Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8

The Lumix DMC-FZ8 is equipped with a 7.2 megapixel CCD and a LEICA DC
VARIO-ELMARIT lens offering a powerful 12x optical zoom (equivalent to
36mm to 432mm on a 35mm film camera) with an aperture of F2.8 to F3.3.
If this wasn’t enough, in 3-megapixel resolution mode, the Extra Optical
Zoom function uses the centre part of the CCD to provide additional
magnification, extending the zoom power to an impressive 18x. Using this
feature in combination with the 4x digital zoom brings the total zooming
power to a remarkable 72x.
The combination of 11 elements in eight groups, including 3 aspherical
lenses generates superior optical performance while maintaining the
compactness of the unit.

O.I.S.

By shifting the O.I.S lens unit to keep the optical axis aligned
straight against the CCD, the camera ensures images are captured with supreme
clarity and sharpness.Another problem is the motion blur that can occur when a subject moves as the shot is being taken – particularly common when taking pictures
of sports, or young children for example. Building on the success of its
predecessor the FZ8 incorporates a new feature designed to resolve
motion blur. Intelligent ISO Control detects whether the subject is moving
and, as necessary raises the ISO setting and shutter speed according to
how fast the subject is moving and the light conditions. This happens
automatically, so you can effortlessly shoot without the need to adjust
the settings every time the conditions change.Panasonic Lumix offers solutions for both major causes of blurred images – O.I.S when you are moving, and Intelligent ISO Control when the subject is moving. Thanks to Panasonic, you can now take clear and
beautiful images in even the most demanding situations.
A key improvement is the inclusion of Panasonic’s advanced
image-processing LSI, Venus Engine III that can record at a sensitivity setting as
high as ISO 1250 with full resolution. Noise reduction is also greatly
improved, with picture noise removed in stages during image processing.
Critical noise is analysed, and chromatic and luminance noise are
reduced separately. The chromatic noise, which has greater effect on picture
quality, is then selectively suppressed, resulting in clearer images.
Spontaneous moments can easily be captured thanks to a 1.8 second start
up time and a 0.005 second shutter release time lag (the time between
pressing the button on the camera and the photo being taken).
Additionally, the burst shooting mode boasts the capability of sequential shots
at a rate of 3 frames per second at full resolution. The unlimited
consecutive shooting function allows you to take photos in succession up to
the capacity of the memory card or built in memory. Thanks to the
energy-efficient Venus Engine III, the FZ8 offers a long battery life,
allowing around 380 shots on a single battery charge.

Auto Focus

The various AF methods can be selected according to the shooting
environment and the position of the subject: multi, 3 point high-speed,
1-point high speed, 1-point normal-speed and spot. With the 1-point AF
method, the auto-focusing area can be chosen from as many as 11 points with
the joystick or cursor button. Various group area patterns can also be
selected in the new Multi method.

Movie Recording

In addition to standard VGA (640x480) motion image recording, the
DMC-FZ8 also records stunning full-size movies in wide-aspect VGA (848x480)
at 30fps, enabling you to view your recordings on a widescreen
television.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8 specifications

Sensor • 1/2.5 " Type CCD
• 7.38 million pixels total
• 7.2 million effective pixels

