Laszlo13 wrote:I wrote about mine back when I got it 2 years ago: liked it then love it now. My GX8 and GM5 sit in the cabinet. I almost always just take the G100, really got attached to it. Sometimes miss IBIS, but surprisingly rarely. Yes, I wish they would make a higher / prosumer version, but in reality, it's great as it is. It's a unique cam: big EVF, big high def rear screen, and big grip on a tiny cam. Panasonic should not get discouraged - and just come out with a better one.Got one as an upgrade to the GX850, another camera that was probably better than people remember it being.  Use the G100 with the PL15 and the 12-32 kit lens almost exclusively - only other lens in my bag that would really go well on it is the 45-175.Everything that people are asking to have added to the G100 would make it less...G100, for lack of a better way to put it.  Battery life is already a little questionable; adding IBIS, etc. would hit that pretty hard...and there's already a GX9 for that.The G100 is great for those occasions when you're traveling light, like hiking, or when photography isn't the main purpose of the trip.  Easy to tuck into a bag and take along just in case there's a scenario that requires more control than you can get from your phone.I use theOP/TECH Mirrorless Slingwith my G100 when carrying it.

I well remember when the G100 came out the less than gracious reviews it received but the more I looked at it the more attracted to it I became.Perhaps the biggest plus was its weight. I am at that age now when lightness matters so I took the plunge and bought one. The lack of ibis didn’t bother me much, even in my 80th year I can still hold a camera nice and steady (old school you see) it’s now over a year since I’ve had it and I’ve been delighted with it, in fact I liked it so much I bought another and that’s something I’ve never done before!!Mick

TC its me - I worked out a menu set up for the GM5 years ago, nothing brilliant, just suits and makes the use fit like and old glove.  Apart from the video functions which I ignore anyway, the G100 menu is identical as far as I can see,  So setting up the camera to work like a GM5 was no bother.  The Fn buttons are a little differently placed and I have found that the Fn4 which was unused for capture mode made a handy replacement AF/MF switch.The price is right for a brand new M4/3 stills camera and if it is a lumpy oversized GM5 then  at least the price and sensor are right.Considering that when the GM5 was still being sold the main wish-list rants were for a larger evf, flip lcd, bigger grip.  If that were the case then those who didn't buy a GM5 because there were too many deal breakers are now resting on the missing IBIS and a porky size issue.As a bottom feeder the price sucked me in and I have been pleasantly surprised when I found that it was a knobbly, much larger GM5 with most of the extra user conveniences that I would gladly trade for a return to the GM5 physical size.Should I care if 'nobody else' has yet found the G100?  I was a slow starter and a new convert. I am not into buying the camera type that everybody wants. That should be obvious.We are a very large country with a quite small population.  More than half the population crowds into the capital cities so I suppose that we don't need more 'VAT' for rural services considering that some bright bean counters decided to sell off state assets and replace them with for-profit services.  Now we complain about the cost of electricity instead of taxes.  In the cities ever more expensive toll roads take the place of taxation and publicly funded roads.  Can't complain, I rarely need to use a toll road.

