Bright Nights Auckland, May 2018 [G85 Low Light Video Test]

Chanced upon the Bright Nights Lighting Experience while exploring Auckland’s Viaduct Basin one evening on a recent trip north – a fine opportunity for some Panasonic G85 low light tests.

Micro Four Thirds cameras are not known for their low light prowess, so it was an interesting exercise and always fun shooting art.

Camera set up – Lumix G Vario 12-60mm, ISO 800 with the Cinelike-D (customised) profile.

Despite the obvious limitations, overall I was pleasantly surprised with the results. In reality, these kind of shots tend to work because the bright subjects look pretty good highlighted against dark backgrounds. It would have been nice to show some more context now and then but the shadows were super noisy – no real surprise there.

The 4k footage was a little better than 1080p as you might expect, but without some powerful magic, there was not a lot of scope to salvage much detail from those darker areas. Will try pushing the ISO further next low light experience and give the 25mm prime a whirl.

Aside from some great moog music and a touch of whale song, background audio is from built-in mics – with some wind noise to prove it – but not too bad for picking up ambient vibes.

Full credit to the artists and organisers of the event, fun times.