nofilmschool » panasonicgh2

Hacked Shootout: Panasonic GH2 vs. 5D Mark III RAW & Magic Lantern Gets Playback/Audio Working

Joe Marine — Fri, 17 May 2013 23:51:55 +0000

I don’t recall in recent memory any sort of software with this many updates in such a short period of time, but the folks over at Magic Lantern have been working around the clock, and we’re getting almost consistent updates thanks to the incredible people working on the RAW video hack. Basic capabilities from regular H.264 video are being ported over, and it looks like both playback and audio are working in at least a basic form with RAW video mode — so we should see those at some point. We’ve also got a great little comparison from Luke Neumann showing the RAW Canon 5D Mark III against the hacked Panasonic GH2. (more…)

Panasonic GH2 at Sundance and Slamdance: Carruth's 'Upstream Color' and Orbegoso's 'Musgo'

Joe Marine — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 18:24:13 +0000

The Panasonic GH2 is something of an anomaly in the camera world. Out of the box it looked good enough, but it wasn’t until the hackers got to it that things really got interesting — which was a very similar situation to the previous camera, the GH1. The Panasonic line hasn’t quite taken the industry by storm the way the Canon DSLRs have, which could come down to familiarity and/or high-profile endorsements. Either way, that hasn’t stopped a couple of festival-worthy films — Shane Carruth’s Sundance film Upstream Color (which won an award for sound design at the festival and is being self-distributed in April), and Gami Orbegoso’s Slamdance film Musgo – from shooting on the camera. Check out some footage and clips from both films below. (more…)

Want Film-Like GH2 Footage? FilmConvert Now Supports GH2, More Canon Profiles, and Final Cut Pro 7

Joe Marine — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 19:11:16 +0000

Not too long ago we told you about a color corrector plugin/standalone software solution from Rubber Monkey that not only tries to mimic the looks of many film stocks, but does it in a way that is particular to the exact camera you’re using. Until now the only cameras that were guaranteed to work properly with FilmConvert to achieve the specific look were Canon DSLRs and RED cameras, but now they are adding support for the Panasonic GH2, as well as support for more Canon picture profiles, and a brand new plugin for Final Cut Pro 7. (more…)

The Sony NEX-5 Mirrorless Has Been Hacked with Higher Bitrates, is the FS100 Next?

Joe Marine — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 14:00:43 +0000

While the hacking of a camera that can’t shoot 24p wouldn’t normally be cause for excitement, in this case it may actually mean quite a bit. Sony has traditionally kept bitrates low on their lower-end cameras, and even on some of their higher-end cameras (like the F3). We’ve all seen how much higher bitrates have helped cameras like the Panasonic GH2, and while increasing the bitrate is no magic bullet for image quality, being able to do it on a camera like the FS100 or even the NEX-5N or NEX-7 would certainly be helpful, and it might even be possible to add new features to any of those cameras. With what Magic Lantern has incorporated into their own hack, it’s pretty obvious why this might be exciting. (more…)

Which Camera Won the Zacuto Camera Shootout? The (Anonymous) Winners and Losers

Ryan Koo — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 20:21:44 +0000

A couple weeks ago Zacuto released their Revenge of The Great Camera Shootout, which pitted the Apple iPhone 4S, Panasonic GH2 (Hacked), Canon 7D, Canon C300, Sony FS100, Sony F3, Sony F65, RED Epic, and Arri Alexa against each other. This year, however, there was a twist — they didn’t tell you which was which. I ran a poll asking folks which camera they liked the most, and with over 600 responses here are the results, by camera letter: (more…)

Philip Bloom's Camera Shootout Features the Latest Large Sensor DSLRs and Camcorders

Ryan Koo — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 20:19:29 +0000

I was waiting for part two to post this, so now that it’s live, here is Philip Bloom’s latest camera shootout pitting the Canon C300, Sony NEX5N, Panasonic AF100, Panasonic GH2, Canon 5D Mark II, Canon 7D, Sony FS100, Sony F3, and Nikon D7000 against each other in a variety of real-world situations: (more…)

New Panasonic GH2 Patches and Film Modes from EOSHD

Ryan Koo — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 15:36:20 +0000

I don’t own or shoot on a Panasonic GH2, but whenever I cover its hacked firmware releases the installation instructions always sound a bit daunting. Now EOSHD has released new patches and “film modes” for the camera, which offer similar functionality to existing GH2 hacks but (possibly?) easier installation. Says EOSHD’s Andrew Reid, “I believe them to be the most optimal patches and film modes for the best image quality currently possible on the GH2.” (more…)

