Just bought a G85 a few months ago, and couldn't be happier!!

Jozef M wrote:

That G85 has a pretty lousy useless auto-iso, I think the G90 does this much better, like my G9, I think.

If you have a good auto-iso, that makes photography so much easier ...

For the rest, that G85 is good.

Jozef.

That's very interesting to know, thanks for sharing the information about auto-ISO. I never had problem with auto-ISO before, maybe I haven't really encountered a scene that makes me think of that, but maybe I'll keep an eye about the G85 auto ISO for future shots. Thanks!

millmeister wrote:

Agreed. Not being able to set a minimum shutter speed in auto ISO on the G85 can be a pain. I believe the G95 has this feature.

I've enjoyed using it as a second camera to my Nikon D7200 though (purely for stills).

Yes, I complained about the lack of minimum shutter speed in auto ISO years ago, but it seemed that either I forgot about it, or I finally learned to ignore its absence completely. It's good to hear that the new G95 addressed this issue. Thanks

eawortman wrote:

I’ve had one for a few years now and still love it. The G85 was my first MFT coming from Sony/Canon and have had no desire to switch back. I’ve used it for just about everything from video to sports to family to portraits. Over 60,000 photos and still going strong. Have used it in the rain, snow, at the beach, and just about everywhere else. Never a hiccup or any overheating (even after 1.5 hours straight at 4K).

60,000 shots OMG! Seemed like you enjoy using the 25 1.7 too! Good to know that the G85 can take a lot of beating! Thanks for sharing this

wiryawan wrote:

Jozef M wrote:

That G85 has a pretty lousy useless auto-iso, I think the G90 does this much better, like my G9, I think.

If you have a good auto-iso, that makes photography so much easier ...

For the rest, that G85 is good.

Jozef.

That's very interesting to know, thanks for sharing the information about auto-ISO. I never had problem with auto-ISO before, maybe I haven't really encountered a scene that makes me think of that, but maybe I'll keep an eye about the G85 auto ISO for future shots. Thanks!

I suppose Josef was talking about the implementation of Auto ISO under M mode. Most older generations of cameras of Panasonic adopted an interesting methodlogy, manual is manual. Therefore in older models M used Manual ISO only.

Later on, under demands from users, Auto ISO was supported in M mode. Sadly no Exposure Compensation be allowed, hence making the M + Auto ISO becomes another full automatic shooting mode similar to P, and shooter cannot override the exposure as set by the camera. M of GX85 allows auto ISO but I never use it because no EC support. EC is only added for latest models (GX9, G95, G9 etc?).

I used to the conventional operation of Panasonic, hence auto ISO in M or not means nothing to me.

alcelc wrote:

wiryawan wrote:

Jozef M wrote:

That G85 has a pretty lousy useless auto-iso, I think the G90 does this much better, like my G9, I think.

If you have a good auto-iso, that makes photography so much easier ...

For the rest, that G85 is good.

Jozef.

That's very interesting to know, thanks for sharing the information about auto-ISO. I never had problem with auto-ISO before, maybe I haven't really encountered a scene that makes me think of that, but maybe I'll keep an eye about the G85 auto ISO for future shots. Thanks!

I suppose Josef was talking about the implementation of Auto ISO under M mode. Most older generations of cameras of Panasonic adopted an interesting methodlogy, manual is manual. Therefore in older models M used Manual ISO only.

Later on, under demands from users, Auto ISO was supported in M mode. Sadly no Exposure Compensation be allowed, hence making the M + Auto ISO becomes another full automatic shooting mode similar to P, and shooter cannot override the exposure as set by the camera. M of GX85 allows auto ISO but I never use it because no EC support. EC is only added for latest models (GX9, G95, G9 etc?).

I used to the conventional operation of Panasonic, hence auto ISO in M or not means nothing to me.

Yes, correct.

I use auto-iso in A mode + I set the min iso on iso 100, max iso on iso 6400, and set f at f1.8, the shutter speed at 1/100 sec. All these settings I do just once and save it all under C1 mode. You need of course a fast prime lens to do so.
So, when I enter a museum, or café or restaurant, or a gig, I set my camera on C1 and snap away, no more thinking of camera settings, the camera works for you ...

This doesn't work in the G85, and that is a shame ...

Jozef

I had a GX85 but the screen cracked and it was expensive to replace, so I bought a G85 and I'm very happy with it, especially with the Panasonic 14-140 mk.2 lens.

