2mdman

My daughter wanted my opinion on the camera. It seems to have good reviews but the sensor is somewhat small and you have the battery life issue with it being mirrorless. Does anyone have this camera and what do you think? Is there something else that you'd recommend in that price range? I suggested a Nikon D5600 but that's a little pricier.

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

Have a good friend who recently bought a Panasonic G85 for his wife to use on a Viking River cruise along the Danube. They were both ecstatic with the performance, ease of operation and image quality from this camera. My friend uses a Canon 7D Mk II and teaches evening school photography courses at a local community college. But after seeing his wife’s camera perform, suffice to say they argued a bit over who would get to use it.

User ID

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Assuming that you respect the reviewers that you
choose to read, you say the reviews are good, so
that suggests buying one. But then you say that
the sensor is kinda small. Sensor size is simply a
fact, not a reviewer's discovery or opinion.

OK. So the reviews are good. Fact is that sensor
size is what it is. Does that fact then cause you to
doubt the reviews ?

As to the batteries, small live view cameras tend
to have small batteries. I carry 3 to 5 batteries as
routine. $30 a pair including 1 charger per pair at
Blue Nook. You can easily go thru 3 batteries in a
day shooting stills. Video is much hungrier.

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Looks like a very good buy to me, most likely an
inventory clearance price:

The Black Friday price for the 2-lens kit at B&H is
$500. The 1-lens kit says "discontinued". Not so
surprising. Buyers expect more than 16PM lately.
Yet in m4/3 20MP is current, and 16MP has 90%
as much resolution. But in marketing, bumping
up from from teens to twenties is a very serious
psychological leap, but in reality quite negligible
(comparing upper teens to barely twenty ... as
clearly a bump from 13 to 29MP is also "teens to
twenties" but could be significant. 13 to 29MP is
about a 50% bump in resolution, which could be
visible in some images).

Similar kit from Nikon at holiday pricing is $700.
The batteries should run longer. You'd only need
one spare. Pixel based resolution would increase
but the Nikon uses an AA filter so pixel resolution
is not the whole story in this case.




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bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

I don't have the G85. I do have experience with multiple Panasonic cameras that use the "somewhat small sensor" called "micro four thirds". Based on my experience your opinion should be, "That is a marvelous lighter weight, compact camera with the extra benefits of being mirrorless. It's good at video, it can be silent and the range of lenses will never limit you!"

Or, your opinion could be, "We old, experienced photographers need loud flapping mirrors and huge sensors because that's what you need to make 30" x 40" prints."

Be a good dad and tell your daughter she is smart, capable and making good decisions.

2mdman

thanks for the info.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

2ndman,

I would be happy to send you files, RAW or JPEG, shot on similar Panasonic gear.

wrangler5 Loc: Missouri

This. After almost 50 years with Nikon film, DX and FX digital cameras, I disposed of all that gear and now use micro 4/3 equipment from Olympus and Panasonic. Apart from the better battery life there’s nothing I miss about the larger, heavier Nikon stuff.

sr71 Loc: In Col. Juan Seguin Land

Nope no AA filter......

BJW

I have owned the G85 for over 2 years. It is excellent in every respect. I also have a full frame rangefinder that I use for street photography and a crop sensor that I use for sports. But don’t use those as a basis of comparison. I use the G85 for travel. It’s light and compact I and use Leica/Lumix lenses which are tack sharp. M43rd sensors are not meant for low light photography, but with a fast lens, they do fine. Battery life is not an issue if you carry a couple of extras. They’re small and light and fit into a pants pocket. Image Quality is also excellent. I especially like the very easy menu system and the exposure controls. Also, the cully articulated screen is a delight. I bought it new when it cost $999. They are much less now. A definite BUY.

dbjazz Loc: Long Island, NY

The G85 is an amazing camera. You will not be disappointed. It is lightweight, performs incredibly for stills as well as video, and has a vast array of lenses available since all micro four-thirds cameras accept the same lenses regardless of manufacturer. Skip the Nikon, and put the money you save towards a nice lens.

2mdman

that's great info. thanks. I'll let her know she's making a good choice.

davyboy Loc: Anoka Mn.

I purchased a G85 a few months ago I upgraded fro the G6.it is a super sweet camera! They have removed the low pass filter better image quality, added 5 stop stabilization really awesome and 4K video you can extract 8 megapixel photos. Front of body made with magnesium weather and dust proof. Can be had for $800 with a 12-60mm lens. One of the best investments at that price point. It shoots just as good images as my canon T6s.

2mdman

I was checking and she can get the GX8 for $600 (body only, refurb) off Amazon. That's a great deal.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

I have the GX8. The G85 was released about a year later.

It has a few quirks that were "fixed" in the G85. One GX8 quirk was improved with a new shutter mechanism. The GX8 was beat up on the internet for have a shutter shock issue at certain shutter speeds when using mechanical shutter. Using electronic shutter eliminates the problem.

Another is that the (amazing) dual image stabilization is not used when shooting 4K video with the GX8. It relies on the (really good) lens stabilization alone. If I remember correctly, the G85 uses the dual IS when shooting 4K video.

2mdman

Thanks. That's very helpful.