GH5 Gh5s vs GH5 (with neat video) ? Is the GH5s worth the extra money?

M

Matt Lafountain

New member
Hi, i’m on the line if I should buy a GH5s to complement my GH5 in low light situations. Most of my filming is during sun light and 30% in low light (iso 1600 - 3200) . In those instances I normally use neat video to lower the noise and in some caises I can get away fixing it.

Is the GH5s that much better than the GH5?

Any real owner there? Internet in contaminated of reviewers no been very honest but more focus in having a good relation with manufacturers to get the camera first.

my plan is going to 3200max (maybe 6400 ISO in very few situations)

Cheers
 
I have both

ISO6400 definitely a massive improvement, ISO3200 - depends on subject, how dim etc. As I got away with ISO3200 on the GH5 before, but can see me using it more on the GH5s.

Tonight (GMT+1) I can record a few clips for you to have a look at??

TBH, I'll probably still grab the GH5 first. I got the GH5s for a steal so it wasn't the case of needing it now, but I couldn't turn down the offer.
 
How much is time worth to you. Thats what it really comes down to. Do you have the time to use NeatVideo or do you need the footage to be good out of the box. Thats where the true advantage of the GH5S is. The other thing to factor in in color quality. The GH5S manages to hold on to the same color quality up to ISO 6400 which is very impressive. No amount of noise reduction in post can ever get that back without some clever grading.

With that said the GH5S is not a must if you don't care about either of those things or if you only occasionally shoot in darker environments. For me the huge advantage is using the ISO2500 with slow zoom lenses at f5.6 or even creep up to ISO6400 and not really have to worry about long form Neatvideo in post on 4k material which can take a very long time. Still not 100% sold on a direction yet myself but coming from a GH4 any of the cameras will be an exciting upgrade for me.
 
I have both too. The GH5S is maybe 1.5 to 2 stops faster and to me has a slightly more pleasing colour. I shoot in the theatre and like the GH5S because it allows me to use a zoom to get closer that of course at this focal length is slow and comes close then to matching the GH5 at wide angle. Can use the 14-140 on the GH5S zoomed in and the 12-60 on the GH5 wide and they come close in exposure then.
 
It came down to IBIS and $700 for me. Do you hand hold a lot? I will wait for the GH6 or the GH5IS as I do want to hand hold a lot. If you shoot in log the color does not play into the mix as much outside of the higher ISO degradation.
 
I have both. Buckle in.

- GH5 has IBIS. This is unbelievably handy even if you are using small stabilization devices. For 70% outdoor light scenes, that means 70% of your footage will be able to utilize a much more stable, smoother image and to me that means 70% of my footage will look substantially more professional. You did not indicate the type of work you are doing but your statement seems self implicit that its live event coverage, docu coverage, or something of non-narrative nature where you aren't bringing lights to location. Frankly, I think I would choose on 70% of your footage to look like it was shot on a tripod or slider (yes, you can handheld move the camera and if you do it carefully, people literally will mistake it for a slider).

- GH5S is substantially better in lowlight. It's not just about how much higher you can go, it's about how much better things look lower, too. And even bright indoor locations can take a hit quick. I shot in a standard cafeteria-esque scenario for a homeless shelter event. The place is decently well lit. But I still needed to go ISO 2500 and f/2 on my camera to even get the image to where I was ok with the exposure. And in post, it was definitely useable but not as clean as I would have wanted. Shooting f/2 can be rough for focus. Ideally, I could have been at f/2.8 and ISO ~5000-ish. The GH5S could handle this like a champ. Really, it doesn't take much if you want to have a clean bright image indoors to start "needing" the GH5S. The GH5 will definitely suffice, but just plan to be sitting lower on your exposure than ideal for most indoor shoots, using neat video more frequently than you want (that really takes time in rendering), etc.

- All this said I used the GH4 for indoor shoots like wedding receptions, etc. for a couple years before I had these options. And it works. And you can clean it up. And the GH5 is years better. So this loops back around to...

70 / 30

For me I'd invest in 70%


EDIT:

Geez, I just read your post and you already have the GH5 lol. I misread that. I am leaving the above because if someone in the future reads this, hopefully it's valuable insight. To more directly answer your question:

The GH5 to me has still caused me a certain level of "lowlight embarassment". My clients have never complained, so you should factor that in to how sensitive your clientelle are, but knowing what I know about images, I've never been happy with a GH5 in lowlight VS the GH5S. It's just shockingly better. I tested it at a night market here the first day I got it and reviewing the footage was just a bit giddy. Literally, I can kick back at ISO 5000-6400 and it looks smoking good compared to the GH5. Gone are any lowlight worries or embarrasment.

The tests you'll see online are always too extreme for my taste to be truly helpful. People go candlelight crap and find the darkest street they can to crank the ISO. Who shoots like that? What matters to me is the mid level tests. Where you need to be around ISO 3200 and wish you could jump to ISO 6400 to get a full even exposure. True "low light" vs "no light". So, the GH5S looks even better when you are bumping up mid greys and light greys VS dark greys and blacks. Bumping up medium exposure fairs better than having no data to begin with.

If that "30%" is important to you, as it is to me, you can make your indoor shots look as good as your outdoor shots. And for me, that's worth it. Plus, a second camera is never bad to have in the stable. You can either tripod it for another angle, second shooter it with IBIS to a B-camera op and not worry as much about shakey b-footage, or throw a second prime lens onto it for a super quick angle swap if you need to go wide or telephoto with a moments notice.

A 2-stop light improvement is pretty significant. A lot of people will pay much for an f/2.8 lens VS and f/5.6 lens. To me the GH5S is prooobbabbly 1.5 stops better, non scientifically. But that's really all I need to get way better results. GH5S I am *happy* at ISO 6400. GH5 I feel like I am usable but *pushing it* at ISO 3200. YMMV.

  • So, ISO 2000-3200 on GH5 = solid, pushing it a bit. ISO 6400 - don't even think about it for pro.
  • ISO 2000-3200 on GH5S = cakewalk. ISO 6400 = sure! go for sure it.
  • If you're picky, I'd say GH5 is a very solid ISO 1600 camera and GH5S is an even more solid ISO 3200 camera.



Re: other factors, I do find the GH5S overall more pleasing to the eye. It's subtle but I noticed it right away.
 
The GH5s doesn't just have less noise at higher ISO's, the color and dynamic range both hold better, as well. Not something you can fix in post.
 
joe12south said:
The GH5s doesn't just have less noise at higher ISO's, the color and dynamic range both hold better, as well. Not something you can fix in post.
Click to expand...

Very good point. ISO 2500 maintains the full DR of GH5S, vs on GH5, you have lost what, 2.5 stops of DR at that point?

With such limited DR to begin with, holding onto every stop really matters.
 
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