S5 II: Autofocus — Camera Select

Lumix · S5 II · Free lesson

Autofocus, set up right

How do you set up autofocus and subject detection on a Panasonic Lumix S5 II — the phase-detection system, its detection types, and the honest edges?

camerasdecoded.com/camera-select/lumix/s5-ii/autofocus

The answer — share this

Run AFC with Full Area AF, turn AF Detection Setting on, and pick the subject type the camera actually knows — HUMAN, ANIMAL, CAR, MOTORCYCLE, TRAIN or AIRPLANE — with Target Parts set to Eye/Face/Body for people or Eye/Body for animals; then tune AF Custom Setting (Photo) so the camera holds focus the way your subjects move.

Focus lever: AFC · AF Mode: Full Area AF · Detection: Photo (Focus) → AF Detection Setting ON → Detecting Subject · Animal means birds, canines, felines — no horse category

Cameras Decoded — Camera Select

Step 1

AFC + Full Area AF

MENU→Photo Menu (Focus)→AF Mode

The focus mode lever selects AFS (single), AFC (continuous) or MF. The manual states this camera supports phase detection AF and contrast AF together — the phase system is what changed Lumix autofocus. AF modes: Tracking, Full Area AF, Zone (Horizontal/Vertical), Zone, 1-Area+, 1-Area, Pinpoint. The working default for movers is AFC with Full Area AF: the whole frame searches, and subject detection decides what matters. 1-Area and Pinpoint are for naming one exact point yourself.

Step 2

Detection on: type, then parts

MENU→Photo Menu (Focus)→AF Detection Setting→Detecting Subject

With AF Detection Setting ON, Detecting Subject asks for a Type of Subject and Target Parts. The current list, after firmware: HUMAN (Target Parts Eye/Face/Body or Eye/Face — the nearer eye is focused), ANIMAL (Body or Eye/Body; animal eye detection arrived in firmware Ver. 3.0, and Ver. 3.2 added Target Parts for cars and motorcycles), CAR and MOTORCYCLE (added in Ver. 3.0, described by Panasonic as mainly for motor sports), and TRAIN and AIRPLANE (added in Ver. 3.2). Detection works across the AF modes except Pinpoint-style manual placement — use Zone to fence the search area.

Know this: ANIMAL on this body means birds, canines (including wolves) and felines (including lions) — the manual's own list. There is no horse category: for horses, use Zone or 1-Area AF and track manually. The manual also warns that with ANIMAL selected, some non-animal subjects may be detected as animals.

Step 3

How stubborn: AF Custom Setting (Photo)

MENU→Photo Menu (Focus)→AF Custom Setting(Photo)

AF Sensitivity toward + makes the camera refocus immediately when the distance to the subject changes; toward - it waits a while after a distance change before refocusing — the setting that holds a subject while something crosses the frame. AF Area Switching Sensitivity controls how readily the AF area switches between subjects in Full Area AF, and Moving Subject Prediction (0/+1/+2) adjusts prediction for subjects that change speed or direction. Video has its own separate AF Custom Setting (Video) — the stills tuning does not carry over.

Step 4

The supporting tools

MENU→Photo Menu (Focus)→Focus Limiter

Focus Limiter restricts the focus range to a set window so the lens never hunts through empty distance. The AF Assist Light reaches roughly 1.0–3.0 m with the kit lenses. The dedicated AF ON button supports back-button focus, and the Fn list adds AF-ON: Near Shift and AF-ON: Far Shift. For a lens that consistently misses in one direction, AF Micro Adjustment (Custom Menu, Lens / Others) fine-tunes the phase-detection focus point — ALL lenses at once or per lens, for up to 40 lenses.

Try it now

Set AFC and Full Area AF, turn detection on for the subject in front of you, then have someone cross the frame twice — once at default AF Sensitivity, once toward minus — and feel the hold. Finish by testing ANIMAL on a dog or cat, eyes included.