"Panasonic G series" Owners Thread

Well, I don't do bird photography, I do not have the skills or the kit :( We have bluetits nesting in a box on the garage wall and I got this yesterday with my Pana GX8 and 35-100 f2.8. I'm pretty pleased with it but I'm easily pleased.

i-pp7TxvT-X3.jpg
 
Well, I don't do bird photography, I do not have the skills or the kit :( We have bluetits nesting in a box on the garage wall and I got this yesterday with my Pana GX8 and 35-100 f2.8. I'm pretty pleased with it but I'm easily pleased.

i-pp7TxvT-X3.jpg
Great shot. Quick wb tweak is all it would need.
 
Great shot. Quick wb tweak is all it would need.

This has had me double check, as I thought it looked a bit on the magenta side on my monitor, but checking on my phone it is warmer and looks better :/ I need to calibrate this monitor!
 
This has had me double check, as I thought it looked a bit on the magenta side on my monitor, but checking on my phone it is warmer and looks better :/ I need to calibrate this monitor!

It looks ok to me. There is strong sunlight and the background garage wall is a strong pink/terracotta colour which I think is partly reflected through the birds wings.
 
Went out for a stroll over the RSPB reserve at the back of my place this morning
Sky was so Blue without a cloud in sight, no one else about either, bliss!!
P1003214 1.jpg
 
It looks ok to me. There is strong sunlight and the background garage wall is a strong pink/terracotta colour which I think is partly reflected through the birds wings.

It's definitely my monitor, I've since adjusted it, when I got to the grey levels they were indeed showing a tint of magenta/red, brought that back to a neutral grey [at least to my eye] and things are looking better now.
 
Lucky you! I’ll have to get Ian to take some time off work during the week so we can go places when it’s quieter.
It is nice to get out and about in relative peace, saw a Cuckoo, Kingfisher and a Fox today also heard a Bittern.
Sometimes the peace is shattered by the oldies out on their organised walks, but thats usually only on a Thursday.
 
Im new to micro four thirds, or is it MFT, or maybe M4/3?!..........................anyway, i just bought a 2ndhand(i never buy new) panny G7 with 12-60mm kit lens.
Im thinking of getting the 45-150mm lens though (is this a good zoom lens to get/use)??
So far, im very impressed with the G7 (i should have got one a few years back).

Im into close up/macro wild UK photography, an i use Raynox/500D close up filters for my chosen subjects.

Several images shot this week(just butterflies for now). All with either the Raynox 150 or 500D close up filters, attached to the 12-60mm.
But this lens is hindering my preferred type of images, thats why Im asking about the 45-150mm.
Cheers Paul.

Dingy Skipper Butterfly. Image is not cropped.
P1020810-copy-to-800.jpg

Brimstone Butterfly (male). Image is not cropped.
P1020954-copy-to-600.jpg

The above image, showing a nice crop.
P1020954-crop-to-800.jpg
 
Im new to micro four thirds, or is it MFT, or maybe M4/3?!..........................anyway, i just bought a 2ndhand(i never buy new) panny G7 with 12-60mm kit lens.
Im thinking of getting the 45-150mm lens though (is this a good zoom lens to get/use)??
So far, im very impressed with the G7 (i should have got one a few years back).

Im into close up/macro wild UK photography, an i use Raynox/500D close up filters for my chosen subjects.

Several images shot this week(just butterflies for now). All with either the Raynox 150 or 500D close up filters, attached to the 12-60mm.
But this lens is hindering my preferred type of images, thats why Im asking about the 45-150mm.
Cheers Paul.

Dingy Skipper Butterfly. Image is not cropped.
View attachment 245451

Brimstone Butterfly (male). Image is not cropped.
View attachment 245452

The above image, showing a nice crop.
View attachment 245453

Nice shots :)

Call the system whatever you can type the fastest :D I go for M43 mostly :)

I also love to use a Raynox for macro, I have the 250 which does have higher magnification than the 150 but this can make it a lot tricker on longer zooms. Atm I'm using it on an adapted Canon 55-250, but find in or around the 100mm region to give the best results. I had the Panasonic 45-150 for a while and also used it with that for similar results, again mostly around the 100mm mark. With your Raynox 150 you can go to longer focal lengths a bit easier - and your DOF won't be as thin at similar FL. It's a great lens for this purpose, only reason i didn't keep it was because it was too short for the other intended purpose - garden birds. But pretty much any lens between 80 - 150mm will work great with a Raynox + a lot of patience :)
 
Nice shots :)

