Lumix FZ30 vs. Fuji S9000

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Mr.Bolshoyhuy - 27 Aug 2006 02:42 GMT

http://www.betterphoto.com/reviews/most-popular-cameras.asp
3437 pics taken with Lumix FZ30 rank: 64;
1450 pics taken with Fuji S9000 rank: 118.
2.4x more pics taken with FZ30, and its rank is twice as good.

Lumix-FZ30 - $500
1/1.8" Type CCD = 0.55
8.3mp
SD card
35 - 420mm [12x] (+extended optical zoom)

Fuji
S9000 - $589
9mp
1/1.6" Type CCD = 0.625
ISO from 80 to 1600
28 - 300mm
xD & CF
4 AA-size batteries

Is the bigger sensor size and extra 1mp on the S9000 significant?
ISO on the S9000 is higher, but I dont see a need for it.

AA batteries are weak, but are widely available. My concern with
the FZ30's battery is the ability to recharge them outside of the US.

However, the 120mm zoom difference is a big plus for the FZ30.
I wont be getting xD cards, thus the slot is a waste of space;However,
I already
have SD, and all other P&S brands(besides Sony, Fuji, Olympus) use
them.

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minnesotti - 27 Aug 2006 05:25 GMT

Mr.Malenkiihuy wrote:

> My concern with
> the FZ30's battery is the ability to recharge them outside of the US.

There are no power outlets outside of the US.

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Roy G - 27 Aug 2006 10:52 GMT

> Mr.Malenkiihuy wrote:
>
>> My concern with
>> the FZ30's battery is the ability to recharge them outside of the US.
>
> There are no power outlets outside of the US.

Hi

Yes, there are power sockets outside of the USA, but in the UK they tend to
have switches on them, and that seems to be just too difficult for Americans
to cope with.

I speak from experience as a Guest House owner..

Roy G

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Tiny Tim - 27 Aug 2006 06:45 GMT

> http://www.betterphoto.com/reviews/most-popular-cameras.asp
> 3437 pics taken with Lumix FZ30 rank: 64;
[quoted text clipped - 27 lines]
> have SD, and all other P&S brands(besides Sony, Fuji, Olympus) use
> them.

http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/PanasonicFZ30/

http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/FujifilmS9500/

I haven't read the Fuji review but the FZ30 review draws comparisons between
the two cameras. If it was my money I'd go for the FZ30 for the longer zoom,
but some people would prefer the wider angle capabilities of the Fuji. I
actually ended up getting a DSLR instead of either of these for various
reasons but the most significant being that I could not abide the EVF on the
FZ30 - just horrible to use. Both cameras have had their successors
announced (FZ50, S9100/S9600). I hear the FZ30 is out of production now; not
sure about the Fuji.

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Bob Williams - 27 Aug 2006 10:16 GMT

............ I could not abide the EVF on the FZ30 - just horrible to
use.

Isn't that strange?
I bought the Lumix FZ15 BECAUSE it has an EVF. I love EVFs.
They allow you to brace the camera against your face exactly like you do
with a SLR....No arm's length focusing.....No washed out viewing screen
in bright sunlite. WYSIWYG composing.
Bob Williams

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Tiny Tim - 27 Aug 2006 10:52 GMT

> ............ I could not abide the EVF on the FZ30 - just horrible to
> use.
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> screen in bright sunlite. WYSIWYG composing.
> Bob Williams

I fully agree with the benefits of a viewfinder for camera stability when
pressed to the face but I have two problems with the EVF on the FZ30......

1. Pixelated display - OK for framing, but not for judging the success of
autofocus, and generally not very pleasing to use.

2. When panning or generally moving the camera to frame a shot the EVF can't
keep up and the image judders. Very unpleasant! I would guess that the
judder is basically some some sort of lag and that suggests the camera would
not be good for precision timing on action shots. Maybe the focus speed is
good; maybe the shutter lag is minimal; but if the image you are seeing is
lagging the actual action it's about as much use as a chocolate teapot.

There's just no comparison to the silky smooth optical viewfinder of a DSLR.
I'm so glad I tried the camera in person rather than buying off the internet
based on reviews. FWIW I bought a Canon 30D.