Tom Caldwell wrote:TC its me - I worked out a menu set up for the GM5 years ago, nothing brilliant, just suits and makes the use fit like and old glove. Apart from the video functions which I ignore anyway, the G100 menu is identical as far as I can see, So setting up the camera to work like a GM5 was no bother. The Fn buttons are a little differently placed and I have found that the Fn4 which was unused for capture mode made a handy replacement AF/MF switch.Of course!The price is right for a brand new M4/3 stills camera and if it is a lumpy oversized GM5 then at least the price and sensor are right.Considering that when the GM5 was still being sold the main wish-list rants were for a larger evf, flip lcd, bigger grip. If that were the case then those who didn't buy a GM5 because there were too many deal breakers are now resting on the missing IBIS and a porky size issue.By the time I heard about GM5, it was just accounts from the grateful, likely yourself and DPR Chris.As a bottom feeder the price sucked me in and I have been pleasantly surprised when I found that it was a knobbly, much larger GM5 with most of the extra user conveniences that I would gladly trade for a return to the GM5 physical size.Well my old POW lumped a Nikon D5 and f2.8 zooms on me.  Coming from that, even the E-M1X feels nimble.Should I care if 'nobody else' has yet found the G100?Only if you want to, but no. I want Lumix to do a damn good job of making sales so I can look forward to a long career shooting m43. I'm precious like that. I've accepted my dream of spending my dotage cutting around in a parpy 4 cylinder Lotus is fading, but having a decent lightweight pro camera system is realistic.I was a slow starter and a new convert. I am not into buying the camera type that everybody wants. That should be obvious.The nifty niche models can only come to life if there are some cash cow models bringing in funds.We are a very large country with a quite small population. More than half the population crowds into the capital cities so I suppose that we don't need more 'VAT' for rural services considering that some bright bean counters decided to sell off state assets and replace them with for-profit services. Now we complain about the cost of electricity instead of taxes. In the cities ever more expensive toll roads take the place of taxation and publicly funded roads. Can't complain, I rarely need to use a toll road.Pah!  Glad you can avoid it.  We pay about the highest taxes anywhere, and our chancellor just announced 'the times of low tax are over'.  We're going to lock him in London Tower.I've been meaning to extend some gratitude your way.  Bloody well run forum TC.  Had similar qualities to a good pub.

They don't have real local pubs in Australia.  More like poker machine havens trading as social clubs made very wealthy by said machines.Other pubs might classed as loud venue sites for much younger people with little to say which is actually quite reasonable because the patrons are probably already experiencing their first batch of industrial deafness.Things that might be classified as a proper local are usually out in what is know as 'the bush' which is roughly anywhere 50kms further away from the conurbation of the big city.Just recently a big flood came through a place called Boulia, well inland and not far north of the NSW border.  Population (of the entire district) perhaps 100.  Pub is gone west in the flood and news report indicate it might not be rebuilt.  Now that would have been a local (everything) and a sore loss.  Checking a map and you will find it is about as far from anywhere that you could find.  Doesn't even have the simpatico of Birdsville which has become a sticker on every grey nomad's 4WD back window.I have a Honda CRX since new - but then everyone knows that I am a bit silly about everything small and low powered ....

olympiad wrote:I well remember when the G100 came out the less than gracious reviews it received but the more I looked at it the more attracted to it I became.Perhaps the biggest plus was its weight. I am at that age now when lightness matters so I took the plunge and bought one. The lack of ibis didn’t bother me much, even in my 80th year I can still hold a camera nice and steady (old school you see) it’s now over a year since I’ve had it and I’ve been delighted with it, in fact I liked it so much I bought another and that’s something I’ve never done before!!MickMick, brother, mate ... I have found someone just as crazy as I am.  An old bloke that manages without IBIS and can manage without IBIS.  That has the smarts when finding something well worth having to buy a spare .....

Thanks very much Tom, we old school must stick together 🤣😂All best wishesMick

Tom Caldwell wrote:They don't have real local pubs in Australia. More like poker machine havens trading as social clubs made very wealthy by said machines.Other pubs might classed as loud venue sites for much younger people with little to say which is actually quite reasonable because the patrons are probably already experiencing their first batch of industrial deafness.Ah, we call those 'bars'.Things that might be classified as a proper local are usually out in what is know as 'the bush' which is roughly anywhere 50kms further away from the conurbation of the big city.Just recently a big flood came through a place called Boulia, well inland and not far north of the NSW border. Population (of the entire district) perhaps 100. Pub is gone west in the flood and news report indicate it might not be rebuilt. Now that would have been a local (everything) and a sore loss. Checking a map and you will find it is about as far from anywhere that you could find. Doesn't even have the simpatico of Birdsville which has become a sticker on every grey nomad's 4WD back window.That's a pity.  Tanning a goon bag outside the bottle-o likely won't have the charm of a pint in the local.I have a Honda CRX since new - but then everyone knows that I am a bit silly about everything small and low powered ....Those are great cars!  A friend of mine had one, used to take it up to the Cairngorms to go snowboarding.  Perfect for twisty roads.  Would be good to see yours. Mine is quite similar in concept.  Vauxhall Tigra Twintop, badged as Holden down your way.  A poor man's Lotus.

