Panasonic Lumix GF1 Review: Digital Photography Review

Rear of camera controls

The GF1's rear controls will be pretty familiar to anyone who has used the G1 or GH1 - the layout (as far as the body design allows) is almost identical (FZ series owners will feel at home here too). The controls are logically arranged and surprisingly easy to get to, though only if you use both hands to support the camera.

On screen settings adjustment

Buttons such as white balance and ISO display a dedicated mini menu on the LCD monitor (or EVF if you add one) which allow you to see all the options available, use the command dial or arrow keys to change. Of course there are plenty of other ways to change settings using the various display options.

Setting Focus mode example	Setting ISO example (1/3 EV steps)

Quick Menu (Q.Menu)

The GF1 offers direct access to most of the most common settings using the Quick Menu (found on most modern Lumix compacts). Pressing the Q.Menu button lets you select a setting from the icons arranged around the live view screen (using the directional arrows or the control dial) and change it. The exact appearance of the quick menu settings depends on which display mode you are in.

Changing image size in the two different display modes (the operation is identical in both cases; it's just the display that's different).

Buttons / controls

Button	Function
OPEN	Flash up Press this button to release the pop-up flash.
	Play mode Enters or leaves play mode, the GF1 is a shooting priority camera which means you can always return to play mode by half-pressing the shutter release button.
AF/AE LOCK	Auto Focus / Auto Exposure Lock The AFL / AEL button is used to measure exposure and auto focus and then lock them. This can either be momentary (while the button is held down) or optionally toggled, where you simply tap the button and focus and exposure remain locked until the AFL / AEL button is pressed again. The Custom menu allows you to define whether the button operates as an AF, AE or AF/AE lock.
	Rear dial Used to change exposure settings and navigate menus. In play mode turning the dial changes magnification and activates the thumbnail views. The dial has a button click that switches its function (for example, between shutter speed and AE compensation in A mode). The 'click' can also be used in place of the 'SET' button for selecting menu items.
Q.MENU	Quick Menu Activates the Quick Menu, which allows you to select and change any of the settings shown as on-screen icons.
AF/MF	Focus Mode Press to change the focus mode from Auto (Single or Continuous) to Manual. Continuous AF option only offered on lenses fast enough to support it (i.e. not the 20mm F1.7).
	Four-way controller In shooting mode the four arrow keys each have a dedicated function (listed below). The directional keys are also used to navigate menus and change settings. In playback mode the left and right keys are used to scroll through saved images.
WB	White Balance (right arrow) • Auto • Daylight • Cloudy • Shade • Halogen • Flash • Custom 1 • Custom 2 • Kelvin temp (2500 - 10000 K, 100K steps)
ISO	ISO Sensitivity (up arrow) • Auto (not in M mode) • Intelligent ISO (not in M mode) • ISO 100 • ISO 200 • ISO 400 • ISO 800 • ISO 1600 • ISO 3200
	Autofocus Mode • Single area (press DOWN arrow to use cursor keys to set AF point) • 23 area (auto select) • Subject Tracking AF • Face Detect AF
Fn	Fn (down arrow) The FUNC button can be customized to offer direct access to any of the following controls: • Film Mode • Aspect ratio • Quality • Metering Mode • i.Exposure • Guide lines • Recording area display • Remaining minutes/frames display switch
DISPLAY	Display mode In record mode toggles between three different display options on the main screen (screen off, simple, detailed) In play mode cycles through the various information display modes.
	Erase / Depth of field preview In Record mode pressing this button closes down the lens aperture to the selected value allowing depth of field to be previewed. Offers option to view 'Shutter Speed Effect' preview. In Play mode displays a 'Yes / No' confirmation dialog to delete the current image, press the Erase button again to switch to All/Multi mode; Multi allowing you to select images on a 6 image thumbnail index, All erasing all images on the storage card (except for Protected images).
MENU/ SET	Menu / Set Press to enter the Menu in any mode, also used to confirm menu settings.

Control Dial

	The GF1, like the other G cameras, only has one dial, but it does the job of two thanks to the fact it's also a button. The dial is used to change exposure settings and navigate menus, and in play mode turning the dial changes magnification and activates the thumbnail views. The dial has a button click that switches its function (for example, between shutter speed and AE compensation in A mode). The 'click' can also be used in place of the 'SET' button for selecting menu items.

The GF1, like the other G cameras, only has one dial, but it does the job of two thanks to the fact it's also a button.

The dial is used to change exposure settings and navigate menus, and in play mode turning the dial changes magnification and activates the thumbnail views. The dial has a button click that switches its function (for example, between shutter speed and AE compensation in A mode). The 'click' can also be used in place of the 'SET' button for selecting menu items.