Call the system whatever you can type the fastest :D I go for M43 mostly :)

I also love to use a Raynox for macro, I have the 250 which does have higher magnification than the 150 but this can make it a lot tricker on longer zooms. Atm I'm using it on an adapted Canon 55-250, but find in or around the 100mm region to give the best results. I had the Panasonic 45-150 for a while and also used it with that for similar results, again mostly around the 100mm mark. With your Raynox 150 you can go to longer focal lengths a bit easier - and your DOF won't be as thin at similar FL. It's a great lens for this purpose, only reason i didn't keep it was because it was too short for the other intended purpose - garden birds. But pretty much any lens between 80 - 150mm will work great with a Raynox + a lot of patience :)

Cheers for that mate, thanks for the info.
I only got this kit a few days ago, so im still testing it out!
I also have the Raynox 250, but thats used on another Panny, an its mostly used for smaller Bugs.
Ive got the G7 for Butterflies mainly...my thoughts were, small lightweight camera (because i shoot one handed for the most part).
Im sure once i get a longer zoom lens, i should be able to capture better images than what ive posted above^^^^^^^.
Im also sure that i should be able to produce better quality images, with this G7 too...time will tell i guess.
 
Cheers for that mate, thanks for the info.
I only got this kit a few days ago, so im still testing it out!
I also have the Raynox 250, but thats used on another Panny, an its mostly used for smaller Bugs.
Ive got the G7 for Butterflies mainly...my thoughts were, small lightweight camera (because i shoot one handed for the most part).
Im sure once i get a longer zoom lens, i should be able to capture better images than what ive posted above^^^^^^^.
Im also sure that i should be able to produce better quality images, with this G7 too...time will tell i guess.

There's nothing wrong with wider macro images either! I just thought you wanted more magnification for some reason. I also used the Raynox on much shorter lenses, like the Sigma 60mm 2.8 and even on the Panasonic 25mm 1.7 when i just wanted to edge that bit closer! I call these environmental macro shots, where you're including more of the creature's environment or habitat. if anything I tend to prefer these over extreme detail macro images. It's right up my alley :)

These are the kind of thing I love to shoot: This one was with the G80 [pretty much the same as your G7 only with IBIS] + Viltrox AF adapter and the Canon 55-250
Buggin' me! by K G, on Flickr

Whereas this one was using the cheap and cheerful Sigma 60mm 2.8 with the Raynox 250 [offers about 1:2 magnification] - much more of the environment in the frame but I like it just as much :)
The Green Abyss by K G, on Flickr
 
There's nothing wrong with wider macro images either! I just thought you wanted more magnification for some reason. I also used the Raynox on much shorter lenses, like the Sigma 60mm 2.8 and even on the Panasonic 25mm 1.7 when i just wanted to edge that bit closer! I call these environmental macro shots, where you're including more of the creature's environment or habitat. if anything I tend to prefer these over extreme detail macro images. It's right up my alley :)

These are the kind of thing I love to shoot: This one was with the G80 [pretty much the same as your G7 only with IBIS] + Viltrox AF adapter and the Canon 55-250
Buggin' me! by K G, on Flickr

Whereas this one was using the cheap and cheerful Sigma 60mm 2.8 with the Raynox 250 [offers about 1:2 magnification] - much more of the environment in the frame but I like it just as much :)
The Green Abyss by K G, on Flickr

Both nice images there.

I should have explained myself more thoroughly. I already have a very good macro setup, that works really well for me. I didnt get the G7 for "in ya face" macro, i got the G7 for Butterflies/Dragonflies/Reptiles...in the case of the Butterflies, i want the whole of the butterfly in the image, whilst looking for a nice composition. I also try to capture images, so that i dont need to crop.
I want a longer zoom (for the G7) in order that i can at least equal (but better) the butterfly images that i can already capture/produce, with my other camera/lens setups. Ive been using these other 2 cameras for several years now, an i think i have pretty much reached the best quality images, that i could capture from them now. They are old cameras, i cannot improve on image quality, because of their various shortcomings.
Butterflies can be a swine to get close to! so a longer zoom lens(with a close up filter) would mean 2 advantages - A nice creamy/uncluttered background...A workable distance, so to not spook the butterfly.
With the 12-60/close up filter setup, i have to get too close to the subject, in order to make the shot...I need a longer working distance.

This is where i think the G7 will work better than my other 2 setups, ive already found that the G7 works well with various/higher ISO's (1 of my other cameras, strugggles beyond ISO 100!!). Im sure there will be many other advantages of the G7, i just have to spend more time out in the field/testing, because its still early days yet.

