Panasonic S5 Entry Level Full Frame seems to be real...

[MrSMW]

OK, I will look at ALL options. Thanks!

[Lux Shots]

On 9/29/2020 at 10:27 AM, Thpriest said:

I'd suggest picking up a used GH5S as a B-cam. It will have similar colours, does well in low light, can record non-stop as long as you have cards and batteries (same batteries can be used in both cams). AF-C is shite but I have back button focus for a one touch focus and it works fine. I set focus and leave it. Plenty of cheap second hand lenses to choose from as well.

Nah. I just sold my GH5S because it didn't match color without work. Additionally, GH5S compared to S1H is maxed out at the high native ISO, but I routinely push the S1H to 10,000 without a care in the world.

I'm also waiting on a gig that I can use with the S1H and my new S5.

[Lux Shots]

On 9/30/2020 at 6:49 AM, herein2020 said:

Wow, that's terrible to hear, I do hope things pick up for you and everyone else. I am fortunate to still have a full time regular job and I offer such a wide variety of photography and video services that weird quirky jobs keep showing up; everything from shooting a documentary on men's health to creating architectural images for a new airplane hangar.

 

I use my Ronin S nearly daily and honestly AF isn't as important on a gimbal as most people think. First off I know I'm not shooting a Hollywood blockbuster so I'm rarely shooting wide open, I try to stay around F4 or higher on the gimbal and I keep a certain distance between myself and the subject; in post I use a 1080P timeline after shooting 4K which lets me simulate changing distance between the camera and the subject without actually doing so.  I've been shooting with the GH5 for years and have never used the AF. I use all manual Voigtlander lenses. 

 

So yea, for me AF isn't that big of a deal even on a gimbal because I've never had it, but as you stated, everyone's needs are different.  Even when the GH5 is on a static tripod I just shot as stopped down as possible, focus it where I think the action will take place, and hope for the best. It's been my experience shooting events that as long as the audio is good, people can see themselves in the footage, and it looks more cinematic than a cell phone the customer is still happy.  For corporate commercial work of course its a whole different story.

I completely loathe my Ronin-S!!! That thing has locked up my GH5S, S1H and would probably do the same to my S5. But that's not the half of it. That whole axis not returning to centred bug is a serious deal breaker for me. I was doing a wedding a few weeks ago, and by the end of the Daddy/Daughter dance, the gimbal was off by over 50 degrees!!! I was looking like a dork almost holding the Ronin like it was in selfie mode! 😠

I just bought the Crane 3S, and it also locked up the S1H, so this may have something to do with the camera firmware stability when being tethered more than anything else.

But I did use the S1H on the Crane in horrid interior residential lighting environment and at f/4-5.6 autofocus performed fine.

[herein2020]

8 hours ago, Lux Shots said:

I completely loathe my Ronin-S!!! That thing has locked up my GH5S, S1H and would probably do the same to my S5. But that's not the half of it. That whole axis not returning to centred bug is a serious deal breaker for me. I was doing a wedding a few weeks ago, and by the end of the Daddy/Daughter dance, the gimbal was off by over 50 degrees!!! I was looking like a dork almost holding the Ronin like it was in selfie mode! 😠

I just bought the Crane 3S, and it also locked up the S1H, so this may have something to do with the camera firmware stability when being tethered more than anything else.

But I did use the S1H on the Crane in horrid interior residential lighting environment and at f/4-5.6 autofocus performed fine.

I completely loathe my Ronin-S as well, in fact, I posted so much on the DJI forum about its complete failure to return to center that I got banned there; no other gimbal on the planet has this problem and DJI completely refuses to acknowledge or fix it;  in fact no other gimbal that DJI makes including their drones, the Ronin M/MX, Ronin etc does this......but that's a different rant for a different day. It is without a doubt the most annoying piece of gear that I own. 

 

I  don't like the Crane either; the shape with the permanent low slung handle just doesn't appeal to me; the gimbal that I really want to try is the Lotus Helix but almost no one talks about it. There is a guy in LA that shoots amazing dance videos and he uses it, but that's the only one I could find. So I'm stuck with the Ronin S, I've fiddled with the settings and calibration endlessly and now I have 3 modes programmed in that work for me (real estate, general purpose, and music video). 

