Serious, MAJOR GH2 Shortcoming

Zhong Cheung · April 18th, 2011, 10:57 PM

Nigel,

I just read posts about how unusable a lot of the GH2 footage was because of poor focus (by Jeff Harper), so I was trying to figure out why it was so hard to focus for him and I guess I should reclarify...

I was asking if focusing ease was easier or harder on the GH2 when compared ot the Canon 60D or similar Canon DSLRs. But I suspect Jeff is coming from a real video background, so he would likely have had the same focusing issues with a Canon 60D as the ones he faced using his GH2.

So to confirm: the GH2 has continuous AF that stays on even after the recording button is pressed? Which lens allow the GH2 to use continuous AF in video mode? Only the kit lens?

I also read something about the Follow Focus feature on the GH2 being disable in the firmware to protect the AG-100...is this true?

William Hohauser · April 19th, 2011, 09:20 AM

Follow focus works fine on the GH2. The continuous focus function works with the two standard kit lenses and with the 20mm pancake partially. With ample light the face focus finder works great but once the camera loses the features due to shadows it can go batty.

Mike McKay · April 19th, 2011, 01:40 PM

I find the video auto focus features of GH2 pretty underwhelming. Basically it works ok in very good light, (with small aperture) but even in an average lit room, it hunts all the time. I would never use it for any kind of paying job, wedding or otherwise. You just have to learn manual focus....period. Some kind of external monitor is a must for critical focus. Still haven't figured out how to setup a rig for that, but probably some kind of shoulder rig etc.
My eyesight is very good, and I can just barely get away with using the lcd for many shots where I can practice a focus pull. The EVF is much better...if you're in a position where you can use it...hunched over etc.
That's my $0.02 on focus.

Brian Luce · April 19th, 2011, 08:01 PM

the key thing I've found with AF is that it is annoying in standbye, but once you hit record, it's pretty good, just hit the shutter button halfway and it will refocus quickly in poor light even.

Jim Snow · April 20th, 2011, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brian Luce

the key thing I've found with AF is that it is annoying in standbye, but once you hit record, it's pretty good, just hit the shutter button halfway and it will refocus quickly in poor light even.

It was funny and humiliating the first time I tried to demo AF to some friends on my GH2. I tried to show AF tracking while the camera was in standby and it didn't work right. Fortunately one of my friends pointed out a few days later that it isn't intuitive that the camera needs to be recording for AF to work properly. It's too bad the poor manual needlessly complicates the learning curve on the GH2.

Zhong Cheung · April 20th, 2011, 09:47 PM

However, the AF only works with the two kit lenses and partially with the pancake lens? I find the kit lenses to be far too slow, so I wouldn't use them...does that mean I'm effectively throwing away the GH2's AF abilities?

And what do people mean by partially working for the pancake lens?

Brian Luce · April 20th, 2011, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zhong Cheung

However, the AF only works with the two kit lenses and partially with the pancake lens? I find the kit lenses to be far too slow, so I wouldn't use them...does that mean I'm effectively throwing away the GH2's AF abilities?

No, not true, I have the Olympus 14-55 f2.8 and AF works well. I'm sure there are plenty of others too.

Nigel Barker · April 20th, 2011, 11:18 PM

Jeff Harper · April 21st, 2011, 05:31 AM

Zhong, my unsable footage was the result of walking around with the camera and trying to keep it steady, not focus, but focusing is certainly an issue for many of us being new to the camera.

This discussion is meant to be a thread of issues for those of us that already have the camera, we're not trying to sell the camera or discourage others from buying the camera.

All features don't work with the 20mm, but it is the single most versatile fast lens made for the camera and has the most uses. If there were a single lens I had to choose, it would be the 20mm.

Others around here would prefer the 14-140mm or 14-45, but I personally would never trade my pancake lens for anything.

April 18th, 2011, 10:57 PM	#91
Zhong Cheung Major Player Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: North Hollywood, CA Posts: 202	Re: Serious, MAJOR GH2 Shortcoming Nigel, I just read posts about how unusable a lot of the GH2 footage was because of poor focus (by Jeff Harper), so I was trying to figure out why it was so hard to focus for him and I guess I should reclarify... I was asking if focusing ease was easier or harder on the GH2 when compared ot the Canon 60D or similar Canon DSLRs. But I suspect Jeff is coming from a real video background, so he would likely have had the same focusing issues with a Canon 60D as the ones he faced using his GH2. So to confirm: the GH2 has continuous AF that stays on even after the recording button is pressed? Which lens allow the GH2 to use continuous AF in video mode? Only the kit lens? I also read something about the Follow Focus feature on the GH2 being disable in the firmware to protect the AG-100...is this true?

April 19th, 2011, 09:20 AM	#92
William Hohauser Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: New York City Posts: 2,650	Re: Serious, MAJOR GH2 Shortcoming Follow focus works fine on the GH2. The continuous focus function works with the two standard kit lenses and with the 20mm pancake partially. With ample light the face focus finder works great but once the camera loses the features due to shadows it can go batty. __________________ William Hohauser - New York City Producer/Edit/Camera/Animation

April 19th, 2011, 01:40 PM	#93
Mike McKay Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Vancouver Posts: 125	Re: Serious, MAJOR GH2 Shortcoming I find the video auto focus features of GH2 pretty underwhelming. Basically it works ok in very good light, (with small aperture) but even in an average lit room, it hunts all the time. I would never use it for any kind of paying job, wedding or otherwise. You just have to learn manual focus....period. Some kind of external monitor is a must for critical focus. Still haven't figured out how to setup a rig for that, but probably some kind of shoulder rig etc. My eyesight is very good, and I can just barely get away with using the lcd for many shots where I can practice a focus pull. The EVF is much better...if you're in a position where you can use it...hunched over etc. That's my $0.02 on focus.

April 19th, 2011, 08:01 PM	#94
Brian Luce Inner Circle Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 2,290	Re: Serious, MAJOR GH2 Shortcoming the key thing I've found with AF is that it is annoying in standbye, but once you hit record, it's pretty good, just hit the shutter button halfway and it will refocus quickly in poor light even.

April 20th, 2011, 09:47 PM	#96
Zhong Cheung Major Player Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: North Hollywood, CA Posts: 202	Re: Serious, MAJOR GH2 Shortcoming However, the AF only works with the two kit lenses and partially with the pancake lens? I find the kit lenses to be far too slow, so I wouldn't use them...does that mean I'm effectively throwing away the GH2's AF abilities? And what do people mean by partially working for the pancake lens?

April 20th, 2011, 11:18 PM	#98
Nigel Barker Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Norwich, Norfolk, UK Posts: 3,531	Re: Serious, MAJOR GH2 Shortcoming Here is the definitive list from Panasonic of which lenses do what Compatibilities of DMC-GH2 \| Compatibility \| Digital Camera \| Product Support \| Support \| Panasonic Global

April 21st, 2011, 05:31 AM	#99
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Re: Serious, MAJOR GH2 Shortcoming Zhong, my unsable footage was the result of walking around with the camera and trying to keep it steady, not focus, but focusing is certainly an issue for many of us being new to the camera. This discussion is meant to be a thread of issues for those of us that already have the camera, we're not trying to sell the camera or discourage others from buying the camera. All features don't work with the 20mm, but it is the single most versatile fast lens made for the camera and has the most uses. If there were a single lens I had to choose, it would be the 20mm. Others around here would prefer the 14-140mm or 14-45, but I personally would never trade my pancake lens for anything. __________________ "The horror of what I saw on the timeline cannot be described." Last edited by Jeff Harper; April 21st, 2011 at 06:10 AM.