GH3 - the 2nd coming! How'z your EVF look?

Now that back orders are being filled I wonder if others aware of the GH3 EVF problem have had thoughts similar to mine.  What will ... MY ... GH3's EVF look like?

My first question to Adorama on Jan 23rd was did they REALLY have one?  "Just came in today." he said.  Even tho I hadn't planed buying I was suddenly griped by lust for this illusive rare gem.  So like any insane techno starved MFT addict I said,  "YEAH!  and send a spare battery and ... what the heck ... ship it overnight!"

So ... this thread is for us brand new GH3 owners to give first impressions starting with the EVF.

After diopter adjustment made on screen text sharp I see my OLED Live View Finder looks GREAT!  Sharp, crisp and clear, edge to edge with no sign of double image or smear.  Even for an old fart with awful eyes "corrected" with contact lenses.  My right, focusing eye, has a hard contact giving me clear distance and my left has a lens that allowing me read most stuff without reading glasses.  The new contacts came after cataract surgery de-clouded my vision a couple years ago.  Having clear sight return was a miracle I appreciate with every blink.

Oh, the camera .. yeah it's bigger than my GH2 ... but it's rear OLED is noticeably larger too!  The  bigger grip is also good giving me something firm to wrap my fist around ... SIZE does matter!

Next ... What the heck are those weird lines see-sawing back and forth when I move the camera?  Ah HA! I check the manual and find it's the tilt sensor display ... COOL ... but now how do I turn it off?  Back to the manual and then I dive into more confusion in the many settings menus.

I see a lot of options I remember from setting up my GH2, but it's been so long since I messed with them I've forgotten what many do and where they can be located in the screens of menus.  Yesterday was spent learning how to do a focus lock and quick review of shots taken and figuring out how to get settings to my liking.  For a old fuddy duddy like me it's gonna take awhile ... but HEY I'm retired and lovin it so far.

OIS and a lot of luck helped with this.  GH3 handheld at 300mm 1/30th @ f5.6 ISO 640 enhanced with CS6

This is #159 of the 200 I've shot so far.  Fog and heavy overcast made for lousy light.  Vast majority of the 200 went for testing and trying stuff out getting used to camera controls.

A bunch were done playing with the WiFi remote control using Lumix Link App and my Android tablet.  VERY COOL, but I've got a whole lot more to learn about that feature.

I'm also experimenting with custom JPG settings.  I shoot JPG most of the time.  Like for the GH2 I've started to modified the "Vivid" output by lowering noise reduction and sharpness and boosting a bit contrast and saturation.  I'll do trial and error with these until I get what I like to work with Photoshop.  I post process ALL my output that gets printed or goes public.

It wasn't until after placing my order that I began to worry I might get a returned and repackaged GH3 with the supposed EVF problem.  When it arrived I un-boxed it very carefully inspecting EVERYTHING.  The small lock flap of the box didn't look a bit worn but since it did not have any sign tape applied at the factory to seal it my investigation continued.  The software discs and instruction manual were first to appear under the top flap and they seemed properly wrapped except the bag with the manual was folded closed very frumpy.  Then as I slowly removed the body from it's clean white fabric like protective sack I looked for any sign of fingerprints or any other evidence that might show it was not a brand new body.  I found nothing out of order.  Without a doubt I have one fresh from the factory.

And with the help of Steve Chill (ext 2246) the salesman at New York city's Adorama I had the GH3 in my hands in rural California less than 24 hours from my phone and online order placement.  Steve was nice to walk me thru the online order as I'm too paranoid to give out credit card numbers over a cell phone.  Also since it was 5pm, near quitting time in New York, he also made sure it was sent out very quickly before he went home.  THANKS Steve!

So folks ... What's your new GH3 experience?

Mark

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http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/9558/yakonamawfishv39nd.gif

Of course it does.. the smaller the better

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Inkheart

I just got the GH3 yesterday, also from Adorama. I have an OM-D, so I've been comparing the two. The EVF on the OM-D seems brighter and crisper to me, and I'm able to see it all without moving my eye. The GH3 image is a bit larger, but I can't see corner to corner while shooting movies, even with my glasses pressed against the eye piece. I think, at times, that's causing me to move my eye off center, which leads to some distorting. (But none of this is a deal breaker for me. Just what I notice when comparing side by side).

The still image quality seems very similar. OM jpegs a bit punchier, but I just starting to check out the GH3 photo styles. I've read some people recommend the "Scenery" over "Standard", but it's been too overcast and snowy around here to really test.

As far as video, been playing with the different format choices, but not seeing big differences so far between mov and MP4. I am having some difficulty with the relocation of the video button to the back of the body. I'm finding it hard to press. Have to look into assigning another button.

