After using a 2-Megapixel Panasonic DMC-FZ1 (upgraded to FZ2 firmware) for a while and trying out the new 4-Megapixel Panasonic DMC-FZ4 (see Panasonic DMC-FZ4 review here), I decided to get the 5-Megapixel Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ5 in black color.

I normally don't print photos larger than standard 6x4, but occasionally do a large format print (larger than 12 inches). I will explain why I decided that I needed more than 2 Megapixels later.

Since I already 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 PowerShot S2 IS. At least for now.

Why not Canon S2 IS?

There are advantages and disadvantages of the S2 IS over the FZ5 that I will try to outline as there are some Canon S2 IS flaws I find serious. The Canon S2 IS (see Canon PowerShot S2 IS is review here) 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 (inconvenient).

The AA batteries are (4 of them) heavier than the battery pack used in Panasonic FZ cameras, more prone to reduction of power output in cold weather and take up more space. In addition to the power dilemma, there is another issue with filters.

You have to purchase 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 FZ5 comes with both and lets me use my 55mm filters left over from the FZ1.

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. Furthermore, the FZ5 ships with a compact charger that has no cables and plugs into the wall directly.

My 55mm filters work with all FZ-line cameras, whereas Canon S2 IS accepts 58-mm filters and only if you buy an optional adaptor from Canon. I have 58-mm filters, but I use them with my Nikon N55 SLR and I don't feel like paying extra for an adaptor.

I also like the Panasonic menu system better than Canon's. The Canon S2 IS is currently more expensive than comparable Panasonic FZ5 and is even more expensive factoring in the lack of rechargeable battery, charger, lens hood and filter adapter.

The Canon PowerShot S2 IS has no live histogram or TIFF recording - the features that the FZ5 has. And the F5 focuses faster than the S2 IS.

At the same time, Canon has an articulated LCD screen whereas Panasonic FZ5 has a fixed screen. Also, the S2 IS uses an USM drive in its zoom mechanism and provides variable speed zooming with fast zooming being the fastest I have seen. The FZ5 seems to have only one speed of zooming, which is not as fast as Canon's top zooming speed.

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 FZ5.

On Resolution

After using a 2-MP camera I grew dissatisfied with resulting prints. Theoretically, 2MP should be sufficient for 6x4 prints, providing about 267dpi of resolution (1600 pixels / 6 inches = 267 dpi). However, I find that I need at least 4 megapixels. Let me explain why.

Although 6x4 prints from a 2-Megapixel camera (Panasonic FZ1) compare favorably with prints from an inexpensive film-based point-and-shoot camera, 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. You can make them look even better if you use Photoshop and/or are careful with composition and exposure. But if you pay attention, you see that they don't look as detailed, no matter what you do to them in Photoshop (Unsharp Mask, Levels, Curves, etc.). The very finest detail that is present in my film prints is missing.

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 prints if you are not picky, it is not sufficient if you are and if you see that an old rangefinder camera bought on eBay for $20 loaded with regular $2 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 more than 600 pictures of storage capacity on one small memory card, provide instant preview, 35-420 mm zoom with optical image stabilization or have rechargeable batteries or ability to use Photoshop for fine picture adjustments.

Searching for Replacement

The first step was to list my FZ1 on eBay. And off I went to get a similar camera but with higher resolution but similar optics and performance. 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. You can read my review of the Panasonic DMC-FZ4 here. In the end, I ended up returning the FZ4 and getting myself a Panasonic DMC-FZ5. Of Panasonic DMC-FZ5K (where K stands for black color). The FZ5 is also available in silver color as FZ5S.

Why FZ5 and not FZ4?

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 or sound recording and uses its speakers for operational sounds only, e.g. simulated shutter release sound when taking a picture and beeps when buttons are pushed or focus obtained).

The FZ5 comes with an A/V cable, whereas the FZ4 only has video cable with no audio. The lens is also slightly "longer" (46-432mm). The differences are not major, but I decided to get the FZ5 anyway.

