Upcoming Panasonic GH-4K

Nauticam has one huge advantage over the Aquatica.

When you tell your non-diving friends that you've just invested a few grand in the latest "Nauticam", they think that you've set up your own porn studio...

Priceless conversation starter over a dinner table.

I recently compared Nauticam and Aquatica for the EM1 (only on land).

I found the Nauticam EM1-housing a slight advantage in regards of reaching the important buttons. However in case of the GH4 housing this could be different.

On the other side the Aquatica seems more solid to me, in regards to finish/coating, wheels (less plastic parts)and internal gears for the buttons.

I also find the Aquatica Domes nice - a 4 inch glass dome for the (mmFE) and a nice 8 inch Dome in small size with extensions which you can use with many different wide angel lenses).

If there would not have been the long distance between the handle and the Aquatica back wheel I would probably have choosen the Aquatica housing because it feels so solid.

So I think its important to take both in the hand to find out how you can reach the controls which are important to you.

I'm wondering the same question as well. I like the fact that Aquatica has the powder coating finish, which make it less slippery if I have to hold it one handed. I suspect the Nauticam housing could get scratch easily because of its smooth finish.

 

The Aquatica is also $250 cheaper than the Nauticam version. Of course the big question is what kind of ports is available for the Aquatica.

KC_Moses, the ports available for Micro 4/3 series housings are as follow:

The 4" Fisheye dome which is, one could say, exclusive for the Panasonic 8mm Fisheye

The SW8 which is the same 8'' dome lens we use for our DSLR housing, but with a more compact redesign, so it is more in line with the system original idea of being smaller and lighter.

There is an upcoming port adapter that will let you uses current DSLR ports on the Micro 4/3 series housings, that is especially important for the Panasonic 7-14mm which requires a very large dome radius for taking advantage of its huge rectilinear field of view. Shooting over/under shots can be done easily with large ports, so it is quite possible to shoot the AGH-4 using a dome port as large as the 9.25’ Megadome

Then, to complete the dome port system and give it more flexibility, there are various extension tubes that can be inserted between the dome ports and housing, these are used for positioning the optical center of the dome and lens as close as possible to each other in order to optimize their optical performance.

On the flat port side Aquatica has three ports, that can be used for close up and macro work, again these combined with the existing port extension will give some form of flexibility in regard to lens selection.

So if you include the access to the line of DSLR ports, you have a total of 11 different ports to choose from.

Cheers

I recently compared Nauticam and Aquatica for the EM1 (only on land).

 

I found the Nauticam EM1-housing a slight advantage in regards of reaching the important buttons. However in case of the GH4 housing this could be different.

 

On the other side the Aquatica seems more solid to me, in regards to finish/coating, wheels (less plastic parts)and internal gears for the buttons.

I also find the Aquatica Domes nice - a 4 inch glass dome for the (mmFE) and a nice 8 inch Dome in small size with extensions which you can use with many different wide angel lenses).

 

If there would not have been the long distance between the handle and the Aquatica back wheel I would probably have choosen the Aquatica housing because it feels so solid.

So I think its important to take both in the hand to find out how you can reach the controls which are important to you.

Paratom, The AGH4 rear control is located differently than on the AE-M1, if you check the press release, there is a side view of the right hand side on which you can see the layout of the control

Hi Jean,

I already invested in a Zen 8 inch dome with an Aquatica mount, can I use the same for your GH4 housing?

http://reefphoto.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=80_153&products_id=4569

I have the panasonic 7-14 and contemplating to buy the faster 12-35mm 2.8 cause it's faster. Is the above dome good for such lenses?

I have the Nauticam NA-GH4 right here in front of me

Regards

Peter

Hi Peter,

May I trouble you a bit please.

Is the assc port at the door a M14 size ? The front left at main body surely is an M16 for HDMI.

The Nauticam user manual stated the assc port at the door is M14 but Backscatter and Reef Photo reccomended the vacuum valve of M16 size.

I want to use the vacuum valve at the door assc port and keep the M16 one at main body for HDMI.

I fear the NA-GH4 user manual has a print mistake on the M14 assc port size at the door.

Page 9, item 20

http://www.nauticam.com/images/product/p_299.A.pdf

The exterior look for the port plug is always the same between M14 and M16, so me kind of worried.

http://www.backscatter.com/hostedstore/templates/backscatter_wideload/product_detail_zoomimage.lasso?img=na-17709_7

Hope its not too troubling you.

Many Thanks

SPP

Hi Again Peter,

Dang, I must be blind.

I saw Chris photo and its M14

http://chrisparsons.smugmug.com/photos/i-4xk9SF5/0/M/i-4xk9SF5-M.jpg

Same here too...

http://www.backscatter.com/hostedstore/templates/backscatter_wideload/product_detail_zoomimage.lasso?img=na-17709_5

Solved.

Sorry for the request and thanks Peter.

