Panasonic has launched a new flagship stills camera, introducing the Panasonic Lumix G9, price tag starting at £1,499 / €1,729.
The Panasonic Lumix G9 is Panasonic’s flagship stills camera, and it sits alongside the GH5 at the top of the company’s interchangeable lens camera line-up.
Boasting the same 20.3-megapixel Four Thirds Type sensor as found in the GH5, Panasonic says the G9 is aimed at wildlife photographers seeking speed and durability. It also promises sharper images thanks to an upgraded in-body Image Stabilisation system.
The Panasonic G9’s IS system enables photographers to shoot at shutter speeds up to six speeds slower while still capturing sharp images, Panasonic says – even when using telephoto lenses.
Another highlight of the G9 is a new High Resolution mode that can produce 80-megapixel images in both JPEG and raw. When this mode is enabled, the Panasonic G9 shifts its sensor as it takes a sequence of eight frames, which are then combined to produce a super high-resolution image.
However, it’s worth nothing that Panasonic says this mode should only be used with a tripod.
Panasonic has also beefed up the AF system on the Lumix G9, again inheriting the GH5’s 225-point system which Panasonic says offers shutter release lag of just 0.04secs.
Faster burst modes bring a frame rate of 60fps AF-S mode or 20fps at full resolution when using continuous autofocus.
The new Panasonic camera also inherits Panasonic’s 4K Photo and 6K Photo modes, as well as Post Focus and Focus Stacking.
In 6K Photo mode the G9 can shoot images at 30fps for up to 10min, while in 4K Photo mode shoot at 60fps for 10min or 30fps for up to 30min.
While the Panasonic G9 is billed as a flagship stills camera, it does, however, offer 4K video recording. 4K (3840×2160) footage can be shot at 24, 25, 30, 50 or 60p at a maximum of 150Mbps in MP4 format.
You can also shoot 4K footage at 60fps or Full-HD (1920×1080) at 180fps for slow-motion videos.
The Panasonic G9’s 3,680k-dot Live Viewfinder offers a 100% view and a high magnification ratio of 0.83x (35mm equivalent) with zero blackout, even when shooting at high speeds, Panasonic says. It also boasts a night mode, plus an AF Point Scope integrated into the LVF’s design.
On the back of the G9 is a free-angle, 3in 1040k-dot touchscreen, and on the camera’s top plate is what Panasonic says is the largest Status LCD in its class.
Other design features include an Fn lever for making quick changes to your settings, and a joystick to quickly change the focus point. The G9 also offers dual memory card slots, which are both compatible with the super-fast UHS-II format, a first for LUMIX G cameras.
Each memory card slot can be used as backup, to store different types of media or even to split JPEG and raw files.
Like other Panasonic cameras, the G9 is also WiFi-enabled.
Panasonic G9 Price & Release Date
The Panasonic G9 price tag will start at £1,499 / €1,729 for the body only. An M Kit includes Panasonic Lumix G9 and Panasonic 12-60mm lens at a price tag of £1,699 / €1,929. Finally, an L Kit will include Panasonic Lumix G9 and LEICA 12-60mm lens at a price of £2,019 / €2,329.
Panasonic says the G9 release date will be from January 2018.