DxOmark (Click here) tested the GH4 sensor performance and it becomes the best rated Micro Four Thirds camera yet although it beats the E-M1 by 1 point margin only. DxO writes:
The sensor performance is on a par with the highly regarded Olympus OM-D E-M1 and is competitive when viewed against rivals using APS-C size sensors. Sony has yet to revise the aging NEX-7 though the new full-frame Sony A7s looks as though the firm is tempted to build more video-centric models. However, for the time being at least the hybrid GH4 looks like a formidable contender for both stills and video users.
More GH4 tests:
First Lab Shots now posted at Imaging Resource.
GH4 with Nocticron image samples at Cameras.reviewed.
Panasonic Lumix GH4: Product Overview – Adorama Photography TV (Youtube).
B&W from a GH4 4K Stream (Outbackphoto).
North American preorders, shipping date and price:
GH4 camera at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), BHphoto (Click here), and Panasonic (Click here). Price: $1,698. In Canada at Vistek (Click here).
GH4 camera with interface unit at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here) and BHphoto (Click here). Price: $3,298
Interface unit only at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), BHphoto (Click here) and Panasonic (Click here). Price: $1,998
Europen preorders, shipping date and price:
Germany: Wexcameras, Marcotec-shop.de.
UK at Wexphotographic, CameraWorld, UKdigital, CVP, TipTop.
Holland at Fotohanskeuzekamp.
Belgium at Fotokonijnenberg.
Norway at Fotovideo.
Sweden at Cyberphoto, Skandinavianphoto.
Finland at Telefoto, Topshot, Verkkoauppa.
France at Photocineshop.
Spain: Fotoboom.
57 Responses
I don’t believe it. The speed at which this unavailable gh4 review was pushed through to me reeks of a desperate attempt by Panasonic to avoid having a camera that has been optimized as a video recorder be so recognized.
Unless panasonic engineers are head and shoulders above those of Olympus, which I doubt, a video optimized device is not going to beat the em1, which is a very recent stills camera.
Think about it.
Just take a look at them on Imaging Resource in the comparometer. To me they seem to be very even matches excelling each other in different parts of the image.
You understand that this is a sensor rating, not a camera rating?
The biggest difference between the GH4 and E-M1 is in the iso category. That makes sense considering the on sensor PDAF of the E-M1 would adversly affect it’s low light performance. And the optimization donw for viseo on the GH4 would have an impact on it’s stills ability as well, although not nearly as much as video.
The Olympus E-M1 uses a sensor made by Panasonic.
Think about it.
It’s funny that DxO took so long to handle several non-Canikon models and yet, they’ve jumped the queue with this one.
Why does the GH4 have to beat the E-M1? It’s obviously working at a much higher level for the extra US$300, and if it can match (or even come close) the E-M1’s still photo quality while surpassing it easily in video, hybrid photographers will be pleased to use the GH4.
An Olympus Fanboy in denial. It’s not a big deal. Live with it. The GH4 is a slightly better camera. A MUCH better camera if you include video.
The more I think about your post and the more I find a desperate attempt to accept Panny sensor improvements in the last 2 years !
Well done , GH4 !
Unfortunately I’m not keen to SLR alike design camera otherwise should grab it without doubt .
RF style suit me the most .
Get the GX7 then, it’s an amazing and quite capable camera.
Is the camera you currently have broken? If not, don’t fix it 😉
Shut up and take my money!!
Low-light ISO performance is worse than GH3. Unbelievable!
same for EM-1
…Something fishy going on here, as every GH4 reviewer has stated they are seeing about 1 stop better low-light performance compared to the GH3.
There is nothing fishy, all the persons who reported that GH4 is definitely better looking in low light vs GH3 was in JPG, yes that improvement it really exists due to better processing in GH4.
“Sports & action photography: Low-Light ISO
…
Thus low-light ISO is the highest ISO setting for a camera that allows it to achieve an SNR of 30dB while keeping a good dynamic range of 9 EVs and a color depth of 18bits.”
Unless I am reading their explanation incorrectly, which is quite possible, the higher the ISO number here the better.
And I am not viewing the number correctly. Interesting.
However, the processing is supposedly greatly improved, so the output is better regardless. The numeric difference is marginal either way.
Not too bad!
Why would they compare it to the NEX-7? Why not a6000, both new cameras.
My understanding is that its numbers were:
82 vs. 74
24.1 vs. 23.2
13.1 vs. 12.8
1347 vs. 791.
Not trying to start anything, both great cameras but the comparison should be relevant.
Because you can’t use MFT lenses on a NEX camera. APS-C E-Mount has only one really good lens. MFT has several.
Again, my point was NOT one against the other.
Only why did the reviewer choose the NEX-7 as a comparison and not the a6000. The GH4 is a NEW camera, so it would make sense to compare it to the new APC-S.
Yes, the low-light performance improvement (at least on paper) with the a6000 is quite remarkable. They’ve stretched their lead from 1/3 of a stop to 2/3 of a stop on M4/3, and beaten every single other APS-C sensor on the market (since DXO doesn’t seem to want to benchmark Fuji’s X-Trans).
