Panasonic G7 mockup, silver

G7 Mockup showing uncluttered but comprehensive control layout, clear space for the thumb, large buttons located where they will not be hit accidentally, JOG lever, quad control set.

 

Last week I posted a two part piece arguing that Panasonic needs to proceed with a G7 camera even though there is unsold stock of the G5 and G6 on camera store shelves. I illustrated the argument with a mockup of the camera I would like to see as a replacement of the G6. This was criticised by a user forum member for it's "dried blood" color. On reflection I have to agree the color didn't work so I have rebirthed the mockup in silver.

One of the fun things about making mockups is that I can, and do, change anything then rebirth the mockup at will. This is also highly instructive, as it allows me to develop a considerable understanding of the effect on holding and operating of various different variations on a theme.

I will use this rebirthing as an opportunity to illustrate the features of the mockup in more detail.

On the left, G7 mockup, on the right, G6. The styling differences are easy to see. The ergonomic advantages of the mockup are best felt.

The process When I set out to make a mockup I decide on a few basic dimensions. These are overall width and height, monitor width and height, height allowance for EVF, body depth (not including the handle or EVF eyepiece rear projection), distance from lens side of handle to center of lens mount and distance of lens axis from left side of body. I take these from an existing camera, often with small alterations, to be sure that the resulting mockup would be able to contain the guts of the device if it were used as the basis for a real camera.

Next I decide what I am trying to achieve with this particular mockup. In most cases that is to evolve a camera which I have used and which I think has possibilities for ergonomic improvement, within or very close to the same physical and conceptual envelope.

I have a good idea of the shape and style which I want and I initially express these in the form of rough sketches. But I do not make drawings of the mockup before construction begins. This is very important, particularly on the right side both at the front (handle) and the back (thumb support and control panel). I do not lock in the body shape or location of user interface modules (UIMs) before construction. I cut, glue and shape pieces of plywood until the result feels very comfortable in my hand. I often get this not-quite-right resulting in a tear down and rebuild. Having done this many times, I have developed a very good idea of which shapes are comfortable and which are not. When the shapes are to my satisfaction by feel, I start allocating positions for UIMs where my fingers want to find them.

The process of building and rebuilding mockups has taught me much more about camera ergonomics than simply using the cameras which one buys. With the mockups, I can say .."what would happen if I just changed this..."? And I get the answer. For instance in the process of changing the G7 mockup's color I took the opportunity to relocate the shutter button and button 1, 2mm to the right and also shaved 2mm off the lens side of the handle for a more comfortable holding feel and also to allow a little more space between the fingers of the right hand and a large lens.


Dimensions
I gave the mockup a fraction more body depth than the G6, measured from front face of lens mount to rear face of monitor housing. Actual measurements are G6, 41.2mm, G7 Mockup, 42.4mm.

	Width mm excl lugs	Height mm excl hotshoe	Depth mm Total W/O lens	Monitor housing width mm	Box Volume cc
G7 Mockup	118	81	69	79	659
G6	122	83	69	91	699

You can see the mockup is a little smaller in width and height than the G6. The mockup width works as it stands at 118mm but if it were 4mm wider that would allow a little wider monitor and also a little more space between the fingers of the right hand holding the handle and any large lens mounted.

Mockup G7 rear. The function of most buttons is user assignable.  The JOG lever is used to directly move active AF area around the frame without having to press another button and without having to move the eye from the viewfinder or shift grip with either hand.

Rear of camera
The mockup's fully articulated monitor housing has 12mm less width than that of the G6. I had a good look at the preview and review image in 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 aspect ratio on the G6 (and other Panasonic cameras with fully articulated monitor). In no configuration does the image occupy the full width of the screen. Presumably there is a technical reason for this but other makers manage the same actual image size with a narrower monitor housing. I have assumed that if others can do it then so can Panasonic.

The relevance of this is that the main issue leading to inadvertently pressed buttons on the G6 is that the wide monitor housing steals width from the control panel (the remainder of the camera back on the right side). This in turn crowds buttons together and forces them across very close to the right side of the body.

This also pushes the rear control dial way over to the right where it is located on the corner of the body rather than on the back. Here it is slightly awkward to operate with the right thumb. Operation of the dial is further impeded by a slightly too recessed position and slightly rounded serrations. Each of these details has it's influence and each detracts from the user experience a little. Anyone who handles a G6 then a GH3/4 will instantly experience the difference. On the GH3/4 they got those details right making these cameras much more positive to operate.

During the process of making the G7 mockup I investigated whether there was enough room for a rear dial. I increased the width of the control panel from 29 to 38mm. This allowed a larger thumb support which I suppose could have incorporated a rear dial. But it would have been a tight squeeze. One of the principles which guides me in making the mockups is to always aim for layouts which are uncluttered, providing plenty of space for the fingers to operate freely. So the control dial went to the front where I have created plenty of space in a very high value location.

The thumb support is of the optimal diagonal type so the thumb can help support the mass of the camera without having to grip tightly. There is a clear space on the upper section of the control panel for the thumb, such that the thumb will not inadvertently hit any buttons.

The lower right side of the body is rounded off for comfort but also to allow the 4 way controller and button 8 to sit below the level of the slightly raised right side of the body. Thus they are easy to press when required but will not be bumped inadvertently.

Top view shows the quad control set and the [Alt] button is just visible.

Top of camera The main item here and one of the signature features of my mockups, is the quad control set, consisting of shutter button, front control dial, button 1 and button 2. Space for this quad set is created by the inverted L design of the handle. Function of the buttons is user selectable from a long list of options. (I would allocate ISO and Exposure +/- to them but others will have different ideas) Both the shutter button and the front control dial are set quite high and both are strongly textured so they are easy to locate and operate by feel and also so buttons 1 and 2 will not be pressed accidentally. Both buttons are also strongly textured.

The quad control set is a very efficient way of controlling the most frequently changed primary and secondary exposure and focus parameters with just one finger, without having to take one's eye from the viewfinder and without having to change grip with either hand. It is sympathetic to the preferred natural movements of the index finger. Many DSLR's require the index finger to undertake a large amount of side to side movement in order to reach buttons and or dial located in front of and behind the shutter button. The quad control way utilises the index finger's natural range of movements more effectively.

On the left side I have put a set and see dial which I would use for Drive Mode. On the right side of the hump is the Main Mode Dial with Auto, P,A,S,M etc Modes. There is space for a third set and see dial but I elected to use two buttons, both with user selected function as this gives the user more options. There is space for more than two buttons but I am mindful that some recent cameras have an overly cluttered top deck leading to frequent miss hits.

Front of camera The lens axis has been moved 2mm to the left (as viewed by the user from behind the camera) to free up space for a larger handle than that on the G6. The mockup's handle has been raised to allow a full five finger grip even for a slightly larger than average adult hand. Shutter button height is 73mm on the mockup and 70mm on the G6. This might not sound like much but I have found that camera ergonomics is sensitive to quite small changes in dimensions, shape and control module layout.

The inverted L shape of the handle is very apparent when viewed from the front. This has two benefits over the more traditional layout seen in the G6. First the right index finger has space to lay where it wants to go. This in turn allows the shutter button to follow the finger and the quad control set to be created. Second it provides a deep overhang beneath which the right middle finger fits allowing the right side of the camera to be supported with minimal effort and maximum security.

Conclusion The G6 is a good small full featured camera which has been underappreciated by the marketplace. The ergonomic improvements suggested by my mockup could, if implemented by Panasonic make the G7 the best small ILC on the market.