details".

I'm hopeful a combination of bitrate, AQ and perhaps other hack settings can result in GH2 video that is essentially mud-free, has fewer gradient banding artifacts, and has improved detail in shadows. More to come ...

P.S.: Phil: Sorry, no 25p.

[Phil Rhodes]

Mutter, grumble. Bitch, whine.