 

As far as locking up the camera, personally I would never attach any of these gimbals to the camera. I feel like DJI and the rest of them came up with a hack to get the AF to work in ways that is not supported by the vendor. I'm perfectly fine with MF on the gimbal; sure its more work, and sure you will have to throw away some footage, but its better than frying your camera or having the AF drift off to the background somewhere during a critical moment.

 

This past year, my gimbal use really declined, I shoot more and more footage with just a monopod or handheld. 

[MrSMW]

Speaking of gimbals, tried it, (twice), hated it.

Monopod or IBIS handheld for me all day long.

This may be slightly controversial, but I think gimbals are something of a current fad.

Not that some do not have a genuine use for such things, but I suspect a lot get and use a gimbal because ‘everyone else’ has/uses one.

Electronic trickery will replace the things mainstream very soon. As it is already beginning to.

Not that any of this has to do with the S5!

[TomTheDP]

12 hours ago, MrSMW said:

Speaking of gimbals, tried it, (twice), hated it.

Monopod or IBIS handheld for me all day long.

This may be slightly controversial, but I think gimbals are something of a current fad.

Not that some do not have a genuine use for such things, but I suspect a lot get and use a gimbal because ‘everyone else’ has/uses one.

Electronic trickery will replace the things mainstream very soon. As it is already beginning to.

Not that any of this has to do with the S5!

Gimbals are great for steadicam shots. IBIS will never replace that IMHO. Gimbals have an mechanical feel that can sometimes ruin a shot. Nothing can replace the organic looks of a steadicam plus experienced operator. 

[ntblowz]

S5's DR just triumph any M43 sensor.

[TomTheDP]

This S1 dynamic range is pretty incredible. I can overexpose and still bring a lot of information down. I wish the waveform would show when the sensor is actually clipping though. 

[herein2020]

1 hour ago, TomTheDP said:

This S1 dynamic range is pretty incredible. I can overexpose and still bring a lot of information down. I wish the waveform would show when the sensor is actually clipping though. 

To me it looks like it does, if you are in VLOG and the top of the WFM starts going flat that's how I tell its clipping. I also set 95% zebras which I use after a quick WFM check because the WFM is so large you can't shoot with it turned on for many shots.

[omega1978]

17 hours ago, herein2020 said:

To me it looks like it does, if you are in VLOG and the top of the WFM starts going flat that's how I tell its clipping. I also set 95% zebras which I use after a quick WFM check because the WFM is so large you can't shoot with it turned on for many shots.

Zebra must set to 85% for Vlog 

[herein2020]

2 hours ago, omega1978 said:

Zebra must set to 85% for Vlog 

 

What is your reference for that? Everything I've read talks about 42% for middle gray with a color chart but good luck using that at an event or a hybrid shoot. Every guide I have read is also always vague when it comes to scenes that should be dark. 

This is one of the best guides I've found and it is for cameras with 14 stops of dynamic range (like the S5) and VLOG. This guide says to set the zebras at 90%. https://na.panasonic.com/ns/253602_V-Log_Excerpt.pdf

After watching a few videos though, I do have a new strategy for quickly getting exposure for the two toughest types of scenes that I typically encounter (events with changing lighting conditions where people need to be properly exposed, and venues with bright windows). 

 -  BASE / RANGE Zebras - I found another awesome feature in the S5 which is the BASE/RANGE option which lets you set a zebra pattern based on  F stop which maps to a VLOG percentage. So from now on when exposing for people with no gray card I'm going to turn that one on until there are zebras on the people's faces which means they are properly exposed. For venues with bright windows I'll just expose to where the zebras are on most of the objects in the room.

 

- Vertical Video - I found by accident that the S5 even does vertical video. So if you are shooting something that you only plan on showing on Instagram...something like a quick BTS for a shoot, you can film it vertically and it will play full screen on Instagram.

 

On 10/13/2020 at 1:48 AM, MrSMW said:

Speaking of gimbals, tried it, (twice), hated it.

