MrSMW

The reality. I am sure you can get more out of R3D than Lumix log, but at 5x the data rate. But then again, I have seen the size of the Lumix raw files and they are over 10x log, so err, no thanks. The actual reality is that no one will notice, especially as all they are interested in these days is the 60 second short on social media that can easily be shot on a phone or action cam...which coincidently, is exactly what I will be doing next year... Should we care? Yes we should...but always within the realms of reality and that reality for me is I'm not going to be shooting data rates 5-10x what I already have that are already more than good enough, because where does it stop? I still love the ZR, - I think it is THE camera of the year, all factors considered, but mainly for it's form factor and rear LCD, although I do wish that was tilt not flip out, but hey ho, not buying one so what does my opinion matter!

I’m not desperate to buy a new camera, but this is what is missing for me also. The A7CR is currently closest but other than format, the A7RV trounced it for me. Ditto the S1RII vs the S9. I can live without the EVF but the lack of mech shutter really caused me issues on the stills side. Sigma FP/L ditto. That camera for me is 2 elements away from being my perfect camera: Mech shutter + hi res tilt/flip LCD. The lack of IBIS used to bother me but I would shoot it on a monopod so not an issue. Tried the Leica TL2 but it was a bit clunky and moved on a bit from APSC anyway and would really only consider full-frame or medium format today.

Or maybe you will not 😂 I still stand by the ‘fact’ that it’s an excellent choice for my needs and the only alternative combo I would switch to right now at the end of 2025, would be Nikon Z8 + ZR + Z6iii (or perhaps 2x ZR’s) vs 2x S1Rii + S5ii and if a fairy waved her magic wand in my direction and said it could happen overnight with zero faff or cost, I’d accept her offer. But as fairies don’t exist, I’ll just have to stick with what I have!

I don't know about the Sony A1 but against the Z8, the S1RII might be? I do think the S1RII is the best of the line. It's more capable than the S5II/X for video and offers quite. bit more than the S1II for stills, so for hybrid users like me, is a bit of a gem. 8k 30p @ 300mpbs video with stellar IBIS, especially if the E stab is switched on with a quality that for every test I have seen, just looks better than the S1II. Or 7.2k 30p open gate as I have been shooting most of this year, but pretty sure I am going to 8.1k 30p next year using the 2.39:1 crop markers (ie, the flexibility in post to do anything within a 17:9 output but see and shoot in pano mode). From a stills perspective, I think my old A7RV had a slight edge, but I had my editing of those files absolutely nailed down to my taste and it's taken a little longer to dial in the S1RII and again, probably going to start using the in camera Jpeg 65x24 crop mode whilst retaining the full 3x2 raw file in case I wish to use it. Having 5 custom photo and 5 custom video settings is fantastic as I have settings for 'everything' now. Factor in the hybrid zoom function for stills (can only use it up to 4k in video mode) and the prime lens equivalent, is great for getting a 1.4x crop whilst still retains the full-size raw file, so again, great for composition. I'm still debating over whether I can get away with just the Sigma 28-70 or whether I do need the 28-105 (for ceremonies and speeches and I probably do), if I start shooting in 65x24 mode where you lose so much height in favour of width, longer lenses tend to be too long for the format... I am going to pick up the new 24-60 f2.8 for sure for video as pretty much every test shows that despite it not being an S lens, it's pretty exceptional for it's size, weight and cost. I think Andrew, you'd come around to the S1RII in time, especially as the prices come down. Better than the OG S5 and S9 easily. I love(d) the S9, but just not quite 'pro' enough for my needs and other than as a C cam, I won't use it as a primary camera in 2026, - too many niggles. Mainly too easy to jog a dial and have your settings off when shooting video and if shooting 1/50th at 30p as I am doing in a PAL region, aaaaaaaaargh, LED light flickering and banding!! Better than the S5II other than for long static stuff. Better than the S1II? I think so also as that I see as a more dedicated video camera or at least one with less stills capability and I think the colour is just better with the S1RII being a different sensor. Would I trade it for a Z8? Easily...but only as a sideways move as there are pros and cons to each... S1RII to Z8 for stills? Probably... My other S1RII for a ZR for video? Possibly, but only for that rear screen and the form factor. S5II for the Z6III? For my static work, pretty equal. Cost to change = not worth it, especially as a sideways move which it would be for me. I loved my S1H and I do see my S1RII(s) as a mash up of the S1R and S1H but more capable than either, in a pretty decent body.