So, that's the short of my impressions. Wish the weather was more conducive to outdoor photography. Maybe next week.

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www.ronhartman.net

Not for me. The GH3 grip is better with my hands then the OM-D, (even with an accessory grip on it), especially with larger lenses like the 100-300.

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www.ronhartman.net

I know, I'm just kidding ;). It just seemed funny to me when I read this line "SIZE does matter", as if it anyone was claiming that it doesn't. In fact this is one of the main reasons for people to switch from DSLRs to MFT - size (and weight). And MFT cameras are usually small. But now that Panasonic made a "big camera", people are redescovering that size matters. I guess, my point is, that no one said it doesn't.

Regards,

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Inkheart

I have one of the first GH3's delivered to the UK and although the EVF on mine is crisp and clear if I keep my eye close and centered.

But  it can not reproduce the colour purple, the rear display is fine and the files are good just the EVF colour is wrong even after using the adjustments provided in the setup menu.

Could you check by looking at something violet /purple and let me know if your EVF's are better, mine displays purple as a pale blue.

Thanks.

Brian.

I have to say the GH3 is just about at my size limit for m4/3. Any bigger and you are in dSLR territory. (Already there compared to some).

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www.ronhartman.net

If you switch to manual movie mode.  It is on the main dial with the movie camera icon.  You can now use the shutter release button to start & stop taking video.  You do not have to use the rear button.  Be sure to watch your shutter speed in movie mode.

understand the 180 degree shutter rule for movies, you will need it to work with the GH-3

24 and 30 fps are normal speed

I don't have the best eyesight, but purple seems to be accurately displayed on mine, EVF and rear display. Maybe you can check another one out at a local store.

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www.ronhartman.net

Hi Ron,

Thanks for replying, I have checked in the store but they are from the same batch as mine and also can not display the colour purple on the evf, that is why I wanted your opinion as you have a newer one posibly from a different production period.

Is  your body firmware Ver1.0 ?

Thanks for your time.

Brian.

I got my GH3 from this batch also, this week, and my experience completely parallels yours. The first GH3 I tried had a bit of smearing on the EVF, but it was minimal, and this one seems to have virtually none unless you REALLY move your eye way off to the side. I don't know if Panasonic has changed their manufacturing process, but I think if the cameras that came out in the first batch were as good as this one, there would have been only a rare complaint in the first place.

I am quite happy with the one I have...in terms of IQ, it improved all of the things that I found to be needing improvement on the GH2.  Primarily DR and color rendition have been significantly improved, plus its higher ISO color retention is greatly improved. In addition, the sensor noise pattern, in both chroma and luminance, is a small, fine, and well distributed grain pattern, so when you do have noise, it is easier to remove and inoffensive when you leave it.

Panasonic also has continued to improve what I thought was one of the GH2's strong points, and that is to capture and render fine tonal gradations accurately. The better a camera does this, the more dimensional the elements of an image appear on screen and in print, and while the GH2 was very good, the GH3 is truly excellent in this respect. Images have a dimensionality that just pops in a way that no other M43 camera that I have used has had. For me, this was the single most important reason to upgrade, and so far I have been quite impressed with what the GH3 does in this area.

I do think Panasonic went overboard a bit in its native JPG NR. I had to turn the NR down to its lowest level (-5) to eliminate some JPG smearing in higher ISO/low light shots. It's fine once you do that, though, but for those using JPGs, you might want to experiment a bit and find the NR level that works best for your uses....

One other thing, also...I find the RAWs on the GH3 seem to adjust up much more easily than the GH2. They almost make a total RAW workflow (I usually use both RAW + JPG) seem as easy as a JPG one. I think the better native color balance of the GH3 really makes a difference for ease of PP here...

Oh, and the battery life is excellent. I don't have a second battery yet, but have been snapping away at various things around the house for three days (around 400 shots so far includeing a number with flash, and lots of chimping, plus spending about a half hour with the wifi on trying to figure out how to get my router to see the camera) and I still have charge left in the battery. That is quite an improvement over all of the M43s I have used before.)

The rear screen also, as the OP mentioned, is absolutely terrific. I never used the one on the GH2 since it was so hard to see outside, but this one is bright, clear, and the touch implementation on it is truly excellent (and I am not normally a fan of touch screens on cameras). It appears to be also visible outside in daylight (have not tried it in bright sunlight as there has not been any here in the past few days ), but with bright snow on the ground and filtered light it was quite clear.

Anyway, I am really pleased with this camera so far. I think Panasonic really paid attention to what their consumers were looking for in terms of performance, did a great job with this camera as a result. It's really an excellent product for the flagship item for their line, and it really feels like a quality product in use.

