Panasonic - LUMIX S5 Mirrorless Full Frame Camera Body with 20-60mm F3.5-5.6 Lens - DC-S5KK - Black

This is a great camera with one major flaw and several tiny ones. This review is being expanded as I get time and is written from an enthusiasts viewpoint. The S5 met most of my expectations and exceeded several. The camera was being purchased for the use of family photography, family video, and photo/video for some work as well. Non Family Use The camera does really well in controlled environments. The ability to take stunning high res photos, landscapes, and videos (in a studio) are amazing. The camera is best utilized in a manual focus mode. When you take the time to manually set the focus and learn all the underlying settings for each mode, I found the S5 produced better photos and videos (unedited) than those of my friend shooting with a Sony A7riii. The color reproduction that the camera can do is great! Outside shooting seasonal changes is easy and enjoyable. Even taking videos in one of the many settings that the S5 can do, looks great and satisfying. I found myself really happy with the products I was producing even before editing the imagery. For an enthusiast that has no issues taking the time to master all the settings of the S5 and primarily using it in manual focus mode, the S5 is one of the best hybrid shooters out there. Family Use, here is why I returned the S5 With all I said above you can see where this is going. I took the better part of two weeks fine tuning the S5 for family use. I watched hours of tutorials, a lot of the Lumix Acadamy videos, and still found no perfect setting for the autofocus to produce predictable results. After week three I was extremely annoyed. This camera was meant for both work and family. The family side is where the S5 failed me. The camera had to be usable in my wife's hands and be predictable. It was far from that in both photography and videography. In post we reviewed the focus points and found that the S5 had a low hit % when using autofocus for capturing images of family members. Depending on the situation, the S5 ranged from a success rate of 30%-60%. The video mode did capture many priceless moments, but the rolling shutter, IBIS, and autofocus issues would randomly be an issue. Rarely was it all three at one time. There are videos of my children that far exceeded my expectations. But, and this one is huge, the background pulsing and loss of subject by the autofocus kills so many great moments. If only Panasonic had copied what Sony is doing for focus, I would still have the S5. I plan to upload a few sample images. All images are unedited.

I'm in love with the Panasonic S5!! I've been using m43 for a very long and loved it because of the size. I was using an Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III and started with the E-M5 Mark I. I've been wanting to explore the full frame world, and tried some cameras but none of them felt right. I bought the Sony A7R III and loved the lens selection, but the colors and IBIS weren't good or what I expected coming from Olympus. I love vivid colors and Olympus is good with that. I debated on the Panasonic S5 and was unsure because were saying that the autofocus was slow. I don't have a problem with the autofocus. It's fast enough for me. I love the size of the body, and I think from the other full frame cameras, this camera has the best IBIS. I'm able to take 1/15 pictures and they're sharp. I don't use video that much, but the videos that I've recorded are very sharp. If I pause the video, it looks like an image! Sigma is coming out with some small lenses if you want to keep the camera small. I'm currently using the S5 with the Sigma 24mm. The only problem I have is that some of the buttons started feeling sticky, and the power button doesn't feel stable. I'll probably have to contact Panasonic and get it fixed, but other than that the camera is amazing!

This is by far the most underrated mirrorless camera on the market today. When you think about a high end mirrorless camera you automatically think about Sony, Canon, or Nikon. But Panasonic has proven to be a real player in the game with their S Series of cameras. And the S5 is the complete package. It’s built extremely well, easy to hold and comfortable while shooting, and combined with that the menu system is easy to navigate which makes the S5 extremely easy to shoot with. I initially was sold on the GH5 or GH5s but as I continued my research I realized that I wanted a camera with a full frame sensor with the ability to shoot with micro 4/3’s as needed too. I also wanted a camera that could take stunning photos and the S5 had that advantage over the GH5 too. Plus they were nearly identical in price. The photo and video quality is stunning as well. I’m a small YouTuber and I film in v-log and color grade in Final Cut Pro X and I am floored with how the final product looks. If you’re trying to decide between this camera and the Sony A7 III or the GH5, the S5 will more than satisfy your needs in every situation. It’s one of the best in the market, and by far the most underrated camera today. Go ahead and pair it with the Sigma DC DN 30mm f/1.4 lens (L mount - just Google for it) like I have and I promise you that you’ll own the market and dominate your portfolio in every shot, every time - I guarantee it. You won’t be disappointed by this incredible camera.