That said, the differences in dynamic range and bit depth are pretty trivial. Which is impressive by itself! You couldn’t say that a few years ago…
The D7100 still doesn’t look so bad. Differences are almost too small to notice in reality under most circumstances. It’s the phase detect system which I think makes the A6000 interesting. However, only the 35 and 50mm lenses look nice for me. I would prefer Fuji due to the 1.4 and 1.2 autofocus prime lenses.
With such a great sensor in GH4, I beg to ask…. Is your skills up to the mark? ;p
Nope. But working on it. 🙂
Lumix GH4 wins Videomaker Best of NAB award
http://t.co/6MF1SpOwHw
1 point difference is well within the margin of error.
Doesn’t the E-PM2 have the best high ISO numbers?
By about 1/6th of a stop vs. the Panasonic-made sensors (GX7, GH4, E-M1), and about 1/16th of a stop vs. the Sony ones. It’s the same sensor in the E-PM2 as the E-M5 and E-PL5 and E-P5, so it’s either sample variation or margin of error.
In short, not anything you’d ever notice in use.
This just underlines the great quality of m43 cameras now, they are very capable and can produce excellent results. I don’t think we need to nit-pick over which one is the best by a miniscule margin, I am now using a GH3 for commercial work and no-one has questioned the quality of the images (including one in UK Vogue). If the GH4 is a bit better, along with the E-M1 this is just great for the system as a whole, good times for m43.
Ratings are rubbish, look for the graphs. And all of them – SNR, Dynamic Range etc – are just the same for GH3, GH4 and E-M5. Where’s the progress, Panasonic? E-M1 is marginally better in DR, though. Not impressed.
Some dude on the Internet’s not impressed better work harder Panasonic…
The big winner here is the GH3. I guess I’ll wait for the GH5 or the EM-X to find a real upgrade.
No, you’re the real “winner” here… for failing to recognize the new feature list!!
Sort of.
The GH4 (and the EM-1) both have that wonderful 1/8000th shutter and the EM-1 has a really nifty bulb mode for long exposures that allows one to gauge the exposure as it’s happening.
DXO says the difference need be at least 5 units to be real world difference. The differences are a) negliable, b) due to differences between different samples.
Conclusion: The three cameras are on equal level in terms of “DXO quality” No winner – nor loser.
Real world? It’s a tie. You won’t see any difference in IQ between the three camera.
Hot cake . I am waiting . I saw some footage straight from camera , wipe my head .
A ridiculous website attaches numbers to an electronic gadget, and compares them to other numbers it attached to other electronic gadgets. Those numbers happen to be roughly the same. So what?
Here is another test: shoot any lens on an old Canon 5D, then attach any comparable / equivalent lens to a GH4 and shoot the same scene. Shoot raw, lift the mirror, use a tripod, take multiple test shots, keep one for each toy. Print both pictures. Compare from a distance. Now zoom in if you really need to…
Dxomark final scores may be not that relevant, but the actual noise, DR and color scores reflect the truth. If you do not beleave it it is your lose. I had plenty of cameras from all companies in my hands, and what Dxomark sad about there RAW sensors was always true.
LOL but the 5D1 hasn’t got “pro” written on.
Nice news for Panasonic, but realistically, If you buy any Olympus you get a sensor that has a 71-72 dxomark. The humble EPM2 which can be had for peanuts beats out the GH3,GM1,GX7 in dxomark score.
invest in lenses, they will last a lifetime
Already did, but the lenses will not take photos by themselves
Did you notice how on page 2 of the DxOMark review, that the comparison table shows it is filtered by “Format: 4:3, Type: Hybrid”, and contains this long list of Olympus cameras.
Olympus, Hybrid? HAHAHAHAHA!!!
It sure is ugly….and since I only shoot stills…it’s WAAAAAAY overpriced! 🙂
Which one the E-M1 or the GH4?
Good to see a sensor from one of the M4/3 players doing as good or better then the bodies with the Sony sensors. After all, who cares who made it as long as they keep getting better. Gotta love what Panny and Oly are doing.
The GH4 and E-M1 likely share the same Panasonic sensor. It’s IQ is excellent, the best sensor in a m4/3 camera until now.
Meanwhile, the Sony A6000 is like 3/4 stop better in low-light ISO…
Too bad Olympus and Panasonic are giving away their signature feature – “micro”.
These tanks are bigger APS-C mirrorless, and even bigger than Sony’s full frame. Yes the lenses are smaller but I’d rather carry a little bigger lens and get the better IQ.
Hope to see more high-spec PENs and GX… micro.
Today even smaller sensors can deliver great output in the right hands. We should enjoy our cameras, swap lenses (we have a lot of them to choose from) and take photos. This is not a race. If I was so unsure about my photography I would always be waiting for the next camera without buying anything and wasting photos in the meanwhile. It’s a little sad that a lot of people are arguing over a handful of numbers trying to decide what camera is better.
great gh4 !!! The best budget video camera 2014 !!
If we look into the measurements on the more detail graphs comparing GH4 with EM1, the EM1 actually performs better than GH4 overall. GH4 just performs better at the low-end ISO. But we don’t always shoot at the lowest ISO. So, I’d say the score is a bit unfair to me, I was wondering how they scored.
Higher ISOs with lower noise are the areas that need the most work in this format