PANASONIC LUMIX FZ62 JACK REVIEW

Exmoor Photography Gallery & Camera Shop

The High Street, Porlock, Somerset
T: 01643 862026
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JACKS REVIEW

‘Please note, these reviews are my opinion on the cameras that I stock and sell, the reviews are not meant to be full blown technical reviews and I do not post any test images on line, they are designed to give you some assistance (in laymans terms, as requested by my customers) when choosing a camera that is right for you. I try to keep them as simple and short as possible.

These reviews are the result of requests from my customers.’

THANKS JACK

Well just when I thought the Lumix Bridge camera could not get any better after the FZ48 it has! I have just finished putting this new model through its paces and I am very impressed.

The camera feels well put together and solid but not heavy. It sits comfortably in my hand with a nice shaped grip for my fingers and thumb on the back. The main control dial has a textured grip on it and turning the dial between modes feels tight and well made. The on/off switch is now located next to the control dial a bit like an SLR, which I like because it stops you turning the camera off by mistake. The main control dial has the following settings, IA & IA+ (I will go back to IA+later), P –programme AE mode, the camera automatically sets the shutter speed and the aperture value according to the brightness of the subject.

A – aperture priority, Set the aperture value to a higher number when you want a sharp focus background. Set the aperture value to a lower number when you want a soft focus background.

S – shutter priority, Set with a faster shutter speed when you want to take a sharp picture of a fast moving subject. Set to a slower shutter speed when you want to create a trail effect.

 

 

This is a snap shot of the new on screen ‘dial’ that comes up when you change settings, I really like this addition to the control you have of the camera.

M – Manual exposure mode, you can set both the aperture and shutter speed subject to the lighting conditions.

Manual movie mode - It is possible to manually change the aperture and shutter speed and record motion pictures. Switching the [Creative Video] setting allows you to use settings such as those when mode dials switched to [p ], [ a], [ s] and [m ].

C1 & C2 - You can register the current camera settings as custom settings. If you then record in Custom Mode, you can use the registered settings.

SCN mode - When you select a Scene Mode to match the subject and recording situation, the camera sets the optimal exposure and hue to obtain the desired picture. There is a total of 19 scene modes including 3D and Panorama mode (I will mention Panorama mode again later)

 

Creative Control Mode - This mode records with additional image effects. You can set the effects to add by selecting example images and checking them on the screen. There are 14 effects to choose from including, star filter, sepia, dynamic monochrome.

 

You can take pictures with greater freedom by changing various settings in [Rec] menu.

The top of the camera body has a shutter and the lens zoom control with a video quick start/stop button behind it. Then there is a new short cut button to set the burst mode and the focus button which does manual focus and allows you to set your own focus point. The only thing I would have liked on the barrel of the lens is an additional zoom/focus switch, not a big deal, but would be nice next time.

The top of the camera also houses the pop up flash and microphone for video. It is nice to see that Panasonic have kept the filter thread on the Leica lens, something that not all bridge cameras have. Although you can create many filter effects in camera, it is great to be able to put a UV filter on to protect the lens glass from damage and scratches.

Moving to the back of the camera, you have a similar layout to the FZ48, but there are a couple of changes. The first and most significant for me is the electronic viewfinder (EVF), this appears to be much brighter and sharper to look through, something that let the FZ48 down a bit. You see a very clear image and all the camera settings you need are super imposed on it. You still have a dioptric adjustment dial at the side to fine tune the sharpness.  Next to the EVF & LCD button you have a AF/AE LOCK button, this allows you to lock the exposure/focus and then recompose the picture.

Also on the back of the camera you have a multi-function toggle dial, which has several functions including depending on the mode you are in, such as, bracketing, adjusting the aperture or shutter speed and manual focus. I really like the ‘rolling’ aperture and shutter speed settings that come on the screen when you use this, a very clever idea. Below the toggle dial you will find the AF/AFMACRO/MF button, this allows you to manually adjust the focus mode you are in to one of the following, AF, AF MACRO (close up) AF ZOOM (close up but with the ability to zoom in on your subject) and MF (manual focus). During my test on all settings I found the auto focus to be very fast and accurate, in fact it never failed to lock on to a subject during my test. You also have several focus settings that can be set while in auto focus, this are, 1-area (centre focus) I like that Panasonic have kept the ability to move this around and change the size. 23-area, multi point focus mode, AF TRACKING, this allows the camera to focus on a moving subject and stay locked on if it moves, this takes practice but it works. Lastly, you have face detection technology, this sets the camera to recognise a face and give exposure and focus to it. You can even register the names and faces of up to six people on the camera.

Next to this button you have a display button that allows you turn the display on and off. To the left of this is the play back button, this plays back recorded images and by using the zoom control you can zoom in on an image and zoom out to view image thumbnails on the screen, you can even select images to view images by date by using an on screen calendar.

Also while in play back mode, by pressing the menu button you have some other basic editing settings you can use and save, these include the following, cropping, levelling, face recog, title edit and text stamp, there also several play back modes including slide show and calendar.

