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Old 08-10-2006, 02:01 PM   #1
Red Frog
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Advice/Opinions on buying the following Digital Camera....

Hey Guys,

I'm in the market for a new digital camera and have been heavily researching the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ7. It is closely affiliated to an SLR, but has all the advantages of a compact.

Has anyone heard of this camera and has any opinions/ advice/ recommendations on it? It is very similar to the Canon PowerShot S3 IS which I also really like, however one disadvantage is that it only takes AA batteries, unlike the Lumix that has a lithium battery.

What I'm looking for is a camera that has a powerful zoom +10x and is at least or above 6MP. I'm also after the image stabilization to reduce handshake and manual options to increase/decrease ISO settings when appropriate. The Lumix has a min 60sec shutter speed, which i like the sounds of if i ever wanted to set up a long exposure.

Anyone work in the camera industry? Any critques etc would be greatly appreciated on the above Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ7.

Luv ya stuff!!

Oh and for people's interest, if you are searching for a new camera and want to have a detailed side-by-side comparison w/ great reviews and sample images, this is a FANTASTIC website!!
http://www.dpreview.com/
Kudos to the lady at Ted's Camera Shop at Erina for her valuable advice.

Thanks guys!!
Leigh

PS - Yes I would roll around the floor in hysteria if I woke up 2moro morning to find the new Canon EOS 400d sitting on my desk, but for travel and bulkiness of different lenses, this is probably a camera more suited for when it is time to settle down w/ a family (so _not_ in the near future!), so i will suffice for now w/ a camera in between a compact and a full SLR.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonicfz7/
http://panasonic.com.au/products/det...?objectID=3086
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Old 08-10-2006, 04:30 PM   #2
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Amazing, I'm tossing up between the exact same cameras.

Such a tough decision!
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Old 08-10-2006, 04:37 PM   #3
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Considered the Canon Powershot S3? Great camera. Similar specs.
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Old 08-10-2006, 04:40 PM   #4
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Canons and Olympus seem to walk over Panasonics still, try looking at the equivalent Olympus after we got a 10 x zoom one a few years back the price dropped heaps and the features went up, in my direct family there are 5 now of all specs but the lens is the part that makes them all awesome. Ours was the 770 I think there are all similar numbers now. Melbastina would have some good advice seeing as he works at teds
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Old 08-10-2006, 04:54 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Plutonus
Considered the Canon Powershot S3? Great camera. Similar specs.
Yes, thats what we're deciding between. The S3 and the FZ7
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:02 PM   #6
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:08 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Red Frog
Canon PowerShot S3 IS which I also really like, however one disadvantage is that it only takes AA batteries
\

That's wrong, the Canon only comes standard with AA batteries, but it can use lithium as I bought a set from Canon to go with it.

I have the Canon PowerShot S3, here are some photos http://www.9kclan.com/pluto/images/

I have more, they are just my early ones. I just haven't uploaded my latest. Oh the image in my sig is from it too. It's really nice to handle, solid but not heavy, great screen.

If you have any specific questions ask away
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:33 PM   #8
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yeah i know.......i've been looking at the s3 for the last hour or so.......HRMMM! so frustrating!! i think some testing is in order during the week. will go to paxton's during the week and test the two out me thinks. in the end it'll come down to whateva i feel performs the best in the testing.
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:34 PM   #9
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That is a tough one actually, and it's one I have to guide customers through all the time.

The FZ-7 is a nice little unit, and the lithium battery is both a pro and a con. It depends on you personal preference. For it's size and price it's hard to beat, it has a good lens (not great for macro tho), it has a proper OIS and is fairly straight forward to use. The down fall with the panasonic is noise, it's a serious pain. So if your likely to use the camera in low light a lot, then I have to advise against this model. If it's mostly going to be an out door warrior then go for it, it is off the top of my head about $100 cheaper than the canon.

The Canon S3 is also a very nice slightly larger unit, it's main advantages are slightly better manual controls, flip screen, better macro control and for me it just feels better in the hand. The auto focus in the canon eats the Panasonic's for breakfast, in fact it's not even breakfast it's like a little snack. The cons, it can be a little harder to get used to, the screen is a little small for my liking and it does have a tendency to clip highlights a little, not something you'll probably notice. Some people like to say it suffers from fringing, but it's not nearly as bad as most people make out. To date about 6 out of the 8 people that have expressed that as a concern to me in the shop didn't even know what it was, and certainty couldn't point it out in a print. On a side note, I recommended one of these to a mate from OMC, he has a set of NiMh batteries and they have been going for almost 500 shots apparently, so it's not so bad that you cant get rechargeable lithium batts for them, probably not far off tho.

My verdict is the canon is worth the extra money, but factor in a set of NiMh batteries and charger on top of the usual case and memory card, it does work out to be a more expensive camera.

My only other piece of advice is to make sure that if you go for the canon it is a genuine Australian import. Canon are sick of dealing with ebay specials with international warranties, so are most retailers. Before you take that gamble to save a few bucks , make sure your aware of the risks.

A decent set of NiMh batteries and charger should cost you between $30-$70, aim for closer to $70 to avoid disappointment and get a set of Energiser Li AA as a back up (about $7-10) to keep in the bag.

