This camera was recommended to us by a friend who is a professional photographer.  She uses a Panasonic with a Leica lens for everyday photos of her family, etc.  Leica has been making lenses for more than 50 years and their commitment to quality is now extended to the lenses they make for Panasonic/Lumix.  This is a digital camera and has 7.2 megapixels, but the photos come out looking as if they have 10.

Sometimes the gadget-y side of the techno geeks who designed it show through--there is a pet setting, for instance, which will caculate the age of the pet if you put in its birthday.  It's...