Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ4 Digital Camera - An Alternative To Canon S2 IS?
Written: Jun 14 '05 (Updated Sep 01 '05)
Product Rating:
Ease of Use:
Durability:
Battery Life:
Photo Quality:
Shutter Lag
Pros: Fast Leica monster zoom, picture quality, price, features, included accessories
Cons: LCD could be articulated and larger, could come in black color, no microphone
The Bottom Line: If you want a responsive "monster zoom" camera, this Panasonic FZ4 is a good choice. With 4 megapixels of resolution, 12x optical zoom...
dkozin's Full Review: Panasonic Lumix® DMC-FZ4 Digital Camera
After using a 2-Megapixel Panasonic DMC-FZ1 (upgraded to FZ2 firmware) for a while, I decided that I need a camera with higher resolution. Since I have SD cards and 55mm filters that I used with the FZ1 and since I liked the FZ1's features, menu system and overall performance, I decided to stay with the Panasonic FZ line instead of moving to Canon S2 IS.
Why not Canon S2 IS
The Canon S2 IS uses SD cards and I would have been able to use my leftover SD cards, but it uses four AA-sized batteries, meaning I would have to get my own rechargeable NiMH batteries and a charger, recharge them removing them one by one. They are (4 of them) heavier than the battery pack used in Panasonic FZ cameras, more prone to cold weather, take up more space. Also, you have to get an adaptor to be able to use filters with the S2 IS, whereas the cameras of Panasonic FZ line include a lens/filter adaptor and a lens hood.
The FZ line ships with a real travel charger that can charge the battery pack from 110-240V, which means you can use it in the US, Europe and elsewhere. And my 55mm filters work with all FZ-line cameras, whereas Canon S2 IS accepts only 58-mm filters and only if you buy an optional adaptor. I have 58-mm filters, but I use them with my Nikon N55 SLR.
I also like the Panasonic menu system better. And Canon S2 IS is currently more expensive than comparable Panasonic FZ5 or FZ4 and is even more expensive factoring in the lack of rechargeable battery, charger, lens hood and filter adapter. I might get Canon S2 IS later, if I find a good deal on it, and compare it with my current camera, but for now, I decided in favor of Panasonic.
On Resolution
I find that I need at least 4 megapixels. Let me explain why. Although I originally thought that 2 megapixels will be sufficient for regular 6x4 prints, I have recently changed my opinion. Although 6x4 prints from a 2-Megapixel camera (Panasonic FZ1) compare favorably with prints from an inexpensive film point-and-shoot, they seem to be not as sharp and detailed as either photos taken by my Nikon N55 SLR with a Nikkor 28-80 f/3.3-5.6 G lens using Fujicolor Superia Reala ISO 100 or photos taken with an old Chinon 35EE-II rangefinder using Fujicolor Superia ISO 400 film.
If you don't look closely or have poor eyesight, the 2-Megapixel prints look as good. But if you pay attention, you see that they don't, no matter what you do to them in Photoshop (Unsharp Mask, etc.). And they actually have sub-2MP resolution, since you have to crop them to remove either the top or the bottom of the frame, since they don't have the 3/2 aspect ratio, required for 6x4 prints.
The bottom line here is although 2MP is sufficient for 6x4 print if you are not picky, it is not if you are and if you see that an old rangefinder camera bought on eBay for $20 loaded with regular color negative film can provide better sharpness. It cannot provide other features of FZ1, however. Neither it nor Nikon N55 with my zoom lens are as compact, light, provide 600+ picture storage capacity on one small memory card, provide instant preview, 35-420 mm zoom with optical image stabilization or have rechargeable batteries or an ability to use Photoshop.
So off I go to get a similar camera but with larger resolution. And my first attempt was Panasonic DMC-FZ4 - a camera similar to my previous FZ1, but with 4 Megapixels, flash output compensation and TIFF storage capability.
About FZ4
The Panasonic DMC-FZ4 is a 4-Megapixel digital camera with 1/2.5-inch CCD sensor, Leica optics with 12x optical zoom (35-420mm in 35-mm equivalent) with optical image stabilization with maximum apertures of f/2.8 at wide angle and f/3.3 at full telephoto. It stores images on an SD card in TIFF or JPEG format (JPEG Fine or JPEG standard).
The FZ4 is only available in silver color and is called FZ4S. Its cousin - Panasonic FZ5 is available in silver or black, and has larger LCD screen. I am currently in process of returning the FZ4 and getting an FZ5K in black color.
