Panasonic - DMC-TZ5 Digital Camera Review

The Panasonic TZ5 is a small, fast, digital point-and-shoot with an amazing Leica 10x optical zoom, and a very clear 3 inch high-resolution (470,000 pixel) LCD screen.

The 10x Leica optical zoom (28mm-280mm equiv.) ranging from wide-angle to telephoto is a delight to use, showing no color fringing (truly surprising) that I could see, and amazing detail. 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.

Following action with people, animals or kids when zoomed-in is NOT easy since there is no viewfinder, but it is a great camera for landscapes, architecture, group shots, close-ups and family videos. The 28mm wide angle is very sharp. Zooming is smooth and speedy. Color rendition is beautiful.

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 NO manual mode and for those of us itching to control exposure settings (or sharpness as with the Panasonic LX2) it is a bit frustrating (even with a plus-or-minus two-stop override), but the results are usually exceptional.

The Leica lens exhibits exceptional sharpness, color, and contrast even in the corners. As is typical of many Panasonic cameras (TZ3, FZ8, FZ18, etc.), if you view your image at 100% on your computer 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.

This is a great point-and-shoot digital camera for a beginner, and yields sharp, beautiful results to those experienced or more demanding photographers, but only if you can learn to accept the auto results.