I still love my little GM1. I know it is outdated, and is outclassed by new models with more resolution and better features... but.... there is something about this well built little gem that draws you in. And once you are bitten by it, it is all over for you. Nothing else will do.It is the ONLY really small camera that I have ever loved. All the others were flimsy, or lacked personality.  It is just "big enough" without being cute. It is certainly capable enough. It has enough features without having too many. It is a pocket camera that I never carried in my pocket, but always used a case or bag.  It just is perfect for what it does.

For the want of staying even the tiniest bit on topic I have to advise that these pubs don't sell camera gear.  In fact only the very largest country towns might still have a camera shop these days.It is hard to realise even in urban Australia where most of us live - or even rural towns of some size that sprinkle the best farming areas - that 'Way Outback' (as compared to the general 'Bush') there is nothing.  I think that most of us at some stage can say that we have been to the Bush but Way Outback is for really serious tourists or the few of those that call the place home.Some of these very remote little urban centres might run as far as a store as well but often it is simply a lonely pub that has been the eternal survivor. The pub is the social centre and can even be the post office.  But the nearest real bottle shop might be as much as 500 kms away (or more).In fact most large pastoral stations would incorporate larger patches of settlement than the  tiny hamlets with pub that once represented the stop over point of civilisation for teamsters and shearers as they moved between the remote properties. This was the subject of their itinerant employment.  In the process travelling through country which would seem to have been incapable of supporting more than three rabbits and a wallaby per acre - and that would be a good season.Hard to see how a traveller with camera in hand could survive in this type of country without a public watering hole every few hundred kilometres or so.

