I bought a G9 Mk2 recently and even though the bulk of lenses I have bought recently are for full frame L-mount, it is still the right “A” camera, now and into the immediate future.
What I wanted was what it offered and it was the only option, but I feel in the future, when full frame (a term I hate) catches up, that logic may tested. Then it may become the “B” cam, but we will see.
The fact is, the G9II is one of the most exciting and balanced cameras released this year in a valid format that falls within the varied “Super 35” envelope.
Seriously, what is not to like, unless you (a) don’t like Panasonic’s excellent colour science, (b) their nice to grade V-Log, (c) their huge and amazing range of lens options, (d) their handling and performance or, (e) their best value to price features set for both video and stills?
Other than the unwarranted pressure on M43 at the moment*, are there any real problems looming?
Apart from the intellectual logic of M43, something that is often overshadowed by singular, non contextual or circumstantial comparisons to other sensor sizes (like ISO performance in isolation), M43 does not have the legacy of 35mm film formats shared by the “old guard”, although ironically it is even older if you consider 35mm film was used first “sideways” as Super 35 or “half frame” for movies, a format closer to M43 than full frame is.
I shot film for longer than I have been using digital (just), but I still decided to put the bulk of my resources and effort into M43. I know the difference and see it for what it is.
Canon and Nikon were the big boys, Sony came through on their legacy and Panasonic joined more recently, mostly to combat the shift to Sony. Fuji and Olympus have avoided the common format and seem to be doing fine in their niche and any short comings from either system are not format related.
I have been distracted lately by sale period L-Mount bargains, but the reality is, the ripe fruit on the tree for me is M43, the still ripening fruit, belongs to the larger format Panasonics. By this I mean, full frame Panasonic cameras with their advantages are not yet M43 killers and won’t be until they can do what M43 does better.
The G9II feels like a fully realised “next gen”, no compromise hybrid camera and a shift in thinking. The S5II’s do not quite fit that mould.
I am happy enough with the S5 mk1 for the same reason. What the G9 does is so much more, it is effectively a different class, the S5 is great at what it does, the Mk 2’s only slightly better.
Can I fully trust the S5II’s AF and stabilising compared to the G9II? No. The G9II does allow the closest to gimbal stabilising of any camera like it and the AF, though not perfect, is better with the advantages of M43 depth of field and so many great lenses.
I have a huge M43 lens arsenal, which combined with the best range of video features any camera in its price range (or even many higher) it is so powerful. 16 to 600mm in full frame? No thanks, not even an option.
The G9II has the other selling feature which is stills ability with the above features. I could have easily justified it just for just that, just as I have bought it primarily as a video option.
I have to admit, after once declaring I “may never buy another M43 camera after the S5”, then buying one, I think I have real balance now, so probably I can say again with more certainty, I will probably never buy another M43 camera, but I won’t be buying anything until full frame cameras have reached this point.
It is not that the system is dead, but that it is compete for me. M43 has all the answers I need, unlike full frame that is still a little lacking. I look at M43 as fully realised, full frame as the thing about a generation, maybe two from that place.
I have two EM1x stills cameras for sport and they are quicker than I am. I now have the G9II for video, but also as a future stills champion, but the results out of even my old EM1 Mk2’s, EM10 Mk2’s and Pen F are still satisfying clients and the state of the kit ranges from worn in, to standby fresh. Even my now failing EM5 Mk1’s still take lovely shots.
If I had not jumped at the S5 last year, maybe getting the GH5II instead (actually my “gut” choice, the S5 the “head” and the GH6 the “heart”), my path would have likely been different*, but as it stands, my future purchases will likely be another full frame camera at some point (S5III, or possibly a cheap S5 or Sigma FP) and maybe another IRIX lens (30 T1.5) to make a workable premium cine lens set.
The mixed kit thing is a pain to be honest, but I have made it work and pushed at the benefits of both, sometimes coming up with solutions that a single system could not have achieved.
It is nice to be able to say “yes, I have full frame, but choose to use M43”.
If you do not have the luxury of buying the very dearest gear, efficiency lies in cherry picking the cheaper options. Maybe Sony could have managed all these in one format, but the lenses alone would have crippled my budget and I simply do not like their colours or the cameras.
Each system can work entirely independently for video. The M43 kit is up for gun-n-gun, fast operation and stills. The full frame kit for more measured work and it would be fine for a studio, portraitist or travel/street stills shooter. Having both is a luxury, or more honestly a distraction.
If I look at it from a monetary sense only, avoiding full frame would have saved me about $8k over two years, but that would have likely been largely eaten into to get the same holes filled*** and the bargains I have achieved lately have mostly been thanks to the less common L-mount. The 7Art and Irix lenses were in stock clearances, most other mounts were full price, even the M43 ones.
The S5 kit, which is now extensive, was mostly down to bargains and best buys, so I should not feel pressured to build on it. I could have also completely avoided the cinema glass, just going with the S Primes, but where is the fun in that?
*The M43 only path would have satisfied, the only real benefits coming from full frame being high ISO shooting (Mostly irrelevant with fast M43 glass and only relevant with fast FF glass) and lens choice (also mostly irrelevant by picking different glass). Lenses like the IRIX 21 over the 30, or the 12 and 35 7Artisans Vision and Sirui 24 and 55 Nightwalkers (the pick of each set) would have done cinema lenses or maybe even a set of the Sirui anamorphic’s.
**By pressure I mean the cloud hanging over the Olympus to OM systems transition, mostly in the minds of detractors and the up until recently, stagnant offerings from Panasonic and Black Magic as well as their expansion of their full frame offers.
***Another M43 body (GH6, GH5II), a cinema lens (10-25 f1.7) and maybe the odd prime like the Sigma 56 and some cinema glass, so $5-7k anyway.