Rating: 
Summary: What kind of camera is that?
Review: "What kind of camera is that?" is the first thing everyone says to me when they see this camera. This is the only camera I have had that people immediately write down the model number to go get one for themselves. You can see from other reviews, the owners of this machine are smart people who have done their research. I have now sold several photos taken with this camera. It's lighter than it looks, it handles like my 35mm, it is easy to use right away and as I get better with it the images are getting better and better. We all send pics via email. The response is usually "cool pic" or similar. Now it is "wow! what a great shot!" The battery life is the best I have ever had. I can fill a 256mb card and the battery meter still shows full charge. The bad? It won't fit in my pocket.
Rating:
Summary: Buy this camera
Review: Although this is my first digital camera, I knew that I wanted something more than a point and shoot. I just got back from a two week trip to Italy and the pictures are fantastic. Although the DMC-FZ10K is a bit bigger than some of the comparables, once you decide that you want more than a 3x optical zoom, you realize that any camera with a better lens cannot fit in your pocket and you might as well upgrade to the DMC. It is the best camera in its price range and has many features that cameras twice as expensive don't have. First, not only is it a 12X zoom (with optical stabilzation) but it is a very fast f2.8 all the way. This may not sound like a big point, but it gives you a much bigger and better capacity in dimmer light situations. Secondly, the optical stabilization really works. I did a handheld picture at full zoom of a street lamp about 30 feet from me. When you blew up the picture in the LCD to check the focus, I could see very clearly insects that were parked on the streetlamp without any blur in the image.
I read a few complaints about the lens cap not being attached. My solution was to use the lens hood and not using the lens cap except when I put the camera away.
In terms of improvements, I agree that it is difficult to focus in dim light. However, I read the same complaint on virtually every other camera. The DMC has a very easy to use manual focus (turning a ring on the lens barrel just like a SLR) and the switch from manual to autofocus is conveniently placed on the lens barrel. On a number of other cameras, the manual focus requires stepping through the menu and using the buttons in the back. However, in dim light or dark situations, the image in the viewfinder is pretty dim as well and manual focus is difficult. But the great thing with a digital camera is that you take a picture, review it, and make adjustments if you didn't like the first picture. THE DMC makes this process very easy.
Finally, I saw a review that had a complaint that the DMC did not have a left hand grip and it was awkward to hold with one hand. I think the reviewer did not read the instructions. The left hand should hold the lens barrel from underneath which gives a very stable two handed hold.
Rating: 
Summary: Bad Customer Service
Review: Before you buy Panasonic, check out their customer service number at (800) 221-7262. My experience with Panasonic Customer Service is very poor starting with an average of 26 minute wait times (6 attempts). I bought a Panasonic SVA V30 that had a internal battery charger problem. After waiting for someone at the Panasonic call center to answer, I was referred to All Electronics Services in Bozeman, Montana for warranty repair. I sent the camera to them in April. In June I spoke with Josh there who said he was working on my repair after he had all the accessories. In July, Josh told me they sent the camera to Panasonic and he would check the status. In August, Josh told me All Electronics was no longer working on this camera, that there were many problems with it, that they had 20 bad returns and that Panasonic had returned my camera back to All Electronics. He indicated he was sending me the camera back without repair and told me I had to deal with Panasonic.
After several long waits, Panasonic told were checking the problem and that they needed their rep to see if the camera could be repaired. Bottom line is I still do not have the camera. Panasonic may make good cameras but their customer support is terrible. Their customer service reps were rude and indignant that I was bothering them with my problem.
Rating:
Summary: Exceeds Expectations
Review: Having just lost an Olympus Camedia camera to a bad lens motor, I was not thrilled with the prospect of spending another $500 on a digital camera. I researched cameras thoroughly and ultimately chose the Panasonic Lumix, wondering why it was not ranked higher on the Amazon sales list. The Lumix is astounding. The feel, weight, fit and finish exceed any other camera that I tested. Picture quality fell right in line too with photos that could not possibly be improved. You will love this camera. If you were an Olymus fan like me, you will soon be a convert. This one will win some awards before the year is out (and I expect it to move to the top of the Amazon list soon enough).
Rating:
Summary: This is an exceptional camera
Review: I am extremely impressed with this camera. The batteries are expensive but they last for a loooong time. The menu system can be a little intimidating but after using it for a while things become easier. The lens cap is not attached to anything and I have almost lost it twice. The lens is not threaded for filters, however the provided hood has a 72mm thread. The camera is big... And then there is that wonderful lens. Oh my. It makes up for a lot of sins. It is absolutely perfect at 50 iso, very good at 100 and quite good at 200-400 if you're looking for real fast stuff... But who needs it when you get the 2.8f aperture from one end of the zoom range all the way to the other. It goes from 6-72mm which translated to 35mm terms means 35-420mm!!! When was the last time you saw a 420mm lens with f2.8 with the body for under $600??? The colors are just fabulous. The lens is stabilized which lets you move it around all the way up to 8x. To go more than that you need a tripod or something real stable to lean on. This means some excellent, sharp, clear, vibrant shots from quite far. I am running out of words. This lens is a Ferrari. Way to go Leica and Panasonic!
