First Look - Panasonic Lumix GX-7
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The GX-7 is the latest in the Lumix family of M4/3 interchangeable lens mirror less cameras, or as I prefer to refer to them, "cameras". Seriously, we can stop the whole mirror less vs DSLR crap ok?
Quickly, it is a 16MP micro four thirds architecture using the standard M43 mount for lenses. The LCD is 3" and has 1040K dots for great viewing. Of course it does video, I'm pretty sure that if you buy a hamster today it does 1080p video. The camera is WiFi capable and also supports NFC with capable devices. The body comes in either black or silver. Panasonic makes a big deal of the Venus processing engine that has superior noise management for improved low light shots. In my own AUTO ISO test, ISO floats to 3200 still produced really nice images.
The GX-7 is like many other cameras of the type. It's compact, takes great lenses and is really targeted at the more serious photographer. That's not to say you cannot shoot the camera in P all the time, but you don't have to. Moreover the choices are not cluttered with a bunch of "picture styles". Relax there are photo styles, but not in the way. I shot the camera predominantly in Aperture preferred, using AUTO ISO as well as specific settings for ISO. I used a number of different lenses on the camera including the Olympus 17/2.8, the Sigma 30/2.8, the Sigma 60/2.8, the Olympus 9-18 and the Olympus 14-150/4.5-5.6. I had some extra time at the store where I work part time so did my first look there.
The camera uses SD cards and is powered by a Lithium ion battery. While there were Lumix lenses in the store, I just don't care for the Lumix power zoom or the 14-42.
In addition to a very bright and sharp rear LCD that tilts up and down, there is an EVF to the left rear that also tilts. The EVF has a diopter adjustment hidden on the bottom to adjust for your own eyesight. The EVF display is awesome with 2764K dot equivalency. It's bright and easy on the eyes, plus the eye detection system works fast and accurately.
Light in the store was, well it was crappy, so the available shutter speeds even at high ISO were relatively slow. I was very impressed by the in body stabilization because I typically cannot handhold a 300mm equivalent at 1/60s. Images on the screen were sharp and easy to check. Uploaded to Lightroom 5.2 the RAWs were read without problem and all the EXIF data came across. There are no lens profile corrections at this moment for the combinations I used, but in general the lenses I tried were very good. Colour balance was excellent even when switching lens brands. Autofocus is super fast. I was using my store test card, a 4GB Transcend piece of crap, and writing speed for RAW+JPEG was pretty slow. I do not blame the camera, I blame the junk card. When I get a long form test unit, I will use a proper card.
There is a built in transformer like articulating flash, but what is better and far more useful is the fully functional hot shoe. You can use Lumix TTL flashes of course, but I would be more inclined to use a Pocket Wizard to fire real strobes. The camera's small size makes it very fast to shoot.
The downside for me is that I have larger hands and while the body is very positively grippable, I found I was hitting the buttons and rocker with the base of my thumb when using the camera one handed. The LCD is a touch screen and because I shoot left eyed, I not only got nose prints on the LCD, I also managed to activate the touch screen. Not optimal. Since this was a first look, I did not read the documentation to see if the sensitivity is adjustable.
I love the image quality, think that the camera is extremely usable and the EVF is brilliant. I look forward to a longer term test but as it sits, after 20 minutes, I put the camera away and won't miss it. The right side strap lug could not be in a worse place. It interferes with the grip, it presses into your hand, and it makes using the camera awkward. Seriously if this were my camera, I would find a way to remove the lug entirely and use a Black Rapid or Cotton Carrier strap screwed into the tripod socket. It's such a good little camera that the discomfort of the stupid lug annoys me even to write about it.
If you have smaller hands, or less meaty hands and want a really superlative small, fast camera that has access to the pantheon of M4/3 lenses, take a look at the Lumix GX-7. I think you'll be impressed.
The sample images contained here are the original RAW files, imported to Lightroom and exported as 80% JPEGs, 72 DPI, sharpened for screen. No colour, WB or any other processing was done. You can see that the camera produces really nice images, no muss, no fuss.
