5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Almost perfect for travel
Date of Review: Dec 5, 2006
The Bottom Line: This is the camera you should take with you for travel. It has 10X zoom and is small and lightweight enough to carry all day.
I bought my DMC-TZ1 from a local Circuit City for $316 after much research online. I installed a 2GB 133X SD card. It is necessary to get a fast card for video capture, so I got the 133X. At the highest resolution, a 2GB SD gives about 1500 photo capacity. The build quality is very good. It was the most compact 10X optical zoom camera available as of April 2006, when I bought it. I selected this camera for several reasons:
1. 10X optical zoom in a compact.
2. Optical image stabilization, which I consider necessary beyond 3X zoom for handheld use.
3. Leica optics. Leica is on par with the best in the world for optics.
4. Large LCD, sunlight viewable.
5. Fast acquisition time, which is critical for capturing people and animals before they change or go away.
I'm very impressed with the optical image stabilization. 10x zoom is usable while handheld! Image quality is fantastic! Sharpness and detail are about as good as I can imagine. Color and hue are not as good as my old Olympus, but that can likely be corrected with some tweaking of the camera settings, and images can always be changed in software on your PC later. Overall I'm happy with the camera, and I think it represents a great value in its price range.
I was disappointed that this camera does not have manual shutter and aperture controls, but 99% of the time I can live without that. There are several scene modes that help to make up for the lack of manual settings. Also lacking is an optical viewfinder, so it takes some getting used to if you have never used a camera without one. The Li-Ion battery is unique to Panasonic, so you might need to buy a spare one if you take a lot of photos in a day. According to my experience, the battery is good for 200 photos. NiMH AA's would have been nice, but I think they had to compromise to keep the package small and light.
The camera does not come with a case, but I was able to find a simple small one at WalMart for 94 cents! I also bought a more protective padded case from Best Buy for $10.
This is my first Panasonic camera, and I spent several hours reading the user manual. It has lots of settings, and there is a lot to comprehend. It has a "simple" mode that reduces the number of menu options, but it's still a complicated camera. Icons and descriptions in the menus are good, but I strongly recommend reading and studying the manual before using it.
All things considered, I think this is one of the best compact digital cameras on the market, especially for travel. I give it a thumbs up!
I took this camera on vacation to South Africa, and it was instrumental in acquiring photographs of animals in darkness and at a distance, using the high sensitivity mode. The conditions would have been nearly impossible for a camera without the advanced features of this Panasonic. I also got great battery life, with easily over 200 photos between charges. I purchased a spare battery before my trip just to be safe, and I did need it at one point. I took over 1500 photos over a period of two weeks. Overall, the photos were fantastic and I am very satisfied with the camera, and glad I bought it.
