Photokina 2016: The Panasonic Lumix G85 gives you premium video features at an affordable price

Photokina 2016: The Panasonic Lumix G85 gives you premium video features at an affordable price

The Panasonic Lumix G7 has been one of our favorite cameras for videographers looking to start on a budget and now the Japanese camera company has introduced the G85 (or G80 in the UK) for more experienced users.

The new mirrorless camera is essentially a beefed up version of the G7 with an augmented 16MP sensor that gets rid of the low-pass filter. Although it’s not Panasonic’s new 20MP MFT sensor, users will be able to shoot 4K video at 30p and 24p while recording audio through the external mic.

Panasonic Lumix G85

The G85 also features a 5-axis in-body stabilization system similar to the Lumix GX8. On top of adding some form of stabilization to all your lenses, it can work in tandem with Panasonic’s image-stabilized lenses to further reduce camera shake.

There’s also a new shutter built around a magnesium frame that Panasonic claims will reduce shutter shock down to 10%, putting it on par with DSLRs while being quieter too.

Internal changes aside, the Lumix G85 is tougher than the G7 thanks to an added magnesium front plate plus weather sealing to make it splash- and dust-proof.

Panasonic Lumix G85

Panasonic has also corrected all the little annoyances we had with the G7 by moving the SD card slot from riding up next to the battery to a separate side panel. The viewfinder also now follows a 3:4 aspect ratio instead of 16:9 and a focus mode lever has been added to the back of the camera.

The Panasonic Lumix G85 will be available in October for $ 999 (about £770, AU$ 1,330) with a 12-60mm f/3.5-5.6 lens or $ 899 (about £690, AU$ 1,190) body only.


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