Full specifications courtesy Panasonic
DMC-GX7
| TYPE | Type | Digital Single Lens Mirrorless camera | |||||||||
| Recording Media | SD Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card, SDXC Memory Card (Compatible with UHS-I standard SDHC / SDXC Memory Cards) | ||||||||||
| Image Sensor Size | 17.3 x 13.0 mm (in 4:3 aspect ratio) | ||||||||||
| Lens Mount | Micro Four Thirds mount | ||||||||||
| IMAGE SENSOR | Type | Live MOS Sensor | |||||||||
| Total Pixels | 16.84 Megapixels | ||||||||||
| Camera Effective Pixels | 16.00 Megapixels | ||||||||||
| Color Filter | Primary color filter | ||||||||||
| Dust Reduction System | Supersonic wave filter | ||||||||||
| IMAGE STABILIZATION SYSTEM | Image Stabilization System | Image Sensor Shift Type | |||||||||
| RECORDING SYSTEM | Recording File Format |
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| Aspect Ratio | 4:3, 3:2, 16:9, 1:1 | ||||||||||
| Image Quality | RAW, RAW+Fine, RAW+Standard, Fine, Standard MPO+Fine, MPO+Standard (When attaching 3D lens in Micro Four Thirds System standard) | ||||||||||
| Color Space | sRGB, Adobe RGB | ||||||||||
| File Size (Pixels) | Still Image | [4:3] 4,592 x 3,448 (L), 3,232 x 2,424 (M), 2,272 x 1,704 (S), 1,824 x 1,368 (When attaching 3D lens in Micro Four Thirds System standard) [3:2] 4,592 x 3,064 (L), 3,232 x 2,160 (M), 2,272 x 1,520 (S), 1,824 x 1,216 (When attaching 3D lens in Micro Four Thirds System standard) [16:9] 4,592 x 2,584 (L), 3,232 x 1,824(M), 1,920 x 1,080 (S), 1,824 x 1,024 (When attaching 3D lens in Micro Four Thirds System standard) [1:1] 3,424 x 3,424 (L), 2,416 x 2,416 (M), 1,712 x 1,712 (S), 1,712 x 1,712 (When attaching 3D lens in Micro Four Thirds System standard) | |||||||||
| Motion Image* | MP4 | NTSC Area | [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 60fps (sensor output is 60p, 28Mbps) [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 30fps (sensor output is 30p, 20Mbps) [HD] 1,280 x 720, 30fps (sensor output is 30p, 10Mbps) [VGA] 640 x 480, 30fps (sensor output is 30p, 4Mbps) | ||||||||
| PAL Area | [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 50fps (sensor output is 50p, 28Mbps) [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 25fps (sensor output is 25p, 20Mbps) [HD] 1,280 x 720, 25fps (sensor output is 25p, 10Mbps) [VGA] 640 x 480, 25fps (sensor output is 25p, 4Mbps) | ||||||||||
| AVCHD Progressive | NTSC Area | [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 60fps (sensor output is 60p, 28 Mbps) | |||||||||
| PAL Area | [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 50fps (sensor output is 50p, 28 Mbps) | ||||||||||
| AVCHD | NTSC Area | [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 60i (sensor output is 60p, 17Mbps) [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 60i (sensor output is 30p, 24Mbps) [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 24p (sensor output is 24p, 24Mbps) [HD] 1,280 x 720, 60p (sensor output is 60p, 17Mbps) | |||||||||
| PAL Area | [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 50i (sensor output is 50p, 17Mbps) [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 50i (sensor output is 25p, 24Mbps) [Full HD] 1,920 x 1,080, 24p (sensor output is 24p, 24Mbps) [HD] 1,280 x 720, 50p (sensor output is 50p, 17Mbps) | ||||||||||
