[ Tech ] - Panasonic G2 camera Review


Finally tried the burst mode of g2. First try was just 7 shots, frame rate was more like 3 fps rather than 7. I may have misread the specs. After that, a very long wait for the buffer to clear. Might be swayed to buy sony a55 instead.
 

Hi.. I think you got confused with the G2 spec.

- BURST SHOOTING Burst Speed H: 3.2 frames/sec, M: 2.6 frames/sec (with Live View), L: 2 frames/sec (with Live View)

- Number of Recordable Images 7 images (when there are RAW files with the particular speed)

- Unlimited consecutive shooting (when there are no RAW files)
(depending on memory card size, battery power, picture size, and compression)

Go here for full spec : http://www.panasonic.net/avc/lumix/systemcamera/gms/g2/specifications.html
 

)

- Unlimited consecutive shooting (when there are no RAW files)
(depending on memory card size, battery power, picture size, and compression)

Go here for full spec : http://www.panasonic.net/avc/lumix/systemcamera/gms/g2/specifications.html

i don't think that would be true, otherwise the camera should have kept on shooting until i release the shutter button. but in fact it did stop even when the shutter button is still depressed. in fact after it stopped i had to wait for quite a long time for it to finish writing to the memory card - in which time i was not able to shoot anything.
 

Yep... in real world the buffer gets filled and it needs to write back to the card first... so that tech spec seems incorrect : )

But i do get about 3 fps (depends on ISO) and normally just shoot bursts of 4-5 shots each time... so it works for me..
 

What is the maximum write speed of this camera? As the lag to clear the buffer is becoming unbearable. Any sdhc card to recommend? Confused about the extreme 3 vs the class 10 vs class 6.
 

What is the maximum write speed of this camera? As the lag to clear the buffer is becoming unbearable. Any sdhc card to recommend? Confused about the extreme 3 vs the class 10 vs class 6.

Of course the Sandisk Extreme 30Mb/s is the top.. but $$$..

I settled for a 16GB Class 10 Transcend card from Funan. Cost $56.

Write speed is approx 18 Mb/s write and 20 Mb/s read. I dont shoot a lot of raw but with bursts of 5-6 shots using fine/Jpeg.. the buffer clears quite fast...
 

Hi Thanks for the the replies...
I got my G2 from my wife for Xmas present.....
Really love it very much.....
Now am looking for lens and flash......
any idea which lenses are gd?
i read some reviews on four-thirds.org...... i'm look for zoom lens and macro lens....
i'm looking for flashes too.....
Pls advise.... Thank you and have a Happy New Year everyone ^_^
 

Hi Thanks for the the replies...
I got my G2 from my wife for Xmas present.....
Really love it very much.....
Now am looking for lens and flash......
any idea which lenses are gd?
i read some reviews on four-thirds.org...... i'm look for zoom lens and macro lens....
i'm looking for flashes too.....
Pls advise.... Thank you and have a Happy New Year everyone ^_^

Hmm.. I guess you bought the G2 with the kit lens right ? (14-42mm f/3.5-5.6)
What to get next depends on what kind of shooting your wife does.

i.e.
Outdoor
Indoor, low light,
wildlife
Sports, outdoor.. etc..


If its indoor.. you'll probably need the 20mm/f1.7 which is good for low light without flash. Otherwise you can use the kit zoom with flash but you may need an external flash if the internal built in flash is too "weak".

If outdoor, depends whether you need a zoom lens with longer reach. The typical good and cheap one is the 45-200 or if you shoot wildlife or need longer reach, get the 100-300..

One other alternative that can serve as a walkaround lens is the 14-140. But again, mainly for outdoor or indoor with flash as the aperture is f/4.0-5.8 (but great for movies because of the near silent AF)

Then there are the others like 14mm/f2.5 / 7-14mm f4.0 Wide Angle / 8mm fisheye and also the olympus line of m4/3..these are more specialised lenses..

Many of us are still waiting for Panny to announce the "bright zoom" & "25mm / f1.4" portrait lens in 2011... yummy.. : )

Other good sites for m4/3 lens reviews are :
http://www.photographyblog.com/
http://m43photo.blogspot.com/
and also at www.dpreview.com (look at the m4/3 forum).. lots of tips there.

Cheers and happy shooting..
 

Thank you Agrivar.
Actually my wife don't shoot =)
I just got interested in photography, that's y my wife bought me the G2...(happy)
I'm looking at the 45-200mm lens too...
Went to ask the price of a new 1... cost S$510 if pay cash.
I'm considering buying 2nd hand...
Now i'm looking for external flash. Any good money worth flash to recommend?
 

Thank you Agrivar.
Actually my wife don't shoot =)
I just got interested in photography, that's y my wife bought me the G2...(happy)
I'm looking at the 45-200mm lens too...
Went to ask the price of a new 1... cost S$510 if pay cash.
I'm considering buying 2nd hand...
Now i'm looking for external flash. Any good money worth flash to recommend?

