The 3 Reasons I Bought a Panasonic AF100 in 2018
Like many people interested in filmmaking, I can get caught up in the latest and greatest camera or lens announcement. As a rule, I often try to purchase behind the curve of technology — including a strict commitment to buying only refurbished computers instead of brand new machines. There’s certainly a cost benefit to this approach, but there’s also the opportunity to leverage the hindsight from others’ experiences of having actually used the gear and machines over a period of time — such as issues and quirks with the equipment that annoy people or make things difficult. I can avoid being a guinea pig ;-)
All this to say that buying a used HD video camera that is eight years old like the Panasonic AF100 raises a number of concerns about “why” — when there are so many DSLRs and mirrorless cameras on the market that shoot up to 4k and can be used to take awesome pictures. I’ll try to explain my reasoning as to why I chose to spend $550 on a “well-used” eight year old video camera instead of purchasing a mirrorless 4k hybrid like the GX85 — which brand new can come with a stock lens for about the same price as I got my AF100.
1) From Experience: The Old Dog In The Fight
Let me establish that I purchased the AF100 for the first time, about seven years ago, for a startup that web-streamed live interviews and sales segments with emerging brands. It was extremely useful as the camera had HDMI out, XLR mic inputs, built-in Neutral Density filters, zebra and wave monitoring, etc. etc. etc. So, I’m familiar with the camera and had used it many times — albeit many years ago. I knew and encountered a number of issues with the camera and eventually sold the camera a year or two after having actually purchased it. During that same time of operating the AF100, I also used a GH2 — it was my B-camera. I quickly preferred the GH2 over the AF100 for most of my non-studio work. As the studio work stopped and the AF100 was sold, I started trying out the GH2 hacks I found from EOSHD.com that essentially lifted the bit-rate and provided improved quality in the capturing of images from the camera sensor. But, the GH2 was not shy of having its own issues and challenges when it came to performing like a video camera — not just a pure cinematic visual capturing device. Like many mirrorless and DSLRs, the GH2 did not have built-in NDs, had a weird 2.5mm audio jack, single card slot and lacked video monitoring tools that are standard with most professional camcorders.
Make no mistake: the AF100 is a video camera. It is not a hybrid like DSLRs or mirrorless cameras. As such, the AF100 is more suited for video production needs than a DSLR would be. While I wouldn’t rush to use the AF100 to shoot a dramatic feature-length film, for interviews, corporate events, weddings, etc. where one might want the benefits of a true video camcorder (ND filters, battery life, phantom powered XLR inputs, an EVF that can be color or black white, focus peaking, slow motion and variable frame rate recording, dual card slots, etc.), the AF100 is rather convenient and does the job out of the box. Yes, add-ons are not needed that often with the AF100.
My interests in the AF100 this time was due to KEH.com having one at a price point below $600 for a camera that initially retailed at $6,000 only six years ago. The AF100 was a solid 1080 HD performer in 2012 for most event or non-scripted work. And while 4k is the buzz, most needs in 2018 are simply just 1080HD. Simply stated, for a sub $600 video camera that records 1080HD, I couldn’t find anything close to as complete a package as the AF100 still is today.
2) Dedicated Video Camera For Live Events
I own an Olympus mirrorless camera for photography and a Blackmagic pocket cinema (BMPCC) for more cinematic needs. In my opinion, those needs are on opposite ends of the spectrum and typically a lot of the in-between is captured by my Nexus 6p (video is actually pretty good for a phone). Although it is much easier to travel with just a smart phone for the in-between video and photo needs, the phone is not a video camera. Without going over the same technical details I listed above, let’s say that sitting in the back of an auditorium for a kids school concert using a phone is not going to produce — IMO — watchable video and the audio will probably be wretched. Additionally, I don’t want to put my phone on a tripod to record sporting events or outdoor activities that require stable positioning. I actually, believe it or not, like to use my phone as a phone. Which brings me to the need (maybe it’s more of a want at this point) for an actual video camera to capture live events with better audio and video than a smart phone offers. Certainly there are smaller camcorders for home video making, but those are really limited to just home video making and still cost a few hundred dollars. Looking at cost comparisons, my AF100 is much cheaper than most smartphones and while comparable to consumer video camcorders in price, the quality of the video and audio is no match for the consumer products.
3) Micro Four Thirds + Slow Motion
As I stated already, I own two other cameras that happen to both have micro four thirds mounts. Now, for my BMPCC I have an EF speed booster but I do use vintage lenses often with c-mount and contax/yashica adapters. Since I am already invested in a few micro four thirds lenses, I have adapters for vintage FD, C/Y, EF and c-mount lenses. That means the AF100 and the MFT mount fits in nicely with what I have for glass and essentially gives my Olympus 14–150mm MFT lens an equivalent of 28–300mm (helps to get those zoomed in shots of kids singing when I’m in the back of an auditorium), while also letting me use vintage and fast lenses like my Yashica 50mm f1.9 — if I wanted to shoot a corporate interview and get some background bokeh — even in lower lighting conditions.
So having the ability to use the glass that I own with the AF100 helps, but I like to occasionally capture footage in slow motion or time lapse. Both of those situations typically are not ideal for my Olympus, my BMPCC (though it does do time-lapse, you need to be aware of battery power and an external power supply is needed), or my Nexus 6P which does record slow motion but in a less than ideal format. Granted the slow motion one the AF100 tops out at 60fps, but I’ll take that for $550, no need to buy additional glass and a battery that lasts for hours.
In Conclusion:
I know the Panasonic AF100 is far from a perfect camera, even when it was arguably in its heyday six plus years ago. But, it still captures 1080 HD video with 4:2:2 HDMI output, and has the tools one typically uses for professional video capturing like NDs, XLRs, gain, slow motion, time lapse, etc. It’s obvious to me that the AF100 isn’t breaking any new ground in 2018, but I didn’t want to buy a video camera to do that. I wanted a video camera for when I need a video camera and not a DSLR or cinema camera… and that’s what I have with the AF100.
