Picture profile settings on the GH1/2.
 

Do you guys shoot with the factory settings or do you adjust contrast, etc.? Do you use any of the various "looks", or just "standard" and color in post? I know people with the Canon DSLR's usually bring down some of the settings, so I was wondering if that's a good idea with this camera, too.

There are modes, "Cinema", "Dynamic", etc. on the GH2 that can change the 'looks' of the image some. And there are other settings, again in the GH2 that allow you to adjust contrast, saturation, etc.

Sometimes I and I imagine others, adjust video in post, sometimes not. What do I/the audience want as far as looks changes from project to project. In the end, there is no 'better', there's only what works best for you. Try shooting something that gives you lots of color and luminance range, something you can refer back to. Shoot with different settings and sse what you like. There are other GH1-2 discussions where people talk about "That setting is better for this..." and so on. Those can give you some pointers as well.

You can download a demo of Magic Bullet 'Looks' and try some of their presets as well. Lot of options, no one set of standards.

Yeah, I have Magic Bullet Looks already. I was just curious because I generally prefer to shoot flat and adjust in post, but I was sure I remember people saying on the 7D that you should lower the contrast and/or saturation for a better cleaner picture to edit later. Wasn't sure if there was a general consensus with the Panny.

I would think that is the consensus for any type of compressed video.

smooth...
 

I generally shoot in "smooth" mode with the contrast down one click. I like the image I get out of the camera that way, and I find it pretty easy to match up with my EX1 ( with cinema gamma 3 or 4 and black donw about -20).

Carlo Zanella
The Santa Fe TV Show

I've been reading up quite a bit, and it seems the consensus is Smooth is the way to go. I have everything but NR set to -2.

Another vote for "Smooth" if you plan to grade in post. Some like Cinema though.