Image sizes • 3072 x 2304
• 2560 x 1920
• 2048 x 1536
• 1600 x 1200
• 1280 x 960
• 640 x 480
• 3072 x 2048 (3:2)
• 2048 x 1360 (3:2)
• 3072 x 1728 (16:9)
• 1920 x 1080 (16:9)
Movie clips • 640 x 480 @ 30 / 10fps
• 320 x 240 @ 30 / 10fps
• 848 x 480 @ 30 / 10fps (16:9)
File formats • JPEG Exif v2.2
• DPOF
• QuickTime Motion JPEG
Lens • 36-432mm (35mm equiv)
• LEICA DC VARIO-ELMARIT
• 12x optical zoom
• Extra Optical Zoom (4:3: 14.4x for 5MP, 18x for 3, 2, 1, 0.3MP, 3:2:
18x for 2.5MP, 16:9: 18x for 2MP
Image stabilization MEGA O.I.S. (Mode1 / Mode2)
Conversion lenses Yes
Digital zoom up to 4x
Focus AF/AF-Macro/MF Switchable, Manual Focus(Joystick), Continuous AF
On/Off
AF area modes 1-point / 1-point high speed / 3-point high speed /
Multi-point / Spot
AF assist lamp Yes
Focus distance • Normal: 30cm-infinity (wide) 200cm - infinity (tele)
• Macro: 5cm-infinity (wide) 200cm - infinity (tele(except tele end)
• Tele Macro(at tele end : 100cm - infinity
Metering • Intelligent Multiple
• Center-weighted
• Spot
ISO sensitivity • Auto
• ISO 100
• ISO 200
• ISO 400
• ISO 800
• ISO 1250
• High Sensitivity mode ISO 3200
Exposure compensation +/- 2EV in 1/3EV steps
Exposure bracketing +/- 1/3 EV -1EV step, 3 frames
Shuttter speed • Program AE: 1-1/2000 sec
• Aperture Priority AE / Shutter Priority AE: 8-1/2000 sec
• Manual: 60-1/2000sec.
• Starry Sky Mode: 15, 30, 60sec
Aperture F2.8 - 8 (wide) F3.1 - 8 (tele)
Modes • Program AE
• Aperture Priority AE
• Shutter Priority AE
• Manual
• Scene
• Simple
• Intelligent ISO
Scene modes • Portrait
• Soft Skin
• Scenery
• Sports
• Night Portrait
• Night Scenery
• Panning
• Food
• Party
• Candle
• Fireworks
• Starry Sky
• Baby 1 & 2
• Aerial photo
• Snow
• High Sensitivity
• Beach
• Sunset
• Pet
White balance • Auto
• Daylight
• Cloudy
• Shade
• Halogen
• Flash
• White Set 1/2
White balance fine tune 2-axis adjustable, ±9steps each, Blue/Amber
and Magenta/Green bias
Self timer 2 or 10sec, 10sec / 3 images
Continuous shooting Full-Resolution: 3 frames/sec or 2 frames/sec max.
7 images (Standard mode), Max. 5 images (Fine Mode)
Image parameters Cool, Warm, Black & White, Sepia
Flash • Auto
• Auto / Red-eye reduction
• Forced On
• Forced On / Red-eye Reduction
• Slow Sync / Red-eye reduction
• Forced Off
• Flash output adjustment 1/3EV step, +/-2 EV
• Range: 0.3 - 6.0m (wide) 1.0 - 5.4m (tele)
Viewfinder 0.44" Color EVF (188K Pixels), Field of View : approx. 100%
LCD monitor • 2.5-inch Polycrystalline TFT
• 207,000 pixels
Connectivity • DC in
• AV out
• USB
Print compliance PictBridge
Storage • SD/SDHC/MMC card
• 27 MB built-in memory
Power • Li-ion battery pack
• Optional AC adapter
Weight (no batt) 310 g (0.68lb)
Dimensions 112.5 x 72.2 x 79.0 mm (4.43 x 2.84 x 3.11 in)

The Canon G7

Main features
· 10.0 Megapixels
· 6x optical zoom lens with optical Image Stabilizer and SR coating
· DIGIC III and iSAPS with Advanced Noise Reduction and Face Detection AF/AE
· 2.5” high-resolution LCD with wide viewing angle and anti-glare coating
· ISO 1600 for flash-free, low light shooting
· Ergonomic design with dedicated ISO and Multi Control dials for fast, easy operation
· 25 shooting modes including full manual control and 2 custom settings
· Extra telephoto reach with Digital Tele-Converter and Safety Zoom
· Hot shoe support for Canon Speedlite flashes and optional lens accessories

In comparison with the G6 many things have changed regarding the Canon G7. First the resolution is 10 MP not 7 like the Canon G6. The processor has also been changed now it is a Digic III and also optical zoom is longer. The G7 also features image stabilization, wider ISO range, but has los the Raw mode.
Performance
Regarding the responsiveness it is a much improvement over the G6. The focus speed is acceptable, especially given the huge zoom range, but there are faster cameras on the market - even the S3 IS, with twice the zoom range, consistently beats it at the wide end of the zoom. The G7's auto focus is slow in low light or macro mode. Shutter lag when using the LCD is disappointing. The time between pressing the shutter and taking the picture is a very short 0.05 seconds (approx).
Built-in Flash
The built-in flash unit has a specified range of 4.0 m at wide angle and 2.5 m at telephoto (when the ISO is set to auto). The FUNC menu offers a Flash Exposure Compensation setting (-2.0 to +2.0), and the AF illuminator helps focus in low light. The red-eye reduction works ok at shorter distances. The shutter lag when using flash increases to half a second. On a more positive note you can use the flash in continuous (burst) mode.
Chromatic Aberrations
The G7 does suffer from some purple fringing, especially at the wide end of the zoom and in contre-jour situations. Chromatic aberration is also visible at the wide end of the zoom and wide apertures.

