D90 vs Lumix GH1 ??? at DVinfo.net

James Millward · September 30th, 2009, 11:35 AM

The EOS 7D will be far to expensive for me. Im not a pro, just a casual hobbyist who want to play around shooting with 35mm dof and doesnt want the hastle of adapters.

The Whilst the D90 has terrible rolling shutter, i can live with it, but the lack of manaul contorl bugs me.

I keep things simple, an dont require a huge number of features. If I was learning film making 'back in the day' I would have had a limited camera, I would have chosen a lens, a film stock (ie iso), and most likely shot at 24fps.

I dont need more than that really!! like I say, I keep it simple.

In the UK a D90 kit is £750. A Gh1 is £1150 so thats a £450 price difference.

The GH1 has full manuall control, but if I can loick the iso/shutter on the d90 i can use a manual app lens and stop up an down (at least as is my understanding).

How does the Dof of the GH1 compare to the D90?

Does the GH1 have rolling shuter issues?

What u reckon guys?

Thanks
James

Stephen Mick · September 30th, 2009, 11:41 AM

I can't speak to the D90, as I've never used it, but I really like the GH1. I used it off and on for a week in Costa Rica, and got some amazing stuff…

NYL: A Day on the Rio Parismina on Vimeo

In all of the shots I took, there were maybe two or three that had obvious rolling shutter issues, but I was fully-zoomed and handheld…the perfect storm. Manual controls worked perfectly and were really nice to have.

The GH1 passed my testing for sure.

--SM

Tony Davies-Patrick · September 30th, 2009, 02:09 PM

I really liked the footage, Stephen, and very impressed at the smooth GH1 footage, especially during the waves (when compared to a lot of shakey handheld 5D clips posted lately).

I'm not so keen on the hard corner vignetting during the tarpon jumps, though.

The only thing missing from the "Day on the Rio Parismina" for me was 'sound'...at certain stages during the action it just screamed out for the noise of the spinning reel, the line being stripped, the tarpon crashing through the waves...and the soft sounds of the water combined with the laughter and thrill from the anglers.

David W. Jones · September 30th, 2009, 02:41 PM

I shot with the D90 but was not impressed. I bought an EOS 5DII, which was great for stills but so so for video so I sold it. I now own a GH1 which is much better than the D90 & 5DII for video. I will also purchase a EOS 7D when available.

For what its worth, the 7D body & the GH1 Kit are about the same price.

John Wyatt · October 24th, 2009, 05:19 AM

Stephen -- great footage; nice example of what's possible with these little cameras. I've been shooting with a GH1 for several months (nothing as nice as your footage though!) but I can see the difference compared to my previous HDV video (has a more mature look and highlights don't seem burnt out, plus the shallow DoF option). Thanks for posting your film.

Bruce Foreman · October 25th, 2009, 12:42 PM

James,

If you haven't made a decision yet take a serious look at the Canon T1i (Rebel 500D). Although video is full auto only (as designed by Canon) there are some workarounds. You can set aperture manually using the "unlock and twist" method, and you can effect some control over shutter with a set of inexpensive ND filters. I use .6 and .9 for 2 and 3 stops reduction respectively. Stack them together and you have 5 stops reduction.

The "kit" lens, while not one of the best is not a bad starter, and a 50mm F1.8 lens sells for around $100 here in the US and is a tremendous value both as a sharp portrait length/perspective lens but also for great DOF control.

And I have no "rolling shutter" issues with anything I've done with it including video from moving vehicle.

If you have'nt seen this video yet check out this short thread on shallow DOF with the T1i:

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/photo-hd...ef-s-lens.html

I also have a 7D but chose to keep the T1i.

Marcus Martell · December 22nd, 2009, 06:50 AM

Hola, i "rented" a D90 from my dad...but unfortunately i m disappointed for not having the chance to shoot in full HD. So my thought are to buy a DSLR camera next year to achieve full hd images; now i ask: Is Nikon planning to make something really competitive to the 5dmkII?
What about i f i buy a Panasonic GH1, should i use which lenses?Does it shoot in full HD ?

thx and sorry for my newbieness as i m a rookie in the CAMERA WORLD.thx

Joe Ogiba · December 28th, 2009, 08:50 PM

The GH1 does 1080p.
http://www.panasonic.com/consumer_el...Spec_Sheet.pdf

Steve Renouf · December 31st, 2009, 11:48 AM

Unless I'm mis-reading the spec sheet, it actually says 720p - not 1080p.

