Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150 Review

The Lumix FZ150, like the FZ47, is equipped with a 24x optical zoom Leica lens, with a 35mm equivalent focal length of 25mm through 600mm. While this is not the longest optical zoom available (the Nikon P500 and Olympus SP810 UV have an incredible 36x optical zoom), the lens range of the FZ150 is long enough to cover most circumstances a photographer is likely to encounter. For instance, in the images below, the ducks can hardly be seen at 25mm, while they can be viewed in great detail at 600mm.

Wide Angle

Telephoto

If more optical zoom is desired, the FZ150 uses digital zoom (which Panasonic calls Intelligent Zoom Technology) to extend the zoom up to 32x (800mm). While digital zoom, a form of cropping, can adversely affect the image if overused, its use with the FZ150 does not greatly degrade image quality.

The FZ150 has many appealing features, including a fully articulated, high-resolution LCD monitor, a 1080p movie mode that can record up to 60 frames per second, a hot shoe for attaching a separate flash, a dedicated movie button, an electronic viewfinder, RAW shooting ability and a very quick continuous shooting mode enabling it to take full resolution photos at 12 frames per second. The camera uses Panasonic's Power Optical Image Stabilization system with an active mode which allows it to operate while taking movies. Optical zoom can be used in movie mode. The FZ150 includes an Intelligent Auto system and manual exposure controls including shutter and aperture priority.

I began my experience with the FZ150 as a Panasonic customer. I've owned an earlier Panasonic ultrazoom, the 18x optical zoom FZ28, for the past three years and have enjoyed it a great deal. As I mentioned in my First Look, I anticipated being able to shoot in very good weather conditions. Unfortunately, with a few exceptions, the weather for the past two weeks has been overcast and rainy. However, I still managed to take a large number of photos and videos with the FZ150. Let's see if the camera met my expectations.