I’m a big believer in both planning and walking when I choose to walk rather than being pushed. Or fading into irrelevance 😉

Maybe, - I couldn't say as there are a lot who say the opposite and say the market is over-saturated and everyone else is undercutting them. I really don't know and pay almost zero attention to what anyone else is doing and never really have! Perhaps another reason why I keep ticking/plodding along? And on that note, back to editing the 4th to last of the season and then 'just' 3 more to go for this year...

Ticking along but still here after 25 years comprising approx the first 10 as a photographer and the last 15 as a hybrid shooter in the wedding industry. 5 more years to go and then I will be packing it in out of choice. In the meantime, just have to make sure I keep my head above water and not overly concerned in that regard as neither AI nor the wannabes can do what I do. Yet, as far as AI goes anyway... Seen a lot of changes but no real challenges as such and for whatever reason, I just seem to have been in a place where I can just tick along and by 'tick along', I don't mean cruise, because I am always working at it and on it. Rather I just don't feel the need to follow every trend and possibly because of that, why I have remained pretty constant whilst I have seen so many come and go.

That would almost have certainly have got me a sale in 2025, but as things stand, I still prefer the Q3 43 and if it did not cost so damn much, I’d have one. I’d get a Sony A7CR with the same sensor and a 16-28mm for the less than 10% of the time I need anything wider than approx 35mm and be done for my stills needs. But as much as I love the rangefinderesque format, I have not yet been able to build a system that suits my needs around it since…well since Fuji’s X Pro2 actually. Q3 43 still sits at the pinnacle for me at the end of 2025, but at about double what I am prepared to pay 😏

Yup, but to be fair, Lumix has had a lot of ‘love’ recently from the shill brigade but a lot of them will now (and have already started) flipping over to the ZR. Soon though, Sony will be releasing the A7V and they will then flop back in that direction and will have gone full circle. Beyond that, perhaps DJI will have popped out their rumored MILC and that will become The Next Big Thing? It’s all inevitable.

Indeed which was why for stills anyway, my 3 most recent cameras have been; S1R 47mp, A7RV 61mp and now S1RII 44mp. I do wish Panny had gone with/been able to use the 61mp sensor from the Sony also used in the Leica SL3 because those 15mp do allow a fair bit more cropping, but hey ho. I have mine set up for Hybrid Zoom and whatever they call the the equivalent for zooms at the 1.4x crop setting so something like my 28-70 becomes a 28-98 and a 50mm f1.8, a 70 and that’s a really good option to have in camera at a flick of a switch. For next season, I am probably going to pick up the Sigma 28-105mm f2.8 as a ‘one & done’ for stills because with hybrid mode engaged, it becomes almost a 150mm lens and allows me to do away with switching to an even bigger and heavier 70-200 and that is a big deal. 24-70 + 70-200 vs 28-105(-147)= A. No lens swaps B. More range in a single lens C. Less weight than a 70-200 and less than 1/2 the weight compared with the duo D. Costs less I don’t think there is a Fuji equivalent so it would be a lens pairing again and medium format for me is now dead unless we ever see something like an f2.8 RF, but I’d prefer to see a fixed lens S1RII rangefinderesque body a la Q3.

All hail the Nikon ZR 4 inch rear LCD

Yes it would, especially if it was high megapixel to allow extensive cropping either in camera or in post. The RF100 came so close for me other than the f4 lens. An f2.8 would have swung it for me but high MP sensors are a good thing IMO. I built my career off Nikon and then Fuji so have a soft spot for them both so like to see them do well. Also, I prefer rangefinderesque style bodies over SLR style humped blocks and whilst L Mount has them in Leica and Sigma flavour, I wish the old Panasonic Pony of Hope would ride into town on one. The Fuji X Pro2 was the camera I probably owned the longest and shot the most work on.

