Low Light Image stabilization in FZ20

[arbarath]

Hi,


I am planning to buy PANASONIC FZ20.

I need to know how is the performance of the image stabilization at low lights ? How is the performace of the camera on low lights for distant target (with zoom) ?

HOW Does it compare with other ULTRA ZOOM Cameras with image stabilization on low lights.

can any one help me ?

thanks

Barath... :)

[LStoner]

Hmmm...how distant an object are we talking about? Here is a pic I took of a concert. I was about 10-12 feet away, used quite a bit of optical zoom, and got this shot....(file attached).

Hope that helps.
-Lee Ann

[arbarath]

Hmmm...how distant an object are we talking about? Here is a pic I took of a concert. I was about 10-12 feet away, used quite a bit of optical zoom, and got this shot....(file attached).

Hope that helps.
-Lee Ann

Thanks for the relpy.

My friend is having Canon Poweshot S1 1S. I find that the image stabilizer is not much working during night shots. I was wondering how is the performance of image stabilizer in pana fz20.

How abt night shot for landscapes ?

thanks again

[LStoner]

Darn I wish I still had this pic I took to show you. I was just playing around and got rid of it, but I took a picture of the outside of my house one night after it was completely dark out. The only lights were some that were coming from inside the house. I left it on P mode and used the flash of course. I got a great shot of the outside of my house that had no noise, no fuzziness, and you could see exactly with great accuracy what color my siding and shutters were. I will see if I can go take another one and get back to you. It might be a couple of days, but I will post it in this same thread. Maybe even get up tonight.

-Lee Ann

[LStoner]

Okay, I already went out and took a pic. I guess I have not life. LOL. J/K. Anyway, I took it with the same settings that I took the other one I told you about except no zoom. Oh yea, and I did not use the AF assist lamp. I stood about 18-20 feet away from my front door. Now, maybe I don't know what I'm talking about because I'm not an expert, but I think this is pretty darn good for taking a pic at a quarter til ten at night. The flash lit up my whole yard! You can even tell that my front door is fogging up from it being so cold outside. I guess all you experts can correct me if I'm wrong. Well, I hope this helps you some.

Oh, I have the IS set to Mode 2. I think you get better results this way versus Mode 1.

-Lee Ann

[eben@flmodelsearch.com]

hey,

i just got in right now from Matrix/Metropolis Night Club here in Orlando located at Pointe Orlando. Every Friday night consists of me taking pictures in a pitch black night club environment with some strobes, but 99% of my shots are taken in complete darkness. The best recommendation I have received from 2 senior photographers and works pretty well on FZ20, these guys have dSLRs (one a 20d and a 10d and the other a pentax which im not familiar with exactly). To better explain who these guys are is if anyone is pretty down in the Orlando scene we got Mike Anthony Moffa (a senior freelance photographer for the Orlando Sentinel, Axis Mag, and some other major print work) told me that shut off the AF assist lamp altogether on the camera and basically use your eye as a light meter, know how to frame the subject matter within 3, 5, 10, and 15 ft then utilize the MF option on the FZ20 and utilize the manual focus ring on your own (one feature is holding down the MF switch so it will AF on its own). The result is astonishing, not only did i get some crazy shots, but i also was able to take shots even quicker. Right now im utilizing a DMCFZ20 with 2 LiIon Batts and just the standard builtin flash (waiting for some money on the Sunpak 383). but with this lil tidbit ive been able to frame some crazy shots in complete darkness on a dance floor with 400 people dancing to hiphop and reggae (believe a very friggin hard task). anywho hopes this helps. you can see my most recent work be posted up within a couple of days on www.flmodelsearch.com i got some crazy crazy crazy shots off with about 3 models tonight, the strobes were reacting funny seeing as they were connected to the 20d and i was just bouncing off of them about 2 seconds after the 20d shoots. so the sequence was 20d lines up with subject, shoots, 2 seconds later i shoot when subject lines up with me, 20d shoots again and then 2 seconds later i shoot.

-eben

[arbarath]

thanks every one..

:)

[FZ20knowitall]

I had an Olympus 2100uz and honestly, that image stabilization was better, significantly. But the folks at Panasonic told me that the old Olympus' were digital image stabilization, this is optical, so you have higher quality. Try using a tripod when possible (and Panasonic recommends turning off the IS for tripod shots). And OIS definitely works better in Mode II (it even says so in the manual). Mode I is so that it can help you frame and focus but provides less stabilization than Mode II, most all FZ20/15/10 owners that I know keep it on Mode II all of the time w/the exception of tripod work. If you are shooting at below I think a shutter speed of 1/30 of a second (might vary depending on settings) the camera will warn you with a little hand shake icon stating that you need to put the camera on a tripod, even if it is on a tripod I think the icon appears in red just as a warning. I have gotten great shots with it displaying itself. Probably does so half the time I shoot. I just ignore it.