Panasonic's latest G-series model brings a twist to the interchangeable lens camera format with a rangefinder-like experience.
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At the top of the GX7 is a mode dial and a control wheel around the shutter button. In conjunction with the usual adjustment wheel at the back of the camera, the control wheel can be used to adjust parameters when shooting in manual modes, such as aperture and shutter speed. Within the menus, the direction and operation of these wheels can be adjusted to the photographer's liking.
The EVF tilts up 90 degrees for a more discreet shooting experience, particularly for street photography and portraiture. At 2.76 million dots, the EVF is also very high resolution and offers 100 percent coverage.
At the back is a switch that slides between AF and MF modes. Focus peaking is available in both video and photo modes, with three different color overlays and two intensity levels to choose from.
The GX7 has a maximum shutter speed of 1/8000 second so you can use a wider aperture for shallow depth-of-field effects even without a neutral density filter.
A canoe at sunset, taken on the GX7. The camera does come with a built-in HDR mode, which snaps three images in quick succession at either 1, 2, or 3EV either side of the metered exposure. This shot, however, was taken without the HDR mode active, using a vivid picture mode preset.
Like earlier cameras, the GX7 comes with a number of different scene modes. Sunset-specific modes enhance contrast and saturation for more-vibrant photographs straight out of camera.
