Great Eight: Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX8 review

Thank you for the superbly detailed review. I now know how to get the best out of my camera

I have used the GX7 and GX8 and find the GX8 a clear winner over the '7 - the size is not a problem for me as I like the larger 'feel' of the body. I spend three weeks in Europe in the fall of 2015 and shot ~5k frames with my GX8 - lovely images.

I also like the compatibility with the wide range of Lumix lenses - one of my favorites is the G Vario 7-14mm f/4.0 ASPH - incredible landscape lens, tack-sharp to the edges with the GX8.

I also own a Nikon D800e - and it has spent a lot more time in the case than the Lumix GX8.

I have one and I love it but for one "feature" that drives me crazy.

It is far too easy to touch one of the many programmable function buttons and change settings inadvertently. You cannot program a button to do nothing! I hope they fix that in a firmware update soon.

Battery life is just OK. There are up to 3 bars displayed in the battery icon. When you on the third bar, look out, because it is depleted in a hurry.

Same price as the new Sony A6300, but I don't see the advantage of going with the Panasonic.

Correction:
"Using the e-Shutter solves the shake problem, though it's important to note a few 'gotchas' when using it. Rapidly moving subjects may look distorted due to 'rolling shutter' and it only works with some lenses (and it's not entirely clear which)."

E-SHUTTER works with ALL lenses. It's DUAL IS that only works with SOME lenses.

Panasonic is creating the modern enthusiast camera: great balance of sensor, size, ergonomics, technology.

DP review; Good review spot on.

This camera is important in the m43rds universe, and important as a weather sealed, fast 4k video type camera solution in the mirrorless universe- along with being the first to get the Sony 20MP m43rds sensor. it is very help full

The primitive Auto ISO control is inexcusable with this generation.

Panasonic and Olympus innovate in so many areas, which makes the inability to control EC in Auto ISO mode mind boggling.

With respect to the "Image Quality" page of the review...

Why do you guys compare high ISOs using the "Daylight Simulation" mode of the studio scene? I can't really imagine a scenario when I'd be shooting broad daylight at ISO 12800 (it would difficult to stop down that far, even at 1/8000s) and the image quality that comes out of a camera changes significantly depending on the total ambient light available.

It seems like it would be a lot more representative to use the "Low Light" tab for high ISO comparisons, and scroll to an area that is a bit more shadowed. It reveals the less pleasant noise characteristics of a camera in a much more useful way.

When compared that way, the Canon 70D in your example barely shows 2/3EV advantage, if that. I won't deny the D7200's superiority here, though - that sensor performs at least as well as the FF sensor in the A7 II! Really a triumph of efficiency from an APS-C sensor.

this just strikes me as stupid:

"On the bulky side for a Micro Four Thirds camera;"

no, it isn't bulky for a mft camera or, more precisely, camera body. the camera is as big or small as it needs to be. and it is, in fact, an mft camera body. this is a size that mft bodies come in. they come in smaller sizes, too. the whole range represents mft. and why is this a con? for lots of folks it's a nonissue. maybe you should also list as a con that it's unavailable in red.

The GX7 has 1/320 flash synch v 1/250 for the GX8 and PenF. Granted, not a big difference but still better. DP, Why no green highlight on spec comparison?

I don't know what you've done with the RAW conversions but I see quite a difference from your RAW previews and what I get in LR/ACR. Here is an example:
http://www.dpreview.com/galleries/3030453205/photos/3408506/dprev-iso-12800

In the end GX8 looks much better than you show it does in RAW.

Why do they keep ruining good cameras by letting them grow bigger over the years. GX7 was perfect in that respect. This one isn't.

Thank you dpreview for reviewing and publishing your review on the GX8. Not so long ago one of your staff members admitted it was sort of an oversight and it got rectified.

This camera is important in the m43rds universe, and important as a weather sealed, fast 4k video type camera solution in the mirrorless universe- along with being the first to get the Sony 20MP m43rds sensor.

Kudos.

What is the advantage of a M4/3 ILC that is as big as an APS-C one ?
I know, the M4/3 lens should be smaller than their APS-C equivalents and the DOF and crop factor are bigger...
That's all ?

I've had this camera for a couple of months. Its generally excellent. I use it mostly in silent mode (e shutter) and have seen no ill effects although if I was shooting action I'd turn on the mechanical shutter. My only gripe is the display button. If Panasonic had made that flush it wouldn't be a problem but it is proud by a quarter of a mm and I'm forever pressing it with the heel of my thumb. Infuriating! I've stuck a small ring of plastic around it to lessen this problem.