The FZ4 has a 1.5-inch LCD screen, which is on its rear panel and is not articulated, unlike the Canon S2 IS. The FZ4 is relatively compact and lightweight, features USB 2.0 connectivity that is only as fast as USB 1.1. It requires no drivers, unlike some Canon cameras I dealt with, and has a very easy-to-use menu system.
You can output video to your TV (be it your pictures or video clips) using the supplied video cable that plugs into the same jack in the camera as the USB cable.
In addition to the aforementioned improvements over the FZ1 (and FZ3), the camera is also faster in operation and uses a faster and more feature-rich Venus II LSI processing engine that helps it virtually eliminate chromatic aberration (purple fringing) in high-contrast shots.
The image stabilization now has two modes - Mode 1 and Mode 2. In Mode 2, the stabilization is engaged only when the shutter release is pressed, which makes the stabilization more efficient and less power-hungry. The images turn out to be sharper when the Mode 2 is used, but it makes it slightly less easy to confirm focus.
You can now see the histogram on the screen (LCD or EVF) while or after the picture is taken. This way you can confirm if there is any lost detail in shadows (histogram is clipped in the right) or highlights (clipped in the left).
The slightly reworked rear panel now has separation between Display button and EVF/LCD button. Previously, you would have to push Display repeatedly to cycle through the information displayed and to switch between the EVF and LCD. Now, it is much easier and less frustrating.
ALso, there is now a separate button for exposure parameters adjustments - "Exposure". Previously, you had to push the "arrow up" button repeatedly.
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Features
The camera features selectable ISO between 64, 100, 200 and 400 as well as Auto. The White Balance can be set to Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Halogen, Flash, White Set (custom, using a white/grey card). The camera's auto white balance mostly works well and I left it in Auto most of the time.
The exposure modes include Program AE (with shift), Aperture and Shutter Priority mode, and even full Manual. The shutter speed can be set between 8 and 1/2,000 sec and the aperture between F2.8 and F8 (wide angle) or F3.3-8 (telephoto). I usually use apertures around F5.6 and F8 for landscapes.
The lens seems to be sharp and the image stabilization allows you to take handheld pictures at shutter speeds you wouldn't think were possible e.g. 1/8 sec at wide angle or 1/30 at full telephoto (420 mm equivalent focal length).
The light metering can be selected between Intelligent Multiple, Center-Weighted and Spot. I find Spot and Center-Weighted modes useful when taking pictures of people at distances where the flash doesn’t reach in backlight. In Intelligent Multiple metering mode, the faces might turn out underexposed, unless you dial some exposure compensation. In Spot mode, you can set metering to properly expose the face.
The camera has an autofocus assist light for better and faster focusing in low-light conditions. It works well in dim light.
The camera has a built-in speaker, which can only be used for operational sounds and no microphone. It can record short movie clips at low resolution of 320x240 pixels at 30 or 10 fps with no sound. I never used this feature.
The camera can be set to Standard image mode, Natural (more natural colors, sharpening set to low, color saturation to low) for less video noise and if you want to use Photoshop or other image editing software for sharpening later, or Vivid (high saturation and sharpening). I mostly use Natural mode and occasionally Standard. Vivid mode has two much sharpening and saturation.
The rotary main mode control at the top deck has positions for an easy mode (red heart pictogram), playback, P (program AE), A (Aperture priority), S (Shutter Priority), M (Manual Mode), macro, movie and scene modes. The zoom rocker, shutter release button, image stabilization mode button and burst mode button are located close to it. I rarely use the burst mode or stabilization mode buttons.
The scene modes include Portrait, Sports, Scenery, Night Scenery, Panning, Night Portrait, Fireworks, Party and Snow. I find myself using the Aperture Priority mode most.
The camera is powered on and off by a simple sliding switch on the rear panel, that I find convenient. The green LED above it shows you if the camera is on or not.
The flash is open by a mechanical button and closed by pushing it down. There is no external flash connector. The flash mode and output can be adjusted by using directional buttons on the camera’s rear panel.
LCD
The camera has a 1.5-inch LCD that covers 100% of the view. You can also use the electronic viewfinder (EVF) with a diopter adjustment. I found that the LCD is well-visible in regular conditions, but in sunlight, visibility decreases and you have to use the EVF, which works well in sunlight. The optical viewfinder would be better, but it would not have been possible to make an optical viewfinder that would fit in such a small space and work with such a monster 12x optical zoom.
