FZ20:@low Resolution=Low Noise?

[Omar]

Hellow every one

I am absolutely newbie in DigiCams and didn't have my first digicam yet .
Ok , I know that FZ20 is very great cam and I love it ( Stylish,good quality,heavy,like SLR) but its VERY VERY Noisy in low light even @ ISO80 and thats real problem . ( at least in my opinion)
So , if I Shooting at low resolution like 1600 x 1200 , does that make a big difference in term of noise ?
Can some one post cropped indoor-low light pictures @ 5MP & 2 MP ?

Thanks in advance ....:)

[genece]

I do not know what pictures you are looking at but if the pictures in low light are properly exposed the noise is very good compared to other cameras in its class.
These pictures are made to print at 8 X 10 or a little larger or to view full screen on a monitor and at those sizes there is no noise.

If you feel the pictures are noisey nothing will help, you are looking at pictures either poorly exposed or too large a size.

Compare the FZ20 to other cameras of the same price and zoom and its as good if not better than any.

If you do not need the zoom then you can do better for the same price.

[Balrog]

If you shoot at lower res, then yes, the noise should be less - since you're downsampling the 5MP sensor data to 2MP, the noise from each pixel would tend to get averaged out. Of course, if lower res is fine for you, you might want to just go for a camera with a lower resolution sensor (e.g. FZ15) as that would have larger pixels, and hence less noise as well.

[genece]

If you shoot at lower res, then yes, the noise should be less - since you're downsampling the 5MP sensor data to 2MP, the noise from each pixel would tend to get averaged out. Of course, if lower res is fine for you, you might want to just go for a camera with a lower resolution sensor (e.g. FZ15) as that would have larger pixels, and hence less noise as well.


While that seems to make sense I am pretty sure I have read that is not the way it works. But I do not know.

As far as noise ...go here and compare 5 mp cameras if you get any close to as good as the FZ20 then take notice it does not have all the features of the FZ20. Especially the zoom.


http://www.imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP/COMPS01.HTM



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[Omar]

Thanks for the comments .
genece
You can see the DCResource samples. Look at the inside church picture , it is very noisy !? also the indoor picture had noticible noise .And dont forget to look at the sky in every picture .
I hate noise-removal software , usually it removes also some details .

(((Compare the FZ20 to other cameras of the same price and zoom and its as good if not better than any.If you do not need the zoom then you can do better for the same price.)))
Ofcourse thats right , but I am just angry becuase there are no super-zoom with low noise levels :)
And ofcourse the Panasonic is the king of super zoom .


Balrog
I hope thats right . Any body can confirm that?

[genece]

I still believe a properly exposed picture from a FZ20 has no noise.
Play around with the histogram and see what you think.

[Anex]

Not sure what you're doing but I have plenty of both low light and super zoom pics with very low noise. The low light is a very tricky one though, there will always be a hit and miss component to them; limitation of the camera unfortunately...though with a 1GB card, it's not a big deal as I just keep shooting :-)

I had the same problems you described when I first got the camera too. After playing around with all the settings...and I mean playing around A LOT...I finally figured out how the camera needs to be adjusted for each environment you're in. It just takes a lot of practice, literally simple trial and error. Change one setting, take a few pics, and see how it looks. Change another setting, take a few pics, and compare. Unfortunately, that's the best recommendation I can make. It will not only get you to understand how the camera works, but also make you a better photographer.

That said, my wife still sometimes takes take better pictures then me and all she does 99% of the time is point and shoot - a womans touch I guess...go figure.

Essentially, adjust ISO, adjust white balance, adjust pict. settings, adjust angle, adjust exposure (I really like the bracket feature for this), and adjust aperture. If there's anything I've learned about photography, patience is an absolute requirement!

Oh, a tri-pod makes a big diff too ;P