Then there's the issue of noise at high ISOs on the ZLRs. Image
stabilisation is all well and good - I have it on my Canon lens and love
it - but it won't freeze motion in dim light and the high ISO really helps
get shots of moving subjects when the light is poor. The Canon is fantastic
at 800 and pretty darn good at 1600 too. If necessary it will go to 3200 but
the image is not so clever at that speed. But a 1600 ISO image from my Canon
that looks better than a 200 ISO image from the FZ30 is a big benefit.

Of course, the flip LCD on the FZ30 has advantages over the DSLR for awkward
angles of shot, like shots over the heads of people or other obstructions,
and really low macro shots. Also, my DSL cost 3X the price of the FZ30 and
only has a 5X zoom (until I buy another lens). I very nearly bought the FZ30
and in terms of value for money I think it is a terrific camera but it was
the hands on experience that made me look elsewhere.

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David J Taylor - 27 Aug 2006 07:24 GMT

> http://www.betterphoto.com/reviews/most-popular-cameras.asp
> 3437 pics taken with Lumix FZ30 rank: 64;
> 1450 pics taken with Fuji S9000 rank: 118.
> 2.4x more pics taken with FZ30, and its rank is twice as good.

Having the image stabilisation, the Panasonic allows you to make much
better use of the long zoom telephoto, and its Leica lens is better than
Fuji's lens.

I have the lightweight and compact Panasonic FZ5 and have been delighted
with it and my wife's Panasonic FZ20 has proved robust enough for a trip
to the Antarctic.

David

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Paul Allen - 27 Aug 2006 07:46 GMT

> http://www.betterphoto.com/reviews/most-popular-cameras.asp

> [...]

> Is the bigger sensor size and extra 1mp on the S9000 significant?

The larger sensor is the reason for the shorter effective focal length.
It might also be a factor in the Fuji's better noise characteristics.
I wouldn't expect the extra million pixels on the Fuji to make much
difference.

> ISO on the S9000 is higher, but I dont see a need for it.

The Fuji needs the higher ISO settings because it lacks an image
stabilizer. Check the test results, though. The Fuji's pretty bad
at ISO 1600, and barely tolerable at 800. The Panasonic is awful at
400, barely tolerable at 200, and sometimes even shows a bit of noise
at 80.

> AA batteries are weak, but are widely available.

I used to get about 240 shots from a set of 4 1600 mAh AA's in my
Oly C700. Now I get about 200 shots out of a fresh battery in my
FZ30. Does this prove that Li-ion batteries are weak? Nope. It
just shows that different cameras have different characteristics.
Being able to snag some AA alkalines in a pinch is a plus, but I
never had to do that in five years of using the C700.

> My concern with
> the FZ30's battery is the ability to recharge them outside of the US.

What? Did those pesky Europeans stop paying royalties on the Edison
patents again, so the US cut them off? :-)

But really, the rest of the world does have electricity. They also
have wildly divergent standards on plugs and voltages and technical
stuff like that. This means you need to plan ahead and buy adapters
for each locale you'll be visiting. Or carry sufficient charged
batteries with you. Both options have drawbacks.

I spent 8 days on a sailboat recently, and was worried about charging
batteries. The boat had AC power in the outlets whenever the cook
needed it in the galley, so I couldn't really count on a schedule.
The FZ30's charger may be a fiddly little thing, but it is smart enough
to do the right thing with power that comes and goes. I carried two
batteries, always had one plugged in, and didn't have any trouble.
If I'd been planning to shoot 1000 images per day, I'd have needed
more batteries, a 12 volt inverter, or something.

> However, the 120mm zoom difference is a big plus for the FZ30.

Yup, it is. It also means you probably want to carry a tripod if
you care about those long shots. The stabilizer helps, but not
always enough.

> I wont be getting xD cards, thus the slot is a waste of space;However,
> I already
> have SD, and all other P&S brands(besides Sony, Fuji, Olympus) use
> them.

Just remember, the FZ30 will keep up with cards as fast as the Sandisk
Ultra II. Old slower cards mean longer shot-to-shot times.

It might be fun trying to find an FZ30 now. I got one in late June
from B&H (for $489) just before the boat trip. Came back to the world
of instant news and Israel had been in Lebanon for two weeks, Panasonic
had stopped production of the FZ30, and B&H didn't have it in their
catalog any more. The FZ50 is coming in a month or two and the
marketing guys are shovelling double-duty. :-)

Happy hunting!

Paul Allen

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