Panasonic has confirmed the release of its V Log upgrade for the GH4 compact systems camera, and the release of a new model, the GH4R, which has the new feature built in.
The new shooting mode – V Log L – will give the GH4 a dynamic range of 12 stops and is, Panasonic says, designed to match the Log mode of the Varicam cine camcorder as closely as possible. The V Log modes have been developed to match the industry-standard Cineon curves, according to Panasonic.
Panasonic says that it has developed the Log mode in response to demands from the film industry, and it has made no secret of the development of a V Log for the GH4 (we reviewed the original GH4 here). The new mode will appear as a Picture Style on the GH4, along with the current Cinelike D and Cinelike V modes.
The upgrade to the GH4R also allows for unlimited in-camera recording times, in both Cinema 4K at up to 24fps, and in QFHD at up to 30fps. Unlimited recording requires a U3 speed SDXC/SDHC card, for bitrates of 100mbps or more.
The new features are shipping, pre-installed, in the upgraded GH4 model, the GH4R. The GH4R is a Europe-only model that sells for more than a regular GH4 (£1199); non-European cameras do not have recording time limits applied. However, for GH4 owners with EU-specification cameras, the V Log upgrade will not add unlimited recording times; the feature is only available by buying a new GH4R unit.
For existing GH4 owners, the V Log L upgrade is simply a question of buying a software key, and loading it to the camera. The GH4 needs to be running Firmware 2.3 for the Log upgrade to work.
The upgrade key is called DMW-SFU1 and costs $99 in the United States and £79 in Europe.