Rating: 
Summary: I love this camera!
Review: I bought this camera in August of this year so I've had time to play with it for a while. I'm very pleased with it's performance. It is very easy to use, at least for basic usage--I'm still learning all of it's bells and whistles. The pictures look great, so far I have only enlarged to 8x10 but they are beautiful. The only drawbacks are, as with all of my digital cameras it is not a great performer in low light conditions. In fact, sometimes you are shooting blind. Also, if I don't have the flash up my pictures have a blue tint to them. I'm sure that I just need to read the manual because I know you can adjust the color some.
Rating:
Summary: Great camera, zoom, for a great price
Review: I bought this camera just before Christmas for a higher price (before Amazon had it) did great in full-light situations, but can be fuzzy if you forget to use the pop-up flash in dim-light situations.
Just got back from the zoo (our favorite spot to test camera's) and have superb quality pic's from that. Detail and clarity is amazing.
Rating:
Summary: Underpriced gem
Review: I finally decided to take the plunge into digital cameras after by two faithful Pentax's finally gave up the ghost. I did a lot of research looking for a camera with the right combination of quality, features and price. Having used other peoples point-and-shoot camera's I was disappointed with AF ability, and wanted to ensure I had a manual focus override - the FZ-10 has it. I also do a lot of sports photography, so I needed a camera with shutter-priority - the FZ10 had it (in addition to aperture priority and fully manual options). I also needed a camera with a reasonable f range, and the 2.8-8 available with this camera met my needs and seems better than most others. Finally the 12x optical zoom with image stabilization means I no longer need to carry a bulky 400mm lens and tripod. I have only had the camera a week and already love it. The color rendition is superb, the exposure bracketing works really well, the macro produces superbly sharp pictures, the image stabilisation really works and I have enlarged pictures up to 10x8 with no noticeably digitization. In fact, I believe the quality of images I am getting are better than with my old film camera. The spot-focus mode is tremendously useful for portrait work. Of course I do have a few gripes.
(a) The manual focus assist is not as good as the split-ring system on my old camera and I have now turned this off,
(b) I would prefer to be able to go down to f/16 (and I will be buying a neutral density filter to overcome this problem),
(c) it doesn't store images in raw format (only jpeg),
(d) the supplied 16MB card is too small to be of any real use (but hell it's only there to get you going),
(e) I would prefer to be able to use non-propietary batteries (but given the relatively modest cost of the camera I can live with this and buy a second battery)
(f) The lens cap is not attached and I suspect I will lose it. Others complain about the fact that you can't access the SD card and battery if the camera is mounted on a tripod. This is true, but I also found the need for a tripod much reduced. I have not had a chance yet to try it out in low-light conditions, but I understand this can cause problems.
Rating:
Summary: In A Word - SUPERB
Review: I have a web site in which I compared identical pictures of Minolta A1, Nikon 5200, Canon S60 and Sony W1. Althought the latter two (Canon and Sony) were also excellent, the Panasonic FZ10 was the best of the cameras in terms of picture quality and flexibility. The S60 is certainly a close contender in quality. But the Leica Zoom 35-420mm on such a light camera, re-defines the meaning of travel camera.
In the old days a travel SLR camera was at best a 28 to 90mm SLR. The thought of taking along a 300 or 400mm zoom was absurd because those lenses weighed too much or were too big. But the Panasonic FZ10 changes all that. While it is technically not an SLR, it certainly serves the same function about 98% of the time. I took the camera on a recent cruise to Scandinavia, and got great pictures from 35mm to 420mm.
The anti-shake feature is very handy for those long focal length pictures, and works very well.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Rating:
Summary: Excellent combination of price and function
Review: I have had this camera for about a month now, and I have taken about 600 pictures with it. the performance has been good in all areas, but particulary shines in outdoor sunlit zoom pictures. Like some reviewers have noted, there is a little bit of difficulty with low light shots, but I have found the flash to be adequate if not perfect. I am getting the sunpak 383 external flash for most of my indoor people shots. As I do with most of my digital cameras, I do not use the lens cap that comes on the camera, instead leaving the hood and a 72mm UV filter on all of the time for protection, with an aftermarket 72mm snap-on cap. I chose this camera mostly for the long zoom, and I have not been disappointed. Compared to my Olympus C2040, the shutter lag is non-existant. Very fast and quiet zoom operation. I have settled on a Tamrac zoom16 case which fits it well with the hood in place, and I have found the aftermaket battery that Amazon sells for $28.00 to have as good a lifespan and charging time as the OEM battery. I use this camera with 2 256M Panasonic SD cards although when I tried my sandisk SD card, write times did not seem to change any. In fine mode, about 163 picures fit on a 256 card. I also love the manual focus, as I enjoy closeup shots of flowers and such when I am hiking, and the manual focus works very well for that, just don't forget to turn the auto focus back on when you are done! The viewfinder is a bit dim, but after trying most of the other "ultrazoom" cameras, they all stacked up about the same.
Overall, an excellent camera short of a Digital SLR that would cost $1,000+, I paid $496.00 for my FZ10 at Amazon.
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