Panasonic S5 vs Panasonic S2

Here, we will be contrasting the Panasonic S5 and Panasonic S2, former being a Pro Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and they are both designed by Panasonic. There exists a substantial gap among the image resolutions of the S5 (24MP) and S2 (14MP) and the S5 (Full frame) and S2 (1/2.3") offer totally different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The S5 was manufactured 8 years later than the S2 and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of the cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic S5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic S2 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a complete comparison, here is a quick summary of how the S5 scores versus the S2 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Below is a preview of the gallery images for Panasonic Lumix DC-S5 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-S2. The entire galleries are provided at Panasonic S5 Gallery & Panasonic S2 Gallery.

For those who are intending to carry your camera often, you'll need to take into account its weight and size. The Panasonic S5 comes with external dimensions of 133mm x 97mm x 82mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 3.2") along with a weight of 714 grams (1.57 lbs) whilst the Panasonic S2 has specifications of 98mm x 57mm x 21mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.8") accompanied by a weight of 112 grams (0.25 lbs).

Take a look at the Panasonic S5 and Panasonic S2 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are working with at the time. Underneath is a front view overall size comparison of the S5 compared to the S2.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the S5 and S2 is 60 and 96 respectively.

Quite often, its difficult to visualise the difference in sensor sizing simply by seeing specs. The photograph below may give you a clearer sense of the sensor dimensions in the S5 and S2.

As you can plainly see, each of these cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The S5 due to its bigger sensor will make achieving shallower depth of field less difficult and the Panasonic S5 will provide more detail due to its extra 10 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop shots way more aggressively. The more recent S5 is going to have a benefit with regard to sensor innovation.