Hack Improves Panasonic GH2's Night Vision, Raising ISO from 3,200 to 12,800

Ryan Koo — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 01:24:16 +0000

The Panasonic GH2 keeps getting better and better thanks to hacker Vitaliy Kiselev. Recently he enabled a extremely high bitrate, and now he’s bumped the ISO during video mode from 3,200 all the way up to 12,800. While the GH2 had high ISO modes available previously, they were only possible with a Panasonic lens in Shutter Priority mode. Now anyone using hacked firmware can crank up the ISO. Here are some video tests of the GH2 at 12,800 ISO: (more…)

Panasonic GH2 Hacked Further, Now Records to Advanced 176Mbit Codec

Ryan Koo — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 17:47:42 +0000

The Panasonic GH2, arguably the most aliasing-free, highest-resolution hybrid camera out there (pictured here with the $500 ReWo GH2 cage), natively records to a 24Mbit Long GOP codec. “Long GOP” means that redundant information is retained across moving frames, which is a very efficient way of compressing video, but can also leave behind compression artifacts. In addition to the original hacked firmware by Vitaliy Kiselev, a new hacker named Driftwood has managed to drastically increase the bitrate of the GH2, in addition to switching the codec to a 176Mbit intraframe codec, which could offer even better image quality with less artifacting. (more…)

The Panasonic GH2's Firmware Has Been Hacked; New Features on the Way

Ryan Koo — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 23:00:00 +0000

Programmer Vitaliy Kiselev recently got ahold of a leaked firmware update for the Panasonic GH2 and has now hacked it successfully. This could lead to new features, as we saw last time around with the GH1 hack. While this brand new GH2 firmware hack is very much in beta, features that are at least working partially include the 30 minute clip length limit being removed (for PAL versions), a PAL / NTSC menu function, new audio bitrates, AGC selection, 720/25p, 1080/25p, and 1080/60p (the latter two currently freeze the camera). If you’re feeling adventurous or want to help with the further development of the hack, here are the installation instructions for PC users (Mac users are instructed to use this): (more…)

Shootout: Canon T3i with CineStyle Picture Profile vs Panasonic GH2

Ryan Koo — Tue, 10 May 2011 21:37:58 +0000

First of all, Technicolor has released a new version (click on the “Registered User Download” tab) of its CineStyle LUT compatible with Red Giant’s LUT Buddy and Apple Color. Given CineStyle is proving tremendously popular with Canon DSLR shooters, how do the Canon DSLRs with the Technicolor picture profile compare with the Panasonic GH2? Andrew Reid from EOSHD shot a video comparing the two: (more…)

Is the $1,000 Panasonic GH2 a Better Camera Than the $5,000 Panasonic AF100?

Ryan Koo — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 17:38:58 +0000

You’d think if one of the largest electronics companies in the world was to release two cameras at the same time — one a pro video camera with a $5k price tag, and the other a consumer still/video hybrid cam that retails for 1/5 of the price — that they’d make sure the more expensive model is better in every way. You’d think. (more…)

Choosing the Right Lenses for the Next Generation of Cameras (Panasonic GH2, AF100, Sony F3)

Ryan Koo — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 19:26:26 +0000

The DSLR Cinematography Guide has several pages addressing lens use and choice. But the new cameras hitting the market — some with relatively new sensor sizes, like the Micro 4/3 Panasonic GH2 and AF100 — bring with them a new set of considerations. On their respective sites, Philip Bloom and Matthew Duclos have addressed the lens options for these cameras. First, here’s Duclos on the high-end F3: (more…)

Canon 5D Mark II Challenged by Panasonic GH2 in Comparison Videos

Ryan Koo — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 14:19:57 +0000

A month ago I wondered if the Panasonic GH2 is the next great HDSLR (despite the fact that it’s not technically a DSLR, due to its lack of viewfinder). Now shooter Mike Kobal has posted a pair of comparison videos comparing the GH2 with the 5D Mark II. These are 720P videos and you won’t be able to discern every difference; however, the GH2 is looking pretty good… (more…)

Will the Panasonic GH2 be Better for Filmmakers Than the GH1?

Ryan Koo — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 13:42:13 +0000

If you have a Panasonic GH1 manufactured prior to July 2010, you can hack the firmware and shoot at astoundingly high bitrates. However, anyone who has a GH1 manufactured more recently is stuck with the stock firmware, as Panasonic locked it down recently — presumably so the forthcoming pro Micro 4/3-based AF100 won’t be cannibalized by a much cheaper, hacked still camera in the bitrate department. Now Panasonic has announced the sequel to the GH1, the aptly-named GH2, and the question worth asking is: will an unhacked GH2 will be better than a hacked GH1? (more…)