I don’t want to jinx it, but I have an orientation day with the local paper in Friday. The Examiner has a long and illustrious history, but like a lot of things laden with such a history, it is suffering by comparison these days. The photog staff is small, but capable and very experienced. I have known some of them for over thirty years. becoming one of them would at once feel odd and like a lost glove found and then worn.
They are looking for someone for a couple of days a week, which is perfect for my life style. The commitment to the school I have been working with for the last couple of years is strong, but flexible if needed. They are down to the last two candidates, so who knows.
This has come at a great time. I have been struggling to give the school my undivided attention and make ends meet, because the reality is, they only need a 9 month commitment and it is hard to find regular clients for a few months a year.
Gear?
I have a pretty good handle on what I need these days.
EM1 (something) + 40-150 Pro with 1.4 TC.
? possibly a G9 + 8-18 (video and stills).
EM10 or 5 + Prime (25 and/or 45)
OSMO kit and some small Mics
Godox flash
Domke F802 bag.
Late Autumn filler image. EM1, 8-18.
If I land the job, I may go for a second G9 as my second camera for this work, allowing the original to be used in its rig for video almost exclusively. I may also grab the 12-60 Leica or kit* as a replacement standard lens. The idea would be to have the second G9 set for stills, but with the custom settings set for video, same as my other G9.
The EM1x is also good for video, but harder to press into dual roles. That does not exclude the chance of getting another EM1x or EM1 mk2 or 3* and a 12-40/12-45/8-25 lens maybe. The reality is, as long as you shoot in 4k at capture, the video on the EM1x is very good, their 1080 would likely be fine for the paper and the AF and stabilisers are top notch. The EM1 mk3 is a hair behind in stabilising, but otherwise the same camera in a smaller body.
So, an EM1 mk3 with a new lens or similar and an EM1 mk2 as backup would work fine.
If I want to keep my kits separate, the Mk3 and 8-25 would be cleanest option, although the Mk2 and 12-40, are currently the best value.
For video, the G9 and 12-60 Leica or kit would be better in it’s own way also (dual stabilising up a notch with better AF also with brand matched systems). The 1080p and 4k options far out weigh the EM1’s 4k only. The other photogs at the paper have been using older model D500 Nikons, so my efforts should be technically equal or better and I will bet a lot simpler.
Too many choices!
Practicing what I preach, asking ”the right” question, I guess I need the best practical video for the paper (not highest quality, just fast and accurate, so either, but probably Oly for AF/stab. Secondly to replace my “lumpy” standard lens (12-60 Panas-either) and finally, have it all fit into an existing bag option, which is proving hard as usual. Non battery grip cameras can fit well with lens in bags like the F802 or LP Pro Tactic 350, but with grip and 40-150 Pro mounted, all bets are off*.
If you like to listen to little voices that drop hints or pose interesting questions, i.e. follow your instincts (and I do), then the Leica 8-18 has been impressing, the G9 quietly asking if it can be taken for a little run for stills and the overall balance of my kit I feel, needs more Pana for the different options if nothing else.
Adding a Pana into an Olympus kit would come with the usual issues of camera multi tasking and lets be clear, both of these are menu monsters, neither are even close in operation and neither are they similar in results. The G9 for me has been a video only camera, so setup was pretty straight forward. I just “undid” that for some stills and it took the better part of half an hour just getting the buttons back to a stills friendly configuration and take some shots (all my video settings are saved).
Will this add confusion for video and stills with just this camera alone without another brand sharing the bag?
Maybe, but I have coped up until now. The fact is, if a lens and camera are mated and used often, the habits formed seem to become agnostic. I use EM5 Mk1, EM10 Mk2, Pen F, Pen Mini, EM1 Mk2 and EM1x cameras side by side and each of those has different operational needs (often frustratingly so), so adding in a dual purpose Lumix may not be that hard in reality.
Lets have a play.
An ISO 6400 image, f4 at about 1/20th with the Leica wide angle. Compared to most of my Oly cameras, this seems to be quite “off” in WB, but it is a RAW file, so maybe we can fix it.
The slightest push to blue WB and there we have it, very pleasant (the green is close to exact). So, from worse than Oly at first sight to possibly better with the mildest of tweeks and the files seem to push around my work-flow faster than the Oly ones.
After a spin in ON1 No Noise, it comes up sharp, relatively noiseless and clean. This is close to EM1x performance from a camera a few years older and a notch below it. I always felt the G9 was a better camera than the EM1 Mk2 in sharpness and noise control and this confirms it to me.
I must admit the camera seems more complicated than my Olympus equivalents, with lots happening, lots to adjust to, but it was fast and accurate. The only issue was the screen resolution made the above file look a little softer than it actually was.
Adjustments, lots of adjustments.
Matching the Pana/Leica 8-18 to a G9 gives me a 16-95 pro lens in 1080p video, a properly matched Pana to Pana pairing for AF performance and corrections and a nice colour rendering (Panas’ tend to be cooler/brighter than Oly, so mixing them up gives you options). I have always liked the Leica 15 f1.7, but without a Pana camera it seemed a weak choice.
Lens wise, the 12-60** kit would give me a decent (better than decent) replacement for my “lumpy” 12-40. It lacks speed, but I have plenty of options there. Matched to the 75-300 Oly, I would have a decent “premium kit zoom kit” pairing for the school, covering 24-600 equiv. with plenty of fast primes to compliment them. If I split my kits as I want to, the school kit will change to this dynamic, which suits me fine as some of my lenses have been neglected lately, but never failed when used. I know what the school needs and sometimes using pro glass is over-kill.
The reality is, there is no better value around at the moment than the G9 and 12-60 kit for under $1400au. It is about the same as the G95 kit, or a EM10 Mk4 with equivalent lens. That is a lot of camera and lens for the price of a decent lens on its own. My slightly zoom-action-compromised 12-40 annoys me, but the reality is, it still works fine, especially on the video centric G9 rig, so for my school kit. It will keep on going as needed.
*The F802 bag is perfect as long as the camera is not gripped. No other bag I own works with grips except a back pack, which is problematic in itself. The Turnstyle 20L would likely work, or another F802, the bigger F833 Domke satchel, or even a generic “boxy” bag, but nothing I have now. If I stick to a non-gripped camera (G9, EM1 Mk2/3), then a second F802 would be perfect. Maybe black so I don’t pick the wrong one up.
**After a little research, the G9 with the excellent kit 12-60 can be had for as little as $1350au from an Australian retailer, the G9 with the Leica or EM1 Mk2 and 12-40 for around $2000 and the EM1 Mk3 with 12-45 f4 Pro for $2400au. I can get the EM1x for about $2500 body only, probably pushing price out a bit far and no lens.
Head; EM1 mk3 + 8-25 for $3000au. Most coverage, best “power”, most money.
Heart; EM1 Mk2 + 12-40. for $2000au Very good lens and camera combo, with minimum upheaval (really only depth added).
Gut; G9 + 12-60 kit for $1350au. Maximum give, minimum waste, biggest adjustment period.