However, a lot of my photography is birds, including BIF, and for that I have a Nikon D500 with a 300 f4-pf-vr and various teleconverters. That knocks the socks off the G85 with a Panasonic 100-300 mk.2 lens, unless the bird is very close, no crop needed, and is not moving very fast.

richard stern wrote:

I had a GX85 but the screen cracked and it was expensive to replace, so I bought a G85 and I'm very happy with it, especially with the Panasonic 14-140 mk.2 lens.

However, a lot of my photography is birds, including BIF, and for that I have a Nikon D500 with a 300 f4-pf-vr and various teleconverters. That knocks the socks off the G85 with a Panasonic 100-300 mk.2 lens, unless the bird is very close, no crop needed, and is not moving very fast.

Dear I suppose you know 100~300 or 75~300 from Panny or Oly are consumer class lenses. For serious BIF the 300 f/4 or 100~400 might be the better tool for the job. If you need an eq of 300 AoV of FF, might the 45~150 f/2.8 also work.

How much you paid for the Nikkor 300 f/4 vs the 100~300 or 75~300? If these 2 cheaply lens can match with the Nikkor (never own it, but on the price and spec I suppose it is a premium class lens of Nikon), Nikon will die for long...

Finally, the DFD on CDAF until G85 generation does not do wow yet on AF tracking. Although some experts like Trevor demonstrated G85 can produce great result, he suggested G9 could do a better job. As per the general opinion from users of multiple system (dslr and M43), it seems that PDAF of dslrs could deliver better performance (more reliable and easier) for BIF. So are the OSPDAF of EM1-II or EM1X, similar AFs used by Sony and Fuji, DPAF of latest Canon are in a better position on this department than Pannys. Wish soon, like IBIS, that Panny might add to its later models to boost the AF tracking of non flagship models.

My story:

Self taught photographer of 6 years. Was super amateurish until about 2017. Then my friends told me I should take photography more seriously. I did and followed my passion of doing concert photography. Ended up getting way better as a photographer in both technical skill and technique during 2018. The erratic, low light situations really boosted my timing and technical knowledge. By the end of 2018, I realized I was pretty skilled. I was comparing my work to my peers work in the concert field. They all used giant, Full frame DSLRS; the classic setups. During this time I was using two APS-C sensor cameras; one DSLR and one mirrorless. I NEVER felt like I needed a full frame. I felt like I outperformed a lot of my peers despite their larger sensors and more expensive optics.

This year, I started thinking about how I wanted more features in a smaller body. Sold my Canon M100 and its lens and got the Panasonic GX85. Fell in love with it. After a lot of thinking and soul searching, I realized that I could do what I did before with a Micro Four Thirds camera as long as it had a full feature set. Sold off my Pentax gear and got a G85 along with some carefully selected lenses and a Panasonic battery grip. I was super nervous at first because I work for a pretty prominent music venue in Metro Detroit and I want my work to be the best it can be. I shot my first big show with the G85 and GX85 and it was awesome. And that was my first time using the G85 in a serious setting. Once I really get familiar with it, I will be crushing it. My client loved my work that night too.

Zero regrets so far. I would not have minded the G9 but the G85 was a way better deal with the 12-60 and the 45-200 for free. And either way, I wanted to expand my skills in cinematography, so the G85 was a great deal all in all. I would love to see a 24 MP Micro Four Thirds body one day. But I know that megapixels alone is just a piece of the puzzle.

Long story short; I love Micro Four Thirds and I am especially a fan of Panasonic gear (but I'd buy an Olympus if it fit my needs more).

alcelc wrote:

I suppose Josef was talking about the implementation of Auto ISO under M mode. Most older generations of cameras of Panasonic adopted an interesting methodlogy, manual is manual. Therefore in older models M used Manual ISO only.

Later on, under demands from users, Auto ISO was supported in M mode. Sadly no Exposure Compensation be allowed, hence making the M + Auto ISO becomes another full automatic shooting mode similar to P, and shooter cannot override the exposure as set by the camera. M of GX85 allows auto ISO but I never use it because no EC support. EC is only added for latest models (GX9, G95, G9 etc?).

I used to the conventional operation of Panasonic, hence auto ISO in M or not means nothing to me.

For a while I also got around using auto ISO in M mode by switching completely to Shutter Priority mode instead. I usually set mine to about 1/1000s in outdoor daylight, and about 1/200 for capturing fast indoor action, and just about 1/100 for general indoor/dimly lit room.

