Noise and JPEG processing

The GF5 shows some improvement in its noise profile and JPEG processing over the GF3, especially at low ISO sensitivities. It seems to primarily be attributable to a less noisy image coming off the sensor, an expected advancement from one generation to the next. While there's a noticeable jump in noise-reduction artifacts between ISO 400 and ISO 800 in the JPEGs -- most notably smearing -- Panasonic has improved the processing of high-contrast areas. For instance, the gorilla's fur and the rose become quite smeary by ISO 800, but the text doesn't suffer too much. The lens you use makes a big difference as well: while I wouldn't suggest shooting JPEGs past ISO 400 with the 14-42mm PZ kit lens (used for shooting these test samples), for a good prime lens I think I'd bump that to ISO 800.