Panasonic S5 II vs Canon R6 Mark II vs Sony A7 IV. Which is the better camera for filmmaking?

Let’s compare the new ready-to-compete Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H) with the Canon R6 Mark II (Amazon, B&H) and the Sony A7 IV (Amazon, B&H).

All three mirrorless cameras in this comparison are within a price range of $2,000 to $2,500. Which one is a better investment for serious filmmakers?

Let’s find out with this fun comparison.

Autofocus comparison

The newly released Panasonic S5 II has phase hybrid autofocus with 779 AF points. The Sony A7 IV has a fast hybrid phase detection autofocus with 759 AF points. The Canon R6 Mark II has Advanced Dual Pixel CMOS II autofocus with 1053 AF points.

Does that mean the Canon is better? In most tests I’ve seen the Canon R6 Mark II (Amazon, B&H) outperforms the Sony A7 IV (Amazon, B&H), while the Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H) falls behind.

In real-life situations, especially in low light, all of these cameras fail and are not dependable for serious filmmaking work. You can get by with vlogs, but not actor movement.

Once we get our hands on the Panasonic S5 II we’ll be in a better position to judge.

Quick menu

• Comparison of sensors and video features
• Exposure, focus and ergonomics
• The costs of media and batteries
• Which is cheapest to own?
• Verdict. Who wins?

Comparison of sensors and video features

Here’s how the camera sensors compare for video:

Camera	Resolution	Maximum FPS*	Video ISO Range
Panasonic S5 II	5952 × 3968	30 fps (60 fps)*	100-51200 | 640-51200 in V-Log#
Sony A7 IV	3840 x 2160 / 7032 x 3958	60p/30p^	100-51200 | 800-51200 in S-Log3
Canon R6 Mark II	3840 x 2160	60p^^	100-25600 | 800-25600 in C-Log3

*Maximum fps in 4K is 60 fps. At 6K the maximum fps is 30 fps.

^7K oversampling is possible when recording in 4K 30p.

^^6K oversampling possible in 4K in Canon R6 Mark II

#The Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H) has dual native ISO at ISO 640 and ISO 4000 in V-Log.

What about 4K frame rates?

Camera	Max fps at 4K	Dynamic Range	Max fps at 1080p
Panasonic S5 II	60 fps*	14+ stops	120 fps
Sony A7 IV	60 fps*	15+ stops	240 fps
Canon R6 Mark II	60 fps	14 stops	180 fps

*In APS-C/Super35mm mode. You don’t get 60p in full frame mode, unfortunately.

All three cameras have something to brag about. While the Canon R6 Mark II (Amazon, B&H) has 60p in full frame mode the Sony A7 IV (Amazon, B&H) has oversampled video and 240 fps in 1080p. The Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H) has 6K video and a lower ISO in log mode.

Next, the codecs and color information:

Camera	RAW and Code in 4K and Higher	Color Information
Canon R6 Mark II	Prores RAW | H.264/H.265 ALL-I	RAW | 10-bit 4:2:2/8-bit 4:2:0
Sony A7 IV	Prores RAW | H.264/H.265 ALL-I, IPB	RAW | 10-bit 4:2:2/8-bit 4:2:0
Panasonic S5 II	ProRes RAW* | H.264/H.265 ALL-I, IPB	RAW | 10-bit 4:2:2/8-bit 4:2:0^

*It’s a paid future firmware upgrade using Software Upgrade Key DMW-SFU2 (S5II).

^10-bit 4:2:0 in 6K 30p, 10-bit 4:2:2 in 4K 60p.

Nowadays 10-bit 4:2:2 in 4K is a given, and all three cameras give us that.

The Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H) and Canon R6 Mark II (Amazon, B&H) have fast USB 3.2 Gen 2 readout speeds if you’re transferring data that way.

If you want the best Prores RAW output possible you might want to invest in an Atomos Ninja V+ (Amazon, B&H):

Focus and exposure aids and ergonomics

What’s the point of RAW if you can’t expose it correctly? The little things make all the difference:

Camera	Exposure
Panasonic S5 II	Waveform, Zebras, Histogram, Meter
Canon R6 Mark II	Zebras, Histogram, Meter
Sony A7 IV	Zebras, Histogram, Meter

Here the Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H) wins with the waveform monitor. Panasonic has always been ahead of the game in this regard.

