Digital Zoom...Thanks for the hints.

[xmailman]

Just bought my FZ20. 1st post on this forum.Playing with all the settings. Went outside and took some pictures. Read the manual trying to figure out the digital zoom. The manual more or less says, yes, it is there. :confused:

Searched high and low and read numerous posts on this site and the words "turned it on" jumped out at me. :rolleyes:

Sat down played with the dials and in the Record mode found on the second of 3 pages the "D.ZOOM" was off. Turned it on and Schazaam! :eek: I now have a digital zoom.

Also reading the tips for photographing sporting events. I live near Sears Point/Infineon Racetrack in Northern California. I go out during the week when various cars/motorcycles are practicing and will be taking photos. Missed the IRL cars last week and the Nascar guys this week because of work.

Thanks in advance for all the help.

[John_Reed]

Just bought my FZ20. 1st post on this forum.Playing with all the settings. Went outside and took some pictures. Read the manual trying to figure out the digital zoom. The manual more or less says, yes, it is there. :confused:

Searched high and low and read numerous posts on this site and the words "turned it on" jumped out at me. :rolleyes:

Sat down played with the dials and in the Record mode found on the second of 3 pages the "D.ZOOM" was off. Turned it on and Schazaam! :eek: I now have a digital zoom.

Also reading the tips for photographing sporting events. I live near Sears Point/Infineon Racetrack in Northern California. I go out during the week when various cars/motorcycles are practicing and will be taking photos. Missed the IRL cars last week and the Nascar guys this week because of work.

Thanks in advance for all the help.I use digital zoom a lot, as I like to be able to nearly "fill the frame" with distant little birds in the EVF. But I also understand that DZ has its limitations, namely that you give up resolution the deeper you take the zoom, actually as the square of the zoom power. So, at 2X (24X total), your basic image data comes from 1/4 of the total image array. (In fact, for my 4MP FZ15, I usually max out at 24X, equivalent images to a 1MP crop of a full 4MP image) For showing images on screen, DZ is fine, but if you're intending to make any decent-sized prints, better be really skimpy with how much you actually use.

[Mikko]

i've never understood the meaning of digital zoom? Why don't you just take photo with optical zoom and the crop the photo in some photo editor? The result is the same.

[emalvick]

i've never understood the meaning of digital zoom? Why don't you just take photo with optical zoom and the crop the photo in some photo editor? The result is the same.

What you are suggesting is actually better than the digital zoom provided.

I occasionally use the digital zoom to see what I'm taking a photo of, and if the shot is one that I really want, I zoom back to 12 X and take a shot to be cropped.

As stated, digital zoom will take a portion of an image. For instance, at 2X and a 4 MP image, The camera will use 1 MP of an image (1/2 x 1/2 of the original linear dimensions = 1/4 of the total pixels) and interpolate it to obtain a 4 MP image. So, what is really happening is the 4 MP is being cropped to 1 MP and then resized to 4 MP. And, every other pixel is not a real pixel but an interpretation of what the pixel should be. The larger the digital zoom, the more interpreted pixels you will have (and a less accurate image).

Never-the-less, I do find it useful to get an idea of what a shot could be like if I were going to crop it. Plus in these FZ cameras, the digital zoom seems so much better than my old camera, and it isn't bad for quick shots that aren't going to be printed (saves the time of cropping when time is important).

Erik

[genece]

I would say until you form your own opinion take the shots both with and without digital zoom.

I never turn it off and regardless how the formulas work out I find some shots turn out excellent with digital zoom and still allow for more cropping in PS.

[David Metsky]

I never turn it off and regardless how the formulas work out I find some shots turn out excellent with digital zoom and still allow for more cropping in PS.
While you may indeed get excellent shots with digital zoom turned on, I don't think you get any benefit if you were bringing the image into PhotoShop anyways. You won't be able to crop any additional amount without loss of quality, the bits simply aren't there.

It can save you the step of going into PhotoShop, and you may get good framing feedback while taking shots, but it won't replace editing software.

-dave-