Paulo Teixeira · December 31st, 2009, 08:39 PM

It does 720 60p in AVCHD, 720 30p in MJPEG and 1080 24p. The GH1 wouldn't have been so popular if it didn't do 1080 24p. You still have to remove pull-down.

Perrone Ford · December 31st, 2009, 09:04 PM

Paulo,

Are you SURE the GH1 doesn't do 1080 in AVCHD and 720/60p in Mjpeg? I think you have those reversed.

Paulo Teixeira · January 1st, 2010, 12:56 AM

I've had the GH1 since July and it does 720 60p in AVCHD although I notice that I didn't finish my sentence when I wrote "and 1080 24p". I should have said "and 1080 24p in AVCHD"

Perrone Ford · January 1st, 2010, 01:52 AM

Ahhhh! That's what threw me off. I was pretty sure someone had tossed me some GH1 1080 footage to remove pulldown.

Thanks for clearing that up.

Graham Hickling · January 2nd, 2010, 12:40 AM

If you are seriously considering the D90 you should at least glance at the Pentax K-x. It's cheaper, has better low-light performance, has manual aperture available for video, and allows all exposure settings (aperture, shutter and ISO) to be locked during video recording.

Marcus Martell · January 3rd, 2010, 04:43 PM

Will nikon on 2010 come up with some true Full hd 1080p camera?
how much does the panasonic cost?

September 30th, 2009, 11:35 AM	#1
James Millward Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: England Posts: 53	D90 vs Lumix GH1 ??? The EOS 7D will be far to expensive for me. Im not a pro, just a casual hobbyist who want to play around shooting with 35mm dof and doesnt want the hastle of adapters. The Whilst the D90 has terrible rolling shutter, i can live with it, but the lack of manaul contorl bugs me. I keep things simple, an dont require a huge number of features. If I was learning film making 'back in the day' I would have had a limited camera, I would have chosen a lens, a film stock (ie iso), and most likely shot at 24fps. I dont need more than that really!! like I say, I keep it simple. In the UK a D90 kit is £750. A Gh1 is £1150 so thats a £450 price difference. The GH1 has full manuall control, but if I can loick the iso/shutter on the d90 i can use a manual app lens and stop up an down (at least as is my understanding). How does the Dof of the GH1 compare to the D90? Does the GH1 have rolling shuter issues? What u reckon guys? Thanks James

September 30th, 2009, 11:41 AM	#2
Stephen Mick Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 167	Gh1 I can't speak to the D90, as I've never used it, but I really like the GH1. I used it off and on for a week in Costa Rica, and got some amazing stuff… NYL: A Day on the Rio Parismina on Vimeo In all of the shots I took, there were maybe two or three that had obvious rolling shutter issues, but I was fully-zoomed and handheld…the perfect storm. Manual controls worked perfectly and were really nice to have. The GH1 passed my testing for sure. --SM

September 30th, 2009, 02:09 PM	#3
Tony Davies-Patrick Trustee Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Worldwide Posts: 1,589	I really liked the footage, Stephen, and very impressed at the smooth GH1 footage, especially during the waves (when compared to a lot of shakey handheld 5D clips posted lately). I'm not so keen on the hard corner vignetting during the tarpon jumps, though. The only thing missing from the "Day on the Rio Parismina" for me was 'sound'...at certain stages during the action it just screamed out for the noise of the spinning reel, the line being stripped, the tarpon crashing through the waves...and the soft sounds of the water combined with the laughter and thrill from the anglers. __________________ www.WILDCARP.com www.NIKON.me.uk

October 25th, 2009, 12:42 PM	#6
Bruce Foreman Trustee Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: San Angelo Texas Posts: 1,518	James, If you haven't made a decision yet take a serious look at the Canon T1i (Rebel 500D). Although video is full auto only (as designed by Canon) there are some workarounds. You can set aperture manually using the "unlock and twist" method, and you can effect some control over shutter with a set of inexpensive ND filters. I use .6 and .9 for 2 and 3 stops reduction respectively. Stack them together and you have 5 stops reduction. The "kit" lens, while not one of the best is not a bad starter, and a 50mm F1.8 lens sells for around $100 here in the US and is a tremendous value both as a sharp portrait length/perspective lens but also for great DOF control. And I have no "rolling shutter" issues with anything I've done with it including video from moving vehicle. If you have'nt seen this video yet check out this short thread on shallow DOF with the T1i: http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/photo-hd...ef-s-lens.html I also have a 7D but chose to keep the T1i. Last edited by Bruce Foreman; October 25th, 2009 at 05:23 PM.

