First look: Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 preview

Exkluzív: Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 (teszt) magyarul

Two weeks ago we have been invited to Dublin, Ireland for the debut of Panasonic's newest line of digital cameras. While the number of cameras introduced was smaller than what we were used to, the new Lumix DMC-FZ18 is well worth the extra attention.

What's new

Here are the most important changes from the DMC-FZ8.

18 times zoom with optical image stabilization

A few months ago Olympus has returned to the ultra zoom segment with a camera that has got some serious interest from reviewers and users as well. The camera with the largest zoom range, image stabilization and carefully picked features have probably turned many Panasonic customers to Olympus. We didn't have to wait too long to get a competitor for the 18x zoom Olympus SP-550UZ. Panasonic didn't make it a secret, that they are aiming the new DMC-FZ18 against the SP-550UZ, but planning to beat it with better quality Leica lens, optical image stabilization (versus CCD shifting) and of course with all the extra features.

28mm wide angle

We have seen at the last announcement, that Panasonic is listening to the users and the reviewers and starting to build wider lenses into their cameras. Earlier this year they have started this trend with the new DMC-TZ2 and DMC-TZ3 models (keeping the old super zoom lens in the DMC-FZ8). The new wide angle lens is introduced in the FZ series with the new DMC-FZ18 . Wider lenses make the cameras more usable when shooting indoors, or when the photographer cannot go far enough from a large subject (a curch for example).

downsized image taken with the Panasonic DMC-FZ18

Building an ultrazoom lens with a wide angle end without significant geometrical distortion is a great challenge. Panasonic promises insignificant distortion at the 28 mm end of the lens. Although we haven't tested the distortion in lab, but the general shots seem to confirm this statement.

Macro wasn't the most impressive part of previous cameras in the FZ series. The new lens allows the photographer to go as close as 1 cm to the subject, while the tele macro option gives significant magnification at the tele end of the lens as well.

Intelligent Auto Mode

Motion Detection

Nothing new here. If the camera senses a fast moving object on the image, it selects a higher sensitivity with a higher shutter speed to freeze it on the image. While a motion blurred subject can add the sense of activity or motion to the image, it is often not the intention of the photographer. Inexperienced users should appreciate this aid.

downsized image taken with the Panasonic DMC-FZ18

Shake Detection

Shake Detection, or the Mega Optical Image Stabilization has become a trademark of Panasonic digital cameras. The moving optical elements in the camera lens is the most effective way at the moment to fight against hand shake at all focal lengths (sensor shifting can get close in short focal lengths).

Face Detection

Face detection is new in Panasonic models, while it is now a standard feature in most 2007 digital cameras. The new Panasonic DMC-FZ18 and DMC-FX55/33 can recognize and follow as many as 15 human faces on an image. In Intelligent Auto mode face detection activates before the shutter button is pressed half way, so by the time the photographer makes the decision to shoot, the focus is set to the faces. This dramatically reduces the shutter lag time of these cameras.

Face detection is used extensively in automatic decision making. The most obvious is the automatic focusing. Using this extra information the camera can make sure that the faces on the image are as sharp as possible in the given circumstances. In certain situations exposure metering on the face can make a difference. Knowing where the faces are, allows the camera to count with these when setting exposure. When flash is required, the flash output can also be set accordingly. Since the faces can move on the image, the technology needs to be able to track them immediately, so the camera is ready to shoot at any time. The Panasonic DMC-FZ18 had no problem with this. Having face detection built into the camera comes handy to recognize the back lit compositions, where a fill flash would be highly recommended. In Intelligent Auto mode the camera can automatically fire the flash as needed to produce an evenly exposed image.

While shutter lag is reduced, I often had trouble waiting for that one moment for the camera to recognize faces. This might not be a problem, when one gets used to it, but to me it was kind of unusual. Once the faces were caught, I could enjoy the advantages of the face detection technology.

downsized image taken with the Panasonic DMC-FZ18

Scene Detection

The best of it all is the Scene Detection system. Combining all the information the camera can collect prior to shooting, it decides which scene mode would fit best the subject. While this function is unable to use all scene modes available in Scene shooting mode, but portrait, scenery, macro, night scenery and night portrait modes should cover most of the shooting situations an amateur can face on a typical sightseeing.

In practice, this function worked extremely well, and produced nice result without me worrying about any settings. While this function is unique in the DMC-FZ18 and DMC-FX55 / DMC-FX33 cameras, on lower end cameras these kind of automatism can soon replace all scene modes, further simplifying digital photography for those who don't care about technology behind the magic.

Intelligent LCD

Viewing or composing images on the LCD in bright sunshine or dark environment is still an issue to be solved. Panasonic has made another step towards the solution by adding an automatic LCD adjustment function. In bright sunshine, the LCD on the DMC-FZ18 will increase the backlight by 40%, while in dark situations, the camera uses pixel-mixed readout to increase the brightness of the image.

downsized image taken with the Panasonic DMC-FZ18

Quick AF

I have touched this point above, but it is worth mentioning again, that the face detection system can continuously track several human faces before the image is taken. When the shutter button is pressed the camera already has most of the information it needs to set exposure and since the faces are in focus, no extra focusing is needed. This can reduce the time before the image is taken, helping the photographer to catch the intended moment.

Image noise

Every time Panasonic announces new additions to their digital camera lineup they emphasize the huge improvements in image noise reduction. The Venus Engine III, known from previous cameras is supposed to produce cleaner and more detailed images than previous Panasonic cameras, although direct comparisons were not shown. While the sample cameras we have received for our shooting tours were preproduction samples, I was kinda satisfied with most of the images I have taken. There is one thing I can say for suer: the ISO 6400 sensitivity is more like a joke (or marketing bla-bla), than a usable feature. Of course we are not allowed to publish original images from this shootout (due to the preproduction nature of these cameras), we will test and demonstrate the image noise in our detailed review as soon as a production camera becomes available.

downsized image taken with the Panasonic DMC-FZ18 ast ISO 3200

Drawbacks

There must be some. Unfortunately these events are not long enough to collect enough data or experience to say anything about the possible problems. We will just have to wait for those final review samples to arrive.