Panasonic GH4 lens collection s (1 of 1)

I’ve been continuously shooting over the last 5 months and the Panasonic GH4 has become a pretty stable part of my current kit. I haven’t given up on my Canon 5d mark III or the Sony a7s, both of which fill important roles in my collection, but I have started to look at things from a size perspective. If I think I can get away with shooting solely on the Panasonic GH4 it means I only have to travel with a single camera bag for everything (minus tripod, crane, slider, etc.).

Three M4/3 lenses can fit in the same space and weigh less than a single full frame lens. A medium size bag has enough room for all of the lenses above, audio gear, battery chargers, field monitor, and any other random hardware I deem necessary for the shoot and there’s usually room to spare. That makes a huge difference when you’re trying to schlep your gear through woodlands or up to the top of some dam fish ladder.

Warming up to 4k.

Panasonic GH4 camera body (1 of 1)

The GH4 still hasn’t taken the place of the full frame look I’ve come to enjoy with the 5d mkIII and a7s, but many times when a project doesn’t require it. The GH4’s 4k ability has also made a big difference when i’m working on something that I’ll only have a single opportunity to capture. I can shoot hand held or on a monopod while i’m on set, then stabilize, pan, and crop as needed in post or simply resize to 1080p. It isn’t my preferred method, but it’s saved more shots than I’d like to admit.

I started out only occasionally shooting 4k on the GH4. In the past I’d rent a RED when I needed 4k and enjoy all the benefits of R3D files as well as all of the frame rate options. I figured 1080p was more than enough for most projects with the GH4 and I liked the ability to punch in on any lens. I also thought data rates might be an issue in post.

It turns out the data rate on the GH4’s 4k mode isn’t horribly unreasonable, it still eats up a lot more space than 1080p on the 5d mark III, but the 100mb codec is reasonably efficient and easy enough to work with in post. Plus 128GB SDXC cards have come way down in price over the past year or so and if I need to punch in I have a 4k image to work with.

Current Lenses

The Panasonic GH4 has become such a stable part of my kit that I’ve made the destitution to sell off one of my 5d mark III bodies and invest heavily in M4/3 lenses. From left to right above, here’s the list so far:

There are still a few lenses I’d like to add to my list including a 7-14mm zoom and a 100-300 super-telephoto. I’ve been holding off on picking up the Panasonic 7-14mm f4 because the Olympus 7-14mm f2.8 was supposedly due to be released this year. It’s been almost a year since Olympus’s announcement and there is still not 7-14mm f2.8 on the market. I’ve held out for the Olympus but it’s been long enough, it might be time to pull the trigger on the Panasonic 7-14mm f4.

As for the super-telephoto, the Panasonic 100-300 f4-5.6 is probably what I’ll be picking up. The used price is pretty reasonable and if I can find one on ebay for under $400 I’ll probably be picking it up towards the beginning of the year.

I’ll be covering my lens choices a little more thoroughly over the next few weeks. For now though, time for some more Christmas themed drinks and unpacking.

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