We have truly come to a stage at which it is hard to buy a bad camera. Now rather than looking for the ‘best’ we need to find the product or brand that is most appropriate for our needs – current or future. We all have different requirements and aims, and when it comes to video I expect we might also do well to leave a little room for growth. What we like to shoot, and the way we like to shoot it, will change over time. As we improve we’ll look for features that at the moment we might think of as beyond us, so when looking for a new camera or when considering switching brands it pays to think ahead a little. Imagine what future-you will want to be shooting in a couple of years’ time.
If a video-orientated camera is on your shopping list you will probably have noticed that Panasonic and Sony play major roles in the hybrid market, offering cameras that are suitable for high quality video as well as for stills, so we wanted to take a closer look at these two brands to determine which is the better choice for those wanting to take up film making and making moving clips.
Sony vs Lumix – Size of the range
Both of these brands offer a good number of cameras suitable for videographers, and both cover full frame models as well as those with smaller sensors. Sony lists 18 full frame models on its website and 8 models that use an APS-C-sized sensor, while Panasonic lists 7 full frame models and 6 from its Micro Four Thirds system – though some manufacturers have taken to listing products that aren’t available any more to boost the appearance of options. Either way, both brands offer a wide range of choice from vlogging cameras to professional video machines. The price of Sony body-only kits ranges from £449-£6299, while Lumix cameras range from £619-£3000.
I’m not going to list off, or even count, the lenses each manufacturer provides its users, but it suffices to say there are plenty. Sony’s best lenses come under the G Master range, while Panasonic’s best are the Leica lenses in the Micro Four Thirds series and Lumix Pro for the S series of full frame cameras. Sony G Master lenses have a reputation for being expensive, but if you are looking for a 24-70mm f/2.8 from either brand you’ll need to part with exactly the same amount of money – $1599/£1899. A 50mm f/1.4 will cost you $2299/£1849 from Lumix, and $1348/£1499 from Sony, while the cheapest Lumix S 50mm is an f/1.8 model at $449/£430 while a f/2.5 50mm from Sony will cost $648/£629.
Where there is a difference is that Panasonic has more lower-cost lenses that make buying a lens a bit easier, and it tends to focus more on wider focal lengths – which are more suited to general videography work. Sony has a lot more telephoto lenses of the type sport and wildlife users will be interested in, such as a zooms that take us right up to 800mm and fixed focal lengths up to 600mm. Panasonic’s longest fixed lens is a 100mm for the S series or a 200mm (makes 400mm) for the G series.
Of course third party lenses are available for both brands’ cameras, with Sigma being the first choice for regular AF models as it offers the same full frame lenses in L and E mounts. Film makers will also find a good range of cinema lenses that will go on these cameras – either in their native mounts or via a PL mount adapter.
Sony vs Lumix – Recording formats/resolution
Any camera you buy these days will offer full HD and 4K recording in the 16×9 aspect ratio, so here we’re looking beyond that to find what extra is to be had. Sony’s a7R V and Alpha 1 offer 8K resolution, but resolutions beyond 4K aren’t standard across the system. Panasonic offers 8K in the Lumix S1R ll, but 6K in almost all its other current cameras. A number of Lumix models also offer what’s called Open Gate recording, where the whole sensor area is used to record 6K video in a 3:2 aspect ratio. This then allows that single 3:2 clip to be cropped to 16:9 in both horizontal and vertical formats producing greater-than 4K resolution in either direction, so when we need upright and horizontal content we don’t have to shoot it twice – good for social media.
Panasonic is also a lot more adventurous when it comes to formats for different aspect ratios. As well as the standard 16:9 format all cameras offer 17:9 DCI format for a wider frame, as well as 4:3 aspect ratios for anamorphic lenses – for which the 3:2 open gate format is also ideal. Lumix cameras have built-in desqueeze viewing modes too, so we can preview the final letter-box look when shooting with an anamorphic lens. You have to go right to the top of the Sony series to find anything relating to anamorphic shooting.
It also takes a trip to the top of the Sony range to find anything to do with RAW video recording. Almost all current Lumix cameras will shoot MPEG, MOV as well as ProRes, while most will record ProRes Raw and/or BRAW to an external recorder – and a good number, the GH7 included, can record RAW internally to the memory card. So if you are looking for flexibility in post-production you’ll find a lot more on offer in Lumix models.
Sony vs Lumix – Colour options
You’ll also find almost all codecs in Lumix models are in 10-bit colour, while Sony still uses a lot of 8-bit options. In fact, it’s sometimes hard to find an 8-bit codec in a Lumix camera. So, Lumix cameras give us more colour flexibility too.
