Pierre Beranek
February 6th, 2015, 12:49 PM
It's always fun to speculate on what's coming next, so here are some of the things that I really hope to see in the GH5:
1. Relocation of the Playback button to the right side of the body for single hand access (or at least allow the function to be mapped the Fn buttons)
2. Relocation of the headphone port to the AV OUT/DIGITAL port, or to the location of the flash remote port so that the LCD can be angled in any position, unhindered, while using earphones
3. Independent auto audio gain and manual control for each audio channel, Left and Right. I use a tiny channel splitter (Nexxtech Audio Separation Adapter | Other Cables & Accessories | Ratings & Reviews | TheSource.ca (http://www.thesource.ca/estore/product.aspx?language=en-CA&product=2740396)) to record 2 audio sources simultaneously and it works great, except when 1 of the 2 sources suddenly gets loud and my GH4 auto compensates on both the L and R channels instead of just the channel in question. For example, when recording live performances, I set the L channel to my wireless transmitter to record the music directly off the soundboard, and the R channel to my mini shotgun for ambiance (audience cheering, etc). If the audience suddenly bursts out in applause or someone shouts during a performance, my GH4 correctly compensates for the audio surge in the R channel, but unfortunately also dips the level of the L channel, resulting in an unwanted dip in the recorded music. Fixing this, advertising the new functionality and perhaps even providing a mini adapter in the box (or selling one separately) would set the GH5 as the first photo camera to allow proper recording of 2 separate audio channels!
4. 4k at 60fps
5. Ability to toggle the "Ex. Tele Conv." function on/off while recording. This would allow users to zoom in to a performance, for example, without breaking the recording of audio or sync with other cameras.
6. Intelligent flash pop-up button that doubles as a flash control when pressed again after the flash is already deployed. For example, pressing the button again could bring up the 'Flash Adjust.' settings
7. Option for Auto Electronic Shutter Off when flash is deployed. To save my shutter, I set my Electronic Shutter to 'on' for doing time-lapse photography. Unfortunately, it's a real pain to be unable to quickly take a flash photo on a whim because of this, requiring the user to find the 'Electronic Shutter' option in the menus and turn it off before the flash can fire. An intelligent auto setting would be extremely useful, whereby Electronic Shutter is automatically and temporarily set to 'off' while the flash is deployed!
8. 16MP sensor. Please don't add more pixels at the expense of low light performance! 16MP is the perfect balance of resolution (allowing 1:1 4k recording) and pixel size.
9. Custom Menu. Please add a custom menu tab to the menu, where users can add and sort any of their most commonly used menu items. The GH4 is all the better for having so many configurable menu settings, but this comes at the cost of difficulty to remember to location of specific items. Allowing users to bundle their most used settings in a single custom menu would be incredibly useful!
10. Relocate 'DISP.' button to avoid inadvertent presses. I can't remember how many times I've changed my display mode by accident while tightly gripping my GH4. This is a real pain! Please fix this problem by either: relocating the button (perhaps to the current location of the Playback button) or allowing the button to be disabled in the menu settings.
11. User selectable display settings. If a user only ever wants to toggle between 2 display settings, for example, why force them to toggle through all 5 options every time? A simple solution would be to allow users to turn unwanted display settings off in a new menu option.
12. Larger 3.5" LCD, or at least 3.2". Not sure if 3.5" could fit inside the current flip-out enclosure, but it sure would be nice.
I copied the text above from an email I sent to Panasonic's Senior Engineer, Mr. Robert Kozlarek. If you agree with any of the suggestions above, our only hope of seeing them is to speak up and let Panasonic hear us by contacting them. Mr. Kozlarek's response to several of the points I requested in past emails was that too few people are making the same requests for consideration. That doesn't mean these improvements aren't needed. It just means most users are too complacent and not vocal enough to bring issues to Panasonic's attention. Please do your part and let Panasonic know what you want to see in the upcoming GH5!
