Lumix GH4 Review

The big news from Panasonic this year is the Lumix GH4. There is a tradition that the version number four is dropped when incrementing a camera model name. For example, there was never a Lumix G4 or GF4. The reason for this is that the word for "four" rhymes with the word for "death" or "disease" in some Asian languages.

However, there are two reasons why Panasonic still used the model name "GH4": One is that professional cameras often still carry the number four. We have the professional Nikon D4, for example. The manufacturer probably reasons that the users of a professional camera is less likely to be superstitious.

The other reason is that the main new feature of the GH4 is 4K video. So it makes good sense to use the model name GH4.

From the outside, the GH4 looks very much like the predecessor GH3:

The body is molded slightly differently over the flash, but other than that, the shape of the camera bodies is pretty much identical. The button layout is also the same. However, there are some small, but important differences.

Olympus 9mm f/8 fisheye review

The Olympus 9mm f/8 fisheye is the second in the series of non-Zuiko branded "toy" body lens cap lenses. The first was the Olympus 15mm f/8. Both are very compact lenses, with a fixed f/8 aperture, and a small lever which operates a lens cap, and the focus.

Here is the 9mm fisheye lens, with the supplied rear lens cap. The lens comes in a simple cardboard box, padded with a bubble wrap bag:

GH4 shutters

Recently, an interesting Panasonic sensor data sheet popped up. It is believed to describe the sensor sitting in, e.g., the Lumix GX7 and GM1.

The data sheet says that there are two options for electronic shutter readout: 12 bits in 1/15s and 10 bits in 1/22.5s. It has been demonstrated that the Lumix GX7 has a readout speed of 1/15s, and I have measured the speed of the electronic shutter in the GM1 to around 1/25s.

I also saw that the GM1 had slightly less details in the shadows at ISO 200 when using the electronic shutter. This is because it only uses a 10 bit readout with the electronic shutter.

Worse image quality with the E-shutter?

So, does the same apply to the Lumix GH4?