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| At full zoom, focal length 108mm. The yacht in the foreground is about 250 meters from the camera. I used a sturdy tripod for this shot. Several others, but not all of them, made hand held with careful technique were of the same quality. |
Does this camera point to the future ?
Brief history of Panasonic superzooms I don't know if Panasonic invented the superzoom category but they have certainly persevered with the concept since the FZ1 of 2002. This camera featured a 2 (yes, 2) Mpx sensor, 12x constant f2.8 zoom, monitor and built in EVF. It set the basic formula for a succession of models to follow.
The FZ200 with 24x constant f2.8 zoom was announced in 2012 and was followed in 2013 by the FZ70 with more pixels and an extraordinary 60x zoom range. Having experienced the challenges of getting sharp results at the long end of the 24x zoom I suspect the main benefit of the 60x ultra zoom lies in the marketing.
This review comes at a time which I assume to be near the end of the model run for the FZ 200 given Panasonic's history of regular updates. It is still worth reviewing however as it is interesting and may be a pointer to the future of cameras in general.
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| The FZ200 in hand. It's about the size of an entry level DSLR or MILC with zoom lens and provides a similar operating experience. |
Why the FZ 200 ? One of our family members is interested in birds and wanted a camera which might be readily portable, modestly priced and perhaps capable of photographing birds. Searches of available products led to the FZ 200 which looked promising as a good all rounder. The 24x constant f2.8 zoom lens looked attractive too.
The march of progress If this camera had appeared a few years ago it might have been hailed as the 9th wonder of the modern world. It packs a truly remarkable set of specifications, features and capabilities into a compact, modestly priced unit, easily carried in a small camera bag.
Why superzoom ? Hands up all those who like changing lenses. No hands ? Two perhaps ? Maybe there is a little group of camera users out there the members of which actually like changing lenses. But the other 99.9% of us regard changing lenses as a chore and a bore and wish we had a camera with a single zoom lens which covered virtually all possible requirements. Bring on the superzoom.
FZ200 Top Rear view. Looks like a medium level ILC and works like one too.
FZ 200 overview I don't know if this is the best superzoom camera available as I write but it is certainly one of the leading group. It is about the same size and mass as a Panasonic G6 with kit zoom lens. It comes with a full set of features including built in EVF, fully articulated monitor, proper handle on which you can get a firm grip and a control layout basically the same as that found in a DSLR or MILC. It is comfortable to hold and operate, responsive and versatile. It delivers decent picture quality in most circumstances.
So, why doesn't everybody rush out and buy one ? I will come to that shortly.
Specifications You can read all the details in the manufacturer's published data. I mention just a few. You can make still photos or video. You can follow focus on a moving subject. In camera auto HDR and panorama stitching are available. Novices can use the fully automatic [iA] Mode. Experts can use one of the P,A,S,M Modes. RAW or JPG (or both) capture is available. The RAW files are supported by Photoshop Camera Raw 8.3. There is a built in flash unit and the lens has an optical image stabiliser.
Weather conditions were atrocious for photography with a heavy misty haze over the harbour. But the FZ200 with a little help from Photoshop Camera Raw (PsCR) has cut through the haze quite well and delivered a decent result.
Picture Quality
Lens This is the star feature of the FZ 200. It is I believe, the first 24x zoom with constant f2.8 aperture offered on a consumer camera. It covers a diagonal angle of view from approximately 82 degrees at the wide end to 4.1 degrees at the long end, sufficient, I would think for the great majority of purposes. Given it's specification the lens is remarkably compact. No manual zoom is available. Motorised zoom can be activated either with the lever on the front of the shutter button or the one on the left side (as viewed by the user) of the lens housing. A standard screw in 52mm filter can be fitted and a standard removable lens cap is provided.
Optically the lens is very good for a 24x zoom but is not in the same class as any of my Micro Four Thirds system zooms, each of which it must be said offers a much smaller zoom range. Resolution and contrast in the center of the field are good at the wide end and middle of the zoom range, with both falling away towards the long end. Edges and corners are soft at f2.8, cleaning up noticeably when stopped down to f4. Optimum aperture at all focal lengths is f4. Reducing the aperture further produces a loss of resolution, presumably from diffraction at the lens diaphragm.
In general photography using the lens at the wide end and middle of the zoom range, clear sharp photos are readily achieved in most circumstances. The long end is a different story.
For most general photography the FZ200 makes sharp, clear photos with good highlight and shadow detail.
