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It is close to perfect and the image still stands up today as one of the best you can possibly get. But it would be nice to have even a small update, like: Less heavy, a bit smaller Phase-detect AF In-camera LUT feature Stacked sensor for 4K/120p

Yes over 4 and 5 years, that points to something quite wrong doesn't it? Is Pana soft quitting on us? I sincerely hope not. Also you will notice the SL3 has also quite an old off the shelf Sony sensor, same as A7R IV and Sigma Fp-L. Certainly nothing as cutting edge as a Z6 or A1. Where's the L2 partnership going exactly? Into the old parts bins for cheap?

My laser scanned 3D printed FX6 body shell that you can hide an a7iv in has a chance then. Inspired by this genius that hid a GoPro in a broadcast camera.

I feel that in this "post peak camera" world then this length of time for a camera lifecycle could unfortunately be "the new normal". Camera sales will never return to their former peaks. and progress has massively slowed down when you look at the improvements from one generation to the next. The leap from a Nikon D5 to Nikon D6 for instance is nowhere near as impressive as the leap from the Nikon D2 to a D3, or from that D3 to a D4. Camera performance has been plateauing. Arguably I'd say for most people camera performance (in terms of stills that is) hit the plateau with the era of the Nikon D7100. (which was released way back in February 2013! Heck, it could even be said that as far back as 2010 with the Nikon D7000 release we saw the "good enough" plateau being hit for the average camera consumer when it comes to stills performance) Sure, stills camera performance did keep on improving, but from the perspective of the average camera consumer then a lot of these were deep into marginal gains that for many of them are irrelevant. (sure, over big time spans then all these marginal gains add up to being worthwhile. A 2010 camera vs a 2024 camera? Sure, a "big" improvement! But 2010 to 2013? Nahhhh. 2010 to 2016? Nah) Was only the demand for improved video features, and the hype over mirrorless cameras, that hid the fact that stills camera performances were in a plateau and allowed sales to keep on driving forward (as sales are what's needed to compel manufacturers to keep on releasing new generations of cameras to sell). But now in 2024 we're seeing video performance in hybrid cameras hit that "good enough" plateau, and the transition over to mirrorless is complete (almost zero DSLR sales are still happening). What's left to keep on pushing sales forward to incentivize camera manufacturers to keep on pumping out quick updates to their camera generations? I feel it could be over for seeing quick camera refreshes. The only time we'll get again 2 or 3 year camera life cycles will be: 1) if it's extremely minor update, such as the Sony FS7 to the FS7mk2 2) or if it is a variation on a camera model that isn't actually a replacement generation at all (such as GH5 to GH5S) 3) or if a camera release is a total sales flop, and they need to push out fast a replacement model that fixes the previous generation's flaws (thus in a way, that previous generation "doesn't count" when it comes to considering the camera lifecycle) Otherwise I think 4, 5, or 6 year (or even longer???) camera releases cycles are unfortunately now our "new normal". Another confounding factor is we've just gone through the covid era with worldwide lockdowns. For a lot of people they might regard those years as "not counting" at all, or only counting the covid years at a 50% discounted rate. Viewed like that, then maybe in the eyes of people at Panasonic the S1/S1R is only a couple of years into its lifecycle? So the very long wait for an update of the S1 series (i.e. the S1/S1R/S1H mk2) I don't see by itself as being any concern yet that Panasonic is going to abandon the high end full frame mirrorless segment.

Panasonic have their own Super 35mm 6K sensor but it's not the organic one. https://na.industrial.panasonic.com/products/sensors/optical-photoelectric-sensors/lineup/image-sensors/series/71626/model/76817 They also manufactured the GH1/GH2 chip I believe before moving to Sony with the GH3. Now Sony's manufacturing capabilities are so far ahead that it doesn't really make sense not to use their manufacturing process, and you can still design your own chip and spec it to a high degree. With the sensor in the Alexa 35 being made by Onsemi, exceeding the spec of the proposed Panasonic organic sensor, it would make more sense to work with Omsemi if they were not to go Sony like everyone else, rather than continue to develop their own totally different tech. I could be wrong - let's see.

I can relate to that. My best videos have been with less. I´ve seen people on the web shoot better stuff with an EX1 than with a Sony A7S3 on youtube (Phil Bloom fi:)

Honestly cameras haven't been the differentiators for quite some time on productions. Good productions generally just require a lot of money and talent (unless you are into micro budget stuff) and cameras have always been one of the cheapest things on the budget list.

Actually that'd be 4.75-ish and almost 6 years! The wait for the next camera does seem to be getting a bit long. They really needed to do a 1-2 punch with the S5II/IIX followed fairly quickly with another model. I'm not sure it would have even needed to be the S1H successor next, it could have been the S1 or S1R replacement. Just something to keep momentum going, well something relatively substantial at least, as the S9 certainly wasn't it, that's for sure. Now it seems like people may not even care that much if that next camera comes late this year, or next year.

