Low Price Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 12.1MP Micro Four-Thirds Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera with LUMIX G 20mm f/1.7 Aspherical Lens
Low Price Panasonic DMC GF1 Four Thirds Interchangeable Aspherical @Amazon.comi own the canon G10, LX3/D-lux4 (and a canon EOS 1Ds & SD790IS), and spent a LOT of time with the olympus E-P1 in various camera stores manhandling it with different lenses. i chose the GF1 20mm kit based on
1) DSLR-like image quality in stealthy compact form. Granted my 1Ds is 7 years old now, but it was the best camera of its era. the GF1's files are better than the 1Ds with more ISO options and low-light capability (i took a lot of test shots in camera stores and checked out the files at home before purchasing). Dxomark would disagree, but on my computer screen, the GF1 is better. i think a lot has to be said for the latest and greatest noise reduction algorithms, and for a lighter anti-aliasing filter on the sensor. i'm also pretty sure i can sneak the GF1 into concerts etc where pro-level cameras are outlawed. it just looks like a big LX3.
2) Shallower depth of field than LX3/G10. I love making dreamy pictures with nice bokeh and subject isolation (my favorite lens on the 1Ds is the 50mm/f.14, and i almost always shoot wide open), and it's tragic that you cannot create those pictures in a small form factor - the closest would be a Leica M9 with 50mm summilux, if you have $10000 to spare. the GF1 + 20mm 1.7 is a good compromise, and not much worse than an APS-C camera in terms of depth of field increase. In other words, the samsung NX10, sigma and sony interchangeable lens compacts will likely not have substantially shallower DOF.
3) snappy autofocus. everyone claiming the E-P1/P2's autofocus is on par with the GF1 is smoking something, or aren't sensitive to AF speed (e.g. landscape/portrait shooters). the GF1 focuses faster than my 1Ds does, way faster than the E-P1, and offers pretty good control over the AF point. this is critical for street shooting, where you have just a second to compose, focus and take a shot. the E-P1 just felt sluggish, even when i put the 20mm/1.7 on it. it felt slower than the LX3/Dlux4 and even the G10. the GF1 takes pictures when i expect it to, even with focus-priority...i couldn't say the same for my time with E-P1.
4) user interface. although a life long canon shooter, the LX3/dlux4 introduced me to panasonic's UI, and i've found it fairly logical and easy to navigate. almost everything is just a few buttons away. in the time i spent with olympus i was completely confused.
5) incredible low light performance. the 1.7 is surprisingly sharp wide open if your subject is distant enough. this means i can street shoot at about ISO400 at dawn or dusk, 1/100 or 1/250 shutter sometimes to stop motion. ISO 1600 is amazingly clean to my eye, and beats ISO1250 on my 1Ds.
6) lighter than E-P1. ostensibly they're about the same size/weight, but the E-P1 just felt heavier & bulkier to me.
7) handling. a bit of an x-factor. it feels good in hand. although tricky i can use it with gloves. it starts up almost immediately, whereas the E-P1 runs its sensor cleaning. the shutter gives a satisfying chunk. i leave it around neck & shoulder without a lens cap and i can quickly shoot from the waist or bring it up to eye level for composing. it just feels good to use. it begs to be used every day. i think if the GF1 didn't exist, i'd have saved up for the leica M9 and 50/1.4. the gf1 feels like what the M10 should be (except with a sensor half the size).
lens compatibility. there's an adaptor for practically every lens system out there to micro-4/3, including leica M, R, nikon, canon, etc. i look forward to trying my canon 50mm/1.4 on it (effectively turning it into a 100mm f/1.4!!). you lose autofocus and perhaps aperture control (modern lenses use electronically controlled apertures), but if you're a rangefinder kind of person, you won't miss it.
9) sharper rear display. the low-res LCD on the E-P1 is just not good enough. i like to adjust/check focus manually, and the high res screen on the GF1 makes it easy. the E-P1 has to zoom in more to confirm sharpness, and it's just not as usable (imagine being forced to always zoom 10x in the moment you touch the manual focus ring - you have no idea where you are. GF1 zooms 5x with an option to go 10x).
Things that you have to compromise:
1) no in-body image stabilization like on E-P1. in practice, i don't think this matters for my kind of shooting. the tele lenses that need it will have it for panasonic, but IBIS doesn't help if you're trying to freeze motion, such as in street shooting.
2) size/weight. it's not as pocketable as the LX3/dlux4. but so much better than lugging an SLR around. i can keep this on me all day and not notice it or want to take it off.
3) DOF. the shallower depth of field can work against you if you need to stop down to get more things sharp in lower light. there are shots that are more easily taken with the LX3/dlux4 than this or an SLR. recall that the LX3 has an f/2.0 at wide angle, but because of the roughly 4x smaller sensor, the DOF is much deeper.
4) prime lens. i don't think this is bad, but today's consumer may need some adjustment. my DSLR always had a 50mm on it. zoom with your feet.
in summary i'm selling my G10, some of my canon lenses, keeping the LX3/dlux4 and GF1. I ordered the camera for New Year and a week later returned it. Reason? No zoom and after reading some comparisons with other cameras I felt I overpaid (I could have gotten the same at half the price, or so I thought at that time).