I own it and would emphasize a few negative points the review glosses over. The battery capacity is poor. For a camera of its ample size, I think the SD card should get its own slot rather than having to live in the battery compartment like some point and shoot. I find the grip poor and I frequently activate rear panel buttons (mostly WB) when gripping the camera. There are a number of lenses still awaiting firmware updates for full performance with this camera. Nobody mentions the rubber insert in the battery compartment door - not even the manual. It allows insertion of the DMW-DCC DC coupler, but good luck making that work with AC power.

Good to have a weather resistant body but I wonder how many panasonic lens are also weather resistant?.

No problems at all for me. No shutter shock, handles fine, good IQ, don't care what it looks like, just use the M, P, exposure comp and love the touch screen focus feature. Paid for itself the first time out with it and it resides happily in my bag with the 4 Sigma Quattro's that it shares the same battery with. Bliss!

Is shutter shock some sort of hidden feature?

Time after time new cameras are introduced which have shortcomings. The shutter problem here - is it elementary or not? If it is, why not eliminate it before introducing the camera? Why do the JPEGs show subdued colours? Isn't this elementary? Then, size and compactness. People complain either way. The grips are hideous full stop. You either have a compact [no grip] and leave the heavy telephoto at home, or you carry the heavy stuff. It is ridiculous to be talking about a pocketable IL compact in conjunction with a 200mm heavy zoom. The manufacturers have absolutely no excuses about the elementary stuff. They have to get such matters in hand and not come up short. Features? Great! Compromises? Not great! Cut down on features in order not to have silly compromises!

Have you noticed how all these mirrorless cameras - which are exceptional by the way - are now receiving silver awards instead of gold, even though they are more than equivalent to - actually superior to - the earlier versions which received gold awards. What's up with that, DPR? Care to explain?

I still think the L1 handles way better and is much prettier to look at ;). Too bad panasonic couldnt have just taken the L1's shell, replaced the OVF with a nice new EVF and upgraded the sensor/af/processor/lcd/menu :).

Andrew Smallman of Camera Ergonomics has written an outstanding analytical and pragmatic treatment of the shutter-shock problem. Browse to http://cameraergonomics.blogspot.com/2015/08/panasonic-lumix-g7-review-part-2.html.

I rented this camera a couple weeks ago as a test run. Its made of solid feeling materials, and has cool features (video is awesome), but at least for me the ergonomics were not good. The body feels relatively long, with a shallow grip. When you put even a lens of modest weight on it, I found myself gripping extra hard with my hand to keep it level, but this quickly became uncomfortable. I found the Olympus OMD EM5 II much more balanced and comfortable to hold. That said, its video output vastly lags the GX8. Definitely would tell anybody interested to try it out, but for me it just didn't have the right feel.

Almost ready to buy it ... then noticed no Flash I though GX7 had it though.
Why Panasonic did this to copy Olympus mirror less (OMD etc...) is beyond me. - Sorry can't touch it. Not for me even I have an old 4/3rds flash that will work on it. Otherwise feels like carry a DSLR...

A good article, but... I'll be waiting for a *real* successor to the GX7.

Excellent article. Glad you emphasis the shutter shock issue. Maybe they will address it on the next version.

I'm surprised no mention on how clean the mike gain is. When using external mike attached the sound is very clean. Stopped using my external sony pcm10 recorder its that clean. But yes forget tilting the screen forward with the 2.5 to 3.5mm jack. Its so annoying that i might just get the A6300 just for 4K videos since I always use an external mike and keep the Gx8 as my every day , everywhere travel camera. Oh and yes you can not do Auto ISO in M Video mode.

Seems a tad big if you ask me (as a GM1 owner), given the sensor size.

Is Panasonic reneging on its promise all those years ago that m43 would deliver "significantly lighter and more compact" camera systems?

DP reviews cameras frequently through out the year.

This Lumix must be very lucky and special to be one of those.

The lack of exposure compensation in Manual+Auto ISO is really frustrating. That's the mode where the dedicated EC dial would be most useful - in PAS modes the spare dial can be used to set compensation instead.

In a lot of lighting conditions EC is a necessity, e.g. shooting an air show with backlit planes you can end up with no shadow detail without +EC, while in other circumstances burned out highlights ruin the shot without -EC.

For me the complete lack of Auto-ISO in manual was the most crippling limitation of the GX7. It's the mode I use 75%+ of the time on my Sony, especially for wildlife, sport, and action photography. Having to manually control exposure can lead to missed shots in fast moving events with variable lighting. Panasonic lost a sale to me when they only half fixed it in the GX8.

They could sort this out with a simple firmware fix, but that would be unusual for Panasonic. Hopefully they'll finally have this working in a sensible way on the GX9.

I sold my full frame and joined the M43 world, so far can't be happier (I'm just a photography enthusiast). I feel Panasonic has provided so much more comparing to the previous brand, especially when it comes to features and user-friendliness. Just got 2 more lenses (Panasonic 12-35 f2.8 and 35-100 f2.8), love them! Keep up great job Panasonic!