I would strongly suggest staying away from the Sigma 35mm f/1.2 DG DN Art L-mount for handheld doc work. That lens is an absolute brick, weighing over two pounds. Pairing it with the S1H, which is already a heavy camera, is just asking for wrist fatigue during long shoots in Chicago. You need to be mobile, and that setup is gonna drag you down fast. Instead, you might want to consider the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG DN Art L-mount. Its way lighter and still gives you that fast aperture. But honestly, if autofocus reliability in dim venues is your main priority, you need to be careful. The Panasonic DFD autofocus system is notoriously picky. I would suggest looking at the native Panasonic Lumix S 35mm f/1.8 L-mount instead. I know its a stop slower, but the native communication between the lens and the body makes a massive difference in preventing that focus hunting you experienced with the adapted EF lens. It is a much safer bet for a paid gig where you cant afford to miss shots.

You might want to consider this instead:

• Sigma 35mm f1.4 DG DN Art L-mount Just make sure to test the balance first, it still feels a bit heavy for long handheld shoots.

Regarding what #6 said about "Building on the earlier suggestion, adapted EF glass..."

• I completely agree that trying to rely on old adapted glass for professional doc work is just asking for frustration. Over the years, I've tried many different setups and forcing legacy lenses onto modern mirrorless bodies always ends in a messy compromise, especially when the light drops. In my experience, you are far better off abandoning the adapter route entirely and investing in a native ecosystem from a trusted third-party manufacturer like Sigma 35mm f1.4 DG DN Art series or similar modern mirrorless lines. Just get any contemporary option from them, and you wont have to worry about hunting in dim venues. It completely changes the reliability of the camera.

If you need reliable AF on the S1H, you should stick to native L-mount glass designed specifically for mirrorless.

• Go with Sigma DN series primes, their autofocus motors play way better with Panasonic DFD contrast detection than adapted EF glass
• Look for stepping motors (STM) or linear motors for the quietest tracking
• Keep weight under 700g if you are doing handheld doc work all day

Building on the earlier suggestion, adapted EF glass on these bodies is honestly getting to be a complete joke at this point. Camera manufacturers just want us to throw our old gear in the trash and buy brand new native ecosystems every single time they update a sensor or tweak an autofocus algorithm. It drives me crazy how much money we waste on adapters that just end up hunting endlessly in low light anyway. Companies genuinely do not care about backward compatibility anymore, they just want endless upgrades. Prices on native glass are completely out of hand too, like a thousand bucks for a chunk of glass and plastic is such a scam. Every year quality control feels worse while they charge more. It is exhausting trying to keep a working kit together without going broke.

> Just make sure to test the balance first, it still feels a bit heavy for long handheld shoots. Jumping in here to say that I have been super satisfied with Sigma primes on my S1H, they just work so well. Honestly, just get any of the newer primes from Sigma and you wont have any reliability issues. Actually, talking about Chicago reminds me of a crazy shoot I did in Minneapolis last winter. It was freezing, like sub-zero, and my hands were totally numb. But the gear had zero complaints and just kept locking focus. We actually got snowed in at this vintage bowling alley for nine hours. The owner was this old-school guy who used to play semi-pro, so we ended up filming a spontaneous mini-doc about him while waiting out the storm. Best coffee I have ever had too. Anyway, but yeah, Sigma is definitely the way to go for reliability.

Can confirm this works. Did the same thing on mine and its been solid ever since.