Panasonic Lumix, which model

[britfish]

I am looking for a new digital camera and I just read a bunch of threads where people recommended the Lumix. Which model is recommended? I am looking on Amazon and the Z3 is just under $300 but the FS25 is on sale at $137. I went on the Panasonic site and compared but honestly I don't know what I am looking for. Any recommendations? I am not in a rush to purchase this but I want to be ready to jump when I see a good price!

 

[lpizzuro123]

I have the DMX-FX37 and I love it. I did not look at the ones you are looking at so I do not know if they are the small ones or the large ones but mine is a small one. It takes great pictures. I purchased it about 2 years ago so I am not sure if they still carry it.

Linda

 

[burnsoc]

I'm on my second Lumix. I recently got the Z3 and love it. It takes HD video as well as stills. The picture quality is excellent for a point and shoot, with a great zoom lens.

 

[FINFAN]

I also have the ZS3...(the red one) and so far it's pretty cool. 2 things I wish I could change:
1. Be able to zoom from arms length..meaning, the zoom does not want to engage unless you are 5-6 feet from subject. The non-zoom capabilities are pretty darn good if you just get close and click ( flowers, food shots etc) but I wish I could still zoom in even closer on stuff I am right in front of.
I enabled the digital zoom which helps with this.
2. viewfinder! The view screen is a great size, but no viewfinder and the glare on the screen on a sunny day is brutal for me. It either needs a hood, or a viewfinder. Inside shots are no issue, but I am pretty much guessing when out in the sund, (I am bummed since WDW is sunny). I have noticed that many of the new models by most manufacturers do not have a viewfinder, and I don't understand why...am I the only one who has glare issues?

I love the rechargeable battery( it lasts a LONG time, weeks if not taking 100 pic's a day),1080 HD video cpapcilities, and the compact size is cool, and the on-off switch is also appreciated. I would rather own the bulkier Z-28 with the 15 zoom, but DH was thinking portability, and price! He bought mine just before Christmas on Amazon, total was 245 incl delivery, so pretty decent deal. I have to get used to it for sure, but off the top of my head, those 2 issues are my only real complaints, and most love the zoom on this little babay, and it IS really good, I just like to get REALLY close on stuff but do not want a SLRcamera...so for a P&S, for awesome zoom, the z28 is awesome, but as I said, bulkier like a SLR.
Our DD has the bulkier version Lumix of 8mp and 12x zoom, it has held up great( and it has been dropped, but no issues) and is over 4 years old...I have absolutely no complaints on the quality or brand. She nees it for a lot of refernce photos at college and it has never let her down.

 

[NewWorld Traveler]

We purchased a Z-28 a year ago and love it! Highly recommended. As mentioned previously, it is bulkier than a pocket point and shoot but has lots of capability. The zoom is tremendous and has lots of flexibility with various settings (color, style, specialized auto settings, shoots in RAW, etc.).

 

[dis-happy]

I have the TS-1 which I love and adore. It's waterproof, drop proof, sand/dust proof and takes wonderful pictures. Plus, they've come out with the TS-2 (with a couple more pixels) making the TS-1 a real bargain for only $200. on Amazon.

 

[mrudman]

I have the TZ5, and love love love it! It's the perfect size IMO.. bulky enough that it doesn't feel like I'm gonna crush it in my hands, lol, but very easy to slip in my pocket... and best of all, can use it as a total P&S camera.

For our upcoming trip, I'm planning on buying the TZ10 (direct successor to the TZ5), which has HD video and higher MP (going on an Alaskan cruise, ). Will be taking both of these cameras, so that dh and I can both have one.

Here's some pics I had taken with it when we went to Disney in Dec. of 2008. I had bought this camera about 6 months before that, and these were all taken in Intelligent Auto mode (didn't change a thing on the camera).

http://s577.photobucket.com/albums/ss220/mrudman41873/disney/


Just noticed that one of the ones you mentioned you are looking at is the TZ3.. if you go that route, I'd suggest you go with the TZ5 instead... not much difference in price (on Amazon), and the TZ5 is 9 mp vs 7.2, and has couple other features as well (face detection being one of them). But anways, good luck with your research!

 

[BillSears]

I have the TZ5, and love love love it! It's the perfect size IMO.. bulky enough that it doesn't feel like I'm gonna crush it in my hands, lol, but very easy to slip in my pocket... and best of all, can use it as a total P&S camera.

I love my TZ5 too! I took it on my cross-country trip and got lots of great pictures. The 10X zoom is fantastic and the P&S features are great.

 

[YodasMom]

I also have the Z3 and love it! My main camera is a DSLR, but I use the ZS as a lighter weight subsitute and it takes excellent quality photos. I am also able to take close-up's with the zoom at arms length a little closer than 3 feet so that is not an issue with my Z3.

I have no complaints with this camera for it's intended use. Obviously, if I want higher quality images, I use the DSLR with lens changes, but I sometimes want the option of having a "lighter bag carry" day!

 

[nilseks]

Love the ZS3! The price fluctuates greatly on amazon and other sites; I have seen it for as little as $240. Yes it is a tad bigger than some of the pocket cameras, but still totally manageable. The video, and sound quality of the video, is fantastic. I have completely stopped using my camcorder--don't need it anymore! I did a lot of research and I'm very happy with my decision. Normally I am quite thrifty, but this purchase was worth every dime.

