The obvious attraction of the Panasonic DMC FZ18 is its 18x optical zoom lens. This is one of the first digital cameras to increase the lens length on a consumer digital camera beyond 12 xs. The lens is supported by image stabilization to help cut down on any camera shake caused by the added weight of the lens. The DMC FZ18 also hosts a number of manual controls and settings and is based on the lines of a digital SLR camera. In fact it is one of the most feature packed cameras you can buy. It has 8 megapixels.
The FZ18 is the successor to the FZ8. The biggest change in the guts of the camera is the more powerful zoom lens. The FZ8 had a 12x optical zoom and the FZ18 gets an 18x optical zoom. Besides that, there is a small resolution bump to 8 megapixels from 7.1 megapixels, and the 2.5 inch LCD is of higher resolution on the FZ18. Software-wise, Panasonic has introduced their Intelligent Auto mode on the FZ18, which essentially bundles face recognition, continuous AF, Intelligent ISO control, and image stabilization on one easy to use auto mode.
Panasonic has been a key player in the super-zoom field since the launch of its impressive Leica-lenses Lumix DMC-FZ1 back in 2002, and has maintained this position with a series of well-received models in the same series. Today I'm taking a look at the latest in the line, the FZ18, which offers a tempting specification for anyone with £300 to spend. It has an 8.1 megapixel CCD, 2.5in 230k LCD monitor, RAW mode shooting and a massive 18x Leica zoom lens with optical image stabilization and a 28-504mm equivalent focal length range.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 is shaped like an SLR, but is more compact. The hand grip is coated with textured rubber that almost feels silky. At the top of the rubber panel is a shallow divot wide enough for the index finger to comfortably wrap around the front of the camera. At the tip of the hand grip, the zoom ring that surrounds the shutter button is visible. To the right of the shutter release and protruding portion of the hand grip is a small Panasonic DMC-FZ18 label.
The back of the FZ18 also looks very similar to the FZ8. Both cameras have a 2.5-inch LCD screen on the left that is on a platform that is raised from the body by a few millimeters. To the right of the LCD is about 1.5 inches of space occupied by the same buttons as the FZ8. To the upper right of the LCD is a tiny joystick. The left side looks identical to the FZ8 with the exception of the lens’ specs of course. The older model has a 12x optical zoom lens and the Panasonic FZ18 has an 18x optical zoom lens, although the cameras are about the same size.
The right side of the camera looks familiar. It is also nearly identical to the FZ8. The only difference is the addition of a thumb grip on the back of the camera that is visible on this side of the FZ18. In front of that thumb grip is a chrome eyelet for the neck strap, and the rubber hand grip surface in front of that. Two chrome neck strap eyelets flank the top of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18, which is oddly shaped. The lens barrel looks enormous when viewed from above. The flash component sits atop it. The viewfinder juts out from the flash component. Directly right of the viewfinder is the round mode dial. It has many more positions than the FZ8 including custom and several scene modes. The bottom of the camera is quite thick. There is a metal tripod socket that is slightly off-center of the lens, which could make it tough to mount. Below the hand grip is a plastic friction grip door that covers the battery and memory card slots
The FZ18 is the successor to the FZ8. The biggest change in the guts of the camera is the more powerful zoom lens. The FZ8 had a 12x optical zoom and the FZ18 gets an 18x optical zoom. Besides that, there is a small resolution bump to 8 megapixels from 7.1 megapixels, and the 2.5 inch LCD is of higher resolution on the FZ18. Software-wise, Panasonic has introduced their Intelligent Auto mode on the FZ18, which essentially bundles face recognition, continuous AF, Intelligent ISO control, and image stabilization on one easy to use auto mode.
Panasonic has been a key player in the super-zoom field since the launch of its impressive Leica-lenses Lumix DMC-FZ1 back in 2002, and has maintained this position with a series of well-received models in the same series. Today I'm taking a look at the latest in the line, the FZ18, which offers a tempting specification for anyone with £300 to spend. It has an 8.1 megapixel CCD, 2.5in 230k LCD monitor, RAW mode shooting and a massive 18x Leica zoom lens with optical image stabilization and a 28-504mm equivalent focal length range.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 is shaped like an SLR, but is more compact. The hand grip is coated with textured rubber that almost feels silky. At the top of the rubber panel is a shallow divot wide enough for the index finger to comfortably wrap around the front of the camera. At the tip of the hand grip, the zoom ring that surrounds the shutter button is visible. To the right of the shutter release and protruding portion of the hand grip is a small Panasonic DMC-FZ18 label.
The back of the FZ18 also looks very similar to the FZ8. Both cameras have a 2.5-inch LCD screen on the left that is on a platform that is raised from the body by a few millimeters. To the right of the LCD is about 1.5 inches of space occupied by the same buttons as the FZ8. To the upper right of the LCD is a tiny joystick. The left side looks identical to the FZ8 with the exception of the lens’ specs of course. The older model has a 12x optical zoom lens and the Panasonic FZ18 has an 18x optical zoom lens, although the cameras are about the same size.
The right side of the camera looks familiar. It is also nearly identical to the FZ8. The only difference is the addition of a thumb grip on the back of the camera that is visible on this side of the FZ18. In front of that thumb grip is a chrome eyelet for the neck strap, and the rubber hand grip surface in front of that. Two chrome neck strap eyelets flank the top of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18, which is oddly shaped. The lens barrel looks enormous when viewed from above. The flash component sits atop it. The viewfinder juts out from the flash component. Directly right of the viewfinder is the round mode dial. It has many more positions than the FZ8 including custom and several scene modes. The bottom of the camera is quite thick. There is a metal tripod socket that is slightly off-center of the lens, which could make it tough to mount. Below the hand grip is a plastic friction grip door that covers the battery and memory card slots
Features:
- 18x optical zoom (28-504mm equiv.) - FZ8 has 12x (36-432mm) zoom
- Smaller maximum aperture at long end of zoom (F4.2 vs F3.1)
- 8.3 megapixel sensor (vs 7.2 megapixel)
- Face Detection
- Intelligent Auto mode
- Manually selectable ISO 1600
- ISO 6400 High Sensitivity mode
- AF/AE lock button and dedicated AF/MF button
- 1cm macro (was 5cm)
- Custom mode and extra scene modes (plus 'advanced scene modes')
- Five level Noise reduction (was three level)
- Slower continuous shooting (burst)
- Heavier and slightly larger