SPP

Hi Jean,

 

I already invested in a Zen 8 inch dome with an Aquatica mount, can I use the same for your GH4 housing?

http://reefphoto.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=80_153&products_id=4569

 

I have the panasonic 7-14 and contemplating to buy the faster 12-35mm 2.8 cause it's faster. Is the above dome good for such lenses?

Thani, It should normally fit if the bayonet was designed properly, To be honest I have not put the 12-35mm f/2.8 on the optical bench, typically for this lens I don't foresee any problem, although, I would still recommend the SW8 as a more compact solution (the optical performance are equal to our regular 8'' dome port) and the lens has a much lesser field of view than the 7-14mm.

So far in the wide lens range for the Micro 4/3, the Olympus 9-18mm and the Panasonic 8mm fisheye do seem to have the upper hand. in mid range, both the Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8 and the 12-50mm (which has good close up potential) are the favorite.

Let me check deeper on the 12-35mm and see if I can get a lens for the optical bench. then I will report back, honestly, I am not really a big fan of slapping things together just because they fit physically, I like doing my homework and seeing that everything is in the right place optically as well before going official.

Paratom, The AGH4 rear control is located differently than on the AE-M1, if you check the press release, there is a side view of the right hand side on which you can see the layout of the control

 

Hi Jean, thats what I thought looking at the images. I guess the Gh4 Aquatica might have worked for me very well. The 7d Aquatica also felt very ergonomic in my hands, just in case of the EM1 housing I found the right back wheel too far for my size hands. If I had a GH4 my choice would probably have been Aquatica. In the end i think its really important to handle a housing and see how ergonomic it feels for the own hands ( also depending which functions are important for the specific user)

I'd like to ask if anyone's aware of the Aquatica housing being backwards compatible with the GH3? The GH3/4 bodies are by all accounts are the same, except for the taller mode dial on the GH4. Not sure about clearances inside the housing, but hopefully that wouldn't be a problem?

Hi Peter,

 

May I trouble you a bit please.

 

Is the assc port at the door a M14 size ? The front left at main body surely is an M16 for HDMI.

The Nauticam user manual stated the assc port at the door is M14 but Backscatter and Reef Photo reccomended the vacuum valve of M16 size.

I want to use the vacuum valve at the door assc port and keep the M16 one at main body for HDMI.

I fear the NA-GH4 user manual has a print mistake on the M14 assc port size at the door.

 

Hope its not too troubling you.

 

Many Thanks

SPP

Sorry for the slow response. I was out diving in the South China Sea with my NA-GH4...

Seems like you have the answer you need.

Initially I bought the M16 vacuum valve for the larger port at the front, thinking that the M16 port is more "out of the way" of the top controls. I use the Mode dial often to flip between 3 custom settings that I have created for different shooting situations and to bring the settings back a known starting point whenever I have been fiddling with some of the controls.

However, once I have the Shogun in a housing, I will most likely have to buy the M14 vacuum valve for the rear door port and use the front M16 port for the HDMI cable, as the M16 port is closer to the camera's HDMI socket. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Regards

Peter

I'd like to ask if anyone's aware of the Aquatica housing being backwards compatible with the GH3? The GH3/4 bodies are by all accounts are the same, except for the taller mode dial on the GH4. Not sure about clearances inside the housing, but hopefully that wouldn't be a problem?

The paperwork says yes, but I would still like to physically try it before going official on this, we designed using the GH4 camera and did not have a GH3, this being said, as you mention, both camera share the same physical property apart from the mode selector dial.

I have put this on top of the "to do" list of the engineering department.

This last weekend I took my GH4 into the sea for the first time. Unfortunately, the conditions were terrible. Visibility was poor, the sky was overcast, making the lighting flat and dark, the water was green and full of particles and the wave and current action never stopped jiggling me and the camera.

Despite that, I did manage to get some footage. Not great but, if the camera can deal with these conditions, it'll be really good in better conditions.

Here is the 8 minute video: http://www.peterwalker.com/tioman.html

Underwater I used the NA-GH4 with Lumix 7-14mm lens in a Zen 170mm dome port and a pair of Keldan Luna 4 (~4000 lumen) lights -- except for the last dive when I used the Olympus 60mm in the Nauticam macro port. The above-water footage came from a GH4 with a Lumix 12-35mm lens and the Panasonic shotgun mic.

Thanks Peter,

Enjoyed that.

I'm too not super happy with the buoyancy of the rig + 170mm (and 2x Luna8s)

(got enough lift via 2x 60/200m and 2x 60/250mm) but i need to figure out out to put some of it on more front loaded as the camera, now light in the water is sensitive to forwards/backwards motion.

Keep them coming!

Has anybody tried the GH4 in a dark environment like cave or wreck? WA natural light shoots of wrecks in low ambient light? Using it at night? I am curious as to how much noise and/or banding is being produced in the dark/black areas as I've seen some comparison videos and a lot of people don't have great things to say about the low light performance of this camera.

