Panasonic Lumix GH5 DC-GH5KBODY 20.3MP 4K Mirrorless Camera with 1x Optical Zoom(Black)

The Lumix GH5 is a professional-grade mirrorless camera that has been designed to meet the needs of serious photographers and videographers. With a 20.3-megapixel sensor, 4K video recording, and advanced autofocus system, the GH5 is a versatile and powerful camera that can handle a wide range of shooting scenarios. One of the standout features of the GH5 is its video capabilities. It can shoot 4K video at up to 60 frames per second, making it one of the few cameras on the market that can do so. This makes it an ideal choice for videographers who need high-quality footage that can be used in professional settings. The GH5 also has a high-quality autofocus system that is both fast and accurate. It can track subjects quickly and effectively, making it ideal for action and sports photography. Additionally, the camera has a fast burst mode that can capture up to 12 frames per second, making it a great choice for capturing fast-moving subjects. Another great feature of the GH5 is its image stabilization system. The camera has a 5-axis in-body stabilization system that works in conjunction with lenses that have optical stabilization to produce incredibly steady footage and still images. This makes it a great choice for handheld shooting or situations where a tripod is not practical. The camera also has a rugged, weather-sealed body that can withstand harsh conditions. This makes it an ideal choice for outdoor photographers and videographers who need a camera that can handle extreme temperatures and inclement weather. Overall, the Lumix GH5 is an excellent choice for anyone who needs a versatile and powerful camera that can handle a wide range of shooting scenarios. Its high-quality video capabilities, fast autofocus system, and rugged body make it an ideal choice for professional photographers and videographers who need a camera that can handle whatever they throw at it.

Rather than discuss how this camera compares to other similar cameras, I'll focus on my experiences moving up from a smaller camera. My previous choices were all about small size and high built in zoom: if you don't have a camera with you because it's a big nuisance, it's useless. I'm currently using this camera with a Panasonic H-H020A LUMIX G Ultra-Portable Pancake Lens, 20mm/F1.7 ASPH F1.7. The zoom is very close to what the eye sees. Instead of lugging a big expensive zoom lens around on this camera, my wife now carries our small zoom camera. I haven't missed the zoom: just move closer. The camera pouch I bought (DURAGADGET Lightweight & Ultra-Portable Carry Case) still permits carrying this camera with pancake lens on a belt loop. I am now carrying this camera either in a backpack with tripod, directly on the tripod, or by the handle of the pouch when I'm not wearing a belt. I'm a smallest aperture, low ISO (400 appears to be the camera's native sensitivity), long shutter time kind of guy. I cycle my photographs on a large screen TV (on when we're home) at 30 second intervals using the Kodi program fed from a dedicated home theater computer that is running 24/7. Blurry backgrounds in portrait photos on the large screen annoy me and I set up to prevent them. This means using a tripod with the 10 second delay and manually focusing on the person while also viewing a sharp background. In manual focus mode this camera shows a lot of sparkly blue dots for the areas that are in focus and has an option for a digital zoom in on the important area to help with sharp focusing. The 2 second delay for stills without a tripod works very well and is my default. When shooting with manual aperture and manual shutter, these options are easily operated by the top and rear rotation wheels. I just leave the aperture at 16. There is a simple bar graph that shows the optimal shutter speed required. If it gets down to 1/60 second, then I know a tripod is required. If the light is low and I don't have a tripod, then I switch the camera to automatic and just have to accept the resulting graininess and reduced depth of field of the image. I use the built in digital viewfinder with the very helpful horizontal level as the flip out panel acts like a wind sail. The 4K (actually UHD) video recording at 60 frames per second is the main reason I selected this camera. It works great as long as the camera is situated on a heavy tripod that prevents wind vibration. The videos do have some trouble with high ISO graininess early in the sunrises and late in the sunsets. I keep a circular polarizing filter on the camera except when the light is low, or the shots are indoors. Daylight UHD videos are stunningly beautiful and clearly exceed UHD broadcast quality. I tried the 400 Mbps video mode, but it steps down to 30 frames per second and I couldn't see any difference in the color quality on my new TV. The difference between 60 fps and 30 fps is very noticeable and I always use the 60 fps selection. A fabulous camera that I would buy again and doesn't need a big nuisance lens.

