Wonders of technology in a Lumix FZ80 bridge camera
Dec 21, 2018 14:29:15 #
Participating in another thread on technology in new cameras I started thinking of how it is affecting my own photography.
This year's Christmas gift to myself is a used Panasonic Lumix FX 80 which I got for $234 on ebay. This is a bridge camera with a 20mm to 1200mm equivalent focal length and a small 1/2.3 " sensor like the Coolpix B700 I bought last Christmas. I bought this second camera so I could put both cameras on a tripod bar and shoot my home made 4K videos with both wide angle and closeup shots simultaneously with silent continual autofocus.
But I started reviewing some rather special capabilities of the FZ80 for taking still pictures These features are 4K pre burst, 4K post focus and 4K focus stacking.
Essentially these three features take a two second 4K video to capture 60 8MP frames and then let you do some amzing things with those 60 frames, all of which can be done handheld in the camera in a minute or so. Or you can download any of the 4K 2 second sequences of 60 frames each to your computer and do your own scanning or merging on your computer instead of in camera using the magnifier on the camera lcd touch screen.
1. 4K pre burst: If you are like me, by the time I notice an interesting action shot it's too late to press the shutter. Sure I could leave video on but at 30fps I'd have 1,800 frames to scan through in just a minute of video to maybe find a good action shot. Also in video the shutter speed is set low and there's lots of blurring during action sequences. You can review and select any of the shots in the sequence to save as a jpg.
With 4K pre burst the camera buffers a continual one second of 4K video (30 frames) taken before you press the shutter and captures that 30 frames before you pressed the shutter and 30 frames after you pressed the shutter, at the auto or manual settings of your choice.
2. 4K post focus: In about 2 seconds the FZ80 takes 60 8MP frames at up to 49 areas of the frame and saves them all at different focus points, bringing one area of the picture into sharp detail while the rest exhibit a depth of field blur to various extents. You can select and save as many of the 60 frames as you choose as a jpg.
3. 4K focus stacking: Works the same as 4K post focus except you can select any or all of the frames to merge and stack into a single jpg which you can save.
Hopefully these features can introduce additional variety and interest to my short list of keepers of flower shots, birds, animals, people, macros, landscapes and action shots. I might even get a good, focused action shot of my chihuahua/mini pin playing ball.
This year's Christmas gift to myself is a used Panasonic Lumix FX 80 which I got for $234 on ebay. This is a bridge camera with a 20mm to 1200mm equivalent focal length and a small 1/2.3 " sensor like the Coolpix B700 I bought last Christmas. I bought this second camera so I could put both cameras on a tripod bar and shoot my home made 4K videos with both wide angle and closeup shots simultaneously with silent continual autofocus.
But I started reviewing some rather special capabilities of the FZ80 for taking still pictures These features are 4K pre burst, 4K post focus and 4K focus stacking.
Essentially these three features take a two second 4K video to capture 60 8MP frames and then let you do some amzing things with those 60 frames, all of which can be done handheld in the camera in a minute or so. Or you can download any of the 4K 2 second sequences of 60 frames each to your computer and do your own scanning or merging on your computer instead of in camera using the magnifier on the camera lcd touch screen.
1. 4K pre burst: If you are like me, by the time I notice an interesting action shot it's too late to press the shutter. Sure I could leave video on but at 30fps I'd have 1,800 frames to scan through in just a minute of video to maybe find a good action shot. Also in video the shutter speed is set low and there's lots of blurring during action sequences. You can review and select any of the shots in the sequence to save as a jpg.
With 4K pre burst the camera buffers a continual one second of 4K video (30 frames) taken before you press the shutter and captures that 30 frames before you pressed the shutter and 30 frames after you pressed the shutter, at the auto or manual settings of your choice.
2. 4K post focus: In about 2 seconds the FZ80 takes 60 8MP frames at up to 49 areas of the frame and saves them all at different focus points, bringing one area of the picture into sharp detail while the rest exhibit a depth of field blur to various extents. You can select and save as many of the 60 frames as you choose as a jpg.
3. 4K focus stacking: Works the same as 4K post focus except you can select any or all of the frames to merge and stack into a single jpg which you can save.
Hopefully these features can introduce additional variety and interest to my short list of keepers of flower shots, birds, animals, people, macros, landscapes and action shots. I might even get a good, focused action shot of my chihuahua/mini pin playing ball.
Dec 21, 2018 16:26:27 #
Sounds like you are ready to have some real fun with your new purchase. Use it in good health!!
Dec 21, 2018 18:17:49 #
insman1132 wrote:
Sounds like you are ready to have some real fun with your new purchase. Use it in good health!!
Dec 22, 2018 10:34:46 #
mas24
Loc: Southern CA
Bobspez wrote:
Participating in another thread on technology in n... (show quote)
That camera is the successor to the FZ70, which I saw on a clearance sale at Best Buy about 2 years ago. It was selling brand new for less than $200. At that time, I was owning a Nikon Bridge camera, the L840, focal range to 855mm. I still own that camera, but it has no viewfinder, and it only shoots in JPEG. It is a good all around grab and go camera. Panasonic makes good cameras. I also own a 20 megapixels Sony pocket camera. My Nikon 24 megapixels DX DSLR, is the only camera I own that shoots RAW. I'm now considering selling my Nikon L840, which is now discontinued, and will look into owning a FZ80 next year. I would love to own the latest model of the Sony RX10 series, but it is out of my budget range at the moment. Enjoy your FZ80.
Dec 22, 2018 11:29:37 #
Thanks. Panasonic seems to be the bridge camera technology leader so far. I have to say all the stuff worked flawlessly (I figured out manual focus and using wifi to send selected pics I take at home to a folder on my desktop PC last night).
But there was a learning curve, and I needed to use three download manuals from Panasonic, youtube, google searches, Panasonic's website FAQ's etc. All these features were unique to me. I didn't know what they were called, where to find them or how to them to get them to work. There's got to be more than 60 different menu items on the menus and buttons. In some cases selecting something disables something else. At one point I went back to factory settings and did it all over again.
I believe Panasonic is putting all this technology out in their bridge cameras to wet the appetites of people to buy their dslrs that also have these features.
But there was a learning curve, and I needed to use three download manuals from Panasonic, youtube, google searches, Panasonic's website FAQ's etc. All these features were unique to me. I didn't know what they were called, where to find them or how to them to get them to work. There's got to be more than 60 different menu items on the menus and buttons. In some cases selecting something disables something else. At one point I went back to factory settings and did it all over again.
I believe Panasonic is putting all this technology out in their bridge cameras to wet the appetites of people to buy their dslrs that also have these features.
mas24 wrote:
That camera is the successor to the FZ70, which I ... (show quote)
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