Im going to post up 2 recent example images (these are not MFT's) but the 2 other systems ive been using. Both images are of the same subject, shot within seconds of each other.
I want/expect the G7 to not equal, but surpass these 2 examples...an im sure with a longer, lighweight zoom lens(an a bit of practice) i can get the G7 to shine.


Green Hairstreak Butterfly. Image is not cropped. Nikon V1/30-110mm cx lens, with Raynox 150 close up filter. Manual, f/5.6, 1/500, ISO 200. Jpeg, handheld.
DSC_8381-copy-to-800.jpg


Green Hairstreak Butterfly. Image is not cropped. Panasonic FZ150, coupled to a Polaroid 500D close up filter. Manual, f/4.5, 1/320, ISO 100. Jpeg, handheld. P1880235-copy-to-800.jpg
 
Both nice images there.

I should have explained myself more thoroughly. I already have a very good macro setup, that works really well for me. I didnt get the G7 for "in ya face" macro, i got the G7 for Butterflies/Dragonflies/Reptiles...in the case of the Butterflies, i want the whole of the butterfly in the image, whilst looking for a nice composition. I also try to capture images, so that i dont need to crop.
I want a longer zoom (for the G7) in order that i can at least equal (but better) the butterfly images that i can already capture/produce, with my other camera/lens setups. Ive been using these other 2 cameras for several years now, an i think i have pretty much reached the best quality images, that i could capture from them now. They are old cameras, i cannot improve on image quality, because of their various shortcomings.
Butterflies can be a swine to get close to! so a longer zoom lens(with a close up filter) would mean 2 advantages - A nice creamy/uncluttered background...A workable distance, so to not spook the butterfly.
With the 12-60/close up filter setup, i have to get too close to the subject, in order to make the shot...I need a longer working distance.

This is where i think the G7 will work better than my other 2 setups, ive already found that the G7 works well with various/higher ISO's (1 of my other cameras, strugggles beyond ISO 100!!). Im sure there will be many other advantages of the G7, i just have to spend more time out in the field/testing, because its still early days yet.

Im going to post up 2 recent example images (these are not MFT's) but the 2 other systems ive been using. Both images are of the same subject, shot within seconds of each other.
I want/expect the G7 to not equal, but surpass these 2 examples...an im sure with a longer, lighweight zoom lens(an a bit of practice) i can get the G7 to shine.


Green Hairstreak Butterfly. Image is not cropped. Nikon V1/30-110mm cx lens, with Raynox 150 close up filter. Manual, f/5.6, 1/500, ISO 200. Jpeg, handheld.
View attachment 245463


Green Hairstreak Butterfly. Image is not cropped. Panasonic FZ150, coupled to a Polaroid 500D close up filter. Manual, f/4.5, 1/320, ISO 100. Jpeg, handheld. View attachment 245464


Very nice indeed. I don't think I've ever come across this butterfly! There is a Common Blue that sweeps in and out of our garden, and every time I see it and fumble with the gear to go out and try grab some shots it's legged it by time I get there :D Got one pic of it [or at least one like it] last year:
Common Blue by K G, on Flickr
 
Nice male Common Blue there.

The Green Hairstreak is smaller than the Common Blue, it never opens its wings, it flys seriously erratic...its a git to photograph!
Those images i posted above, they are some of the best Green Hairstreak images ive ever shot...an ive been chasing butterflies for a decade or more!

I used to go out on the hottest parts of the day, wall to wall sunshine....................but wondered why i couldnt get decent images???!!!
Best times for butterflies ;);) - either real early in the morning(silly oclock) or late in the afternoon/evening just before the butterflies go to roost/sleep for the night.
 
Nice male Common Blue there.

The Green Hairstreak is smaller than the Common Blue, it never opens its wings, it flys seriously erratic...its a git to photograph!
Those images i posted above, they are some of the best Green Hairstreak images ive ever shot...an ive been chasing butterflies for a decade or more!

I used to go out on the hottest parts of the day, wall to wall sunshine....................but wondered why i couldnt get decent images???!!!
Best times for butterflies ;);) - either real early in the morning(silly oclock) or late in the afternoon/evening just before the butterflies go to roost/sleep for the night.

