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amazon Panasonic Lumix G2 reviews
The appearance of the machine looks not much different from previous G1. The grip is completely covered with plastic so users will feel a bit stiff. In return, the slit has a large area and moderate depth that allows the thumbs to be excrucially supported and ensures sufficient stability when used with large lenses. With a three-dimensional dimension of 124 x 84 x 74 mm and a mass of about 428 grams (including battery and memory card), Panasonic Lumix G2 looks more like a miniature DSLR than a compact compact version.
Panasonic has boldly implemented quite a few improvements on the G2’s control system. The disk fine-tuning parameters are transferred from front to back. The top of the comb extends the “Q.menu” and “Film Mode” keys. Instead, the two large red buttons, quick start function HD movie recording and iA intelligent shooting mode without rotating the disc select Dial Mode. The back of the machine retains the system five navigation keys and a few fine-tuning keys. Similar to the predecessor Panasonic Lumix G1, the viewfinder of the camera protrudes far away, feeling unbalanced and inconvenient to the user if the shooting space is a bit narrow.
The G2’s screen has the ability to rotate 180 degrees thanks to the hinge system and the spindle design on the side of the machine. Thanks to the flexibility of the screen, users can comfortably picture the composition with difficult shooting situations such as placing the machine close to the ground or raising it overhead. You can even rotate the screen forward to capture yourself or show others the same image. The LCD still maintains 3 inches in size and 460,000 pixels high. A sensor automatically adjusts the brightness and color of the LCD according to the environment, which helps to capture and view photos in bright sunshine without paying much attention to settings on the machine. In addition, the touch technology allows users to focus, capture and change parameters just by touching the screen is very interesting.
Because of the Micro Four Thirds camera segment, G2 does not have the mirror mechanism on the DSLRs. The viewfinder (EVF) of the camera has a resolution of up to 1.4 million pixels, the ability to cover 100% of the frame and 1.4x magnification. The EVF test shows that the EVF offers brighter and clearer images than travel cameras with an electronic viewfinder such as the Nikon P100 or Canon SX20 IS. Contrast is shown on the viewport is quite good but the color tends to go down. With a scanning speed of up to 60 frames per second, the information from the sensor is sent almost instantaneously to EVF, which helps to reduce the delay and flicker when capturing moving subjects. The G2’s electronic viewfinder also allows changing capacitances up to +/- 4 dots, which is very useful for people with eye problems who may be afraid to use glasses when taking pictures.
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Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 12.1 MP Live MOS Mirrorless Digital Camera with 3-Inch Touch Screen LCD and 14-42mm Lumix G VARIO f/3.5-5.6 MEGA OIS Lens (Black): Buy it now
The Panasonic G2 uses a 12-megapixel Live MOS sensor, a standard Four Third 17.3 x 13 mm (approx. 2x focal length). When removing the lens, the shutter is in the open state so the user must be very careful to avoid dust from attaching to the sensor. In addition to the default 4: 3 aspect ratio, the camera also supports 3: 2 ratio film, 16: 9 aspect ratio and 1: 1 aspect ratio. Combined with the new generation Venus Engine HD II, the machine is capable of raising the light sensitivity range up to ISO 6400 and shooting at 3.3 frames per second, slightly ahead of the G1 predecessor. Experimental results show that G2’s fairly fast shutter speeds are only possible in the first nine JPEGs or five RAW images, then dropped to about 2.3 frames per second with JPEGs and 1.8 frames per second if raw image is saved. Flashback time is also quite disappointing, up to 4 seconds if using the strongest power.
Similar to Micro Four Thirds cameras, the Panasonic G2 focuses on the contrast mechanism at 23 points in the frame. The camera also supports AF tracking and Face Detection, as on some high-end travel cameras. Speed is not as fast as the “senior” DSLR, but has improved significantly compared to the “predecessor” G1 and also quite good compared to the same class from Olympus and Samsung.
The Panasonic G2 still tends to fade colors like the previous version but not too ominously. The photos are good enough to take photos when shooting. Red and green are slightly brighter than normal (about 7%), so many times, users do not need the software to process the image is still brilliant and fresh. Contrast is strong in the dark or neutral colors make the viewer a little eyes. Overall, the picture quality given by Lumix G2 is pretty good compared to other Micro Four Thirds format machines. The machine also compensates color saturation by up to 5 levels, but the change is almost negligible, and the image is normal even when pushing the color up to +2.
G2 white balance and metering work perfectly with outdoor lighting conditions. However, when shooting indoors under artificial light sources, the machine reveals some weaknesses. Less exposure makes some dark details in the background and lost face. White balance automatically under the light of good hair, the picture just slightly warm. However, when taken to “Incandescent White Balance” mode, the image is seriously yellowish. The noise canceling ability of the machine is no better than the predecessor G1. Although the light sensitivity band doubled, it appeared as soon as the ISO was raised to 400. At higher ISOs, the image began to dull and lose detail in high contrast areas. Even due to the color misalignment, images taken by G2 at very high ISO settings are less attractive than their predecessors, Panasonic G1 and Olympus E-P1.
The 14-42mm f / 3.5-5.6 kit gives the center of gravity an impressive range. However, the edges of the image at the edges are slightly blurry and are slightly chromatic. Average image distortion at the widest angle of 14 mm. This phenomenon will be automatically overcome when saving images in JPEG compression format. Auto focus is done very quickly and quietly, and users can barely hear the noise even when they are near the ear.
The G2 also supports 720p HD video recording, AVCHD Lite or QuickTime Motion compression. The video quality is slightly better than the G1 because of the support of the new Venus Engine HD II. Most notably, the machine has enabled continuous AF tracking and uses some touch controls on the screen during filming.
Compared with its predecessor, the Panasonic G2 has made some significant improvements in performance and especially in image quality. Due to the advantages of size and the ability to swap lenses, the machine is an optimal choice for travel enthusiasts or as “back-up” for professional photographers. Despite its good performance, the machine has not really made a breakthrough for the Micro Four Thirds line and still much worse than the “elder” DSLR or some new “hybrid” camera of Samsung and Sony.