Panasonic Lumix DMC TZ5EB-K
Overview
This review is based on my own reviews of this camera elsewhere and has been edited for the pupose of posting on here, I hope you will find it useful.
Normally I use large DSLR or bridge camera, but I wanted a small camera that would ... Read review
For intelligent travel with enormous zoom when small dimensions the TZ5 stands! The 10 x ... more
optical zoom in a compact housing brings also the distant themes crisp sharp and largely due to the LEICA optics. In addition, extensive Panorama recordings are sm...
Panasonic is pleased to introduce Lumix digital camera, 9.1-megapixel DMC-TZ5, featuring a ... more
28mm wide-angle 10x optical zoom Leica DC lens (equivalent to 28-280mm on a 35mm film camera). The 28mm wide angle lens captures the subject and the scene wider ...
Postage & Packaging: £3.80 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Advantages: Good build & picture quality, Ease of use, 10x zoom, ISO can be set manually. Disadvantages: No seperate viewfinder, manual settings or supplied SD card, High ISO picture blurring.
...quality, the pictures from the Panasonic fared resonably well in comparison.
I was expecting the picture quality from a 10x zoom on such a small camera to suffer, but I was pleasantly surprised, the pictures were sharp throughout the focal range, even at its longest focal length, and there was no apparent chromatic aberrations, (colour fringing around high contrast subjects) plus the image stablizer worked well in all but very dim ... ...cameras the image censor is very small, and cramming 9 or 10 megapixels onto such a small censor often causes problems with digital noise, especially at higher ISO settings, This camera also fared very well here with digital noise not apparent at all at ISO 100 and very little at ISO 200. but It gradually worsens at higher ISO settings, (I keep mine set on ISO 100 for daytime shots) but it is still well within acceptable levels for a compact camera, ... more
Panasonic Lumix DMC TZ5EB-K
Overview
This review is based on my own reviews of this camera elsewhere and has been edited for the pupose of posting on here, I hope you will find it useful.
Normally I use large DSLR or bridge camera, but I wanted a small camera that would fit in my pocket when I don't want to carry a large camera with me, this camera is just about small enough to fit into a large pocket.
What attracted me to this particular model was its 10x zoom range from 28mm to 280mm (35mm equivalent) and its reasonable 9.1mp resolution.
I went out and took some pictures with this camera, and some more almost identical pictures with a Canon EOS DSLR, Whilst a compact can never match a good DSLR in image quality, the pictures from the Panasonic fared resonably well in comparison.
I was expecting the picture quality from a 10x zoom on such a small camera to suffer, but I was pleasantly surprised, the pictures were sharp throughout the focal range, even at its longest focal length, and there was no apparent chromatic aberrations, (colour fringing around high contrast subjects) plus the image stablizer worked well in all but very dim light conditions.
As in all compact cameras the image censor is very small, and cramming 9 or 10 megapixels onto such a small censor often causes problems with digital noise, especially at higher ISO settings, This camera also fared very well here with digital noise not apparent at all at ISO 100 and very little at ISO 200. but It gradually worsens at higher ISO settings, (I keep mine set on ISO 100 for daytime shots) but it is still well within acceptable levels for a compact camera, the cameras built in noise reduction causes some fine detail to be lost at higher ISO settings, but this is mostly apparent at higher magnifications of the image.
At very low light levels this camera performs reasonably well compared to some of the other compacts, and flash exposures are excellent, full of detail and well exposed.
The autofocus is reasonably fast and accurate in most cases, only struggling in very low contrast or difficult to focus subjects, and the face detection works well, macro, whilst not true macro, will focus as close as 5cm at the 28mm setting giving you a reasonable close up.
The camera itself feels solidly built, the menu's are logically laid out and fairly easy to navigate, and you will soon get to grips with it, it has an excellent printed manual.
There are more than enough modes on it to keep the budding photographer happy, with 2 auto settings and 22 auto scene modes to cover most conditions, and an exposure compensation setting of (+/- 2 at 1/3 stop increments) for those awkward situations when one of the auto modes will not give a correct exposure, it is a pity there are no manual settings however, which would have made this camera much more flexible in use.
The LCD monitor is a large 3" monitor, and is very clear and bright, making it easy to compose your pictures and to view pictures afterwards, although such a large screen could be vulnerable to damage so a good quality padded camera case is recommended.
A seperate optical viewfinder would have been a welcome addition, making the taking of moving subjects easier, especially at longer focal lengths, but many compact cameras do not include them anymore.
It does have a video and sound recording function, but I have not tried that yet, (I will update this review when I have) so I cannot comment on that, except to say that the microphone is positioned on the top left of the camera where it could easily be covered by a finger, causing sound problems.
PROS
Well built and easy to use. Better picture quality than many compacts. 10x zoom covers the most usefull range from wide angle to a decent telephoto. 9.1mp resolution is more than enough for all but the biggest enlargements. It is compatible with SDHC cards. Large clear screen. Video and sound recording function. A printed manual, not one of those pdf files on a disc. Image stablizer. User settable ISO. Enough exposure modes to cope with most situations. Good as a second camera when it would not be practical to take a larger camera. Good price for what you get.
CONS
No SD card supplied, so you will need to buy one seperately. No viewfinder other than the LCD screen. Some fine picture detail lost (blurring) at higher ISO settings. Microphone could have been sited better. No manual exposure setting, but the exposure compensation does help. Can be a little complicated at first for novice users, but the manual is good. A little too big for small pockets.
Verdict.
This is a good camera for anyone who wants to replace a cheaper outdated camera with something that will take decent pictures and has a good zoom range, and for anyone who wants a small camera as a backup to a larger camera.