Marty4650 wrote:I still love my little GM1. I know it is outdated, and is outclassed by new models with more resolution and better features... but.... there is something about this well built little gem that draws you in. And once you are bitten by it, it is all over for you. Nothing else will do.It is the ONLY really small camera that I have ever loved. All the others were flimsy, or lacked personality. It is just "big enough" without being cute. It is certainly capable enough. It has enough features without having too many. It is a pocket camera that I never carried in my pocket, but always used a case or bag. It just is perfect for what it does.I think that your remarks raise the very point of the GM series.Something that I have known and probably not really expressed even to myself despite my well known enthusiasm.  My good friend Guy who goes back to the Ricoh compact days before even M4/3  has a similar passion for small Olympus camera bodies.So what is the fuss? and why the tinies?Its basically the liking for something made small that is very well built and capable.  Where some refinements can be left out as long as the camera does its basic job as a camera image capturing device.That these little camera do everything and not a lot more than the film cameras that we revered. They don't supply the extra stuff (refinements) that going digital added into the mix.There are obvious advantages of the cream functions and photographic assistance that the latest and greatest camera bodies offer.  Long since IBIS, huge evf, high speed capture, extreme video, complex AF assist, etc - all things that make great images easier. One could say that by taking the learned effort and careful use out of photography we might all be great photographers with hardly any trouble at all.To make very small camera bodies most of the frills must be left out.  The trick is to retain good build quality and all the traditional controls of stills photography in.So a tiny camera with not a lot more than basics can be more of a challenge to use and no doubt the features that a larger body can more easily fit in are very useful in practice.I have previously likened it to the "Excel" syndrome after Microsoft's spreadsheet product.  A wonderful bit of software which can do most things financial and can even be programmed by those who have learned the 'how'.  But something when used by most is only at a very basic level.  However attempts to market or even give away simpler versions of the same thing that do everything that most people might need fail.  Why do we all use Excel when we don't need even 10% of what it can do.  We get the program with the bells and whistles because it is somehow 'better value' and 'we never know' - one day we might decide to learn how to do something that it can do but we never use.  Maybe it is a bit like a powerful engine that we never exercise normally but which might come in handy one day is a tricky overtaking exercise? Truck drivers learn to live with the acceleration permitted by their load (or else they will die?)A camera without all the frills we never need to use would be simpler to set up and learn but it is easier just to skip over the bits in the menu that we simply don't understand.Not that cameras like the GM series are complete bare-bones and they do have all the features that firmware can still provide for cameras thus small.So when I finally decided that the G100 had met my 'experimental' level of pricing I bought one to see how it worked for me.  The ability to do fairly good video meant nothing to me as I was only interested in its normal still-image capabilities.  After all the sensor is much the same if not identical to the flagship G9 camera body.  Surely it can match the premium body in image quality even if it lacks the more extreme fancy bits.  I think that it does and this makes for a compelling smallish camera body with more than the GM5's adequate and still capable evf on board.  Yes we sacrifice IBIS and some shutter performance and maybe the processor is not as smart (I would not know).  But it is quite a good full featured stills camera even if it is not up to the latest and greatest video machine.  The best thing for me is that I found out that despite its highly promoted video and V-Log capability this is not 'in your face' for a stills photographer.I can happily forget the video, but I have now re-enabled the video button - just in case .... (I might need the 'acceleration' one day) ...Oh ... but it does do 4k fast capture stills (as well as video), but I am going to have to download the full manual to properly figure out how this works.  There are things where this mainly GM5 user has never really ventured.But of course this is just a switch movement on the great G9 that I also own and the biggest issue with any fast capture of stills is in curating the huge amount of images that a heavy session of burst captures can produce. I am hard pressed to just deal with the stills capture output after a hard night at the theatre.Back in the simpler days of film a cassette of 36 captures was slow and steady and try and make sure that everything was set right then the disappointment when the prints came back from the lab and you only then found out that your capability was very amateurish.Free digital film was the unlocking where you could practice all day to get your settings right.  20+ years later I am still practicing and trying to get it right - that activity is usually more interesting than the finished product.  Others are entitled to disagree.

Right right right.G100 photo of CRX please.

Tom Caldwell wrote:gaul wrote:Get these G100 or GX850/880 before they are gone?Thx TomSame as you, like my « new » 2nd hand GM-5 but want a backup in case it failsLooking at what happened to the excellent EOS M Series .. (Canon M6 Mk ii being stopped very suddenly and stocks disappeared IN DAYS.. when people realised they would not get the same functionalities at this SIZE and PRICE points..)That’s why I am contemplating buying a GX880 or G100 in case they encounter the same fate ..The other issue is that the manufacturers see stills shooting close to the end of its development life. Future still cameras can only develop by capturing faster and merging images into huge high-resolution files more for the fact that they can rather than any ability to impress as most prints or reproductions can look good enough for standard sharing purposes. Even in out of camera jpg. The camera body in your hand now most likely will be capable of doing anything we need for another 10 years or more - or until it breaks.But video improvements still have a way to go and young and enthusiast are easily swayed by better video capability and the prospect of being a You Tube Millionaire. So camera bodies offer better and better video. I am not sure that this market is really there. Maybe it is a noisy one and breathing of youthful fresh air.Actually if you look at what the camera makers are doing, and read between the lines of that the Panasonic imaging chief stated in his recent DPR “interview”/press release…..basically the future of imaging is zero. Mainly development in imaging from them will be a byproduct of advancement of their video capture platforms.In your later post you noted the following:”…..One could say that by taking the learned effort and careful use out of photography we might all be great photographers with hardly any trouble at all.To make very small camera bodies most of the frills must be left out. The trick is to retain good build quality and all the traditional controls of stills photography in…..”Here I would suggest that their idea is basically you dont learn photography: they will give you 4K or 8X video capture, and there is an image in there - “AI” will find one for you. I think the old school term for that was “spray and pray”, but no doubt they will find some horribly awkward brand for that like “IA Pro Auto” or whateverthe thing is