For me I think the two big reasons L Mount struggled with market share was: 1) lacked the massive presence in the consumer market that Canon / Nikon / Sony had. Walk into any tiny photo store or even a generic electronics goods store in some modest sized town and you can likely find Canon / Nikon / Sony in stock. It's been like this for many years, with Canon / Nikon DSLRs being sold. Thus they could leverage a very strong retail network of connections when they launched their full frame mirrorless cameras. (and to a lesser extent this was true with Sony cameras, but Sony could also leverage their very strong consumer electronics retailer network. Panasonic laptops / headphones / bluetooth speakers / cellphones / etc are simply nowhere even closer to as popular as the Sony products are) 2) late to the market. Everyone else already had a head start. Perhaps you could overcome one of these disadvantages? But both? Nope! Made it a near impossible task for Panasonic to crack the top three. Probably the Varicam 35 was aimed to compared head to head against ARRI ALEXA. But ARRI was already established, and Panasonic couldn't crack that nut. So they released the Varicam LT, thinking that at least they can now win the mid market with it by releasing what was surely clearly "the best" mid market camera. But they missed the boat on that too, as the midmarket was hollowed out and non-existent, taken out from the low end pricing by the exceptionally popular Sony FS7. Thus why at the end Panasonic slashed the price of the Varicam LT to under $10K to put it in the same pricing ballpark as the FS7 to compete against it. But again, too late. That was locking the stable door after the horse had already bolted. The FS7 was dominating, and people wouldn't want to risk considering anything else when every producer & their dog is asking for "an FS7 shooter". A damn pity an "AF200" was never released by Panasonic. If they'd released either the DVX200 or the EVA1 with a MFT Mount then it could have been the "AF200" if they'd timed it right. (of course it's too late now!) The BS2H / BGH2 needs to have a no delay SDI output!

Can’t really go wrong with a used one because even after a few months if you decided it was not for you, you could sell it for minimal loss and much less than renting anything for the same period. Zoom lenses I’d be looking at myself right now would be: Sigma 16-28mm f2.8 Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 Sigma 28-45mm f1.8 Sigma 24-70mm f2.8 mkII Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 latest version Samyang 35-150mm f2/2.8 Lumix 20-60mm f3.5/5.6 Lumix 24-105mm f4 Lumix 70-200mm f4 I personally have a pair of Lumix 20-60’s (because I have 2x identical static set ups), the 70-200 f4 as an option for one of them if needed) and the 28-70 as my run & gun workhorse. I think that out of them all, the 28-70 is an absolute gem due to the combo of constant f2.8, focal range plus size & weight. However I will switch to and never want or need another pairing beyond the new 28-45mm f1.8 if a longer sibling arrives around 50-100 also at f1.8 and internal zooming. I would also trade my 3x stills use Tamron E Mount lenses for this same pairing. Without even needing to give it another thought.

First of all the output for stills. Exceptional. A step up from any of the 24mp files. Yes, on tiny screens and social media and blah blah blah, no one notices any difference, but YOU do when you edit the things. Same with my A7RV now. It’s no imaginary or placebo effect and the same I am sure for anyone that tries or has one of the Fuji 100mp medium format cameras. And as for the Hassie X2D…but I’m veering off now. You tend to lose a teeny bit at high ISO’s, but I batch run all my culled files through DXO PureRaw and happily shoot these larger sensors up to 12800 all the time. Video. True, no log but I found the 5k Flat profile was more than good enough for my needs and as someone who appreciates a great but still workable SOOC workflow as much as possible, it did the business. Am I right in thinking there is a record limit for 5k though? If so, that was one of the reasons I stopped using it for video but probably my favourite SOOC footage ever. Ergos etc. Great, but different from the S1H and S5/ii. I tend to prefer identical bodies whenever I can, but it’s not a dealbreaker. SOLD! But I sold them for one reason and one reason only, and that is lenses. For my work, I need ideally a max of one camera for run & gun video on my left hip and one camera for stills on my right. I have tried all kinds of options including flip out filters and using different focal length primes but identical cameras and shooting them hybrid…and could go back to that, but prefer a dedicated video unit and a dedicated stills unit. This means zooms. For stills, I need approx 28-200, but could get away with 150mm. For run & gun video, 28-105. Other than the Samyang 35-150mm f1/2.8, no lenses exist in L Mount that get anywhere near to those unless they are either slow or big & heavy. The Samyang has only just come out in L Mount of course and I stopped using the S1R about 12+ months ago and went over to the S1H using a pair of S5ii’s in the video role. The options for lenses for stills I had were the Leica 24-90mm f2.8/4 and the Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 paired with an option 70-200mm f4. The ‘one & done’ Leica was too wide for my tastes, not long enough as a ‘one & done’, I did not care for the variable aperture, but mainly just too big and heavy, especially because for me, it required the use of a battery grip. That lens plus battery grip meant adding something like 1.6kg to the weight of the body! All day long, zero joy. The Sigma by comparison requires no battery grip and is 470g. Game over for the Leica/battery grip combo. The 70-200 just lived in a bag dumped in a corner until required. So could I go back to the S1R today? From a stills only perspective, if I had to, but I would rather not because the A7RV with my 3x zoom lens combo is just a better option, particularly on the size & weight side of things. For me, at this present time, it’s just an unbeatable combo, but it is a €6500 combo for the body and the 3 lenses I have…but a combo of 1 body + 3 lenses that weighs less than my previous 1 body + 1 lens set up! So for anyone that does not have my lens requirements, for stills, the S1R is an absolute steal on the used market.

