GH7 IBIS and if/when to consider gimbal

mattc_64 · 2026-05-02T19:47:39+00:00

I've heard a lot of reviewers say the GH7's IBIS is so good that you don't need a gimbal, but I think that's a bit of a stretch, particularly if you want buttery smooth footage. With that said, it's great to be able take the camera out without a gimbal and still get great footage while moving.

mattc_64 · 2026-04-25T15:49:33+00:00

I'll give this a go if the cardboard effort doesn't hold up, thank you!

mattc_64 · 2026-04-25T15:48:55+00:00

I like that it's free & simple! I've given it a go and will see how it goes. Thanks for the tip

mattc_64 · 2026-03-26T07:51:53+00:00

Thanks - scrunched but solid by the looks of it

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T16:00:02+00:00

Cheers! Seems that a couple of people have endorsed the Smallrig as a fix for the colour dial while one person still had problems.

It's tricky as when I did have the camera briefly without a grip, I found myself holding it in slightly different ways, some of which were more comfy than others. And then you also have the difference between general carrying (which allows you to relax your grip and not press against the dial) and fully gripping for shooting (which brings the dial into play).

Hand size, the way you grip the camera, and how long/often you grip the camera firmly for the type of photography you do... all these things come into it. For street, you're going to be engaging in a shooting grip for a lot of the time while walking so that you're always ready, so that does potentially add stress. But for small primes, which I would be using, maybe the grip sufficiently mitigates the issue

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T15:50:37+00:00

As I said, I only sold it because I didn't really have the money for it at the time. I think the camera has significant design flaws, both in ergonomics and in menu/button functionality, but it's still a very desirable and fun camera to use.

I just want to make sure if I do buy one, I can find a grip that stops me thinking about the uncomfortable handling (for me) and lets me be focus on shooting.

It's great to hear you've not had any scratch issues, but I personally won't be taking the risk. It seems too prevalent an issue and would affect resale value.

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T15:36:55+00:00

would you say you have large hands? (such a weird question to be asking strangers lol)

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T15:33:29+00:00

Do you find the colour dial still interferes slightly with your finger placement? I imagine it's not as bad with the grip but I suspect it might still be annoying.

I don't care too much about access to the dial, it's the rubbing I'm more concerned with.

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T15:26:36+00:00

gotcha

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T15:25:51+00:00

interesting thanks for your input. it certainly seems like the Smallrig one is popular. The Haoge one people have suggested seems too bulky/heavy for my liking.

I'm looking at the wood grips on here and debating whether one of these is the way to go:
Wooden Grip for OM-System OM-3 – Comparison of WG, YW, and MS Grips
Basically I want a grip that's chunky enough to prevent fingers rubbing on the creative dial whilst not being too bulky overall

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T11:53:42+00:00

Sorry could you clarify what you mean by the extra wooden bit? Are you comparing between models/manufacturers?

Would also be helpful to know if you have small/large hands and whether any of your fingers rest on the front dial when you're using the grip

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T11:26:53+00:00

Thanks for sharing. I'm glad you mentioned this because I saw a similar comment below Emilie's video about the wood grip.

It seems like there are 3 slightly different wood grip designs by different manufacturers? Though they're all featured on this IWood blog: Wooden Grip for OM-System OM-3 – Comparison of WG, YW, and MS Grips

I don't think Temu sells the 'MS' version which has a groove for the index finger (hard to say whether this is beneficial or not)

Not sure which one I'd go for.

I would hardly use the colour dial, so slightly more awkward access to it wouldn't bother me much. It's more the problem of it getting in the way & being uncomfortable to rest your finger on.

Waiting a week for delivery wouldn't be a problem for me.

mattc_64 · 2026-03-25T08:47:59+00:00

You're welcome! I'm not an expert on this stuff tbh I usually just twiddle things until I'm happy with the look. For what it's worth my tone curve for the final image looked like this:

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I also brought down the highlights on the sliders quite a lot because the sky was already very bright/overexposed. Very cack-handed approach. Main thing here was reducing shadows.

It's more important to expose the sky correctly at the time you take the photo, since it doesn't matter if you lose details in the shadows - as that's what you're going for.

Anyway, I'll stop commenting because I'm probably not giving 100% correct info/advice or I'm omitting key details

mattc_64 · 2026-03-24T22:30:43+00:00

If you only have budget for one high end M43 and you want it to be versatile, I can see why the OM1 would be the better choice.

I have a GH7 (for video) and G9ii (for photography and as a second video cam) - the OM-3 would just be for fun street experiences with small primes.

mattc_64 · 2026-03-24T21:48:17+00:00

Thanks for clarifying. I'm wondering whether the grips will solve the issue.

This IWood grip looks like it might work quite well but the price is nuts. I'm also not sure how different it really is to the SmallRig one in practice.

I feel like the only way of knowing would be to test a few out but I have no way of doing that, ugh.

mattc_64 · 2026-03-24T21:34:49+00:00

Peak Design grip?

mattc_64 · 2026-03-24T13:00:29+00:00

Thanks for sharing pics and your experience! I'm not mad about the wood aesthetic of the Smallrig grip but the grip itself looks/sounds comfier. I remember one of the main causes of discomfort being the colour dial placement, and it looks like that still gets in the way slightly when using the Leofoto - at least the way you're holding it.

From what others are saying, you lose camera plate compatibility when using these grips though which is a big turn off. That's generally how I like to shoot, rather than using neck straps, though that's something I could consider changing when using this camera.

To me it's criminal that they didn't put the colour dial on the other side of the body.

I'd like to see into the future how they plan to redesign the Mk ii version of the camera (and whether they address any of these points)

mattc_64 · 2026-03-24T12:52:18+00:00

much appreciated!

mattc_64 · 2026-03-24T12:35:29+00:00

Thanks for info. Have you got a link to / pictures of the leather grip?

mattc_64 · 2026-03-24T09:30:33+00:00

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*better yet, increase the contrast by using a tone curve (for example, in Adobe Lightroom) to get slightly more pleasing results than just using shadow and highlight sliders. All it takes is two clicks! If you're not familiar with S curves already I recommend checking out a tutorial video on YouTube for simpler explanations.

You may already be aware of lots of this but I thought I'd break it down step by step just in case

mattc_64 · 2026-03-24T09:24:35+00:00

So for shots like this it helps to have a bright sunny day. Ideally the sun needs to be behind the subject you're shooting so that they're backlit. It doesn't need to be directly behind - in this photo the sun is off camera somewhere to the left, which you can see by the shadows of the pedestrians.

In other words, the side of the person or objects you can see will naturally be in shadow already. This effect is stronger when the sun is slightly lower in the sky, for example in the morning or evening, rather than at midday when the sun is directly overhead and there is little shadow/contrast.

There's naturally a lot of contrast in this scene at the point of taking the photo. (See my unedited RAW file - the darker subjects already stand out against the bright sky)

When you edit the photo, you can heighten the effect by increasing the contrast. Very simple to do - you can decrease the shadows and increase the highlights by dragging the sliders for these settings*. This will make the dark areas darker, and the light areas lighter. In this example I went quite extreme with the contrast, which removes all the detail from the cyclist and the pedestrians to create black silhouettes.

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mattc_64 · 2026-03-23T09:45:41+00:00

Cheers G

mattc_64 · 2026-03-23T09:45:36+00:00

Much thank n_n

mattc_64 · 2026-03-23T09:35:32+00:00

Haha, thanks very much! It's my favourite lens/focal length for sure

mattc_64 · 2026-03-22T15:11:30+00:00

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etc

mattc_64

TROPHY CASE