GH2 $175 worth getting?

M_digicapt wrote:

I was offered a GH2 with 38** shutter actuations, but heavily used for video.

I have an E-PM2 which for the most part I'm really happy with. But I started using several heavy manual lenses and a good grip is a necessity...

Originally, I was thinking of getting a G2 or something cheaper, because I don't want to spend a lot of money now, plan to get a better body in a not to distant future, and it would not be my main body and I'm OK with 12mp...

I don't shoot video or use/need a lot of dials. Plus no Ibis... Is the GH2 worth getting?

Thanks

It's a great camera (I still have one, converted to infrared).

However ...

A lot depends on what "heavily used" really means.  If the LCD is scratched and grip's worn out, for example, 175 seems steep.

If those heavier lenses you're using are teles, I'd look for something with EFCS or e-shutter.

There appears to be an arbitrage opportunity on ebay right now, because used GH2s with the 14-140 Mk1 (5.8) are occasionally selling for $250, and the lens alone is nearly worth that. So, with a bit of luck and horse trading, you might be able to get the body for very little (net).

M_digicapt wrote:

I was offered a GH2 with 38** shutter actuations, but heavily used for video.

I have an E-PM2 which for the most part I'm really happy with. But I started using several heavy manual lenses and a good grip is a necessity...

Originally, I was thinking of getting a G2 or something cheaper, because I don't want to spend a lot of money now, plan to get a better body in a not to distant future, and it would not be my main body and I'm OK with 12mp...

I don't shoot video or use/need a lot of dials. Plus no Ibis... Is the GH2 worth getting?

Having owned both the GH2 (which was one of my all-time favorite M43 cameras), and subsequently the EPM2 (which was my favorite Oly camera of all the ones I have used), I have to say that, while the GH2 was great for its time, you would be far better served by getting a later model;  even the G5, which should be about the same price, for a few reasons:

First, the one major problem the GH2 has was just awful color rendition.  I was able to compensate for some of it in PP, but it was a beast to deal with some of the time, even in RAW.  If you are coming from the EPM2, which has spectacularly good color rendition, you will hate the output of the GH2.

Second, the low light performance of the GH2 is terrible.  The sensor in the EPM2 was a big advance over the high ISO output of the GH2.

For these two reasons, I would not get it, and this is from someone who dearly loved the GH2 and used it as my primary M43 for almost 2 years.

Any of the Panasonic bodies from the G5 and up would be the way to go. (The G5 uses the same sensor as the GH2, but they fixed the color rendition problems and they significantly improved its higher ISO performance).  If you can find a GX7 or a G7,  in your price range, you would be even better served, but those are going to be most likely more pricey.

-J

Chris R-UK wrote:

I shot with a GH2 for about 4-5 years and generally it is a pretty good camera. I have just passed it on to relation. Here are my comments on the camera, many of which probably don't apply to you.

The sensor is quite old and modern sensors are probably around 1 stop better for high ISO noise. The GH2 also has worse dynamic range than a more modern camera and I normally shot at -2/3EV to minimise blown highlights.

I wear glasses and I found the EVF to be problematical with the sun in certain positions, especially from the side. I have no such problem with my current Olympus EVFs.

The GH2 actually has 16MP, not 12. I liked the multi aspect sensor and often used it with different aspect ratios, especially 3x2, because there was relatively little loss of resolution.

The GH2 has lots of buttons and dials but only one control wheel. I really disliked that because I always had to check in the EVF before changing a setting in case I was on the wrong setting.

The GH2 (and other Panasonic cameras) have lots of control dials on the top for AF and shooting mode settings which has several problems. Some of these dials can be moved by taking the camera out of a camera bag so I had to check the settings before starting shooting. It also meant that I didn't often give the camera to my wife to use because she could move dials accidentally. Finally these dials mean that you can't include their settings in custom modes.

I shot mostly with Panasonic lenses with ILIS so the lack of IBIS wasn't really a problem. I did have two non-ILIS lenses and just kept an eye on the shutter speed up when using them.

The camera is pre-DfD so AF-C is quite poor for bursts when shooting moving targets.

However, for everything but wildlife I preferred the GH2 to my Canon 7D DSLR that I also had at the time and I got a lot of very good images from it

Thanks Chris, which M43 camera you find has good enough autofocus to be an alternative to the Canon 7D?

Half of what I shoot is wildlife...

I'm going to pass on the GH2. After reading all you comments, realized im better off sticking to my original plan and save for a better model.

Thanks to all!

Chris R-UK wrote:

M_digicapt wrote:

Thanks Chris, which M43 camera you find has good enough autofocus to be an alternative to the Canon 7D?

Half of what I shoot is wildlife...

I got rid of the 7D for the Olympus E-M1 MkI. I like shooting birds in flight and the E-M1, after a firmware update and in one mode only, was the first M4/3 body to have adequate continuous focus for BIF.

I now shoot with the E-M1 MkII which is much better and probably as good for BIF as my 7D. However, it is best with fast focusing lenses and at the moment these are all expensive and heavy - Olympus 40-150mm f/2.8 Pro, the Olympus 300mm f/4 Pro and the Panasonic 100-400mm. The new Panasonic 200mm f/2.8 is also likely to be very fast focusing.

Panasonic has the new G9 which in principle should also be very good for BIF but I would advise waiting a few months until G9 owners on this forum have a chance to test out the camera.

There are several photographers on this forum shooting BIF with Panasonic bodies and lenses that support Panasonic's DfD focusing. That means most current Panasonic bodies and most Panasonic lenses but not Olympus lenses. Check out, say, the G85.

If you don't shoot birds in flight and don't require really good C-AF, then almost any current body (including the E-M1 MkI) is fine for wildlife and the cheaper lenses like the Olympus 75-300mm and Panasonic 100-300mm are pretty good as well.

I shot a lot of slower moving wildlife with my GH2 and 100-300mm lens simply because it was so much smaller and lighter than my Canon 7D and Canon 100-400mm lens.

Grey whale, Baja California, Mexico

Meerkats, Little Karoo, South Africa

European badger, my garden

The second shot is awesome!

Thanks. I'll stick to manual focusing bif for the time being... After reading your post a FZ1000 looks like a nice option.