This. If you are starting out then just get yourself the Sony FX6. It's a no brainer decision. (unless it's too expensive, then go for the FX3, or if super broke, then the Sony FX30. Or if buying secondhand then maybe a Sony FS7 / F5 / F55). Anything else (S5mk2 / Blackmagic / RED Komodo / X-H2S / Z8 / etc ) is just going to massively limit yourself to only working in the indie filmmaking space or in house productions or music videos or weddings and such. (with the possible exception of maybe the C70 / C300mk3 / C400, depending on your local market conditions. In some part of the world they're not even on the radar, but in other parts they're playing a very strong 2nd place to Sony)

I agree completely. Also, a large portion of the camera buyers have become quite savvy. In the world of YouTube "reviews", Gerald Undone and forums such as this, the camera buyer is now paying closer attention. Marketing mistakes or camera firmware issues are now put under the microscope and brands have to be really careful to get it right. Lumix has been on a nice little trajectory as of late and even with the S9 launch kerfuffle they have been gaining some nice marketshare with the S5ii/S5iix. Fixing a lot of the known issues people used to have with the brand and giving us more specs than we even asked for. We like Panasonic because they have been amazingly good to us over the years despite being the 4th or 5th tier down in popularity. Would the current low budget anamorphic trend even have happened without them? Wild move putting the various anamorphic IBIS modes and desqueeze into cheap consumer bodies when the FX3 doesn't even have open gate. Who would have thought open gate 6k would have been the feature the Gen Z crowd is so excited about for vertical crops? (sigh) I'm hoping/praying they are just taking their time to get it right and making sure the S2h and S2R end up being super solid. 4k/60p with no crop is a big one for sure and even if we know 8k isn't necessary for this camera, marketing wise they might need to bring it. They have a unique opportunity to snatch a lot of the Sony shooters who are holding onto their A7siii and FX3 cameras who also have't had any reason to upgrade. A Sony A1 type flagship for less and with more features. I want a Sigma Fp Pro. A revamped BS1H or EVA 1 full frame type camera. Alexa LF micro. Hell, even bring back the video camera form factor. It's odd that they still sell 1" sensor camcorders but never stepped up to compete in the Canon c300 or Sony FX6 space? Alas, they've taken long enough that even me, a loyal Lumix fan, GH3 hacker and 14 year loyalist, am actually on the fence about going Sony or Fuji to meet some of my needs this year. Hurry up Lumix...!!!

S1H Mark I is still the best camera I've ever used, I sold C70 and kept the Pana. It doesn't need to be replaced.

Yeah, I’m really close to just going with this setup now that things are hovering around $1,000 USD each on the used market. I’m working on a hybrid setup that ticks all the boxes for an upcoming documentary in Tokyo and as much as I want to throw down for a Sony A1 right now, for the price of that single camera I can literally get all 3 lumix bodies and be covered. Older S prices keep dropping so it’s a win win while my analysis paralysis plays out LOL

Everything except this: A camera design and production is a lengthy process. You don't redesign and produce a camera in six months and probably not even a year.

Yes I agree completely. For you it would be more like a "D-Camera" emergency back up that lived in the bag and came out for casual stuff and if one of your other three other bodies went down. For me too if I'm really being honest. I'm still undecided as well TBH. Prices are creeping down on a lot of great cameras right now. Fujifilm X-H2s - $1750 used. GFX 100s - $2750 used. Sony A1 - $4,000 used. ZVE1 - $1,700 new on sale. So many great options and we are actually quite spoiled with options compared to 5 years ago. I've been tracking things all month as I gear up to either switch systems (after 14 years with Panasonic) or add additional Lumix bodies. One of the reasons I really follow your posts is because I'm in such a similar spot. I guess many of us who are waiting for a S2h, S2r are felling the same thing. I hesitate to buy any older S bodies at this point because of all the new upgrades of late... Even at these bargain prices and knowing that, S1h for Video A- Cam S1r for B-Cam and stills S5ii for autos and IBIS will do the trick.