Possibly and from my perspective, yes! But that’s based on my own selfish desires. And then again, since acquiring first one and then a second S1Rii, I ask myself what is missing from those that I need and the answer is absolutely nothing! I loved the design of my S1H and its video capability. The S1Rii beats it. I loved the photo capability of the OG S1R but hated the body. I now have that capability on the S1H ‘lite’ body. I have literally zero complaints. The S9 has limitations however and despite my liking the little fucker, a season’s pro use with it has shown up it’s shortcomings…

Sorry, my mistake, it’s the 18-40 lens of course and not the Titty Artisan lens 🙈 But still a really good looking little kit etc even though it doesn’t have any more capability than any other colour including good old black. There are some other EU only release colours I think. I have a red one. Thought about selling it since I got a pair of S1Rii’s but repurposing it instead as a static extra video unit for those occasions when I could do with such a thing. Rather than pocket £500, makes sense to me as business user.

Or just go buy the TT Artisan one at £159 and that's Lumix's loss in terms of lens sales at least. IMO, unless you want to shoot cropped video, in which case the Sigma 17-50mm f2.8 is a great choice, for stills, the 40mm f2 is a perfect match. I didn't realise it was a limited edition and even if they gave away 1/2 of them, apparently still at least one available as it's listed as in stock on Panny's UK website at £1199 inc. matching Titty lens. Might just pick one up to sell on to the Leica Sunday polishers...

It does look really good and if it only had a mechanical shutter, it would be golden. Titanium golden to be precise.

Well I’m shooting 7.2k 30p open gate h.265 V-log with baked in Phantom LUT (for S5ii as he hasn’t produced an update for the second gen S line…because I asked Joel direct) on my S1RII and think it’s fcuking great. Zero complaints or issues, no over-sharpening and no moire. The latter two things may be down to also shooting with a 1/8th gold mist at all times, but whatever, heard all the blah before and it just works for me. If I ever change from Lumix, it won’t be anything to do with the quality of of it’s video that’s for sure as it’s more than good enough for my needs and by ‘more than good enough’, I mean superb by my definition of the term. Sure, I would rather have the Zr body and that screen, but then again, even that screen has an issue for me in that it can’t tilt and pull out in line with the camera as my S1RII’s can so despite it’s size & rez, still not perfect. But raw… Finally decided after seeing and reflecting upon the results of this last season, it would be overkill for me and just a major hassle I could do without.

Ouch

It took me a long time to be persuaded of the advantage of raw vs Jpeg, but once I gave in, I saw the light. I suspect if in camera storage and subsequent drive storage was not an issue, I might be tempted. If I was to earlier in my career rather than the twilight, even more so, but I have decided against. Very tempted with the new Zr, but in the end I have made the decision that I am better putting my effort elsewhere. There are 3 areas for me where I could invest my time & energy. 1. Tech 2. Creativity 3. Marketing I choose 2&3 going forward because 1. is as good as it needs to be for me.

Probably and until Resolve etc support the new codec. But then I've seen some side by side comparisons with Nraw where the reviewer is saying, "look at how much less noise there is" and I agreed, there was less, but also, "look how much better these skin tones are" and I thought, really? have you got your labelling wrong because the Nraw looked better in your side by side examples. So I guess until folks you know, love and trust start showcasing or you can get your own hands dirty, the jury is still out on just how good it is beyond the hype. My own personal jury has ruled against it despite thinking the camera looks fabulous, the screen is killer and the pricing excellent, but no way am I going to be using those file sizes. Lumix, get on with the S1H2 please.

Someone above was asking about the data rates I recall. For Red Raw ‘Lite’ they are as follows: 6048 x 3402 : 59.94p (3780 Mbps), 50p (3160 Mbps), 29.97p (1900 Mbps), 25p (1590 Mbps), 23.97p (1520 Mbps) Compared with S1II 6K open gate at 200Mbps it really hits hard. As much as I love this camera (the Zr) now I have had more time to think about it, I’d want to use that Red codec and both the 25p and 50p options but that’s 8-16x the data rates…and that would be nuts for my kind of work. Nikon is still the best lens platform however at this time.

