Attempting to match GH4 to DRAGON (my results thus far)

[Brian Boyer]

First, I'm not claiming in any way to be qualified to produce an absolute test of the DRAGON camera to allow somebody to make a purchase decision based on that test. My objective was to figure out whether and/or how I might be able to marry two very different cameras into an A/B relationship.

Fair enough. I wasn't implying you presented this test as a de facto standard on the matter or as a purchasing guide for anyone. But some people, being the strange creatures we all are, will view this test as just that despite your intentions.

And because of this tendency, when testing, I think it's important to disclose all the variables and potential points of contention wherever possible…is alls I'm sayin'.

My point is not that you shouldn't have done the test as is. It's that you did the test without mention of pertinent information, until I asked a few pages in.

A year from now, when new OLPF cameras vastly outnumber old OLPF ones to the point of making the term "new OLPF" superfluous, given the nature of the internet, it's not unreasonable to think someone could publicly cite this comparison as "proof" of something regarding Dragon that wouldn't have been relevant in a long time.

Maybe for this test, the conclusions that are drawn won't be so drastic, but for similar tests by you and others, I feel it's a better practice to let people know exactly what they're looking at.

I expect the new OLPF to give me better flare resistance, better color, better resolution, etc., but from the images I'm seeing, it's more like getting the shot closer to the center of the bullseye. The old OLPF still hits the bullseye, which is all that matters when keeping score.

Well, not in Cricket (inner circle is 50, outer bullseye ring is 25), but I get your point. ;-)

 

[Michael Tiemann]

Thoughts on the GH4 from my tests:

Try Natural instead of Cine-D. Cine-D has a little hue wobble in the color. Natural does not and is actually slightly less saturated.

Modify that Natural picture profile by taking Constrast, Sharpness and Saturation to -5.

For a non-bumpy curve, try i.Dynamic medium, with Shadows and Highlights at 0.

Here are some tests I did, if you are interested:
https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0Bx36eGbmhPWuZ0Q4UEdMSW93WTg&usp=sharing

I also recommend white balance at somewhere between 4000 and 5000 - but I see you're already doing that WB at 5600K does some very odd things.

Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com

Bruce, thanks again for your suggestion. I was able to create a better match with virtually no Resolve corrections needed using the following:

DRAGON:

Color temp: 4700K
Tint: -10
ISO 1600
Shutter 1/24th (360 degree!)
f 4.0

GH4:

Color temp: 4500K
WB adjust: Amber 2, Green 2
ISO 1600
Shutter 1/50th (approx 180 degree)
Photo style: Natural
Contrast -2
Sharpness -5
NR -5
Saturation -4
Highlight/Shadow: flat
i.Dynamic OFF
i.Resolution OFF

Here are the 4K images to compare: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B_VSlRMCBrwCbkdJZ29KWVZ3Mnc&usp=sharing