Summary

Excellent all rounder in a small and lightweight camera.
Thouroughly recommend it. The Leica 18x Zoom is outstanding.

How long have you used the product?

1-3 months

What are the strengths?

I have had a series of small point /shoot compact digi cameras including Fuji and Sony and Canon etc. This is my first Digi SLR. Being a bit of a nature nut, especially birds. I have found the FZ18 : very very compact : very lightweight: very user friendly. Lieca 18x Zoom is outstanding: picture quality: close up /macro : battery life are all excellent.
At the far end of zoom range (optical + digi zoom) in failing light is the only time it struggles a bit , which almost any kit will unless you spend a couple of grand. Custom programme saving at least 3 sets of your personalised settings is ideal for in flight shots as you can set 2 stops of backlight at 500 sec etc also continious or 3 x frames per second burst setting. Which gives you the equivalent of motorwind.
The whole pacakage is great. I can recommend it. I carry it everywhere in the countyside. I also purchased a UV filter to protect the lens and a 4GB card, and soft carry case.

What are the weaknesses?

Panasonic Lumix software that comes with the camera is not as good as Fujipix or Sony.

Summary

The automatic point and shoot mode with a good anti shake feature make this little camera a joy to use but if you demand manual control that is also there - I love it. It has lots of nice features that I appreciate more every time that I take it out (outdoor sport mode for example). Battery life is also good.
At about £230 it is probably not an impulse buy for most people but I highly commend it for the semi-serious photographer who wants a versatile and easy to use camera to sling over their shoulder when going for a walk.

Which similar products have you used?

Nikon Coolpix 2100
Minolta 7i

How long have you used the product?

Less than 1 month

What are the strengths?

This is a great little camera at a very reasonable price if your primary requirement is long distance photography (say wild birds) but you do not want to pay the price for a digital SLR, the lenses, tripods etc. or carry the weight.
The Leica lens is excellent. If you are prepared to trade picture quality for optical zoom this little camera can give you X25 optical zoom with a 3 megapixel photograph else you can take 8 megapixel photographs up to X18 optical zoom. An optional X2 lense (£130 ish) can extend even this impressive specification.
Of the current 3 compact cameras in this X18 zoom this is the one to go for.
The menu system has been well thought out and I reckon that it is as user friendly as a camera so sophisticated could be.
OK - there is a price - at the long end of zoom the light conditions need to be good but it is certainly good enough for me. It can also take RAW format shots for those photoshop buffs.

What are the weaknesses?

It does have a built in flash but there is no hot shoe fitting.

Summary

Hope yours doesn't bust on ya...!

How long have you used the product?

1-3 months

What are the strengths?

Can't tell ya, it's busted, and Panasonic won't honor a warranty on what they admit is a faulty PCB board...?

What are the weaknesses?

Definitely the warranty service. I have been given the shaft, and they expect me to pay $381.28 dollars for parts, labour and shipping for it? What would you do?

Panasonic has lost a loyal customer!

Sammanfattningsvis

Den klart bästa kamera jag använt. Jag ångrar inte en sekund att jag köpte denna kamera.

Vilka liknande produkter har du använt?

Canon (olika modeller), Olympus

Hur länge har du haft produkten?

Mer än 3 månader

Vad är positivt?

Optiken..världsklass
Zoooooomen..upp till 28x om du fotar med 3Mpix, vilket oftast räcker i denna megapixelhysteri.
Bildkvalitet...Helt enastående bilder med härlig färgåtergivelse.
Användarvänlighet.. Kör på automatiskt läge så är det bara att sikta och trycka av, kameran känner av vad du tänker fota..landskap, macro, ansikten..fungerar klockrent.
Tålig..råkade tappa den i betonggolv, stengolv och diverse saker på min semester utan minsta skråma.
Batteritiden.. Klart godkänt och snabb laddning

Vad är negativt?

Negativt?? näää kan inte komma på något.

Commentaires

Le FZ18 trouvé a 359 euros sur cdiscount est vraiment compact et léger.J’ai été plutôt séduit par l'interface du boîtier à la fois simple et bien pensée. On retrouve les réglages habituels et surtout un joystick de navigation qui permet d'afficher un menu d'accès rapide aux principaux réglages (stabilisation, autofocus, mesure de la lumière, balance des blancs, taille et qualité des images). L'écran LCD n'est pas mauvais (il est même particulièrement fluide et détaillé), mais les angles de vision sont un peu étroits. Quant au viseur, il reste la limite de ce type de bridge avec une faible définition et une toute petite taille. Le Panasonic FZ18 se destine aussi bien aux novices qu'aux photographes experts.et c’Est important de le souligner.Il est en effet bardé de modes automatiques, dont un intelligent Auto particulièrement intéressant, puisqu'il adapte les paramètres en fonction de la prise de vue (choix du mode scène et de la sensibilité). Toutefois, il est possible de travailler en