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Panasonic LX100 camera topic
  • 566 Replies sorted by
  • BTW, a fellow LX100 owner asked me if I could recommend a small, 2- or 3-axis handheld stabilizer for use with the LX100 - but I've never used such. Can anybody recommend one?

  • Finally got to try the LX100 today although brightly. 2160/24p. Shutter was at 60, Aperture was at f/1.7 and ISO was set to 400. It was also on auto focusing but since the lens was set to f/1.7, you shouldn't expect it to be decent. As for white balance and anything else, I have no idea. Again, I only used it briefly at a show. I'll try to get this sample up on Vimeo possibly later today so people can download.

  • @abolit I suppose if you want to use the lx100 with say an audio recorder/mic/led light, it could be useful. The onboard audio of the lx100 is probably not good for much other than family videos.

    Also, in theory, someone could create a cage that allows for opening the battery compartment while it is mounted. If you attach it straight to a mounting plate, you cannot get to the battery compartment/sd card.

  • Received 3 Patona batteries today. Now loading. Will setup a test later to measure actual runtimes 3rd-party vs. original. Battery indicator works.

    lx100_patona.jpg
    1920 x 1080 - 337K
  • I was about to get a GX7 with the 20mm pancake, but this little camera makes me think if thats a good idea... I can get both for the same price, and I want it more for video than stills, I want good 1080p with 50 or 60p and both cameras provide that, I don't know if my macbook will handle 4K although it might be nice to use it as 1080 with stabilisation or do pannings kinda like a slider effect... Also I don't have any lenses, just a few old 35 and 50mm canon which with an adapter I could use on the GX7. I like the idea of having an "all in one" package with a nice range of focals, but I wonder if the long range of the LX100 will be enough for portraits, or if I'll be compromising a lot considering the old glass or the 20mm pancake. Would you consider the GX7 more "cinematic?" how's panning with the LX100? I've seen a couple of videos and it wasn't very smooth, but could be for many reasons... Man... so many cameras, and a very tight budget... what to do?!!! even do you think an A6000 or 5100 would be a better choice? :S

  • @vulgatron 1. The GX7 and the LX100 have the exact same sensor. The LX100 uses the same processor as in the GH4. It is therefore unlikely there is much difference in the "cinematic" quality of the video (whatever your definition of that term) between the GX7 and the LX100. You do give up Cine-D and Cine-V, but otherwise you have all the picture controls of the GX7 on the LX100.

    1. If you do not mind 30p, shooting 4K on the LX100 will give you visibly superior 108030p than the GX7 HD. If you are not sure whether your computer can handle 4K, why don't you download any of the Vimeo videos I posted here - they are the 4K versions. Usually the constraint if any is the software, not the hardware. So you may need a small investment in a better editor - well worth it.

    2. The LZ100 is optically stabilized (you can turn it on or off). The 20mm pancake is not. You will be unable to shoot video handheld using the GX7 and the pancake, or your old Canon lenses. Period. The stabilizer on the LX100 is superb. What's the point of a small camera if you must uses a big tripod all the time to produce watchable video?

  • @markr041 Thanks for your suggestions Mark, I did download a couple of videos from your vimeo page and it seems like I can edit the videos just fine, so I don't think I'll have major problems. Low light performance seems pretty good as well. I thought the LX100 had 24p @4K at least in Europe, does it? Regarding the stabilisation is good to hear that the Lx100 is superb, that's reassuring. I also thought the GX7 had in body stabilisation but I just found out it doesn't work in video mode, that's a bummer. By the cinematic ( I knew the term might not be accurate) I refer to something like this, is a video from 16pads from the GX7 topic:

    If with the lens range of the LX100 I can get that kind of shots (street photography/portraits, some macro and wide shots) I think I know which way I should go. Plus all the benefits I could get from shooting 4k! Regarding the crop sensor is it a massive difference? I guess in video would be less noticeable but what about photos? Again thanks for your help!

  • The LX100 has 24p. I just think 30p is obviously superior for anything with motion (I prefer natural to cinematic!). I don't know about photos - but you do get your choice of picture shape with no loss of resolution (4:3, 3:2, 16:9, 1:1) that you do not have with the GX7.

  • Thanks Mark, I'll keep looking and comparing, but I believe I might go for it!

