Panasonic Lumix S1H Autofocus Human/Animal Test (Video)-Elizabeth South

ElizabethSouth:

The Panasonic Lumix S1H video camera is amazing and very cinematic for sure! I thought I’d upload this quick video I made answering a lot of questions I had about this camera in case someone else has the same questions. Let me know in your comments below what you think about the camera as well as which lens Autofocuses the best: 1. either Lumix 24-105 mm f/4 or 2. Lumix S Pro 50mm f/1.4 3. Also let me know which Autofocus Speed/Sensitivity settings you think work the best!
My thoughts are that this would be the perfect camera if it had Autofocus as good as Canon/Sony, but it’s not totally horrible either – just not always reliable. I have in the past used Canon, GH5 cameras for my personal Music Videos, dogs, family, and as part of the film projects I do as a drama teacher where I need children to autofocus easily by tapping the viewfinder. I want a very high quality cinematic looking camera that also has good Autofocus and this is the best most affordable cinematic camera, although not cheap. I had lots of questions about how well it worked with Autofocus in both Human/Animal detection mode. Yes! Unlike Sony which only has Autofocus for Animals in Photo mode, Lumix S1H has Autofocus for Animals in both Photos and Video! I was excited to find this out! And I think it works very well! How well it works for humans, is still a question for me. Hopefully Panasonic will get their act together and make Autofocus a priority for those of us who need to use it for various reasons. Another thing it does (that the GH5 does not do) is you can change the priority of who/what you are prioritizing the Autofocus on simply by tapping the screen with your finger. (Canon has that feature I loved as well).

Panasonic S1H Dynamic range and rolling shutter tests by Cinema5D

Cinema5D performed a deep test of the new Panasonic S1H. The conclusion:

All in all, I am impressed – the dynamic range results are exceptional. Panasonic claims this cam to be a 14+ stops camera, which is close to the signal to noise ratio = 1 result (13.8 stops) – as mentioned earlier we are a little more strict here and use the SNR = 2 result of 12.7 stops as the official cinema5D rating (following ARRI’s logic).

Furthermore, the fact that the dual gain sensor shows very similar dynamic range results (in 4K DCI) at both ISO640 and ISO4000 settings is phenomenal. You can use the higher ISO without any impact on your final image.

However, where there is light you also find shadows: compared to the Panasonic S1, the rolling shutter in all modes is higher – in full frame depending on the fps setting around 13%, in Super 35 mode about 33%.

So, is the Panasonic S1H worth the 4000 USD versus the 2500USD Panasonic S1 (+200USD for the V-Log upgrade)? Certainly if you are looking for a Netflix certified camera (Full information can be found by clicking here and here). My colleague Johnnie might also help us with this decision. His Panasonic S1H review and the short documentary he made as part of this review are now online and can be watched by clicking here.