I just bought myself a new/unused G2 at a really attractive price (the previous owner bought it for the lens) so I am entering the Panasonic m43 world. I currently have an E-PL1 and for quite a while had been looking at an E-PL2 but after we got one at the lab I work in I realized that the E-PL2 was more of a side grade so I decided to address the greatest shortcomings of my little PEN camera the UI and controls and go with a Panasonic.

It took quite a while as I was really leery of the Panasonic's IQ. I decided that test targets, pixel peeping at high ISO noise and sharpness tests are not the true measure of what a camera is capable of so here I am. I decided on the G2 because the EVF is more on a par with the VF2 I use on my E-PL1 than the LVF for the GF-1/GF-2, the nifty swivel LCD and quite frankly I cannot afford a GH1 or GH2 (so no telling me that I should have gotten a GH2...too late for that).

Since I am new to Panasonic cameras is there anything I should look out for or other sage advice I should be following? Oh yeah, it's a little present for myself for my 50th.

One thing specific to Panasonic's M4/3 cameras which I like is the extent to which you can customize to meet your needs. I suggest reading through the manual, and asking questions here if anything is unclear.

Switching the tone of the post here a bit...

Why all the apathy for the G2? It seems like a pretty nice little camera to me. It looks to me that the GH1 (and of course the GH2) are the much loved cameras. Granted the sensor is better in the GH1 and GH2 but that doesn't make the G2 trash.

Just curious.

Very good camera that perhaps just didn't strike the same cord as other models.

G1 = the original
GF1 = the performance compact
GH1/2 = the video marvel

G2 = the touchscreen?

Perhaps it was that other than the touchscreen, what really changed/improved? Sensor was still the same, the engine was a little better, slightly different controls, but other than that what was there to push G1/GF1/GH1 owners onto a G2? Not a ton unfortunately. Still an excellent device, but you're right... Perhaps a little unloved.

Poor, poor forgotten middle child...

__________________
[ everythingsablur ]
Olympus E-P3 (black) + VF-2, Panasonic GF1 + LVF1
Panasonic lenses: 20mm f/1.7, 14-140mm f/4-5.8 HD, 7-14 f/4, PL 45mm f/2.8 Macro, 100-300mm f/4-5.6
Olympus lenses: 14-42mm II R f/3.5-5.6, 15mm f/8 BCL
Legacy: Canon FD 50mm f/1.4 SSC
Flashes: Olympus FL-50

I kind fo felt the same way. When I was researching which 4/3 camera to purchase. I kept coming back to the G2 as the best value of the line, however it was hard to find information about the camera on forums, because no one seemed to be using it.

I ended up resorting to onliine reviews by professional reviewers and then making a judgement call based on what I felt I wanted and needed in a camera.

I just ordered mine yesterday and I am waiting on ground shipment from New York to Alabama, so I will see how I like it when it gets here. I don't think I will be dissapointed.

Now I've got to find some extra lenses that I like and find another good bargain on one for Mrs. Irishdude and we will be set.

Back to the original topic: I think that they are just sort of the forgotten camera in the Panasonic line. Which can be a good thing, because it means that there are good deals to be found on them if you look.

I would agree they are largely forgotten. I also had a really hard time finding out anything about the G2. The rest of the line is pretty well covered, GH1...the hacker/fan favorite, the GF1...beloved/waaaay too much information, the GF2...lots of folks feeling betrayed that it's not really a GF1 Super Duper, the GH2...awesome and expensive. The G2 on the other hand...it's like it never existed. I find it pretty funny. I decided to choose a better UI and controls (over my E-PL1) instead of ultimate image quality. I suspect that the differences in IQ will be largely academic. I have an LX3 and in actual practice the images from that are just as nice as the E-PL1. The Olympus does produce cleaner more detailed dimages but for a majority of us the difference isn't that significant. I figured since I was willing to accept that the G2 would be just fine. I should be comparable to the Olympus Pens and I would imagine the G1 and GF1/GF2 (after all they all use the SAME sensor). The GH1 and GH2 is a different sensor and as I would expect...better. That said, the newer "better" sensor is not without it's quirks. Don't get me wrong, I think the GH1/GH2 are very cool but the G2 just seemed like the right fit for me. I picked up a brand new body only for $330 shipped. Not as good as the Panasonic blowout price but close when you factor in tax and shipping.

I try and take the copious numer of test images you see online with a grain of salt. I remember back when I had a Fuji S602 Super CCD camera. In the day it was a pretty cool little camera. It would get slammed for too much noise at high ISO. The thing was when you printed the images that noise became a non issue. I still have some images form that little camera that look great even by today's standards. What it did have that many of my other supposedly better digicams didn't have was good ergonomics. It was easier to use and therefore I used it more. I guess I feel like a picture with noise is better than no picture.

Another guy in the new G2 camp here. I looked at the NEX, G2, Olys, and Samsung. I liked the styling and jpegs of the Olys, and the compactness of the NEX, but at the end of the day, the external controls, free-angle LCD, and EVF of the G2 won me over. I don't regret it a bit. The G2 is becoming quicker and quicker for me to use every day. I use the touchscreen to move the focus point ALL THE TIME. It's awesome how much easier this makes framing shots. No more half-press focusing, then reframing, unless you need to lock the exposure. The touchscreen is also great for moving the live histogram around and panning/paging during photo review. The control interface is amazing (as long as you don't need to find anything in the "record" or "custom" menus, which are FIVE and SEVEN pages long, respectively).

It does have a few quirks:

- painfully true-to-life colors...easily remedied once you learn to use and tweak the film modes.
- ISO limited to 400 when you have limit set to OFF (still don't understand the rationale behind this one). Inability to set ISO LIMIT any higher than 1600...I set it at 1600 and move on.
- you can't adjust exposure comp, SS, aperture, or ISO in the MyColor modes, which is disappointing...
- the afore-mentioned five and seven-page long menus...partially mitigated by the MY menu which shows the 5 most recently used menu items

Other than that, I'm loving it. It really is FUN to shoot! Don't beat yourselves up. The G2 is great. Worry less, shoot more!

I would, but I've got to wait for the slow train from New York. At least we are going to New Orleans for my birthday in August and I will have tons of stuff to shoot there.

Birmingham, ourr home town, is a pretty cool city to shoot in too, so I can't wait until it gets here.

I'm looking forward to getting the G2 and shooting with it. I have an E-PL1 and I can tell you the OOC JPEGs are terrific but their charm starts to wear thin when you deal with the clunky button controls and clumsy UI. I find myself grabbing the LX3 more than the E-PL1 despite having a Panasonic 20 mounted in it because of the clunky operation. I would have gone the E-PL2 route as I have the much sought after VF2 but we got one where I work and while it's pretty nice it doesn't address the underlying UI problems. The click wheel on the back is a good start but no nearly enough.

Glad to see a few more G2 advocates! I've related my experiences in a couple other threads; I have no substantial complaints about the camera.

Distinguishing features vs. G1 for me:

1. Thumb wheel on rear of camera - works better for me than front wheel on G1.
2. Video - I don't need it enough to justify a GH2, but it's nice to have.

vs. GF1: EVF.

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Chuck