"Utah’s environment is rugged and extreme, but the Panasonic GH3 handled like a pro in the oppressive heat and extreme dust. It’s weatherproofing stood up very well, especially when the camera got splashed when I waded into rushing, river waters. I was impressed with the camera’s responsiveness and auto focus quickness in locking onto subjects. Since there was virtually no lag time when I hit the shutter release, I was able to capture the moments when things were moving fast. The bright viewfinder and the LCD panel’s high resolution were an asset when I needed to check images for sharpness. The dynamic range of the camera was better than I had hoped for. In the contrasty desert settings, it was able to hold shadows and highlights and it also produced very good skin tones when I was photographing people. The ISO was equally impressive. I shot many images at 400 ISO and they looked similar to the native setting of ISO 200. To capture the starry, night sky I boosted the ISO to 2500. The GH3 was easy to operate and I was able to make adjustment very quickly. The dedicated, physical buttons eliminated any need to dig through a menu and I especially liked the buttons and wheels on the top of the camera, which gave me immediate access to make changes to the settings I use the most.
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"My experience has been really interesting with GH3. The electronic shutter, allowing noiseless operation is a huge bonus for documentary photography. The weight of the camera is a huge plus. Very lightweight for the performance. The manual focus zoom is excellent in super low light, when there are no highlights for the autofocus to lock in on. The Leica lenses do provide excellent lens quality on the fixed lenses. 25mm lens and the 45mm are excellent quality lenses. The difference is noticeable. For low or high shooting angles the flexible screen is good for shooting alternate angles, along with the touch focus and touch shooting from the screen. High frame rate is impressive for this camera.
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"For jungle photographers like myself, toughness is the number one requirement for a camera. And the GH3 delivers. Even the brightest days can suddenly turn dark as a squall passes through. In an instant, you find yourself sopping wet, even in the cover of huge trees. The splashproof, dustproof GH3, with its large-diameter 12-35mm lens and 35-100 mm lens, has the rugged durability to withstand even the fastest and strongest squalls. The high-strength body and lens are lighter than they look. That's one of the main features of the mirrorless GH3. There's nothing better than compact, lightweight mobility when you're making your way through the jungle. The Free-Angle LCD is also great for the kind of shots I take, where I'm often laying flat out on the ground. And the organic EL display is easy to see -- another super feature for shooting in the jungle. The GH Series is also highly acclaimed for its video. This is even further advanced in the GH3, so it shows its true value, in both photo and video shooting."
"I have been using the Panasonic LUMIX GH series of cameras ever since
I got my hands on a pre-production DMC-GH1, 3 and a half years ago. I
shot some lovely stuff on that and of course the DMC-GH2. Excellent
cameras that have been adopted into the low budget filmmaking
community, especially since the hack to give the DMC-GH2 an ALL-I
codec surfaced. One of the best things about this camera is that
Panasonic have seen this and responded with their new 72 mb/s All-I
codec here. It’s more than enough for a camera this size and very
robust indeed!"
Read full review by Phillip Bllom - New short film "Genesis" shot on
pre-production Panasonic GH3
"We're here in Taormina, Italy, and we're about to begin a shoot with the Panasonic GH3. We're with a couple who are eloping today, and we're shooting the happy occasion. The day has been insane. Getting to the site and taking all the shots we need before the sun goes down is never easy, but the camera did make things easier. The new zoom lenses are amazing with their lower F-stop at 2.8 and high-sensitivity ISO. I was able to get quick shots of special moments in dim lighting. I used the Glidecam 4000 HD for all the flying shots. As with all weddings, you face all kinds of lighting conditions so you want a camera that can handle them. The GH3 has a really nice dynamic range, so I was able to catch both bright and dark shots, and some nice middle ground. You have to set your exposure just right, and by finding the middle, I was able to get some really great images. So now we've got the shots and it's time to take them into the editing room. We did post-production in Final Cut Pro7. We dropped the Codec directly in because with the new 72-Mbps Codec it's already a MOV file so it's very simple to use. Overall, everything went great. I hope you guys like the wedding film and I hope the couple likes it, too. "
"The DMC-GH3 comes equipped with a flash synchro socket and I have used DMC-GH3 in combination with the strobe lights in my studio. Focusing works fast and accurate even in lower lighting conditions. Unlike in the case of conventional DSLRs, the fact that focus can be set on any in the angle of view is ideal especially in shooting portraits. Furthermore, the OLED live view monitor makes it easier to see the facial expression of the model than seeing it through a viewfinder in low-lit situations. The free-angle touch control display dramatically reduces the strain on extremities even in a long shooting session. With its rugged design to stand against severe outdoor shooting, the DMC-GH3 will be accepted by the professionals for the expressive creation of their artwork."
"For my type of work a camera must fulfil several requirements. First, it needs to be a fly on the wall most of the times: the smaller the impact I have with my presence the better. A camera like the GH3 helps me to achieve this very quickly and I am always impressed how easily people start to forget about the camera. Also I need to be able to work smoothly between video and photography as both forms of media are significant for my multimedia stories. So I have very high expectations to both functions: they must be able to compete on a professional level. The LUMIX GH3 allows me to get the highest quality with both in an environment where the switch between video and photography quickly becomes second nature. Its compact size and the quick response of the autofocus enable me to work light and fast and always catch the moment - both in video and stills."
"The GH3 to me is a professional camera wrapped in a small light-weight package. The fully customizable menu and function buttons made the GH3 an ultra versatile camera that caters to both pros and amateurs equally. Packed with a handful of features such as a flip OLED screen, weather sealed body, built in time-lapse photography and an impressive dynamic range, Panasonic has surely combined quality and affordability in one impressive camera."
