Is the High Resolution Mode just a Gimmick?

More and more cameras are supporting the Multi-Shot / Pixel Shift High-Resolution mode these days. But do you actually get more resolution? I've tested this multi-shot high resolution mode with mutlple cameras including the Lumix S5II, Lumix G9II, Fujfilm XH2 and I'll share with you everything I've found.
Camera gear I used to shoot this video:
Panasonic Lumix S5II | Lumix S 24mm f/1.8
Instagram: / photo_by_richard
My Miniature Photography Instagram: / toycapturer
Facebook: / photobyrichard
0:00 What is Multi-Shot High Resolution Mode
3:22 More Resolution?
7:14 Moiré Pattern / False Colour
10:42 Noise
14:21 Dynamic Range
15:21 Downsides
16:22 Motion Blur
19:55 Extra Time
23:18 Image Artifact
24:31 AI Upscale vs high resolution mode
27:37 Final Thoughts

[@TheRealRichardWong]

This was supposed to be a quick 5 mins video but I ended up spending three weeks working on it and it became a 30-minute video! 😵 Who has shot some multi-shot high-resolution photos? Do you like the results you got? Anything you don't like? I want to say a big thank you to Charles Hull for helping me with the AI upscaling photos!

[@ArtofServer]

Richard, as usual, awesome video and I love the details and examples comparisons. Thank you so much for all your work on this topic!

[@webersteve1547]

For me it never worked. And finally I decided that I don't need it 😂

[@108u9]

Thank you Richard for the tests and sharing your results! Excellent resource to understand what all the options and pros/cons are! Hope it will benefit many folks wondering the same! Follow up question: do you recall a camera brand/model that can do pixel shift with flash? I vaguely recall coming across info about one but can’t seem to locate which it is now. I think most pixel shift modes use the electronic shutter only, or allow only electronic shutter

[@TheRealRichardWong]

@108u9 good question! but i'm not sure !

[@Emerald_City_]

Kudos to your _tour de force_ enterprise, Richard! Well done, as always. It took you three weeks, but I couldn't do it in three months, even if I had all those cameras... ► HIGH-RES ON A HIGH-RISE: Using my G9's HRM high up on the balcony of a high-rise concrete condo, I was getting success rate of less than 50%. Half of the HRM shots are worse than the normal shots. I realized that even my heavy Manfrotto tripod may not be able to sustain the vibrations that persist high up there. At least, that's my guess. I could have a faulty camera copy, I have other problems too. One subject you missed to mention is the IBIS. They say you should switch off the IBIS when shooting from a tripod in order to get the best results. Is it true? And how does this relate to using the high-res mode from a tripod? When deciding on the camera, I thought the HRM shall overcome most of the shortcomings of the small MFT sensor. In real life, it turned out that I use it far far less than I expected. Tripod is something that doesn't really rhyme with the MFT concept. But I still love to have it there.

[@jorgenudvang3507]

Thank you for a very thorough video. I'm using hi-res mode with my G9 for many applications, like food, interiors, products etc. While I don't often need the high resolution, the fact that the files are much more robust (less noise, false colours etc.) gives me more headroom for editing, which is always very welcome.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Yes for the type of photos you shoot, the hi-res mode is perfect

[@memzTV]

I used to use HHHR with the E-M1 Mark III and loved using it for static scenes and I'm so excited that the S5II has it! I think Panasonic did a good job!

[@paololarocca7684]

one of the most interesting and useful photography gear video I have seen in the last year, well done!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

oh thank you so much Paolo!

[@Nvan]

Mr Wong, I just saw that you have just published your latest video dedicated to Panasonic's high resolution mode. So I’m taking this opportunity to post this first comment to you, thanking you! The quality of your work is a true source of inspiration for us, the French LUMIX EXPERTS. So thank you! And I hope to meet you one day at an upcoming global event hosted by Panasonic Vincent.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hey Vincent! Thank you so much for your kind words! I would love to meet you and chat with you if there is a chance :)

[@mistergiovanni7183]

I definitely think that Panasonic's Mode 2 Motion Blur, even the G9 MKI with firmware 2.0 already has this option, is a game changer. It's a shame OM System doesn't have something that works as well as this Lumix Mode 2.

[@a0n0g]

Very instructive, thanks Richard !

[@mygconsultingyou]

Can I give 2 thumbs up??? This video is awesome! I am a GH6 user and this really helped me understand the limitations of the hi-res mode. I am now a subscriber!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thanks! Really appreciate that! Just as long as you don't click the "thumbs up" button twice which cancels your thumbs up LOL

[@claudiotsai8730]

Just awesome and superb! Cannot thank you enough for such an impressive test!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you so much Claudio!

