Digital Cameras Ratings: Panasonic DMC-FZ50 10.1MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Black) Review

Average Reviews:
4.6 out of 5 stars

(More customer reviews)In the past, I've owned or used several Panasonic Lumix models. All were good digital cameras. The FZ-50, however, is something very special.

The Leica approved lens design is, as always, superbly sharp. From a butte with a 50+ mile view, landscapes of wheat fields were crisp and highly detailed and the 10 megapixel images withstood enlargement well. Color fidelity is also excellent though a bit on the muted side: easy enough to quickly correct in any image editing program.

The new optical image stabilization (OIS) algorithm which compensates for both hand shaking and subject movement is absolutely brilliant and works incredibly well.

The ability to shoot at ISO values up to 1,600 goes hand in hand with the new OIS abilities. No one could resist testing a handheld digital camera in a dim environment at ISO 1600. Needless to say, the images are noisy. But at ISO 1600, what would you expect? Handheld photos shot at 1/20th of a second at ISO 1600 in a dim restaurant were filled with both detail and noise. Remarkably the color balance was very well-handled: the incadescent restaurant lights were recorded faithfully along with the neon and halogen lamplight streaming in through the blinds from outside. Very, very impressive.

Much of the noise could be ameliorated in Photoshop or similar programs with appropriate plug-ins. The high-speed capability is well worth the trade for noisy images. Purists may want noiseless images at ISO 1600, but it's unlikely they will ever get it. Practical photographers, on the other hand, will definitely appreciate the capability and undoubtedly will exploit it.

Ergonomically, the FZ-50 is practically a work of art. All of the frequently used controls are accessible with the right hand. The enlarged hand grip is just perfect for my large hands and the shutter release is perfectly positioned, something I am not able to say about most of the digital cameras I've used. The electronic viewfinder is sharp and is boosted for low-light focusing. (There is also an AF-assist lamp.) The flip-out LCD may be positioned for high and low angle shooting or reversed for self-portraits.

At about 1-1/2 pounds, the FZ-50 is a joy to carry for long periods.

The menu system is very accessible and quick and easy to adjust.

The few scene modes I tried worked well. Shooting pictures from a car moving at 60 miles per hour worked surprisingly well in the sports action mode.

Shutter lag is remarkably slight: the Panasonic Venus III engine lives up to its billing. Response is not up to the level of a Nikon or Canon DSLR, but it is certainly faster than any other midlevel digital camera I've used. Burst rate of about one frame per second are routinely attainable.

The FZ-50 will do RAW, but it is on the slow side. Either use an extremely fast SD card or avoid RAW where you need to be prepared for one exposure after another. JPEG files at full resolution (3,648 x 2,736 pixels) are quite good and will withstand, in my opinion, enlargement of about 4 - 5x.

I think SD card compatibility may be an issue with 4GB cards. I tried one and the camera refused to boot. A variety of 2GB cards worked without a problem.

The battery is rated for 360 shots between images. The test used by manufacturers uses one shot every 30 seconds, I believe. My experience with the battery didn't allow for more than 300 shots before the warning indicator started flashing. I don't know how many more shots I could have gotten, but I would definitely advise having a second battery for this camera.

I did not try the movie mode, so I can't comment on that.

Overall, the FZ-50 is more than satisfactory in every way. It is not a replacement for a Canon or Nikon DSLR, but is in many ways more satisfying to use. It is lighter than either a Canon or a Nikon; its 12x Leica approved designed lens covers 35 - to 425mm. Image quality is superb and the OIS is fantastic. I would highly recommend the FZ-50 as a travel camera or just for everyday use.

Jerry

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Product Description:
The DMC-FZ50 includes a 10.1-megapixel high resolution CCD and the f2.8 Leica DC Vario-Elmarit 12x optical zoom (equivalent to 35mm to 420 mm with a 35mm film camera) lens. The lens unit is comprised of fourteen elements in ten groups including three aspherical lenses and an ED lens, All these are incorporated to generate low distortion and high optical performance while preserving the compactness of the unit. The Extended Optical Zoom, made possible by using the center part of the 10.1-megapixel high resolution CCD, further extends the powerful 12x optical zoom to up to 21x for 3-megapixel image recording (17.1x for 5-megapixel and13.4x for 8-megapixel recording). High resolution images with richer gradation are always assured with these Leica DC 12x optical zoom lens and the 10.1-Megapixel CCD. Taking advantage of its superior lens technology, Panasonic invented the Mega O.I.S.(Optical Image Stabilizer) system to fight against the major cause of blurred images. It compensates for handshake and is now featured on the entire Lumix range, and has been highly evaluated and appreciated by the users across the world. Every slight hand-shake movement is detected accurately with the sampling frequency at 4,000 times per second and will be compensated to render clear, sharp images. In addition, movement of the subject, the other major cause of blurred images, is suppressed by the advanced image processing LSI Venus Engine III with the Intelligent ISO Control (hereafter I.I.C.) and maximum ISO 1600 high sensitivity recording capabilities. The world's first incorporation of this I.I.C. allows the automatic adjustment of the suitable ISO setting and shutter speed that best suits the situation by analyzing the speed of subject movement. If the subject is moving, the ISO setting would automatically rise to allow high shutter speed. On the other hand, if the subject is still and no movement is detected, you can take beautiful natural images with a low ISO setting.