Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 review

The layout of controls is very similar to those on the GF3’s closest rival, the Sony NEX-5. However, the GF3’s touchscreen speeds up certain functions and transforms the accessibility of autofocus options. We particularly appreciated being able to touch the screen while recording a video clip, whereupon the camera automatically tracked the subject in question to keep it in focus.

This is one of many reasons why the GF3 excels as a video camera. The 1080p resolution and AVCHD format encoded at 16Mbit/s helped to deliver sharp details with minimal compression artefacts, and autofocus was smooth and virtually silent. There was remarkably little noise in low light, and close-up shots exhibited a film-like shallow depth of field. The lack of an exposure lock for video is disappointing, but the camera reacted smoothly to changing lighting.

Taking photos with the GF3 was an extremely satisfying experience, too. It’s not the most secure camera to hold one-handed, but its shape and feel – and the solid clunk of its mechanical shutter – give a sense of real luxury. Even the leather neck strap is a step up from the norm. It’s seriously fast, too, switching on and capturing a shot in just one second, and taking just 0.6 seconds between subsequent shots. Continuous mode ran at 4fps for 13 JPEGs or six RAW images before slowing to a slightly disappointing 0.5fps.

The GF3 can take some astonishingly good pictures – Click on this image to enlarge it

Image quality was excellent, as long as we kept an eye on the shutter speed in low light and switched to manual ISO speeds to avoid blurry shots. Details were astonishingly sharp, and in bright light, subtle textures such as foliage and skin were captured with superb clarity. We failed to replicate the problem of under-saturated bands in skin tones that we’ve seen in previous G-series cameras’ JPEGs. Noise levels inevitably rose when lower light demanded fast ISO speeds, but noise was lower than we saw from the GF2. However, it wasn’t as low as from the best consumer SLRs – and also, crucially, the Sony NEX-5.

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