[@4050ac]

Thanks for all the effort and details!✊

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thanks for watching

[@MrWotan91]

Thank you for this very detailed video. I really liked that you cover all the possible use cases of this feature!

[@jeffreystulin8130]

This is an absolutely terrific video that answers many of my questions especially about the feasibility of using the multi shot mode for film scanning. I wish that I could give you one hundred likes! Thank you so much.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you Jeffrey! One like + one comment is the most awesome support for me

[@andrewhsu7679]

Thanks, Richard, for an excellent vido. It's very thorough and systematic. I especially liked the comparison between upscaling and high resolution mode. Great work!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@markbaigent8373]

Very comprehensive testing 😎

[@i_soumyabanerjee]

Thanks Richard for doing this! Very helpful and not touched upon in details by others. A lot of time and effort spent on this video by you. Thanks again!!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Soumya, thanks for watching, glad you like this video!

[@jimstirling7223]

Thanks for an excellent deep dive into the topic

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thanks Jim!!

[@stilllight5286]

A very good video, as always!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thank you very much Alex!

[@stefanmokrzecki16]

Wow, you really did put a lot of work into producing this comparison. Thanks! I have the S5 and now tend to use the high resolution mode rather than stitch images. Being able to shoot handheld high resolution images with the S5 II would add another dimension to my shooting.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hey Stefan thanks! I did spent more time creating this video than my average lens review 😅

[@PanasonicAustralia]

Thanks as always for your in-depth explanation Richard 🙏

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hey thank you very much @PanasonicAustralia !!!

[@guyprolly]

This is a really good, really thorough video, Richard. Cheers.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thank you very much Guy Prolly!

[@user-sh8op2ku3c]

A good overview, subtlety in details is the main thing for professionals

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you!

[@cosandw]

Just excellent!

[@KlausKusserow-ClassicalGuitar]

A massive knowledge burst combined with fine classical music? Richard Wong is the man to go🍀😃👍

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you very much Klaus!

[@user-ln8lg6dq6y]

Nice test! Please keep this useful information sharing

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you!

[@waltermayr339]

Great work! Thank you.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thank you for watching!

[@essiturbo]

Thanks for this nice test Richard.👍

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thanks for watching @essiturbo!

[@alantuttphotography]

Excellent coverage of this topic. Love all the comparisons! The only other comparison I might have done would be to compare the high-res mode to a multi-shot panoramic, where each shot covers a much smaller area of the overall image. I think that's the version that would give the best end result.

[@gershonportnoy5589]

Great stuff, Excellent research and superbly done video, most helpful🙏

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you very much Gershon!

[@slyfer974]

Very useful information that you can't really find easily elsewhere. Thank you sir 👏

[@TheRealRichardWong]

So nice of you

[@jugibur2117]

Wow, that was really comprehensive and very interesting, thanks for your effort!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Glad you liked it!

[@mareksopl]

Thank you for answering my doubtd. You presented your comparision in very profesional way.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thanks for watching 😁

[@Igottabooty]

Excellent video, thank you

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Glad you liked it!

[@user-rj1hx5jz1n]

Thank you, Richard, for this very methodic and comprehensive video.One of the reasons that I am buying the G9ii is because of this hand held h.r. mode .Very impressive results, taking the limitations into account, naturally. All the best.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thank you for watching and glad you found this video useful:)

[@user-rj1hx5jz1n]

@@TheRealRichardWong Your reviews are excellent 👌

[@Emerald_City_]

Note that the handheld high-res doesn't gain that much compared to the tripod high-res shots. This is an added value of Richard's work, he lets us observe the difference.

[@JoergenKHKnudsen]

Very interesting and systematic analysis. Very useful information. Thank you.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thank you very much!

[@CuMulusDancerZ]

Very interresting, thank you very much!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you CuMulus DancerZ!

[@AbkenariFarang]

Fantastic video, thanks so much for putting so much effort to put all these so useful information together and sharethem with us. This is also showing the fact we should, listen to those who knows what they are talking about.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thanks for watching Bahman and glad you enjoy this video :)

[@johnnymauser7577]

Very interesting and well made!!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you Johnny!

[@miba8303]

As usual informative and lot to compare Thanks

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thank you very much Mi Ba!

