Digital Photographer - UK (2020-06)

FEATURES

TheG100hasa combination

offeaturesthatwillappeal

specificallytotravelvloggers

BUILDQUALITY

Despiteitsdiminutivesize,the

G100feelssolidandfeaturesa

toughpolycarbonatecasing

QUALITYOFRESULTS

Ingoodlight,theG100’sJPEGs

arepunchyandrichin contrast.

VideoqualitydipsathighISOs

HANDLING

TheG100is oneofthesmallest

interchangeable-lenscameras

andis incrediblyportable

VALUEFORMONEY

High-qualityvideocoupledwith

superbin-cameraaudiomakes

theG100a fairlypricedoffering

Megapixels

20.3MP

Maxresolution

5,184x 3,888

Sensor

LiveMOSMicro

FourThirds

Processor

VenusEngine

Autofocus

49-areaDFD

contrast

Maxburst

10fps

ISOsensitivity

200 to25,600

(exp.ISO100)

Exposure

modes

Multi-pattern

sensing,centre-

weighted,spot

Video

4K/30/25/24p,

FHD/60p/50/

30/25/24p

Weight

303g(bodyonly)

Size

116 x 83x 54mm

Storage

1 x SD/SDHC/

SDXC

LCD

3-inch,1.84mdot

touchscreen

Viewfinder

EVF,3.69mdots

Connectivity

Wi-Fi,Bluetooth

Witha decentviewfinder

and“propercamera”

ergonomics,Panasonichas

giventheG100anedgein a

highlycompetitivemarket.A

smartchoiceforvloggers.

Overall

OPTIONALTRIPODGRIP

TheDMW-SHGR1pockettripod/tripodgripis a

solidcompanionaccessory,andprettymucha

no-brainergiventhebundlepricing.

DEDICATEDSHAREBUTTON

FoundontheG100’sleftshoulder,thisshould

provideseamlessconnectivityforpairingtoa

smartphoneortabletviaBluetoothorWi-Fi.

SCENEMODES

Thesemodesaredesignedtohelpinscenarios

thatrequirespecificsettings,suchas“Clear

SportsShot”andtheoddlynamed“CuteDessert”.

OZOAUDIOBYNOKIA

Threedirectionalbuilt-inmicrophonesworkwellin

a vloggingconfiguration.Whenfacingthecamera,

theG100isolatesandpicksupvoicesexcellently.

VARI-ANGLETOUCHSCREEN

Measuringthreeinches,thecamera’s1.84m-

dotLCDtouchscreenis spoton.It’sbrightand

contrasty,makingit easytoseein directsunlight.

USBBATTERYCHARGING

UnlikeDSLRbatteriesthatrequireseparatecradle

charging,theG100’sbatterylifecanbeboostedby

USBcharging– greatforon-the-goshoots.

FEATURES

LUMIX G100

Atabouthalf
thephysicalsizeofthe
LUMIX GH5,theG100isoneof
the smallest interchangeable-lenscameras
with a fully articulatedLCDtouchscreen
available right now. Wecomparedit toSony’s
latest vlogging-focusedcamera,theZV-1,and
the screen on the ZV-1wasbarelyusablein
comparison. The touchcommandsofthe
G100 aren’t as zippyasthoseonhigherend
LUMIX models, but that’snosurprise.Despite
its diminutive size, theG100feelssolidin
construction, featuringfewpointsthatseem
susceptible to damage.
The control layoutisapproachable,witha
bright red button dedicatedtovideorecording,
and four customisableFunction(Fn)buttons.
Most settings are easytoadjustonthefly
using the rear thumbwheelandshoulderdial,
occasionally dippingintothemenustotoggle
settings such as E-stabilisation.
In our test, the G100’sstabilisationmodes
worked well for bothwalkingandcycling

(althoughwedon’trecommend

cyclingone-handed).Butit’sworth

notingthatthereisa significantcropon

thevideoif youkeepE-stabilisationturned

on.Althoughit deliverscompetentlysteady

footage,walkingandtalkingtocamerawhile

E-stabilisationisturnedonleaveslittleroom

forthesceneryarounda tightlyframedshot

ofyourface.It’snota deal-breakerbyany

means,butsomethingworthnoting.

Therearesomesmallnigglesthatwe

havewiththeLUMIXG100,likethelackof

a headphonejackorUSB-Cport.Another

drawbackisthelackof4K/60pvideo,

whichmuchofthecompetition(including

smartphones)willoffer.

AsthefirstcamerafromLUMIXexplicitly

targetingvloggers,though,theG100isa

stellareffort.It’ssuper-compactandwill

deliverhigh-qualitystillsandvideoina range

ofscenarios,particularlyfortravelandhome

studio-stylepresentations.

Havingaccesstoa hugelypopularlens

mountandimpressivein-cameraaudioalso

putsit ina differentleaguetomuchofits

competition.TheG100representsa gateway

intoa provensystemofcamerasinLUMIX

thatcantrulytakea creativepersonfrom

amateurtofull-timeprofessional.

© Panasonic

© Panasonic

© Jon Devo