Dynamic range
The most important problem with the G7 is it’s dynamic range performance. The clipping is caused by a combination of limited dynamic range, the camera's default tone curve and a tendency to overexposure. You need great care with the exposure and it would also be good to use a lower contrast setting.
ISO and IS
The G7 uses the same 10MP 1/1.8-inch sensor as the other cameras. At ISO 80 and 100 there's plenty of detail. The G7's noise reduction begins to mix in at ISO 200, but it still preserves enough detail. From iso 800 things begin to be quite serious, you loose a lot of detail and 1600 is almost impossible to use.
The optical image stabilization works very good. There are three modes: Continuous (IS on all the time), 'Shoot only' (IS is activated at the moment the exposure is made) and Panning (for horizontally panned shots).
The first option makes framing easier - the IS system steadies the preview image, and we found it more consistently effective at extremes.
Shoot only - is effective when you have the almost correct shutter speed.
You can handheld shoots at almost 5 times slower than normal speeds, but it works almost perfectly at 2 stops slower.
So…
The Canon G7 is very well built, it has a lot of features like image stabilization and it also has a robust body. Image quality is very good at ISO 50 and 100, but at high ISO you need perfect exposures for the best results. At ISO between 200-800 it can’t be compared with a SLR, but it has acceptable results. The drawbacks in comparison with the G6 is the lose of the maximum aperture F2.0-3.0 and they also tried to keep the price very low.
Format: Compact
Max resolution: 3648 x 2736
Low resolution: 2816 x 2112, 2272 x 1704, 1600 x 1200, 640 x 480
Image ratio with: 4:3, 3:2
Effective pixels: 10.0 million
Sensor photo detectors: 10.3 million
Sensor size: 1/1.8 " (7.18 x 5.32 mm)
Sensor type: CCD
Colour filter array: RGB
ISO rating: Auto, 80 ,100, 200, 400, 800, 1600
Zoom wide (W): 35 mm
Zoom tele (T): 210 mm (6 x)
Digital zoom: Yes, 4.0x
Image stabilization: Yes,
Lens Auto Focus: Yes
Manual Focus: Yes
Auto focus type: AiAF TTL 9-point (with face detection)
Normal focus range: 50 cm
Macro focus range: 1 cm
White balance override: 6 positions & manual preset
Aperture range: F2.8 - F4.8
Built-in Flash: Yes
External flash: Yes, hot-shoe
Flash modes: Auto, Fill-in, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync, Off
Exposure compensation: -2 to +2 EV in 1/3
EV steps: Metering Evaluative, Center Weighted, Spot
Aperture priority: Yes
Shutter priority: Yes
Continuous Drive: Yes, 2.0 fps
Movie Clips: Yes, 1024 x 768 @ 15 fps, 640 x 480 @ 30/15 fps, 320 x 240 @ 30/15 fps, 160 x 120 @ 15 fps
Self-timer: Yes
Storage types: SD/MMC card
Compressed format: JPEG (EXIF 2.2)
Quality Levels: Super-Fine, Fine, Normal
Viewfinder: Optical
LCD: 2.5 " LCD Pixels 207,000
Video out: Yes
USB: Yes, 2.0
Firewire (IEEE 1394): No
Weight (inc. batteries):380 g
Dimensions: 106 x 72 x 43 mm

A day, a picture

Watch this!
Noah takes a photo of himself every day from 11 January 2000 - 31 July 2006

First 18x optical zoom camera

Olympus SP-550 UZ

With an 18x wide zoom lens (equivalent to 28-504mm on a 35mm camera) there’s no need to disturb your subject. Telephoto shots can be prone to blur caused by camera shake, so the SP-550 UZ features Dual Image Stabilization to help deliver clear results. The burst rate is up to 15 frames per second*! And with a 6.4cm LCD it’s easy to frame and capture shots, without having to squint and make guesses about how the image will turn out.

Night shoots

You can rely on BrightCapture Technology to add brightness to any shot, even in movie mode! With the help of an extra-bright LCD, framing dim shots is no problem, making high-quality photo and video capture a reality in virtually any low-light situation.

The SP-550 UZ main features:

• 18x wide optical zoom (equivalent to 28-504mm on a 35mm camera) 1:2.8-4.5
• Dual Image Stabilization
• 7.1 Megapixels
• 6.4cm/2.5” LCD with 230,000 pixels
• High burst rate (up to 15fps*)
• Super Macro mode (from as close as 1cm)
• P/A/S/M exposure modes
• BrightCapture Technology for better low light photography – also available in movie mode
• 23 scene modes (including Portrait, Sports, Night Scene)
• 25 languages on board
• Internal memory plus xD-Picture Card slot
• Supplied with Olympus Master software and four AA batteries
ISO sensitivity • Auto ISO
• ISO 50
• ISO 100
• ISO 200
• ISO 400
• ISO 800
• ISO 1600
• ISO 3200
• ISO 5000