Sa7724473 wrote:Tom Caldwell wrote:gaul wrote:Get these G100 or GX850/880 before they are gone?Thx TomSame as you, like my « new » 2nd hand GM-5 but want a backup in case it failsLooking at what happened to the excellent EOS M Series .. (Canon M6 Mk ii being stopped very suddenly and stocks disappeared IN DAYS.. when people realised they would not get the same functionalities at this SIZE and PRICE points..)That’s why I am contemplating buying a GX880 or G100 in case they encounter the same fate ..GaulThe other issue is that the manufacturers see stills shooting close to the end of its development life. Future still cameras can only develop by capturing faster and merging images into huge high-resolution files more for the fact that they can rather than any ability to impress as most prints or reproductions can look good enough for standard sharing purposes. Even in out of camera jpg. The camera body in your hand now most likely will be capable of doing anything we need for another 10 years or more - or until it breaks.But video improvements still have a way to go and young and enthusiast are easily swayed by better video capability and the prospect of being a You Tube Millionaire. So camera bodies offer better and better video. I am not sure that this market is really there. Maybe it is a noisy one and breathing of youthful fresh air.Actually if you look at what the camera makers are doing, and read between the lines of that the Panasonic imaging chief stated in his recent DPR “interview”/press release…..basically the future of imaging is zero. Mainly development in imaging from them will be a byproduct of advancement of their video capture platforms.Thanks, I think that was wha I was saying.  But with a caution that the majority of digital camera users remain stills-based shooters with some more occasional video needs.For example the GH6 is apparently a very good camera but shouts 'video' and even has two separate video buttons.  From chat on the forum the camera is an excellent camera but not widely bought.  The G100 was touted for its video capabilities but I am not sure that it was a sales success.  But now I have bought one on price I find that forum talk that it is actually quite a good stills camera is quite correct.I con't mind video capability as long as it is not in my face and can be ignored.  But even the G100 only has two settings for its dedicated video button: On and Off.I think that touting video puts potential buyers off rather than hauling them in.  If their current stills shooter is doing well then there is no need to upgrade for good video that they might never use.Sell less, but more expensive, stills cameras built for the longer haul?

The data shows that the vast majority of growth of content on the internet for example is video content. Still photos insignificant in comparison, and definitely resolution and quality irrelevant.So its difficult to see the camera makers caring about still images other than those willing ot pay for big ticket cameras, which in turn boils down to full frame not M43.Look at where Panasonic has invested their money. It’s very clear that anyone stills focused staying on M43 is going to be a stepchild.

Sa7724473 wrote:Look at where Panasonic has invested their money. It’s very clear that anyone stills focused staying on M43 is going to be a stepchild.I'd rather be a stepchild than an orphan.....

I’m still holding a GM5, because the GM6 never showed up and neither did the GX10 . The G100 is not a plausible replacement either.I just had my GM5 overhauled after the back control wheel failed for the nth time. If the GM5 broke tomorrow, I’d go get an A7C, because Panasonic has orphaned me.

