The test of Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 compact camera: second generation

The new Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 belongs to the Lumix G Micro System. The camera was announced in March 2010 and has already won the prestigious TIPA award.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 compact camera

Technical Specifications

Sensor: 4/3″ Live MOS with dust cleaning function

Size: Micro Four Thirds 17.3 × 13 mm

Resolution: 12.1 MP 4000×3000 pixels .

Frame formats: 4:3, 3:2, 16:9, 1:1

Krop factor: 2

Recording format: RAW, JPEG

Sensitivity: ISO 100-64-00

Movie: AVCHD Lite/QuickTime Motion JPEG with audio 1280×720/30 fps./s, 848×480/30 fps./FPS 16:9 , 640×480/30fps./320×240/30 fps./s

Viewfinder: Live View Finder electro-optical viewfinder equivalent to 1,440,000 dots

Frame coverage area: 100%

Display: Rotating color touch screen LCD TFT , 3″ approx. 460,000 dots

The shooting speed: up to 3,2 fps, JPEG till the card is full, RAW up to 7 fps in a series

Memory cards: SD, SDHC, SDXC

Weight: 371 g

Price: $970

Introduction

The most compact camera of this series Lumix DMC-GF1 with big kit of lenses was tested in the previous issue, therefore for this test in the representative office of Panasonic new G2 was received in standard package with lens G VARIO 1:3,5-5,6/14-42 ASPH. In 35 mm equivalent, the focal length range of this lens is 28-84 mm and it falls within the category of standard lenses in all respects. This range is usually sufficient for most productions. Future buyers have a wide choice of interchangeable optics from super wide-angle to telephoto in G series, and with an adapter the whole set of 4/3 standard optics, so despite the relative novelty of the system, the creative potential of photographers who have chosen such technique is not limited by anything. The sufficient quantity of other accessories is offered besides optics, though not in such volume, as in old mirror systems.

Design, controls and features

The new camera is almost identical in design to its Lumix DMC-G1 ancestor. But still there are changes, only in a greater degree they have touched the internal filling. The camera is equipped with the new, high-speed Venus Engine HD II processor, the maximum sensitivity value is increased up to 6400 ISO, the algorithms of auto-focus operation are completely changed, and the shooting speed is slightly increased. There is a high quality 1280×720 AVCHD Lite video mode in addition to the traditional Motion JPEG format , which is conveniently activated by a button on the top panel. The video shooting process starts with the press of a button, and most photo settings are stored and used, which is especially convenient when shooting stills and video of the same subject and allows you not to miss an interesting moment. The camera has an HDMI output, so you can view photos and videos on a large high-definition television screen by connecting with a cable. There’s also an iA button that turns smart mode on. And still the main attention of Panasonic company’s specialists was paid to making the camera more convenient to use. That’s why we changed the layout of some controls and improved camera operational capabilities. For the first time in this series the camera has touch screen display with improved menu. Until now, such a control in cameras seemed quite controversial, but a reasonable combination of purely mechanical switching, standard setting changes in the menu and touch control was quite convenient. I found the autofocus control especially handy when taking pictures. By touching the display it is easy to change the location and size of the focus area, furthermore, it became quite realistic to track the movement of the subject in the frame during shooting, with the active area on the touch screen acting as the shutter release button. By the way, this also helps when shooting from unstable positions such as when the camera is held high above your head and the view is taken with the tiltable display. Touch control was also most convenient for changing camera settings in the quick menu. It takes a while to get used to the new method of camera operation, but as you learn the new techniques, you realize how much greater the possibilities are when shooting, especially genre photography, when it is necessary not to demonstrate the fact of photographing an object.

Test shooting

I was hesitant to immediately start taking photos, as the whole process of getting to grips with the new camera turned out to be quite captivating. Unfortunately, it is impossible to describe all the functions of the camera even superficially within the short article, much less how they actually work, so I focused mainly on the exposure programs and autofocus in the test shooting.