Haven't tried the GX9, G95 or G9 yet, but I'm curious to see if Panasonic really solved the auto ISO with exposure compensation and minimum shutter speed in the newer bodies. Thank you

Jozef M wrote:

Yes, correct.

I use auto-iso in A mode + I set the min iso on iso 100, max iso on iso 6400, and set f at f1.8, the shutter speed at 1/100 sec. All these settings I do just once and save it all under C1 mode. You need of course a fast prime lens to do so.
So, when I enter a museum, or café or restaurant, or a gig, I set my camera on C1 and snap away, no more thinking of camera settings, the camera works for you ...

This doesn't work in the G85, and that is a shame ...

Jozef

Thanks for the reply, then it is confirmed that future bodies will probably employ the new auto ISO capabilities with minimum shutter speed. I got around using auto ISO by switching to shutter priority and set my shutter speed accordingly. Thank you

richard stern wrote:

I had a GX85 but the screen cracked and it was expensive to replace, so I bought a G85 and I'm very happy with it, especially with the Panasonic 14-140 mk.2 lens.

However, a lot of my photography is birds, including BIF, and for that I have a Nikon D500 with a 300 f4-pf-vr and various teleconverters. That knocks the socks off the G85 with a Panasonic 100-300 mk.2 lens, unless the bird is very close, no crop needed, and is not moving very fast.

Thanks for the reply. How exactly does the Nikon perform better when compared to the G85? Is it the autofocus? Or is it just overall IQ? I'm open minded and curious to know and learn, because in my experience Panasonic has faster single point AF in still when compared to other cameras, which I then personally tested against my Canon DSLRs.

Thanks

alcelc wrote:

Dear I suppose you know 100~300 or 75~300 from Panny or Oly are consumer class lenses. For serious BIF the 300 f/4 or 100~400 might be the better tool for the job. If you need an eq of 300 AoV of FF, might the 45~150 f/2.8 also work.

How much you paid for the Nikkor 300 f/4 vs the 100~300 or 75~300? If these 2 cheaply lens can match with the Nikkor (never own it, but on the price and spec I suppose it is a premium class lens of Nikon), Nikon will die for long...

Finally, the DFD on CDAF until G85 generation does not do wow yet on AF tracking. Although some experts like Trevor demonstrated G85 can produce great result, he suggested G9 could do a better job. As per the general opinion from users of multiple system (dslr and M43), it seems that PDAF of dslrs could deliver better performance (more reliable and easier) for BIF. So are the OSPDAF of EM1-II or EM1X, similar AFs used by Sony and Fuji, DPAF of latest Canon are in a better position on this department than Pannys. Wish soon, like IBIS, that Panny might add to its later models to boost the AF tracking of non flagship models.

Yes I also think that DFD on CDAF doesn't really do well in continuous autofocus. It is however extremely fast for single point autofocus, which I use most of the time. I really do hope Panasonic will improve this though, because I now start to use continuous AF more often, especially in video.

Thanks for the reply

24thWanderer wrote:

My story:

Self taught photographer of 6 years. Was super amateurish until about 2017. Then my friends told me I should take photography more seriously. I did and followed my passion of doing concert photography. Ended up getting way better as a photographer in both technical skill and technique during 2018. The erratic, low light situations really boosted my timing and technical knowledge. By the end of 2018, I realized I was pretty skilled. I was comparing my work to my peers work in the concert field. They all used giant, Full frame DSLRS; the classic setups. During this time I was using two APS-C sensor cameras; one DSLR and one mirrorless. I NEVER felt like I needed a full frame. I felt like I outperformed a lot of my peers despite their larger sensors and more expensive optics.

This year, I started thinking about how I wanted more features in a smaller body. Sold my Canon M100 and its lens and got the Panasonic GX85. Fell in love with it. After a lot of thinking and soul searching, I realized that I could do what I did before with a Micro Four Thirds camera as long as it had a full feature set. Sold off my Pentax gear and got a G85 along with some carefully selected lenses and a Panasonic battery grip. I was super nervous at first because I work for a pretty prominent music venue in Metro Detroit and I want my work to be the best it can be. I shot my first big show with the G85 and GX85 and it was awesome. And that was my first time using the G85 in a serious setting. Once I really get familiar with it, I will be crushing it. My client loved my work that night too.

Zero regrets so far. I would not have minded the G9 but the G85 was a way better deal with the 12-60 and the 45-200 for free. And either way, I wanted to expand my skills in cinematography, so the G85 was a great deal all in all. I would love to see a 24 MP Micro Four Thirds body one day. But I know that megapixels alone is just a piece of the puzzle.