About FZ5

The Panasonic DMC-FZ5 is a 5-Megapixel digital camera with 1/2.5-inch CCD sensor featuring about 5.3 MP of gross resolution, Leica optics with 12x optical zoom (36-432mm 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 FZ5 is only available in either black or silver color (FZ5K or FZ5S). The FZ5 has a 1.8-inch LCD screen, which is on its rear panel and is not articulated, unlike the Canon S2 IS. The FZ5 is relatively compact and lightweight, features USB 2.0 connectivity that is only as fast as USB 1.1 (USB 2.0 Full-Speed) and requires no drivers, unlike some Canon cameras I dealt with, and has a very easy-to-use menu system.

You can output video and sound to your TV (be it your pictures or video clips) using the supplied audio/video cable that plugs into the same jack in the camera as the USB cable. Pretty strange arrangement, but it works.

In addition to the aforementioned improvements over the FZ1 (and FZ3), the camera is also faster in operation (focusing is much faster vs. the FZ1 and takes under a second, even in dimly-lit environments) 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) before (live histogram) 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).

There is also a [Highlight] mode, which, when on, makes the areas recorded as pure white blink. This way you can see if the area in question got overexposed and if the photo will loose detail in highlights.

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.

What It Looks Like - Pictures of the Panasonic DMC-FZ5

I took photos of the FZ5, which you can see by clicking at the link below, along with sample photos I took with my FZ5:

Click here to see pictures of Panasonic DMC-FZ5 and sample photos taken with it

Features

The camera features selectable ISO between 80, 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 leave it in Auto most of the time.

The exposure modes include Program AE, Aperture and Shutter Priority mode, and even full Manual mode. 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 image stabilization works best in Mode 2. Be advised that in Simple mode, the stabilization is fixed to Mode 1 and cannot be changed, unless you use P, A, S or other mode.

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 microphone for recording notes or recording sounds while filming short video clips and a speaker, which can be used for operational sounds or to play back the sounds recorded. The camera can record short movie clips at low resolution of 320x240 pixels at 30 or 10 fps with sound. I never used this feature and find it unlikely that I will.

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 for my taste.

The rotary main mode control at the top deck has positions for the 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 (I keep stabilization in Mode 2).

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.

The camera has an orientation sensor, which records if the picture was taken vertically or horizontally and this makes your pictures display in the correct orientation on your computer. It worked in my Adobe Photoshop CS2, but (for some strange reason) not in the ACDSee viewer.

LCD

The camera has a 1.8-inch LCD with about 130,000 pixels that covers 100% of the view. You can also use the electronic viewfinder (EVF) with a diopter adjustment. The LCD screen is fluid, has pleasing colors and excellent resolution.

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.

In the shooting mode, the "Display" button cycles through the image with no information, image with basic shooting parameters and a live histogram, image with lines that split the screen in nine areas and help you compose the shot better or image that is sligtly decreased in size and the area around it filled with shooting parameters, etc.

At any time you can see the estimated remaining amount of pictures that will fit on the memory card as well as the battery status.

Operation

I found the camera to be well built, have a solid feel yet to be lighter than what you would expect. The menus are easy to use. The camera is convenient to hold. The initial battery charge took about 2 hours, perhaps even slightly more.

The camera comes with a 16-Mb SD card, which I immediately replaced with one of my 512-Mb cards. The camera supports SD cards of up to 1-Gb capacity. Also included are the USB cable, the A/V cable, CD-ROM with software (I haven't installed it and probably never will), the aforementioned battery and charger, lens hood, lens filter adaptor, lens cap with a strap and a shoulder strap, manuals.

Performance

The camera seems to operate much faster than the FZ1. The power-up takes less than 3 seconds (mostly taken by the lens extension). The camera seems to focus very fast as well, especially in its 1-area or 3-area High-Speed autofocus mode (well under a second, almost instanteneously), slightly less so in its 9-point autofocus mode (still less than a second).

In 1-zone autofocus mode (non-High Speed), even indoors in dim light, the focusing took less than a second regardless if the AF illuminator could reach the subject. This is in contrast with the FZ1, where the camera tried to focus in the same conditions for several seconds, at times successfully, at times failing to focus at all.

