Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5 Digital Camera with 28mm Wide-Angle Lens, 9.1 Megapixel, 10x Optical Zoom & 4x Digital Zoom, Black

2009-05-06T21:00:00

I had lost my previous digital camera which I thought was great, and with my son's graduation coming up searched and searched for a good replacement..This beats the heck out of any other digital p&s camera I have tried as far as having so much in such a small package. The 10x optical zoom is fantastic and sitting up in an arena for graduation I was able to zoom right in to see my son down on the floor and get great shots. I also like the large screen as the older I get, the harder it is to see the screen.. Solid, well built, great shots; and 1/2 the price of my previous camera..

Sunny D.

2009-02-11T19:00:00

This is a great little camera! I love the wide angle and the versatility! (28 - 280mm). I had been looking for a camera with a good zoom and good image quality to take with me everywhere - especially when I didn't want to (or couldn't) take my big dSLR with me. I tried several others but finally landed on the right one for me. Great image quality and again, I love the true wide angle and the 10x zoom. Both of the sample images are straight out of the camera.

DEBBIE Y.

2009-01-25T19:00:00

Kodak retired! Beats Kodak's products.

mtbtanchor

2009-01-21T19:00:00

Use for family and around the home shots . Also for travel it is small enough but lots of features especially 10X optical zoom.

Dick

2009-01-20T19:00:00

I've been lugging around a large, heavy SLR around with me everywhere, and saw this camera while visiting an old school friend. I was VERY impressed, and my wife got me one for Christmas. Though I still use the SLR's when I'm off on a photography trip, this is the one I take with me EVERYWHERE.

Charlie

2009-01-18T19:00:00

many features that i am still discovering, but in any case, the automatic settings work great if you are not into playing too much. also, it makes great little movies in color, b&w, sepia, etc.!! and of course, LOVE the 28mm angle

Claudia

2008-12-28T19:00:00

Love the size of the display compared to other cameras! Lots of options although, the IA mode takes out a lot of the guesswork.

Rob

2008-04-10T21:00:00

The Panasonic TZ5 is a great little camera with a very sharp 10x zoom (28mm - 280mm) by Leica. If you are lover of SCENE modes then it has plenty you'll like. There is NO manual exposure control except for ISO as long as you stay with the basic AUTO mode, and the plus-or-minus two stop override. All the other modes will change the ISO to suit its own program. The Panasonic manual is not clear as to the specifics of SCENE modes except for the most basic and general instructions. Following action with people, animals or kids when zoomed-in is not easy, but it is a great camera for landscapes, architecture, group shots, close-ups and family videos. The 28mm wide angle is very sharp. Color rendition is beautiful.

RICHARD R.

2008-04-08T21:00:00

The Panasonic TZ5 is a fast, small, digital point-and-shoot with a Leica 10x optical zoom, and 3 inch high-resolution (470,000 pixel) LCD screen. The 10x Leica optical zoom (28mm-280mm equiv.) is a delight to use showing no color fringing (truly surprising) that I could see, and amazing detail. And the camera is replete with features such as image stabilization (two modes), metering modes, auto-focus modes, three aspects ratios (4:3, 3:2, and 16:9), and HD video. The Panasonic TZ5 lens exhibits exceptional sharpness and contrast even in the corners. As is typical of Panasonic cameras (TZ3, FZ8, FZ18, etc.), if you view your image at 100% on-screen you will see "noise" (similar to a fine-grain pattern) throughout your midtones and shadow areas. Shooting with a setting of FINE, the highest quality, and 9MP (full sensor), I found image noise is barely visible at 100% on large prints, and invisible on a 8x10 or smaller size prints. On an 11x14 print the image of 3,456 x 2,590 pixels is actually printing at 78%. Noise becomes more noticeable at any ISO above 200. If you are more demanding of your images and want to minimize the effects of noise, I recommend Noise Ninja. I've gotten great results from it but it is not the only product on the market. Find something that you feel works for you. But again, some may not find the noise objectionable at all, particularly in prints. AUTO program prioritizes shutter speed over lens opening (aperture) often setting it to the maximum, and SCENE modes change ISO (increasing noise) frequently to achieve its priority. There is manual mode and for those of us itching to control aperture settings it is a bit frustrating (even with a plus or minus two stop override) but the results are usually exceptional. This is a terrific point-and-shoot Panasonic for a beginner, but also yields commendable results to those experienced or more demanding photographers if you can learn to accept the auto results.

richmond