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Panasonic FZ150 (4 Viewers)

roger1234 said:
hi john
if you don't mind,could you tell me where you purchased the camera from,many shops in the uk don't have the stock as yet,at least where i have looked anyway.
thanks
Click to expand...

Warehouse Express in Norwich.

They are awaiting more stock, according to their website, and the price is slightly higher than I paid.
 
Brilliant shots John! I was waiting for the new Canon SX40HS but now I am not so sure.......

Please post more images as you get them!
 
Barred Wobbler said:
I'd second what you say about being wary of cheap lenses.

My son was after a 1.7x teleconverter for his Lumix . He didn't want to listen to advice and went ahead and bought a cheapie on E-Bay.

When the lens came I set up my wife's FZ50 on a tripod and fired off some test shots with the new lens and her Panasonic lens.

When he saw the results he soon changed his mind and got the Panasonic lens. The cheapie went back, and after a fair bit of trouble and threats he got his refund.

Buyer beware.

The results are shown below - same images, same distance, same conditions, tripod mounted. No sharpening or other adjustment. They are just as they came out of the camera. Panasonic first, cheapie second. There's also an example of how the cheap lens coped with text, at greater range than the flowers.

It's hard to believe something as bad as this gets manufactured.
Click to expand...

Hope the cheap lens wasn't the Raynox DCR-2025pro?
Might answer a lot of questions though haha
 
O.Reville1989 said:
Hope the cheap lens wasn't the Raynox DCR-2025pro?
Might answer a lot of questions though haha
Click to expand...

O'Rev
I'm not sure the Raynox is classed as a cheap lens c£183. Well I hope that isn't classed as a cheap one8-P, otherwise an expensive one is well out of my price bracket - I was thinking of buying the said Raynox.
B :)John
do you know something I don't about the Raynox ..please explain:t:
 
Quote from Norfolk bird forum, re the FZ150

"It was described to me, by someone far more camera literate, as in-camera cropping.

Please read (click on 'Specification'): http://www.panasonic.co.uk/html/en_G...100/index.html

Therefore, normal optical zoom is 24x; 8M 29.4x; 5M 37.5x; 3M 46.9x"

Does the same logic apply to all super-zooms when adjusting the sensor setting, or is this unique to this model using the:-
'Intelligent Resolution technology'
B :) john
 
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firstreesjohn said:
Warehouse Express in Norwich.

They are awaiting more stock, according to their website, and the price is slightly higher than I paid.
Click to expand...

In case it's of interest. My wife decided she wanted one of these (mainly after seeing the shots on BF!) and found most everywhere out of stock or on backorder. She eventually found on at ukcamerastore at £385 + P&P, ordered it on Sunday & arrived yesterday. I hadn't heard of them before so made sure we ordered using credit card for security but all went fine.

Now we'll see if she can emulate firstreejohn's results ...;)

Chris A.
 
firstreesjohn said:
Here's another I managed to squirrel away today, in Wells Woods.

ISO 100; f5.2; 1/125
Click to expand...

John, I suspect this nice shot has been sharpened, as many (or all?) of the previous ones. In order to get a true idea of what the camera can do, untreated pictures would be better. I know, the required reduction causes some blurring. Thus the feeling for sharpening. But maybe you can simply tell us your impression when you compare the original with what we can see here.
 
I ordered mine this morning from ukdigital just after 9am and got a dispatch email at 10.33. It should arrive tomorrow as I opted for saturday delivery. i was most impressed.
It was between ukcamerastore and Ukdigital but as I had class to go to I didn't have time to check UCS for stock levels.

I'm thoroughly looking forward to getting it and finally getting out snapping.
If I get any usable examples I'll pop them up and f any one wants the original files I can send them over.
I'll do a mixed bag of shots, jpegs and raw and see how they come out.

It seems to be a highly adaptable camera and as long as one realises it's limitations compared to L Series lenses there is no room for disappointment ;)
 
It still looks good, even though its a bit darker. There doesn't appear to be any noise and the detail is sharp. I haven't seen a bad image from this camera as yet and neither have I seen a bad review.
 
I now ask the $1,000,000 question:

Is there any gain in using the EO Zoom feature ?

A bird, for instance, is often more difficult to locate, as the image on the viewfinder is of poorer quality than on the FZ38. I have tried various adjustments of Brightness and Contrast, but haven’t found the answer, yet.

When on ‘P’, it is often over-exposed (I don’t want this to happen in the field, as it could lead to legal complications!); I found this on the FZ38, too.

Help, all you out there !
 
I think there is a good reason to use the EO zoom, as it allows you a better view of the subject, ie its bigger in the viewfinder. In other words it gives you a great "in-camera" crop. The only downside is that you shouldn't try to enlarge or crop it again after you have taken the pic, as the pixels are starting to get a bit sparse. I wasn't using it much at first with my FZ100, but now I use it all the time.
 
Two more images. No editing, just cropping.

Darter, on macro, in bright sunlight: ISO 100; f 5.6; 1/640

Tree trunk, c20 feet away, very dark, with flash: ISO 100; f 5.2; 1/125

Thanks, scodgerott.
 

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And a beetle (only cropped):

ISO 100; 1/60; f2.8

Depth of field critical for this type of shot: haven't yet got used to the machine.
 

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