Panasonic S5 II (What does Panasonic have up their sleeve?)

[kye]

7 hours ago, PannySVHS said:

How would you rate it on general terms these days when it comes to cinema camera image quality.

Just watched this again, and my impression from the YT upload was that if you'd told me this was Alexa / FX9 / RED I wouldn't have questioned it.  It definitely has that high-end look.

@deezid I'm curious - to get this level of image did it require being really careful with every element of production/post-production?  Or was the look achievable without getting everything perfect?

I find that some cameras are super-fragile requiring everything to go right and others are far more robust and much easier to work with and get good results.  For me, this robustness is much more important for getting a good result rather than how good the camera is when everything is perfect.

[kye]

More sample footage from S5iiX and Sirui 150mm anamorphic lens.  Nothing wrong with these images...

 

[MrSMW]

On 8/23/2023 at 2:56 PM, deezid said:

Shot this recently on the S5IIx in BRAW using the Sigma 28-70 F2.8

Minus the X and the BRAW, my primary working unit this year also.

With the Smallrig cage, side handle and Rode Micro, just about the perfect size & weight for run n’ gun IMO.

I keep flip flopping on the BRAW thing and recently came to the conclusion it would not be worth it for my needs with the added bulk and weight of monitor and battery.

Nice work and colours.

I think the S1H still has a marginal edge in terms of ‘quality’, but nothing anyone would notice other than the user.

[MrSMW]

On 8/23/2023 at 2:56 PM, deezid said:

Shot this recently on the S5IIx in BRAW using the Sigma 28-70 F2.8

Minus the X and the BRAW, my primary working unit this year also.

With the Smallrig cage, side handle and Rode Micro, just about the perfect size & weight for run n’ gun IMO.

I keep flip flopping on the BRAW thing and recently came to the conclusion it would not be worth it for my needs with the added bulk and weight of monitor and battery.

Nice work and colours.

I think the S1H still has a marginal edge in terms of ‘quality’, but nothing anyone would notice other than the user.

[MrSMW]

On 8/23/2023 at 2:56 PM, deezid said:

Shot this recently on the S5IIx in BRAW using the Sigma 28-70 F2.8

Minus the X and the BRAW, my primary working unit this year also.

With the Smallrig cage, side handle and Rode Micro, just about the perfect size & weight for run n’ gun IMO.

I keep flip flopping on the BRAW thing and recently came to the conclusion it would not be worth it for my needs with the added bulk and weight of monitor and battery.

Nice work and colours.

I think the S1H still has a marginal edge in terms of ‘quality’, but nothing anyone would notice other than the user.

[MrSMW]

On 8/23/2023 at 2:56 PM, deezid said:

Shot this recently on the S5IIx in BRAW using the Sigma 28-70 F2.8

Minus the X and the BRAW, my primary working unit this year also.

With the Smallrig cage, side handle and Rode Micro, just about the perfect size & weight for run n’ gun IMO.

I keep flip flopping on the BRAW thing and recently came to the conclusion it would not be worth it for my needs with the added bulk and weight of monitor and battery.

Nice work and colours.

I think the S1H still has a marginal edge in terms of ‘quality’, but nothing anyone would notice other than the user.

[Alpicat]

On 7/11/2023 at 4:57 PM, seanzzxx said:

Thanks. Shot 4k log, Dehancer did most of the heavy lifting. Lens was a Sigma 18-35 with a 1/8 promist, mostly at 35mm. That lens actually ‘covers’ 16:9 full frame from around 25mm onwards, I really like the little abberations and falloff you get around the edges. So you basically end up with a nice, very sharp 25-35 1.8 with a lot of character.

That looks very nice. I recently used the S5IIx with Dehancer in a tutorial video I made. Was shooting this with the Lumix 24-105mm f4, 4k log long gop. This is just a tutorial but the end of the video has some longer sample footage. I was struggling quite a bit with autofocus, but the end results were fine - couldn't get the camera to detect her face the majority of the time, it would just track the body most of the time which is ok but not ideal. I don't know if I was doing something wrong but need to test AF again

 

[ntblowz]

 

[kye]

2 hours ago, ntblowz said:

 

Well, nothing wrong with that image.  The only thing I'd suggest paying attention to is that the Alexa wasn't as sharp as the Panny, but you can soften that in post.

