Camera help please.

[PlaneMan]

There’s a big birthday coming up in the family soon and I’m considering getting a camera  to help document it. My Mate 20 Pro is brilliant but I’ve spotted a deal on a Panasonic camera, at Amazon.

I know very little about ‘proper’ cameras but the Panasonic gets good reviews (I’m aware that it’s a few years old) and it’s the right price and the size is small enough to carry with me virtually all the time.

Can anyone that knows about cameras (I’m reading up about lenses and stuff now) please comment on the Panasonic? If I go for it I’ll probably in time get a telephoto or zoom lens for it.

T.I.A

[Dave Rice]

I have the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ70EB-K  which is the same size. It has a built in 24 – 270mm lens with a five-axis anti-shake system review and all the programs and manual etc.

I wonder if you be better off with something similar rather than the interchangeable lens world. I literally have a camera bag in my shirt pocket. I don’t miss that camera bag at all! ?

[PlaneMan]

Thanks Dave I’ll check it out.

[Drezha]

I’ll sticky this and follow – we booked our honeymoon for later this year in Hawaii and looking to make the most of the photos!

"Everything looks interesting until you do it. Then you find it’s just another job" - Terry Pratchett

[PlaneMan]

The one that Dave posted is not what I’m after, I want 4K video recording and a touchscreen. It looks great if you can live without those.

[The VFM Addict]

Did the SLR thing with masses of other lens a long time ago (pre-Digital).  Great for set piece photography in the UK such as weddings but barring such the bag (and it was a big one) was left at home far more often than not.   But my Rollei 35B plus a tiny add on flash went everywhere and most of my favorite pictures were born of it.    Just a thought.

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[Tippon]

The camera you’ve posted looks good. The fact that it’s got RAW support and the 4K burst mode is handy, especially if you’ll be taking photos of anything fast moving. Imagine someone doing a jump down the skatepark – you wouldn’t be able to ask them to slow down while you get the perfect shot 😉 RAW gives you a bit of extra wiggle room for things like colour correction and red eye, rather than waiting for the double flash of red eye reduction modes. I’ve got my camera set up to shot RAW and jpeg, and the difference a bit of tweaking can do is amazing.

The biggest downside though, as Dave suggests, is the interchangeable lenses. I love my DSLR, and I love the range of photography it lets me do. I find that I don’t use it very often though, especially if I’m taking photos of the kids. I use my phone and the burst mode more than I use the DSLR. Have a think about what kind of photography you’re interested in, and whether you can carry a few extra lenses and change them in the conditions that you want to shoot. e.g. if there are going to be lots of kids running around, do you want to risk changing lenses, or if you’re out in the cold, will your hands be flexible enough.

Also, check whether the various filters can be turned off, and if they can be turned off permanently. My Honor 9 has a beauty filter built in for the selfie camera, and it turns on every time you turn the selfie camera on. It’s ruined some great photos where Alice has been playing with my phone.

Like I say, the camera looks great, just make sure that it can do what you want it to do 🙂

[Dave Rice]

Nolan, I thought you may want 4K, that’s why I thought something similar rather than mine. It was more the concept than the specific.

VFM That Rollei takes me back, I’ve always like small cameras for the same reason as you. Which why I wanted Nolan to look at the camera bag in your pocket idea.

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ80 is the updated model of mine with a 30x zoom and 4K video. IIRC the reason I got mine over that was a flash sale and not being worried about 4K.

I would really recommend going to a camera shop and get your hands on one. The down side of small cameras is small controls, but even my fat fingers have no issues with the Lumix. Cardiff Jessops have a TZ80 in stock for the same price as Amazon.

I promise I’m not trying to push you at a specific item, but having come from the SLR world (a long time ago before kids) through a bridge camera to the shirt pocket sized job, the only thing I miss is a big flash and you will have that issue with the Lumix DX800.