Below the play back button you have the ‘flat joystick’ which has the following function buttons, ISO, WB, fn2 an additional layer of focus mode, including, AFS (single focus) AFF (AF flexible) which is a bit like AF servo and AFC (AF continuous) which does work! Lastly, you have a self-timer button. The main camera settings button is also located here, this gives you access to all the cameras Recording settings, Motion picture settings and general background settings, such as clock set, cust memory LCD display, eco, format etc.

Finally at the bottom right hand corner next to the screen you have a dual purpose Q.MENU & delete button. The Q.MENU is a short cut to some very useful camera settings that you are very likely to want to change if you want to be more creative with your photography and use the camera with IA intelligent auto switched off. I will go back to IA later. The settings available via this button are, Photo style – including, std colour, vivid colur and monochrome black & white, Flash settings – including, red eye reduction, forced flash, flash off, image resolution, image quality, AF style, AF mode, metering mode – including, multi metering, centre weighted and spot, lastly you have exposure bracketing. Again, I really, like the new the new display that come up on the screen and while using the EVF when adjusting these settings.

There are a few improvements on this model that I really like these include the following,

Burst Mode – you can now record up to 10fps at full resolution

Video Mode – you can record HD video at the touch of a button, you can also zoom in and out and refocus if required.

IA + IA+ - The camera will set the most appropriate settings to match the subject and the recording

conditions so we recommend this mode for beginners or those who want to leave the settings

to the camera and take pictures easily.

 

• The following functions are activated automatically.

– Scene Detection/Backlight Compensation/Intelligent ISO sensitivity control/Auto White Balance/

Face Detection/[AFS]/[Quick AF]/[i.Dynamic]/[i.Resolution]/[i.ZOOM]/[Stabilizer]/[AF Assist Lamp]/

[Red-Eye Removal]/[Continuous AF]/[Zoom Mic]

PANORAMA SCENE MODE – I like what they have done with this, before you had to take the first image and then try to line up the second one the image edge, not always easy to do. Now all you do is select Panorama mode from the scene menu and hold the shutter down while moving the camera slowly to record the scene you require. You can now either view the complete image with all the frames ‘stitched’ together for you or you can play an animated ‘sweep’ of the view you have recorded. This is a much better system and works really well.

IMAGE QUALITY – As always, I have done sample shots with this camera using IA and several different settings and focal lengths. I do not post images on line (for obvious reasons) but I always have samples at the shop to show anyone interested in buying this camera.

Wide angle 25mm the image appears nice and sharp edge to edge, the colour reproduction, metering and resolution are very good, the camera has also coped very well with areas in shadow. At full optical zoom 600mm the image is superb, the definition, detail, colour and exposure is spot on.

Macro (close up) – I am looking at an image of Yale door lock printed at A4 size, the sharpness is excellent, I can even see the grain in the metal.

The noise (grain) in all the images I have printed is hardly noticeable except in one image and even this one has a pleasant texture to it. I took one picture with the flash on in full auto mode and the camera has coped very well with a brightly sunlit window at the back of the room I photographed.

Overall image quality for me then has improved yet again with this model; the camera consistently produced correctly exposed and coloured images.

Build quality has stayed pretty much the same, no better or worse, the camera feels tough and well put together. My only disappointment is the additional focus and zoom switch on the lens barrel. I know Panasonic put them on models that are more expensive but it would have been nice on this one as well.

The EVF and LCD screen both seem to be improved to me, both are very clear, bright and sharp.  It is a shame you cannot tilt the screen on this model but what you get is very easy to see. I could still clearly see the image while taking pictures in bright contrasty sunlit conditions.

Once again Panasonic have produced a sensibly priced, very versatile, fast camera that produces, crisp, sharp, nicely coloured and correctly exposed images. If you do not want to carry an SLR with lots of heavy lenses then I would definitely recommend this camera. The FZ48 was one of my most popular bridge cameras and I expect this one to be at least as popular. And don’t forget if you don’t want to experiment with your camera settings, you can let the camera do all the work for you in IA mode (intelligent auto). Simply turn it on compose you picture and press the shutter button.

 

 

Thanks

 

Jack

 

  SPECIFICATIONS

 

·          Megapixels 16.1

·          Sensor type MOS

·          Sensor size 1/2.33 inch

·          Resolution 4608 x 3456

·          Optical zoom (x) 24.0

·          Focal length (tele) 672

·          Focal length (wide) 28

·          Image stabilisation Yes

·          Max aperture (tele) 5.2

·          Max aperture (wide) 2.8

·          Minimum focus distance 1cm

·          Shutter speed max  1/2000 sec

·          Shutter speed min 4 sec

·          Exposure modes 19 Scene Modes

·          ISO min 100

·          ISO max 6400

·          Viewfinder type TFT Screen LCD Display

·          Screen size (inches) 3.0

·          Screen resolution (pixels) 460000

·          Flash type Built-in-Flash

·          Movie mode 1080p

·          File formats JPEG, MPO, AVCHD, MP4

·          Connectivity miniHDMI, AV Output (PAL/NTSC), USB Multi

·          Battery model DMW-BMB9E

·          Colour Black

·          Size 120.3 x 80.8 x 91.9 mm

·          Weight (g) 493

 

 

 

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