I've been on the hunt for another camera that will do video (my Panasonic G1 cameras do not). I was intrigued by the new Sony A77 and its APS-C sensor size. I assumed its noise factor would be an improvement even compared with a Panasonic GH2, the leading candidate in my quest for a new video-capable camera. In fact, the new images posted at dpreview.com this week show the GH2 is less noisy than the Sony at ISO 1600, in spite of Sony's APS-C size sensor. What a shock. Obviously, the cost of packing in so many sensor points so densely.
I lost interest in the Sony. The GH2 still leads the field, but it is really more than I need. Great camera, but I'd rather have two or three (for multi-camera shoots) that are enough yet affordable rather than one that is great but overkill.
So, I went all the way back to the beginning and started over looking for a camera that might meet my video needs. I found it. The now almost-discontinued Panasonic G2 is the perfect fit for me. Uses my existing lenses; does 720p video (which is all I really need, see below); has the same size sensor as my G1 (12 megapixel stills); has almost the same noise characteristics at ISP 800 as does the GH2; has a stereo input jack for external microphones; and is at the end of its product cycle life so is inexpensive. I purchased a body-only for $299 at Amazon.com which will arrive here on Tuesday, just in time for my departure next Thursday to Carmel for the Uelsmann lecture and for my video tour of Chuck Davis' darkroom.
Here are some RAW noise comparisons from dpreview.com, however, in the real world I'd apply a little Noiseware Pro noise reduction.
Below is after Noiseware Pro noise reduction. I can live with this. No, I can thrive with this.
At ISO 1600, you can see that the G2 is a lot noisier than the GH2, but I rarely use it that high. What really surprises me is that it's about on par with the Sony A77! Of course, the Sony is a 24 megapixel image which will be a deciding factor for lots of photographers, but isn't important to me. I guess that's the cost of the extra pixels, the inevitable noise.
What is most impressive is how great the GH2 performs at ISP 1600. Wow! And a lot cheaper than a $2,500 Canon 5D MkII. Again, I assume, the advantage of the 5D MkII being is larger pixel count.
Relative to video, here was the learning curve from the week: If you are a Full Access member of LensWork Online, check out the interview I did with Doug Ethridge. The three-camera shoot of our interview was done with a somewhat dangerous mix of cameras. The video of Doug was shot with my Panasonic GF1; the video of me was shot with his Panasonic GH2; the wide shot video of both of us was shot with my snapshot camera, the Panasonic ZS3. All were AVCHD captured MTS files. Here are the details of the capture:
- GH2 (me) was shot at 1920x1080 at 16,589 kbps (1080p, full frame HD, AVCHD)
- GF1 (Doug) was shot at 1280x720 at 15,285 kbps (720p, AVCHDLite)
- ZS3 (wide of both of us) was shot at 1280x720 at 15,260 kbps (720p, AVCHDLite)
Although the GH2 has a much larger image and higher data rate that I'm sure would be an advantage for lots of full HD productions, these differences are nullified because of the size of the finished video we use. Constructed for playback on computer monitors, we size the final video at 960x540 — actually quite large for computer video and the context in which we use them. (By comparison, most YouTube videos are either 400x240 or 600x360.) In fact, any larger and some folks might find they can't see the entire video because their computer monitors are too small. So, the 720p format video camera (1280x720) are enough for my needs for our interviews and for production requirements for LensWork Extended. The new Panasonic G2 shoots 720p (1280x720) natively and will be great for this use.
There is one other cutting edge consideration that was worth checking out. I loaded up our streaming video on my Android tablet which I piped via HDMI cable into our Sony 40" LCD television. I wanted to see how the video looked there just in case people decided to view LensWork Extended on their HDTV. Looks great — not like full size HD cable, but great nonetheless. Even at that large size, the ZS3 pocket camera is only very slightly softer in focus that the other two, far more expensive cameras. The differences are so slight, I doubt anyone will even notice. I am fully satisfied.
So, a concluding word of advice from the pragmatist in me: In the race for more and more pixels and higher and higher definition video, it does appear that just as in other areas of life, "Enough is as good as a feast." I may have to fight off the seduction of 1080p video, but for actual work it appears that 720p has a lot more to offer than the camera sellers would have us believe — at least for those of us not doing feature films or episodes of House for commercial broadcast outlets.