Panasonic DMC-FZ30

Reviewed September 2005

Introduction

The Panasonic DMC-FZ30 is a large camera, one of a group that have been dubbed "bridge" cameras as their characteristics overlap those of both digital SLR cameras and Compact cameras. With its large 12X stabilized zoom, substantial rubber-coated grip, hefty weight and large hinged 2-inch LCD monitor, the FZ30 body is more SLR than compact camera. But the fact that its lens is not interchangeable, and that it uses an electronic viewfinder (EVF) instead of a TTL finder anchor it with compact cameras.

The first button, near the shutter release, controls the FZ30's Optical Stabilizer, displaying a short 3-option menu on the screen or in the viewfinder:

	Mode 1 allows the stabilizer to operate continuously so it can help during photo composition.
	Mode 2 only stabilizes the image at the moment of capture, offering a great degree of stabilization and conserving power.
	Turns off image stabilization and is intended for those times when the camera is on a tripod, or when there is so much ambient light that stabilization is not required.

The second button selects the Burst Mode. The Burst mode is limited to the JPEG image format:

	Burst H captures 3 frames per second or up to 5 frames at the best image quality, and up to 9 frames with the most compressed image quality.
	Burst L captures 2 frames per second for up to 4 frames at the best image quality, and up to 9 frames with the most compressed image quality.
	No Limit: captures 2 frames per second with no limit on the number of frames.

The Mode dial, off to the left, serves to select the shooting modes, or the playback mode. It has 9 positions:

	Aperture Priority provides control over the aperture from f2.8 at the wide end and F3.7 at the maximum telephoto end, through to f11 in 13 steps while the FZ30 selects the shutter speed.
	Shutter Priority: provides shutter speeds ranging from 1/2000 to 8 seconds while the camera matches an aperture to the selected shutter speed.
	Manual Mode offers control over the aperture — f2.8 to f11 — and a shutter speed range that covers from 1/2000 sec to 60 seconds.

Next on the Mode Dial is the Movie mode:

Motion Image Mode captures video with sound at either one of two sizes, and each can be set to capture at either one of two frame rates: 640 x 480 pixels at 10 or 30 frames per second, 320 x 240 pixels at 10 or 30 frames per second. The length of the recording is limited only by the capacity of the memory card in use. The zoom remains useable, but the auto focus, white balance, and aperture are locked at the first frame.

The following two dial positions are for the Scene modes. Both positions provide access to any one of the 14 scene modes that are available, and or will retain the last used mode independently:

	Portrait Mode is intended for daylight use. It uses Auto ISO and a wide aperture to soften the background. As always, the use of the zoom is recommended to increase the effect of the wide aperture, and the background should be as distant as possible behind the subject.		Sports Mode is intended for outdoor use and uses Auto ISO. This mode gives preference to a fast shutter speed to capture movement, and requires that the subject be at least 5m (16.5 ft) from the camera.
	Food Mode intended to capture pictures of food without having their colour affected by the ambient light.		Scenery Mode also has a focus range of 5m (16.5 ft) to infinity. ISO sensitivity is set to Auto, the flash is forced to Off, and the AF assist light is also forced Off.
	Night Portrait Mode uses a slow shutter speed and flash to capture both foreground and background at night.The flash is forced to Slow Sync with red-eye reduction and the sensitivity is set to Auto.		Night Scenery Mode forces sensitivity to 80 ISO to minimize noise, forces the flash to Off and uses infinity focus which requires that the subject be more than 5m (16.5 ft) away. The shutter speed is slow (max. 8 seconds) and a tripod is necessary.
	Baby Mode is designed to enhance a baby's skin tones, and softens the output of the flash. By setting the date correctly on the camera and inputting the baby's birthday, the baby photos can be automatically date stamped with the baby's age in months and days.		Soft Skin Mode forces sensitivity to 80 ISO and is intended to take a portrait of a subject. The camera detects a skin colour area, such as the face and processes the image to make the skin appear smooth.
	Candle light Mode ISO sensitivity is set to auto, the flash is useable in Slow Synch, Slow Synch with Red-eye Reduction, or Forced On with red eye Reduction.		Party Mode is designed to take pictures in a dimly lit room. The mode uses Auto ISO to boost sensitivity as needed, and if opened, the flash is set to Forced On with Red-eye reduction.
	Fireworks Mode should be used with a tripod and the camera should be pre-focused manually on a subject approximately the same distance away. The shutter speed is set to 1/4 sec.		Snow Mode automatically adjusts exposure (a positive exposure compensation is used) and white balance to record snow faithfully. The ISO sensitivity is set to Auto.
	Starry Sky Mode is designed to take photos of the sky at night. The mode turns off the flash and optical stabilizer as the camera is assumed to be solidly mounted on a tripod. Exposure times of 15, 30 or 60 seconds can be selected and the sensitivity is forced to 80 ISO to minimize noise.		Panning Mode is designed to make it easier to capture moving subjects while panning the camera. Sensitivity is forced to 80 ISO, and a slower than normal shutter speed is used. The stabilizer only compensates for vertical jitter. Manual focus is best for this mode.

