How good is the manual white balance on the Panasonic cameras (especially the GHx series) for underwater use? Can you get rich colors without a red filter? If so, how deep?
How do the Panasonics compare to the Canons? (I've seen some excellent white balance results without a red filter from the 5D Mark III -- can GH4 do similar)
What about compared to the RX100? I have an RX100, and the manual white balance without red filter doesn't produce very good results below 5 meters or so. Are the panasonics/canons better? Or do you need a red filter with all of them?
I'm finding the white balancing excellent for 10-30m.
I tried to white balance at 50m - while it did accept it (no errors like many other camera would do) the colours were not good - but that is expected! :-)
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I have the GH2 (hacked). I've experimented quite a bit with MWB, and I'd say it's essential to have a good quality red filter (e.g. Aditech/Mangrove, or URPRO). I've had good results as deep as 30m in the Red Sea and tropics. I use a bit of white translucent plastic, like a sort of expodisc, in front of the filter, rather than a WB card.
Cheers,
Matt
Matt, where does the red filter go with wide-angle lenses?
Matt, where does the red filter go with wide-angle lenses?
If you are talking about the 7-14mm - you can modify the lens and buy the rear filter holder from the 8mm and use it that way.
Good question! As far as I've figured out, there are 3 options, each with its own disadvantage, depending on your make of housing and lens/port configuration. If you have a "proper" wide angle lens like the 7-14, then you can use the technique that thetrickster mentions. The disadvantage is that it's a bit fiddly. You could also use a clip-on filter in front of the dome, like Mangrove's CF-D127: , but this has the disadvantage that at shallow depths (e.g. less than 5m) you'll probably get reflections. Finally, you can use a screw-on filter, which is what I use with my PZ 14-42 lens. The disadvantage here is that it's a flat port, and the so-called wide becomes more like 19mm. Decisions...
Matt
Here is some great sample footage from the GH4. Some shot utilizing manual white balance, some using video lights. The in-camera slow-motion, and post-processing camera movements are also impressive!
