Panasonic S5 II First Shots: Lab sample images from Panasonic’s first camera with PDAF
posted Tuesday, February 14, 2023 at 12:15 PM EDT
Click here to browse our Panasonic S5 II First Shots
Panasonic kicked off the new year by announcing a new full-frame mirrorless camera, the Lumix S5 II. Well, two new full-frame mirrorless cameras technically. They also announced the S5 IIX, which is essentially the same camera but features a few more bells and whistles for serious video creators. But, the big story with Panasonic's second-generation Lumix S5 hybrid mirrorless camera is the inclusion of on-sensor phase-detection autofocus, which is a first for a Panasonic Lumix camera and a very long-awaited and much-requested feature from consumers. The overhauled AF system features 779 PDAF points and 315 contrast-detect autofocus points, and it incorporates Panasonic's long-standing DFD AF technology. The specs don't mention any AI-based or Machine-learning-based AF tech, but the camera does feature subject-detection modes for people and animals, as well. With this all-new AF system, plus high-speed performance, such as 30fps continuous burst shooting with C-AF, the new Panasonic S5 II is well suited to compete with other popular high-performance full-frame cameras.
Beyond the S5 II's speed and performance improvements, the imaging pipeline is similar to the one in the original Panasonic S5, though it's still updated with a new sensor and a new processor. Of course, the sensor in the SS5 II is all-new, as it incorporates on-sensor phase-detect pixels, but the resolution remains the same at 24.2 megapixels. In terms of the image processor, Panasonic Lumix cameras have utilized a "Venus Engine" image processor of varying generations and iterations over the years, but the S5 II appears to be powered differently. This camera is the first one developed through Panasonic's partnership with Leica, a co-developing agreement called "L2 Technology." Through this partnership, this S5 II is powered by an all-new L2 Technology-powered processing engine. Despite the new(ish) imaging pipeline, the Lumix S5 II has the same expansive ISO range as its predecessor, offering a native ISO range of 100-51,200. The ISO range can be expanded down to ISO 50 and up to ISO 204,800.
We've just received our Lumix S5 II review unit, and, of course, the first stop is a visit to our lab. We now have lab sample images ready and waiting for all you pixel-peepers out there! As with most of our First Shots series of sample images, the Panasonic S5 II First Shots have two different image series, one with default in-camera noise reduction and another with noise reduction set to its lowest possible setting (the S5 II does not allow you to disable in-camera NR processing completely). As always, we have corresponding RAW files to go along with these straight-out-of-camera JPEGs, allowing you to see unprocessed images.
Check out our Panasonic S5 II First Shots to see how the new Lumix full-frame camera looks across its full ISO range. Also, head over to our Comparometer to see our S5 II test shots side by side with sample images from nearly every other camera we've tested over the years.