You’ve probably seen that a lot of YouTubers love their LUMIX cameras. They’re indeed really great for a variety of things. But we know that photographers are the ones who read this site, and photographers come first here. The LUMIX S5II is truly one of the best full-frame cameras that you can get your hands on if you’re looking for something that can give you special images. If you really want to do less post-production, we’ve got a camera kit for you that we know you’re going to love.
This article is presented in partnership with Lumix.
What This Kit is Great For
- All the products in this Essentials lookbook are sponsored by Lumix.
- The camera and lenses featured are meant to be used in addition to anything else you have like lens filters, lights, tripods, bags, etc. We’ve reviewed tons of all of those, and you can find some guidance from within our Reviews Index.
- The LUMIX S5II is very capable with being able to do things like second curtain flash sync, Real Time LUT that means you might never have to apply presets in post-production, and Live View Composite that helps with a variety of photo situations.
- We’ve done our own independent reviews of all these products on our site.
- The lenses that we’re recommending are weather resistant, and so they can handle almost any situation that you’d throw at them.
LUMIX S5II
There are a lot of things about the LUMIX S5II that make it such a great camera for photographers. Ergonomically speaking, it appeals to the nice feeling of having a dial on either side of the viewfinder the same way they did in the film days. Then there’s the high resolution EVF that’s easy to see, the LCD screen that can help you take a photo in almost any angle you need, and so much more. Recently, there’s been talk of the sloped shutter button of cameras and how nice that can be for the ergonomics. The Lumix S5II has that for sure. But what’s even more special here is how they implemented the front dial. It’s right around the shutter button, so you don’t even really need to move your finger from it.
Combine all this with the features like scene detection autofocus, AF-Scope focusing, Real Time LUT, and so much more. This is an incredible camera for any working photographer that wants something lightweight, durable, and reliable.
LUMIX 20-60mm f3.5-6.3 ASPH
This is the kit lens that comes with the LUMIX S5II. And we truly have to say that originally, we didn’t appreciate this lens. But the versatility that it allows is something that really isn’t talked about all that much, and so therefore people don’t understand it. It’s wider than your standard 24-70mm f4 lens — which doesn’t seem like a lot with just 4mm extra. But the difference can be huge. It might mean that you don’t need to take an extra step back or set your tripod even lower. And on the longer end, it becomes almost like working between a 50mm and 85mm lens. You just need to step back and forth as needed.
LUMIX 50mm f1.8
We’ve often called this lens the best nifty 50mm on the market, and we stand by that. The LUMIX 50mm f1.8 S is lightweight, fast to focus, and weather resistant. It also shares the same 67mm filter thread as most of the company’s other lenses. It can genuinely just do everything very well and if there’s a single prime that’s bound to stay stuck on your camera, it’s this one.
LUMIX 85mm f1.8
We recommend the LUMIX 85mm f1.8 for several reasons. First off, it’s the longest lens on this list. If you need something longer, the LUMIX S5II has a built in crop mode that lets it reach even further. It also has all the benefits of the 50mm f1.8. But we mostly recommend this lens for candid shooting, portraits, and product photography where you really want the bokeh to make a subject pop.
It’s truly one of our favorite lenses for the L Mount. The L-mount alliance was founded by Lecia, LUMIX and Sigma years ago. The three brands share autofocus algorithms, exposure data, and more through the mount so that their cameras and lenses can work as seamlessly as possible – allowing for a new level of freedom and choice. Photographers have options ranging from affordable to higher-end photographic instruments to make images that will enchant audiences. If you’re photographing while on a hike, in the desert, at a sports arena, or even at a local studio, LUMIX has a lens that can help the translation between your artistic and technical minds with ease.