| Continuous Recordable Time (Motion Image)* | AVCHD: Approx. 140 min with H-FS1442A / Approx. 130 min with H-H020A | ||||||||||
| Actual Recordable Time (Motion Image)* | AVCHD: Approx. 70 min with H-FS1442A / Approx. 65 min with H-H020A | ||||||||||
| Flicker Reduction | [1/50] [1/60] [1/100] [1/120] / OFF | ||||||||||
| Wi-Fi FUNCTION | Wi-Fi | IEEE 802.11b/g/n, 2412 MHz - 2462 MHz (11 ch), Wi-Fi / WPA / WPA2, Infrastructure mode | |||||||||
| NFC | ISO/IEC 18092, NFC-F (Passive Mode) | ||||||||||
| VIEWFINDER | Type | LCD Live View Finder (2,764,800 dots equivalent) | |||||||||
| Tilting | Yes | ||||||||||
| Field of View | Approx. 100% | ||||||||||
| Magnification | Approx. 1.39x / 0.7x (35 mm camera equivalent) with 50 mm lens at infinity; -1.0 m-1 | ||||||||||
| Eye Point | Approx. 17.5 mm from eyepiece lens | ||||||||||
| Diopter Adjustment | -4.0 - +3.0 (dpt) | ||||||||||
| Eye Sensor | Yes | ||||||||||
| Eye Sensor Adjustment | High / Low | ||||||||||
| FOCUS | Type | Contrast AF system | |||||||||
| Focus Mode | AFS (Single) / AFF (Flexible) / AFC (Continuous) / MF | ||||||||||
| AF Mode | Face detection / AF Tracking / 23-area-focusing / 1-area-focusing / Pinpoint | ||||||||||
| AF Detective Range | EV -4 - 18 (ISO100 equivalent) | ||||||||||
| AF Assist Lamp | YES | ||||||||||
| AF Lock | Set the Fn button in custom menu to AF lock | ||||||||||
| Others | Quick AF, Continuous AF (during motion image recording), AF+MF, Eye Sensor AF, Touch AF/AE Function, Touch Pad AF, Touch shutter, MF Assist, Touch MF Assist, One Shot AF | ||||||||||
| EXPOSURE CONTROL | Light Metering System | 1,728-zone multi-pattern sensing system | |||||||||
| Light Metering Mode | Multiple / Center Weighted / Spot | ||||||||||
| Metering Range | EV 0 - 18 (F2.0 lens, ISO100 equivalent) | ||||||||||
| Exposure Mode | Program AE / Aperture Priority AE / Shutter Priority AE / Manual | ||||||||||
| ISO Sensitivity (Standard Output Sensitivity) | Auto / Intelligent ISO / 125 (Extended) / 200 / 400 / 800 / 1600 / 3200 / 6400 / 12800 / 25600 (Changeable to 1/3 EV step) | ||||||||||
| Exposure Compensation | 1/3 EV Step, ±5 EV | ||||||||||
| AE Lock | Set the Fn button in custom menu to AE lock | ||||||||||
| AE Bracket | 3, 5, 7 frames, in 1/3, 2/3 or 1 EV Step, ±3 EV | ||||||||||
| WHITE BALANCE | White Balance | Auto / Daylight / Cloudy / Shade / Incandescent / Flash / White Set 1, 2 / Color temperature setting | |||||||||
| White Balance Adjustment | Blue/amber bias, Magenta/green bias | ||||||||||
| Color Temperature Setting | 2,500 K - 10,000 K in 100 K | ||||||||||
| White Balance Bracket | 3 exposures in blue/amber axis or in magenta/green axis | ||||||||||
| SHUTTER | Type | Focal-plane shutter | |||||||||
| Shutter Speed | Still Images: Bulb (Max. 120 seconds), 1/8,000 - 60 Motion Images: 1/16,000 - 1/25 (NTSC area / PAL area) | ||||||||||
| Self Timer | 10 sec, 3 images / 2 sec / 10 sec | ||||||||||
| SCENE GUIDE | Still Image | Clear Portrait / Silky Skin / Backlit Softness / Clear in Backlight / Relaxing Tone / Sweet Child's Face / Distinct Scenery / Bright Blue Sky / Romantic Sunset Glow / Vivid Sunset Glow / Glistening Water / Clear Nightscape / Cool Night Sky / Warm Glowing Nightscape / Artistic Nightscape / Glittering Illuminations / Clear Night Portrait / Soft Image of a Flower / Appetizing Food / Cute Dessert / Freeze Animal Motion / Clear Sports Shot / Monochrome / Panorama | |||||||||