Long story short; I love Micro Four Thirds and I am especially a fan of Panasonic gear (but I'd buy an Olympus if it fit my needs more).

Woww this is really cool! I used my old GX7 for concert photography once too, and I really think it did really well. I am glad to hear that you are able to use MFT for serious concert photography, that is really a great testament that MFT can do just as well as the other systems in professional environment(if not better).

Regarding video capabilities for cinematography, you won't be disappointed for sure! My G85 is currently my main Youtube camera now, I shot so many videos these last few months with it and I really enjoy using it!

Thanks for sharing your story

wiryawan wrote:

alcelc wrote:

I suppose Josef was talking about the implementation of Auto ISO under M mode. Most older generations of cameras of Panasonic adopted an interesting methodlogy, manual is manual. Therefore in older models M used Manual ISO only.

Later on, under demands from users, Auto ISO was supported in M mode. Sadly no Exposure Compensation be allowed, hence making the M + Auto ISO becomes another full automatic shooting mode similar to P, and shooter cannot override the exposure as set by the camera. M of GX85 allows auto ISO but I never use it because no EC support. EC is only added for latest models (GX9, G95, G9 etc?).

I used to the conventional operation of Panasonic, hence auto ISO in M or not means nothing to me.

For a while I also got around using auto ISO in M mode by switching completely to Shutter Priority mode instead. I usually set mine to about 1/1000s in outdoor daylight, and about 1/200 for capturing fast indoor action, and just about 1/100 for general indoor/dimly lit room.

Haven't tried the GX9, G95 or G9 yet, but I'm curious to see if Panasonic really solved the auto ISO with exposure compensation and minimum shutter speed in the newer bodies. Thank you

On the G80/G85 you can bracket ISO in manual mode to get a selection of images with different levels of brightness whilst maintaining your aperture and shutter speed settings. Auto ISO and exposure bracketing must be enabled. It's a decent work around, Panasonic just forgot to tell us about it!

Cafe Racer.

alcelc wrote:

richard stern wrote:

I had a GX85 but the screen cracked and it was expensive to replace, so I bought a G85 and I'm very happy with it, especially with the Panasonic 14-140 mk.2 lens.

However, a lot of my photography is birds, including BIF, and for that I have a Nikon D500 with a 300 f4-pf-vr and various teleconverters. That knocks the socks off the G85 with a Panasonic 100-300 mk.2 lens, unless the bird is very close, no crop needed, and is not moving very fast.

Dear I suppose you know 100~300 or 75~300 from Panny or Oly are consumer class lenses. For serious BIF the 300 f/4 or 100~400 might be the better tool for the job. If you need an eq of 300 AoV of FF, might the 45~150 f/2.8 also work.

How much you paid for the Nikkor 300 f/4 vs the 100~300 or 75~300? If these 2 cheaply lens can match with the Nikkor (never own it, but on the price and spec I suppose it is a premium class lens of Nikon), Nikon will die for long...

Finally, the DFD on CDAF until G85 generation does not do wow yet on AF tracking. Although some experts like Trevor demonstrated G85 can produce great result, he suggested G9 could do a better job. As per the general opinion from users of multiple system (dslr and M43), it seems that PDAF of dslrs could deliver better performance (more reliable and easier) for BIF. So are the OSPDAF of EM1-II or EM1X, similar AFs used by Sony and Fuji, DPAF of latest Canon are in a better position on this department than Pannys. Wish soon, like IBIS, that Panny might add to its later models to boost the AF tracking of non flagship models.

The G85 with a Panny 100-400 or Oly 300 are roughly the same weight, and only a bit smaller, than the D500 and 300 pf-vr,  and with the Oly, roughly the same price. I believe that m4/3 is the way of the future, and has many advantages over dSLR, but as yet capturing BIF is not one of them (except for the new Sonys). In the future I might consider selling all my Nikon stuff and going m4/3, but as yet I see no reason to, and anyway I can't afford to. As I have said, for still or relatively slow moving subjects that don't need big crops, or for the little video that I do, I am very happy with my G85.

Cafe Racer wrote:

On the G80/G85 you can bracket ISO in manual mode to get a selection of images with different levels of brightness whilst maintaining your aperture and shutter speed settings. Auto ISO and exposure bracketing must be enabled. It's a decent work around, Panasonic just forgot to tell us about it!

Cafe Racer.

Thanks Cafe Racer, that's a good workaround and I never actually thought of that! Thanks for sharing the auto ISO bracket method, will definitely give this a try!