Long story short, I now have returned the other camera and I am ordering this one back (just waiting for a refund from B&H). This may sound silly, but I guess that was needed to know what I really needed. Here's what I liked about this camera and what I did not find in G11 (I am not a professional photographer so I will not/cannot go into technical details).
1. Great images. Just taking images in auto settings make super crisp professional looking images! I like that it focuses on the subject and makes foreground and background blurred (just like we see it with our eyes). G11 could take similar images only at highest zoom level with smallest aperture settings and when you come really close to the subject. As a result you could not include a lot in the picture).
2. Low light. I was taking pictures in candle light and they looked great! (I should mention that some of them were still a little blurry - but this could be because I did not figure out all the settings). I don't like to use flash so this camera was great. I found G11 taking yellowish pictures in auto mode. In manual mode I can change the settings and it would be fine, but I wanted to take pictures fast without spending 5 minutes adjusting settings manually and taking several sample shots. Again, this might not be a problem for a pro.
3. HD video. Took several sample videos and loved them (the only things I did not like was that the camera was autofocusing and sometimes the main subject would blurred for a second. There may be settings to fix this. I did not have time to check.
4. Size. Thought G11 is a little smaller, but just a little.
5. Speed. After taking a picture with G11 I had to wait what felt to be much longer than GF1 (GF1 feels super fast).
So, I am re-ordering it next week and will be able to add more once I have more time to play with it. I compare to G11 only because I ordered it after GF1 and used it for 2 weeks before returning it. It's a great camera but my choice is GF1 (I am even ready to use "foot zoom" - this now looks like a small trade off compared to overall performance).
I hope this is helpful.I'll try no to repeat what's already been said, but rather summarize my experience and provide some insight to things I feel are the most important. First of all, this camera really depends on your needs, because it's unique and not a do-it-all like some suggested. Let's drill down the tree of what we're comparing to by first highlighting the biggest advantages and drawbacks to the camera.
NOTE: I'm only comparing the camera to entry or mid-level DSLRs. It doesn't match high-end DSLRs, and doesn't serve the same functions.
Biggest advantages:
* Form factor (especially with the 20mm/f1.7) - size and weight
* Ease of use - your significant other can get great shots even if he/she isn't into photography
* VERY accurate metering - can't blow easy/medium shots with intelligent Auto (but tough shots require more)
* intelligent modes just simply get it right 90% of the time - you don't need to be a pro to shoot!
* The 20mm/f1.7 lens is just simply outstanding!!
Biggest drawbacks:
* Expensive (I tend to discount that - memories are worth more than a few hundred dollars)
* Poor selection of lenses
* No flash button
* No viewfinder (or rather, $200 more expensive to get an electronic one)
Things I don't care about:
* Build quality - it's super solid, but I don't think it or any other camera would survive a fall to concrete.
* Weak flash - all internal flashes are weak, but they're convenient.
* The manual sucks - but practice makes perfect anyway
* movie mode - give me a break! All cameras today are pretty much the same, some shoot full 1080p HD but low frame rate, GF1 only shoots 720p - but they look the same to me. If you want to shoot good videos with great quality, get a camcorder.
Some comments about other reviews:
* shooting with VF is great - but VF is still important for sports shots and more importantly for extra bright days. EVF is more bulky and extra $200
* it does have horizon markings and grid
* I personally didn't even consider the EP-1 or EP-2 to be competition. Regardless of GF-1 coming out better in most tests, one crucial feature to a m43 is built-in flash. If you have to walk around with an external flash (like on the EP1 or EP2), that negates the whole point of compactness - just get a DSLR.
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Some drilling down to help you choose:
* If you are into photography as an art, get a DSLR. They're still more versatile and you'll get more choice of lenses - and you're probably carrying around a significant package anyway.
* For portraits this camera (with 20mm f1.7 lens) simply can't be beat. Quality is outstanding and can match mid-range DSLR easily. The bokeh is beautiful! And if it's day-to-day that you want (like catching your kids at the right moment), let's see you do that with a DSLR. It may fire within 0.1sec, but takes 10secs to setup...
* If you want your photos (e.g. family photos rather than scenery), you'll have to let others take pictures too. Like strangers taking pictures of your entire family, your spouse taking pictures when she doesn't care to read the 200 page manual - if that's the case, THIS CAMERA BEATS EVERYTHING ELSE BY A MILE!!! Taking pictures with auto settings and using the LCD is Soooooooo much easier with this camera.
* Don't know what it is - indoor closeup flash pics just meter so much better than with T1i or D5000.
* Contrast focus is fast! Faster than most entry level DSLRs, that's for sure.
Summary:
Buy a DSLR if:
* you don't care about package size
* you want diversity and flexibility in what you photograph today and in the future (like taking photos of a basketball game, then go out and take scenery shots) and want different lenses for different tasks.
For everything else, this will deliver the good, and then some!!Sold my Nikon D40 a while ago and got the GF1 pancake kit recently. I never have the habit to carry my D40 around for everyday chores only for special occasion but the GF1 changed that trend and has become my everyday camera that goes with me anywhere. The compactness of GF1 + pancake lens is incomparable it easily slip into my jacket without hassle. It has everything I need in one little package, the design, the image quality, the features, good battery life, video mode 720p. The pancake lens is good for almost every situation. The combination of the two make it a perfect pair. Now I'm a fan of Panasonic lumix.
One thing I wish for this camera is to have built in IS.
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