Defiantly the Lieca lens, 35mm - 420mm .

I would have preferred a sightly heavier camera

I have read allot of reviews on this camera and was pleased with what i saw. The final straw in me buying the camera was when i came across this website, http://phototronix.blogspot.com/ All the images on this site were taken with the FZ30. Just shows you how good the Lieca lens is. I have the camera now and would recommend it to anyone of my friends. The proof is in the pudding!

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I started off on the Panasonic FZ10 and have recently used the new FZ7

Versatility

The "single or burst mode" button is too close to the shutter button and gets turned on easily so you end up with 3-4 shots versus one.

This was my first "good" camera and I found it simple to operate after reading the manual. The pics were awesome and the 8 mp made photoshopping easy. I liked it so much that only 7 months later I upgraded to the 10 mp version.

Customer Service

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DMC-FZ50

My starting point is long zoom (12x) and optical stabilization to allow it to be used effectively. The FZ-30 has multiple stabilization modes for different situations. The Leica branded lens is one of the sharpest I have ever used. The result is that I can get the picture I want at the time that I see it.

Additional pluses are the quick startup now that they don't retract the lens, an improved ergonomic grip, and the zoom ring on the lens barrel which is so much better than motorized zoom. A properly placed tripod attachment makes it easier to take panoramas, and the 55 mm. thread allows me to leave a skylight filter on to protect the lens.

The only minus is the noise level at high ASA settings, but I can usually get a good picture at slower speeds by depending on the stabilization.

I have been creating travel photography web sites ever since I got my first little Casio digital camera and took it to Turkey. For many years I stuck to my beloved Olympus C-2100UZ, but now I have finally found a worthy successor in the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ30.

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Olympus C-2100UZ

Great handling, lens and image quality. Good zoom range, accurate exposures AWB and focusing. Image stabilisation. Good clear screen and EVF Movie mode.

Noise at high ISO in low light, evf slow to update in continuous shooting mode which generally could be improved. No ability to save settings in custom scene modes as I can in my Casio z750

I bought this camera out of frustration and found it was inspired. I was trying to get hold of an 18-200 Nikon VR lens for my SLRs as a walk around lens, but no one had them. This camera cost well under half the price of the Nikon lens. It has a much faster maximum aperure a longer tele zoom and a slightly wider zoom range (12 x vs 11.1) and it also has IS. I would have preferred if it has been wider that 35mm equivalent but you can't have everything. This is ideal to hold in my hand with just a wrist strap or chuck in a dayksack when on holiday etc In fact any time you want to leave your SLR in the room but want more than a compact. The SLR body and lens would be close to 2K wheras this performs nearly as well and I am only holding just over 200 so less scary in modern cities and hazardous environments. If you only carry one lens you are not gaining much from an SLR over one of these in the real world. Its lighter and less bulky to boot.

The actual camera is well built and feels good in the hand. It starts up very quickly and there is very little shutter lag so you don't miss a shot.

It takes great outdoor shots in good light and the built in flash is pretty good and good enough for snapshots. It also has a hot shoe for non dedicated flash units. I think the lens is a good performer and focusing is versatile and accurate but not as fast as an SLR for really quick action subjects. The image stabilisation has 2 modes working very well indeed. The exposure modes (inc full manual with seperate controls for aperture and shutter speed) and metering choices are just like a budget SLR and perform very well. The AWB is very good and there are various manual options. It handles very well like an SLR with a well placed manual zoom and focus ring. But dedicated buttons for ISO/WB/metering mode would make it even better instead of having to go into the menus. Personally I could sacrifice the self timer and IS mode buttons for 2 of these. The EVF is clear and sharp and next best to a decent SLR viewfinder. The screen is clear and bright and being able to use it down low or over a crowd comes in handy sometimes. It's less obtrusive and quieter than an SLR so it's good for candids especially with the screen at waist level. It produce shots I am consistently happy with.

As everyone has said it's high ISO performance is noisy but 200 is fairly usable with only 400 getting iffy. Its slow when shooting RAW but at least it's got it.
Battery life is impressive and should last a long weekend quite easily. In continuous shooting mode it can only manage a 5 frame burst in JPG at less than 3fps and the evf is limited in those circumstances so it's tough to track your subject.

I don't make much use of the scene modes and they are pretty limited to some I have seen. I have a casio Z750 as my go everywhere camera and that can save your own settings as custom modes which wuld be a useful addition here.

The movie mode whilst not as good as a camcorder is pretty good and allows zooming whilst recording. It also wouldn't be there at all with the SLR. It can also focus down to a few cm for a near macro mode.

This caters to 2 markets I think, those like me who want a walking around camera to supplement their SLR when they don't want the risk/bulk. Its also a viable alternative to a budget SLR for those who want convenience and can compromise on high ISO performance, shutter speeds, FPS and high speed focusng performance. It has a standard front filter element which can also take wide and tele convertors so it can be even more flexible.