Very encouraging!!

[Davide DB]

In the meantime, in a galaxy, far, far away...

https://ymcinema.com/2023/08/24/panasonic-develops-a-variable-built-in-electronic-nd-filter/

I don't know if the choice to go on a larger "uni-body" could help to have this feature on all lines...

I think this feature could go live on a next S1H II

[ade towell]

6 hours ago, ntblowz said:

 

Am loving the 6K open gate with IBIS on the Panasonic S5ii, the anamorphic looks beautiful

[stephen]

Panasonic S5 II + BRAW vs BMPCC 6K Pro FF - as expected practically no difference in image quality. Downloadable source files are available too
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuzKtL8p5M8a

 

[sgreszcz]

On 7/11/2023 at 8:34 AM, seanzzxx said:

Just to share a little personal story - the S5 II really restored my fun in shooting little personal video's. I shoot almost daily for work and I always swore by large cinema camera's. I'm one of those crazy people that thinks an Ursa mini is the perfect body shape. (part of this is copied from a Reddit comment I made earlier but I thought it would be interesting to share here).

For the longest time I was really torn up between having a kit that is able to capture what I consider to be professional quality and something that I actually would WANT to bring with me on a walk or a day out. I carried a little Pocket 4k (GREAT camera) with me, but by the time you rig that out to shoot comfortably with a monitor/filter holder/NDs/mic, you’re still carrying something that takes up most of your bag and it just sucked the fun out of it for me. On a job, no problem, for home video’s it just wasn’t worth it for me. I was really looking for something I could just pull out of a bag pack and shoot.

So then I bought a Canon R6, and honestly that camera’s video quality was such a massive step back from even the Pocket 4k that it just wasn’t worth it for me (esp. dynamic range but also the out of camera colors). Also just awful awful video assist tools on that camera.

The S5 II kinda hits all the marks for me: very small, good enough dynamic range, good colors, good monitoring tools and good AF (better than the R6 in my opinion) on my EF lenses. That last thing (combined with it being newer, so longer firmware support) pushed me over the edge when compared to the S1H by the way. I don’t mind pulling manual focus at all, but if I’m shooting on a 3 inch screen, the AF is really nice to have. Never felt like I could really trust it with the R6 but the S5 II has really really good autofocus.

Here's somethign small I shot with it:

 

Wow, this is great.  I'm thinking of switching my EM-1ii which I mostly use for outside run-and-gun to something that I can shoot indoor theatre photography and video with.  My m4/3 is great for video indoors, but for photography, not so much.

Was looking at replacing my E-M1ii an 12-100/4 with either a G9ii or a S5ii.  Just not sure the S5ii would be up for the outdoor run-and-gun with AF and stabilisation which are excellent on the E-M1ii.  

How is the S5ii for low-light photograpy and what would be a great utility zoom?  I'm not looking for filmic stuff (your film is great!) just utility.

[MrSMW]

1 hour ago, sgreszcz said:

How is the S5ii for low-light photograpy and what would be a great utility zoom? 

Great and the Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 is a compact high performing zoom and this pairing is my go to for ALL run & gun, indoor, outdoor, after dark…

I have had several 4/3 cameras and lenses including the EM5ii and the most recent OM-1 and whilst they may have marginally better stabilisation, performance-wise, beyond that, no contest, the full-frame S5ii is just better everywhere, stills and video.

Even with the f1.7 lenses. Nah, weight and IBIS aside, the S5ii kicks any and all 4/3 backsides.

GH6 and G9ii users may disagree. Get in a ring with the S5ii though and we would see who the real champ is 😉

My other choice would be the S1H which are now available at very decent prices on the used market, below new S5ii’s I think and you essentially trade a more compact, lighter, better AF frame for a better built (tank) unit with far better rear LCD, beautifully damped shutter and sound (for stills and important in theatres I reckon without resorting to electronic?) and a more ‘filmic’ image.

Funnily enough, I have and use both…

Gone over to Nikon for stills but can’t give up my Lumix for video…

[sgreszcz]

49 minutes ago, MrSMW said:

Great and the Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 is a compact high performing zoom and this pairing is my go to for ALL run & gun, indoor, outdoor, after dark…

I have had several 4/3 cameras and lenses including the EM5ii and the most recent OM-1 and whilst they may have marginally better stabilisation, performance-wise, beyond that, no contest, the full-frame S5ii is just better everywhere, stills and video.