I'm quite new too.. was using a SLR back in the 90s then for many years a P&S and lately just caught the Photography bug again.. so spent 4-5 mths researching and finally settled on Panny G series.. : ) But i can share some of what i learnt in the past months of research

For flash, if you want all the bells and whistles the Olympus branded flashes are good. e.g. FL-36R or FL-50. BTW dont need to buy panny flash as panny licenses the TTL technology etc from olympus, and more expensive. So Olympus flashes work 100% ok on panasonic bodies. I got quoted $320 at MS Colour in AMK. This can tilt/swivel etc etc.. Just google to find specs of this flash.. FL-36R is GN (Guide no) 36 and FL-50 is GN 50. i.e. power of the flash... BTW the built in flash of the G2 is only GN 11

However, I only use external flash maybe 5-6 times a year.. e.g. for Chingay practice, one upcoming wedding, and some other personal "events" so I opted for a cheaper alternative.. Nissin Di466. There's a seller in the mass sales section selling.. got local warranty and service centre. It can tilt but not swivel. Supports TTL but not FP TTL (i.e. fast speed). So max Flash sync speed is 1/160. Which is totally ok for me.. Paid $160 for it.. :D

There are many more, Metz 48 / 50, Vivitar 383, etc.. you can search ebay or amazon also..

If you really want to go cheap you can try YongNuo (Made in china).. Approx $80 Auto/manual but no TTL.. again search in mass sales..

BTW .. using flash is an art. Not just pop up and shoot. Many times you need to "bounce" or Use a diffuser to soften the light.. again many sites on flash.. many threads in CS as well.. I'm still learning..

Hope this helps !!
 

Last edited:
BTW.. Winglzw.. please protect your new "investment". You need to buy dry box or dry cabinet. To keep your camera and lenses.. to protect against fungus attack... Theres a sticky on this in the newbies section..
 

BTW.. Winglzw.. please protect your new "investment". You need to buy dry box or dry cabinet. To keep your camera and lenses.. to protect against fungus attack... Theres a sticky on this in the newbies section..

Not really actually, if you use everyday or very often,shouldn't be a problem, I got a few cameras plus I'm going NS later this year, so its really essential, though having a small dry cabinet wouldn't hurt :bsmilie:
 

Not really actually, if you use everyday or very often,shouldn't be a problem, I got a few cameras plus I'm going NS later this year, so its really essential, though having a small dry cabinet wouldn't hurt :bsmilie:

Hi Spidey89.. I'm paranoid.. last time with my old minolta.. i had a Tamron zoom.. didnt do anything.. quite blur then.. didnt have any protection.. after 3-4 months, had lots of "webs" on my lenses..
 

Last edited:
Hi Spidey89.. I'm paranoid.. last time with my old minolta.. i had a Tamron zoom.. didnt do anything.. quite blur then.. didnt have any protection.. after 3-4 months, had lots of "webs" on my lenses..

That sucks a lot, depends on usage and the envrioment, my 40-150 and old canon cosina lens also got "webs" :bsmilie:
 

Not really actually, if you use everyday or very often,shouldn't be a problem, I got a few cameras plus I'm going NS later this year, so its really essential, though having a small dry cabinet wouldn't hurt :bsmilie:

Haha, I can help you "take care" of your lens when you are in camp.
Just remember to include your 43/m43 adaptor. ;p
 

Haha, I can help you "take care" of your lens when you are in camp.
Just remember to include your 43/m43 adaptor. ;p

Hahahah,its ok, dry cabinet can already ;)
 

Thank you Agrivar.
Bought a YongNuo external flash.... it cost me S$85....
So far so gd.... Happy with it......
How much does a dry box usually cost?
 

Thank you Agrivar.
Bought a YongNuo external flash.... it cost me S$85....
So far so gd.... Happy with it......
How much does a dry box usually cost?

ok.. Dry box (as in a plastic air tight box ususally with silica gel or some other drying agent (note it has been mentioned many times in this site that you shouldnt use thirsty hippo...)
Probably less than $20. ie DIY.

There is a drybox with built in hygrometer (measures Relative Humidity in the box) by digi-cab going for $22 at TK foto and $25 (member price) at Challenger. Probably sold at many places as well.. More expensive than DIY, but it has built in hygrometer and supposed to be very strong.
http://www.digihub.com.sg/SubCategoryList.aspx?MainCategoryID=15

and of course Dry cabinets (lots of info over in the newbies section). Basically cheapest is Digi-cab DB036 (36 Litres) going for $118 at most photoshops. Supposed to be sold in places like harvey/carrefour etc. But I'm not sure.. got other brands like AIPO etc.. most popular seems to be Digicab and Aipo.

Dry cabinets vs Dry box. : Good thing about dry cabinets is that its auto.. i.e. once you set the desired RH %, it will stabilize at that %. Dry boxes needs more TLC. i.e you need to keep checking once in a while (i check every day) that the RH% is not too low or too high..

What is the optimal RH%? Most folks say 45-55%. But every site I know of, says do not go beyond 60%, as thats where Fungus grows.. Here is a good link. To Zeiss. (one of the best lens makers in the world).

http://www.zeiss.com/c12567a8003b58b9/Contents-Frame/29cd78d56723da79c12571180042df52

For the bottom end, dont go below 30% as thats where lubricants in the camera/lens start to evaporate etc. Some people say some fungus grows below 30% also. This is something I've never verified.

Hope this helps.. More detailed info on dry cabs etc over at the newbies section :thumbsup:
 

Back
Top