Agree? Disagree? See something missing in this list? Please share!
1. Relocation of the Playback button to the right side of the body for single hand access (or at least allow the function to be mapped the Fn buttons)
2. Relocation of the headphone port to the AV OUT/DIGITAL port, or to the location of the flash remote port so that the LCD can be angled in any position, unhindered, while using earphones
3. Independent auto audio gain and manual control for each audio channel, Left and Right. I use a tiny channel splitter (Nexxtech Audio Separation Adapter | Other Cables & Accessories | Ratings & Reviews | TheSource.ca (http://www.thesource.ca/estore/product.aspx?language=en-CA&product=2740396)) to record 2 audio sources simultaneously and it works great, except when 1 of the 2 sources suddenly gets loud and my GH4 auto compensates on both the L and R channels instead of just the channel in question. For example, when recording live performances, I set the L channel to my wireless transmitter to record the music directly off the soundboard, and the R channel to my mini shotgun for ambiance (audience cheering, etc). If the audience suddenly bursts out in applause or someone shouts during a performance, my GH4 correctly compensates for the audio surge in the R channel, but unfortunately also dips the level of the L channel, resulting in an unwanted dip in the recorded music. Fixing this, advertising the new functionality and perhaps even providing a mini adapter in the box (or selling one separately) would set the GH5 as the first photo camera to allow proper recording of 2 separate audio channels!
4. 4k at 60fps
5. Ability to toggle the "Ex. Tele Conv." function on/off while recording. This would allow users to zoom in to a performance, for example, without breaking the recording of audio or sync with other cameras.
6. Intelligent flash pop-up button that doubles as a flash control when pressed again after the flash is already deployed. For example, pressing the button again could bring up the 'Flash Adjust.' settings
7. Option for Auto Electronic Shutter Off when flash is deployed. To save my shutter, I set my Electronic Shutter to 'on' for doing time-lapse photography. Unfortunately, it's a real pain to be unable to quickly take a flash photo on a whim because of this, requiring the user to find the 'Electronic Shutter' option in the menus and turn it off before the flash can fire. An intelligent auto setting would be extremely useful, whereby Electronic Shutter is automatically and temporarily set to 'off' while the flash is deployed!
8. 16MP sensor. Please don't add more pixels at the expense of low light performance! 16MP is the perfect balance of resolution (allowing 1:1 4k recording) and pixel size.
9. Custom Menu. Please add a custom menu tab to the menu, where users can add and sort any of their most commonly used menu items. The GH4 is all the better for having so many configurable menu settings, but this comes at the cost of difficulty to remember to location of specific items. Allowing users to bundle their most used settings in a single custom menu would be incredibly useful!
10. Relocate 'DISP.' button to avoid inadvertent presses. I can't remember how many times I've changed my display mode by accident while tightly gripping my GH4. This is a real pain! Please fix this problem by either: relocating the button (perhaps to the current location of the Playback button) or allowing the button to be disabled in the menu settings.
11. User selectable display settings. If a user only ever wants to toggle between 2 display settings, for example, why force them to toggle through all 5 options every time? A simple solution would be to allow users to turn unwanted display settings off in a new menu option.
12. Larger 3.5" LCD, or at least 3.2". Not sure if 3.5" could fit inside the current flip-out enclosure, but it sure would be nice.
I copied the text above from an email I sent to Panasonic's Senior Engineer, Mr. Robert Kozlarek. If you agree with any of the suggestions above, our only hope of seeing them is to speak up and let Panasonic hear us by contacting them. Mr. Kozlarek's response to several of the points I requested in past emails was that too few people are making the same requests for consideration. That doesn't mean these improvements aren't needed. It just means most users are too complacent and not vocal enough to bring issues to Panasonic's attention. Please do your part and let Panasonic know what you want to see in the upcoming GH5!
Agree? Disagree? See something missing in this list? Please share!