Panasonic recently discontinued the Lumix DMC-GH2, a tiny, unassuming interchangeable lens camera that produced such remarkable images that it directly challenged some of the finest cameras ever made, and sometimes won.
The most defining moment for the GH2 occurred during Zacuto’s annual camera performance competition, called the Revenge of the Great Camera Shootout 2012. When the participants blindly reviewed the footage from the tests, and were tasked with choosing their favorites, acclaimed film director Francis Ford Coppola picked a hacked GH2 over several high-end cinema cameras that were, to say the least, drastically more expensive.
Getting the GH2 was a big deal for me. It was the first high-definition camera I’d ever owned, and the first interchangeable lens camera I’d used since high school, when I had a hand-me-down Canon AE-1. Most endearingly, the GH2 inspired me to hunt down the same lens I had used on my old AE1 on eBay, the Canon FD 50mm f/1.4, which I scored for fifty bucks. An inexpensive adapter allowed me to use it on the GH2, and I couldn’t be happier with image quality.
At the very same time that this notorious little camera is passing away, its replacement, the GH3, is starting to trickle into stock at camera stores around the world. Whomever is in charge of logistics over at Panasonic deserves a commemorative plaque for this remarkable little feat.
With its headphone output, advanced sensor, and ability to shoot 50Mbs video footage out of the box, the new GH3 is certainly attractive. I’ve been in need of a second camera body since birth, and I’m strongly considering going with this one. If the issue with sensor dust is worked out on the Nikon D600, it will be tough to decide between the two. The good news is that either way you go, you win.
Goodbye new GH2’s! I’ll likely hang on to mine for as long as possible. If used GH2 bodies drop substantially in price, it’s going to be difficult to summon the will power to pass them up. One thing’s for certain: the GH2 is bowing out at the top of its game.
