There was a ton of hype for it, I've been kinda enamored by it, and now I haven't heard it mentioned in forever. Have ya'll got your hands on it? What'd you make? What's this camera do well and what does it do poorly?
Posted Nov 17, 2018, 6:43 PM UTC
The Eva1 is a beautiful camera but I found the monitor and some usability to be frustrating. Stellar camera and I am sure the next model/posher version will be a classic
I own an EVA1 as well, but it’s ‘drawbacks’ haven’t hindered the experience for me. To echo what others are saying, the image quality really is superb. Great codec options and tons of flexibility in post. The body is light and compact, and the menus are pretty easy to navigate.
I love the ergonomics of the camera, moreso than the FS7, UMP, and Canon bodies. I actually really love the handle and all it’s button placements - the handle is actually what sold me on the camera originally. True, the monitor is lousy, but for indoor shoots it works fine, and for outdoor shoots I use my loupe. Looking to get a Ninja V soon which should further alleviate any issues.
In general, all cameras in this segment pretty much all do the same thing. Each one has its own quirks and its own strengths. To me, the EVA was everything I was looking for in a camera, and if the EVA2 ever came along, I’m sure I’ll be first in line to trade up for it. But overall, I’ve had nothing but positive experiences with the camera. If you’re considering making the purchase, maybe rent it for a weekend and get familiar with it first.
Had it for over a year. Great image quality. You can shoot with SD cards and it’s EF mount, which made it simple to just go. The skin tones are lovely and the slow motion options are super fun.
But I have to say, being the first generation of its kind, it was a bit of a lemon. It had an atrocious LCD screen (dubbed “the mirror”) which is literally unusable in the sun. It also had a handgrip that would not lock into place; it just always had a little give, and Panasonic would not / could not fix this.
I think the EVA2 will likely be an extremely promising camera. But the Eva1 just fell short on some basics, which has caused some widespread buyer’s remorse.
Will definitely be interesting to see how they adapt EVA2 to the market. Almost for sure it will be their new L mount instead of Canon. I can't see them handing off more business to Canon now that they have launched a competitive mounting system.
Edit: Also, great insight on the Eva1. Hadn't heard that about it's handle yet. Good to know.
Wait wtf? They're making a new mount? Why on earth would they do that unless they're going to release like 20 new lenses soon?? Although if they do dump all that air conditioner money into their camera department, I've no doubt panasonic could easily surpass a lot of brands like they did back in the long long time ago.
Digging a little deeper into it. Looks like it will actually be Leica's full frame L-mount system rebranded for Panasonic and also in collaboration with Sigma. Which will open up a bunch of already existent Leica lenses. But yes it will be launching a whole series of Panasonic specific full-frame lenses. They are stepping up out of the m4/3 being their primary focus. I'm sure they will still put lots of effort into it, but the mirrorless full frame market is just getting too big to ignore.
I'm down, that sounds great. M4/3 is limited use at best imo. Only shitty thing about it will be choosing EF or L I suppose, maybe there'll be an adaptor, to the future we go to find out!
LCDs are always weird on these types of cameras. (FS7, FS5, C100.) You know it's just for the menu as they are always terrible. But they are still at a spot where you would expect you regular viewfinder.
As for the camera I always felt like it was a simpler version of the FS7. Menus are super easy.
I do hope for the Eva2 that they ditch the SD cards tho. Yes it's cheap but with P2 cards they can put that raw in which I think is worth the price.
As for the grip I personally never had that issue on the model I used. Maybe it's due to us having the newer grip.
Tho with all its flaws I think I'd still get the Eva1 over the FS7(mk2) tho I do wish Panasonic would look more to Sony for especially the exterior features.
FS7 has much better separation for certain features where EVA1 chooses to have a more clean design/less buttons.
But the biggest downside to me is the lack of buttons on the handle. When doing a handle shot low to the ground it's so nice to have a zoom rocker and record button there.
The dual ISO is also nice but a bit lacking compared the GH5s (400-2500) compared to EVA1's 800-2500. Sure it's a bit less noise when using slowmo. But not too much. It's not as "wow" as as going from the GH5's 400-2500 or Varicam's 800-5000. The cam isn't really competing with either ends of the camera market so I am not sure why the EVA got such a downgrade in the dual native ISO department. That really killed it for a lot users in the documentary scene.
So yeah I agree with your statement that the Eva1 fell short on a lot of things. But that image is still great and the 5.7k is great for match move/digital zoom/digital reframing.
Seems like most of what I'm hearing, thanks for the input. That was sort of my suspicion as well, that it was REALLY COOL, but had many simple things wrong as typical with flagship models. Seems like if it's already shifting out of the box it'll just get worse and worse as the years wear on and if I'm shelling out like $10,000 bet your ass I'm getting something that will last a long time. Sad though, because the images, body size, and mount are all exactly what I want right now, it just doesn't feel ready to me yet.