The last mode on the dial is the Playback mode () and it serves to review the images and movies captured with the camera and access the Playback menu.

Aperture and shutter speed, or combinations of aperture and shutter speed when the DMC-FZ30 is in Program Shift mode, are selected by dials that are embedded on the front and back of the camera.

The Front dial is positioned directly below the shutter release and serves to select the aperture when the camera is set to Aperture Priority or Manual mode. In addition, when the FZ30 is in Playback mode, the Front dial serves to magnify an image up to 16X, or display thumbnail images of the captured photos with 20, 16, or 9 thumbnails per screen.

The Rear dial protrudes from the thumb rest on the upper right side of the camera's back, and serves to select the shutter speed when the camera is set to Shutter Priority or the Manual mode, and select alternative combinations of aperture and shutter speed when the Program Shift mode is engaged. While in Playback it can be used to move back and forth between photos.

Starting near the monitor, the uppermost button, labelled AE LOCK, serves to lock the exposure parameters (aperture and shutter speed) while the shot is reframed.

Directly below is a round button to choose:

whether the 2-inch LCD monitor is used to preview the image, or the electronic viewfinder (EVF) which also offers 235,000 pixels.

The next button down is the MENU button, and it displays the menu that corresponds to the mode as determined by the position of the Mode Dial. (For more detail on the DMC-FZ30's menus see the Characteristics section of the review.)

The four Cursor buttons which are arranged in a circle serve to navigate the menus, and images when the FZ30 is set to the Playback mode. Moreover, each of the four buttons supports one or more additional function while the camera is set to some of the capture modes:

To start with, the left arrow button serves to activate the Self Timer which can be set to either 2 or 10 seconds.

	The right arrow selects Flash Modes: Auto, Auto with Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Forced On with Red-eye Reduction, and Slow Sync with Red-eye Reduction. Forced off is assumed when the flash is closed.
	The down arrow starts the Instant Review mode which displays the last captured photo for up to 10 seconds and which can be set to make potentially overexposed areas of the image blink from white to black. Moreover, the image can be magnified up to 4X or 8X, or even deleted if it is unsatisfactory. The Review mode, unlike the Playback mode, does not allow access to the Playback menu.

The last button on the back of the FZ30 is the Delete button, which serves to delete or erase one or more pictures when the camera is in playback mode. Or, as noted above, it can be used to delete an image when it is under Review.

In addition to the Flash release button, positioned just below the pop-up flash, there are two other controls placed on a raised pod on the left side of the lens barrel. First is the Focus selector which has 3 positions:

• AF, full auto focus mode, which can be adjusted to be over 1 or 9 focus points; or centred; or spot, in the Recording menu (see the Characteristics section of the review).
• AF Macro which allows capturing images with the lens 5 cm (1.95 inches) from the subject when the zoom is set to the widest angle.
• Manual Focus, which provides full control over the entire focus range of the lens — macro to infinity — and which offers, if desired, magnification of the centre of the image to help assist in focusing using the large rubber coated focusing ring.

The last control is the FOCUS button. While the camera is set to Manual Focus, the button can be used to instantly autofocus the image. While when the camera is set to AF Area, or 1 Area High Speed Focusing (see the Characteristics section of the review for more information about these 2 modes), the FOCUS button can be held in and with the 4-direction Cursor control the focus point can be moved to any of 9 distinct point in the frame.

With the camera sensitivity set to Auto, the pop-up flash of the DMC-FZ30 is able to cover from 30 cm to 7m (1 ft to 23 ft). In addition, the FZ30 is also equipped with a flash shoe that is positioned directly behind the pop-up flash. The shoe is compatible with all most standard flash units and with panasonic's own DMW-FL28, a unit designed for Lumix cameras.

As stated at the outset, the DMC-FZ30 offers an excellent ergonomic design that is rooted in the design of single lens reflex (SLR) cameras. Its comparatively large size — approximately the same as a Digital Rebel XT or a Pentax *ist DS — gives it an excellent in-hand feel and good balance. Moreover, with a powerful 12X zoom and an 8 megapixel resolution, the DMC-FZ30 is almost as versatile as some current digital SLR and can be seriously considered as an alternative.