The test shooting started with a walk in the park, allowing me to shoot a variety of scenes. Significant differences in brightness on a sunny day, even if you don’t shoot against the light, is not an easy task for any camera, and it’s not even that there will be overexposed areas. More important is the balanced transfer of tone and coloring of the picture as a whole picture 1 , which I think I achieved very well. The following picture is even more difficult in this respect, as the accuracy of automatic white balance is still subjected to evaluation. The peculiar shade of gray on the lamppost, the white hair of the dog and the deep black color of the leash and collar were perfectly reproduced, even though the large area of green grass could mislead the automation photo 2 . I learned something from this exercise that could be useful in using the camera’s programs in practice. It turned out that the greatest number of correctly exposed frames is obtained when using the intelligent iA mode, in which the camera itself picks up the scene program. The only exception was the shooting in harsh backlighting, where individual adjustment of the parameters with the probes proved to be more effective. When I tested the tracking focus, the situation was complicated by the constant changing of the background when wired, but the camera held the subject and the sharpness of the shots was satisfactory photo 3 . In the other scene the movement speed was such that the camera had time to take no more than four shots in the sequence, but the speed of focusing was excellent here too, and the short shutter speed even let me “freeze” a drop of water in the air photo 4 .

The next group of shots was shot during a field test organized by Panasonic for a group of photojournalists, from high vantage points to take in the panorama of New York. Of these, only the site on Sparrow Hills is freely accessible.

View of the Kremlin from the observation gallery of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior Picture 5 . I took a lot of different pictures in different formats, but the 16:9 extension was the best. On Sparrow Hills in the time before sunset several genre scenes were shot. Thanks to compactness of the camera and thanks to a possibility to shoot with a swivel monitor nobody paid attention to the camera photo 6 . Despite cloudy weather the picture turned out to be bright and juicy, with the right color balance. The following picture was taken from the roof of one of the towers of New York business center. The lighting conditions got dramatically worse at dusk, the sky was still pretty bright, but it was a little dark on the ground, especially where there was a lot of greenery. The city lights were not yet at their full strength, and the panorama of the city looked a little dull. Only one plot looked impressive due to the illumination of the building of the hotel “Ukraine” photo 7 .

Videotaping is very good in quality, but it is better to have a tripod or at least a monopod, as any movement of the camera or zooming to hold the frame without jumping image is very difficult however, this is true for any camcorder . Continuous video recording at maximum resolution of about 9 minutes 2 GB . There is probably a need for longer clips, but then the quality of the video would have to be lowered.

Conclusions

The new model mostly kept the usual layout of the controls, and this is a definite plus. The new touch screen display did not complicate operation, on the contrary, it added new features, especially in hidden shooting and when working in awkward positions. Autofocus function is considerably extended, surpassing in some respects the SLR cameras. The overall responsiveness of the device was improved, and with some practice, you can shoot quite good videos with high quality video. In general, the new camera has everything that was lacking in the Lumix DMC-G1.

The editorial staff would like to thank the Panasonic company office in New York for the camera provided for testing.

Picture tests

By clicking on the picture you can see the enlarged image

Photo 1. Large brightness gradients on the subject are implemented in the right tone. Matrix metering and auto white balance worked perfectly f/7.1, 1/250 sec, ISO 200 .

Photo 2. The large area of green in the picture did not distort the auto white balance. The dog’s white coat and the distinctive coloring of the lamppost give us an accurate color quality f/5.6, 1/80s, ISO 125 .

Photo 3. The electric car wasn’t moving very fast, but the spots in the background were changing very much, but there was no disturbance in the autofocus f/9, 1/320 sec, ISO 400 .

Photo 4. The most difficult scene for the autofocus system is the subject moving directly towards the camera f/13, 1/640 sec, ISO 400 .

Photo 5. The choice of one of four formats demands exit to the menu, but it is made rather quickly. The 16:9 aspect ratio was the most suitable for this subject f/10, 1/400 s, ISO 200 .

Photo 6. Overcast weather is not a reason to refuse to take pictures. The camera properly captures contrast and all saturated colors f/7.1, 1/250 s, ISO 400 .

Photo 7. For twilight there is an increased amount of blue, but a brightly lit high-rise building brings the necessary color to the picture f/4.8, 1/60 s, ISO 800 .