Photography and Digital Camera

Panasonic – the company that is more than any other responsible for the renaissance and continuing success of the ‘big zoom’ bridge camera – launched the original ‘Travel Zoom’ TZ1 back in February 2006. The formula – a big zoom on a small camera – isn’t exactly new, but the combination of Leica’s lens design expertise and Panasonic’s technology (image stabilization, fast performance) made the TZ1 the first serious alternative to bigger ‘SLR-style’ super zooms. And now the TZ1 has been superceded by two models with a new 28-280mm equiv. lens, the TZ2 (6MP, slightly lower spec) and the camera on test here, the TZ3. As well as the new wide lens the TZ3 also ups the sensor resolution to 7 megapixels, increases the screen size and throws in a few new features. The big question is, has Panasonic managed to improve some of the image quality issues that dogged the otherwise superbly capable TZ1? Let’s find out, starting as usual with the headline specification:

• 7.2 million effective pixel / 8.5 million pixels total 1/2.35″ CCD
• 10x (28-280mm equiv.) Leica DC Vario-Elmarit optical zoom
• MEGA OIS image stabilization
• Larger sensor for 28mm equiv. angle of view at 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 aspect ratios
• Venus III Engine processor
• Fast Linear autofocus system
• High Resolution (230,000 pixel) 3.0-inch LCD
• Movies up to 840 x 480 pixels (WVGA) @ 30 fps
• 20 scene modes plus Intelligent ISO mode

TZ3 (and TZ2) vs TZ1: Key changes

As is the case with most of Panasonic’s Lumix models the TZ1 is available in either silver or black (though this may not be the case for every country and / or every retailer).

• Wider (and shorter) 28-280mm (equiv.) lens range (TZ1 was 35-350mm)
• Built in lens cover (TZ1 had a lens cap)
• Smaller and lighter camera
• Increased sensor resolution (TZ3: 7MP, TZ2: 6MP, TZ1: 5MP)
• Larger 3.0-inch screen (TZ3 only)
• Intelligent ISO mode
• Clipboard function
• ISO 1250 at full size (TZ1 was ‘only’ ISO 800), High Sensitivity mode now to ISO 3200
• White balance adjustment and extra ‘Shade’ WB preset
• Slightly improved burst mode (TZ3 only)
• Slightly better battery life

Color options

The TZ3 is available in three colors; blue, silver and black (though this may not be the case for every country and / or every retailer).

DMC-TZ3 specifications

Review based on a production DMC-L1, firmware ver 1.1

On February 26th 2006, in a packed press conference on the first day of PMA 2006 Panasonic revealed their first digital SLR, the DMC-L1. The DMC-L1 represents another first, it’s the first non-Olympus Four Thirds digital SLR which has to be good news for the system which has up until now been an Olympus only affair. When it was announced many noted the resemblance to the E-330, this is no coincidence as the DMC-L1 shares its optical subsystem (lens mount, mirror box, viewfinder, auto focus and exposure sensors) with the Olympus E-330.

The L1 features the same 7.5 megapixel ‘LiveMOS’ sensor used in the E-330 (which we now know is manufactured by Panasonic), this provides the camera with TTL live view capability in a similar manner to the E-330. Unlike the E-330 however the DMC-L1 does not have a secondary Live View CCD and so provides only one Live View mode, this is known as ‘B mode’ on the E-330 and utilizes the main image sensor. The downside to this is that although the DMC-L1 provides auto focus in Live View it requires the mirror to be lowered and raised again during focusing.

Firmware ver 2.0 (March 2007)

As most of the first half of this review was written before Panasonic issued firmware 2.0 (here) hence it’s worth noting the following improvements included:

1. Added a multiple exposure function.
2. Added panning mode [MODE3] to the optical image stabilizer.
3. Added a low-angle viewing mode that makes it easier to view the LCD display when the camera is held below eye level.
4. Added feature that simplifies setting the aperture when using a lens without an aperture ring.
5. Added two manual white balance settings to GUI. GUI design uses navigational cursor to easily select, and set, white balance (WB) to change the color temperature, or set the ISO sensitivity or flash. Time restriction for making changes was removed.
6. Added “HOLD” option to Auto Review time, enabling continuous viewing.
7. Added feature to allow zoomed playback of photos. It’s now possible to move back to the preceding images or forward to the next images while the image is still zoomed.
8. Added [AUTO] for the ISO sensitivity in the aperture-priority AE mode [A] and shutter speed-priority AE mode [S].
9. Added GUI option to easily check the firmware version.

Panasonic DMC-L1 vs. Olympus E-330 Live View modes compared

Review based on a production Panasonic DMC-FZ18

Barely half a year after the introduction of the DMC-FZ8, Panasonic added another model to its popular range of compact ‘super zoom’ Lumix cameras in the shape of the FZ18. Although obviously based on the FZ8 (they are externally almost identical), the FZ18 doesn’t replace it; it’s a sort of ‘big brother’ with a bigger zoom, more pixels and a smattering of new features.

The biggest news is the optically stabilized lens, which has ‘grown’ at both ends and now sports a whopping 18x (28-504mm equiv.) zoom, putting the FZ18 into direct competition with Olympus’ SP-550UZ (now updated to the SP-560UZ) and Fujifilm’s recently announced FinePix S8000fd.

Almost inevitably the FZ18 squeezes even more pixels onto its 1/2.5-inch sensor, although the increase has been fairly moderate from 7.3 to 8.3 megapixels. Other new features include a dedicated AF/AE button, Face Detection and a new Intelligent Auto mode which integrates Image Stabilization, Intelligent ISO, Face Detection and Scene Detection into a ‘Super’ Auto Mode.

Despite the usual noise issues you would expect from a tiny sensor/big zoom camera (and our dislike of Panasonic’s approach to noise reduction), overall we were pretty impressed with the FZ8 when we reviewed it a few months ago. This was to a large degree due to the superb LEICA lens. So let’s find out how Panasonic have tackled the noise challenge – and if the new lens, with it’s much more ambitious zoom range, can match its predecessor, starting with a look at what’s changed:

Major differences to DMC-FZ8

• 18x optical zoom (28-504mm equiv.) – FZ8 has 12x (36-432mm) zoom
• Smaller maximum aperture at long end of zoom (F4.2 vs F3.1)
• 8.3 megapixel sensor (vs 7.2 megapixel)
• Face Detection
• Intelligent Auto mode
• Manually selectable ISO 1600
• ISO 6400 High Sensitivity mode
• AF/AE lock button and dedicated AF/MF button
• 1cm macro (was 5cm)
• Custom mode and extra scene modes (plus ‘advanced scene modes’)
• Five level Noise reduction (was three level)
• Slower continuous shooting (burst)
• Heavier and slightly larger

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 specifications