The Panasonic Lumix DC-G97 Mirrorless Digital Camera is great choice for creative photography. The LUMIX G97 offers exceptional picture quality with in-camera creative controls, featuring Live View Composite and advanced photo styles for uncompromising color expression. Designed to support bold shooting styles, it includes 5-stop 5-axis Dual I.S. 2 and B.I.S. for enhanced stability. Its video capabilities cater to diverse needs, offering 4K 30p recording with no time limitation and versatile slow/quick motion options. With an intuitive interface and durable build, it boasts a 1,840k-dot free-angle LCD and convenient USB Type-C connectivity.
20.3MP Digital Live MOS Sensor and Venus Engine
Optimized for high-speed, high-resolution imaging, the G97 features a 20.3MP Light MOS Micro Four Thirds sensor and an enhanced Venus Engine processor to create sharp, detailed stills and UHD 4K video. This configuration maximizes resolution while keeping noise to a minimum, permitting the use of sensitivities up to ISO 25600. It is also quick, enabling continuous shooting rates of up to 9 fps with AF-S and 6 fps with AF-C.
UHD 4K Video Recording
Supplementing the camera's stills capabilities is UHD 4K video recording at up to 30p with an 8-bit color depth and 4:2:0 sampling while recording internally. Alternatively, external recording is supported via micro-HDMI with 4:2:2 sampling and 8-bit color depth. V-Log L has been pre-installed on this camera and is used to capture a flat, neutral gamma curve well-suited for grading. Slow motion video is available with support for 60 fps in Full HD resolution. Additionally, both a 3.5mm headphone jack and 3.5mm microphone input are available for improving audio capture.
5-Axis Image Stabilization and Dual I.S. 2
Helping to achieve the utmost sharpness when photographing handheld, Dual I.S. 2 combines the G97's 5-axis sensor-shift image stabilization technology with lens-based image stabilization to compensate for up to five stops of camera shake along with a broader range of movement types to render sharper, clearer imagery. Dual I.S. 2 requires the use of compatible Lumix lenses featuring O.I.S.
Body Design and Wireless Connectivity
- A large OLED Live View Finder has a high 2.36m-dot resolution and 0.74x magnification for eye-level composition.
- A larger means for image composition and playback, the 3.0" OLED rear monitor now features a higher, 1,840K-dot resolution. Its free angle, tilt and swivel design supports viewing from a variety of angles. It is also a touchscreen, which permits intuitive menu navigation and settings control.
- Constructed from magnesium alloy with a die-cast frame, the G97 features a durable design that also incorporates extensive sealing at joints, dials, and buttons to render it both splash- and dust-proof.
- The lithium-ion battery offers approximately 290 shots per charge or approximately 1,050 shots per charge when working in the Power Save LVF mode. Additionally, the battery can be charged in-camera via the new USB-C port or via AC power.
- Built-in 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and newly-added Bluetooth 5.0 Low Energy connectivity allows for wireless image sharing and remote camera control from linked smartphones and tablets. Bluetooth LE also enables a constant connection to your mobile device, allowing for functions such as geolocation and automatic image transfer. The new USB-C port also allows for higher data transfer speeds with a wired connection.
4K PHOTO Modes
Utilizing the G97's video recording capabilities, a trio of still shooting modes are available for recording continuous 8MP stills at a 30 fps shooting rate:
- Burst: This mode will allow you to continuously record, making it ideal for instances where you need a fast frame rate in order to capture the best moment.
- Pre-Burst: This mode is ideal for times when you're unsure of the critical moment to press the shutter button and will record images one second prior to and one second after pressing the shutter button in order to give you 60 frames to choose from.
- Burst (S/S): This mode most closely follows the video recording process, and allows you to playback your video, pause at the chosen moment, and use the shutter button to mark a chosen frame from the video and save it as a single 8MP frame.
49-Area Depth-From-Defocus AF System
For accelerated autofocus performance, DFD (Depth-From-Defocus) technology is employed to quickly calculate the distance to subjects and adjust the focusing position, which enables continuous shooting up to 6 fps with continuous AF. This contrast-detection type focus method benefits both still and video recording modes, as well as subject tracking applications where subject color, size, and motion vectors are used to intelligently lock-onto the moving subjects and ensure precise focus. When working with portrait subjects, face/eye detection capabilities make it easier to photograph people and prioritize focusing as specifically as on a subject's pupil. The focusing sensitivity and speed can be adjusted to further improve performance with certain subjects. Additionally, AF sensitivity down to -4 EV supports working in low-light conditions
Benefitting manual focus operation, focus peaking is available that highlights bright edges of contrast with a colored outline for quickly recognizing your focus point, as well as Touch MF Assist for touch-to-focus operation. MF Assist can also be used to increase magnification by up to 20x for more critical focusing on specific subjects.
Lumix G Vario 12-60mm f/3.5-5.6 ASPH. POWER O.I.S. Lens
Included with the camera body is this versatile 24-120mm equivalent wide-to-tele zoom, which is well-suited to a variety of shooting applications. This POWER O.I.S. system pairs with the camera's sensor-shift IS system, using Dual I.S., for effective control of camera shake for sharper handheld shooting. The lens also utilizes a trio of aspherical elements and one extra-low dispersion element to minimize spherical and chromatic aberrations for increased clarity and sharpness.
Other Camera Features
- A mechanical focal plane shutter enables a fast maximum shutter speed of 1/4000 sec, as well as a top flash sync speed of 1/200 sec. An electronic shutter function also avails a top shutter speed of 1/16,000 sec to better enable working in bright conditions and with wider aperture settings.
- Live view composite recording is a unique long exposure mode that releases the shutter at designated intervals of exposure time and synthesizes portions of the image with high brightness to produce a single well-exposed image. This mode is well-suited for high contrast scenes and live view can be used to preview how the target subject exposure is affected over the course of multiple composited exposures.
- Photo Style modes: Standard, Vivid, Natural, Monochrome, L. Monochrome, L. Monochrome D, Scenery, Portrait, Custom, Cinelike D, Cinelike V, and V-Log L.
- Filter modes: Expressive, Retro, Old Days, High Key, Low Key, Sepia, Monochrome, Dynamic Monochrome, Rough Monochrome, Silky Monochrome, Impressive Art, High Dynamic, Cross Process, Toy Effect, Toy Pop, Bleach Bypass, Miniature Effect, Soft Focus, Fantasy, Star Filter, One Point Color, and Sunshine.
