PANASONIC LUMIX S1H

A Lumix S1 redesigned specifically for video

- Rod Lawton & Alistair Campbell

The Panasonic Lumix S1H could easily look like a ‘video’ version of its 24-megapixel Lumix S1 mirrorless sibling – in the past it has sometimes been pretty difficult to unravel the different video credentials of Panasonic’s Lumix cameras. This time, though, the difference is clear: the Lumix S1 is a stills camera that’s pretty good at video; the S1H is most definitely a video camera, which also happens to be pretty useful for stills.

It’s not just us saying that. The Lumix S1H is the first mirrorless camera to get Netflix ‘A’ approval as a primary camera for filming original Netflix productions – and the cheapest, too, mixing with far more expensive rivals like the Arri Alexa 65, the Red One and the Sony Venice.

Its video specifications are impressive enough, but with plenty of rivals snapping at its heels it also relies on other key cinematography features to make its mark – many of them alien to stills photographers, but essential to pro filmmakers.

Key features

Panasonic aims to deliver cinema-quality video with the Lumix S1H, and it has the features to back that up. The headline spec is its ability to capture either 6K video (yes, 6K) in a 3:2 ratio at 24p and 10-bit 4:2:0 quality, or 5.9K in a conventional 1:9 ratio at 30p/25p/24p. At this level, though, processing power is the limiting factor, so with 6K or 5.9K capture you’re restricted to the cropped Super 35mm format.