Tom Caldwell wrote:I resisted the GF7-GX850 as the GM5 evf was the clincher and I had decided never to get another camera without one.A well know advocate of using multiple GM5 camera body with all sorts of not PC lenses the G100 was sold primarily as a video-capable camera. Nothing much to see here for the likes of myself who have no interest in video.But quite a few users who had acquired a G100 spoke of it being quite a good stills camera.As someone already up to his ears in camera bodies that still impress I had no need for a G100 at RRP. I have a GX9, G9 and S1 already for good versatility.But the G100 intrigued somewhat and when I found one at a price that I could make myself afford I bought one very recently in the swan song of dpreview and perhaps the same for the G100.Naturally I would compare it to the GM5.It is substantially larger than a GM5 but of much lighter construction so it feels 'light' no matter what its weight actually is. In practice they both 'feel' about the same mass.But perhaps the light feeling G100 is more susceptible in balance to the weight of the lens attached.The grip is sculpted but the little (pinkie) finger falls off the bottom and there is a gap above it which gives an uncomfortable feeling when reaching the index finger overhead - something reminiscent of the awkward grip of the first series Sony A7 bodies. It does feel more uncomfortable than my GM5 bodes and I wondered why. Even though they all have the minimal but very good Franiec grip attached. The difference was easy to find. On my GM5 body it is the fourth finger and not the pinkie that slides under the body when gripped and this easily swaps over to the pinkie when the index finger moves to the shutter button. Much practice I supposeThe G100 is ok but does not feel quite as comfortable in hand as the GM5 and I am not going to limit my G100 lenses to tiny one only just because they might make it more grippable.The focus is quite fast when re-tested now with an Olympus 12-40/2.8 Pro on board. Images are normal 20mp good. There was a slight kerfuffle over how to easily MF an Olympus M4/3 lens so I used the vacant Fn4 button to allow a switch to access it and the other focus modes.The on/off switch is handy but in an odd position at the top back of the body protruding out from the mode dial. I might wonder if heavy thumbed use might snap it off. Pushing it HARD in the wrong direction?Otherwise I have spent a few hours setting up to my own specifications including turning the video button off - like the GM series Panasonic only allows on/off and no other purpose. But it does allow video control to be assigned to other buttons. You can have quite a few buttons set to invoke video just in case your memory is caught short in an emergency ....I have also turned the lcd outwards and will not articulate it unless it is also an emergencyThe rear dial around the four-way control seems less sensitive than that on the GM1 - or is this simply because I have become familiar with the GM1 control over the years.In any case i have had no issues with the rear dial in the few days since it came out of its packaging.I will not worry about imaging or the rest of the controls - the imaging is good - standard Panasonic - no IBIS of course but the GM5 is also unstabilised and it does not faze me at all.The menu system is also standard Panasonic and anyone familar with ti will have no issues setting up their camera to their own satisfaction.The evf give a larger view but in reality there is nothing wrong with the evf on the GM5 - it does the job it was designed to do quite competently.A good addition to my camera body fleet. The only slight objection might be that the grip, although larger does not keep up with the additional size of the camera body over the GM5.I’ve been facing the same conundrum, what’s the upgrade path or replacement path for my GM5 and GM1.I’ve just replaced my very old Panasonic LZ7 with a LZ100. The sensor iss not that much smaller than M43, and it’s an amazingly good camera.Another possibility is an E-P7.

The G100 is in no way going to replace my GM5 bodies.  But the jury is out on just how much the present G100 has been based on the GM series.  By the sound of the specification the shutter is probably from the GM series and therefor probably the sensor mount other than whatever is necessary to fit and manage the standard 20mp 4/3 sensor in use by at least Panasonic.The menu system looks very much like the GM menu system - firmware updated of course.Printing the full manual is a chore - there is now 508 pages of it.  Much of it seems based on the GM manuals that I remember.  But poking about there is a lot of additional horsepower and function capability even besides the video side that we would expect.However if all this still has a historical development from the original GM series it is not the GM series that has directly morphed itself.  This is a far different camera body and although it is compact, it is much larger than a GM5.  But it has GM5 vibes for me.However if Panasonic ever decided to give the GM5 style another flutter it does seem clear to me that the GM series as has been being developed via its successor models.  Therefore perhaps it would not be a complete back to basics to start all over again.