[@ericaceous1652]

Brilliantly informative Richard, really appreciate all the examples. I've rarely used the High Res mode on my camera, being generally focussed on wildlife, but I can see that I'm likely to get some great results using High Res mode for upcoming projects photographing artworks and film negatives

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hey Eric, thanks for your support again! Yeah unfortunately Wildlife is probably the worst kind of photography to shoot in high res mode

[@davidh3049]

wow so much work went into this video. amazing. didn't know you were an engineer. It matched your methodical testing approach. I like it.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

David, Thank you very much! My engineering background definitely has a big influence on how I do my video and testing.

[@Emerald_City_]

Now he is in the showbiz arena. If he gets his English polished, he will rule the tube!

[@TylerThomas]

Thank you for the high resolution video

[@trollenz]

Very very interesting 👌🏻👏🏻 When I've seen the 30 min length I immediately thought it was gonna be interesting. Thanks a lot.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

it really was supposed to be a quick 2 day production 5 minutes long video at the beginning 😂

[@trollenz]

@@TheRealRichardWong 🤣🤣 and those two days turned out to be weeks right ?... Well honestly that video deserves every minute of it, I love when you go into every single intricate detail, very informative and very useful. Thanks again 👌🏻

[@mlaccci]

Thank you, this was a very-very useful video.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Glad it was helpful! thanks for watching

[@lddevo88]

This video has made me confident in my decision to upgrade to this camera from my old Canon. I was splitting hairs between this and the Fuji Xh2s, its nice to know this also does internal colour profiles for photos and video. Great video!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Glad I could help!

[@bpcs63]

Another very comprehensive video thanks! I FINALLY found out that Lumix HHHR AUTOMATICALLY uses motion compensation (Mode 2) !! Thanks Richard! You have no idea how hard I have tried to find out whether Lumix HHHR has Mode 2 Motion Compensation. Not one other reviewer has clarified this like in this video.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

haha thanks it took me a while to figure that out :)

[@jamesloop]

Man you are the best

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you James!

[@TheRealHarrypm]

Somthing intresting with the pixel shift on the A7RIII is that combining 3 brackets of exposure with 3 shifted shots yields more data but adobe lightroom will cause colour shifts in the red channel that needed to be compensated for, been using this method to test slide film digitisation as the ground truth image can be human refranced and the light source can be perfectly replicated each time, the intresting thing is with this data stacking method is it can give you near drum scan potential out of bayer sensors but not as balenced inital data to work off of, just my thoughts as I have been using this substantaily this week. While I have my eye on the S5II and the A7RV, with global shutters being pushed and the potential for lower ADC noise its very intresting time to see how far data stacking can go on this prosumner camara bodys in this decade.

[@gpjennett9819]

Bravo!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thank you Gp Jennett!

[@gimiproton3465]

Bonsoir, Bravos pour votre vidéo, j'attendais avec impatience qu'une personne s'intéresse à ce mode Haute resolution. Votre vidéo est tres détaillé, tout est beacuop plus claire. Les petits capteurs Micro 4,3 ont encore de beaux jours devant eux avec ce mode Haute resolution. Merci à vous...Merci à Panasonic (G9 II)

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thank you for watching 😊

[@overnightdelivery]

Many people over-rate Resolution as something you need for regular photos.. which you don't. HOWEVER the more resolution, the better, when you are shooting something pretty far away like the Moon. It's like adding more focal length to your lenses, without having to sacrifice quality.

[@Emerald_City_]

Have you tried it? I haven't. What I see when shooting the Moon at 400 mm MFT (800 mm FF eq.) is such a speed of the Moon hasting throughout the frame, that I think it is not stationery enough for the high-res mode. Thank you for the idea, I have to try it. I bet it won't work.

[@Bayonet1809]

The green shadows in the Handheld High Resolution photo pushed in Lightroom indicates an incorrect black point setting by Lightroom. Hopefully a Lightroom update would fix this, but otherwise you could instead use software that allows for a manual setting of the black point, such as darktable.

[@AllenReinecke]

Excellent demonstration of High Resolution mode. 👍. The extra detail in the image is surprising. I've found the handheld hi res mode fails with longer zoom ranges. My 70-300mm doesn't work at 300mm. My 60-600mm obviously struggles too. I assume that's because it detects too much movement between the shots? Even using a post to stabilize the lens as best I can, it fails.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Multi shot high resolution mode relies on photos shot are relatively the same for it to work. So it's harder, much harder with long focal length and result won't be as good. It's the same even for tripod mode but a lot worse for handheld mode as you can probably imagine.

