Deciding between K1-ii and Panasonic S5 - (please no MILC vs DSLR)

Have narrowed it down to the K1-ii and S5.

Weight and kit lens are in S5 favor..
Wondering what I would gain from K1ii

Primary use in priority

• Compact, travel needs, has to be FF
• DR, mostly do landscapes
• IBIS
• Occasional portraits indoors

Jhaakas wrote:

Have narrowed it down to the K1-ii and S5.

Weight and kit lens are in S5 favor..
Wondering what I would gain from K1ii

Primary use in priority

• Compact, travel needs, has to be FF
• DR, mostly do landscapes
• IBIS
• Occasional portraits indoors

What will you gain from K-1 II? More single shot resolution, use of your K-mount lenses, even APS-C ones. Mechanical manual focus on lenses. Then GPS and all the Pentax features: horizon correction and composition adjustment, Astrotracer, the multi-direction tilt screen, external LEDs for night use etc. Maybe better ergonomics, maybe better weather sealing (depends on lenses too). And OVF. You also gain weight :))

What will you gain from S5? Lighter, more compact, flip screen, better video, larger AF area coverage, live composite, focus bracketing, 96 MP with 8-shot pixel shift (but softer than the Pentax 36 MP with 4-shot pixel shift) and access to the latest Sigma lenses. You may also gain eye strain :))

EDIT. One more thing: Panasonic Lumix's future in the photography business is not looking necessarily brighter than Pentax's, just because they are making mirrorless. They may actually decide to focus on video from now on.

Also, please consider that Pentax K-1, the original, has probably the most recoverable shadows from all FF cameras ever. This should be useful for landscape photography.

Jhaakas wrote:

Have narrowed it down to the K1-ii and S5.

Weight and kit lens are in S5 favor..
Wondering what I would gain from K1ii

Primary use in priority

• Compact, travel needs, has to be FF
• DR, mostly do landscapes
• IBIS
• Occasional portraits indoors

K1 ii is a good or even great camera for such needs but it is big and heavy. However, there are very nice prime lenses for it that are really compact, so the whole kit doesn't necessarily have to be very big. I wouldn't go with the kit lens though- you'd probably be better off buying 2 prime lenses for wide angle and standard focal length and a 70-200 f 2.8 or f 4 zoom

The 2 good things about the S5 are the ability to take video & much better face/eye detection, particularly for portraits. Outside of that, the K-1II is cheaper in the long run with legacy glass & current lenses. The L-mount stuff is really pricey.

alex_virt wrote:

Panasonic, but make sure you're OK with EVF.

Yes, EVF is fine ..

MaciekPruski wrote:

K1 ii is a good or even great camera for such needs but it is big and heavy. However, there are very nice prime lenses for it that are really compact, so the whole kit doesn't necessarily have to be very big. I wouldn't go with the kit lens though- you'd probably be better off buying 2 prime lenses for wide angle and standard focal length and a 70-200 f 2.8 or f 4 zoom

I agree.. with K1, there is almost infinite options in terms of high quality optics lenses on ebay

Might have to settle for 2 cameras  - one for travel like compact apsc one

Pick a candidate K1ii system (=with lenses) and a candidate S5 system.

See what it weighs, what use and abuse it can take,how much it costs and most importantly how it fits your needs.

K1ii and limiteds is pretty compact!

But if you want video.... it's a no-contest.

Jhaakas wrote:

Have narrowed it down to the K1-ii and S5.

Weight and kit lens are in S5 favor..
Wondering what I would gain from K1ii

Primary use in priority

• Compact, travel needs, has to be FF
• DR, mostly do landscapes
• IBIS
• Occasional portraits indoors

If those are indeed in order, then S5. No one ever accused the K-1 of being high on the 'compactness' scale, and that's the first thing you mention.

If your gear list is accurate, then you only have one FA lens (the 100mm macro), and that's not going to cover you for landscape. The Pentax advantage there would only be being able to use whatever new lenses you buy on your current K-5. But plan on a new set of lenses either way. Lenses complicate/muddle the size and weight question, of course. Think about the whole system.

Why is IBIS a thing for you? I'd normally think of it-has-to-be-FF landscape shooting as more a tripod activity.

Jhaakas wrote:

alex_virt wrote:

Panasonic, but make sure you're OK with EVF.

Yes, EVF is fine ..

The S5's EVF might seem fine to you now, but wait till you see the next model... and the next... and the next. Each new generation of mirrorless cameras is seeing improvements here... which means that the one you buy today is an immature technology. I wouldn't want to run in that kind of hamster wheel of constant upgrades and planned obsolescence. My K-1's OVF is a mature, perfected product... until they put a better one with the K3lll's glass inside!

miles green wrote:

Pick a candidate K1ii system (=with lenses) and a candidate S5 system.

See what it weighs, what use and abuse it can take,how much it costs and most importantly how it fits your needs.

K1ii and limiteds is pretty compact!

But if you want video.... it's a no-contest.

This! I was about to tell you how three Limited lenses on a K-1 gives you five focal lengths: 22mm (DA 15 in crop mode), 31, 47 (FA in crop mode), 77, 115 (FA in crop mode). With each of these lenses in use, the total weight in your hands is  never more than 1200 grams, or 2.5 lbs. That's not much to carry, for the capability you get. You'd have to go towards  Panasonic MFT to reduce that weight by as much as a pound, maintaining versatility and quality.

In short, the K-1 isn't such a big  camera until you mount a fast pro zoom onto it. Landscape photogs don't need that.