| Motion Image | Clear Portrait / Silky Skin / Backlit Softness / Clear in Backlight / Relaxing Tone / Sweet Child's Face / Distinct Scenery / Bright Blue Sky / Romantic Sunset Glow / Vivid Sunset Glow / Clear Nightscape / Cool Night Sky / Warm Glowing Nightscape / Artistic Nightscape / Clear Night Portrait / Appetizing Food / Cute Dessert / Freeze Animal Motion / Clear Sports Shot / Monochrome | ||||||||||
| BURST SHOOTING | Burst Speed | Mechanical shutter: H: 5.0 frames/sec (with AFS), 4.3 frames/sec (with AFC, In 1-area-focusing AF mode), M: 4.0 frames/sec (with Live View), L: 2.0 frames/sec (with Live View) Electronic shutter: SH: 40.0 frames/sec, H: 10.0 frames/sec, M: 4.0 frames/sec (with Live View), L: 2.0 frames/sec (with Live View) | |||||||||
| Number of Recordable Images | 9 images (when there are RAW files with the particular speed) Unlimited consecutive shooting (when there are no RAW files) (depending on aspect ratio, memory card size, picture size, and the setting for the quality) | ||||||||||
| BUILT-IN-FLASH | Type | TTL Built-in-Flash, GN7.0 equivalent (ISO200 · m), GN5.0 equivalent (ISO100 · m), Built-in Pop-up | |||||||||
| Flash Mode | Auto, Auto / Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Forced On / Red-eye Reduction, Slow Sync., Slow Sync. / Red-eye Reduction, Forced Off | ||||||||||
| Synchronization Speed | Less than 1/320 second (Built-in Flash) Less than 1/250 second (External Flash) | ||||||||||
| Flash Synchronization | 1st Curtain Sync., 2nd Curtain Sync. | ||||||||||
| MONITOR | Type | Tilt static LCD with touch monitor | |||||||||
| Monitor Size | 3.0 inch (7.5 cm) / 3:2 Aspect / Wide-viewing angle | ||||||||||
| Pixels | Approx. 1,040K dots | ||||||||||
| Field of View | Approx. 100% | ||||||||||
| Monitor Adjustment | Brightness, Contrast and Saturation, Red tint, Blue tint | ||||||||||
| LIVE VIEW | Digital Zoom | 2x, 4x | |||||||||
| Extra Tele Conversion | Still Image: Max. 2x (Aspect ratio sets at 4:3. Not effective with L size recording. Magnification ratio depends on the recording pixels and aspect ratio.) Motion Image: 2.4x (FHD/60p, FHD/60i, FHD/30p, FHD/24p in NTSC area / FHD/50p, FHD/50i, FHD/25p, FHD/24p in PAL area), 3.6x (HD/60p, HD/30p in NTSC area / HD/50p, HD/25p in PAL area), 4.8x (VGA/30p in NTSC area / VGA/25p in PAL area) | ||||||||||
| Other Functions | Guide Lines (3 patterns) Real-time Histogram | ||||||||||
| LEVEL GAUGE | Yes | ||||||||||
| DIRECTION DETECTION FUNCTION | Yes | ||||||||||
| FUNCTION BUTTON | Fn1, Fn2, Fn3, Fn4, Fn5, Fn6, Fn7, Fn8, Fn9 | Wi-Fi / Q.MENU / LVF/Monitor Switch / AF/AE LOCK / AF-ON / One Push AE / Touch AE / Preview / Level Gauge / Focus Area Set / Zoom Control / Photo Style / Aspect Ratio / Picture Size / Quality / Metering Mode / Highlight Shadow / i. Dynamic / i. Resolution / HDR / Electronic Shutter / Flash Mode / Ex. Tele Conv. / Digital Zoom / Stabilizer / Motion Pic. Set / Picture Mode / Silent Mode / AFS/AFF/AFC / Peaking / Histogram / Guide Line / Rec Area / Step Zoom / Zoom Speed / Sensitivity / White Balance / AF Mode / Drive Mode / Restore to Default | |||||||||