I will update this review as time goes on. At this point I have only experimented with the camera for several hours, but I already have enough information to form a solid foundation for a review (I have also used the GH4 for a few years). I run a small video production company, and for years I have used the GH4 for capturing high quality video. The problem is that every video shoot also requires several high quality/professional photographs. While the GH4 excelled in capturing video as a true camera it always came up short. As a result, I was always forced to lug my Nikon D750 around with me. I would travel with two cameras, and two sets of lenses. Occasionally, I would substitute the Nikon for my Fujix100T or I would substitute the GH4 for my Osmo Pro (recently it has been more of the later). What I need... want... would love .... is camera to do all of it. I guess I could invest in the FF Sony, but the idea of investing in a 3rd set of lenses doesn't exactly excite me. At some point.... either the video on the Olympus will come up... or the photo stills on the Panasonic will improve...right? Based on my tests - I think the GH5 will become my Holy Grail of cameras. I have 0% doubt that it will perform for video (and my the couple of tests I have run look very favorable), but my worry was IQ. The new 20.3MP resolution has me hopeful that the GH5 will become my one camera for all purposes. Photos - Again - I will update this as time goes on - The upgraded sensor seems to make a large difference.In the photos I attached the 1st picture was taken at ISO 400 while the rest were at ISO 1600. Frankly, I always got nervous taking my GH4 above ISO 800 the noise and grain really started to become noticeable. The GH5 looks very usable at ISO 1600 ( I need to check ISO 3200 a little closer). For full disclosure the ISO 1600 shots were taken with the Panasonic Leica f1.2 42.5mm gem of a lens. This is a good point for a tangent,. The reason why i like the MFT format (in addition to the cameras being physically smaller) there are some very excellent lenses out there. I would stack the Olymous Zuiko lenses up against the branded Nikon lenses any day of the week. In addition, ignoring the difference in focal length my Panasonic/Leica f1.2 42.5 rivals my Otus f1.4 55mm for my Nikon (plus it has vibration reduction AND autofocus - eat your heart out Sigma). These high quality lenses are smaller and cost less than their full frame rivals to boot. Now there are some poor lenses too, but if you are willing to pay a little more I have found all of the Panny/Leica and Olympus Zuiko lenses to be very, very good. Other notes - - If you shoot in RAW and use Lightroom you will have to update to 6.9. - The autofocus really is improved. It is very fast on the point. - Has the ability to do focus stacking - I haven't tried this yet - but it is a very interesting function. - Shooting manual is a breeze - I am not sure why Nikon can't copy Panasonic's focus peaking, but if they could... they should. I mentioned I owned the Otus f1.4 55mm.... that lenses would be soooooo much more useful if Nikon offered a similar type of focus peaking. - Low light performance - others may disagree, but I do think that it is better than the GH4. I have very good stills at ISO 1600. However, this might be a counter-intuitive since Panasonic is using the same sized sensor but increasing the resolution. In order for the camera to have better low light performance and higher resolution would require either significantly better algorithms and/or improvements on the actual sensor gathers the light. - Button placement and layout are still very solid. it is easy to navigate WB and ISO settings without moving your eyes (much more difficult on my Nikon D750). - No built in flash. Honestly, I can not remember the last time I used a built in flash. - The camera is not too much larger than the GH4, but it is noticeably heavier. This camera is dense, and while it still has an advantage over my full frame it's losing ground here. Video- - My early footage is excellent. The continuous autofocus is improved (although I do need to run a lot more tests on this one). I loved shooting footage with my GH4, but I usually filmed in manual focus. I never fully trusted the GH4 autofocus - it seemed to spend too much time searching. - The ability to shoot at 180 FPS (you have first select a variable frame rate to get into this menu). - Out of the box it will allow you to record 10 bit straight to SD card (I recommend the new high transfer rate cards). - Image stability - I am very excited for the improvements - but I definitely need to do a lot of testing to see how it really performs. - In short... for video the GH5 will do everything that GH4 will do, but it adds the ability to capture 10 bit footage directly to a SD card, offers weather protection, and in-body stabilization - The screen and viewfinder are excellent. Final Verdict - Again, I will have to update this review - there is MUCH still to be covered (especially for video). However, the early results are very promising and I do believe that Panasonic has made a significant improvement in IQ over the GH4. I may be naive, but I just ASSUMED it would be great for video (minor improvements in the GH4 would have helped maintain its status). The GH5 is roughly double the price of the GH4 so you will need to understand if the photo improvements and the upgrades in video are really worth it to you. For me... it is a no-brainer.... and I am optimistic that for now on I will be carrying just one camera with me! 5 Stars

