Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ4K 8.1MP Digital Camera with 10x Wide Angle MEGA Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Black) by Panasonic
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Digital camera reviews of Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ4K 8.1MP Digital Camera with 10x Wide Angle MEGA Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (Black)
Digital camera Review: Good but not great.
Summary: 4 Stars
Picture quality is great in good lighting. In lower light, it's not great, but I've seen far worse. Every once in a while, after taking a photo, I can't get it to take another photo until I do something with the controls. Haven't figure it out. I haven't played with it long enough to rule out user error, but it is annoying watching people's smiles go stale. Anyways, for the price, I'm not complaining. Seems like one of the better deals in it's class. I'm going to keep using it ... maybe even read the manual one of these days. The IA setting isn't that great.Digital camera Review: Good value
Summary: 4 Stars
I recently purchased this Lumix and find it easy to use and a good quality for a digital camera. I like the 10x optical zoom and the variety of settings that are available. It is a good solid camera, although a bit heavier than most current digital cameras on the market. I looked at several cameras and narrowed it down to a Canon and the Panansonic. The Lumix was the winner because of the zoom. It is a clear and crisp picture. It is also easy to use without even working through the manual. Not sure yet about the battery life. I hope that the lithium ion rechargeable battery has a lot of pictures in it before needing recharging since it doesn't use regular rechargeable batteries. I find this to be a possible negative since I can't carry extra AA batteries like my last camera.
I would recommend this camera because I feel it is a good quality camera at a reasonable price.
Digital camera Review: Gorgeous Camera!
Summary: 5 Stars
I needed a mix between portable and quality. This camera met everyone of my expectations. It has a nice auto mode for easy use and plenty of manual features.Digital camera Review: Great Buy for Novice and Advanced photographers
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a great little camera for both an advanced amateur (like me) looking for a second camera to carry everywhere you can't take your DSLR or for a complete novice (like my wife) who is looking for a camera that is really easy to use yet takes good pictures.
IN SUMMARY
What makes this camera special is that you have a full 10X zoom in a very compact form factor with a real wide-angle lens at 28mm. Most other cameras offer a smaller zoom range (around 4x), provide a semi-wide-angle at about 35mm, or are much bulkier.
PICTURE QUALITY
In reality, most cameras today take pretty decent pictures. Most people really don't need more than 2 megapixels, unless you are planning to either crop your photos or make very large prints. Therefore 8.1 megapixels are more than enough. My DSLR has 5 megapixels and I have never needed more.
The Leica lens is very high quality. The multiple built-in scene modes will make it easier to capture that sunset or use custom settings for that special picture. As with most cameras, it is always to have a photo editing program to adjust contrast (or levels if you are a bit more advanced), do some cropping and adjust sharpening.
As an advanced amateur (take a look at my Nikon DSL photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/gdada ) I found the quality of the pictures from the Lumix TZ4 to be excellent. AT the same time, my wife was able to use the Intelligent Auto mode to snap some pretty decent pictures. The flash does an especially good job - indoor people pictures had very nice tones and not blown out or underexposed like some other cameras.
VIDEO
With a 1Gb SD card I was able to capture a couple videos of my daughters dancing (to Hannah Montana, of course). The quality and resolution of the video is pretty amazing for a camera in this price range. You may want to use Windows Movie Maker (included with XP and Vista) to do some edits and make the video a smaller size suitable for emailing.
OTHER FEATURES
The camera feels very well built and solid. Face detection technology works incredibly well, ensuring your subjects are always in focus (as opposed to focusing to whatever is at the center of the picture). Image stabilization works . The LCD screen is very large and bright. Controls are easy to understand.
SUMMARY
I spent a long time looking at many cameras and playing with them. If you are an advanced photographer, this is not a camera to replace a DSLR, but a perfect companion to take to those places where you don't want (or can't) bring your big expensive camera. The TZ45 does not provide all the manual controls of other cameras, yet it allows enough settings for me (i.e. exposure compensation, ISO settings, etc.) .
For the average user, you can find a cheaper and a smaller camera for sure. But I doubt you will find a solid, pocket camera with a 10x zoom and a 28mm quality lens that produces such great photos with little effort. Definitely, the TZ4 is highly recommended.
UPDATE ---
I uploaded a few photos fromt he Lumix to this Flickr page http://www.flickr.com/photos/LumixTZ4/ My other Flickr page has mostly photos taken with my Nikon D50.
Most photos I uploaded are straight from the camera. I found a simple sharpen command from any photo editing software will increase the quality of the pictures.
I have enjoyed the camera and am suprised for its great flash performance. It does an incredible job at balancing the background with a just-right flash.
Battery charge lasted for a couple hundred photos. Highly recommended.
Digital camera Review: Great Camera
Summary: 5 Stars
Takes great pictures and does it without me having to do any serious input. On the first day I spent an hour figuring out what the buttons meant and testing the different settings effects. It wasn't difficult, simply try out what kind of modes you like the best and thats it. I bought an extra battery because my last camera would stop after 100 pictures but this one works for much longer.