Hands On: Panasonic Lumix DC-G9 II
Panasonic's Lumix camera line is the first choice for many videographers and cinematographers because of the company's fantastic know-how when it comes to moving pictures. It's turning its attention to photographers with the latest, the Lumix DC-G9 II, a follow-up to to the well-regarded G9 from 2017. The new edition has a host of upgrades, including a new Micro Four Thirds sensor with phase detection autofocus. Read on for our first impressions after trying it out with pre-production firmware.
The G9 II is Panasonic's first Micro Four Thirds camera to leverage phase detection autofocus, a technology it finally adopted with the full-frame S5 II. And while the G9 II's image sensor is smaller (13x17mm) than a full-frame chip (24x36mm), the two share quite a bit in common, down to the body style and control layout.
Pictures are captured with a 25.2MP CMOS sensor, similar to the one used in the GH6, but with some important changes. The G9 II's version adds masked phase detection pixels for snappier autofocus, making the camera more suitable for capturing subjects in motion and putting it on more even footing with the Micro Four Thirds cameras most will look to as an alternative, the OM System OM-1.
The camera leverages the fast focus for quicker burst rates—it supports Raw capture at 60fps with an electronic shutter and at 10fps with the mechanical shutter, both figures with continuous focus. Subject recognition and tracking is available for people, pets and wildlife, cars, and motorcycles. Each mode is discrete, but if you need to swap between them quickly it's possible to assign the function to a button.
The fast capture rate is ideal for snapping action, and the capture buffer is large enough for about three seconds of
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