Panasonic DMC-FZ8

Reviewed April 2007

Test Photos

STILL LIFE PHOTO

This subject is photographed in a room that has a mix of fluorescent and incandescent light, but which is not brightly lit. The camera's flash is used to add fill light. The backdrop is 1.95 m (6.5 ft) from the camera.

The majority of the photos presented on this page were captured using the RAW format of the camera, ensuring that they represent the highest image quality the DMC-FZ8 can deliver.

While the sharpness is uniform throughout the frame, photos captured using the wide angle end of the zoom are softer than those captured at any other point in the focal length range of the lens.

ZOOM PHOTO

Now we zoom in on a specific area. The intent is to test the sharpness of the image at the zoom's maximum setting. The camera normally remains at the same distance as with the preceding photo.

At the telephoto end, the lens yields a very sharp image that contains a great deal of detail.

As with all the images shown here, this image is processed using the "as shot" settings, which include "Low" settings for contrast and noise reduction that were found to be effective with this camera.

With this zoom shot, little colour noise is detectable.

The AF Macro mode of the DMC-FZ8 makes it possible to focus on a subject that is 5 cm (1.95 inches) distant at the wide angle setting. However, in tests we found that we could get a sharp image with the lens only a bit more than 1 cm (0.39 inch) from the subject. At this distance, the camera captures a field of view that is 4.3 cm (1.67 inch) wide but the image has clearly visible barrel distortion.

Excellent results can be achieved without having the camera at the closest distance, which avoids having the lens cast a shadow on the subject, and the barrel distortion, if the FZ8 is moved back and a bit of zoom used.

BUILDING PHOTO

This image is our outdoor test. The architecture of the building, in particular the angled girders, immediately show the presence of jaggies. The shadowed entrance can also often reveal the quality of the exposure.

Captured with the wide angle end of the zoom, and with the camera's default settings, the image reveals some colour noise and a soft focus. Adjusting the RAW image slightly, for noise and sharpness results in the image shown here, which is better than retaining the default settings.

With a subject captured at this distance, the image does not reveal any particular distortion. However, strong contrasts can reveal a slight chromatic aberration near the edges of the frame.

ZOOM PHOTO

The powerful zoom of the FZ8 makes it possible to capture a small area of the entrance while remaining in the same spot as for the wide angle shot presented above.

The combination of a 12X zoom and an effective stabilization system results in the exposure shown here: the shot is hand held, and the image is completely free of any jitter.

The image shows no trace of chromatic aberration, and has little noise.

NIGHT PHOTO

This camera is capable of long exposures, and an image captured late at night is presented to give an idea of its capabilities.

Using the Manual mode, a user can set an exposure time as long as 60 seconds, and control the aperture ensuring that the image has the desired brightness. This makes it possible to capture clear images of dark subjects, and still maintain the lowest sensitivity, thereby minimizing noise.

To the eye, the scene shown here is very dark and aside from the lighted buildings in the background, the foreground contains little detail.

With a 60 second exposure, and a smaller aperture that helps capture a sharper image, the DMC-FZ8 yields an excellent exposure that reveals not just detail, but quite accurate colours.

Although captured using the RAW mode, noise reduction is applied as it would be with any other image, according to the setting in the menu. In addition, when the image is "developed" using SilkyPix, the software supplied with the camera, further noise processing can be done, further improving the image.