Now that Canon and Sony have released formidable video centric camers, Panasonic has responded with the full-frame Lumix S5. It takes nearly everything that's good about the Lumix S1 and puts it into a much lighter body. Despite the smaller size, the S5 retains key S1 features like 10-bit 4k video, 5-axis in-body stabilization and a flip-out display. To top it off, it has a new and improved auto-focus system & it that's faster than all of Panasonic's other full-frame cameras. It's also priced at $500 less than the S1, so is there a catch. To find out i took a pre-production model through its paces around India and in the countryside to see what it could and couldn't do.
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With the S5 the Panasonic finally has a full-frame camera as small as rivals like Sony's A73 and the Nikon Z6. At 714 grams with a battery and memory card, it weighs a bit more than the A73 but more than 300 grams less than the bulky S1. While it's smaller than the S1, the S5 handles at least as well if not better than that model and its other rivals and that starts with a nice big grip and lots of manual controls that let you set the auto focus, burst shooting, shutter, aperture, iso and more without ever diving into a menu and when you do need it Panasonic's revised menu system is much more clear and logical than before. The display is fully touch functional and flips out to the side ,that helps make the S5 a very good vlogging and selfie camera. The S5 has a 2.36 million dot oled evf, that's far inferior to the 5.76 million dot oled model on the S1. Maybe Panasonic figured that video shooters don't need high-res evf but i disagree. I would have preferred one with at least 3.69 million dots. The S5 is also slightly compromised when it comes to storage. You do get dual SD cards but only one is a faster UHS 2 slot. As for ports, it has both headphone and microphone jacks but you only get a micro hdmi and not a full sized hdmi port like the S1 or GH5.
A nice new feature is a USB-C port that can charge the battery and run the camera at the same time. Finally the new battery can handle 470 shots per charge and well over an hour of 4k shooting. The new cells can be used in a GH5 but the S5 can't use GH5 batteries. The S5 has 5-axis image stabilization, that works in concert with stabilized lenses. It delivers 6 stops of stabilization which is better than the GH5 but worse than the S1. As usual, the optical stabilization alone is great for handheld video but can't take the place of a gimbal. There's good news and bad news with the autofocus. Unfortunately Panasonic stuck with its contrast detect system that's inferior to the phase detection used on Sony and Canon cameras especially when it comes to video. On the positive side Panasonic has managed to increase the autofocus system speed pretty drastically, that makes for faster subject acquisition and smoother face and eye tracking. As before, the biggest problem for video autofocus is pulsing as the contrast detect system overshoots and recaptures focus.
However, it's less noticeable than before and you can expect better performance in aps-c mode than in full-frame mode as the camera has to do less processing. The face and eye detection system now finds faces that are much smaller in the frame and attracts bodies at speeds five times faster than before. It can also follow your subject if they turn or tilt their heads but it can get fooled if they walk out of frame. Overall, though the S5 nails focus a lot more reliably than the S1. When it comes to photography the S5 is certainly no sports camera. It only does 5 frames per second with continuous autofocus which is less than half of what the A73 can handle. On the plus side, it delivers great photos with natural looking colors and skin tones. It also shines in low light situations thanks to the stabilization dual iso system and huge sensor. Overall, though i see the S5 as a video centric camera with photos as an extra bonus. When it comes to video the S5 actually outshines the larger and more expensive S1. As before, it super samples to capture extremely sharp full-frame aps-c and pixel for pixel video at up to 4k and 60 frames per second. However, with the S5 you have more options even if you purchase the $200 video firmware update for the S1. You get 10 bit internal 4k video at up to 60 frames per second rather than just 30 frames per second with the S1. Unlike the GH5, it also comes with Panasonic's v-log video for free.
The S5 has a 55-minute recording time limit for 4k 60p video but that's just what it was tested with. Panasonic said, it should be able to run for much longer than that under normal conditions. Unlike the GH5 the S5 lacks high data rate iframe recording. Apparently that would generate too much heat considering the small body size and large sensor. That doesn't bother me much anyway because i've never found the iframe option to be as useful as it's supposed to be for video editing. The Panasonic S5 is a video centric camera but it could also be the best full-frame vlogging camera you can get right now. It not only has a flip out screen and in body stabilization but it's much lighter than the S1 was so it's easier to carry around and it also has a new autofocus system that's much faster with the faster and more responsive face and eye detection as well.
So, all things told with the 10 bit video and everything else. This could be one of the more desirable vlogging cameras you can get right now. In terms of video quality, the S5 gave me exactly what i expected. I saw sharp 4k video with realistic colors and natural flesh tones. The 10-bit v-log video offers excellent dynamic range and plenty of room to color correct or create hdr videos. As I mentioned earlier the S5 is also really great in low light. Don't expect Sony A7 as three type performance but the dual iso system really keeps noise down at ISOs as high as 25,600. Even at those high levels images stay sharp and retain color saturation and accuracy. In some ways the S5 works very much like the GH5, however the S5's huge sensor offers a much shallower depth of field with more creative options. The S5's main competition in the full-frame video centric arena is Canon's eos R6, that model does have higher internal data rates and canon superior dual pixel autofocus plus it looks like it's better for photography.
However, the S5 is $500 cheaper and should suffer less from overheating issues. If you're okay with a smaller sensor Fujifilm's $1700 XT4 matches the S5 in most areas. Going even smaller in sensor size Panasonic's own GH5 has comparable features but is $500 cheaper. Meanwhile, the S5 seems to have made the S1 redundant as it does nearly everything better and it's smaller and cheaper. When you add up all the features including the stabilization, large sensor, 10 bit 4k options, smaller size and flip out display, the S5 is an impressive video and vlogging camera. Right now i'd say it's the best you can get for $2000. To do better you'd have to spend considerably more.
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