Picked up my new camera today....a GF1

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Well, my new toy arrived Thursday and I managed to take it up Snowdon yesterday (in clag) and Y Mynydd Du in the Brecons today. Luckily, by 3 o'clock today, the sun came out. Still getting to grips with all the features of the GF1 but one thing is for sure - it's a lot less cumbersome than my 50D/17-40 combo on a long day in the Welsh hills. Which is the reason I bought it in the first place...

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Dudie said:
Well, my new toy arrived Thursday and I managed to take it up Snowdon yesterday (in clag) and Y Mynydd Du in the Brecons today. Luckily, by 3 o'clock today, the sun came out. Still getting to grips with all the features of the GF1 but one thing is for sure - it's a lot less cumbersome than my 50D/17-40 combo on a long day in the Welsh hills. Which is the reason I bought it in the first place...

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stunning (y)
 
Dudie said:
Well, my new toy arrived Thursday and I managed to take it up Snowdon yesterday (in clag) and Y Mynydd Du in the Brecons today. Luckily, by 3 o'clock today, the sun came out. Still getting to grips with all the features of the GF1 but one thing is for sure - it's a lot less cumbersome than my 50D/17-40 combo on a long day in the Welsh hills. Which is the reason I bought it in the first place...

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No 1 and 2 looks like Banneau Sir Gaer in the Black Mountain. One of my favourite walks. Some really nice pictures. Much easier up there with the GF1.
 
Thanks both

Yup, it's Bannau Sir Gaer - one of my fave walking areas outside of Snowdonia. We did the circuit from the north, taking in both Llynnau y Fan, Fan Brycheiniog, Picws Du and Bannau Sir Gaer. When we started the tops were in cloud and it was raining. At Llyn y Fan Fawr we had a torrential downpour of biblical proportions. On Fan Brycheiniog we were nearly blown over several times and then we had another downpour. Then, as we approached Picws Du the sun came out and we got glorious sun for the rest of the day. Crazy. Turns out the GF1 doesn't mind a bit of water :D
 
Dudie said:
Thanks both

Yup, it's Bannau Sir Gaer - one of my fave walking areas outside of Snowdonia. We did the circuit from the north, taking in both Llynnau y Fan, Fan Brycheiniog, Picws Du and Bannau Sir Gaer. When we started the tops were in cloud and it was raining. At Llyn y Fan Fawr we had a torrential downpour of biblical proportions. On Fan Brycheiniog we were nearly blown over several times and then we had another downpour. Then, as we approached Picws Du the sun came out and we got glorious sun for the rest of the day. Crazy. Turns out the GF1 doesn't mind a bit of water :D
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I'm glad to hear that. Plenty of rain here. I bought my GF1 for when I go walking too. I prefer to weigh my rucksack down with essentials.
,
 
hillwalkinggirl said:
At last I've figured it out. If you set EX OPT ZOOM to ON in the REC mode menu, and then choose an aspect ratio smaller than L when you press the shutter button you will get a 2x zoom factor with no detioration in picture quality. For example, Set EX OPT ZOOM to on in REC menu, then go to quick menu, scroll along to ASPECT RATIO, then choose MEz, or SEz. In effect then your 20mm pancake lens becomes a 40mm pancake lens with 80mm equivalent. Seems quite useful to me.
The 14-42 lens will then give film equivalent of 56-168.

There is also an option for greater magnification (see Page 51 of manual) but this includes digital magnification which degrades the picture so in my opinion not much use.

I hope that this explanation is not harder to understand than the manual.
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am I missing the point here or does this work out to be the same as shooting a larger file and the cropping afterwards?

If you're into shooting and then displaying on a tv, having an in camera crop is pretty cool. The more I use this little camera the more I like letting it do all the processing for me. :)
 
dazzajl said:
am I missing the point here or does this work out to be the same as shooting a larger file and the cropping afterwards?

If you're into shooting and then displaying on a tv, having an in camera crop is pretty cool. The more I use this little camera the more I like letting it do all the processing for me. :)
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I don't think so. Shooting a larger file and then cropping after would be what happens when using digital zoom, and not optical zoom. If I'm wrong will someone please correct me.
 
It can't do it optically can it?? That would be making a mockery of Scotty. ;)
 
I will do a test tomorrow of using an image size below L with that EZ thing on.. .then one on RAW.
 
