Alternatively if you’re browsing your images on the camera and you see one you’d like to share, just tap the camera against your NFC phone or tablet and it will automatically establish a temporary network and copy the original over; the entire process again takes about 20 seconds. This is a brilliant feature and makes it easy to share or store your images.

In practice the Intelligent Auto Mode system works very well, with the GH4 seamlessly choosing the most appropriate combination of settings for the current situation. The 5 available scene modes are Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Night Portrait and Night Scenery, so obviously not all situations are covered by Intelligent Auto Mode, but it does work for the majority of the time. It makes it possible for the less experienced photographer to easily take well-exposed, sharp pictures of people, scenery and close-ups by simply pointing and shooting the camera. IPB) (LPCM) / 100Mbps (IPB) (AAC)/[4K] 3840x2160:23.98p, 100Mbps (IPB) (LPCM)/[Full HD] 1920x1080:59.94p, 200Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50Mbps (IPB) (LPCM)/[Full HD] 1920x1080:29.97p, 200Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50Mbps (IPB) (LPCM)/[Full HD] 1920x1080:23.98p, 200Mbps (ALL-Intra) (LPCM) / 100Mbps (IPB) (LPCM) / 50Mbps (IPB) (LPCM)/[Full HD] 1920x1080:59.94p, 28Mbps (IPB) (AAC)/[Full HD] 1920x1080:29.97p, 20Mbps (IPB) (AAC)/[HD] 1280x720:29.97p, 10Mbps (IPB) (AAC)/[VGA] 640x480:29.97p, 4Mbps (IPB) (AAC) In the hand. On the physical side of things, if you're familiar with the GH3, then the GH4 has practically no learning curve in terms of handling and ergonomics. Despite the drastic weight- and space-saving benefits that come with the average mirrorless camera compared to the typical DSLR, the GH4 is certainly on the larger end of the spectrum with a more traditional DSLR design.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 Digital filters

With this configuration the GH4 managed a rate of about 5-6fps, but impressively the subject focus was maintained across a period of five to seven seconds, during which time the bikes had travelled a decent distance. You can see a sequence of 16 full-frame shots above, and when viewed at 100%, the subject is sharp. This was also using an Olympus lens which doesn’t support the Panasonic’s defocus profiling, but in tests with Lumix lenses including the 25mm f1.4, I found the performance to be similar. When I get the chance I’ll try more continuous AF tests with additional Lumix lenses and update where necessary. Approx. 560g / 19.75 oz (SD card, Battery, Body)/Approx. 480g / 16.93 oz (Body only)/Approx. 865g / 30.51 oz (SD card, Battery, H-HS12035 lens included)/Approx. 825g / 29.10 oz (SD card, Battery, H-FS14140 lens included) With this in mind, you’d expect the 1080p modes to share the same crop as the UHD modes and simply scale them down by a nice even factor of two, again to avoid artefacts from non-integer scaling factors. But interestingly Panasonic has chosen to capture the full sensor width of 4608 pixels and scale it down to 1920 pixels with a non-integer 2.4x reduction. The benefit is that 1080p footage shares the same horizontal field of view as shooting stills, but the downside is again the potential for artefacts from the non-integer scaling factor. With this in mind, those wanting the best 1080p output may prefer to shoot in UHD and scale it down by two times. Compared to smaller to mid-sized DSLRs, such as the Pentax K-5 or Nikon D7100, the Panasonic GH4 looks practically the same size, with a nice solid heft -- although with a much more comfortable, contoured handgrip in my opinion. If you want a small and lightweight interchangeable lens camera to slip into your bag, the GH4 is not for you.

PHOTOfunSTUDIO 9.5 PE (Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8)/SILKYPIX® Developer Studio 4.1 SE (Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8, Mac OS X v10.5 / v10.6 / v10.7 / v10.8)/LoiLoScope (trial version) (Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8)

The pop-up flash worked well indoors, with no red-eye and good overall exposure. The night photograph was excellent, with the maximum shutter speed of 60 seconds allowing you to capture plenty of light. Expressive / Retro / Old Days / High Key / Low Key / Sepia / Monochrome / Dynamic Monochrome / Impressive Art / High Dynamic / Cross Process / Toy Effect / Toy Pop / Bleach Bypass / Miniature Effect / Fantasy / One Point Color

The GH4 passed our dynamic range tests with flying colours. As a general rule, cameras’ JPEG output is optimised for punchy colours, but working with the RAW file allows access to a greater range of bright and dark tones, unleashing the full potential of the sensor. Most cameras’ video modes use the same colour processing engine as for JPEGs, which means a more restricted dynamic range than the sensor is capable of. That Excellent still image quality for its class; Fantastic, highly-detailed video quality; Superior video recording chops with 4K video (both Cinema 4K and Ultra HD); Responsive all-around performer with great AF performance and burst shooting; Rolling shutter is minimal with 60p and 30p video; Splash- and dust-proof magnesium alloy body; Built-in Wi-Fi with NFC. Cons Motion picture can be recorded up to 29 min 59 sec depending on the recording format and the camera’s sales area.

The headline new feature is the ability to shoot 4K video. 4K refers to the horizontal resolution of each frame, which is about 4,000 pixels wide. There are actually two commonly used 4K specifications. UHD is 3,840×2,160, which is equivalent to four 1080p screens arranged in a two-by-two grid. If and when UK TV channels adopt 4K, they’ll probably use UHD. Then there’s Cinema 4K, which has a 4,096×2,160 resolution and is widely used in cinemas. The GH4 supports both, with Cinema 4K at 24fps and UHD at 24, 25 or 30fps. FEEL THE BENEFIT Strangely what the GH4 is missing though is a panorama mode. This was a present and welcome feature on models like the GX7, GF6 and G6, but absent on the tiny GM1 due to size and heat issues. Panasonic explained to me there’s no panorama on the GH4 as it doesn’t have any scene presets and they also don’t believe it’s as important on a camera of this class compared to consumer models. Maybe I’m unusual, but I disagree. I find the in-camera panoramas are fun, useful and I missed having them on the GH4. I guess the 4k timelapse options are some consolation though. Panasonic Lumix GH4 focusing IEEE 802.11b/g/n, 2412 MHz - 2462 MHz (11 ch), Wi-Fi / WPA / WPA2, Infrastructure mode, WPS, Wi-Fi Direct But what the GH4 does have in common with the EM1 along with every single other Micro Four Thirds camera on the market right now is the same 16 Megapixel resolution. In this respect it looks like Micro Four Thirds has stalled at this resolution. Sure the latest image processors are gradually refining the output, but I’m not seeing any significant jumps in image quality from the format.