The blue staggers all over the place in flight too, it seems to fly about the same pattern across the garden each time, lands on that same bush for a minute, then carries on through the other gardens. Must watch out for it in the morns and evenings then, it is on hotter days when it flies through usually but keeps moving
 
When you think about it, it just makes sense - by the time we all see butterflies in our garden, they have been awake for hours, basking, nectaring...an males have 2 things on their mind......1st - find and mate with a female. 2nd - duel/fight with any other male that is looking for a female!

Thats why they thrash through our gardens, never stay for too long, they have agenders...they generally dont have much time to spare.

The trick is to find a suitable habitat, where certain butterflies emerge from. Go there either at silly oclock, or like me, late afternoon/evening;)
 
Haha.

It's a picture I've looked at many times but as I usually have a 35 or 50mm lens I wouldn't get the perspective so yesterday I took my GX80 and 45-150mm. All I need now is a day with better light as yesterday the light was just dead and flat and it was raining a bit. With better light the industrial background and maybe the Transporter bridge too would be nice features in the picture.

There'll be another day :D
 
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I decided to have a proper play with the lens adapter I bought ages back to adapt my Nikon F lenses to my GX7. I've used it before, but not properly and always got disappointing results.

Today I decided to use it with the Nikkor 55-200 f/3.5-5.6 that I hardly ever use on my Nikon DSLR. I used a tripod and took a few shots around the back garden to see what I could get. Even with the camera steadied I was struggling, but at least I think I know what is the root of the problem now: Some of my Nikon lenses (the 55-200mm included) have very thin and overly sensitive focussing rings which mean that fine focussing is very twitchy at best, especially on close focussing distances, so it's very easy to be slightly out, even with the focus peaking and image zoom features of my GX7.

I think I'll have another try, this time using my F-Mount Sigma macro lens which has a proper damped focus ring, or maybe buy an adapter that I can use with my originl Olympus OM manual lenses.

Anyway, this one didn't turn out too bad:


Sugarbaby mono
by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr
 
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Hello everyone,

Just a quick question.

Does anyone here own a Panasonic GX800, and use it extensively/exclusively with the Panasonic 20mm 1.7?

I'm beginning to miss using a proper camera, instead of just my phone, and now looking to get something small and compact to carry on days out.

The GX800 and 20mm 1.7 combo looks tiny, but I recall reading a lot of comments about the "slow" AF speed of this lens.

How slow is it, in reality? In the past, I have shot with Fuji X-T10 and 35mm f2, and other m4/3 cameras like the GX80 and 17mm 1.8

Is the AF speed significantly slower than those combos mentioned above? Or negligible? With me being used to the AF speeds of those other cameras, will it be noticeable enough for me to find it and annoyance?
 
Hello everyone,

Just a quick question.

Does anyone here own a Panasonic GX800, and use it extensively/exclusively with the Panasonic 20mm 1.7?

I'm beginning to miss using a proper camera, instead of just my phone, and now looking to get something small and compact to carry on days out.

The GX800 and 20mm 1.7 combo looks tiny, but I recall reading a lot of comments about the "slow" AF speed of this lens.

How slow is it, in reality? In the past, I have shot with Fuji X-T10 and 35mm f2, and other m4/3 cameras like the GX80 and 17mm 1.8

Is the AF speed significantly slower than those combos mentioned above? Or negligible? With me being used to the AF speeds of those other cameras, will it be noticeable enough for me to find it and annoyance?

I use that lens (the first version) a lot on my GX7 and the AF speed has always been fine. It might not be as fast to focus as some other lenses (according to reviews I've seen), but I can honestly say I've never noticed or had any problem with it from my own personal use.

It's a brilliant little lens in my experience.
 
Hello everyone,

Just a quick question.

Does anyone here own a Panasonic GX800, and use it extensively/exclusively with the Panasonic 20mm 1.7?

I'm beginning to miss using a proper camera, instead of just my phone, and now looking to get something small and compact to carry on days out.

The GX800 and 20mm 1.7 combo looks tiny, but I recall reading a lot of comments about the "slow" AF speed of this lens.

How slow is it, in reality? In the past, I have shot with Fuji X-T10 and 35mm f2, and other m4/3 cameras like the GX80 and 17mm 1.8

Is the AF speed significantly slower than those combos mentioned above? Or negligible? With me being used to the AF speeds of those other cameras, will it be noticeable enough for me to find it and annoyance?

I know what I would do .... I've done it before! And I didn't think it was possible till faced with the option.

Jessops sell the Panasonic 20mm f1.7 Lumix G II Lens in Silver @£249

Try it in the shop, ask questions, buy it, GX800 kit too(?) Take it back if you change your mind!