Janice said:
I will do a test tomorrow of using an image size below L with that EZ thing on.. .then one on RAW.
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I did a test earlier. There are several Mz settings - they give a smaller or larger zoom. The Ez appears on the screen when one of these is chosen. If you chose to take a RAW file then the symbol doesn't appear so it won't work with RAW.

Oh we do love our gadgets.:love:
 
grum said:
:thinking:

I also don't see how a fixed lens can optically zoom.
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It can't - it will all be done digitally.

There is no optic within the camera and the 20mm is a 20mm - nothing more. Sure, it has the same FOV as a 40mm lens on full frame - but they can't have described that characteristic so badly, can they?

I might have a read of the manual tomorrow and interpret what it says.
 
What RAW converter are people using with their GF1? Had a look at Silkypix but it seems to be awfully 'messy' for want of a better word. Currently using ACR as part of Elements 7. Shame Canon's DPP doesn't work!
 
hillwalkinggirl said:
Watch out for altitude sickness. You need to be at altitude for at least 5 days for the extra red blood cells to form, so that you can transport more Oxygen. Take care.
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Yeah, I have read quite extensively on the subject. We get plenty of acclimatisation rest days and the pace is very steady to try and ensure people get to the top. Quite a lot of people don't make it all the way though unfortunately, I just hope I manage it. The total time spent hiking at Altitude is 11 days so I should be superhuman when I return to sea level :D

grum said:
Lovely pics Rich - I look forward to the pics from Nepal.

I've been up in Scotland again for a last minute break. Visited the Edinburgh Fringe Festival briefly with my trusty GF1. Lots of people walking around with big cameras and lenses but I felt quite inconspicuous. :)



Some more on my flickr
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Thanks Grum. I'm digging your street shots from Edinburgh too. Very well composed and tack sharp too!

Cheers,
 
out of interest has anyone tried the olympus pancake? when I was in the camera shop I could have sworn it looked thinner than the panasonic one.
 
Is the Kit lens that comes with this any good?

I was hoping to purchase possible a Nikon F to micro 4/3rd convertor as I have a few Nikon lenses I wouldn't mind using with this camera. Is this possible, What happens to the metering and aperture control?

The 20mm F1.7 lens looks really expensive for what it is. What are the best options for small fast primes?

cheers
sid
 
Is the Kit lens that comes with this any good?

I was hoping to purchase possible a Nikon F to micro 4/3rd convertor as I have a few Nikon lenses I wouldn't mind using with this camera. Is this possible, What happens to the metering and aperture control?

The 20mm F1.7 lens looks really expensive for what it is. What are the best options for small fast primes?

cheers
sid
 
A canon FD50mm f1.4 around £50 with a converter for about £20

manual focus but you put the camera on manual or aperture priority turn the aperture ring to the aperture you want and the shutterspeed is done automatically.
 
Janice said:
A canon FD50mm f1.4 around £50 with a converter for about £20

manual focus but you put the camera on manual or aperture priority turn the aperture ring to the aperture you want and the shutterspeed is done automatically.
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I'm guessing similar is possible with Nikon F mount AIS lenses as well?

I have the 35mm F2.8 ,50m F1,2 and 85mm F1.8 100 F4 macro and 300mm F4 as well , So theres potential here for fun!

Any comments on the kit lens then? Seems like a good walkabout range?

sid

edit/ How easy is MF with the LCD screen? Is there any indicator to tell you are in focus? I can see it being a bit awkward actually?
 
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sidxms said:
I'm guessing similar is possible with Nikon F mount AIS lenses as well?

I have the 35mm F2.8 ,50m F1,2 and 85mm F1.8 100 F4 macro and 300mm F4 as well , So theres potential here for fun!

Any comments on the kit lens then? Seems like a good walkabout range?

sid

edit/ How easy is MF with the LCD screen? Is there any indicator to tell you are in focus? I can see it being a bit awkward actually?
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I havent seen an indicator when in manual mode I must say, unlike the canon which still beeps.

The GF1 with a normal lens can automatically leap to 5x view when you touch the zoom ring which helps (you can turn that off in menu) but that obviously doenst happen when using 3rd party with adapters
 
Janice said:
I havent seen an indicator when in manual mode I must say, unlike the canon which still beeps.