Monopod or IBIS handheld for me all day long.

This may be slightly controversial, but I think gimbals are something of a current fad.

Not that some do not have a genuine use for such things, but I suspect a lot get and use a gimbal because ‘everyone else’ has/uses one.

Electronic trickery will replace the things mainstream very soon. As it is already beginning to.

Not that any of this has to do with the S5!

I think gimbals definitely have their place, like @TomTheDPsaid, there's going to be shots that you simply cannot get any other way. Dolly in/out, Crane up/down, extended left/right trucks, follow, orbit, underslung.....you name it, there's simply no other way to get those shots quickly and in a way that is smooth without a gimbal.  I use my monopod to the hilt to get every bit of organic motion that I can but its never going to replace a gimbal.

I do think gimbals are overdone for a lot of things, just like drones; nothing more boring than your average drone video with nothing but drone shots, but they both can tell parts of a story in ways that are impossible any other way for a one man band. Also, maybe I am just way shakier than everyone else, but filming hand held for me is really difficult with these smaller cameras. No matter what technique I use, I always seem to need to add a little post stabilization or slow motion to get enough of the clip to use.

 

[TomTheDP]

22 hours ago, herein2020 said:

To me it looks like it does, if you are in VLOG and the top of the WFM starts going flat that's how I tell its clipping. I also set 95% zebras which I use after a quick WFM check because the WFM is so large you can't shoot with it turned on for many shots.

Yeah I usually use the waveform. There is definitely info past 95 ire with zebras. I was shooting right into the sun while exposing for skin and it didn't clip at all. Really was surprised honestly. 

[herein2020]

10 minutes ago, TomTheDP said:

Yeah I usually use the waveform. There is definitely info past 95 ire with zebras. I was shooting right into the sun while exposing for skin and it didn't clip at all. Really was surprised honestly. 

According to the guide that I linked, it says there is information up to 109 IRE when shooting VLOG. In DR I've had the wave form off the Rec709 scale and it let me bring it back without clipping, so I figure 90% or 95% leaves me plenty of headroom. 85% sounds too low to me. I think the main thing is to get the subject/talent properly exposed.

[TomTheDP]

4 hours ago, herein2020 said:

According to the guide that I linked, it says there is information up to 109 IRE when shooting VLOG. In DR I've had the wave form off the Rec709 scale and it let me bring it back without clipping, so I figure 90% or 95% leaves me plenty of headroom. 85% sounds too low to me. I think the main thing is to get the subject/talent properly exposed.

Yeah 85% might make more sense in a controlled situation but if I am just shooting in natural light I like to expose the highlights as high as I can (again depending on the situation). 

[omega1978]

1 hour ago, TomTheDP said:

Yeah 85% might make more sense in a controlled situation but if I am just shooting in natural light I like to expose the highlights as high as I can (again depending on the situation). 

I have follow the recommendation from gamut.io. You can rise the shadow a lot(they are very clean), but never bring back clipped highlights

[TomTheDP]

1 hour ago, omega1978 said:

I have follow the recommendation from gamut.io. You can rise the shadow a lot(they are very clean), but never bring back clipped highlights

Highlights aren’t clipped until 109 ire tho. “Overexposing” gives me super clean images. As long as they aren’t clipping 

[Mustafa Dogan]

Adobe finally added RAW support for S5 in Camera Raw and PS, LR etc. Just wanted to share. It was an issue here...

[ntblowz]

Sigma 45mm 2.8 get updated for focus function (linear mode) on Panasonic bodies

[zerocool22]

Sorry to go a bit off topic here. But does anybody have any links to the best S1H, S1, S5 footage. Have not found anything yet I am impressed with so far. (got the S5 pre-ordered). 

[bjohn]

1 hour ago, zerocool22 said:

Sorry to go a bit off topic here. But does anybody have any links to the best S1H, S1, S5 footage. Have not found anything yet I am impressed with so far. (got the S5 pre-ordered). 

This person has some of the nicest S1 (and also the best Sigma fp) footage I've seen anywhere; nicely shot and graded: https://vimeo.com/yasunariarai.