Panasonic today announced the DMC-GF7, their latest mirrorless micro four-thirds camera. The retro-styled GF7 is a 16-megapixel interchangeable lens system with a unique 180 degree flippable LCD monitor and secondary left-hand shutter button for those looking to up their selfie game.
The degree to which Panasonic has embraced the selfie craze in the GF7 borders on unsettling. Beyond the second shutter release button, the GF7 has a Jump Snap mode which will set the camera to snap a picture at the highest point in a subject’s jump. Those too lazy to jump or depress a shutter button will be relieved to discover a fancy hands-free mode which will snap a shot when the subject waves at the camera.[image:blog_post:55507]
Of course, there’s more to this camera than selfie goodness. The GF7 is a capable piece of kit with many of the features of more expensive mirrorless cameras. To start, it contains the same sensor and Venus processing engine as the excellent Lumix GX7. A great start, to say the least. It is also paired with a nicely chosen 12-35mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens.
A cool feature of the GF7 is the ability to target a subject by touching them on the camera’s large touchscreen and enjoy auto focus and exposure to ensure easy and professional looking shots in a hurry. Snapshots can also be grabbed quickly by tapping the GF7’s touchscreen.
Low light performance is solid, with the Venus Engine promising noise free nighttime images all the way up to ISO 25,600. Shutter speeds of up to 1/16,000 of a second, and data readout processing of up to 240 frames per second should insure great shooting flexibility and speedy and accurate autofocus.[image:blog_post:55508]
For those of us who want to make moving pictures, the GF7 is a decent video performer. While this compact shooter hasn’t made the leap to 4K just yet, it shoots full 1080p. If the performance matches that of the GX7, the GF7 should be a great portable shooter. The addition of Snap Movie mode for creating 2, 4, 6, or 8 second videos should keep the world in Vine videos for quite some time. The ability to shoot time lapse and stop motion videos round out the GF7’s video wheelhouse.
Sharing between camera and smartphone has been simplified as well. Connecting to the Panasonic Image App is as simple as pressing the Fn1/Wi-Fi button on the GF7 or by scanning a QR code with a smartphone. From the Image App, users can share their masterpieces to major social media sites quickly and easily.
Available in a handful of colors and priced at $599, the DMC-GF7 should be a solid — and popular — entry into the Panasonic mirrorless camera lineup when it lands this March.
Have you shot with a Panasonic mirrorless camera? Post links to your videos in the comments or hit us up on Twitter @Videomaker