The GF1 with a normal lens can automatically leap to 5x view when you touch the zoom ring which helps (you can turn that off in menu) but that obviously doenst happen when using 3rd party with adapters
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Hmm ok so is it still easy to focus then with manual lenses against static objects/scenes?

edit/ DPreview say you can magnify in live view mode, I'm guessing that is not lens specific and will generally work with any lens?
 
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Dudie said:
What RAW converter are people using with their GF1? Had a look at Silkypix but it seems to be awfully 'messy' for want of a better word. Currently using ACR as part of Elements 7. Shame Canon's DPP doesn't work!
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Silkypix is dire.
I use LightRoom. Never used to be a fan of it when i used Nikon(CaptureNX is the dogs with NEF files).
 
Anyone after some nice kit? I'm thinking of selling up my gear to get a 5D Mark II (see here for the TP sale thread). Panny G2 body plus lenses (20mm, 45mm, 14-42mm).
 
sidxms said:
I'm guessing similar is possible with Nikon F mount AIS lenses as well?

I have the 35mm F2.8 ,50m F1,2 and 85mm F1.8 100 F4 macro and 300mm F4 as well , So theres potential here for fun!

...

edit/ How easy is MF with the LCD screen? Is there any indicator to tell you are in focus? I can see it being a bit awkward actually?
Click to expand...

sidxms said:
Hmm ok so is it still easy to focus then with manual lenses against static objects/scenes?

edit/ DPreview say you can magnify in live view mode, I'm guessing that is not lens specific and will generally work with any lens?
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If you get the Novoflex NIK/MFT adapter you can use F mount lenses, including standard G lenses with no aperture ring -- the adapter includes a ring that allows you to control aperture, though as it's generic there are obviously no markings. A bit heavy but seems well built and works well.

Manual focusing is surprisingly easy. There's nothing on old lenses to tell the camera to magnify when focussing so you have to press a button to zoom. Once magnified you can normally focus quite accurately using liveview, or the EVF on the G1 (not sure about the add-on for the GF1).
 
Just a quick comment on processing RAW...

I use Silkipix but there's a free RAW / JPEG processor called Rawtherapee which you can download that works but I think that you lose any auto lens corrections if not using Silkipix.
 
woof woof said:
Just a quick comment on processing RAW...

I use Silkipix but there's a free RAW / JPEG processor called Rawtherapee which you can download that works but I think that you lose any auto lens corrections if not using Silkipix.
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Ive got RawTherapee at work, works well and free.
You can also get a plugin for Gimp that'll read the GF1 raw files.

Playing with B&W, need to work out a better workflow for processing though, bit flat this one.

 
Got another 'had anyone got a ...???' question.

My tripod is quite a nice setup with arca swiss clamp on the ballhead. I've got a moulded plate for my 50D that fits perfectly along the bottom and prevents any twisting. Does anyone have a dedicated arca compatible plate for the GF1? Or even an L bracket?
 
Eeny?

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meenie?

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miney?

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Why is it you walk back to the car, carrying tripod and camera and the chavs ask "are you a photographer?"
Replying with "no, im a downhill skier" seems to stump their tiny minds.
Same with the ones who ask, "what do you do with the pictures you've taken?"
The reply of "look at them, like most people do" seems to confuse them.
 
OK finally got one of these now,

I have to say that the PQ is on par with my 1dmarkii and focus is unbelivably fast as well. I can't tell the difference almost. Low light shooting is great with LCD screen as well.

I'm blown away by this nifty little thing.

Also getting a Nikon F fit convertor so I can try lenses like 50mm f1.2 and 85mm F1.8 and some macro ones too!! :D :D

Sid
 
OK finally got one of these now,

I have to say that the PQ is on par with my 1dmarkii and focus is unbelivably fast as well. I can't tell the difference almost. Low light shooting is great with LCD screen as well.

I'm blown away by this nifty little thing.

Also getting a Nikon F fit convertor so I can try lenses like 50mm f1.2 and 85mm F1.8 and some macro ones too!! :D :D

Sid
 
Not had much of a chance to use mine due to Nicola being unwell, she's out of hospital now and we are both off for 2 weeks from Friday, so plenty of chance to get out and about. Looking forward to it.
 
Glad to hear Nicola out of hospital, now you take care of her.

Enjoy your time off together looking forward to seeing some pics in due course(y)
 
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