This camera takes professional looking pictures even when used by a beginner. It is extremely easy to use in automatic mode and it is not difficult to set up in manual mode. If you are not a professional photographer but want to learn to take manual pictures, this camera is very good for that. Even in low light this camera takes good pictures. It has a very good flash on it also. They are crisp and clear. It has a nice zoom too. It is compact enough that it is easy to take with me where ever I go. You can't change lenses or use filters on this camera so you can't get some of the special effects you could get with a DSLR but it still takes super pictures and I can always edit and digitally add special effects. I can blow these pictures up to 14" x 20" and they are still crystal clear. The battery life is very good but when it starts to go dead, it goes dead quickly. I recommend having a spare on hand.

sassey1111

Toledo, OH

I have owned MANY cameras, both digital and manual, over the past 20 years. I purchased a Sony camera a few years back, and had been told that it was the best non-DSLR on the market. I was so disappointed with it, that I purchased my FZ40 the next year. The FZ40 is a fantastic camera for an amateur photographer, who wants to learn how to adjust settings and experiments with aptatures, but don't want the expense of owning a full on DSLR. I am very impressed with the clarity of the pictures. I do not use photoshop to edit, but use ipiccy instead, and have been quite happy with the results. My daughter used my FZ40 for 4-H photography, and won champion and state fair with her photos! Very little editing done at all. The battery on the FZ40 is phenomenal. While on vacation, I only had to charge it 1 time out of 10 days and 550 pictures. The image sizes are LARGE on your memory card, so make sure you are storing on a 4gb or more, unless you want to change out your card or delete, on a regular basis. The camera is a heavier and larger camera, but I like that. If you are looking for a point and shoot that you can toss into your purse or pocket, this is not for you. BUT, this is a fantastic camera to take to soccer games, vacations, weddings, back yard photo shoots, and much much more.

thesavvysteward

USA

A terrific camera if you want something with LOTS of versatility shy of buying a true DSLR camera. I searched long & hard before a once in a life time Hawaii trip. I was looking for a point & shoot but nothing matched the features I really wanted like this camera. It turned out to be a great choice! Image Quality Excellent images with Leica lens Performance Fast, great image stabilization so minimal to no blur Ease of Use Not for an absolute newbie but I used it as much as possible before my trip so that I was used to where things were and how to change settings without having access to a manual Durability It survived my trip to Hawaii and also a 2 week winter trip to Austria with no issues. I frequently had to carry it in a lightweight backpack which got knocked around a bit, but it was never damaged. Battery Life Excellent. I did buy a backup battery (nonPanasonic) and both have held up nicely. I've had cameras with batteries that didn't last more than a few pictures. I can shot easily 300 pictures. I do not use video that much, so not sure how this would effect the battery life, but likely reduce it some. Portability This is NOT a point & shoot but it is not overly bulky in size or in weight.

chemumma

Wrentham, MA

This camera was absolutely wonderful for 2 glorious years but then the electronics failed. Now I can take pictures as long as I don't use the zoom, but not otherwise. Image Quality For the first 2 years Performance For the first 2 years Ease of Use For the first 2 years Durability died after 2 years

jeank1rk

USA

If you are searching for a great quality digital camera, but not a big bulky digital SLR, check out the Panasonic Lumix!  I am a big fan of quality cameras and when I purchased the Lumix, I did a lot of research and wanted to find something that was going to take really good pictures but not be as big and bulky as an SLR.  The smaller compact cameras do not have the capabilities of taking superior pictures so I knew I couldn't purchase a tiny camera.  I found a few similar to the lumix and did some research on them.  THe Lumix has a lot of functions to it and it can even take short video clips.  The quality of the pictures is about as close to a digital SLR as you can get.  The Lumix is so much more lightweight and compact than an SLR.  You can fit this camera into just about any bag, making it easier to pack around with you anywhere.  It is also very durable and strong.  You can set this camera to be like a manual SLR if you want or you can have it fully auto with tons of easy user friendly settings to choose from.  This is definitely a camera worth looking into if you are looking for a good quality camera.  The price is also very good as well. Image Quality Takes beautiful quality photos Performance fast and durable. Ease of Use Simple design, great features Durability Has held up over time very well. Battery Life GREAT battery life Portability Excellent!

