Two Doable and Affordable Ways You Can Capture 4K

Hollywood has been filming movies in 4K resolution for several years now, anticipating the day when we all dutifully trudge to Best Buy and update our TVs and computer monitors. Event videographers don’t always have the luxury of such expensive future proofing, though, with 4K TVs and monitors still in only a small fraction of U.S. homes. So it’s still an open question just how fast you need to adopt 4K technology.

Panasonic is looking to make the decision vastly easier by lowering the price barrier to 4K recording. Here, we take a look at two of the company’s latest entries into the market—the GH4 and the HC-X1000.

THE GH4
What struck me first when I took the camera out of its box was how large it was. For the past year I’ve been using an Olympus OM-D E-M5 as my “in between” camera. It’s the one I take with me when I need something more than an iPhone but don’t need the heft and performance of a pro-level DSLR. To me, that’s the benefit of a mirrorless camera—it can be made smaller as there is no need for the box to hold the mirror and its mechanical components. However, the GH4 is quite a bit bigger than the Olympus. In fact, it’s about the same size as the newest Nikon DSLR, the D5500.

Having said that, I actually preferred the larger size of the GH4 to the Olympus, primarily because the GH4 has a larger handgrip. I’m sure I am not the only one who likes to hold a camera by the grip when walking rather than leaving it dangling in the “wind,” takes no time to bring the camera up to your eyes ready to shoot immediately. The Olympus’s grip barely stands proud of the camera body while the GH4’s grip extends out by almost an inch, which is about the same as on a full-frame DSLR. Hence the irony—I enjoyed using the GH4 much more than the E-M5 even though it’s bigger.

Because both the GH4 and E-M5 use the Micro Four-Thirds lens mount standard, their lenses are interchangeable, although their functions might not be fully compatible. For example, only Panasonic lenses utilize the Power O.I.S. stabilization system. However, I tried an Olympus M.Zuiko 14-42mm zoom lens, which is nearly half the size of the Lumix G 12-35mm lens, and had no problems with its operation.

Shooting Experience
At first when I tried the GH4, it was just another camera. But once I delved into the numerous ways it can be customized, I began to like it more and more. There are no less than five function buttons that can be used to set up customized parameters. There are two “regular” dials on top and there are two dials for changing parameters. This is no different from a regular DSLR, but nonetheless it’s nice to see all these options available on a mirrorless camera. An added bonus: most commands are also available on the touchscreen monitor, including changing the focus point. All of this means that anyone who is happy with a “regular” DSLR will quickly become familiar with the operation of the GH4.

For those who are willing to venture beyond the basics, the GH4 offers lots of additional ways of using it, including a built-in intervalometer, which can be set to capture time-lapse and stop-motion videos. The GH4 has built-in Wi-Fi and it proved to be the easiest system to pair with an iPhone I have yet encountered. Once you’ve downloaded the free app to your smartphone, all you have to do is turn on the Wi-Fi on the camera. As soon as the phone is connected, a QR code is displayed on the camera’s LCD. The app automatically captures this code when you point your phone at the camera display and immediately the camera and phone are paired—no entering a code or password. I had no trouble controlling the camera from 30 feet away through three walls in my house.

Image Quality
There’s no getting away from the fact that the GH4’s sensor is only about one quarter the area of a full-frame DSLR. Despite this, 16 megapixels is more than enough for producing good quality prints—and the GH4 more than holds its own against DSLRs with APS-C-sized sensors. Overall, I was impressed with the quality of the still images it captures. In a side-by-side comparison with my Nikon D600, it produced comparable quality images.

If there’s one area where the camera’s quality is lacking, it’s at high ISOs. The camera can only shoot up to ISO 25,600 but noise becomes visible at ISO 1600. This is obviously not a problem shooting in well-lit scenes, but would be a disadvantage if you’re in a dark venue and cannot use flash.

The 4K video side of the camera proved to be excellent and I was able to extract several perfectly acceptable still images. To do that, all I had to do was play back the video one frame at a time on the GH4 and press a save button on the monitor, which then created an 8.3-megapixel (3840 x 2160) JPEG image. I’m not ready to suggest that anyone abandon their still camera and switch to 4K video to deliver still images. However, the GH4 certainly paves the way for a future where your video files provide a rich new source of usable stills as well.

Is the GH4 For You?
If you’re already invested in Panasonic Micro Four-Thirds cameras and lenses, odds are the GH4 is already on your shopping list. If you own an Olympus Micro Four-Thirds system, the GH4 could also be a prudent purchase as you can use the Zuiko lenses. If you answered “none of the above,” the GH4 may still make sense if you want to start shooting 4K video now. It would make an excellent “B-Roll” camera to go along with your main kit. Because it has a completely silent shutter and a reliable Wi-Fi, it could be used to shoot the wedding vows unobtrusively. And since the still images that can be grabbed from 4K video footage are good quality, it could double up as a video and stills camera for that part of a wedding.

