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: 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: 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: 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: 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: THIS CAMERA IS A SUPERB INVESTMENT.
Review: I purchased the Lumix FZ10 after I returned a Fuji 3.0 megapixel which supposedly pushed resolution to 6.0. I have developed pictures from both cameras and there is no comparison.
This camera truly outperformed all of my expectations. There are many options to push your experience into the "professional mode" which I have not even tried yet. I have not had this for a week and yet have many excellent pictures which I have shown off to friends and family. One problem I have had with all cameras is trying to get good pictures of my ragdoll cats without red or irredescent eyes. I captured their big blue eyes and did not even use the red eye reduction feature. The flash angle is perfect to impart a professional quality to your photos. It is true that the lens cap is not attached, but if anyone passes this camera for that reason they are truly missing out on a great opportunity. I feel that my pictures compare with Canon T70 which I used for years. If you research this camera at the digicam review sites, they all agree that it is an excellent buy. One very important feature on this camera is the optical image stabilizer. I took some existing light pics which should have been taken with a tripod and yet they were perfect because this camera stabilizes camera shake so well. I expect to keep this camera for many years. Don't let the 4.0 megapixel make you pass this up. By adding the Leica lenses, the image quality is superb and may surpass many higher megapixel cameras. I am looking forward to trying many of the added features soon. I know I will not be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: THIS CAMERA IS A SUPERB INVESTMENT.
Review: I purchased the Lumix FZ10 after I returned a Fuji 3.0 megapixel which supposedly pushed resolution to 6.0. I have developed pictures from both cameras and there is no comparison.
This camera truly outperformed all of my expectations. There are many options to push your experience into the "professional mode" which I have not even tried yet. I have not had this for a week and yet have many excellent pictures which I have shown off to friends and family. One problem I have had with all cameras is trying to get good pictures of my ragdoll cats without red or irredescent eyes. I captured their big blue eyes and did not even use the red eye reduction feature. The flash angle is perfect to impart a professional quality to your photos. It is true that the lens cap is not attached, but if anyone passes this camera for that reason they are truly missing out on a great opportunity. I feel that my pictures compare with Canon T70 which I used for years. If you research this camera at the digicam review sites, they all agree that it is an excellent buy. One very important feature on this camera is the optical image stabilizer. I took some existing light pics which should have been taken with a tripod and yet they were perfect because this camera stabilizes camera shake so well. I expect to keep this camera for many years. Don't let the 4.0 megapixel make you pass this up. By adding the Leica lenses, the image quality is superb and may surpass many higher megapixel cameras. I am looking forward to trying many of the added features soon. I know I will not be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Love at first sight
Review: I wanted to go digital, but looked and looked for the perfect first digital camera. My sister put the Panasonic Lumix in my hands, and it was love at first sight. First, the camera is amazingly light for a camera with a zoom equivalent of 400+. Second, the camera never misses a shot, no matter what the light conditions. Yes, I read the manual thoroughly, and yes, the camera can be confused a little when the conditions are dark and there are lights in back of the subject, but not a huge problem, and even most of those shots turned out great. I am in love with this camera, so in love that making the switch to digital was easy and delightful.
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