I can't comment on the bundled software as I haven't used it, just a card reader. Photoshop can work with the raw files without any difficulty.

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Fuji 5600

Non telescoping 12X optical zoom lens
55mm thread lens
fast startup time
fast and sharp auto-focus
Nice EVF and LCD displays
Intuitive controls
Menu is logical and easy to manouver around
Smooth operating manual zoom and manual focus
Shifting from auto to manual focus is easy
Hot shoe for off the shelf flashes. SunPak 383 seems to be the weapon of choice
Good light gathering capability
W/B adjustments seem right so far

So far I am not impressed with the on board flash. I am used to having a real flash so this really isn't an issue for me. I didn't expect much out of it anyway.
Download to computer through camera is a bit slow. What camera isn't? Get a card reader for under $20 and no problem.

I haven't had it long enough to see how tough it is and it's durability so N/C

I gave it a 4 star overall because there is always room for improvement

I have olny had this camera for a week and already I feel it will become a good friend.
After going through the manual finding the controls and then the onboard menu I found it to be very intuitive to operate.
With left hand supporting the barrel I can easily manipulate the zoom and manul focus controls which are fluid like in their operation and just the right tension.
I like both the LCD and EVF though in most situations I use the EVF more often but find the LCD useful with it's capability to rotate to just about any position where I have had to position the camera in unusual attitudes or while on a tripod.
The first several hundred shots were in museums in low to very low light conditions. I had heard of noise issues with this camera and pushed it in that area and found IMO these issues to be unfounded. In worst case nothing that software couldn't correct easily. No digital camera is immune to some noise that I am aware of. But using a support and setting the W/B I am very pleased with the results and much better than I expected. Using this method I found the end result to be much better than using the flash and was very natural and in keeping with the lighting the displays had in the museums.
To my eye, the color reproduction is superior. Not overblown like many cameras I have seen especially reds and blues.
Outside, again I am pleased with the results. The colors are more natural. The exposures are very good in program mode and are easily manipulated when the lighting conditions are more difficult. I have shots from bright sun to partly cloudy and in a resturaunt with an inner open air veranda. The low light capability allowed me to get some very nice candid shots without having to use the flash.

The lens is standard 55mm on the end and one can purchase filters or any other accesories just about anywhere. Also, the lens length does not change as the zoom is internal.
Auto focus is fast and tack sharp in any lighting that I have tried. The manual focus is to me an added bonus and I use it quite frequently.

Startup time is very fast and the battery life seems good.

The size is about the same as my FM-2 and the weight is such that for me it has a steady feel to it. So, it is not pocket sized but for someone used to a 35mm it shouldn't be a problem.

You have the ability to take 8mp, 5mp, 3 and 1mp photos. The effective optical zoom increases as you go down in mp's. 12x for 8, 15.? for 5 and 19.? at 3mp.

In short I would define the DMC FZ30 as a enthusiasts camera. One that is very good at filling the gap between digital cameras and DSLR.
If one is looking for a shirt pocket instamatic or doesn't want to spend the time getting to know a cameras capabilities I would steer clear. It does very well as a point and shoot due to it's speed but it's capabilities are where it shines and if one doesn't want to take the time to learn them they would be better off getting something else.

I probably could have saved a few dollars buying on line but I had a battery issue and walking back into Frys I was back out the door in about 5 minutes with a new battery. I would also recommend getting another battery.

The camera does come with an SD card but it is small and I woud recommend getting a 1 gig. It can take a 2gig card.

The movie mode is supposed to be very good but as I haven't used it I can't comment on that.

All in all I am very pleased and do not think there is a better value in a camera out there at this time.

Customer Service

No issues

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Fast start up, excellent 12x non-extending zoom lens, manual settings, too many features to list. Good battery life.

noise issues, disappointing performance in low light

This is a well built, ergonomic camera loaded with features, and the settings are well placed. For nature photography, the 12x zoom performs well (in good light). It is fun and fast. Noise is an issue above ISO 100 and keeps it from being an all purpose camera.

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Olympus C2100 UZ

Fun options. Nice feel. Fairly good outdoor shots. Specs are great.

Noise, noise, noise. In a 5X7.

A disappointment. I had great hopes for this camera. The specs were wonderful. The fun extras looked like they would give hours of enjoyment. All in all, I thought this would be my next camera. But it was not to be. The noise was awful. It was clearly visible in a 5X7 photo print. A white wall was actually a plethora of red, green, and blue digital noise. I can understand seeing noise at full size, especially for 8mp. But in a 5X7? My 6mp Fuji showed the same wall in the same conditions as a smooth white wall. For me image quality is too important to justify keeping the camera, especially at that price. Interestingly enough when I brought it back to London Drugs, the sales clerk told me that the day before, another long time customer had brought back the same camera (after having it for a week) for the same reason. I instead picked up a Nikon 8800, and in 3 days have taken similar pictures and been much happier with the results

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Fuji s7000; Nikon 8800