I did this with a Panasonic 45-200, swapped it for a 45-150 and was refunded the difference. I wouldn't say they were over the moon, but they did it. I didn't have to point out what their T&Cs say.

3.4 Returns and refunds

(a) Change of mind returns: if for whatever reason you change your mind and would like to return all or any Products that are the subject of your Order after delivery to you, you have the right to return your Product(s) to Us within 14 days ...........

https://www.jessops.com/tnc#anchor_3_4
 
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Looks like Im getting the hang of things with this G7.
Also, i just bought a used (but the boxed lens looks as new) Panny 45-150mm( off of Fleabay) I tried that lens out today(extended lunch break from work!!) it was much easier to use, than the 12-60mm lens. It allowed me a lot more working distance from my subjects(butterflies).

Some examples, cheers Paul.

1st 2 images are with the 12-60mm.
3rd image is with the 45-150mm.
All 3 images are not cropped. 500D close up filter used on all 3 images.

Mating pair of Small Blue Butterflies (uncropped). 18th May 2019. by Testudo Man, on Flickr

Common Blue Butterfly, male (uncropped). 18th May 2019. by Testudo Man, on Flickr

Mating pair of Common Blue Butterflies (uncropped). 20th May 2019. by Testudo Man, on Flickr
 
Looks like Im getting the hang of things with this G7.
Also, i just bought a used (but the boxed lens looks as new) Panny 45-150mm( off of Fleabay) I tried that lens out today(extended lunch break from work!!) it was much easier to use, than the 12-60mm lens. It allowed me a lot more working distance from my subjects(butterflies).

Some examples, cheers Paul.

1st 2 images are with the 12-60mm.
3rd image is with the 45-150mm.
All 3 images are not cropped. 500D close up filter used on all 3 images.

Mating pair of Small Blue Butterflies (uncropped). 18th May 2019. by Testudo Man, on Flickr

Common Blue Butterfly, male (uncropped). 18th May 2019. by Testudo Man, on Flickr

Mating pair of Common Blue Butterflies (uncropped). 20th May 2019. by Testudo Man, on Flickr

Very nice. The 45-150 is a little cracker, and it's perfect for macro with a Raynox or the 500D. So versatile, and small and light enough to always have in the bag
 
Mrs WW has never baked and was desperate to make a cake and yesterday she made her very first :D

I took a series of pictures of her with my GX9 and 12-35mm f2.8. The shots including her face were taken with eye detect and every one was in focus. As I'm mostly a prime guy I hadn't used this lens for a while and had forgotten how nice it was :D

Anyway, Mrs WW making a cake, taken over her shoulder.

Fbl99DS.jpg
 
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Just in case people haven't seen this, David Thorpe, S1 v G9...
Good find. It's a remarkably sensible discussion of the 2 cameras.
 
Can't decide whether to get another GX9 to make things easy travelling, same batteries, menus and settings etc.
Or give the GX90 a go when it arrives, also wonder if there will be a GX10 and there's the G9 that I nearly bought before.
Decisions, Decisions?

GX9 is the same price everywhere with £50 cashback, two shops have agreed to throw in the extended eyecup as a sweetener to buy from them.
Don't ask, don't get and must say at the moment the GX9 is favourite.

Thought about another Olympus, but prefer the Panasonic menus plus one lens does benefit from dual is
Money is sat waiting and just can't make my mind up, too much choice sometimes
 
Can't decide whether to get another GX9 to make things easy travelling, same batteries, menus and settings etc.
Or give the GX90 a go when it arrives, also wonder if there will be a GX10 and there's the G9 that I nearly bought before.
Decisions, Decisions?

GX9 is the same price everywhere with £50 cashback, two shops have agreed to throw in the extended eyecup as a sweetener to buy from them.
Don't ask, don't get and must say at the moment the GX9 is favourite.

Thought about another Olympus, but prefer the Panasonic menus plus one lens does benefit from dual is
Money is sat waiting and just can't make my mind up, too much choice sometimes


Not much help but when I had both the em5 and the G80 at the same time the Oly drove me a bit nuts with it's menu. Now, Oly users will say it's not complicated, and they're right it's not but I found it unnecessarily irritating, much more scrolling through options to get to simple settings. Even if you only rarely use the actual menu, down to little things like formatting your cards or changing video settings, it's much more intuitive to have both cameras with the same set up.

I finally sold my G80 btw, got more selling it local than I would have on here, and certainly more than MPB were willing to offer. I won't write off a return to M43 though, and it would probably be something like a GX9 if and when I do.
 
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