The DMC-FX5 is equipped with
a 4.23 million pixel 1/2.5 inch CCD, of which 4 million pixels
are effective to yield a maximum image size of 2304 x 1728
pixels. CCD sensitivity starts at 50 ISO, but can also be set
to 100 or 200 ISO. An Auto ISO mode is also available, adjusting
the sensitivity automatically from 50 to 200 ISO without flash,
and from 100 to 200 when the flash is used.
The 3X Leica lens has a focal length of 5.8 to 17.4 mm, equivalent to
a 35 to 105 mm zoom. Apertures start at f2.8 at
the wide angle end and extend through to f8, while at the telephoto end,
apertures cover from f4.9 to f14.
The DMC-FX5 has a shutter speed
range of 1/2000 second to 8 seconds. However, as with the
aperture, there is no means to select shutter speed, and
the longest shutter speed available in most shooting modes
is 1/8 second with the exception being the Night Portrait mode
which can capture an exposure as long as 8 seconds.
Obviously, the most notable feature of the DMC-FX5 is its lens stabilizer.
The stabilizer can be turned off, or set to either one of two modes:
Mode 1: the stabilizer operates continuously.
Mode 2: the stabilizer is in stand-by mode until
the shutter is released. This mode has the greatest degree
of stabilization.
Any one of six image sizes can be used to capture photos:
2304 x 1728 pixels
1920 x 1080 pixels (called HDTV because
it has a 16:9 aspect ratio)
1600 x 1200 pixels
1280 x 960 pixels
640 x 480 pixels
Only JPEG images can be captured with the DMC-FX5, and
only 2 compression levels are available: Fine and Standard.
When the camera's Mode dial is set to any other mode than , ,
or the Recording menu
of the DMC-FX5 offers all the other settings. In addition it offers an
access to the Setup menu (see the Interface and Characteristicssection
of the review for an overview of the options contained in the Setup menu):
White Balance: Auto; Sun; Cloud; Incandescent;
and User Set, which allows setting the white balance for
the ambient light conditions by pointing the camera at
a white surface and pressing the shutter release.
Picture Size: selects the resolution (as above).
Quality: selects either Fine, or Standard.
Spot Mode describes spot
metering which is tied to the focus point at the
centre of the frame.
Sensitivity: offers a range of Auto (between 50
and 200 with the flash Off, and 100 to 200 ISO with
the flash On), 50, 100 or 200 ISO.
Audio Rec.: allows recording 5 seconds of audio
immediately after the capture of a photo.
AF Trigger offers two options: Shutter release or Focus.
Set to Shutter release the auto focus operates when
the shutter release is pressed halfway. Set to Focus the
AF is only activated and locked when the FOCUS button
is pressed.
Digital Zoom : controls the 2X digital zoom (On
or Off).
Col. Effect alters the colours recorded. Four
settings are available: Off, Cool, Warm, and Black and
White.
Picture adjustment has 3 settings: Natural which
slightly softens the sharpness; Standard, the default;
and Vivid which slightly increases the image sharpness.
Stabilizer controls the optical image stabilizer:
Off, Mode 1; Mode 2; (see above).
Flip Animation allows creating animations based
on still images that can be as long as 20 seconds (100
frames) and have a frame size of 320 x 240 pixels. Selecting
the option opens up a sub-menu that consists of:
Image Capture serves to record the still images
that will be assembled into an animation.
Create Motion Image: starts the animation
process which can be set to a rate of 5 frames per
second, or 10 frames per second.
Delete Still Images: deletes the images used
to create the animation once it is created.
Using the Simple mode however, the camera only presents
a short menu. Unlike the other modes, the menu presented
in the Simple mode has no access to the Setup menu:
Picture Mode allows selecting the image size: Enlarge,
the default, records a 2304 x 1728 pixel Fine mode
image; 4x6"/10x15cm captures a 1280 x 960 pixel image
that is claimed to be sufficient for that size print; E-Mail
records a 640 x 480 pixel image.
Auto Review: decides whether or not a just captured
image will be displayed on the monitor.
Beep: On or Off.
Clock Set: sets the internal clock and calendar
of the FX5.
In Playback, the DMC-FX5 provides 8 options:
Rotate allows rotating an image clockwise or
counterclockwise in 90° increments.
Protect: prevents images from being accidentally
deleted. Photos can be selected for protection one at
a time, or from the index (thumbnails) screen.
DPOF Print: allows selecting one or more images
for printing on a DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) compliant
printer or service. The date can be specified to print
with the image, and an index print can be requested.
The FX5 is also PictBridge compatible allowing
it to be connected directly via USB to a PictBridge compliant
printer to print photos.
Slide Show: provides an automatic playback of
images. The duration each image will be displayed can be
set (1, 2, 3, or 5 seconds); Audio can be set to On or
Off; and only those photos selected for printing can be
set as the ones to be displayed.
Audio Dub: allows adding a 10 second narration
to a JPEG image (but not to a protected image).
Resize: allows resizing images down to 1600 x
1200, 1280 x 960, or 640 x 480. The image to be resized
must be larger than the selected size, and must not be
in HDTV format or have attached audio.
Trimming: is used to crop an image and has the
same restrictions as are listed above for resizing. A cropped
image can be saved either as a new image, or be saved by
overwriting the original.
Format: formats the memory card.
Just like the full Recording menu, the Playback menu also
has an access to the Setup menu, but it offers fewer options. (See
the Interface and Software section of the review.)
When in Playback the DISPLAY button can be used to control the
way the image is displayed. First, the image can be displayed without
any overlaid information.
Second, the image can be displayed
showing the image size, compression, battery state, image file
name and rank, and the time and date at which it was captured.
Third, additional information can be shown, including a histogram of the
photo showing the distribution of brightness in the frame, as well as the
aperture, shutter speed, ISO, white balance and flash mode used for the
exposure.
The DMC-FX5 is retailed with
a 16MB SD (Secure Digital) memory card. The card slot
is located on the right side of the camera, behind a hinged
sliding door. With the 16MB SD card, the FX5 can capture:
Resolution
Fine
Standard
2304
x 1728
8
16
1920 x 1080
17
34
1600 x 1200
17
34
1280
x 960
22
43
640
x 480
69
129
The same compartment also houses
the rechargeable Lithium-ion battery that is included with
the camera. The battery is maintained in its slot by a spring
loaded clip, which prevents it from falling out when the card
is popped out.
The battery-specific charger is included,
and so is a power cable to connect it to the camera (see
further).
The external connections of the DMC-FX5 are located on the left side of
the camera, behind a small hard plastic door that is tethered at the top.
The upper connection offers a dual function. It serves as the USB port
(1.1) and as the Audio Video (A/V) jack depending on which cable is used.
It is worth noting that the DMC-FX5
only produces a video out signal when its mode dial is set
to the Playback mode. In the capture modes, the port is inactive
and a television monitor cannot be used.
Below is a DC-IN jack that can be used to run the camera from household
current with the adapter/charger.
Compare Prices for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX5 Battery
Characteristics
, 
,
or 
the Recording menu
of the DMC-FX5 offers all the other settings. In addition it offers an
access to the Setup menu (see the Interface and Characteristics section
of the review for an overview of the options contained in the Setup menu):