You know, for a forum often accused of blind faith and brand-fanaticism, the OP sure seems to be getting a lot of balanced responses. Well done, everyone.

bob5050 wrote:

Jhaakas wrote:

Have narrowed it down to the K1-ii and S5.

Weight and kit lens are in S5 favor..
Wondering what I would gain from K1ii

Primary use in priority

• Compact, travel needs, has to be FF
• DR, mostly do landscapes
• IBIS
• Occasional portraits indoors

If those are indeed in order, then S5. No one ever accused the K-1 of being high on the 'compactness' scale, and that's the first thing you mention.

If your gear list is accurate, then you only have one FA lens (the 100mm macro), and that's not going to cover you for landscape. The Pentax advantage there would only be being able to use whatever new lenses you buy on your current K-5. But plan on a new set of lenses either way. Lenses complicate/muddle the size and weight question, of course. Think about the whole system.

Why is IBIS a thing for you? I'd normally think of it-has-to-be-FF landscape shooting as more a tripod activity.

Thanks bob, great feedback..

IBIS is needed for my indoor photography

Yes, I dont have many Pentax lenses that I would worry about and wont be selling my K5ii as it is not going to fetch a lot of money

The size of S5 with the 20-60 kit lens is 980 gm vs 1165 gm for my present K5ii+18-135
And I gain in the FF sensor so seems win-win

Of course I lose on tele end but for my landscapes, I gain significantly in the wide end .

Jhaakas wrote:

bob5050 wrote:

Jhaakas wrote:

Have narrowed it down to the K1-ii and S5.

Weight and kit lens are in S5 favor..
Wondering what I would gain from K1ii

Primary use in priority

• Compact, travel needs, has to be FF
• DR, mostly do landscapes
• IBIS
• Occasional portraits indoors

If those are indeed in order, then S5. No one ever accused the K-1 of being high on the 'compactness' scale, and that's the first thing you mention.

If your gear list is accurate, then you only have one FA lens (the 100mm macro), and that's not going to cover you for landscape. The Pentax advantage there would only be being able to use whatever new lenses you buy on your current K-5. But plan on a new set of lenses either way. Lenses complicate/muddle the size and weight question, of course. Think about the whole system.

Why is IBIS a thing for you? I'd normally think of it-has-to-be-FF landscape shooting as more a tripod activity.

Thanks bob, great feedback..

IBIS is needed for my indoor photography

Yes, I dont have many Pentax lenses that I would worry about and wont be selling my K5ii as it is not going to fetch a lot of money

The 50 mm and also the 35 mm lens should work very good on your K1. These lightweight plastic-fantastic lenses are good performers also on FF. Thus, you would have 35 mm - 50 mm and also 100 mm. I would call it a good set for a start.

If you want to do landscape photography, a wide angle maybe more important than a tele lens. You can crop very good from K1 sensor and for this reason a lot of tele photos will be "inside" the photos from your 100 mm lens.

The size of S5 with the 20-60 kit lens is 980 gm vs 1165 gm for my present K5ii+18-135
And I gain in the FF sensor so seems win-win

Of course I lose on tele end but for my landscapes, I gain significantly in the wide end .

Jhaakas wrote:

IBIS is needed for my indoor photography

Okay.

Yes, I dont have many Pentax lenses that I would worry about and wont be selling my K5ii as it is not going to fetch a lot of money

For cross purposing your existing DA's if you decide on the K-1ii, see https://www.pentaxforums.com/articles/gear-guides/full-frame-coverage-of-da-lenses.html?src=hs

I can't verify reliability (don't own a FF), but it seems fairly comprehensive.

The size of S5 with the 20-60 kit lens is 980 gm vs 1165 gm for my present K5ii+18-135
And I gain in the FF sensor so seems win-win

Of course I lose on tele end but for my landscapes, I gain significantly in the wide end .

Did you mention real estate photography in another thread? Yes, 20mm on a FF is going to be wider than 18 (or even 16) on an APS-C, but from what I've seen even that might not cut it for real estate sales work.

Thanks Bob for the nice feedback!

bob5050 wrote:

Jhaakas wrote:

IBIS is needed for my indoor photography

Okay.

The size of S5 with the 20-60 kit lens is 980 gm vs 1165 gm for my present K5ii+18-135
And I gain in the FF sensor so seems win-win

Of course I lose on tele end but for my landscapes, I gain significantly in the wide end .

Did you mention real estate photography in another thread? Yes, 20mm on a FF is going to be wider than 18 (or even 16) on an APS-C, but from what I've seen even that might not cut it for real estate sales work.

I've done RE work with the K-1 for years, and I wouldn't dream of going to a job without at least a 15mm lens. Many of my scenes are shot tighter, especially in larger homes and spaces, but there's no substitute for a wide lens when you need to depict a small bathroom or kitchen, and you might find in older homes. You can only back up so far.

For that, Panny offers a 16-35 zoom. I could work with that. Also an economical 15mm MF lens from Laowa. So it looks like the L-mount has that box checked.

John McMillin wrote:

I've done RE work with the K-1 for years, and I wouldn't dream of going to a job without at least a 15mm lens. Many of my scenes are shot tighter, especially in larger homes and spaces, but there's no substitute for a wide lens when you need to depict a small bathroom or kitchen, and you might find in older homes. You can only back up so far.

For that, Panny offers a 16-35 zoom. I could work with that. Also an economical 15mm MF lens from Laowa. So it looks like the L-mount has that box checked.

I was looking a that. The Lumix S Pro 16-35mm F4 is $1498, vs the Pentax D-FA 15-30mm F2.8 at $1296 (both Amazon prices).

There's actually a wide range of ultrawides for the L-mount, even a rectilinear 9mm! That's too wide for real estate!