Why I'm upgrading to the Panasonic S5 | Panasonic G9 User

[@quadrinnn7146]

I just upgraded from the g9 as well! Really excited

[@AoyagiAichou]

Hey, do you still have the G9? Could you do some low light tests?

[@vladislavihl]

I've purchased an S5 as well. After having tried out the camera with the kit lens (20-60mm f3.5-5.6) I've noticed that my 4K footages out of the S5 are by far not so sharp as those of the G9 (with a 12-35mm f2.8 lens). The stills are sharper, however... It's ridiculous! Further, I don't know why but I can't change the position of the focus field by touch (on the display) when I am looking in the viewfinder of the S5 (no problem with G9); only with the joystick, which is by far not so easy to use in comparison with the G9. The automatic WB of the S5 is also not so precise (G9 is absolutely perfect here). What is really annoying, is the crop in the viewfinder and the display of the S5 when I'm trying to compose my photos. With the G9 I always can see the correct size of the picture I will get, with the S5 however I always get a preview with only a part (80-90%) of it. Do I have the wrong settings? However, the S5 is seemingly better in low light. A footage taken with ISO6400 is significantly cleaner than a ISO1600 footage out of the G9. That's the only reason I haven't sold the S5 yet.

[@chrisfigley]

Not sure why your 4K footage is soft...the 12-35 2.8 is probably a sharper lens than the 12-60 but I wouldn't think by that much. It might be the format. If you are recording in 10 bit on the G9 and 8 bit on the S5 you might see a difference in detail. The 12-60 might also need to be stopped down to achieve maximum sharpness. As for the touch focus area, you need to set this up. In the menu, go to the gear (operation menu) then the second Gear/Operation menu. Find Touch Settings then turn on Touch AF and then directly below it set how you want it to work in Touch Pad AF. Yes, the G9 viewfinder is a thing of beauty and the S5 viewfinder is lower res and lower magnification, however I am getting a 100% field of view that is the same as the sensor. I don't see any settings to change what is displayed here. Not sure sorry! Anyway, hope you get past some of the hurdles here...it really is a nice camera to use!

[@MrFirstdance2000]

Your young and allowed to change your mind. Hence, you learn how to shape up both thought and content in the future. Your thoughts will either be born out or not so who knows, maybe you'll be involved in a shoot that pays you so much you can afford both :)

[@stradbam]

Hey man do you still rock the S5? Did you ever miss the G9? :)

[@ByranDigital]

@@stradbam hey, I actually don’t use the S5 anymore. I’ve had the Canon R6 and now have the So y A7RIV. After using full frame I can’t say I’d ever go back to MFT but the G9 is still one of the best cameras I’ve ever used. I love Panasonic as a brand and I’d be using the S5IIX if it made sense for me to. Unfortunately because I use Sony in my full time work it makes sense for me to use Sony.

[@stradbam]

@@ByranDigital Allright cool. I suppose you don’t miss MFT because of poor low light performance? I think I want to do the same switch as you did, ditch my MFT collection and get a compact full format instead. It’s such a jungle because you really have to choose one brand or another. I thought that being used to Lumix MFT’s perhaps that’s the easiest to choose in full frame as well, but then you might miss out on what the other brands offer, lol. Do you have any favourite brand now?

[@ByranDigital]

@@stradbam Yes for that reason and also the depth of field you can get with a full frame is just superior. And yes I get you, it's a minefield. I have a very special place in my heart for Panasonic and if you already use that brand then i think the S5II is a great value camera. Panasonics biggest weak point was its autofocus but they've addressed this with the S5II. It is also cheaper than similar cameras from other brands. The only brands I'd ever use for professional work would be Canon, Panasonic and Sony. Canon is my favourite for Ergonomics, Panasonic is my favourite for value and features and Sony is my favourite for versatility and lens selection.

[@dericsanchez4081]

Been thinking about making this same purchase. It’s actually been in my B&H cart for a week now haha. I know everyone is hating on the AF but I think it’s good enough for me. The real issue is the size and cost of lenses. It’s probably overkill for what I do so not sure I could justify.

[@ByranDigital]

Yeah from what I’ve seen the AF is fine. And no one is buying a Panasonic for its AF anyway. I just really wanted to jump into full frame and needed some good video specs which is why I decided to invest. Yeah the cost of lenses was definitely a factor that made me reluctant. But they’ve announced some 1.8 primes which should be more affordable.

[@dericsanchez4081]

ByranCito yeah that’s true. I’m very interested in the S5. Nobody is really offering these features in full frame at this price. I did see the upcoming 1.8 primes so that is cool. Just wish they had some pricing leaks but I’d assume around $1000 for each.

[@byKyran]

Hey man, did you go from G85 to G9 and now the S5? I'm looking at the gh5 now becaause i can still use my lenses! How is video on the S5?

[@ByranDigital]

Yes I did! Really wanted to go full frame for better low light performance. The video on the S5 is amazing!! Very similar to the GH5 actually.

[@bavideomaker29]

You should upgrade your tripod

[@ByranDigital]

Brian Andrews one thing at a time 😅

[@CASMANWHAT]

i'll only upgrade from my GH3 if they fix the AF. :)

[@ByranDigital]

Yeah it’s a real shame that Panasonic insist on DFD but at least they’ve attempted to improve it. Love that you’re keeping it old school though 😅

[@film_insider]

They won't fixed it because thay are claiming this is best for image quality. Lumix USA livestream, a month ago information. They said they "can" make phase detect AF, but they wont because of lens breathing and many other "issues" that comes with phase detect AF on other camera manufacturers. Yeah, we all know that's BS. But, with phase detect, S5 would cost 4000. Panny's image cinema quality with dual native iso and many other options that comes with...screw that AF.

[@film_insider]

Why?! Why not😎

[@ruff1draft]

Bryan where in the UK are you based.

[@ByranDigital]

I’m based in London

[@MrFirstdance2000]

How old was your G9 and what did you get for the resale? I suppose you feel the extra weight is no problem hence a youngsters prerogative. I'd like to see you compare some "images" not video between the two and critique! The 10-25 is not cheap...LOL Look forward to your future references between the two.

[@ByranDigital]

I haven’t sold it just yet. Bought the S5 on credit. Yeah I probably will still have it when I get the S5 so maybe I’ll do a comparison. I bought my G9 refurbished a year ago. I upgraded from a G80.

[@kwchalky02]

Hope it works out for you and for what you do it proves a good switch. For me I'm really happy with my G9. I have a good selection of lenses for it and couldn't afford the full frame equivalent of my 100-400 lense (and indeed wouldn't want the full frame equivalent size/weight of that lens either). Very happy with MFT for my purposes.

[@ByranDigital]

Kenny White great to hear you’re happy with it. It is an amazing camera but I’ve just been noticing it’s poor low light performance more and more so thought it was time to upgrade. Yeah sounds like for what you need the G9 is perfect. Happy shooting!

[@facesout]

@@ByranDigital Did you get the S5? Any Video samples straight out of camera that I could see please? Been looking at this model for a while now.. Thanks and do let me know, regards.

[@ByranDigital]

@@facesout I did. Can definitely look at making a video to show you out of camera footage. Spoiler: the video quality is amazing!