I find it incredible that the EX Tele function is not available when working with an external monitor. I lose so much functionality when working with my lenses- how come Panasonic didn't fix that in the 1.1 firmware update..?
Here you have a great function and it is useless if you want to use it with an external monitor... incomprehensible...

Focus Assist doesn't work either. Possibly too much processor work to output to a monitor and keep these functions.

I find it much more disappointing that an external monitor will not work in 60i or 720 60p.

For an additional $3,500 the Panasonic AF100 will solve all these issues. How much can we expect from a camera body which costs less than most external monitors?

My reasoning is that the HDMI output is a waste of a feature. For Panasonic to include the feature for use with 24p frame rate only, and more importantly not to list this in the specs in advertising is a real pisser. How many have purchased monitors to find they will not work in 60i or 720p? At least three people on this forum, including myself, have experienced this disappointment. It's not an unreasonable expectation, and it's not readily available information, which is even more irritating.

ETC is of limited use to begin with, and it is strange you cannot use focus assist, but to not be able to use a monitor in the most common frame rate of even 60i makes no sense to me.

There may be technical challenges or it was deliberately crippled and that's fine but their should be a an asterisk in the specs such as: HDMI out feature (available in 24p recording mode).

Call me crazy, but in my thinking it was not unreasonable when I purchased a monitor to think that what I got on my LCD would be available on the monitor.

Truth is very few GH2 users even use the HDMI feature, probably less than 1%, so the whole deal was likely an afterthought for Panasonic anyway.

I was quite upset that they didn't fix the etc and 720p monitor issue in the firmware update. Very lame.

The difficulty of using the miniHDMI port on the camera in action situations is frustrating as it will disconnect without the cable falling out. I use it when shooting tripod interviews plus it's useful to playback footage for the client. Other than that, the camera is much easier to use without the HDMI attached.

My reasoning is that the HDMI output is a waste of a feature. For Panasonic to include the feature for use with 24p frame rate only, and more importantly not to list this in the specs in advertising is a real pisser.

Jeff.....am I mis-understanding what you are saying here??? I shoot in 1080/60. I use a sony monitor. Are you saying that it should not work or that the output to the monitor isn't the same as what I am shooting???

Mark

Mark, it will only work when you shoot in 24p, period. Stinks, doesn't it?

I suspect the reason Panasonic put a HDMI port on the camera is so the average consumer can plug it into thier HD tv and watch what they have recorded.

Gordon

Gordon, since it is a consumer cam, you are undoubtedly correct, and your comment makes sense. In other words, we're lucky a monitor works at all!

Mark, it will only work when you shoot in 24p, period. Stinks, doesn't it?

Maybe I'm missing something here. I shoot 1080/60 and HDMI out works fine. Do it almost every day????

Mark

HDMI might work, but it won't send signal to a monitor.

Right Patrick. Mark, we're talking about using HDMI with an external monitor while recording, so we can see what we are shooting as it's shot, not viewing footage that we've recorded previously.

Then I must have a different camera than everyone else (or I still don't understand what ya'll are talking about).

I use a sony monitor while shooting(recording) every day. I shoot in 1080/60.
Now if you are talking about it not working with ETC....then no....that doesn't work for me.

The manual, I believe spells out that it will only work in 24p, I could not get an image in 720p mode on the monitor, and neither could a handful of others here. I only found out by trying to use the monitor, as others have tried. I bought a Sony monitor and sold it a week later, after trying everything I knew to try to make it work.

So you are not shooting in 24P and your monitor works while recording? You are lucky indeed.