Panasonic LUMIX GH4 Body 4K Mirrorless Camera, 16 Megapixels, 3 Inch Touch LCD, DMC-GH4KBODY (USA Black)

Housekeeping/Bias/Reviewer HistoryFirst off, I am most interested in video and short films. I am also into photography, and have shot with Nikons and Canons, but have always preferred Panasonic for video (No record length limit is critical for events). Canon video is nice, owing mainly to sensor size, but I've always felt all the way back to the GH1 that Panasonic video was superior, though I felt the stills capabilities were drastically unimpressive. The GH2 was a massive improvement for video, and a small still upgrade, but still nowhere near a Nikon or Canon. I skipped the GH3 because the video of the GH2 was so good I really didn't see a need to upgrade. I've been missing a good stills camera, and though I have always preferred Nikon, their late tendency to increase MP size has left me incredibly unimpressed with ISO performance. Canon's tendency to keep MP constant with new generations of sensors is REALLY attractive, because that means the ISO performance and noise is getting better (One can either make smaller pixels with less sensitivity or keep the pixel count steady and increase the sensitivity). I was set to buy a Canon 6D when I heard rumblings of the GH4. I waited, and everything seemed to be pointing to leaps and bounds in performance... new engine, same MP count, etc. I'm VERY glad I did.The Body/Control LayoutHaving not had a GH3, I'm not sure of the changes, but over the GH2, it's an incredible difference. It IS a little larger, in all three dimensions, but the weight is not noticeable. It's noted as "splashproof"... a claim I have no intention of testing, but I do like the ergonomics better. One of the BEST improvements of the GH4 is the layouts. I'm used to having buttons (from the Pro Nikon and Canon worlds), but on the GH1 and 2, there was only one forward dial, and it required a button push to switch from SS to A settings. This is remedied. There is a FORWARD dial, a REAR dial and an additional wheel dial on the control pad by the LCD. There are BUTTONS for ISO, WB, Exposure Compensation. While these might sound like non-issues, The control layout is EXCELLENT. I recently had to shoot with a Nikon D5200 and I couldn't believe how piss-poor the layout was for the dials. OOPS, DIAL, singular. It made the shooting experience miserable and I couldn't believe THIS was a NIKON and how far the mighty had fallen. I was shocked at having pulled the GH4 out and shot a few simple test pictures. The quality of the stills are a massive improvement over the 1 and 2... does it compete with a Canon 6D? Doubtful, but they are good enough I'm not worrying about getting a 6D anymore...The LCDMuch has been made of Panasonic DOUBLING the resolution of the LCD. It seem like a small thing, but it really is a gorgeous screen. When you add in some of the touch features and how responsive they are, I no longer miss having a through the lens system instead of an LCD viewfinder. I HATED it in the GH1 and 2, and was a major reason I despised the Pannies for stills. The touchscreen functionality is incredibly responsive too, and when you are in focus, you are IN focus... it's razor sharp and the additional features really take advantage.VideoWow. I haven't tried 4K, but let's be absolutely clear about this: VFR is CLEARLY going to become an overused function in the future. Why? Because it is GORGEOUS in this camera. GORGEOUS. Here are the breakdowns of available modes:AVCHD:24Mbit/30p: 2, 15, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 45, 6024Mbit/24p: 2, 12, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 36, 48, 60MP4 or MOV:100Mbit/30p: 2, 15, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 45, 60, 75, 90, 96100Mbit/24p: 2, 12, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 36, 48, 60, 72, 84, !!!96!!!Personally, I do not understand why anyone would choose to shoot in anything but 24fps... but I am a filmmaker at heart. I don't shoot sports. I want everything to look as much like a film as possible. Having said that, following the 180shutter rule as closely as you can and shooting in 96fps MP424fps is GLORIOUS. What's more is the fact that it is instantaneous. You set the VFR, you record the footage (it will tell you "25%" on the viewfinder), you hit record, you stop recording, you hit play and you get to see unbelievably high quality sharp, full 1080 HD slow motion. It's incredible. Slower Frame Rates (Time Lapse) will require some time to compose the image, but Slow Motion is instant, Crisp, Fluid, and incredibly impressive.The rest of the video is also improved. It's actually mindblowing how good it looks, but the VFR is reason enough to buy this camera. It's a gamechanger for anyone who shoots anything. This is the NUMBER ONE reason to buy this camera, I'd argue a bigger advance than the 4K. As impressive as the ability to shoot 4K is, there are other cameras on the market (albeit at a higher price point) that shoot 4K. Slow motion of this quality is an incredibly useful tool. Note that you can't use the VFR in the 200Mbit settings. This is not even approaching the reasonable limits of a downside. 100Mbit at this quality is incredible.ToolsThere are a variety of features that deeply improve the shooting experience. Focus peaking is brilliantly used, and it also makes the LCD sharpness that much more apparent. Zebra Levels are also available in all modes. Hitting the display button will toggle through modes of the LCD, including a built in tilt and level sensor. Manual focus assist is also massively improved, allowing you to select the size of the magnified area and where it appears on screen. Working in concert with the focus peaking makes manual shooting like I prefer top notch. The modes and ability of the AutoFocus is also impressive, but like 4K is so over-reviewed that I do not wish to beat that particular horse. The AF is great, but the takeaway is that the MF features are equally improved.Additionally, there are options for Luminance, Pedestal, SS -> Shutter Angle, CineD (Increased Dynamic Range) and CineV (Increased contrast), and a lot of other settings that I'm just not going to cover at this point. The larger point behind it is what's critical: There have been MASSIVE upgrades to the ability to tweak your video, and it's a very capable and impressive piece of hardware.BatteriesThis is an oversight to a lot of people/companies, but this vital to people like me. I am used to having to buy AC adapters and power couplers to shoot events, as with the GH1 and 2 you couldn't feel too confident after an hour... but last night I shot a band with a GH1, 2 gh2's and my GH4. I was unable to procure