Panasonic Lumix G3 M43rds First Impressions Review

FeaturesHandling
Performance
Verdict
Specification



The new Panasonic Lumix G3 is an update to the G2, and features an all new 16 megapixel Live MOS sensor, lower noise, high speed focusing (as fast as the GH2), with faster shooting than the G2, 4fps vs 3fps, and 20fps at 4mp. They have also dropped the number from the front of the camera to help the brand stand out as a Lumix "G" series camera. The camera will be available mid June, priced at £549 body only, or £629 with 14-42mm kit lens. Read the Panasonic Lumix G3 Announcement.

Panasonic Lumix G3 Features

One of the key features is a completely new 16.3 megapixel Live MOS sensor, with 16.0 megapixels effective, the sensor promises lower noise than any preceding Panasonic Lumix camera. The sensor gives lower noise thanks to a "low noise pixel signal readout circuit" and a new "low noise signal amplifier circuit / noise elimination circuit" - as shown on the presentation slide below:



The new sensor promises to deliver a Signal to Noise (S/N) improvement of 6 dB at ISO3200, and an improvement of 9 dB at ISO6400. What this means in laymen terms is that you should be able to get much smoother images with lower noise, increasing overall image quality. 

An improved focusing system promises the world's fastest auto focus, with 0.1 second AF, thanks to the camera increasing the sensor drive to 120fps, compared to 60fps, during AF. This gives the camera the same ultra fast focusing speed as the Panasonic Lumix GH2. 

Panasonic Lumix G3 Key Features

• New 16 megapixel Live MOS sensor
• 3" touch screen, 460k dots
• Improved viewfinder, 1.44 million pixels
• Improved AF, switches to 120fps instead of 60fps, 0.1 seconds (with 14-42mm lens)
• 4fps continuous shooting (full resolution), 20fps at 4mp
• Full HD video 1080i (60i/50i), AVCHD video, 1920x1080 60i/30p 50i/25p, stereo mic
• ISO160,200,400, 800,1600,3200,6400
• Intelligent Dynamic-Range control
• New intelligent auto plus allows brightness (exposure compensation), and colour (WB)
• New framing/focus mode for manual focus, plus AF+MF mode
• New compact aluminium body, 25% smaller than the G2
• New colours: black, red, white, (brown outside the UK)
• Size: 115.2 x 83.6 x 46.7 mm (excluding protrusions)
• Weight: 336g (body only)

Compared to the Panasonic Lumix G2, and GH2:



Since the G3 fits somewhere in the middle of the Panasonic Lumix G2 and Panasonic Lumix GH2, we thought it would be useful to compare the main specifications of each camera here:

* including viewfinder



The top of the camera features a more compact mode dial with less options on the dial, and instead of featuring an Auto or iAuto selection on the dial, the camera's auto mode is accessed via the [P] Program mode - simply press the iA button on top of the camera to switch between Program and iAuto.



The battery compartment is also used for the memory card on the G3, meaning it's not as easy to access the memory card, when compared to the GH2, which has the slot on the side.
 

Panasonic Lumix G3 Handling

With a reduced size compared to the G2 the camera has a smaller hand grip. the camera's features two tone colour, black and black side, red and black sides, with black lenses, white and silver sides, and silver lens. The grip on the pre-production model varied depending what colour camera you used, with the black feeling as though it had the grippiest surface, as the hand grip and sides were rubberised, likewise with the red model, whereas the white/silver model did not appear to be rubberised. This may be altered on production cameras, however it is something to bear in mind. 



An easy to use touch screen, works as well as you would expect a decent touchscreen phone to work, and like the iphone it allows you to swipe through your photos in playback mode. The touch screen allows you to focus on any area of the screen (increased area compared to the GH2), and will also allow you to take photos by touching the screen (if you want to). The camera, much like the GH2, does not force you to use the touchscreen, and you can quite happily use the camera fully without using the screen if you are not a fan. 



The camera lets you view a live histogram, and interestingly lets you choose where to put the display, either using the 4-way controller / direction arrows or simply dragging it around the screen until you're happy with it's position. Whilst not necessarily a deal breaker, it's simple and clever little features like this that someone out there will really appreciate (if that's you please let us know in the comments!). You can also view a live view of the microphone levels on screen, and in a lot of ways this camera feels like a "mini" GH2, although it features a 4:3 aspect ratio sensor, compared to the multi-aspect ratio sensor in the GH2. The G3 still gives you the choice of the same aspect ratios, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 and 1:1 however these are cropped from the 4:3 sensor. 



The camera has a good number of buttons on the back and top of the camera - this lets you access your most favourite settings quickly and easily. The controls can further be customised, thanks to two Function buttons. the build quality appears to be very good, with an aluminium body, although the white model didn't exactly feel like aluminium due to the shiny coating on the body. screen worked well outdoors, although in extreme sunshine it became difficult to see, and I switched to using the electronic viewfinder. the electronic viewfinder with 1.44 million pixels was very good, easy to see, and very clear, even for someone wearing glasses.