 

[LoraJ]

I have the TZ5 and love it. It's a great camera.
DH just got me the ZS7 (next model up from ZS3)for my birthday. Very similar except it has more features and manual settings which is what I was missing from the TZ5. I really like it. I hear it is very similar to the ZS3.

We are big fans of Lumix cameras.

 

[branv]

I'm so glad you asked this question! I had tinkered with the cameras at Costco, and was SO impressed with how intuitive the Panasonics were. Call me lame, but I am camera lazy and ignorant. I want something that I can change the settings on super easy. I had told DH I wanted the DMC-FS15, which was the one I tested at Costco at about $150. But I just saw the newly released DMC-FH20 and I put that one on the list instead. Saw some pics a photographer took with it and they were AMAZING.

I do wish I understood better what the difference was with all the Lumix models. I mean, some are similar in price and seemingly in specs (at least to a clueless person like me who doesn't get what all those specs actually mean), but they have different model lettering like FH, FS, Z (LMNOP ). I tried the "compare" function at Panasonic.com, but I still couldn't find a one-stop way to see if there was something I should be looking for.

 

[owensamo]

I just wanted to pipe in with another vote for the ZS3 - I love my camera. I got it last November after having Canons for probably 6-8 years, and I'm happier with this camera than I ever was with my Canon S-series cameras!

What I love about it is the zoom and the fact that it takes great low-light, no-flash photos! It's wonderful for all of those places you're not supposed to use flash photography, but you still want to take pictures (like WDW rides!! ) With the zoom, it's just about the perfect point-and-shoot. The only thing they could make better would be to make it a *tiny* bit smaller!

 

[mrudman]

Just wanted to put in some info here to make it a *little* less confusing..

Depending on what country you're in, Panasonics have given each camera a different model #... so, here's the info I've been able to gather (and correct me anyone if I'm wrong),

The TZ5 is a 9.1 mp camera, and had no other names as far as I know.
The TZ6 is same as a ZS1 (successor to TZ5)
The TZ7 is same as ZS3 (10.1 mp)
The TZ8 is same as ZS5 (successor to TZ6)
The TZ10 is same as ZS7 (successor to TZ7)

Hope this clears things up a little for the OP,

 

[Shadeaux]

I have the TZ5 and love it. It's a great camera.
DH just got me the ZS7 (next model up from ZS3)for my birthday. Very similar except it has more features and manual settings which is what I was missing from the TZ5. I really like it. I hear it is very similar to the ZS3.

We are big fans of Lumix cameras.

I have the TZ3 and TZ5. I just ordered the ZS7 and can't wait to play with the new features. I've had at 6 other digital cameras.....Panasonic Lumix cameras are my favorite.
Disney World with the TZ5 -
November 2009:
http://public.fotki.com/shadeaux/disneyworld/november2009/
May 2008:
http://public.fotki.com/shadeaux/disneyworld/may2008/

 

[FINFAN]

am I the only ZS3 owner with the glare issues? Help me out guys...I increased the brightness and it helped some...have any other tips for me?

"We purchased a Z-28 a year ago and love it! Highly recommended. As mentioned previously, it is bulkier than a pocket point and shoot but has lots of capability. The zoom is tremendous and has lots of flexibility with various settings (color, style, specialized auto settings, shoots in RAW, etc.)."
I am envious of you...I mean I love DH for thinking of me and the POrtability factor etc., but boy do I covet that Z-28!( And it's view finder)

 

[Shadeaux]

am I the only ZS3 owner with the glare issues? Help me out guys...I increased the brightness and it helped some...have any other tips for me?

Are you talking about glare on the lcd when you're in bright sunlight? I have the power lcd mode set to auto which helped most of the time. I bought a Power Support anti-glare film for my Iphone that worked so well that I cut one of them to fit the lcd of my TZ5. I bought it from Apple.com. Really makes a huge difference in the sun.

 

[MissMet]

I just got the $400 DMC-ZS7 (TZ10) for $349 from amazon!

I LOVE it... especially the travel mode with GPS feature & the dolby stereo sound. The 12 megapixels, 25mm wide angle lens, HD video with AVCHD lite & 12x optical zoom (16x "intelligent zoom") help too! They also fixed the glare on the viewfinder from it's earlier version ZS3 & the viewfinder is now a full 3 inches! I was using it in direct sunlight today & could see perfectly! I love this little thing!

Love it!

*Mac Users- I almost didn't get this one because imovie wouldn't work with the AVCHD but after HOURS of research I found out... if you update to imovie '09 & be sure to do the 8.0.3 update, imovie will now work with AVCHD. Just a little fact that took me a LOOOONG time to find out!

 

[Shadeaux]

I just got the $400 ZS7 for $349 from amazon!

I LOVE it... especially the travel mode with GPS feature & the dolby stereo sound. The 12 megapixels, 25mm wide angle lens, HD video & 12x optical zoom (16x "intelligent zoom") help too!

Love it!

My ZS7 won't be here until Monday! LOL, now I wish I had paid for faster shipping because I can't wait to get my hands on it!

 

[MissMet]

My ZS7 won't be here until Monday! LOL, now I wish I had paid for faster shipping because I can't wait to get my hands on it!

I know what you mean... I paid extra to get it sooner! I'm leaving for WDW in just a little over 2 weeks & want to get used to it before getting there!