Can the Panasonic FZ20 use F2.8 at the fastest shutter speed?

[zeno333]

I understand that some cameras, like the Nikon 8800, do not allow the lens to be wide open at full aperture with the top shutter speeds, (like when one uses shutter priority with high shutter speeds). Does the Panasonic Lumix FZ20 allow the camera to use the F2.8 aperture setting when one forces the fastest shutter speed, and locks in a ASA setting??

[emalvick]

I have a FZ15, and the answer is no for that camera. I would assume that the answer is no for the FZ20 as well. The camera allows you the 2.8 aperture from 8 sec to 1/1000 sec shutter speed. The available aperature size decreases for faster shutter speeds. If you look up the FZ20 on Amazon, you will find that you can actually look at the manual for the camera in pdf format. There is a nice table under advanced settings or something like that listing the apertures vs. shutter speeds that are allowed in combination (page 55).

-Erik

[jaynads]

I understand that some cameras, like the Nikon 8800, do not allow the lens to be wide open at full aperture with the top shutter speeds, (like when one uses shutter priority with high shutter speeds). Does the Panasonic Lumix FZ20 allow the camera to use the F2.8 aperture setting when one forces the fastest shutter speed, and locks in a ASA setting??
According to the manual (page 55):
You can use f2.8 only to a shutter speed of 1/1000. once you exceed that speed, you can no longer use f2.8. At 1/1300 it is reduced to F4, at 1/1600 it is reduced further to f5.6, and at 1/2000 it is reduced completely to f8. This goes for all modes, Aperture or Shutter Priority or Manual Modes.

Hope that answers your question.

[clauss]

Hi Jason, can you please explain to me what happens when at the fastest shutter speed 1/2000 it reduces the aperture to F8? can I still take a fast moving photo, like a bike race? Actually I really don't understand this part (I'm very new at this), but I need a digital camera that I can take photo's of sporting events. I like the 12x optical zoom, and 5mp will be fine (more os good) that's why I thought about this camera, the FZ20.
Can you please explain some of this to me? Also there was a bad review of the LCD/EVF : "In low light the LCD doesn't "gain up" automatically like on some other cameras, making it darn near impossible to see your subject. Turning up the LCD brightness doesn't help."
Have you noticed this also? What kinfd of low light would this be? So, this is another question. Please help me!
Thanks!
:confused: Safira
juancarlosclaus@hotmail.com

[jaynads]

Hi Jason, can you please explain to me what happens when at the fastest shutter speed 1/2000 it reduces the aperture to F8? can I still take a fast moving photo, like a bike race? Actually I really don't understand this part (I'm very new at this), but I need a digital camera that I can take photo's of sporting events. I like the 12x optical zoom, and 5mp will be fine (more os good) that's why I thought about this camera, the FZ20.
Can you please explain some of this to me? Also there was a bad review of the LCD/EVF : "In low light the LCD doesn't "gain up" automatically like on some other cameras, making it darn near impossible to see your subject. Turning up the LCD brightness doesn't help."
Have you noticed this also? What kinfd of low light would this be? So, this is another question. Please help me!
Thanks!
:confused: Safira
juancarlosclaus@hotmail.com
Okay, I'm not really sure what happens that makes the fast shutter speed shut down the aperture, I was quoting the manual. However, 1/2000 of a second is VERY FAST. At that speed you should get a very sharp freeze frame with little to no background blur of a fast moving object - probably not exactly what you want. I'm guessing you want a sharp subject and slightly blurred background to convey the sense of speed. I guess Panasonic (and other camera manufacturers, because this isn't isolated to Panasonic) feel that if you can take an exposure that fast, the light must be very bright, so closing the aperture is necessary. 1/500 of a second is a very good speed for fast action, so you can imagine 4X as fast is almost unnecessary.

As for the EVF/LCD issue. I have noticed this. Let's just say the problem is what you'd get if you looked through the viewfinder of a dSLR. What gain-up is, is the artificial boosting of the image the LCD "sees" to make it easier for you to see. My last camera did this, but the pictures were often useless, as it was just too dark. Basically, there has to be so little light that with the naked eye, you have difficulty seeing sharp detail. Christmas lights are bright enough to see by. One or two close candles are okay, too. It's when you get into dim and dark settings that this becomes an issue. Personally, I prefer that it doesn't gain up - however there should be a menu option allowing you to set the LCD to gain up when the flash is turned on. As it is, without the flash, when you can't see anything on the LCD, any detail you photograph will be too noisy to be of use.

I'm very happy with my FZ20, but don't take that as all you need. I'm most disappointed in the noise evident in low-light pictures (the blue channel is the worst), but noise is the trade off you make for the constant aperture and huge zoom (the FZ20 fared better in tests than similar models, so noise is a constant issue with mega-zoom cameras).

I hope I answered your questions. Let me know if there's anything else I can help you with . . . and roam the forum, there's probably no question you have that hasn't already been addressed here.

[jeisner]

Hi Jason, can you please explain to me what happens when at the fastest shutter speed 1/2000 it reduces the aperture to F8? can I still take a fast moving photo, like a bike race?

Interesting that they do this, it shouldn't matter. It makes me want to question whether the apeture and shutter speed are actually being correctly represented... ie it is telling you f2.8 and 1/1000 but it is actually f4 and 1/1300

just a thought...

[jaynads]

Interesting that they do this, it shouldn't matter. It makes me want to question whether the apeture and shutter speed are actually being correctly represented... ie it is telling you f2.8 and 1/1000 but it is actually f4 and 1/1300

just a thought...


I suppose this is always a possibility, but it just doesn't seem logical to me. By closing the aperture, you effect certain qualities in the photo that would be noticeable. However, if you set the camera manually (so the camera shouldn't "lie" to you), you are limited on shutter speed if you set the aperture first. Therefor I see no reason why the camera would misrepresent the settings to you.

just a thought on a thought . . . :)