Overall, the focusing performance of the FZ5 is probably the best I have seen so far.

The camera has focus confirmation - it shows you a small or larger rectangle arond the area where the camera is currently focused.

The shutter lag when pre-focused is virtually absent and the picture is taken almost instantaneously. You can select to have the taken picture appear on the screen for 1 or couple of seconds after it's taken to confirm if it is good or you can select not to have this, so-called, quick preview at all. In the latter case, the LCD goes blank only momentarily.

Overall, 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 (3 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. Provided the memory card supports writing at that speed.

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.

Zooming has only once speed, but it smooth a responsive. The full zooming from wide angle to telephoto or back takes about 2 seconds.

The camera uses the same battery as the FZ1, but the same battery now lasts longer. The battery lasts for at least 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 FZ5's charger with you or get a spare battery.

The charger that comes with the camera is compact (more compact than that of the FZ1 and smaller than a deck of cards), has no cables and plugs directly into a wall outlet. It will work worldwide (110-240 V, 50-60 Hz), provided you get a plug adaptor. The camera has a DC power port, but the provided charger has no DC out, so you will have to get a power adaptor if you want to use the DC power port of the camera.

The camera accommodated my Sunpak 55mm UV and circular polarizing filters well. The zooming is smooth, precise and quiet, but slower than that on the Canon S2 IS. The supplied lens hood is easy to attach and works well to fight flare.

Picture Quality

I took several of photos with my FZ5, which you can see at the address below:

Click here for sample photos taken with Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ5

The FZ5 produces excellent pictures (I used Fine JPEG mode with maximum resolution of 2560x1920). The photos are well-saturated, properly exposed and sharp from wide angle to telephoto. The fine details are sharp and clearly visible, weather viewed at full resolution on the computer monitor or after being printed. The colors are true-to-life.

The image stabilization works well (especially in Mode 2) and lets me take handheld photos at full telephoto at 1/60 and sometimes at 1/30 and at 1/8-1/2 at wide angle.

There is just a small amount of barrel distortion in wide angle shots (not visible in regular shooting) and no pincushion distortion at telephoto. I couldn't find much chromatic aberration in normal shooting - it seems to be suppressed by the Venus II engine and good lens design. In high contrast scenes there is an occasional (very minor) chromatic aberration, but it is so minor, it is not even worth talking about.

There seems to be no vignetting at all, even at wide angle.

Some shots in the bright regions of California's Mt. Blady (snow and sand/rocks) produce slight underexposure (the camera tries to capture detail in highlights), which can be fixed by using the camera's Snow mode or exposure compensation.

I mostly use the lowest ISO available (80) and see only small amounts of noise in the shadows, nothing to complain about (invisible on the resultant prints). At ISO 100 or 200, you can see noise appear in the shadows/darker areas areas and ISO 400 is so noisy that I don't advocate its use unless necessary. Still, even the ISO 400 noise looks better than in other non-dSLR cameras I have seen. Fortunately, you can avoid having to use it at all 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).

More on Sample Photos Taken with Panasonic DMC-FZ5

The photo below (click for larger, full-size view) was taken in Aperture Priority Mode at F3.2, ISO 80, Auto White Balance in Standard Picture Mode. The camera focused on the dog quickly. You can see every hair on the dog's forehead, despite the distance. The tail was wiggling and is slightly blurry because of that. The colors seem to be true to life and the saturation is just about perfect.

The next photo (below, click for full-size view) was taken at Mt. Baldy east of LA. It was taken in Aperture Priority Mode at F4.5, ISO 80, Auto White Balance in Standard Picture Mode. You can clearly see individual leafs.

The next photo (below, click for full-size view) was taken in Aperture Priority Mode at F5.0, ISO 80, Auto White Balance in Natural Picture Mode (less saturation and sharpening). You can clearly see fine detail and the colors are very pleasing. You can adjust sharpness and saturation in your photo editing software if you use Natural mode.