Difficulty achieving sharp pictures at the long end of the zoom On my first outing with the camera I made several fairly casual hand held photos at the long end and found them quite unsharp. In due course I discovered there are several factors working against the achievement of sharpness at full zoom. These are:
* The lens itself loses contrast and resolution towards the long end. This is easily shown using chart tests with the camera mounted on a sturdy tripod. The lens also has more chromatic aberration, purple fringing and local flare around bright subject elements at the long end.
* Autofocus is not quite as confident at the long end as the wide end.
* Subjects shot at the long end are often at distance when atmospheric haze and heat distortion come into play.
* But the main problem is camera shake. Imagine a 600mm lens on a full frame DSLR. This has the same diagonal angle of view as the FZ200 at full zoom extension. The full frame kit weighs 5.5 Kilograms which is 8.5 times as much as the FZ200. It is also much longer giving it much greater inertia. In plain language this means the full frame kit is easier to hold steady, provided you have some means of supporting the lens. When I was experimenting with ways to hold the FZ200 steady I rested myself and the camera on a large rock, slipping one finger under the lens housing so it wouldn't be scratched. I could easily see the EVF preview image bouncing with the pulse in that finger. The OIS system in the lens is not good at responding to small sharp movements like this.
Strategies for sharpness After some experiment I came to the following conclusions:
* Don't even think about viewing on the monitor at full zoom. Use the EVF.
* A lightweight (1 Kg or less) tripod, particularly in any kind of breeze is worse than no tripod at all.
* With the camera on a monopod, I found there was poor harmony between camera movement and the OIS, resulting in jerky corrections of the preview image in the frame. Not recommended.
* Best sharpness was achieved with the camera firmly mounted on a large, sturdy tripod and two second timer delay applied to the shutter release. However the whole point of a camera like this is to leave the heavy gear including tripod at home.
* Here are some strategies which I find improve the number of keepers with hand held use.
* Always view through the EVF.
* For every exposure, breath in, then out and gently squeeze the shutter button at the point of full exhalation.
* Acquire a small bean bag. Rest the camera on the bean bag on something solid like a table or a rock.
* Lie on the ground with both elbows on the ground, camera to the eye. Your arms and body/head make a kind of tripod to steady the camera.
* Check the shutter speed. Even with OIS on , I recommend using 1/500 sec or faster. Most of my full zoom pictures made with a slower shutter speed were not really sharp.
* Use an aperture of f4.
Other lens issues I found flare to be reasonably well controlled and not a problem in most conditions even with the sun in frame. Chromatic aberration and purple fringing will appear towards the edges of the frame especially at the long end. These are readily correctable in PsCR. Distortion, possibly corrected electronically in camera, is minimal in output photos including RAW. OIS keeps the preview image steady in the viewfinder if one uses good camera holding technique.
I would prefer manual zoom as I find it faster and more precise. Some early models in the FZ series had this feature but in order to fit a zoom ring the lens barrel had to protrude further from it's housing.
Close up In saying that I found close up capability a bit disappointing I feel like the child in Charles Dickens' novel who asked for more. As in..... you have 24x zoom, you have constant f2.8, you have excellent AF, you have OIS...you want More..? The lens can be brought very close to the subject at the wide end but as one zooms the minimum focus distance increases markedly, even with the lever set to the macro position. I solved this small problem by putting a 52mm close up filter in the camera bag and mounting it when I want to photograph small things without having to get excessively close to the subject.
Noise Raw files processes through PsCR at default settings show virtually no chroma noise at any ISO level. Luminance noise (grain) is another matter. This is evident in darker tones even at base ISO and as expected increases as the ISO setting rises. Testing the FZ200 against the other cameras in the house at the time gave the following:
Each of the combinations below gave approximately the same luminance noise level. The sensor size given [in brackets] is the approximate diagonal measurement of the sensor:
Panasonic FZ200, ISO800 [7.7]
Nikon P7800, ISO 1250 [9.3]
Nikon 1 V2, ISO 1600 [15.9]
Panasonic GH3, ISO 3200 [21.5]
Subjectively I found the FZ 200 files best at ISO 100 and 200 and quite satisfactory for most purposes up to the Auto ISO maximum of 400-500. 800 is fine if big enlargement is not contemplated. I would try to avoid higher levels.
Dynamic range (shadow and highlight detail) I found this to be quite good. At low ISO settings the camera is able to hold detail in bright white clouds and shadows in dark rocks in the same frame. Shooting RAW enables significant highlight recovery not possible with JPG capture.
Colors appear to be generally accurate with a tendency to cyan rendition of blue skies.
JPG vs RAW I shot many frames of JPG+RAW and found that in every case I got better results from the RAW files after processing through Photoshop Camera Raw. JPG's at ISO 400 and above do not treat human faces kindly with smearing of details in skin and hair and JPG artefacts.