1024SD card in a reputable brand like sandisk should cost you about $50, less if you go dodgy brothers.
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:40 PM   #10
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khayman! that's bizarre we're looking at the same ones! get back to me if you decide on one of them.

actually, in regards to the batteries, i must admit that the review for the S3 at http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/ca...ew/index.shtml shows that a set of 4x 2500 mAh NiMH batteries can take up to 550 shots as opposed to the lithium in the Z7 which can take 320 shots.

in the end, it really comes down to a travelling issue for me. this camera will be used in europe for a good 2.5 mths then in the UK for a few years, where i'll be travelling quite a bit, so i need the convience of having a really easy recharging system going on. but then if i'm camping and backpacking for a lot of it, i may not hav access to a powerpoint, so a handful of 2500 mAh NiMH batteries would be better, but then they're so much easier to roll away and lose. oh the dilemma! lol
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:40 PM   #11
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I got my Canon Ni-MH batteries for about $30, and my 2GB memory card from Apacer for aorund $80 if I remember correctly.

When you're travelling its handy to have the AA option, so you can run down to a local shop and get some batteries to use for a while until you get to a powerpoint.
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:49 PM   #12
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Out of interest what are the canon AA's rated at?

In my years of working with cameras I have never actually come across the canon branded ones.

$80 for a 2GB apacer sounds about right, a 2GB sandisk retails for about $100, so you'd get it for about $80-90 with a camera with minimal effort.

Just as a side note, I found in some circumstances 2 x 1024 cards is more workable than 1 x 2048 card. Some lab systems are still not compatible with 2048 cards which can be a pain if you want to back it up onto a CD. But 2048 is going to hold a serious number of photos anyway.
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:51 PM   #13
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thanks melbastina!! that was an extremely helpful post!! canon is know as a very reputable brand when it comes to photography and every1 seems to choose this camera or the S2. however, i always go for the underdog, the sumtimes forgotten brands lol did this w/ my mp3 player and haven't looked back - a creative zen, which is a hell of a lot better than any iPod on the market at that stage.

i think i will hav to really look into the canon. money is not an issue. i was planning to pay at least $1500 for an SLR, so an extra hundred isn't a problem + i'll b getting it duty free b4 i leave or from an online aussie shop, which should save me a bit of dosh.

i hav read heaps of reviews/seen many samples of the bad noise at higher ISO levels w/ the lumix.....but sumtimes u do fall in love w/ things, and can put up w/ certain imperfections. i do, however, like the "my colours" option on the canon - just sth fancy, but could be used for some kewl pics. damn shame i don't live down in vic and can pop into ur store, MB! oh well.
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Old 08-10-2006, 05:52 PM   #14
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Here are the details for you...

Product Code/Number: NB4-300 (Four NB-3AH batteries)
1.2v, 2500mAh(typ.) with 2300mAh (min.)

I only got the 2GB card because they were out of stock of the smaller sizes and I didn't want to wait
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Old 08-10-2006, 06:12 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Red Frog
so an extra hundred isn't a problem + i'll b getting it duty free b4 i leave or from an online aussie shop, which should save me a bit of dosh.
Infact, the cheapest prices I could find in Sydney for the S3 is $535 and for the FZ7 is $537 so no real difference in price (camera only of course). Duty free is how I am going to do it also (along with lots more stuff!), purchase it within one month of leaving, produce an invoice for the camera and get your duty back. $53.50 in your case.

Personally, I am leaning towards the S3 because it feels so much better in the hand than the FZ7. The FZ7 felt a bit plasticy, light and almost like a fake camera (but that is just my opinion, you should hold both of them for yourself - impossible to make a decision until you do)

I, however, have the same concerns as you with respect to traveling and AA's. I'm going to Canada for the month of December and less 'stuff' I have to cart around the better imo. However after reading a few reviews regarding the batteries lasting a fairly long time I think it should be of minimal concern.

S3 is a nose infront for me!
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Old 08-10-2006, 06:21 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Plutonus
Here are the details for you...

Product Code/Number: NB4-300 (Four NB-3AH batteries)
1.2v, 2500mAh(typ.) with 2300mAh (min.)
Hey Leigh..

I have a Powershot S2 IS and i think it's a great camera, there's only a few minor improvements to the S3..

In regarding to batteries i use 2300/2500mAh rechargeables [Duracell with a fast 1 hour charger - about $70 i think for 4 batteries and a charger, JB Hi-Fi is your friend].. and you should be able to get anywhere between 400-600 shots on one set of those batteries with heavy use of the screen.. I try not to use flash photography as its so harsh, but you could knock off about 100 shots if you're using the flash i guess..

Cheers
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Old 08-10-2006, 06:22 PM   #17
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With the standard AA batteries that come with the camera i've done about 250 photos with no low battery warning as of yet if that helps you work out how much power it uses?
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Old 08-10-2006, 06:27 PM   #18
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Wow you only got 250 photos? I think i got about 400 from the set that came with the camera.. interesting!
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Old 08-10-2006, 06:31 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrPayner
Wow you only got 250 photos? I think i got about 400 from the set that came with the camera.. interesting!
At what compression level? Superfine / fine / normal?
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Old 08-10-2006, 06:53 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Plutonus
no low battery warning as of yet
I haven't made more then 250 shots yet
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