Panasonic FZ1000 review Camera Stuff Review looks at first sight seem strange. We test system mainly lenses for cameras, both SLR as a mirror of charge, while can not change the Panasonic Lumix FZ1000.
Yet it is less strange than you think. Not a week passed, or we get a reader's question to the best lens for an SLR, not too heavy, not too big, which you do not need to change the lens. The idea is to start a SLR, with an "all-in-one" or holiday zoom with a large zoom range.
The zoom range of 25mm to 400mm (equivalent to a camera with a full frame sensor) for most photographers is more than enough to no longer lens exchange. The high (f / 2.8-f / 4) brightness exceeds all vakantiezooms for SLRs. Both tilt and swivel screen, the integrated image stabilization and 4K video - which is still to be found in any affordable SLR - Panasonic FZ1000 create more versatile and easier to use. We tested the image quality of this camera and compared with the image quality of an SLR with a much larger, full-frame sensor. We were pleasantly surprised.
Panasonic FZ200 vs. FZ1000
The Panasonic FZ1000 is slightly larger and heavier successor to the Panasonic FZ200. At first glance they look alike. Both are "bridge cameras" that look like a beginner SLR, but are provided with a fixed zoom lens. However, there are many differences, such as:
Yet it is less strange than you think. Not a week passed, or we get a reader's question to the best lens for an SLR, not too heavy, not too big, which you do not need to change the lens. The idea is to start a SLR, with an "all-in-one" or holiday zoom with a large zoom range.
The zoom range of 25mm to 400mm (equivalent to a camera with a full frame sensor) for most photographers is more than enough to no longer lens exchange. The high (f / 2.8-f / 4) brightness exceeds all vakantiezooms for SLRs. Both tilt and swivel screen, the integrated image stabilization and 4K video - which is still to be found in any affordable SLR - Panasonic FZ1000 create more versatile and easier to use. We tested the image quality of this camera and compared with the image quality of an SLR with a much larger, full-frame sensor. We were pleasantly surprised.
Panasonic FZ200 vs. FZ1000
The Panasonic FZ1000 is slightly larger and heavier successor to the Panasonic FZ200. At first glance they look alike. Both are "bridge cameras" that look like a beginner SLR, but are provided with a fixed zoom lens. However, there are many differences, such as:
- The FZ1000 has a larger sensor; Similar to the first and Sony RX Nikon cameras, with 21 megapixels (instead of 12) and a larger ISO range
- -The screen on the back of the camera is the same size, but that of the FZ1000 has a higher resolution
- The FZ200 has a 24x zoom range with constant f / 2.8 brightness (vs 16x zoom f / 2.8-4 for FZ1000)
- The FZ1000 has a faster shutter (1 / 16.000s) than the FZ 200 (1/4000); useful for action shots and bokeh lovers
- The FZ 100 has Ultra-HD / 4K video ((3840 x 2160 @ 25fps), provides the FZ 200 "only" full-HD (1920 x 1080 @ 60p)
- The Panasonic FZ200 is lower in price than the FZ1000. Click here for the current price of the FZ200 or click here for the retail price of the Panasonic FZ1000.
Panasonic FZ1000 vs. SLR with zoom holidays
- There are currently no SLR cameras that are able to store 4K video "just" on an SD card in the camera. If your SD card but is fast enough, which goes smoothly on a Panasonic FZ1000. The Panasonic GH4 is currently the only system where you can save 4K camera into the camera.
- The Panasonic FZ 1000 has an electronic viewfinder, an SLR optical viewfinder. Tastes differ, but an electronic viewfinder has many advantages . Accurate manual focusing for instance much more difficult with an optical viewfinder.
- The display of the Panasonic FZ1000 is rotating and tilting. Most start-SLRs have a fixed or just tilt screen.
- A starter SLR with zoom holidays is the same price as the Panasonic FZ 1000
14x zoom from wide-angle to telephoto sharp
The bright Leica zoom lens on the Panasonic FZ 1000 is an all-rounder.
The shortest focal length offers a picture angle equivalent to a 25mm lens on a camera with a full frame. That's a really wide angle lens that provides a broad overview, which the camera is suitable for landscape photography, urban photography and interior photography. The longest focal length offers a picture angle equivalent to a 400mm lens on a camera with a full frame sensor. Delivers - compared with an SLR - compact camera the same image as a strong telephoto lens, so you can feel confident on safari. The intermediate focal lengths are suitable for a variety of subjects, including portraits. Following two practice shots illustrate the huge zoom range of the Panasonic Lumix FZ1000. There bridge cameras with 60x zoom, 14x but seems more than enough for most photographers.
What appealed to me in the build quality of this lens, was that there was only one part uitschoof and that the overall length by 400mm remained limited. There was no slack in this solid construction. Vakantiezooms on SLRs are at the longest focal length sometimes three times as long as the shortest focal length. Often this is made possible by applying a construction reminiscent of a telescopic rod. In some cases, that vakantiezooms on an SLR on a wobbly construction.
Construction, monitor and viewfinder
This camera includes lens smaller and lighter than an SLR with a zoom vacation and perhaps is still better in the hand. The tilting and swiveling LCD screen is very nice. Just a pity that it is not a touchscreen. At that point, the ease of use of a Panasonic GH4 higher.