I wish I had a couple of inspirational shots to post here, but I only have high ISO cat photos (and lots of stills of household items) to show since it has been REALLY COLD out here for the past week (daytime highs about 12, nights -4ish....and that is F not C ). This week it is supposed to get up above freezing, so I will go out then and give it more of a workout.

So, here are the obligatory new camera cat shots, in case you just had to see them .

(Top two taken at ISO 800, bottom at ISO 3200)

-J







The EVF on mine displays some purples, but a medium true purple object displays as a somewhat brighter purplish blue.  Dark purple and a lighter purple are accurately rendered, but not the medium one on mine.

The rear display, however, is VERY good in terms of color rendition accuracy; it renders all the purples as they actually are.

I don't know if this is any better than the one you have, but it only seems to have a color skew in that one medium hue range of purple on mine.  I do think the color rendition in the EVF of the GH2 was more accurate overall than that on the GH3, but the sharpness and brightness of the GH3 EVF is better...so I'd call it six of one, half dozen of another there....and the rear display is just world's better on the GH3.

-J

Coming from a Canon 20D the GH2 felt cramped and plasticy (plasticky?). The GH3 is the Goldilocks "just right" size for me. Big enough to provide tons of external controls and a beefy grip, but not so big that it feels like I'm holding a brick.  It just feels like a serious camera.

I find the rear display color to be very good.  The EVF color is just okay.  It does have a problem rendering true red (turns orang) and shades of red.  Doesn't bother me, really.  I'm not trying to do color grading in the EVF.

Thanks J and Amtberg for your replies, it sounds like mine is probably normal and it is a colour characteristic of the EVF.

My rear screen is very good but I was a bit disappointed to find the colour of my EVF not to be as good as that on my GH2 particularly at the price the GH3 is but it is the only minor nit pick I have with my GH3.

Thanks again for the feedback.

Brian.

Can I just chip in here, I use a 4 second delay on my GH3 on the EVF to check the image and so far about a month I have found the colours good. I must add that I come from a GH2 which I still have.

Nice to see a positive thread on the site.

Best Regards Mike.
http://michaelgoodes.blogspot.com/
http://ekim.zenfolio.com
'Live every day as if it was your last, one day it will be'.

Add me to the list of those who received a GH3 from Adorama's recent shipment. I saw that Adorama had inventory Thursday morning on the Micro 4/3 Rumors site and ordered one on-line. I received the camera yesterday and spent most of the morning today working through the menu system, which is similar to the one on the GH2. There are a few new twists, but the new PDF manual that comes with the camera and provides much more information than the printed manual, is way better than the manual that came with the GH2.

I've got to say I really like the way the increased size fits in my hand. I was frequently accidentally hitting the wrong buttons on the GH2, and I hated the single control dial. The increased size, button layout, and two dial system is going to make this camera much easier to control for me. The biggest part of my learning curve is just going to be retraining my hand where to go with the new configuration.

While the GH3 is larger and heavier than the GH2, it's nothing like the size and weight of my D700 with good glass on it. I switched to the GH2 when traveling because like a lot of us, I was tired of toting all the bulk and weight of DSLRs. The GH3 is not going to change that equation. It's still significantly smaller and lighter than my DSLR.

My EVF seems to be fine. No smearing or distortion (I was worried about this since I wear glasses) and colors seem to be accurate. Love the new OLED.

I connected my iPhone and iPad to the GH3 with no problem. I shoot RAW most of the time, but if I shoot RAW + JPEG I'm able to review the shot over WiFi on either device (You can't review RAW files using the Lumix Link app).

Lots of things to try yet. I started shooting video with the GH2 and I'm anxious to try some of the new video features on the GH3.

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Mike

These are the sorts of GH3 threads that has me enticed. Especially from a bird shooter. So with each one of these threads I start to feel a little more comfortable about adding a GH3 to the kit. I tend to ignore most of the negative threads, but do read them. I've been on DPR long enough to know how it works. This sort of thread not only tells me that what I want is there, but also the shot shows me what to expect.

Superb shot BTW and of course a little envy here with no hummers   in a nice way of course, showing good feathering details and love the colours, good eye contact and pose.

All the best and IMO, a great read and thread. Thanks for the time.

Danny.

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Birds and macro. NEX and m4/3
http://www.birdsinaction.com
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Thanks Mike,

I am not going to get too hung up about my Evf colour reproduction as the Evf is good enough fo me to manual focus my OM lenses with and I can use the rear screen to do a quick check that the colour is ok.

Because I need reading glasses I use ths Evf most oc the time.

Cheers.

Brian.

Photo styles are a good start, try also to manual fine tune the AWB, I use to do that on my Panasonics, tuning for each situation.

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God always take the simplest way.
Imagination is more important than knowledge.
God is the tangential point between zero and infinity.
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