Panasonic Panasonic LX5 and video - set up for auto focus, etc.

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Can someone who has used this camera for video give us an overview or how to when it comes to how the auto focus works?

I have no experience using this camera for video and want to know the best way to set it up. Any pointers?

If one has it set on Auto Focus, is that all one needs to do - or are there other parameters that need to be addressed?
 
Don't know about the LX5 but the LX3 doesn't autofocus during video:

'The focus and zoom are fixed to the setting when recording starts (the first frame).' p72 of the operating instructions.
 
I haven't had an opportunity to play with the video mode of the LX5 yet, enjoying the stills photograph side of it at the moment.

I have the 'Photographer's Guide...' book for the LX5 by Alexander White. Regarding focus, if you leave your mode dial on 'Creative Motion Picture', you can set the Autofocus Mode for either Face Detection or the 1-Area AF (and if you set an increased AF rectangle size, the camera will try to maintain focus in that area, whatever you point it at.).

Or if you select Continuous AF as switched on, you focus by pressing the shutter button and the camera will try to maintain focus on whatever you're pointing at the first thing you're pointing at. If it's switched off, the focus will remain fixed and you'd have to keep pressing the shutter button to re-focus if the distance to your subject changes (if it's not infinity). To be honest, I have no idea what either of that means, whether it's on or off.

But overall, the book recommends leaving it on the IA setting on the mode dial, it'll adjust everything for you including AF.

I hope I've got that right (going to go try it out for myself now).
 
Thanks Traam!

I've also been told that the video files don't import quite the same way as the regular RAW files do. The other night I took a video for fun - it wasn't anything serious or important but when I downloaded and uploaded into LR, I couldn't find it! I've been told since then that on a Mac, at least, one needs to import into iMovie. I will need to get the play by play on this one down the line. ;)
 
If you shoot in the native format (AVCHD Lite) you won't be able to open it directly on a Mac, but it does import quite easily into iMovie (although I've been told not with all versions of iMovie, so might be an issue on an older Mac). But if you're not doing a lot of video and, particularly if you're not doing looooooong video segments, you can just shoot in mpeg format (they might call it MOV or something like that in the menu) and then it will open right up on the Mac as a Quicktime file. I occasionally shoot a piano performance that I know is going to be too long for the mpeg format so I'll shoot it in the AVCHD format, but any other time I keep it simple and shoot it in mpeg. I'm sure serious videographers would use the AVCHD all the time, but I aren't one. :cool:

-Ray
 
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