Panasonic GH6: Micro Four Thirds isn’t going away.
Panasonic released an official development announcement of their latest Micro Four Thirds flagship camera, the Lumix GH6! The long anticipated successor to the GH5 may be just enough to keep people from jumping ship to full frame. Comment if you think this iteration will breathe life back into the MFT mount.
Panasonic really had us going there with the leaked GH5 Mark II specs. Many thought a GH6 wouldn’t come, inevitably spelling an end for Micro Four Thirds (MFT). A sigh of relief came to us all when the official development announcement of the GH6 was finally made public. From what’s known thus far we’re looking at a newly developed MFT sensor paired with a new processor that’s capable of 5.7K footage up to 60fps in 10 bit color space. This isn’t a groundbreaking specification, as Blackmagic Design’s Pocket Cinema Camera 6K is capable of 6k 60p on a slightly larger, Super 35 sensor. However, this is the first time we’ve seen a legitimate 5.7K video codec in the Panasonic GH series, especially at such a high frame rate, so it’s quite exciting.
The new sensor’s resolution has yet to be specified, but I would imagine it to be no less than its 20.3 megapixel predecessor. I reckon it will be the same based on the max 5.7K video resolution, which is what the GH5 topped out at in the “6K burst mode”, but it’s not far fetched to think it’ll be slightly higher, like 24mp, to entice photographers as well. I don’t love adding megapixels to a small sensor, and if that is the case, I certainly hope that they opt for a dual native ISO to increase the cameras already “far from stellar” low light performance. With four years to work on their new processing engine, I have hopes that they’ll be able to handle noise well at least one stop above the GH5. If I can get a clean image up to ISO 6400 then I’ll be a happy camper.
The new processor has to be pretty powerful to crank out 10bit 5.7K 60p video files. What else can we expect from a faster in-camera processor? It’s concerning that there was no development of a “new” autofocus system. The GH5 Mark II has touted that it’s face detect has improved to be 5x faster than it’s previous iteration. So can we expect faster auto focus speeds even with an outdated contrast detect AF system? I certainly hope so. To be able to compete with the likes of Sony, I think they really need to move over to a PDAF system (Phase Detect Autofocus) but my hopes are that they’ve improved the algorithm of their DFD technology to a point that it’s a substantial improvement. Panasonic is an auto focus update away from being the king of “Indie cinema” cameras.
Panasonic was keen on specifying the color space of it’s 4K 60p codec but conveniently left it out when laying out it’s 10bit 4K 120p and 5.7K 60p files. I expect these topped out video modes will have to record in 4:2:0 chroma subsample internally. My hope is that with an external recorder you’ll be able to get the full 10 bit 4:2:2 color space, or even 12 bit 4:2:2 in ProRes RAW as seen in the most recent GH5s firmware update. I think it’d be wise of Panasonic to give the GH6 a second card slot that’s compatible with faster CF Express Type A cards for these higher framerates and resolutions in order to keep the set up lightweight and performance heavy. I find it interesting Panasonic cited the unlimited recording time of the 10Bit 4:2:2 4K 60p mode but not the 4K 120p mode. Will it be limited to short bursts? Will the auto focus be disabled like in the previous HD HFR modes? There’s a lot to be excited about but I’m bracing myself for the inevitable crippling of these fantastic “on paper” specs.
We all have wants, but what do we really need? Personally I’m more than happy with internal 4K 60p in a 10bit 4:2:2 codec. That was what was missing from my GH5s. In the field I’d be very reluctant to switch to the 4K 60p mode knowing that it was limited to 8bit color. So having a workhorse, that’s lightweight, and can record internal 10 bit 4:2:2 at my most used 4K framerates make this a solid run and gun camera.
I can live without 5.7K, 6K, 8K, it’s all marketing in my mind. The displays in which a majority of people view content is on their smartphones, with sub-4K displays. Unless you’re shooting a film that requires super high resolution for accurate VFX rendering, or to be projected on to a giant display, then 4K is MORE than you’ll ever need. Chances are if your budget for a camera is $2,500 then you’re not shooting a big blockbuster film. Tonality, dynamic range, and color science are all things to consider first before resolution. I’d take a 12 bit 4:4:4 1080p file over an 8bit 4:2:0 8K file any day. The creator is YOU and the camera is merely a TOOL. Don’t get caught up in the hype.