| CREATIVE CONTROL | Still Image | Expressive / Retro / Old Days / High Key / Low Key / Sepia / Monochrome / Dynamic Monochrome / Rough Monochrome / Silky Monochrome / Impressive Art / High Dynamic / Cross Process / Toy Effect / Toy Pop / Bleach Bypass / Miniature Effect / Soft Focus / Fantasy / Star Filter / One Point Color / Sunshine | |||||||||
| Motion Image | Expressive / Retro / Old Days / High Key / Low Key / Sepia / Monochrome / Dynamic Monochrome / Impressive Art / High Dynamic / Cross Process / Toy Effect / Toy Pop / Bleach Bypass / Miniature Effect / Fantasy / One Point Color | ||||||||||
| CREATIVE VIDEO MODE | Exposure Mode | Program AE / Aperture-Priority / Sutter-Priority / Manual Exposure | |||||||||
| PHOTO STYLE | Still Image and Motion Image | Standard / Vivid / Natural / Monochrome / Scenery / Portrait / Custom | |||||||||
| PLAYBACK | Playback Mode | Normal playback, 30-thumbnail display, 12-thumbnail display, Calendar display, Zoomed playback (Max. 16x), Slideshow (duration & effect is selectable), Playback Mode (Normal / Picture / Video / 3D Play / Category / Favorite), Location Logging, Clear Retouch, Title Edit, Text Stamp, Video Divide, Time Lapse Video, Stop Motion Video, Resize, Cropping, Rotate, Favorite, Print Set, Protect, Face Recognition Edit | |||||||||
| IMAGE PROTECTION / ERASE | Protection | Single / Multi, Cancel | |||||||||
| Erase | Single / Multi / All / Except Favorite | ||||||||||
| Direct Print | PictBridge compatible | ||||||||||
| INTERFACE | USB | USB 2.0 High Speed Multi | |||||||||
| HDMI | mini HDMI TypeC / VIERA Link Video: Auto / 1080p / 1080i / 720p / 480p (576p in PAL system) Audio: Stereo | ||||||||||
| Audio Video Output | Monaural Type, NTSC / PAL, NTSC only for North America * Check the website of the Panasonic sales company in your country or region for details on the products that are available in your market. | ||||||||||
| Remote Input | φ2.5mm for remote | ||||||||||
| Microphone | Stereo | ||||||||||
| Speaker | Monaural | ||||||||||
| LANGUAGE | OSD Language | English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Russian, Chinese (Traditional), Chinese (Simplified), Dutch, Thai, Korean, Turkish, Portuguese, Arabic, Persian, Japanese, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Greek, Vietnamese * Check the website of Panasonic sales company in your country / region or ask customer support for details of the OSD language available on the products sold in your country / region. | |||||||||
| POWER | Battery | Li-ion Battery Pack (7.2V, 1,025mAh) (Included) Battery Charger | |||||||||
| Battery Life (CIPA Standard)** | Approx. 350 images with H-FS1442A Approx. 320 images with H-H020A | ||||||||||
| DIMENSIONS / WEIGHT | Dimensions (W x H x D) | 122.60 x 70.7 x 54.6 mm / 4.83 x 2.78 x 2.15 inch | |||||||||
| Weight | Approx. 402 g / 0.89 lb (SD card, Battery, Body) Approx. 360 g / 0.79 lb (Body only) Approx. 489 g / 1.08 lb (SD card, Battery, H-H020A lens included) Approx. 512 g / 1.13 oz (SD card, Battery, H-FS1442A lens included) | ||||||||||
| OPERATING ENVIRONMENT | Operating Temperature | 0 °C to 40 °C (32 °F to 104 °F) | |||||||||
| Operating Humidity | 10%RH to 80%RH | ||||||||||
