Singapore Zoo - Jan'11

Equipment:

• Canon EOS 40D + Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L USM + Hoya HD UV 77mm filter
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 + Lumix G Vario 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 ASPH MEGA OIS

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1

I bought it to replace my 1-year-old Canon PowerShot SX20 IS in order to get better image quality for daily snapshots of my kid or any other object when I am too lazy to prepare the much bigger and heavier Canon EOS 40D. There are many mirror-less cameras in the market, but I choose GF1 for the superior AF speed. By having the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1, we got combination of the image quality and feature of a DSLR camera with handling and easy-of-use of compact camera.

Body & Design

Front & Rear


Bottom & Top


Memory Card Slot & Battery Compartment


Connections & Top Control


Pop-up Flash & Lens Hood


Noise
There are 6 ISO settings available. When shooting on JPEG, the results at ISO 100, 200 and 400 are excellent. Noise start coming up at ISO 800, but it is still not a problem. When we shoot at ISO 1600 and 3200, the noise is noticeable, but still the result is okay.

ISO 100 (Crop)


ISO 200 (Crop)


ISO 400 (Crop)


ISO 800 (Crop)


ISO 1600 (Crop)


ISO 3200 (Crop)


Film Modes
Panasonic's Film Modes, similarly to Canon's Picture Controls, are preset combination of different sharpness, contrast, saturation and noise reduction settings. You can see the differences of the nine available Film Modes below:

Standard <-------------------> Dynamic

Nature <---------------------> Smooth

Nostalgic <-------------------> Vibrant

Standard B&W <-------------> Dynamic B&W

Smooth B&W


My Color mode

Monochrome <---------> Dynamic Art


Silhouette <---------> Custom


Expressive <---------> Retro


Pure <---------> Elegant



Good points for me
* Light and compact
* Good image quality, comparable with my EOS 40D
* Shoots RAW
* Good video quality at 720p

Bad points for me
* Cost, quite expensive
* LCD has only 460,000 dots
* Limited flash power

Sample results in real life



Specifications

• 12.1 effective Megapixel Live MOS sensor (same as the DMC-G1)
• Supports all Micro Four Thirds lenses with a 2X focal length conversion ratio
  • Also supports legacy Four Thirds and Leica R- and M-mount lenses with optional adapters
• Compact body (for a camera with interchangeable lenses), roughly the size of the E-P1
• 3-inch LCD display with 460,000 pixels and live view
  • Live view features super-fast 23-point AF, face detection, custom guidelines, a live histogram, and more
• Optional electronic viewfinder ($200) attaches to hot shoe and provides the same benefits as the main LCD; screen has 202,000 pixels and a 1.04X magnification; it can also tilt upward 90 degrees
• Built-in pop-up flash has a GN of 6 meters at ISO 100
• Full manual controls
  • ISO range of 100 - 3200
  • Shutter speed range of 60 - 1/4000 sec, plus a bulb mode
  • RAW, RAW+JPEG support
• Continuous shooting as fast as 3 frames/second (7 RAW, unlimited JPEGs)
• Intelligent Auto mode selects a scene mode, detects faces, brightens shadows, and more
• My Color mode similar to Olympus' art filters; a new peripheral defocus mode makes it easy to have a sharp subject and blurry background
• Dust reduction system
• Capable of recording movies at 1280 x 720 using AVCHD Lite or Motion JPEG
  • Unlimited recording time with AVCHD Lite, unless you're in Europe
  • Frame rate is 60 fps (sensor output of 30 fps) when using AVCHD Lite
  • Aperture and exposure compensation can be adjusted
  • Camera can focus continuously while recording, though you'll want to use the 14-140 lens for the most camcorder-like experience
  • Wind-cut feature for recording video outdoors
• HDMI port
• SD/SDHC card slot
• Uses DMW-BLB13 lithium-ion battery; battery life ranges from 350 - 380 shots depending on which lens you're using

Links:
CameraLabs - Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 review
DPreview - Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 in-depth review