G1 Review

[TimF]

here.

[T_Sargeant]

Thanks,

Have to say this is one camera that's sorely tempting me at the moment.

[TimF]

I enjoyed the size comparison video at the end. It is small, isn't it!

[zuiko]

I have just read the AP review of the G1 and it confirms the high image quality. This is good news for Panasonic and the Four Thirds ideology. I was thinking about the Canon G10 as a go anywhere compact, not so sure now.

David

[Mark_Norton]

I bought one from - of all places - Jessops in Chester yesterday. Ex-display, £50 rebate from Panasonic, I'll end up paying just £390 for it with the kit lens. It's a lot of camera for the money and I'm really looking forward to trying Leica M glass on it. To my mind, it'sa a much better proposition than the Sigma DP1 with its fixed lens.

[TimF]

I'll be interested to hear your impressions with the M glass Mark, not just in IQ terms, but ease of use in the heat of the moment.

[Mark_Norton]

Tim, I'm really excited about the prospect of using M glass in a through-the-lens mode for the first time, not least the accuracy of focussing. I've been saying for a while that the M needs to sense actual focus not rely on the focus-by-proxy mechanical method which needs both the camera and lenses to be precisely set up.

Of course, the lenses don't have auto-diaphragm so the viewfinder image will get grainy when the lens is stopped down, but I rarely go beyond f5.6 anyway. Apart from that, it will be business as usual with manual mode and aperture priority, even their own version of Leica's snap-shot mode. The EVF is a big improvement compared to the one in the Digilux 2 which single-handedly gave them a bad name.

Really shows what can be done when a world-class electronics company sets out with a blank piece of paper. As some are saying elsewhere, maybe the SLR heritage is at once a strength and Achilles Heel for the likes of Nikon and Canon.

[Garfield]

I enjoyed the size comparison video at the end. It is small, isn't it!

Not as small as I hoped. I am after something similar to the Pentax ME Super and not even the Olympus E-420 was close.

I was disappointed to find that the G1 is still too bulky for what it aims to be and I know I could never get on with the EVF.

Hopefully, on the positive side, it's the start of something great and the newest bodies can only improve on the G1 - with a lower price too!

[Mark_Norton]

Not as small as I hoped. I am after something similar to the Pentax ME Super and not even the Olympus E-420 was close.

I was disappointed to find that the G1 is still too bulky for what it aims to be and I know I could never get on with the EVF.

Now let's see. The Pentax ME Super wass 131.5 * 83 * 49.5 mm and weighed 445g.

The Panasonic G1 is 124 * 83.6 * 45.2 mm and weighs 385g. So, not only smaller but lighter too so your disappointment in the G1's size is ill-founded.

As for the EVF, I can assure you that it's streets ahead of the older grainy ones. It might not be perfect but it's very usable.

I think the G1 heralds a completely new class of camera and with the ability to put Leica M lenses on the front, it can potentially work with the best glass in the world which is not something you can say about the Pentax ME Super.

Maybe you should park your prejudices and go and try one. I'm loving mine!

[Zou]

Hmm - the LL video size thing is hardly 'fair' - who puts the 24-70 on a APS-C Nikon or the 24-105 on a EOS450D? Not 'normal' use lenses for either camera. May have been better to show kit lens on the D90 and EOS. Still goes to show how small it is though, as the 'in-hand' size difference is clear. I'd still prefer to see the EVF banished - the screen on the back would surely suffice (previous Lumix bridge models I have used certainly worked well enough using the monitor rather than EVF), and the bump and protruding eyepiece could be removed, saving more weight and making the design yet more compact.

[TimF]

Given that MR buys almost everything he tests on LL (most being sold off again to fund other items) rather than waiting for review samples its probable that these are lenses he owns. I'd suggest its unlikely that he waste money on kit lenses.

The point about the Nikon lens/camera combo is a fair one, though its entirely possible that a few D90 owners might be people using it as a back-up to a more pro body. The Canon combo is perhaps more common (though not the norm) I'd suggest.

[Zou]

Fair point Tim, he is that kind of guy.

I have to say that IQ-wise the G1 is looking like being one of the best 4/3 so far. I particularly like the results with the Leica 25mm f1.4. See link below for samples with a range of optics.

http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/cda/re...2/11/9815.html

[Garfield]

Not as small as I hoped. I am after something similar to the Pentax ME Super and not even the Olympus E-420 was close.

I was disappointed to find that the G1 is still too bulky for what it aims to be and I know I could never get on with the EVF.

Now let's see. The Pentax ME Super wass 131.5 * 83 * 49.5 mm and weighed 445g.

The Panasonic G1 is 124 * 83.6 * 45.2 mm and weighs 385g. So, not only smaller but lighter too so your disappointment in the G1's size is ill-founded.

As for the EVF, I can assure you that it's streets ahead of the older grainy ones. It might not be perfect but it's very usable.

I think the G1 heralds a completely new class of camera and with the ability to put Leica M lenses on the front, it can potentially work with the best glass in the world which is not something you can say about the Pentax ME Super.

Maybe you should park your prejudices and go and try one. I'm loving mine!

It's actually as small as an ME Super? Well I stand corrected! I can't believe that... just shows I have no concept of dimension estimation.

I have actually handled one, which is what my post was based on, but I still wouldn't buy one. Unless it was £199!

[Mark_Norton]

That is of course ridiculous. Leaving aside the fact I paid just £395 or so for mine, I think the camera represents good value at the typical street price. It's opening the door to completely new avenues of photography for me.

[Mark_Norton]

Also interesting to note that in a review by the US magazine, Popular Photography, that the G1 has lower noise at ISO 100-200 than even the Nikon D3. Falls apart above ISO 400 (how couldn't it given the pixel count and sensor size) but it show that this little camera punches far above its weight and any ideas that it's an overpriced plaything are just nonsense.

First images too from it wearing Leica M glass look very promising.