Panasonic Lumix FZ100 review
Performance
Panasonic Lumix FZ100 review - Performance
The Lumix FZ100 performs well in the majority of areas. Focusing is relatively nippy throughout the focal range, only occasionally failing to focus correctly. The 23-area focus tends to pick out the most ‘obvious' areas of contrast for focus, which is fine for the majority of use. Should more specific focusing be desired then the AF Area option allows a cursor to be manually moved around the rear LCD screen to act as the focus point. There's also a Subject Tracking AF mode that will follow a moving subject around in continuous focus or a Face Detection AF mode (now with Face Recognition technology to identify particular faces following repeated shooting). Don't expect super-fast subjects to be kept up with by the Subject Tracking AF, but it's certainly good for casual use where people are moving around a scene.
A real star of the show is the Power O.I.S. image stabilisation technology. As this is an optical lens-shift technology, the LCD or EVF preview benefits from the steadying of the image prior to it even being shot. This is particularly useful for long telephoto lengths, as keeping steady hands at 600mm is nigh-on impossible and makes framing tricky, which is somewhat alleviated here. A 600mm equivalent should be shot no slower than 1/600th of a second where possible, 500mm at 1/500th and so forth - so it's good to know that the FZ100's top-end shutter speed is a fairly fast 1/2000th of a second (professional DSLR cameras top-out at around 1/8000th second).
The HD movie mode, which will be a clincher for some prospective purchasers, is also well-equipped. As well as 1080i capture at 50 fields per second (25 full frames per second equivalent), it's possible to zoom in and out during recording, with continuous AF maintaining good focus throughout. PAL models have a 25fps output, while NTSC models keep the country-corresponding 30fps. It's small touches like this ensure that best quality will be attainable wherever you're based in the world).
Other quirky little features include an option where the lens position is memorised and re-acquired when the camera is turned back on. A similar menu-based option also features to ensure less menu digging to re-locate modes that have just been adjusted.
Layout, button positioning and the abundance of quick menus and one-touch buttons makes for a very easy, user-assignable use that's hard to fault. There's even an AF/AF Macro/MF focus switch on the side of the lens for quickly toggling between focus types without so much as having to delve into a menu (though no focus ring means manual focus has some speed of use limitations).
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Latest comments
May 20 03:16
darwin
...the only major drawback in my case is the batterypack - for a months time already I cannot find a supplier for a spare here in the Phils.(not even the store where I got it) - how I wish Lumix/Panasonic utilize the more common AA batteries.
June 17 17:20
Doug Sinnott
I have owned my FZ100 a while now,and the more I use it,the more I am impressed.It's so quick,as quick as my old Nikon D40 at focussing,and capturing images,and has hardly any shutter lag.Its much speedier than either the Canon SX30,or the Fuji HS10/20. I have adjusted the sharpness by one stop,set the noise reduction to -one.and the colour to vibrant. How anyone can sneer at the images from the FZ100,is beyond me. They're as least as good as anything I've had before,and better than some. There is enough different settings in the FZ100,to get it set up just as you want it,which will help you get the best out of this great camera! This produces some nice images,with little or no noise at lower ISOs,needing minimal sharpening in your editing program,
July 03 07:22
Doug Sinnott
As regards my previous comment,I should qualify that the FZ100 can produce excellent A4 prints,even with a fair bit of cropping,but large poster size prints,or if you do a lot of high ISO/low light photography,then a DSLR will give better results,none of which concern me. However,the FZ100 will enable you to get better macro shots,and capture distant shots you just wouldn't have got with any DSLR,without several expensive,(and heavy!)additional lenses. And how many DSLRs can capture 11 frames per second at full resolution? None.
July 30 10:19
Barry Oakley
The FZ100 was my choice ahead of a DSLR. As a wildlife enthusiast I was tired of lugging a bagful of lenses and found the camera's Leica zoom lens gave me excellent sharp pictures of birds with lots of detail.