Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ8K 8MP is perfect for anyone who expects a digital camera that blends power, performance and quality, helping to maximize the digital photography experience. The LZ-Series’ lenses were developed by Panasonic, passing Leica’s stringent standards to deliver an exceptional optical performance for Panasonic Lumix consumers. And with the the LZ8’s 32mm wide-angle lens, you can capture larger group photos or more expansive scenic shots.
To provide digital photographers with added creative elements and performance, the LZ8 sports manual control over aperture and shutter speed, thanks to the camera’s newly-adopted iris. When shooting manually, you can choose from three modes: A-aperture priority, S-shutter speed priority and M-manual and enjoy added control and creativity normally reserved for higher end models. Also new to the LZ8 is Advanced Scene Mode — a feature that gives you manual control using some of the frequently-used scene modes: Portrait, Sports, Landscape and Night portrait.
While in Advanced Scene Mode, when selecting the Portrait or Sports mode, the consumer is then presented with additional settings, with the option of choosing outdoor or indoor. When selecting Landscape mode, there are options to specify if the shot is nature or architecture. For budding photographers who desire even more artistic freedom, they can choose Creative mode, which adds more manual controls over an aperture or a shutter speed.
Helpful consumer’s review
I’ve been wanting something like the Canon PowerShot A series camera for a while. Another hobby of mine involves photographing small objects in a mini-studio settings (not unlike jewel photography, but less demanding/sophisticated). I wanted something that:
- has aperture/shutter priority modes, and manual mode;
- can set custom white balance
- shows live histogram in recording mode.
The Canon PowerShot A720IS and A570IS looked great, but neither had all three features I wanted. A query here on a photography forum last month led to a reply that pointed me to the then-just-announced Panasonic DMC-LZ8. On paper, it looked GREAT: All the features I wanted, 2.5″ LCD with 230K pixels (the Canon ones, while having large screens, have low pixel counts), and priced well under $200 to boot. It seemed so perfect that I preordered it, which I normally don’t do–I usually prefer the manufacturers to go through a few production batches and iron out all the bugs before buying a camera.
The camera came today from Amazon.com, and I had a chance to take a few quick shots and get an initial feel for the camera. Here are my observation and thoughts. I also have the DMC-FX33, so a bit of the review will be comparing the two. Not that they are in the same category, but the FX33 represents last year’s Panasonic design trends and philosophies, and LZ8 this year’s, so I thought it’d be interesting to note the contrasts.
The camera feels GREAT in my hand. I’m 6′ tall and have I guess about average hand-size for my height, and the protruding grip felt very comfortable. The thumb naturally rests right above the Record/Review switch, which provides a nice counter-pressure point to the grip.
