Ultimate Cheap Street Photography Camera: The Panasonic GX85

I’ve used and enjoyed the Panasonic Lumix GX85 for about two years now. Used it on the street, out in the backyard, and packed it around on trips. It has cemented itself as my favorite camera, though it is not without its foibles. Now that a replacement camera is imminent (the very iterative Lumix GX9) I am looking back on the GX85 and why it is still an excellent choice, now at a bargain price if you’re willing to look for it used*.

*Side note: why would you want a used camera? Frequently you get what you pay for with digital cameras. Higher $$ often translates to better features and performance — though not always. Buying used means being able to afford more than you would be able to otherwise, albeit usually without a warranty. I’ve never needed a warranty with any of the Panasonic cameras I’ve owned. They’re very well-built. And, should you need work done to your camera, you probably still pay less than the savings you got over a brand new model.

I’m looking back over some of what I wrote about the GX85 when I got it, and want to point out why it’s still a terrific option. What follows here are some of the highlights, along with commentary from the here and now on what I think of this camera as a cheaper alternative for newer street cameras.

Since I have now owned the Panasonic GX85 for almost a year, I have grown quite comfortable with it. One of the problems with our common obsession with gear as photographers is that we often don’t use a camera or lens long enough to become truly comfortable with it. I have been guilty of this myself in the past, but with the GX85 I have consciously determined to use it and be satisfied with it, and it has rewarded this determination nicely.

Still true. Part of it is the choice you initially make, and that you end up with a camera that suits your needs. The other part is just being satisfied with the tool you have instead of salivating over the marketing machine for newer models. This is a hard lesson to learn if you enjoy gear as much as I do, but it’s very important. That’s all part of the tension between gear and process that I focus on with this blog.

As a smaller camera the GX85 is not the most comfortable ergonomically (though it is one of the best smaller camera bodies I have used in this respect). I usually like to add some sort of grip accessory instead of buying a larger camera, since it allows me the flexibility of larger or smaller depending on whether I have the grip installed. Thus far, incidentally, the only camera manufacturer that has realized this is Pentax, whose latest APS-C DSLR camera has three different-sized grips included in the box which can be changed out with a screw. But for the GX85, I chose the Gariz half case in dark brown. It is a very nice case, with a sleek steel base plate which gives instant access to the SD card/battery slot and adds a new tripod mount. The leather is beautifully finished, however, I found it to be a little slick. I remedied this by distressing the leather a little bit. This is easy enough to do, by first coating the leather with a generous wipe-down of rubbing alcohol, and then taking a stiff brush to it until you get the level of roughness you want. I protected the leather afterwards with a coating of saddle soap (boot oil) and it is now a bit grippier and looks better as well. Since it is very high quality leather it will only look better as it ages, weathers and gains color from skin oils and salt from perspiration.

The Gariz half case costs about $85 as of writing, so it’s not the cheapest accessory. If it’s more than you can swing, get one of the cheaper PU leatherette cases from China. Also Panasonic has announced an add-on grip for the GX9 that also fits the GX85. I haven’t handled this yet, but it looks like a great addition if you find the camera fiddly.

The lens which has spent the most time on my GX85 lately is the Panasonic 20mm f/1.7 II. It’s one of the earliest Micro Four Thirds lenses, but has gained an almost legendary reputation, for its good points and bad points alike. It’s one of the sharpest lenses, even from the widest apertures, and in standard photographer terms the “rendering” is beautiful. What most folks don’t like is the focusing speed, which is glacial by comparison with the latest and greatest lenses in the system. I have expressed dissatisfaction with this myself in the past, though I have come around somewhat. I’ve found that the DfD focus technology in the GX85 has noticeably improved performance by lessening the amount of time this lens hunts for focus. The way the DfD technology works is to use the characteristics of the out of focus parts of the image to determine which direction the camera needs to move to acquire focus. Because the focus motor in the 20mm lens is the slow part of the lens, it minimizes the amount of time that motor is moving the focusing elements.

There have been a number of cameras made by Panasonic which pair very well with the 20mm lens in terms of overall size, starting with the GF1, then notably the GX1 and GX7, which are the previous cameras in the same genre of camera style as the GX85. It’s a small and fast package that is easy to pick up on my way out the door. Manageable gear is important, as it determines when you will have it with you.