All three have similar OLED viewfinders and LCDs and in real-world shoots I don’t think it will matter all that much.

The Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H) has a built-in heat dispersion fan system for longer duration recording. The camera will still overheat in modes above 4K. Modes above 4K also have a recording limit of 30 minutes, while in 4K there is no recording limit. This means two things:

1. More power draw due to the fan
2. More weight due to the fan

Camera	HDMI Port	Weight (with card and battery)
Panasonic S5 II	Type A	740g
Sony A7 IV	Type A	658g
Canon R6 Mark II	Type D	670g

For other details like menu, usability, buttons, etc., I’ll have to get my hands on the S5 II to learn more. However, all three camera systems have evolved to better menus and operability over the last few years so I think you’ll be okay with either.

Image Stabilization

All three cameras have 5-axis image stabilization with the best performance coming from native lenses. Without a thorough test it’s hard to say which is better, though from initial reports it seems the Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H), being the most modern system, is also the best.

Batteries and media cards

Here’s a look at the media:

Camera	Dual card slots	Price per GB for 512 GB*
Panasonic S5 II	Yes, SDHC/SDXC, UHS-II	$0.63/GB
Sony A7 IV	Yes, CFexpress Type A or UHS-II SD Card	$2.49/GB and $0.63/GB
Canon R6 Mark II	Yes, SDHC/SDXC, UHS-II	$0.63/GB

CFexpress cards are not cheap (comparing Sandisk Extreme Pro to be fair). For practical shoots, you will need multiple cards. This could really add to your budget. With the Sony a7 IV, you can use CFExpress or UHS-II, which is a huge relief.

What about battery life?

Camera	Battery life	Cost one one battery	Cost of 6 hours of operation
Panasonic S5 II	45 minutes	$67.50	$540
Sony A7 IV	110 minutes	$78	$255
Canon R6 II	120 minutes	$79	$237

The added fan also increases power draw and this affects the S5 II.

Which is cheaper to own?

Let’s just add up the costs:

Camera	Sony A7 IV	Panasonic S5 II	Canon R6 Mark II
Camera body	$2,498	$1,999	$2,499
Media and Accessories	Tie	Tie	Tie
Batteries	$255	$540	$237
Total	$2,753	$2539	$2,736

The S5 II looked cheaper, but with added battery usage the gap is narrower. Now you know why we’re comparing the three.

Recap

Who wins each feature?

Feature	Winner
Sensor and ISO	Sony A7 IV
Video features	Sony A7 IV
DR and Color	Sony A7 IV
Rolling Shutter	TBD
Exposure Aids	Panasonic S5 II
Media	Tie
Lenses	Tie
Ergonomics	TBD
Ports and Monitoring	Panasonic S5 II
Audio	Tie
Autofocus	Canon R6 Mark II
Battery life	Tie

Before we take our final decision, we’ll let the cameras tell us what they offer that the others don’t:

Camera	USP	Major Cons
Panasonic SS II	Unlimited recording time in 4K	Battery life, weight, cost of lenses
Canon R6 Mark II	4K 60p in Full frame	Overheating
Sony A7 IV	7K oversampled, 240 fps in 1080p, low light performance	Overheating

My Verdict

I said I’ll try to provide a balanced overview, even though it’s hard. Here’s what I think:

Type of Filmmaking	Preferred Camera	Major Reasons
Documentaries and corporate videos	Sony A7 IV	Low light performance, battery life and 240 fps
Short or feature films	Canon R6 Mark II	Full frame in 4K and 60 fps
Music Videos	Sony A7 IV	Low light performance, battery life and 240 fps
Journalism	Sony A7 IV	Low light performance, battery life and 240 fps
Wildlife	Sony A7 IV	Low light performance, battery life and 240 fps
Weddings and Events	Sony A7 IV	Low light performance, battery life and 240 fps

Even though the Canon R6 Mark II (Amazon, B&H) leads the Sony A7 IV (Amazon, B&H) in fictional work, the gap is a lot narrower if you don’t care about full frame mode in 60p.

The Panasonic S5 II (Amazon, B&H), with all its advancements, falls behind, unfortunately. It’s probably a capable camera, but I can’t recommend it over the other two.

Overall, the Sony A7 IV (Amazon, B&H) wins.

What do you think?