[@NoSuRReNDeR001]

the R5 has a mode like this too if your in the current firmware. I used this feature on the S1H I think it was? I recall the image was HUGE 186MP I think, I printed it full and its CRAZY... you could CLEARLY read the sign on a billboard in Manhattan that I shoot from the cliff above hoboken in Jersey City... the only issue was clouds were a bit odd...

[@TheRealRichardWong]

yes i think the R5 can deliver 400MP hi-res mode photos. The S1R can create 187MP high res mode photos! Both are pretty crazy

[@pastilance1]

High resolution mode is no joke. I use it all the time for moon shots and I love it

[@Emerald_City_]

What focal length do you use? With Pana Leica 100400 set at 400 mm the Moon may be moving too fast throughout the frame for using the high-res mode. I have to try!

[@AntonisK]

great video, very useful! can you upload some high resolution handheld and tripod of s5 ii RAW files on to a dropbox ? + their single shot ones

[@CountCocoChris]

Hi Richard, thanks so much for taking the time to post this video. I am new to photography and have recently purchased an S5II due in no small part to your excellent coverage of the camera. I have a question, and I think I already know the answer, but you would know better than anyone else. Is there any use for high resolution mode for portraits of human subjects? Let's say at a higher shutter speed of 1/400.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Christian, for the high resolution to work, your model has to be perfectly still for the duration of multiple exposures. If it's not close-up portrait, I think it may work. But for close up, it's probably too hard for the model to stay perfectly still

[@Emerald_City_]

Was thinking about the same. I'll find some youngster who is willing to submit himself to a stay-still torture and try the HRM. 😄

[@AndrejsZavadskis]

how about Nikon shift pixel ?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

I haven't test Zf's pixel shift yet, but in theory, the results should be similar to what I've shown in this video as they all work with the same priniciple.

[@stjepanjina]

I had the same Sony cyber shoot one with 2.2mp, something like that, and the worst part is that the pictures look really great on a mobile phone :))

[@TheRealRichardWong]

LOL. yes even 1.3MP is more than enough for phone and social media!

[@typeraver]

Nice video richard, good working demonstrating the strengths and limits of HR mode photography. I have an S1R and love using this whenever the opportunity lends itself. As demonstrated, you get a cleaner, moire free image. Lately, ive noticed some hotspots on my images though, but ive never cleaned my sensor and wonder if thats the reason. Thoughts?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hey @typeracer, thanks! When you say hotspots, what do you mean exactly? Is it a black/dark spot that is more apparent when you shot with a smaller aperture (larger F number)

[@typeraver]

@@TheRealRichardWong random red, green or blue pixels on the images. A few here or there.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

@@typeraver ok that sounds like hot pixels. You see it when the sensor gets a bit too hot, which is completely normal behaviour. That happens usually when you are doing long exposures, or when shooting in high ISO. It has nothing to do with sensor cleaning i believe You can try enable "Long shutter noise reduction" and see if it helps?

[@typeraver]

Thank you@@TheRealRichardWong Actually i believe ive fixed it! So I tried a cameras "Sensor cleaning" option, but that didnt make an difference. I tried the cameras "Pixel refresh" and that fixed it! I tried test shots before and after each step to verify, and the Pixel refresh option worked for me. Now i need to upgrade my firmware, im still on 1.5 and we are up to 1.9! Just dont want to lose my custom buttons "Q" settings, lol.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

awesome!

[@Democratiser]

Before the iPhone there was the O2 XDA. It had a 0.2mp camera 😂.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hahah 0.2MP!! that's not a camera, that's an emoji capturer

[@Democratiser]

@@TheRealRichardWong 👍🤣

[@ookiemand]

Thank you very much! Have you tried taking a HHHR shot on a still sitting model?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

No I haven't, or i don't remember I have done that haha 😅

[@alandyer910]

Very well done, thank you! Another question is what format is the final HR image? Is it a raw file? Or a JPG? I’m not sure what each camera and software program produces as an end result. Ideally, it should also be a raw file or a DNG. Also, I assume there is a limit of the exposure time that works in HR mode. With the Canon R5 it is 1/2 second as a maximum exposure, ruling out its use for long exposure night shots, even in scenes where nothing is moving.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Output format depends on camera/brand. For example, Lumix is always JPG/RAW or both and generated in camera. Fuji is DNG only and has to use computer software. Re time limit, it also depends on camera/brand. For example Lumix S5II is 8seconds per exposure. Fuji XH2 i think there isn't a time limit

[@KillingTheMost]

great

[@TheRealRichardWong]

thank you :)