Whilst the G3 has a number of customisable buttons on the back, it does have less buttons and switches when compared to the G2 and GH2, most likely due to the size constraints of a smaller body. One other feature missing from the G3 is an eye sensor, meaning to switch to the EVF you will need to press the button on the back - this could be an issue for anyone coming straight from a DSLR with an optical viewfinder. 



Speed: Switch on time is good, focusing speed is very good, continuous shooting at 4fps is above average for an entry level system camera. There is some delay after taking several continuous shots when set to RAW + JPEG (maximum 7 shots), however there was very little lag in the actual display; tracking and photographing subjects was very easy.



Battery life: Rated at 270 shots when using the LCD, according to Panasonic / CIPA standards, I took around 250 shots and battery life was still showing as full.



Menus: The Panasonic menus are well laid out into a number of sections: photo, video, custom, playback, and setup. The video menu has a wealth of options including: photo style, record mode, record quality, focus mode, picture mode, wind cut, digital tele converter (allows digital zoom without the loss of video quality), digital zoom, to name a few of the options. 

Live view mode (Histogram, and Microphone levels switched on)	Custom menu

The custom menu lets you change the function buttons and if you do change the shared display / fn1 and quick menu / fn2 buttons you can still use these as virtual buttons by pressing them on the screen. Playback gives you one video edition option, splitting a video, but no further video editing options.

Panasonic Lumix G3 Performance

Panasonic were keen to demonstrate the improvement in noise performance at high ISO such as ISO3200 and above, and showed slides showing lower noise than the G2, GH2, as well as similar or better results than the Canon 600D and Sony NEX-5. Unfortunately as we were shooting with an early pre-production version we are unable to show full size samples.

London from above	River Thames
River Thames	Millennium Bridge (16:9)

The model shown was pre-production running firmware 0.2 and as such is not entirely indicative to the final quality. However the camera performed rapidly and produced pleasing images with great colour and detail.

Macro	AWB
Tungsten Preset	Custom WB

White balance: Auto white balance may give the best results, although using the preset or custom white balance can improve the results, and warm up the image.

Creative control (previously called "My Colour" mode) lets you set the colour as: Expressive, Retro, High Key, Sepia, High Dynamic.

Normal	Expressive	Retro
High Key	Sepia	High Dynamic

Photo mode (previously Film mode) lets you set the colour as: Standard, Vivid, Natural, Monochrome, Scenery, Portrait, or Custom.

Standard	Vivid	Natural
Monochrome	Scenery	Portrait

Aspect ratios:

16:9	3:2
4:3	1:1 aspect ratio

ISO performance: The camera has very low noise at ISO160, ISO200 and ISO400, and even upto ISO800 images appear to be noise free. At ISO1600 a hint of noise starts to appear, with ISO3200 images still showing low noise levels, although it does become more visible. At ISO6400 noise is noticeable, but the results are still very impressive. It appears as though the new sensor is really delivering impressive improvements to image quality. (Although, until we can show full image samples, you'll just have to take our word for it).

ISO160	ISO400
ISO800	ISO1600
ISO3200	ISO6400

Additional sample photos:

Panasonic Lumix G3 in Red and White	Close up
London skyline	London skyline and ferry

Video sample:

Flicker reduction video option - 50/60/100/120hz works well to reduce or completely remove flicker picked up from TVs/LCD screen etc. Full HD video sample shown above.

Value for Money

The 14-42mm kit lens features built in IS, called MEGA Optical Image Stabilisation (although does not have a switch on the side, like the 14-140mm lens), and this should enable sharp shots even in low light situations. The introductory price, of £549 body only, or £629 with kit lens is very competitive and I expect this will stay competitive with the competition as it drops over time.

DxOMark provides objective, independent, RAW-based image quality performance data for lenses and digital cameras to help you select the best equipment to meet your photographic needs. Visit the DxOMark website for tests performed on the Panasonic Lumix G3.

Panasonic Lumix G3 Verdict

Initial impressions of the Panasonic Lumix G3 are very positive, particularly for the black model, with enhanced rubberised grip, the camera features new easier to use creative modes (high key, sepia, etc), film modes (vivid, landscape etc), and most importantly appears to further enhance image quality with a new sensor capable of improved noise performance. The other improvements such as improved focusing and continuous shooting speed, and a more compact body make an appealing system even more interesting, particularly if you want SLR style quality without the typical size associated with SLR sized cameras. The improved focusing speeds, really are impressive, and it makes you wonder when traditional SLRs at this price point are going to catch up, likewise with the easy to use and impressive touchscreen.

Panasonic Lumix G3 Specification