Can a Kit Lens Be Truly Excellent? Panasonic LUMIX S 20-60mm f/3.5-5.6 Review

[@OurFantasyLife]

I played with the Lumix S5 at Best Buy and both my wife and I were extremely impressed with the bokeh on the kit lens, and the sharpness. Fantastic for video as well. I'm honestly considering selling my Sony A7iii and a6000 to pick up an S5 - other than some slight issues with autofocus its one of the best cameras on the market currently for "prosumers".

[@chloelee5405]

AF with kit lens isn't the best. But there are lenses there that help with AF a lot but are more expensive. People always compare kit lens on S5 with Sony a7 iii and S5 loses on the auto focus, but if u use another lens, that is not the fact anymore

[@zenjitsuman]

For my Leica SL2 I went with the two Sigma zooms, 14-24mm and 24-70mm bothe F/2.8. I felt that both have excellent build, and switching lenses you still have the same layout of the controls. The complete range of these two lenses is very complete. Going to Tele range, I drop down to M43 Olympus 40-150mm Pro lens on the Olympus OM1 Mk iii and I have the Teleconverter which brings that effective range of 80-420mm and the IBIS is a solid 6 stops handheld. I use M43 on my tele lens zoom because a Full Frame zoom is just too much bulk. These Sigma lenses are a bargain and the OLY Pro zoom is a wonderful fast optic. F/2.8 max for such a wide range is wonderful

[@mediamannaman]

Nice review. Thanks! I just upgraded from the Panasonic G9 to the S5 for my real estate photography business. Like you, I couldn't pass up the kit lens price. I bought the Sigma 14-24 f2.8 DG DN art lens to shoot interiors with the S5. I need that 14mm focal length for tight spaces, but I sure paid a lot for those extra 6mm beyond the 20mm I get from the kit lens! Even though it is much smaller and lighter than the Sigma, so far it looks like a great lens that can be used in many situations. It's a great deal from Panasonic!

[@patrickfitzgerald2861]

I'm really impressed by this lens. Panasonic is clearly making an effort to think "outside the box" with their photographic products, and this is a great example. The laws of physics prevent any lens from being suitable for every situation and purpose, but this checks a lot of boxes, especially when mounted on a full frame camera with IBIS. Great job Panasonic! 👍👍👍

[@longrider9551]

I don't own any Panasonic gear but I picked up one of their newer cameras in the store and it felt really well made, the evf was also outstanding

[@jakeyod]

Yeah “kit lenses” get a bad wrap. The 24-70 f4 S from Nikon is crazy good, along with the 18-55 f2.8-f4 from Fuji

[@عالمالمعلوماتتجارب]

But which one is better.

[@mustdi39]

But Nikon pro line for Z mount will have an S in its name. So in a sense its not really a kit lens. It should be called more like combo lens lol.

[@ericbeaton7211]

I am disabled and I don’t use cameras as much as used to .But when I got my S5 with the 20-60mm it made me want to go out and start taking photos again. The lens just adds so much to the S5 that most of the time I don’t feel the need to use anything else.

[@ronaldsand3000]

With modern computerised production, the performance of even lower priced lenses is on par with image quality of the more expensive ones differentiated only by larger constant apertures and build quality

[@Lizerator]

Great review. I have this camera and kit lens and love it. Surprised at its close focusing, nice quality at high iso

[@T-Slider]

Just got it w/S5II. ❤it! IBIS Stabilization that really works! Next and last on my list is the 60-600mm.

[@johncallis2119]

Love the kit lens, it's the real reason I ever looked at S5. It's a perfect walk about lens.

[@philippeyared2050]

I bought the camera mostly for the wide end of its kit lens. I like it

[@johncallis2119]

Same here.

[@Deetroiter]

Sure, these days they can be great! The Pentax 28-105 that can come with the K1ii camera is absolutely awesome

[@salduaij]

I used this lens with the sigma fp The only issue was the autofocus is very slow

[@Stone1108]

Hi there, you alway put out such professionally yet friendly videos, big fan. I really am interested to know how well this lense performs as it’s currently an excellent deal with the S5 and I’m already into the L mount system with the S1R but lack anything wider than a 24. The 24 I mention is the other kit lense the 24-105 which is exceptional for a kit lense but with OIS, if the 20-60 is of the same pedigree (less OIS, which as you say with IBIS not a deal breaker) and performance or even very close then I think i’d buy in, either the cash back it’s like getting a S5 and lens for 60% of the stand alone cost so yeah how well does she compliment the high res sensor on your SL2, similar sensor to the S1R I believe with a few Leica touches I guess?

[@JeffBourke]

This is the best kit lens I have ever used. It’s the only kit lens I have used but never the less, it is almost impossible to justify upgrading because the gains are marginal.

[@datalaforge]

Thanks so much for that aperture / focal length chart!

[@brianeibisch6025]

I think the kit lenses these days do a terrific job on digital bodies. I’ve recently bought a Nikon DX camera and the camera has inbuilt programmes to minimise distortion caused by Nikon lenses. So it has an algorithm that “knows” the characteristics of each Nikon lens and corrects for it. That is pretty powerful stuff for those wide angle shots of brick walls that often show lens barrelling. Also, I am a hobbyist and do not need the zenith of picture quality to sell pictures. I just keep them for my own amusement and memories. So kit lenses do not break the bank, they give remarkably good images, they are native to the system so no compatibility issues; totally good. The real benefit of photography is your heightened awareness of your visual environment and kit lenses allow you to capture aspects of that on a budget.