The LUMIX GH5 is a dream come true! Panasonic has hit a huge home run with this camera! Cinema 4K recording at 24fps internally! 4K at 60fps 8bit 150mps internally! 400mps with update coming soon! 180fps in full 1080 FHD internally! The slow motion on this camera is buttery smooth! The size and grip is fantastic! What it's raining out? No problem this camera with the Leica 12-60mm lens is water resistant! It's also free resistant for shooting in low temperatures! Battery life is way better than the Sony's but not as good as the GH4 with how fast this camera processes it uses more juice. So be sure to pick up some spare batteries. Dual memory cards that can be hot swapped so you can continue constant recording with no overheating! Very grainless recording up to 1600 ISO. With additional purchase you can shoot in VlogL with a dynamic range of 12 stops when shooting at a native ISO of 400. Internal audio level meters, very good mic for this size of camera onboard. Zebras, focus assist, waveform and vector scope meters are all onboard. There are many customizable buttons and the view finder flips out, up, down and forward toward the lens is super bright and clear and also a touchscreen! The menus are very easy to navigate and well thought out! There is now 5 axis image stabilization on the sensor and if you are using a lens like the Leica 12-60mm it has power IOS. So you get two levels of stabilization working together. What does that mean? That means you can walk and record rock steady video! There has been a lot of controversy over the autofocus but I have found if you put it on either face detect or single point and press the shutter half way down to get it to lock on first it works very well. All in all this is an amazing camera for the price! For all the features and how well this works in the field I'd be happy if I spent twice the price! Go create something amazing!

The design and construction of the body are excellent, the build quality is superb, and everything feels like it's in the right place. With the exception of the placement of the DISP button, I love so much about this camera. From numerous video options, to decent still performance, to customizability of the controls - it's a great choice for hobbyists or pros. There are plenty of complaints or negatives about the autofocus, but since the v2.4 firmware, it's greatly improved. While it can't compete with dual-pixel focussing, it can still hold its own and has many other merits over similarly priced bodies. 2020 Update: It's been a year since my review and my rating stands. I've found some things I'd wish this camera did, but doesn't (eg. charge or self-power over the USB-C connector, or the function to use it as a webcam - a vital tool for COVID-times), and many things that this camera DOES but the competition still has troubles doing in their latest and greatest models (such as not overheating when filming in 4K!) This is still a video powerhouse in 2020 and the still-photo capabilities are solid for the price.

I’ve been using the Panasonic LUMIX GH5 since 2019, and it’s easily one of the best investments I’ve ever made for video production. I’ve traveled all over the Caribbean with it and filmed hundreds of projects, from documentaries to church services and events, and it’s never once let me down. The image quality is outstanding — sharp 4K footage, great color science, and the ability to shoot 4:2:2 10-bit video makes it perfect for professional work. The in-body stabilization (5-axis Dual I.S. 2.0) is a lifesaver for handheld shots, and the full-size HDMI output is great for external monitors and recording setups. What stands out most is its durability. It’s been through heat, humidity, travel, and long shoot days, and it still performs like new. The battery life is solid, the menu system is intuitive, and the autofocus, while not perfect, gets the job done once you know how to work with it. Even in 2025, this camera continues to deliver cinematic results that hold up against much newer models. The GH5 is truly a legendary camera — dependable, rugged, and capable of producing beautiful images year after year.