  • @abolit Like tosvus mentions, if I wish to add an accessory and also to free the battery/card compartment when I mount it to a tripod or a Gorillapod or small rig. Cause if you plan on shooting video with the LX100 in your bare hands, you'll need to be really steady to not produce jitters/rolling shutter/etc... A small Gorillapod will help stabilize a lot, and it's still a very light package to carry. In many cases, I will have the bare camera and I love that I can carry great image quality in such a small package. But there are other times when I will want to elevate my images to another level, and yes I will sometimes rig it and/or accessorize it. If I had a choice, I would have the LX100 for personal & family stuff only, and the GH4 for all my professional and artistic projects. But I unfortunately don't have the budget for the GH4 right now. So the LX100 is my access to 4K and great quality 1080p, and so I will use it in many different settings and projects, both personal and professional hence why I'm looking for a cage.

    @Aria Thanks for the link! Looks like a decent price for what you get too. I was also looking at this one :

    http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1040130-REG/walimex_pro_19882_light_weight_cage_for.html

  • What kind of ND filter is needed to be able to shoot wide open with a 180º angle? Also any special SD card to be able to shoot 4K or any Class10 will do?

  • What kind of ND filter is needed to be able to shoot wide open with a 180º angle?

    Answer to your question does not exist as ND filter strength depends on actual lighting (as well as 180 degrees is different depending on fps setting).

    Also any special SD card to be able to shoot 4K or any Class10 will do?

    http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/10276/gh4-memory-cards.-what-works-and-what-doesnt#Item_28

  • True, I've had on my mind super bright daylight... but I haven't said it, I guess I'll have to buy a few different ones then. Thanks for the link! I'll see which one of those I can find around.

  • @vulgatron: Regarding "good 1080p with 50 or 60p": The LX100 is crippled to <= 28MBit/s for all video modes except 4k. So while the 4k recording (at 100 MBit/s) brings marvellous results, the 1080p modes provide mush and compression artefacts whenever there is significant movement in your scenery. Thus I would not recommend the LX100 if you mostly want to record 1080p50.

    Regarding 24p: My EU model allows to record 4k in both 25p and 23.976p or 24000/1001 fps - very near to 24p and usually a problem, but I think it should be mentioned that "24p" on the LX100 is not precisely "24p", there are other cameras that do record with precisely 24 fps.

    Regarding SD-cards: I've got only SanDisk Ultra 95MB/s 64GB cards to test with, which I used with my GH2, and they work just fine for 4k recording.

  • @karl Thanks for your notes. Not wanting to go off-topic but would you suggest other camera in the same price range that offer better 50p? I believe the GX7 has the same codec right? I really like the 4k image of the LX100 and appreciate the lens it has, but it would be my one camera and I'm afraid I might be compromising some things that I might miss later on.

  • @vulgatron: I cannot recommend another camera in the same price range that offers better 1080p50.

  • ok, thanks.

  • @vulgatron about the "cinematic" video that you posted from the GX7: part is caused by the vintage lens used, old lens are less "clinical" than the new ones, and with less contrast. But especially the colors are the result from grading (the author says in the comments that he graded the footage with Colorista).

  • The battery tests take longer than expected... which is somehow a good thing :-). I measure using 1080p50 recording with manual focus on a tripod, display on of course. The first Patona battery lasted 1h:40m with "3 bars", then 5 minutes with "2 bars", then 2 minutes with "one bar", then the indicator turned red-flashing and soon thereafter the camera stopped recording and shut itself off. Next test will be with the Panasonic original battery for comparison... will take until tomorrow :-)

  • @karl I had the same experience with "Watson" battery clones (from B&H): total battery life is ok, but after 3 bars the battery dies pretty quickly. Caught me by surprise (but no more). The OEM Panasonic battery does not do this; there is a gradual changing of the bars.

  • @MarcioK I agree, I don't mind grading to get that feel, and that's one reason I like old lenses, although the convenience of the LX100 is very appealing. I guess I'll wait until I see a video with the LX100 that has that kind of shots, as pretty much all I've seen so far is more like landscape with little to no movement. @karl I've been doing some research on bitrates after what you have said and I put my eye on the RX10, it might be worth to consider!