[@andrewchisholm3665]

I got the 24-50 kit lens with the Z5 and it is just a great wee lens and I was knocked out with the photos i got with it, mind you I then went and bought the Z 50 f1.8 lens and well it just blew me away.

[@QuentinBargate]

You mention weight in your video. If you want the ultimate in a low weight, very small and very high quality landscape and travel system, try the Sigma FP-L with the Sigma 24mm F/3.5 DG DN "I" lens and the Sigma 35mm F/2 DG DN "I". I'm experimenting with that combo now, without the separately sold viewfinder (although I have that too, it adds bulk). Most landscape images are shot on a tripod, so the lack of in-body stabilisation is not so much of an issue. The FP-L has a remote release available, and the latest Sigma ultra compact "I" series lenses are super small, and super high quality. Best of all, the FP-L is "L" mount of course, so the lenses I also have for my superb Lumix S1r can be used with the FP-L, and vice versa.

[@zenonbillings9008]

great video, yes a very usable interesting kit lens. BUT the L mount concept with the 3 different manufacturers is brilliant for those of us interested in a wide, and extensive integrated approach.

Thanks 😊 i jist got the s5 and the kit, great prices

[@johnherzel718]

Just wish canon (or third party) would make this lens range for my RP. This and a 70-200 f4 with a 35 & 85 mm f2 set of primes would make my perfect lens kit. I always wished my 17-40 was less wide and a bit longer to eliminate the 24-70. 20-50 would be enough. 20-60 is the stuff of dreams!

[@jonnysinner]

Really interested to see how you get on with the S5 for astrophotography, I will be giving it a try myself on the skywatcher Star Adventurer. I have high hopes for it and the kit lens.

[@danilotorre1857]

Hi, I would be curious to know the image quality delivered by this lens when mounted on the more demanding SL2 that you own. I'm a landscape photographer and for me 20-60mm is a strange range, I would need to complement it with something wider in the field, losing the advantage of the light weight. When I need a wide angle but I can carry only one lens I chose my Leica SL 16-35. Obviously it's a completely different lens, it's much more expensive and it's 3 times the weight of this Panasonic but the focal range for me it's perfect and I know I will not be disappointed by the quality delivered in any condition.

[@zenjitsuman]

I like the Len you bought, but I wanted for my SL2 max F/2.8 over its whole range so I bought for less money the Sigma Art 14-24 and 24-70mm. These are the most up to date Sigma's made for mirrorless so they are more compact and the controls are the same so I can get muscle memory on the controls.

[@nicolasletellier6162]

I honestly would know in what the SL2 is more demanding? because I looked a lot and I can't see what differentiates the SL2 from the S series. It was maybe false or I misunderstand but I read ( or heard don't remember) that the SL2 even use Panasonic sensor so I can't find the difference in term of photo quality between the Leica body and the Panasonic body.

[@danilotorre1857]

@@nicolasletellier6162 I was not referring to a generic "Leica vs Panasonic" comparison. In this video the lens was tested by using a 23 MP Panasonic S5. She owns also an SL2 that has twice the resolution. The performance of the lens could be different on these two cameras because they have a completely different sensor.

[@nicolasletellier6162]

@@danilotorre1857 Ok, I ask because I still try to find the reason for the Leica body compares to the Panasonic ( what the advantages quality wise, features ...). As for the sensor you can watch many videos of the 20-60mm on the S1R that the same sensor.

[@edwin_ac]

Looks like that lens is suitable for the Sigma FP L

[@iankelly4008]

Could you please do an L mount lowlight test ? Been hearing issues with S1R in low light conditions

[@AfF3lix]

Low light ISO is excellent, same like a7(R)3 Low light AF is manageable but I don't have enough experience with A73 to compare it to the S1R

[@iankelly4008]

@@AfF3lix I've heard people say the focusing speed is slow in lowlight that's why I ask

[@MochtaqFawzi]

Dear Leigh I looking to buy new camera because my old Sony bridge camera is too old, I saw Panasonic S5 and I loved it but I am wondering if it’s kit lens suitable for photography of churches interior “low light environment “ or need additional fast wide angle lens?

[@manoj60mishra]

After reading your reviews, I have acquired the S5. Could you advise me about the best/appropriate mounts for 1. F mount Nikon lenses, 2. Sigma art EOS lens and such adaptors from your own experiences..thanks in anticipation.

[@robertwlittlejohn]

I have the Sigma EF to L mount adapter...MC21....it decent but very slow with Canon glass (its only certified for sigma EF lenses). I'm busting for metabones to make an adaptor...like their EF speedboosters for the micro four thirds....they are amazing.

[@sijilo]

😊

[@pradeepghadi]

This is not good for group photography best for Videography. Only focus centre area side peoples are blur.

[@zeromav2268]

Just wanted to say your shoulders look amazing 😉 Awesome vid btw!

[@georgedavall9449]

Weirdo 🙄🤣😂