Also, is it really difficult to shoot with this camera? Can I hand the camera over to a no-camera-skills-buddy and expect he or she to achieve a fair result? I'm thinking maybe making a preset or using auto, allowing them to just press the shutter or record button, point the camera the correct way to film and still get decent result? Or will exposure and focus be all over the place? I know I've had great results giving a GoPro to other buddies and getting useful footage back, but even a compact camera can be tricky for a buddy who knows practically nothing about shooting.

Ambient light in a cave or wreck? Who does that? If you are even moderately deep and using ambient light you are going to be at ISO 3200+ (depending on how fast your lens is) and going to definitely have significant noise if you are lifting the shadows. Will be interesting to see how the A7S performs in these kinds of environments.

The tests I've done on land with the GH4 in low light has produced much better results then the GH2 at ISO 1600 lifting the shadows by about 50 in Premiere. Even at 3200 the noise has been tolerable and hasn't required any removal. Haven't done any low light underwater testing yet - hopefully soon..

Ambient light in a cave or wreck? Who does that?

Ambient light shooting wreck exterior, not ambient light inside a wreck or cave obviously.

But if you are inside a wreck or cave with good lights you can still get some very dark areas depending on the shoot you want to make and how you use the video-lights.

After seeing Philip Blooms "Now I See" with the Sony A7 I was quite amazed at its low light performance.

I'm on the fence about investing in a GH4 and UW-housing setup, and since it is a really big investment I want to be sure before I pull the trigger Autofocus and low light performance is the two things that is most worrying I think. I plan on using it topside as well so everything needs to be considered.

Has anybody tried the GH4 in a dark environment like cave or wreck? WA natural light shoots of wrecks in low ambient light? Using it at night? I am curious as to how much noise and/or banding is being produced in the dark/black areas as I've seen some comparison videos and a lot of people don't have great things to say about the low light performance of this camera.

 

Also, is it really difficult to shoot with this camera? Can I hand the camera over to a no-camera-skills-buddy and expect he or she to achieve a fair result? I'm thinking maybe making a preset or using auto, allowing them to just press the shutter or record button, point the camera the correct way to film and still get decent result? Or will exposure and focus be all over the place? I know I've had great results giving a GoPro to other buddies and getting useful footage back, but even a compact camera can be tricky for a buddy who knows practically nothing about shooting.

I've looked through some clips I shot in a cave and on a night dive last weekend. No noise or banding in the dark areas.

You could set one of the 3 mode-dial custom presets to auto-everything. The shutter release starts the recording. Auto-focus works fine. Or, you could use the AFL / AEL lever to lock in a suitable focus and exposure, then hand the camera to the other person.

Regards

Peter

Thanks Peter,

 

Enjoyed that.

 

I'm too not super happy with the buoyancy of the rig + 170mm (and 2x Luna8s)

(got enough lift via 2x 60/200m and 2x 60/250mm) but i need to figure out out to put some of it on more front loaded as the camera, now light in the water is sensitive to forwards/backwards motion.

 

Keep them coming!

I have solved the buoyancy / balance issue with the NA-GH4 and the Zen 170mm Port - with some help from David Cheung of ScubaCam, here in Singapore.

A Stix float ring. I had to trim about 0.5cm off the side of three of the floats so that it tucks in behind the port on the right-hand side (the housing body has a bulge on the right for the control rods). The Stix ring locks down nice and tight.

In a pool test this morning, with the Luma4 lights on 1" locline arms, the housing is still a little negative (good) but no longer excessively front heavy. In fact, if I move the lights into the right place for WA shooting, the whole rig becomes neatly balanced around the centre pitch line. In the sea, I think that it'll be slightly negative and well-balanced.

Here is a photo:

Regards

Peter

Sorry for the slow response. I was out diving in the South China Sea with my NA-GH4...

 

Seems like you have the answer you need.

 

Initially I bought the M16 vacuum valve for the larger port at the front, thinking that the M16 port is more "out of the way" of the top controls. I use the Mode dial often to flip between 3 custom settings that I have created for different shooting situations and to bring the settings back a known starting point whenever I have been fiddling with some of the controls.

 

However, once I have the Shogun in a housing, I will most likely have to buy the M14 vacuum valve for the rear door port and use the front M16 port for the HDMI cable, as the M16 port is closer to the camera's HDMI socket. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

 

Regards

Peter

Hi Peter,

Thanks for the reply.

My Nauticam housing and the rest of the toys will arrive in a week, I hope.

Can't wait to mess with it.

I tested the GH4 with 12-35mm Panny on land. Using 4K, 3840 pixel, focus is slow but it hunts a bit even when subject in middle field.

Also being a camera type lens and not a camcorder or say an RX100, zooming on a subject with bright background will cause insane flicker on the bright areas....ha ha ha.

Since it is mirrorless, I wonder why the video focus is not as smart as my Sony NEX-7 and flicker free like NEX-7 when zooming.

Anyway, overall I am happy with new nice toys to play with....

Thanks n Dive Safe

SPP