On the lens are two switches: image stabilization on / off and zoom / focus, which you choose whether you want to use the ring to the lens to focus, or to zoom.
Lens buttons
This ring is working electronically. Use your zoom the zoom ring manually, the stroke is large, so you can accurately choose a focal length. Most people will use the electronic zoom lever that sits on top of the camera shutter. With most cameras with electronic zoom zooming runs so fast that you will easily pass a desired focal length shoots. That is not the case here. But every advantage has its disadvantage, to Johan Cruyff but even misquote. Because you want from 25mm to 400mm (or vice versa) zoom, lasts that long.
Autofocus is not only fast. Much faster than a compact camera, and in the dark faster than an SLR with a zoom holidays. Moreover, the autofocus works very accurately. The speed of the AF is partly due to the DFD technology that Panasonic also used in the Panasonic GH4. Because there is focused on the sensor signal, there is no front or back focus.
The electronic viewfinder of the Panasonic Lumix DMZ FZ1000 equals the viewfinder of the Panasonic GH4 and that is a winner. The viewfinder lights a little bit, so you do not immediately have your nose touching the screen. Below the viewfinder is an eye (move your mouse over the right picture) that you can set so that the camera automatically switches from LCD to viewfinder when you hold the camera to your eye.
Also, compared to the large optical viewfinders on full-frame SLR cameras, like the Canon 5D Mk3 is the viewfinder of the Panasonic FZ1000 a toper. In a recent test of 10 viewfinder cameras of different merke n, with both optical and electronic viewfinders, the viewfinder of the Panasonic FZ1000 even became the highest rated and I can find mostly in me. A beautiful bright and sharp viewfinder gives you a true look at your composition. Thanks to 'focus peaking' Imagine, if you want to manually focus, even with this electronic viewfinder very precisely.
Resolution and image quality
The Panasonic FZ1000 features a 20 megapixel sensor and a very good Leica zoom lens. Both in practice and in our Imatest measurements we found in the jpg files little distortion, vignetting, and chromatic aberration throughout the zoom range. Even at 25mm vignetting is almost not exceed half a stop. Class!
The sharpness is highest at the shortest focal lengths and higher in the center than at the edges, as you would expect from a zoom lens with a large zoom range.
This Leica zoom not only surprised us with extremely low distortion and vignetting in positive terms, but also with the high resolution that was achieved over the entire zoom range: at all focal lengths Panasonic FZ1000 scored higher than the vakantiezooms we tested on an SLR.
The greatest enemy of a sharp shot at 400mm, camera shake caused by the photographer. If you work from a tripod or with a very fast shutter speed, then the center sharpness at 400mm lower than with the shorter focal lengths, but still surprisingly good, though contrast and sharpness remain behind on more specialized telephoto zoom lenses. Click on the picture above for a comparison of the sharpness at 400mm with a picture taken with the Olympus 40-150mm f / 2.8 + 1.4x converter to an OM-D E-M1. I adjusted the contrast and the color reproduction FZ1000 recording so that the sharpness is easier to compare. The magnified FZ 1000 recording does prove an artifact that occurs sporadically: it seems like chromatic aberration in this case has not been fully corrected; you see blue edges at the windows. Two different recordings of the same subject, is less than a second previously created and later than the picture is exhibited no blue edges. Despite the FZ1000 has more megapixels than the OM-D E-M1, you can see the Blinds that FZ1000 is slightly less sharp. But we had so far for zooming that moire is made visible in the picture with the OM-D E-M1.
Click on the image below for the other Imatest resolution measurements.
At all focal lengths scores Panasonic FZ1000 higher than an SLR with zoom holidays
Dynamic range Panasonic FZ1000
Situations with a high contrast, as in practice shooting next door, be difficult for a sensor to capture without clipping the highlights or shadows:
- If you are the highlights protects against overexposure, as in the lower left part magnification, the shadows are so dark that the picture looks unnatural. Ferns in the background have become so dark that you can not see them, when in reality he was.
- If you are the shadows lightens the highlights are overexposed.
A camera with a large dynamic range is able to shoot a scene with high contrast without clipping of highlights or shadows. And the Panasonic FZ1000 leave a good impression here, especially at low ISO values.
Up to 200 ISO, the dynamic range of the Panasonic FZ1000 as well as a Canon 5D MK3, with a much larger, full-frame sensor. At higher ISO values is the difference in dynamic range, in favor of the Canon 5D Mk3, but it is limited to two stops difference: At ISO 6400 the dynamic range of the FZ1000 equal to the dynamic range of the 5D Mk3 at 25,600 ISO.
Tip: Always use iDynamic Fashion
Where you at a camera with a high dynamic range bump into - and that goes for all cameras - if you're going to underexpose, is that the shadows while not clipping, but are so dark that you have to edit the picture afterwards. Not everyone can / wants. Set your camera to a Panasonic "iDynamic mode" in Auto mode, the shadows are the jpg file that is stored in the camera automatically brightened. The RAW file remains unchanged. As part magnification right shows, it is in the jpg file more detail in the shadows visible than in the original (left), without giving you an unnatural HDR effect. The same goes for the highlights, if you choose to expose a recording, the iDynamic Mode protects the highlights very well against overexposure. If it is not needed, the iDynamic Mode does not apply to operation. I see, in short little reason not to set up car and never put more of the iDynamic Mode.