Mid season report. Actually, I am nearing end of season with just 2 more jobs to go this year until June next…which is quite normal for me. The TDLR is I almost love it… Why ‘almost’? I’ll get to that… The Good = The body design actually. Yes I would rather Lumix had moved to a body style more like the FX3, but I guess they thought that might scare photographers who expect a hump. Whatever the reason, it’s not as innovative as it could have been and despite not having a top screen, really is like a smaller S1H in the hand and IMO, that is a good thing. In my hands, with no battery grip or any other adornment other than the smallest Senheisser mic, it feels just right in terms of size, weight, build, comfort, ergos. It’s a true hybrid. It would be even better with an internal electronic VND, but hey ho, maybe that will come with the S1H2? With 5x C1-5 custom settings and a simple photo-video switch, it’s fabulous for hybrid work. I don’t even use all 5 photo and 5 video settings, but have it set up basically as: landscape photo, portrait/candid outdoor, portrait/candid indoor and low-light, all with a starting f stop, aperture, WB, ISO and equivalent matching settings for video so it’s actually only one flick of a switch to flip between video and stills in any given scenario. Brilliant. The sensor. 44mp. Perfect 👌 for me sweet spot between the more traditional 24mp and the 100mp of the bigger MF sensors. Suits both photo and video. Video files and capability. I shoot 7.2k 30p open gate and the file sizes are not huge or slow to work with. With baked in conversion LUT, SOOC I love them. Yes raw would be even better, but an almighty faff and overkill for my needs. The open gate allows any number of crops, 30p a 20% reduction in speed on a timeline and the 7.2k quite a bit of scope for punching in etc. Having said that, not fully edited a finished production yet but I have checked and edited a few bits here and there and it’s even better than the 6K I was using before which itself was better than the 4K from Lumix FF cameras so thumbs up. The Not So Good = Battery life is pretty poor. I’ve always scoffed at people reporting poor battery life and never experienced it on any camera. Until now. It’s not great, but a spare battery in my pocket at all times is how I now roll and is what it is. AF accuracy for video is good but not Sony level. Ditto for photo. Having come directly from an A7RV, I’d give the nod to the Sony for ultimate outright stills quality and AF, but the S1RII gets the nod for video and body. I don’t think there is anything else other than I have a pair of them matched with the 35mm f1.8 on one and the 85mm f1.8 on the other. The S9 is on lighter duties of video only, mostly longer than clips and sometimes even full length ceremonies and speeches and has only overheated once and that was on a very hot day in direct sunlight. The S1RII by the way, I have never even had a warning and has never got hot to touch, - just the usual warmth you might expect shooting a thing all day long. I may replace the S9 next year with an S1IIE for a bit more robustness and utility, but waiting to see if any S1H2 appears before doing that, if I do that. Almost certainly will trade the Sigma 28-70mm f2.8 for the new Lumix 24-60mm f2.8 next year as I think it will suit my needs better and appears to offer better AF and detail/rendering. S5II soldiers on in its static role and just does what I need it to do. I do need to find a way to get rid of the battery grip and the heavy tripod however and working on that… So ‘almost’ love it. It’s the battery life and good but not stellar AF plus the less than exciting body design that drops it 2 points for me so I’ll give it an 8/10. Along with the Z8, probably the best all round hybrid camera available today? At least for my needs. Taking into account lens options and prices.

Anything that is one less step of faffing about is a good thing in my book which is why I bake my conversion LUT into my files in camera. But what if I wanted to change my conversion LUT? I’ve never wanted nor will ever need to and so it’s one less layer on my timeline. I’m ‘only’ on an M2 chip on my MacBook but no speed issues editing 6K timelines.

Maybe next year… Currently on a 13 Pro bought as a refurb a few years back and it’s about the right size for me as I travel a lot and a Mini is too small and Macbook a pain unless I am actually working. The 13 does everything I need it to do but I’d like a better camera or rather more lens options so…

Found a flaw. A big one. Price to change 😂 Just costed it and it came out at around 15k to purchase everything I need even using used prices for some of the gear and with trade in for all my L Mount gear not much over 1/2 of that, it’s not happening…which is fine as what I have is great. Just wrestling a bit with that S5II/biggish lens/battery grip/heavy tripod conundrum, but I’ll work it out and not pollute this thread any further with dirty Lumix talk. The Zr though I think is THE camera of 2025, especially considering the price. It depends on your needs of course but it pretty much nails mine and I didn’t think it would, but then again, Nikon have been on a bit of a roll lately and in the hybrid mirrorless world, might just be the system to beat right now…