Compared to other alternatives for 4K video capture, the $1,700 price tag for the GH4 body is a bargain, though keep in mind the price will increase when you add necessities like lenses and external devices for audio and other high-end video needs. —John Rettie

THE HC-X1000
At $3,500, the HC-X1000 delivers 4K resolution alongside a wide range of features in a traditional camcorder design. In tandem with our frequent co-tester, photographer and director David Patiño, we put the X1000 through its paces.

Solid Feature Set
The X1000 uses a 1/2.3-inch MOS image sensor with a total pixel count of 18.5 megapixels, though only 8 megapixels are effective during filming (or 8.9 megapixels if you’re filming in the 17:9 aspect ratio). This is a conventional sensor size by video camera standards, but it’s small by the standards of DSLRs and cinema cameras. The smaller image sensor means it’s easier to focus the X1000 than either a digital SLR or cinema-style camera. On the flip side, it’s also harder to achieve a shallow depth-of-field or coax the same amount of dynamic range from your footage as you could on a larger sensor camera, though you’ll have plenty of flexibility when choosing your resolution.

The X1000 records “cinema” 4K—that’s 4096 x 2160—at 24 frames per second (fps). If you want a speedier frame rate to tackle faster moving subjects, you can drop down to 3840 x 2160 and enjoy frame rates up to 60 fps. Both 4K resolutions are recorded in the MP4 format. You’ll also have plenty of HD options. You can record 1920 x 1080p and 1280 x 720p video in MP4, AVCHD or MOV formats with bitrates varying between 200Mbps down to 5Mbps.

On the optics front, you’ll find a built-in 20x optical zoom Leica Dicomar lens with a 35mm equivalent focal length of 30.8mm to 626mm. The lens has an aperture range of f/1.6 to 3.6, so it’s very bright and fast. There’s a four-stop manual ND filter on hand as well as a manual lens cover that’s integrated into the lens hood, which is itself fixed to the camera.

If the X1000 can’t bring the shallow depth-of-field like a DSLR, it blows those cameras away in the audio department. The X1000 sports a stereo microphone plus a pair of XLR audio inputs with phantom power and independent controls for each input. There’s a mic input for audio monitoring plus A/V and HDMI outputs. There is no HD-SDI output, however, so you’ll only be able to output uncompressed footage to HDMI-based external recorders and monitors. Footage is stored internally to a pair of SD cards, and Wi-Fi and NFC are also on hand for wirelessly pairing with mobile devices.

Dialed-in Design
Almost every critical camera function you’ll need to access is available as a button, dial or knob on the exterior of the X1000. A few, like audio controls, are behind plastic doors, but there’s relatively little need to go digging through on-screen menus.

The record button and zoom toggle are duplicated in two locations on the camera body to accommodate hand-held and tripod recording. We found zooming to be very smooth, sensitive and responsive to gentle pressure. There are three rings around the lens for manually pulling focus, zoom and iris control with just the right amount of tension for smooth operation.

At 3.4 pounds (without battery or SD card), the X1000 is quite light for cameras in this category, often by a full pound. If you’re frequently without a tripod or monopod, the X1000 will certainly shave your chiropractor bill. That said, the light weight of the X1000 comes with a trade off—a mostly plastic body with a few components, like the pull-out LCD, that feel worryingly flimsy.

Image Quality
For Patiño, who owns a RED Scarlet, a Blackmagic Cinema camera and a Canon 5D Mark II, the small chip “look” produced by the X1000 wasn’t his cup of tea, though he was quick to point out that it was more of an esthetic choice than a liability in the X1000’s quality. Simply set to iAuto, the X1000 kept some darkened portions of the frame out of reach, even in post processing. However, the camcorder does offer a flatter color setting (Cine-D), which will let you color grade footage and gives you a bit more dynamic range to play with.

Color reproduction was consistently accurate. The built-in lens and 5-axis image stabilization—which kicks on when shooting at HD resolutions but not 4K—also impressed Patiño. Even hand-held at full telephoto, we were able to keep the scene mostly steady. At shorter focal lengths, you should feel confident hand-holding the X1000 while on the move.

Esthetics aside, Patiño was happy with the 1080p clips and our review of 4K footage showed the expected incredible abundance of detail, however there was some highlight clipping in both HD and 4K.

Performance
The X1000 starts relatively quickly, zooms smoothly and has a pretty strong battery life of about six hours-worth of HD footage. A button on the back of the battery (which is exposed) lets you conveniently monitor remaining life if you don’t want to peek at the menu or turn on the camera.

The touchscreen menu is easy to read in bright sunlight and responsive when navigating through menu options. You also have the option of navigating through menu functions using buttons and a scroll wheel on the bottom of the camera, though we found this less efficient. Patiño, however, liked that the menu was viewable/adjustable through the .45-inch, high-resolution electronic viewfinder.

Bottom Line
The X1000 is a great value, bundling an awful lot of functionality beyond 4K video recording at a very attractive $3,500 price. You’ll have to live with the constraints and esthetics of a smaller image sensor and a fixed lens, but for those who are willing to do so, the X1000 won’t disappoint. —Greg Scoblete

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