Performance
The camera is generally brisk and responsive. It rarely slows down or impedes the picture taking flow. It responds promptly to all user inputs.
In good light, single shot, single AF and AE on every shot, RAW capture, Sandisk 95MB/Sec card, shot to shot time measured over 20 shots was 1 second.
In burst mode at 5.5 frames per second, AF-C, JPG capture, at full zoom, the camera managed follow focus on cars moving towards or away from the camera at 60 kph, with 65% of frames in sharp focus.
EVF refresh time is prompt with a blackout time after each shot which I guesstimate at about 0.2 seconds.
Autofocus speed is very quick in good light and the wide end of the zoom, slowing noticeably in low light or at the long end of the zoom. Accuracy remains good however. The only occasions when I found the camera focussed on something unintended could be attributed to user error, for instance not making the active AF area small enough and placing it over the selected subject.
AF area position and size can be quickly changed with the eye to the viewfinder.
Manual focus is available, with zoom focus assist and an analogue distance scale and hyperfocal distance display in the EVF or viewfinder.
Ergonomics
Holding There is a substantial handle which makes the camera easy to hold securely. The thumb support is small but useful. If I were redesigning this camera I would move the shutter button about 10mm to the left (as viewed by the user) to allow a more natural position for the index finger and a more definite support notch for the third finger. I would also make the thumb support about 5mm more prominent. Just nit picking really, as the camera provides a good holding experience.
Viewing The monitor is fully articulated and of good quality. The EVF is a little smaller than one might find on an ILC but is clear and sharp with generally pleasing colors and good highlight/shadow detail.
EVF and monitor are both adjustable for brightness, contrast/saturation and color balance. Both can be set to SLR style (with key camera data beneath the image preview) or monitor style (with camera data overlaid on the image preview). At default settings I found skies tended to appear cyan and faces tended to ruddy red in color. Both issues easily retcified with the adjustments available.
Some reviewers have complained about the absence of an eye proximity sensor to switch automatically from monitor to EVF view. In fact the camera does switch automatically from EVF to monitor view, just not by means of a proximity sensor. If the monitor is turned inwards, the EVF is active. If the monitor is swung out, it becomes active. Easy.
Operating The FZ200 is generally easy and enjoyable to operate. All the main controls are well located and designed. Buttons have the correct amount of elevation. The rear dial has just the right amount of resistance. The 4 way controller has raised, sharpish edges which are easy to locate by feel with the eye to the viewfinder. Primary and secondary exposure and focus parameters can be adjusted in Capture Phase while looking through the viewfinder. With a combination of Q Menu and Fn buttons with user assignable function, all the main adjustments required in Prepare Phase can be made readily.
One review (dpreview.com) complained that the rear dial was difficult to turn. Maybe that was a one off or a problem fixed during production. Another review (imaging-resource.com) complained that too many actions have been assigned to the rear dial. This dial usually has dual function, controlling aperture or shutter speed depending on which Main Mode is set and exposure compensation if pushed in till it clicks. This is fairly standard Panasonic practice and is better implemented on the FZ200 than some other cameras I have used. When MF is selected via the slider on the left side of the lens housing, the rear dial is additionally used for shifting focus. The screen and EVF clearly indicate whether the dial is set to change aperture, compensation or MF. Push/click to rotate through the functions.
If I were redesigning this camera I would add a front dial behind the repositioned shutter button. The body is easily large enough to host a twin dial layout which would answer the criticism above and allow a more streamlined functional interface.
Comment Is the FZ 200 good enough to supplant an interchangeable lens camera with 3 or 4 lenses ? I would think that for many users who are not concerned about ultimate image quality the answer to that question would be yes. It is a very capable camera with a huge zoom range, generally good picture quality, good performance and good ergonomics.
The camera's main limitations derive from
1. The very small sensor required to permit a wide aperture superzoom lens in such a compact package and
2. The difficulty holding such a lightweight, compact camera sufficiently steady at the long end of the zoom.
Enthusiast photographers and those wanting to make large prints will find these limitations restrictive and will likely stay with their DSLR or MILC.
Future Prospects There is much talk on internet forums these days about the impact of disruptive innovations on the camera world. The smartphone revolution has shaken up the camera industry like nothing ever seen before and there is more to come. Bloggers are wondering when or if the MILC will overtake the DSLR as the most popular interchangeable lens camera type. But.......
Imagine a near future in which the 7.8mm sensor used in the FZ200 acquires one or two exposure value steps better noise performance and improvements in image stabiliser technology allow more reliably sharp pictures at full zoom. Such a camera could make both the DSLR and MILC obsolete for the majority of amateur photographers.
Bring it on................I hate changing lenses.................
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