Panasonic S5 Review
Image Quality
All of the sample images in this review were taken using the 24 megapixel Fine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 10Mb.
The Panasonic S5 produced still images of excellent quality during the review period.
This camera produces noise-free JPEG images from ISO 50 all the way up to ISO 6400, with significant noise first appearing at ISO 12800. The faster settings of 25600 and 51200 display quite a lot of noise, but they're still fine to use for making smaller prints and web images. You should avoid using the expanded ISO 102400 and 204800 settings if possible.
The Lumix S5 proved to very capable in low-light, with the maximum shutter speed of 30 seconds and the Bulb mode allowing you to capture enough light in all situations and the camera's -6EV rating successfully auto-focusing even in near-dark conditions.
Post Focusing is a great feature while the Intelligent D-range mode and HLG mode are effective features for capturing more detail in both the shadows and highlights.
The High Resolution Mode is capable of creating 96 megapixel images, while the wide range of Photo Styles and Filters allow you to quickly and easily customise the look of the camera's RAW and JPEG images, respectively.
Noise
ISO sensitivity can be set between ISO 50 and ISO 204800 in full-stop increments. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting, with JPEG on the left and RAW on the right.
| JPEG | RAW |
ISO 50 (100% Crop) |
ISO 50 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 100 (100% Crop) |
ISO 100 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 200 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 400 (100% Crop) |
ISO 400 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 800 (100% Crop) |
ISO 800 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 1600 (100% Crop) |
ISO 1600 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 3200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 3200 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 6400 (100% Crop) |
ISO 6400 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 12800 (100% Crop) |
ISO 12800 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 25600 (100% Crop) |
ISO 25600 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 51200 (100% Crop) |
ISO 51200 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 102400 (100% Crop) |
ISO 102400 (100% Crop) |
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ISO 204800 (100% Crop) |
ISO 204800 (100% Crop) |
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File Quality
The Panasonic S5 has 2 different JPEG image quality settings available, with Fine being the highest quality option. Here are some 100% crops which show the quality of the various options, with the file size shown in brackets.
| Fine (7.90Mb) (100% Crop) | Standard (3.73Mb) (100% Crop) |
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| RAW (34.3Mb) (100% Crop) | |
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Night
The Panasonic S5's maximum shutter speed is 60 seconds and there's also a Bulb option for exposures up to 30 minutes long, which is excellent news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 30 seconds at ISO 200. The camera takes the same amount of time again to apply noise reduction, so for example at the 30 second setting the actual exposure takes 60 seconds.
Post Focus
Post Focus is a function that enables you to select the in-focus area after shooting simply by touching it on the LCD screen. The first three images show the effects of switching between the three memory cards.
Right |
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Middle |
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Left |
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High Resolution Mode
The Panasonic Lumix S5's High Resolution Mode combines 8 shots into a 96 megapixel image to create a super high-resolution photo. The resulting Raw files are 165Mb in size! We found during testing that selecting Mode 2 in the Motion Blur Processing sub-menu produced the sharpest images.
Off (100% Crop) |
Mode 1 (100% Crop) |
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Mode 2 (100% Crop) |
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Intelligent Dynamic Range
The Panasonic S5's Intelligent D-range setting adjusts the exposure to record more detail in the highlights and shadows, with three strengths available - Low, Standard and High - and an Auto setting.
Off |
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Low |
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Standard |
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High |
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Multiple Exposure
The Panasonic Lumix S5's Multiple Exposure mode combines up to four different pictures to create one composite image.
HLG Photo
The Panasonic S5 has two native HLG modes for high dynamic range presentation - 4K (3232x2160 pixels) and Full (5984x4020 pixels). The Hybrid Log Gamma mode is designed for display on the latest Panasonic HLG-compliant 4KTV via a HDMI cable connection, offering 3x more dynamic range than a standard image. Pictures taken with the HLG modes can be saved as HSP files as well as in JPEG and RAW formats.
HLG Off |
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HLG 4K |
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HLG Full |
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Photo Styles
Panasonic's Photo Styles are preset combinations of different sharpness, contrast, saturation and noise reduction settings. The 9 available Photo Styles are shown below in the following series, which demonstrates the differences. There are also some Custom options so that you can create your own looks.
Standard |
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Vivid |
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Natural |
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Flat |
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Landscape |
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Portrait |
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Monochrome |
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L. Monochrome |
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L. Monochrome D |
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Cinelike D |
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Cinelike V |
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| Like709 |
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| V-Log |
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Filters
The Panasonic S5 has an extensive range of creative Filters with 22 different options on offer.
Expressive |
Retro |
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Old Days |
High Key |
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Low Key |
Sepia |
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Monochrome |
Dynamic Monochrome |
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Rough Monochrome |
Silky Monochrome |
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Impressive Art |
High Dynamic |
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Cross Process |
Toy Effect |
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Toy Pop |
Bleach Bypass |
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Miniature Effect |
Soft Focus |
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Fantasy |
Star Filter |
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One Point Color |
Sunshine |
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