HWM Gold Award - LUMIX DMC-FZ5 Digital Camera

April 2005 (HWM) by NG CHONG SENG - The new FZ5 (5MP) and the FZ4 (4MP) are the latest compact, 12x zoom, FZ-series of Panasonic digicams, and are also the successors to the 3.2-megapixel FZ3. Armed with a LEICA DC VARIO-ELMARIT lens, the FZ5 sports a focal length of 36 - 432 mm (in 35mm format), and is powered by the proprietary LSI Venus Engine II that promises great image quality and camera responsiveness. It also incorporates Panasonic's MEGA O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) technology that compensates for handshake. This complements its long zoom capability perfectly. Under "Mode 1", O.I.S is activated all the time, while in "Mode 2" it is only activated when the shutter button is pressed.

Compared to the more advanced FZ20, the FZ5 is very much lighter and compact. In fact, it is the smallest long zoom digital camera that utilizes image stabilization. The redesigned body has a larger grip than the FZ3 it succeeds, as well as a relocation of the shutter release button from the top of camera to a more downward position at the top of the grip. Both improvements are highly welcomed, and make the camera more comfortable to hold. Besides the mechanically released popup flash, there is no hotshoe for an external flash. The FZ5 offers an AF-assist lamp (1.5m range) that greatly helps with low light focusing. The electronics viewfinder (EVF) has a 110K-pixel resolution and below it sits the 1.8-inch (1.5-inch on the FZ3), 130K-pixel LCD monitor. Under good lighting, both displays are clear, bright and offer punchy colors. But both do not "gain up" under dim lighting, and this makes composing a tad difficult. Besides the monitor lies a four-way control pad that aids in menu navigation, as well as providing certain functions such as exposure and backlight compensations, auto bracket, white balance and flash output adjustments, review, self-timer, and flash setting. Interestingly, there is a Focus button that causes the camera to autofocus - a neat way to AF than the usual shutter half-press action.

Powering up the camera took about three seconds due to the extending lens design. Autofocusing in both wideangle and telephoto was reasonably fast too at about 0.5 seconds; and was almost instantaneous (about 0.2 seconds) if you activate the new high-speed autofocus mode. Shutter lag was very low too. Three burst modes are available too; high speed (up to four or seven frames at a lower quality at 3FPS), low speed (up to four or seven frames at a lower quality at 2FPS), and infinite (2FPS) Noise was well controlled up to ISO 200, but pretty obvious at ISO 400. Slight barrel distortion can also be seen at the wideangle end. The photos taken also showed good sharpness, vibrant colors, minimal purple fringing, and excellent resolution. The MEGA O.I.S worked too, though the results may vary among individuals. Nevertheless, if you are looking for a simple, all-round digicam that takes great pictures, the 12x optical zoom, image stabilized FZ5 is a great choice.

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