an AC10 adapter for the GH4. After shooting 2 hours and 44 minutes without stop, I noticed the battery level indicator still had 3 bars. I had bought Third Party batteries (Wasabi BTR-BLF19-JWP) beforehand to have spares, and figured the power level indication just didn't work. I paused the recording between songs and started immediately again, figuring I'd rather not lose it all if the battery suddenly died. I recorded an additional 48 minutes and still had 3 bars. I went to a pizza place and was recording some stuff for slomo and low light and after 20 minutes of that, the battery dropped to 2 bars. I was SHOCKED. So apparently, you can shoot roughly FOUR HOURS before the battery drops a SINGLE bar. This makes me want to sell every other camera I own and buy several of these. I never have to look for another outlet to shoot events or long time lapse shots (which can now also be done in camera).The Memory CardsI am shooting with the Sandisk 95MB/s ExtremePro's. I have not shot 4K yet, but have shot a good bit of MP4 (24fps, 100 Mbit) and have had NO issues, even running at 96fps. 4K may be the decider, but if you are shooting HD this seems to be a non-issue.Wifi Too?Yep. If you have an android or iPhone, the camera has an app that works incredibly well... so if you want to shoot from a crane or bucket truck or remote control vehicle, you can, and retain recording control as well as focus. Wonderful addition.Overall.It's simple. It's as if the Wright brothers got done with the flight at Kitty Hawk, went back to the drawing board, and rolled out a P51 Mustang 3 years later. It's difficult to overstate the difference in value this camera represents over previous versions, which were themselves great values for the video capabilities. It's as if Chevy decided to give free upgrades on Cobalts to Corvettes.

This review is being written from a videographer's perspective, so if you're looking for much information on still photography, you'll probably want to look elsewhere.I'm going to keep this as simple and straight forward as I can without undermining how incredible this camera actually is. If you're a videographer and you're looking to upgrade from a Canon (and this camera IS a massive upgrade from anything Canon offers within thousands of dollars of this price range), you don't really need to look any further (this is subject to change, of course. Can't wait to see what they pull off with the GH5).PROS- 4K Video at this price point. We can just get that out of the way. It's the marque feature for this camera and it doesn't disappoint. If you've never edited in 4K (and your computer can handle it), you're in for a serious treat.- 4K file sizes are VERY reasonable. This may blow your mind, but the file sizes between HD and 4K footage are almost identical. That's because the 4K footage is shot with an efficient bit rate, so don't be scared into thinking that you'll have to buy all these new SD cards and hard drives. Seriously, you should ALWAYS shoot in 4K (unless your computer can't handle it) because there aren't any storage drawbacks and even if you're just publishing in HD, your images will be so much cleaner and more detailed.- True slo-mo overcrank. The GH4 can shoot full 1080p video up to 96 FRAMES PER SECOND. And the beauty of this is that you're shooting true slow-motion, meaning that when you play the video back in-camera, the footage will run in silky smooth 24p slo-mo. No need to change speeds in post. The camera shoots variable framerates, so you can shoot 26, 72, 48, etc... whatever framerate works best for you.- Customization. The camera has 9 function buttons (5 physical, 4 digital on the touch screen) that are fully customizable. This is beautiful because you can assign whatever functions you want to these buttons, meaning that on my camera, with my set up, I have IMMEDIATE access to things like digital zoom, recording format, picture style, variable frame rate, luma curves, histogram, zebras - you name it, it's just a button press away.- Helpful video features. Using this camera for video is like a whole new world coming from Canon. This camera actually HELPS you! Focus peaking? Check, you'll always be confident that you've nailed focus. Zebras? Check, you'll have a much better handle on your exposures. Luma curves, master pedestal level, audio metering, histograms? All checks. It's wonderful to use a camera that actually helps you get your shots.- Digital Viewfinder. Say you're shooting outside on a bright day and you're having trouble seeing your screen. Just put the camera up to your eye and you'll be treated to a beautifully sharp, isolated image while you're recording. The beauty of mirrorless cameras.- Articulated Screen. Why Canon's higher end cameras don't include these is absolutely beyond me. They're wonderful to use for video.- Cinelike D. This is one of the picture styles for video and it's a wonderful tool to use when you're shooting with the intention of color grading. It gives you a nice, flat profile that allows you maximum control in post.- Continuous shooting. Canon's cameras have a terribly annoying flaw where you can only shoot for so long before the camera over heats and shuts itself off. Not so with the GH4. Got a 64GB card? You can just chew straight through that hour and a half of 4K footage without cutting. Wonderful for shooting events and interviews.CONS- Warmer color temperature. It took me a little while to get used to the way in which the GH4 picks up the orange-green end of the color spectrum. I've now acclimated to it and I know that I just need to set my color temperature a few notches cooler than I would on a Canon. This can be strange when you first start to use the camera, though, and it took me a little while to understand the translation from the Canon "look" to the GH4 "look."- It's not wonderful in low light. I'm not going to sugar coat it - this camera is almost unusable after 1600 ISO. It's beautiful when you've got plenty of light but the images are much less impressive in darker situations. It's no worse than most other DSLRs, Canon or otherwise, but with the Sony A7s out now, it's looking like we're moving into a new era of low-light cameras and the GH4 is not one of those cameras.Still, as long as you understand its limitations and small quirks, this camera is the absolute best value you can find for the money as far as video cameras right now. Many people compare it to the A7s, which doesn't make much sense to me since they're in different price brackets (with the A7s being about $1,000 more expensive). I've used the A7s a few times and unless you're absolutely dying for that low-light performance, the GH4 is much more well-balanced camera. Hopefully this helps!