The 20mm f/1.7 lens is pure magic. I used to like shooting with a 25mm lens, which gives the same field of view as a classic 50mm standard lens on a good old film camera. But the 40mm field of view of the 20mm is a more versatile blending of the two classics, the 35mm and 50mm lenses, and just works in so many cases. I find it especially good for the street when I am looking to feature people and their faces, but still get some of the context. It’s no 28mm wide angle lens, but that’s a different type of street photography that is perhaps harder to master.

I have set a custom autofocus arrangement on the GX85 that suits me very well on the street. Most of the points are arranged on the left and right intersections of the rule of thirds, with more bias towards the bottom third of the frame than the top third. This corresponds to the areas I will most likely frame the subject. I rely on the camera to pick my subject over whatever is in the opposite side of the frame, and usually it judges that quite well. I have few out-of-focus shots from my surreptitious hip-shot (more like mid-chest-shot) technique. When I miss shots, it’s usually because they were poorly aimed.

Seattle represented the most opportunity for street photography I have had in a while, since I live in a rural area with less access to metropolitan areas. I took advantage of this and came back with lots of files, even a few keepers. The GX85 performs very well, and my all-black model is quite stealthy. Overall I find Seattlites to be pretty easy with the idea of street photography, and didn’t garner any dirty looks or objections of any kind.

The requirements for a good street camera are all there: fast autofocus, quick access controls and lightning overall performance. Also, I actually found the battery have pretty good stamina over the course of my sessions. I carried a spare GX7 battery but didn’t find a need for it since we tended to take mid-afternoon breaks back at our Air-B&B. Just plug it in and take a rest, and it’s good to go.

Another thing which pleased me was the mobile app, which now supports batch importing of files. You can select from Today, Past Three Days or a couple other settings, and the camera automatically sends over all the files from the specified time period. Perhaps this was enabled through an app update, but I never remember the option with my GM5, and suspect it’s enabled by camera firmware. The only thing lacking from making this feature perfect is the absence of a Yesterday option, meaning if you don’t import your files to your device the same day, you’re stuck importing the past three days.

The autofocus speed is one area where Panasonic excels, and some other camera brands struggle. For example, Fujifilm is beloved by many photographers, both serious and those who are just in love with the look and feel of their retro-heavy, well-made and expensive cameras. But until very recently, their autofocus speed has been problematic in many of their cameras, especially the street-focused X100 series. We are talking much better autofocus with this camera. It’s likely not any better in the GX9 because it doesn’t need to be.

In-camera charging has become a must for me when using a camera on the street. USB power banks are ubiquitous nowadays, and having the ability to keep one in your pocket with a cord attached which can charge your camera battery at a moment’s notice is great. The alternative of carrying multiple batteries still works, but there’s extra cost involved and you have to remember to carry them with you. The power bank does double duty charging your phone, so it’s a smart option when packing light.

The only issue I had in the street was when using auto ISO in aperture priority mode. While it allowed me the ability to adjust exposure compensation on the fly to deal with varied lighting, it tended to keep the shutter speed around 1/60th of a second, which resulted in some blurry images due to subject movement. It has since been pointed out to me that there is an ISO mode, “intelligent ISO,” which attempts to bump up shutter speeds when it detects movement, but unfortunately I was not using that when it counted. I will have to experiment with this option in future. I adjusted my technique when realized I was getting blurry images by keeping the ISO set to a higher value, and by switching into manual mode when it made sense. I tend to forget shutter priority mode is there for me as well!

ISO control is one of the minor foibles with this camera, along with nearly every Micro Four Thirds camera. The lack of ability to set a minimum shutter speed for auto-ISO is frustrating, along with the inability to set exposure compensation while in auto-ISO. The latter issue is apparently fixed with the GX9, making one of the main reasons why I am tempted to upgrade. In the meantime, I have grown mostly comfortable with the GX85 in manual mode — setting an aperture and shutter speed manually and either letting the camera pick ISO (which results in an exposure setting the camera thinks is neutral — but may in fact be too light or dark for my needs) or varying ISO as a sort of exposure compensation. For the street, 3200 and below are plenty decent for my needs, so there’s a fair bit of latitude in what setting I pick.

This is, however, an example of a real need to upgrade, as opposed to a perception of a need brought on by clever camera marketing campaigns. Being able to set exposure compensation would allow me to set aperture and shutter speed and forget them, with auto ISO providing flexibility while still allowing me to vary the exposure to suit the lighting conditions. Street cameras need to get out of the way as much as possible while still providing absolute control of whatever setting you need to use to accomplish what you want. This is the main way in which the GX85 lets me down. It’s not a dire problem, and I’ve gotten around it successfully for two years. But it’s there.