stopfamily4

Lehi, UT

**I really love my Panasonic - Lumix DMC-FZ35 Digital Camera. I used to have a smaller size camera but found that with the smaller size I did not have the options and quality that I wanted. The smaller cameras did not take as great of pictures and took to long to take the picture often resulting in me missing the shot that I wanted. I really have enjoyed the Panasonic Lumix Digital Camera there are many features but they are simiple and easy to use so you do not need to be an expert photographer to take great pictures. I love the zoom on it because it allows me to get much closer then the zoom on a smaller camera. Love trying to get great and fun shots of my children and the zoom allows me to get closer pictures without having to be close so I am able to get more candid and fun photos.**

momof2girlygirls

Yakima, WA

I recently purchased the Lumix DMC-FZ35 Digital Camera for myself. I researched long and hard for a camera that I could count on, with great features and that wouldn't eat through money via batteries! This camera comes with a battery pack that is fully chargable. It took about two hours to charge the first time (it wasn't charged when it arrived). So far I've taken over 100 pictures with it and the battery is still going strong. Of course, it'll be easy to pop it in for charging when it does get low though! Much better than my previous camera which ate batteries left and right! The camera has 18x zoom! I was skeptical about this, but have taken some AMAZING pictures at the full zoom! I mean, these are clean, clear pictures like I was standing next to the bird in the tree, or the mailbox down the street! You have to make sure you are holding steady, but all of my pictures have been taken without a tripod and they are still really clear with the odd picture being blurry (caused by my movements, not the camera). The pictures have great quality and color. They functions are amazing. There are so many options I don't think I've gotten them all yet! The options include Night Portrait, Close-Up, Sports, Scenery, Portrait, Color Mode, and Intell Auto. The Close-up takes amazing up close CLEAR pictures. The Night Portrait option includes an option for illuminations (like Christmas lights) (although I'll fully admit I don't know the quality of this as I haven't had the chance to play with it yet). Overall, in the week I've had this camera, I LOVE it. I haven't seen one fault. It even takes great Video!

luvforever

Hagerstown, MD

Even with the 40 and 100 on the scene, this model will produce sharper more detailed images, It will especially out produce the 100 in low light conditions and at iso settings up to 800. Compare sample images for both at imaging resources with the comparometer. Double click the still-life and look at the letters on the label of the right wine bottle. The horizontal shading lines on the "P" and the smaller letters below it offer a sample to compare any cam. Load the Pentax 645D and see the room for improvement that still exists. But that camera won't fit in your jacket pocket for a hike. And the lenses to give you the same range  need there own pack. This is the perfect camera for a safari, a week in the tropics. a day long art fair, video of the auto show or many more where bringing the equivalent in a dslr would be an undertaking. Extras I use are an adata 16gb sdhc and a third party battery.

dan1888

Rochester, MI

This is a great camera.  I love it, because it has a great zoom, but I don't have to carry around a cumbersome bag with extra lenses or anything.  It has great settings for if you don't know the technical details of creating the perfect picture.  However, all of my pictures turn out awesome!  Because I like to take pictures of birds, I needed a camera that not only had a great zoom, but was FAST to start up and between pictures.  Even using the flash, it doesn't take too long before you're ready to shoot the next shot.  I have gotten hundreds of pictures of the birds in my backyard, and had so many great shots to choose from that I can't imagine using another brand of camera.  This is my third Lumix.  One thing that I did not like was that I had a hard time finding it in the store to play with it.  I didn't like the idea of buying a camera that I couldn't play with.  However, that was around the holidays of 2009, so maybe that made sense.  Also, the flash isn't the greatest.  I do like that it pops up, however.

krys2848

Decatur, GA

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ line is one of the best zoom camera lines I've ever used, and the FZ35 is no exception. This handsome black camera is the same size as its predecessors, but has many improved functions. The LCD screen is much larger but doesn't affect the number of buttons on the back of the camera. The camera can now take in two channels of audio from microphones on the top of the flash. And the optical zoom has been increased to an amazing 18x, which is pretty amazing. It handles as well as its predecessors and doesn't change around the buttons, which helps Lumix nuts like me use the camera without extensive manual reading. For those of you who like taking nature photos and hate using a flash, this camera is for you. You can easily zoom in on birds or elephants from far away and get great light without using the flash most of the time. The only bummer is that you now have to flip a little switch to go from taking pictures to playing them, and I feel that it would be too easy to accidentally break the switch. Otherwise, this is an excellent camera.

terracotta

Charlottesville, VA