There is a very small (almost invisible) amount of Chromatic Aberration (purple fringing) in this photograph - close to the outline of the white van in the lower right corner and on the outline of the concrete pole. The amount of CA is so small, it is nothing to complain about and it is invisible in the photo prints.

For example, if you look at the sample photo I took with Canon S410, you will see much more CA, even though the resolution is slightly smaller.

Computer Connectivity

I was able to connect the camera to my Windows 2000 computer with no need to install any drivers or software. After that, the camera appeared as a removable drive in my system and I could copy the files from it. The USB 2.0 on this camera proved to be not as fast as I expected, providing speeds about the same as my FZ1 did with USB 1.1. Later on I found out that it is USB 2.0 Full-Speed, which is the same 12 Mbits/sec - the same as the USB 1.1 But the data transfer speeds are certainly bearable.

Specifications

Below are some specifications for people who want to see them in easier to read format.

Lens: Leica DC Vario-Elmarit Lens
Lens Construction: 11 Elements in 8 Groups (3 Aspherical Lenses/4 Aspherical Surfaces)
Focal Length: 6.0-72mm (35mm equivalent: 36-432mm)
Aperture: Wide: F2.8 - F8, Telephoto: F3.3 - F8
Shutter Speed: 8 - 1/2,000 sec.
Optical Zoom: 12x
Digital Zoom: 4x (up to 48x Total Zoom when combined with 12x Optical Zoom)
Camera Effective Resolution: 5.0 Megapixels
CCD (Image Sensor): 1/2.5"5.36 Total Megapixel CCD
Image Processor: Venus Engine II™ LSI
ISO Sensitivity: Auto / 80 / 100 / 200 / 400
Self-timer: 10 seconds / 2 seconds
LCD Monitor: 1.8" diagonal Polycrystalline TFT LCD Display (130k pixels), Field of view: approx. 100%
Viewfinder: 0.33" diagonal Color EVF (114k pixels), Field of view: approx. 100%
Image Quality: TIFF/Fine/Standard

Recording Image Size (Pixels ):
2560 x 1920
2048 x 1536
1600 x 1200
1280 x 960
640 x 480
1920 x 1080
Motion Image: 320 x 240

AF Metering:
1 point
1 point high speed
3 points high speed
9 points
Spot

Panasonic FZ5 vs. Panasonic FZ20

The 5-Megapixel Panasonic DMC-FZ20 is larger in size than the Panasonic DMC-FZ5, weighs more, has a slightly larger LCD (2-inch vs. 1.8-inch) and has manual focus. It also has a slightly "faster" lens at the telephoto end (f2.8 vs. f3.3) and an ED element that is supposed to impove its performance in regards to chromatic aberration.

In practice, it is virtually impossible to distinguish between the image quality produced by the two cameras. They use the same CCD, very similar optics and processing. The Venus II engine in the FZ5 removes chromatic aberrations and virtually eliminates the need for the ED element.

The FZ20 is more expensive. If you want a larger camera with a slightly larger LCD, a slighlty "faster" lens and manual focus, it may be a better choice (but at a higher price). Otherwise, the FZ5 will provide the same level of picture quality in a more compact package.

Free Memory Card

Panasonic currently offers a free 256-Mb SD card after a mail-in rebate with a purchase of the FZ5. Check their web site for the mail-in form.

Bottom Line

If you want a 5-Megapixel responsive "monster zoom" camera, this Panasonic FZ5 is a good choice. With 12x optical zoom, optical image stabilization, fast f2.8-3.3 Leica lens and responsive Venus II LSI engine, while being inexpensive, this camera is an excellent choice.

If you can settle for a 4-Megapixel resolution and slightly smaller LCD, silver color, no sound recording and or playback, the Panasonic FZ4 is available for $50-60 less.

And if you are a Canon fan, don't mind paying more, don't mind Canon's menu system or its lack of the live histogram or TIFF, 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.

Recommended
Yes

Product Rating

This review is also available at Epinions.com: Panasonic DMC-FZ5 Review on Epinions.com

My Reviews of Other Digital Cameras