DSLR Gimbal or upgrade to GH4?

chris.goodhue

chris.goodhue

Member
So I'm looking to invest some more money into my camera setup this summer now that i'm working again and want some opinions.

I currently have a Panasonic G7 with two fairly cheap lens, they definitely do the trick but better glass would be nice as well. I bought the G7 with those two lenses to check out the Panasonic platform as I was switching from a Canon T2i. The G7 is sweet, but maxes out at 60fps which is definitely a disadvantage, especially since i'm mostly shooting action sports. So my plan was to acquire some lenses that work with it and see if I like the setup.

My question now is what to invest in. I do enjoy using the G7 so i'm not against keeping it for another year or so but I definitely want to upgrade my stabilization. I have a glidecam HD1000 which ive been using for years and have gotten pretty good with it, but no matter how balanced I get it, i feel it is almost unreliable when you only have one chance to get a shot of someone skiing, which I think is where the Gimbal would come in handy.

So i was thinking of getting that and getting a speed booster so i can use my Tokina 11-16 with the G7, which I feel would be a sweet upgrade.

But that upgrade would still lack as the camera isn't cutting edge...so do I spend the 1000$ ish on that, or try and sell the G7 and upgrade to a used GH4 and use my current lenses with that. Not so sure how easy it would be to sell the G7 for a good price.

thoughts?
 
So I own a g7 and my friend owns a gh4 and this is my opinion. Yeah the 96fps on the gh4 is sick but it's useless and here's why. If you shoot 1080 60fps you get 200mbps max which is fantastic it's just over 3 mb per frame however if you got to 96 fps your limited to the 100mbps which sounds decent but it's only 1 mb per frame. There is a noticeable difference in quality when watching the two shots I've noticed and although it's not noticeable to everybody I'm sure you'll notice it. I know it's a decent amount more but if I were you and you wanted to get a new camera I'd go with the gh5 as from what I've read, after a couple firmware updates (around August 2017) it will be shooting 4k 60fps, 4k 30fps at 400 mbps and 1080 180fps also with a 6k photo option
 
13822186:dan_swagner said:
A glidecam is more reliable than a gimbal for filming skiing. I would get a speedbooster and more glass
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Idk if I agree with that, maybe if your dealing with weather...ive used the glidecam for years and feel that with action sports it's tough to get super consistent smooth shots, especially if your up on the hill.

I think I'll probably upgrade to the GH4 first though, seems like a better investment
 
13823039:chris.goodhue said:
Idk if I agree with that, maybe if your dealing with weather...ive used the glidecam for years and feel that with action sports it's tough to get super consistent smooth shots, especially if your up on the hill.

I think I'll probably upgrade to the GH4 first though, seems like a better investment
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The GH4 doesn't really give you solid high frame rate options, just 96fps with no audio. If you really want more frames, look at something with 120fps.

Otherwise, IMO, 60fps is just fine for skiing. Sure, 120/240 is nice but 100% not necessary. I would buy new glass if I were you then consider a GH5 in the future, almost no reason to get a gh4 unless you can afford a gh5.
 
13827664:eheath said:
The GH4 doesn't really give you solid high frame rate options, just 96fps with no audio. If you really want more frames, look at something with 120fps.

Otherwise, IMO, 60fps is just fine for skiing. Sure, 120/240 is nice but 100% not necessary. I would buy new glass if I were you then consider a GH5 in the future, almost no reason to get a gh4 unless you can afford a gh5.
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I actually ended up getting a good deal on the gh4 and some glass then bought the gimbal too. I can see what your saying about the high frame rate options, the gh4 definitely loses some quality, but its dam fun to shoot a 96fps. Big upgrade from the g7, definitely could not have afforded the gh5 with any glass, so im pretty stoked on my decision.

As far as the gimbal goes..it's insanely fun and you can get really creative...might be a bit hard to film park jumps but not too worried, will probably keep the glidecam for that reason
 
13828121:chris.goodhue said:
I actually ended up getting a good deal on the gh4 and some glass then bought the gimbal too. I can see what your saying about the high frame rate options, the gh4 definitely loses some quality, but its dam fun to shoot a 96fps. Big upgrade from the g7, definitely could not have afforded the gh5 with any glass, so im pretty stoked on my decision.

As far as the gimbal goes..it's insanely fun and you can get really creative...might be a bit hard to film park jumps but not too worried, will probably keep the glidecam for that reason
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Just curious what gimbal did you get?
 
13828502:mikemac said:
I've been eyeing the zhiyun a lot, really considering it. Any reviews/critiques on it so far?
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I will sell you a Ronin M for a real good deal. Lemme know if interested
 
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