December 31st, 2009, 08:39 PM	#10
Paulo Teixeira Trustee Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 1,773	It does 720 60p in AVCHD, 720 30p in MJPEG and 1080 24p. The GH1 wouldn't have been so popular if it didn't do 1080 24p. You still have to remove pull-down. __________________ https://www.youtube.com/user/PhotoVi...esEtc/featured https://www.pond5.com/artist/paulot

September 30th, 2009, 02:41 PM	#4
David W. Jones Trustee Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Little Rock Posts: 1,383	I shot with the D90 but was not impressed. I bought an EOS 5DII, which was great for stills but so so for video so I sold it. I now own a GH1 which is much better than the D90 & 5DII for video. I will also purchase a EOS 7D when available. For what its worth, the 7D body & the GH1 Kit are about the same price.

October 24th, 2009, 05:19 AM	#5
John Wyatt Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: West Country, UK Posts: 141	Stephen -- great footage; nice example of what's possible with these little cameras. I've been shooting with a GH1 for several months (nothing as nice as your footage though!) but I can see the difference compared to my previous HDV video (has a more mature look and highlights don't seem burnt out, plus the shallow DoF option). Thanks for posting your film.

December 22nd, 2009, 06:50 AM	#7
Marcus Martell Trustee Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: spain Posts: 1,202	Hola, i "rented" a D90 from my dad...but unfortunately i m disappointed for not having the chance to shoot in full HD. So my thought are to buy a DSLR camera next year to achieve full hd images; now i ask: Is Nikon planning to make something really competitive to the 5dmkII? What about i f i buy a Panasonic GH1, should i use which lenses?Does it shoot in full HD ? thx and sorry for my newbieness as i m a rookie in the CAMERA WORLD.thx

December 28th, 2009, 08:50 PM	#8
Joe Ogiba Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Millstone,NJ Posts: 194	The GH1 does 1080p. http://www.panasonic.com/consumer_el...Spec_Sheet.pdf

December 31st, 2009, 11:48 AM	#9
Steve Renouf Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Jersey, GB Posts: 182	Unless I'm mis-reading the spec sheet, it actually says 720p - not 1080p.

December 31st, 2009, 09:04 PM	#11
Perrone Ford Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Tallahassee, FL Posts: 4,100	Paulo, Are you SURE the GH1 doesn't do 1080 in AVCHD and 720/60p in Mjpeg? I think you have those reversed. __________________ DVX100, PMW-EX1, Canon 550D, FigRig, Dell Octocore, Avid MC4/5, MB Looks, RedCineX, Matrox MX02 mini, GTech RAID, Edirol R-4, Senn. G2 Evo, Countryman, Moles and Lowels.

January 1st, 2010, 12:56 AM	#12
Paulo Teixeira Trustee Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 1,773	I've had the GH1 since July and it does 720 60p in AVCHD although I notice that I didn't finish my sentence when I wrote "and 1080 24p". I should have said "and 1080 24p in AVCHD" __________________ https://www.youtube.com/user/PhotoVi...esEtc/featured https://www.pond5.com/artist/paulot

January 1st, 2010, 01:52 AM	#13
Perrone Ford Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Tallahassee, FL Posts: 4,100	Ahhhh! That's what threw me off. I was pretty sure someone had tossed me some GH1 1080 footage to remove pulldown. Thanks for clearing that up. __________________ DVX100, PMW-EX1, Canon 550D, FigRig, Dell Octocore, Avid MC4/5, MB Looks, RedCineX, Matrox MX02 mini, GTech RAID, Edirol R-4, Senn. G2 Evo, Countryman, Moles and Lowels.

January 2nd, 2010, 12:40 AM	#14
Graham Hickling Trustee Join Date: May 2004 Location: Knoxville, Tennessee Posts: 1,669	If you are seriously considering the D90 you should at least glance at the Pentax K-x. It's cheaper, has better low-light performance, has manual aperture available for video, and allows all exposure settings (aperture, shutter and ISO) to be locked during video recording.

January 3rd, 2010, 04:43 PM	#15
Marcus Martell Trustee Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: spain Posts: 1,202	Will nikon on 2010 come up with some true Full hd 1080p camera? how much does the panasonic cost?