[@sbeckmesser]

@TheRealRichardWong Thanks for this thorough coverage, especially since I am considering adding the G9M2 to my MFT kit. Questions: Are any of these high-resolution modes limited by the lenses used? Or are typical OEM lenses capable of providing such detail? What about 3rd-party lenses, especially some of the more attractive offerings from Chinese lens companies?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hi there sorry about the late reply, only just saw your comment. For the high resolution mode, my experience is that it does work no matter what lense you use. But the sharpest the lens the more noticeable improvement the result is

[@Emerald_City_]

I used high-res mode with the G9m1 on a tripod. Both with Pana Leica 12-60 mm f/2.8-4 and Sigma 30 mm f/1.4 . It was used for the reproduction of a large size fresco painting in low light. All high res shots were better than the normal ones (no vibration at the ground level in this remote area). But Sigma was better than the Pana-Leica zoom. It is a lens with higher resolution. Even the colors are better, though it's not an OEM lens. So I ended up using Sigma in a segmented panorama high-res shots and stitched them later in Affinity Photo 2.

[@AntonisK]

panasonic should add an option to process pixel shift images before turning off the camera so that you dont have to wait for 5sec for the processing while you use the camera or just tell it "process now" always in camera

[@TheRealRichardWong]

It's a great idea!

[@AntonisK]

@@TheRealRichardWong great video, very useful! can you upload some high resolution handheld and tripod of s5 ii RAW files on to a dropbox ? + their single shot ones

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hi there, sorry i do not share RAW files anymore because of some bad experience in the past. Hope you can understand.

[@Emerald_City_]

@@TheRealRichardWongbut not a safe one

[@Emerald_City_]

@@TheRealRichardWongwould be interesting to know, what happened?

[@masterche1980]

👍

[@massimobianchetti8272]

first of all thank you for the content and the time dedicated. a question (maybe I didn't understand correctly)... does the pixel shift as implemented by Lumix only increase the resolution or does it also improve the color fidelity limited by Bayer matrix interpolation? Ciao

[@TheRealRichardWong]

It improves both colour and resolution

[@testcams]

I noticed both the normal and high resolution photos in the comparisons are at the same scale, which means you either downsampled the pixel-shifted photo in post-processing to the resolution of the normal photo, or upsampled the lower resolution photo in post-processing to the resolution of the pixel-shifted photo. Can you describe which you did, and also what resampling algorithm was employed. Thanks.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Apart from the tests that i explicitly said used Gigapixel AI to upscale, all the other comparisons used the latest version of Adobe Lightroom Classic to upscale using default settings. No sharpening or other adjustments were applied.

[@testcams]

@@TheRealRichardWong Thanks. Did you upscale both photos to a common resolution, or only upscale the normal photo to match the pixel-shifted resolution.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

upscaled to a common resolution.

[@Muny]

Wow! Seeing the results of this mode really makes me want Sony to release a firmware update to the a6700 adding it.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

a6700 does have Sony's latest IBIS, so it would be great to see that added to the camera

[@Muny]

@@TheRealRichardWong Another feature that I feel Sony could easily add to their cameras via a firmware update is the ability to use an external USB-C SSD as the storage medium.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

this onne maybe harder, as it would require a high-speed USB-C port, which most cameras don't have @@Muny

[@Quoutub]

The bad dynamic range of the handheld mode at 24:10 is disappointing, it's worse than the single shot. Were all modes using the electronic shutter? I was interested in the Panasonic G9 II just because of its handheld multi frame noise reduction.

[@huasheng9695]

不知道G9ii的 multi shot high res mode 也能不能讓他的ISO 噪點表現提升？ 因為一般看其他影片在介紹G9ii 的可用拍照的ISO大概落在3200 不知道high res mode的上升到6400甚至12800 ISO噪點表現能不能match 一般模式下ISO 3200的噪點哈哈哈 Just curious about did the high resolution mode on the G9ii also expand the Usable ISO range from 3200 to like 6400 even to 12800 ?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

是對噪點有幫助，只是我一下忙了multi shot high res mode 有沒有iso上限

[@huasheng9695]

@@TheRealRichardWong 哦哦哦因為高ISO就是怕底噪也被放大會有的顆粒感 就可以安心的在低光環境用multi shot high res mode 了XD

[@obedbrinkman]

alien language 😂 👽

[@TheRealRichardWong]

👽👽👽

[@gcprost]

I appreciate all the information in this video. I think the high resolution mode would be great for product photography.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thanks for watching Gerald!