Three New Panasonic Digital Cameras

[Darren Rowse]

Panasonic DMC-FZ18 (http://www.livingroom.org.au/photolog/reviews/panasonic/panasonic_lumix_dmcfz18.php) - 8MP, 18x Optical Zoom
Panasonic DMC-FX33 (http://www.livingroom.org.au/photolog/reviews/panasonic/panasonic_lumix_dmcfx33.php) - 8MP, 3.6x Optical Zoom, 3 inch LCD
Panasonic DMC-FX55 (http://www.livingroom.org.au/photolog/reviews/panasonic/panasonic_lumix_dmcfx55.php) - 8MP, 3.6x Optical Zoom, 2.5 inch LCD

[Sime™]

Hmmm... more toys!

I've been looking at / playing with the new compact Panasonics and really quite like them so far...

Maybe the ixus will get the flick...

[Darren Rowse]

the new fujifilm f50fd (http://www.livingroom.org.au/photolog/reviews/fuji/fujifilm_finepixe_f50fd.php) got my attention today.

[Amigone201]

Some users here know I'm looking to buy a Panasonic FZ8--anyone think the price may come down now that the FZ18 has been announced?

Would it be worth waiting until the FZ18 ships to see what happens?

[rcouch]

Wondering how the Leica lenses on the Panasonics compare to something like the same quality and size Nikons. I mention Nikon because that's the equipment I have. Anyone have any info?

[beckywithasmile]

I don't know about comparisons. But I have the fz7 and I like it a lot. There are some features I don't like, but more that I do like. When I can afford to upgrade to an SLR I will have an even better idea of what to look for.

[GEli]

Wondering how the Leica lenses on the Panasonics compare to something like the same quality and size Nikons. I mention Nikon because that's the equipment I have. Anyone have any info?

Do you mean Nikon SLR lenses? If you do, the quality of the Leica glass doesn't particularly matter if it's permanently mounted to a miniscule sensor - any half-decent SLR lense placed on any DSLR body will outperform it in terms of resolution and image quality.

If you mean a P+S Nikon, well, I'll leave that to someone who's actually used a Nikon P+S before.

[bonj]

I have the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18, which I got soon after they came out. I purchased it sight unseen as there isn't much in the way of photo stores around here to do any hands on. I was just going by reviews which were giving it good ratings. Maybe big on the P&S side, but small compared to most DSLRs. If I had it to do over again, I am not sure that I would purchase it. The movies are QuickTime, which is a bit of a pain. The 18x optical is the nicest feature. Even though it has a Leica lens, I am not sure that I get any better pictures out of it than what I got from my old Sony DSC-H1, which simply had the Sony lens, not the Zeiss. Weight wise it is nice, but would not have a problem if a little heavier with better glass. It also seems slower than my Sony on focusing. There are some of us out there that don't have the money, so we have ended up in the P&S. If you are really interested in photography and can afford it, I would suggest a DSLR over the P&S. If just a casual user these P&S don't do a bad job and one can learn more and control the settigns if they want, then step up later. The biggest problem with the P&S is that you are locked into what it can do, so you are pretty limited regarding expansion, although with electronics playing such a big role in photography these days, it does not appear that many keep the body of a digital camera as long as one use to keep a film camera body (although a plus to DSLR is lenses are an investment one can usually keep if staying in the same line of cameras).

Another pain is that it seems that the diopter adjustment doesn't stay in place well. It seems that I often have to adjust it again as it has slipped a bit.

It does okay though. You can see samples from my FZ18 on my photoblog (http://pics.aminus3.com/).

I guess I'll have to write another review as soon as I win the Nikon D60 DSLR being given away here at DPS. :-)

[krob]

I have a Panasonic DMC Fz7 as well. I love my camera... this is my first big digital purchase and I have received lots of compliments on the quality of the photos (even though I only use macro and simple modes -- haven't figured out all the other buttons yet and afraid to lose good travel pics due to trial and error). I suspect the newer ones are much better.