The Panasonic DMC-FX5 is
the first camera to date to offer a very compact size and yet
have a 3X stabilized Leica lens.
The top of the FX5 has three controls: the On/Off switch on the extreme
right, and the 2-stage
shutter release with the zoom control ring around it. All the other
external controls are on the right half of the FX5's back, the other half
being taken up by the 1.5 inch, 114,000 pixel LCD monitor.
In Playback, the zoom control also
serves as a way to display thumbnails of the captured images
(9 per screen) or magnify parts of an image on the monitor up
to 16X.
The most dominant control on the FX5's back is the Mode dial which
has 9 positions, each identified by an icon, three of which are in colour:
Simple Mode is intended
for beginners, providing only a very basic menu. On most
other cameras, this mode would be called the Auto mode.
Normal Picture Mode is
in fact a Program mode. The camera handles the
selection of aperture and shutter speed, but all other
options are available to the user.
Playback Mode.
The other modes on the dial are 5
scene modes and the movie mode:
Macro Mode
allows focus on a subject 10 cm (3.9 inches) from the lens
at the wide angle setting.
Self-Portrait Mode
has a focus range of 30 to 70 cm (11.7 to 27.3 inches).
Portrait Mode
uses a wide aperture to blur the background while keeping
the subject in focus.
Motion
Image Mode records a video with sound at a 320 x 240
pixel frame size, and at either 30 or 10 frames per second.
Focus, zoom, and aperture are fixed at the first frame.
The recording lasts as long as there is space on the memory
card.
Played back on the camera, the sound volume can be adjusted, but
remains quite soft at the highest volume.
Landscape Mode
sets the focus to infinity and forces the flash to Off. The
subject must be at least 3 m (10 ft) from the camera.
Night Portrait Mode
presets the flash to slow synch, but it can be turned off.
This mode can also be used for night photos with the flash
forced to off (the maximum shutter speed is 8 seconds).
A button labelled,
at the centre of the Mode dial, selects the Burst mode. Two modes
are offered:
High Speed Burst captures
a maximum of 5 frames at the highest image quality (7 at
the lowest) at 4 frames per second as long as the shutter
speed is above 1/60 sec.
Low Speed Burst captures
5 frames at the highest image quality (7 at the lowest) at
2 frames per second.
Positioned at the top right corner of the LCD monitor's frame is the DISPLAY button.
It turns the monitor On and Off, and in between cycles through a variety
of overlays.
By default the display shows the
image with a simple information overlay that shows the capture
mode, the flash mode, the resolution, the compression, the battery
state and the image number. Pressing the DISPLAY button
adds a real-time histogram that shows a graphical representation
of the brightness of the image. Pressing the DISPLAY button
a second time overlays a grid on the screen to help composition.
A third press of the DISPLAY button leaves only the focus
brackets atop the image, while pressing it once more turns off
the monitor.
The upper of two elongated buttons
next to the monitor brings up the menu, while the lower one serves
to delete one
or more images, and as a means to pre-focus the camera.
Using the Focus button requires that the AF Trigger
option in the recording menu (see the Characteristics
section of the review) be set to focus. Then, using
the AF brackets shown on the monitor, the focus can be set at
a place where the subject is expected, and locked. Then, as the
subject enters the focus point, the image can be captured immediately
without having to waste time auto focusing.
The last control on the lower
portion of the FX5's back is the 4-direction control. As always,
it serves to navigate the camera's menus and provides additional
functions.
The right arrow selects the Flash
modes: Auto, Auto with Red-eye Reduction, Forced On,
Slow Synch Flash with Red-eye Reduction, and Forced Off.
The up arrow controls exposure
compensation, auto bracketing and white balance adjustment:
Auto
Bracketing Bracketing is performed over 3 frames
over a range of ±1EV in 1/3 EV increments.
White balance adjustment makes it possible
to shift the white balance towards blue or red in
fine increments.
The left arrow starts the Self-Timer:
10 or 2 seconds.
REVIEW
SET
The down arrow of the 4-direction
control doubles as access to the REVIEW mode which
serves to check the last recorded photo. In this mode the
picture can be enlarged on the monitor for closer inspection
(4X or 8x), or it can be deleted. Moreover, when a menu
is on screen, the down arrow also serves as a confirmation
button for specific actions.
The Panasonic DMC-FX5 is a very
compact and well-crafted camera, but some of its design elements
may be of debatable value. The metal front of the camera, and
the bevelled trim around the lens, are deeply etched with very
sharp concentric grooves that catch the skin as the camera is
handled.
And, while an optical viewfinder is provided to relieve the load on the
LCD monitor, its exit pupil is very narrow making is slightly difficult
to use with glasses.
Introduction
,
at the centre of the Mode dial, selects the Burst mode. Two modes
are offered:
one
or more images, and as a means to pre-focus the camera.
Using the Focus button requires that the AF Trigger
option in the recording menu (see the Characteristics
section of the review) be set to focus. Then, using
the AF brackets shown on the monitor, the focus can be set at
a place where the subject is expected, and locked. Then, as the
subject enters the focus point, the image can be captured immediately
without having to waste time auto focusing. 