 

[blacklion1725]

I had an earlier version of Dave’s (TZ60) and loved it. I sold it and bought a smaller Sony with similar specs. The smaller size is handy but at the cost of pop-up flash and EVF. Both are “permanent” on the Panasonic and for auto-flash especially that is very handy. Not a big deal and similar results (very good) with both. The 30x zoom is wonderful – not much use at a wedding but for future use very handy. The GPS tagging is also great but does hammer the battery. Assuming the TZ70 is similar/better would very much recommend Dave’s camera – especially if you don’t need “tiny”.

[PlaneMan]

Some great advice so far, thanks all.

Dave, I looked at the TZ80 just after I posted my reply to you. It looks good. I might go and bug Jessops tomorrow morning.

Ryan, good point about the hands. I keep forgetting how bad my hands get at times, frickin arthritis.

In all honesty I’d probably stick with the supplied lens on the one I posted 90% of the time.

Thanks again all, anymore input is welcome.

 

[PlaneMan]

The price on the one I linked to has jumped back to £280, Jessops will be visited tomorrow morning.

[Wheels-Of-Fire]

Well this is where I find myself these days. IF I was going on something like a safari then I would pack a compact with a decent zoom lens. For everything else the camera on my Galaxy S7 is good enough for me.

I took an SLR and an APS camera to Thailand 15 years ago and I only shot 25 exposures on the SLR because I hardly ever had it with me at the right moment.

 

[Wheels-Of-Fire]

Have a look at this review

https://www.greenbot.com/article/3060209/smartphone-camera-shootout-galaxy-s7-vs-iphone-6s.html

[PlaneMan]

I went for a black TZ90, slightly damaged box in store for £280, the only one they had in stock.

More than I wanted to pay but I’m happy with the price, the in store price was £299, apparently going back up to £319 today.

For the first time in years I might have to RTFM!

I’ll report back after a play with it, it’s charging now.

[blacklion1725]

Think you’ll be happy – good choice I reckon. Be handy to have a separate battery charger and one or two spare batteries – I found so anyway. Just read up on it though – looks a corker. I did everything (on the TZ60) on “Intelligent Auto” – seemed to work OK  – my youngest son is a keen amateur photographer and did all sorts of tweaking so a read-up could be a good idea (and youtube)

[PlaneMan]

BL, the extra batteries and charger are on the ‘in the future’ list.

Trying to find a case locally is a pain, might have to brave PC World. ?

[PlaneMan]

Got a case from PC World and it fits nicely, a bit tall but it’s no big deal. The front pocket will also come in handy.

I’ve had a play and I’m blown away. I managed to get the pier at (I believe) Weston Super Mare, never been there so don’t know, the wind farm at Avonmouth (again, not 100% sure) and the Second Severn Crossing, all from Penarth sea front. Also got some nice ones of Flat Holm island with the great big fog horns and light house clearly visible.

Really glad I spent the little bit extra for TZ90, this, my Mate 20 Pro and LG 360 Cam have me covered for pretty much everything now.

Well worth the money and as I get used to it the shots should get better. The phone app feels a little clunky for now, that might just be me getting used to it.  The screen being able to rotate up is very handy.

Just need to find my 64GB sd cards now, can’t remember when I last saw them. ???

[blacklion1725]

Yeah that 30x zoom is amazing. Never bothered with the phone app – or more accurately never knew there was one! I got one of those 360 cameras after you posted about it – completely forgot – just found it!! Going back to Russia this summer (annual battlefield excavations – will come in handy). Glad you had a result with that camera.

[Dave Rice]

Yes that’s Weston Pier and Royal Portbury / Avonmouth dock. Apart from the viewfinder the handling looks identical to mine.

Here’s a small panorama I took in the Austrian Alps at Graz

and a larger one

No idea who the people in the shots are.

[PlaneMan]

Thanks for help all. Chuffed with it.

Dave, nice panoramas. With my Mate 20 Pro, until recently, I’d just take some shots and let google stitch them together. Now I have a tripod I use the mode in the camera app.

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