Both brands offer built-in Log profiles for recording flat contrast and colour that can be brought back to life afterwards in software, and both breeds of Log profile are well respected – with perhaps Panasonic’s V-Log being considered the noisier of the two at higher ISO settings. Both brands allow us to use LUTs to preview looks when shooting in Log profiles, but most Lumix models also now allow you to use those LUTs to record into the actual file – and they can be used to adapt the standard Photo Styles of the camera too. If you are looking for ready-graded video, again Lumix is well ahead.
Sony vs Lumix – Handling and menus
For this comparison I’ve tried to consider the entire range of each brand, but have also picked a pair of upper-mid-range models from each to do a more intimate side-by-side. For this Sony recommended the Sony A7Cll and I used the Panasonic Lumix S5ll – both very capable machines with extensive, but not ‘best in range’ video options, and which will suit those with a keen eye on stills too. At this point I should declare that I have many more hours under my belt using Lumix cameras than I do using Sony cameras, so I’m very much more used to the Lumix menu and control layout. I have spent a lot of time with the a7Cll so it isn’t disadvantaged by my considering it ‘new’, but I have to say no matter how long I spent with the menu I didn’t find it especially friendly. Having spoken to a number of Sony users I realise I’m not alone in this opinion. Even though the Lumix menu fits eight lines of text on the display instead of only seven, it is much easier to read and feels cleaner.
When looking for the codec you want too the Lumix system lays out all the options in one list, so you can scroll to the right one and select the resolution, frame rate, colour depth, bit rate, compression and recording area all in one go. Sony makes us visit a number of places to do all this, and you have to look up the difference between the XAVC options before you can know which you want – and they are all MPEG formats. Sony’s Main Menu displays allow us to do some of this selection in a more convenient format, but even then it’s not as comprehensive or as user-friendly as Panasonic’s all-encompassing ‘Info’ display that shows us everything while giving us the chance to change all the options.
As a note on the a7Cll, I can’t tell you how many times the camera had to explain to me that you can’t start video with the shutter button, or how many times I switched the camera off with the mode dial instead of the on/off switch – and then how many times I recorded in S&Q mode by accident. Might just be me.
I do like the form-factor of the a7Cll though, and suspect part of its popularity comes down to its small size and light weight. Panasonic offers the S9 in a similar form but with no viewfinder or hotshoe, which will be off-putting for many users. For its size, the viewfinder in the a7Cll is really very nice.
Sony vs Lumix – Connections
When we’re shooting stills we just need a camera and a lens, but when we’re making videos a whole world of accessories and attachments comes to life. Fortunately both of these cameras offer microphone and headphone ports, so we can record (up to 4 channels of) audio and we can listen to what’s being recorded at the same time.
Both models also allow USB-C charging – and powering from an external battery pack – and both can accept audio from XLR-type high quality microphones via an XLR adapter in the hotshoe.
Panasonic learnt some time ago not to supply cameras with micro-HDMI ports, as the smaller cable connectors are flimsy and become unreliable quickly, but Sony still uses the standard in this camera. It makes connecting monitors and recorders a little trickier, and you need more spare cables. Panasonic allows recording to an external SSD storage device via its USB-C ports, which means we can have 2TB of space in one place and record in high speed bit rates.
Sony vs Lumix – Conclusion
There are a lot of Lumix and Sony users who are very happy with their system choice, and who make brilliant video with whichever brand they settled on, so be assured you can’t go drastically wrong. Which you choose will come down to budget as much as anything else, and which camera system you feel most comfortable holding and using. However, if there are specific requirements connected to the subjects you want to shoot you need to pay attention to the strengths and characteristics of each system.
As much as Panasonic has improved its focus system in recent models Sony has a clear edge, and while default AF transitions can feel a bit too quick in some cases, we can customise that in the menu. Panasonic has, by default, lovely smooth transitions, but Lumix cameras are less reliable at finding and holding the subject. This will be extremely important to a lot of videographers, and I think Sony has built a large part of its following on the reputation of its excellent AF system. And Sony has a lot of cameras to choose from, as well as a great range of microphones.
That, for me, is where the Sony advantage stops. It’s a huge and significant advantage, but if any other measure of what makes a good video camera is more important to you then you will be better off with a Lumix model. The look of the video, the choice of codecs, frame rates, the ability to record RAW and ProRes, the menu system, the image stabilisation and external recording all make Lumix cameras more flexible, controllable and give Lumix users potential for better quality video using cameras that cost less.
Related reading:
- Phone vs Camera – which is best for video?
- The best mirrorless cameras for photography and video
- Case study: no regrets on going mirrorless
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