Colors out of camera in standard JPEG mode are much richer than previous Panasonic cameras. Reds can get a little oversaturated in standard mode. A couple of photos with bright reds seemed to show a little posterization, but only when zoomed in to 100% and in one or two areas. There are of course limits to JPEG files, and generally I think the bright and rich colors are welcome. Red, green, blue and yellow tones are all weighted toward vivid, saturated and pleasing tones. For a more neutral, classically Panasonic color palette the Natural JPEG mode might be a better choice.

I don’t like to use JPEG files most of the time, except to enjoy the beautiful look of the camera’s “L Monochrome” JPEG mode. Suffice it to say, earlier complaints of bad colors in Panasonic JPEG engines are effectively rendered moot. This camera produces excellent colors.

EVF is good but some won’t like that is natively a 16:9 ratio. Can be hard to avoid hitting the LCD screen for left-eyed shooters. I am actually left-eyed, but I have been training myself to use the right eye with my Panasonic rangefinder-style cameras and I don’t find it too difficult. The trade-off to making yourself use the right eye is not having to mash your whole face behind the camera — rangefinders actually are more comfortable to shoot right-eyed than SLR-style cameras.

The EVF is a bit of a let-down, and one that won’t be solved with the GX9 since it uses the same hardware. It’s not a bad EVF, but the size makes it hard to see completely. I’ve fully acclimated to using my right eye to look through the EVF, but it still has a bit of a tunnel-like nature that is hard to avoid for a glasses-wearer. The native 16:9 aspect ratio is actually a blessing in disguise, since switching it to native 4:3 makes the screen area smaller, and, counterintuitively, easier to see. I do wish Panasonic had put one of their better EVFs in this camera. However, for street use I mostly rely on the tilting LCD as I prefer to go unobserved so as not to alter the scene by my presence. Raising a camera to one’s eye usually alerts potential subjects to your intentions.

IBIS works to about four stops for me. Using Sigma 60mm lens I was able to get very sharp shots at 1/15 sec at least 75% of the time. IBIS runs all the time that camera is on as evidenced from very quiet hum emitted during operation. Stabilized when focusing. This is just in-body stabilization, since the lens I used isn’t dual-IS capable. The effectiveness of image stabilization is of course subjective, since individual people have different levels of shakiness.

The in-body stabilization is terrific. Many dedicated street cameras neglect stabilization, and that can result in fewer keepers. It’s not hard to ruin a shot by not fully stopping and steadying a non-stabilized camera, and being able to do that unobtrusively is very difficult. I rely on the fact that, while I am using a shutter speed that is fast enough to stop subject movement most of the time, I won’t have a shot ruined by my own clumsiness.

One detail that has generated some buzz leading up to this camera’s release is Panasonic’s decision to use plastic for the frame and top plate, unlike the previous GX7, my GM5, or the E-M10, which use metal, usually magnesium alloy. Indeed, at least a metal top plate seems to be de rigueur these days, and I was quite surprised to see Panasonic switch to plastic, when the top-end GX8 and the previous GX7 both use extensive metal on the exterior, where it can be touched. I’m certain Panasonic employs metal in the camera chassis, and in all reality there is nothing to be concerned about in the build of the GX85. Some of us, myself included, like the feel of metal better than plastic in the hand, but it’s as if the GX85 set out to prove us wrong by how hefty and sturdy it feels. I chose the black model, particularly to reconcile myself to the initial shock of plastic, so to speak, since the finish feels exactly like my eighties-era Konica SLR, the FS-1.

Whatever opinions people initially had about the plastic build of the GX85, this camera has proven exceptionally solid, just like every Panasonic camera body I’ve used. I have never worried about the thing’s durability, and in addition haven’t had an issue taking it out in light rain either, despite its not being weather-sealed. It’s a tough-as-nails camera.

After two years with the thing, I have grown quite attached to it. I may end up buying the GX9 in time, due to the reasons mentioned, but in no way do I think my shots will suffer in the meantime. To reiterate, this camera fulfills the needs of a fine street camera in all the major ways:

· Small and discreet styling that doesn’t alert people to your intentions.

· Fast, reliable focus method.

· Easy charging on the go.

· Excellent file quality, with latitude to apply post-processing.

· Superior reliability.

· Gets out of your way completely on the street. The most important of these, as the last thing you want to do is fiddle with settings, especially in menus and submenus.

I hope this article helped! Thanks for reading.