AWARDS THE WINNERS
CAMERAS: MIRRORLESS SIX APPEAL! Hands-on with Panasonic’s iconic Lumix GH6, our best mirrorless
camera of the year P anasonic was one of the pioneers of recording video in mirrorless cameras, and the latest Lumix GH6 takes it one step further. That’s why it’s been voted the top mirrorless in this year’s awards. Although Panasonic has a range of full-frame mirrorless cameras – as do most rival manufacturers – the power of Micro Four Thirds continues with the GH6. Featuring a huge choice of codecs, a new sensor packing in more resolution than any other Micro Four Thirds machine, internal ProRes recording, plus all the very best tools a filmmaker could need, this Lumix is top of the heap. And priced at £1999/$2198 body only, it’s one of the most affordable flagship video-focused cameras on the market. No full-frame camera offers the same features as the GH6 in regards to frame rates and codec choices, built-in filmmaking tools and limitless recording times (due to
its management of overheating). A built-in fan accommodates all-day shooting, provided you have enough battery power and memory space. The GH6 has every spec choice and innovation Panasonic could squeeze in. A recent firmware upgrade added 12-bit ProRes Raw recording to an Atomos monitor in up to DCI 4K/120p, or 5.7K/60p via HDMI – and more. The Lumix is Panasonic’s most advanced camera yet, as it records up to 5.7K in ProRes 422 and 422 HQ to a CFexpress Type B card. Most resolution and codec choices are 10-bit 4:2:2, with some 10-bit 4:2:0 versions thrown in. It is capable of up to C4K at 60p in full 4:2:0 10-bit All-Intra and the more compressed Long GOP alternative. And it can be cranked to C4K/120p, although the sampling drops to 4:2:0 10-bit. For the highest resolution of 5.8K, you can shoot full-sensor open gate in anamorphic at up to
30p. There are lots of anamorphic options onboard, including 2, 1.8, 1.5, 1.33 and 1.3x de-squeeze. Or, if speed is your thing, then go to HD and you can shoot 300fps for super slow-motion, even in 10-bit. There’s no autofocus or audio at this speed, but there is at up to 240fps. Waveform and vectorscope monitoring feature, as does V-Log gamma. It has a full-size HDMI port and a second slot to accept an SD card. If you use a V90-class card, this will work with most codecs up to 600Mbps, but for any of the very fast or data-intensive codecs, you need CFexpress. In all frame rates up to 120fps, the signal is oversampled for the best quality. The 300fps rate is pixel-binned and cropped – best for special-effects shots where there’s plenty of light and not too much dynamic range to be captured. When it comes to dynamic range, the camera’s 10-bit codecs make it much more suitable for recording in V-Log. This is also helped by the new Dynamic Range Boost function, which works in a similar way to the Dual Gain Output on the Canon EOS C70 and C300 Mark III. Boost setting only works at frame rates of 60fps or below, and the minimum ISO is 2000. When shooting in V-Log or HLG, the native ISO is 250, so 2000 is a big increase. In standard modes –
CLASS ACT Kitted out with a matte box and mic, the GH6 is a very
capable camera – hence it’s a winner
USER-FRIENDLY All the controls are easy to work out, with the Q button bringing up a useful quick menu
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PRO MOVIEMAKER
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