Even with the f1.7 lenses. Nah, weight and IBIS aside, the S5ii kicks any and all 4/3 backsides.

GH6 and G9ii users may disagree. Get in a ring with the S5ii though and we would see who the real champ is 😉

My other choice would be the S1H which are now available at very decent prices on the used market, below new S5ii’s I think and you essentially trade a more compact, lighter, better AF frame for a better built (tank) unit with far better rear LCD, beautifully damped shutter and sound (for stills and important in theatres I reckon without resorting to electronic?) and a more ‘filmic’ image.

Funnily enough, I have and use both…

Gone over to Nikon for stills but can’t give up my Lumix for video…

Thanks so much for that.  Will look at S5ii / S1H and the sigma zoom.  I'm not worried about the shutter as usually the photos are done during rehearsals andI video the actual performances.  Just curious how stability with run-and-gun will go, but can always eventually get the G9ii for that when it drops in price for next year outdoor events.

[MrSMW]

If you need any more stable than the IBIS, there is always the dual option with certain lenses such as the 24-105 f4 which is great for outdoors/daytime, but less so in low light.

 

[Thpriest]

You can push the S5mk2 to 6400-12800. I had m4/3 before and you just can’t do that.

i agree that the Sigma 28-70 f2.8 is a great option even if i miss 24mm. That being said, I recently had to shoot with the 24-105 f4 for some hand held almost macro shots of a wedding ring being made. The duaL ibis is great and i was shooting at f4 6400 in 6k (downscaled to 4k) with no problem. 

[MrSMW]

9 hours ago, Thpriest said:

The duaL ibis is great and i was shooting at f4 6400 in 6k (downscaled to 4k) with no problem. 

I should add that yes, for video shooting say 6k 25p at 1/50th, f4 at 6400 is pretty clean, it not being so far off the second native ISO of 4000, but it’s stills where f4 becomes a problem.

Especially where there is movement. 

It depends on the specific shot doesn’t it and at times, it’s possible to get away with 1/60th, 1/30th or even 1/15th, but more often than not, we’re looking at 1/125, 1/250 or 1/500 to freeze action and at f4 in lowlight, without insane ISO, it can’t be done.

Even with software such as Topaz or PureRaw, we can’t fix unintentional movement blur and that’s where IMO, we need to use lenses f2.8 at least.

I actually don’t find I need anything faster than f2/2.8 for my work and cap out at 6400 ISO, rarely shoot any slower shutter speed than 1/60th and do use PureRaw batch edit on all my files.

The difference though, for stills, between f4 and f2.8 is literally night and day.

Recently I have been VERY tempted by Canon with their twin offerings of their 28-70 f2 and their new 24-105 f2.8 which are an absolute dream for an event photographer such as myself, but then I’d need a pair of my dream cameras, the R3, to shoot the things and that is about 18k euros…so err, nope 🤪

Back on with Lumix, there are other equivalent options from Nikon or Canon or Sony and for hybrid use, I’d probably be more tempted with Canon, but I think the best bang for your buck and probably in outright overall capability, right now is the S5ii.

[padam]

3 hours ago, MrSMW said:

Recently I have been VERY tempted by Canon with their twin offerings of their 28-70 f2 and their new 24-105 f2.8 which are an absolute dream for an event photographer such as myself, but then I’d need a pair of my dream cameras, the R3, to shoot the things and that is about 18k euros…so err, nope 🤪

The R3 is neglected, available used/gray market for a lot less (R5 II will push it down further), 28-70/2 likewise. Of course the novelty of a 24-105/2.8 won't wear off that quickly.

[sgreszcz]

14 hours ago, MrSMW said:

If you need any more stable than the IBIS, there is always the dual option with certain lenses such as the 24-105 f4 which is great for outdoors/daytime, but less so in low light.

 

Read some reviews on that lens.  Likely I'll go with the S5ii, the P24-105/4 and the Sigma 24-70/2.8.  That should cover what I do with my Olympus E-M1ii+12-100+40-150/2.8.  Also I hope that the colours more easily match my GH5 and GX80s.