Performance
The camera seems to operate faster than the FZ1. The power-up takes less than 3 seconds (mostly taken by the lens extension). The camera seems to focus faster as well, especially in its 1-area or 3-area High-Speed autofocus mode (well under a second, almost instantly), slightly less so in its 9-point autofocus mode (still less than a second). The shutter lag when pre-focused is virtually absent and the picture is taken almost instantaneously.
Depending on the focus mode, the shot-to-shot delay ranges between less than a second (High-Speed Autofocus) to a little more than a second (9-point autofocus). Since TIFF images are much large than JPEGs, the delay is longer, depending on the SD card speed. I got about 3 seconds with my 65x Kingston Elite Pro SD Card.
The burst modes present are High Speed (4 fps), Low Speed (2 fps) and No Limit continuous (2 fps). In the former two modes, the camera takes 5 pictures within 1.2 or 2.5 seconds. In the latter, the camera keeps taking pictures at 2 fps until you let go of the shutter release button.
Shooting with flash is slower since the flash needs time to recharge. Depending on battery condition, you can expect the flash recharge time of 2-4 seconds.
The battery lasts about 300 pictures, which is better than with my previous FZ1 (about 240-250 pictures). Since on my last vacation I took close to 1,000 pictures, I had to bring my FZ1's charger with me. If you plan on going anywhere, I suggest you either bring the FZ4's charger with you (it is compact and has no cables) or get a spare battery.
The camera accommodated my 55mm UV and circular polarizing filters well. The zooming is smooth, precise and quiet. The supplied lens hood is easy to attach and works well to fight flare.
Picture Quality
The FZ4 produced excellent pictures (I used Fine JPEG mode with maximum resolution of 2304x1728). The photos were well-saturated, properly exposed and sharp from wide angle to telephoto. The image stabilization worked well and let me take handheld photos at full telephoto at 1/60 and sometimes at 1/30 and at 1/8 at wide angle.
The Natural mode features slightly softer images (not as sharpened as in Standard mode) with less saturation. The Vivido mode increases the saturation and sharpening. Both Standard and Natural mode feature pleasing, true-to-life colors.
Some shots in the bright regions of California's Mt. Blady (snow and sand/rocks) produced slight underexposure (the camera tried to capture detail in highlights), which can be fixed by using the camera's Snow mode or using exposure compensation.
I noticed no vignetting and no chromatic aberration (purple fringing). The chromatic aberration seems to be completely suppressed by the Venus II engine.
The lens features only a slight barrel distortion at wide angle and no pincussion distortion at telephoto.
I mostly used the lowest ISO (64) and saw no noise, even in the shadows. At ISO 100 or 200, you can see noise appear in darker areas and ISO 400 is so noisy that I don't advocate its use unless absolutely necessary. Fortunately, you can avoid having to use it in most situations by simply using a slower shutter speed and/or larger apertures (F2.8 or F3.3).
But if you have to have a faster shutter speed, then you have to use ISO 400 or even higher and if that is what you need, you probably need to get a digital SLR camera. They work much better at higher ISO (400-1600).
Why I am Returning the FZ4 and getting an FZ5
After I got the FZ4, I realized that for only about $50-60 more I can get an FZ5 in black color (which I like better than silver), with slightly larger LCD screen (1.8-inch versus 1.5) and 5-Megapixel resolution versus 4-Megapixel. The FZ5 also has sound recording and playback (whereas the FZ4 has no microphone and uses its speakers for operational sounds only). The lens is also slightly "longer" (46-432mm). The differences are not major, but I decided to get the FZ5.
Bottom Line
If you want a responsive "monster zoom" camera, this Panasonic FZ4 is a good choice. With 4 megapixels of resolution, 12x optical zoom, optical image stabilization, fast f2.8-3.3 Leica lens and responsive Venus II LSI engine, at less than $350, this camera is an excellent choice.
If you want a 5-Megapixel resolution, an option to have your camera in black color and slightly larger LCD, sound recording and playback, the Panasonic FZ5 may be a better alternative. I should get mine shortly.
And if you are a Canon fan, don't mind paying more, don't mind Canon's menu system, having to buy your own charger and AA rechargeable batteries and don't care that it doesn't come with a lens hood or filter/lens adaptor, check out the Canon S2 IS.
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