It is availlable for as little as £194.99, and is very good value at that price.
All in all this is a very good little camera for the price, with very little to be said against it, and it comes highly recommended.
Advantages: 10x zoom, amazing lcd screen, HD movie Disadvantages: High ISO settings give blurring, No manual settings
From what i have used of the camera so far this camera will eat up any picture you want to take with it, I makes everything look so good with the massive 10x optical zoom.
The specifications are as follows:
9.1 Mega pixels
10x optical zoom
Leica lens
1/2.33" sensor
Sd card with SdHc capability (upto 32gb)
3" lcd screen with 460k dots
lithium ion rechargeable battery
28mm wide angle lens
HD movie capability
So far there is only one problem ... ...the ISO gets above 200 the images start to blur slightly but i don't know of many, if any compact cameras with 10x zoom will prevent the blurring from happening on higher ISO settings.
The build quality of the camera is superb it feels weighty which to me is a good sign that the camera actually has something decent inside of it :). But i will say that it is not as small as most compact cameras but when you think about having a lens with 10x optical ...
smivs953 20.05.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5
Advantages: Picture quality and zoom Disadvantages: lens
I recently purchased this camera as i needed one for my holiday with the girlfriend. We went into all sorts of electrical shops and found them all rubbish except for jessops who showed us all the cameras. We wanted a camera which was easy to use and not fiddily to use with plently of dials and buttons which were never going to be used. This was the perfect option easy to use is a understatement. It has everything you could want from a camera. It ... ...seen on a personal camera. The the intelligent auto selection is awesome it takes the ideal picture for what you want. It also has face recognition and anti red eye. It has a huge screen to view your pictures. The only diadvantage i can think is that you may damage the lens if you are to quick to put it away after use but this is only a minor gripe as i couldnt think of anything else. I can definately recommend this product to any buyer as its shear ...
stuart388 16.10.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5
Advantages: Great zoom, easy to use Disadvantages: None
Having always been a bit of a cheap and cheerful camera buyer, I was a bit nervous spending nearly double what I'd usually spend on a camera. This camera has proved to be beyond value for money though! The Lumix DMC-TZ5 is a 9.1 megapixel, with a wide angle lens and boasts an awesome 10X optical zoom. It's also a remarkable easy camera to use, a lot of time has gone into setting up the intelligent auto function (which is the main setting you'll use), ... ...your taking, adjust for light and does pretty much everything a photographer does (all be it not to the same level of expertise) as you take the photo, meaning amazing shots ever time. That said don't be afraid try to experiment with the manual settings (of which there are many!!) as will a little bit of practice you can get some really brilliant photos. Size wise although the TZ5 is larger than a normal compact, it is still far smaller than an SLR ...
puddingmancan 07.11.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5
This was my 'upgrade' to a now very low spec 3.1 mp Pentax Optio. To say it bluntly I was impresssed from the moment I switched it on. The TZ5, the supersceded model to the TZ3 carries a 'winning formula' from its predesessor. The TZ5 is difficult to flaw, the camera is very easy to use. I was whizzing around the options within minutes and the settings are very clear and understandable. One of my favourite features has to be the e.zoom button by ... ...the camera goes straight to a 10x optical zoom without having to do it using the manual control along the ring of the shoot button. This e.zoom button allows you to capture somthing in the distances with ease and speed, whether a passing celebrity or wildlife. Press the button again and it will go to a 17x digital zoom also very impressive given the overall distance you are trying to achieve taking these shots with 3 mp. The stability on this camera ...
Alteex 17.10.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5
Advantages: good picture quality Disadvantages: none
I recently purchased this camera as i needed one for my holiday with the girlfriend. We went into all sorts of electrical shops and found them all rubbish except for jessops who showed us all the cameras. We wanted a camera which was easy to use and not fiddily to use with plently of dials and buttons which were never going to be used. This was the perfect option easy to use is a understatement. It has everything you could want from a camera. It ... ...seen on a personal camera. The the intelligent auto selection is awesome it takes the ideal picture for what you want. It also has face recognition and anti red eye. It has a huge screen to view your pictures. The only diadvantage i can think is that you may damage the lens if you are to quick to put it away after use but this is only a minor gripe as i couldnt think of anything else. I can definately recommend this product to any buyer as its shear ...
pixels91 23.04.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5
Picture Quality
Range & Quality of Feat...
Ease of Use
Durability
Overall Look & Design
Value for Money
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Product Information for "Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5" »
Connections
Connector Type
1 x USB
1 x composite video/audio output
1 x component video output
1 x DC power input
Expansion Slot(s)
1 x SD Memory Card
Manufacturer's product description
Panasonic is pleased to introduce two Lumix digital cameras, the 9.1-megapixel DMC-TZ5, featuring a 28mm wide-angle 10x optical zoom Leica DC lens. The 28mm wide angle lens can capture the subject or scene wider at the same standpoint than a normal 35mm camera, zooming in or out with the 10x powerful optical zoom. The DMC-TZ5 is the latest members of the Lumix TZ family, which is renowned for packaging a remarkable 28mm wide angle 10x optical zoom lens in a compact body. The DMC-TZ5 integrates recording capabilities for 720p HD (high-definition) motion pictures, together with its direct output function as a stills camera, allowing users to enjoy watching both still and motion images in impressive HD quality on a large-screen HDTV via an optional component cable. The DMC-TZ5 boasts Intelligent LCD function, which detects lighting conditions and controls brightness levels of the LCD in 11 steps, to offer a display with the clearest image in any situation with developed 460,000-dot high resolution in 3.0-inch (TZ5).
