Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 Review
Review Date: March 4th 2007
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Image Quality
All of the sample images in this Review were captured using
the 7M Fine (3072 x 2304) JPEG image size option producing
a file that is around 3Mb in size.
Noise
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 has 5 ISO settings. There is virtually no discernible
noise at the slowest settings of ISO 100 and 200, but noise
and slight loss of detail is apparent
at ISO 400, particularly in the shadow areas. At ISO 800
image quality has deterioated quite a lot as the camera blurs
detail
to try and hide the noise. ISO 1600 should be
used only as a last resort. Here are some 100% crops which
show the noise levels for each ISO setting.
High Sensitivity Mode
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 has a new High Sensitivity scene mode which promises
to reduce blurry images, particularly of moving subjects
indoors, by raising the ISO speed to a maximum of 3200 and
therefore allowing for a faster shutter speed. This mode
allows you to handhold the camera without using the flash
and get more natural results, whilst at the same time freezing
subject movement more successfully. There are some obvious
drawbacks with this special scene mode, notably a significant
reduction in resolution - Panasonic states in the FX12 manual
that "The resolution of the recorded picture decreases slightly because of high sensitivity
processing. This is not a malfunction". You also need to select the scene mode and therefore have some idea about when
it is applicable to your subject. Here are some 100% crops
which show the noise levels and obvious blurring of detail:
Sharpening
Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality
50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening
applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the camera images at the
default setting are soft and benefit
from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop.
Unfortunately you can't change the in-camera sharpening
level
if you don't like the default results.
*Note: You can increase the sharpening level to Hard by choosing the Vivid colour
option, but this may also change the colour balance of the
image.
Chromatic Aberrations
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 dealt very well with chromatic aberrations
during the review, with only limited purple fringing
present around the edges of objects in certain high-contrast
situations. Here is a 100% crop which shows the typical chromatic
aberrations that you can expect:
Macro
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 offers a Macro setting that allows
you to focus on a subject that is 5cms away from the camera.
The first image shows how close you can get to the subject
in Macro mode (in this case a compact flash card). The second
image is a 100% crop.
Flash
The flash settings on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 are Auto, Auto/Red-eye Reduction,
Forced On and Forced Off. These shots of a white coloured
wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.
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Auto Flash - Telephoto (105mm) |
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And here are some portrait shots. As you can see, both the
Forced On and Red-Eye Reduction options caused
a tiny amount of red-eye.
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Flash On (100% Crop) |
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Flash - Red-Eye Reduction (100%
Crop) |
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Night Shot
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 maximum shutter speed is 60 seconds
in Starry Sky Mode, which is excellent news if you're
interested in night photography. The shot below was taken
using a shutter speed of 8 seconds, aperture of f/5 at
ISO 100. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what
the
quality is like.
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Night Shot (100% Crop) |
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Anti Shake
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 has an anti-shake mechanism, which allows you to
take sharp photos at slower shutter speeds than other digital
cameras. To test this, I took 2 handheld shots of the same
subject with the ISO speed set to 100. The first shot was
taken with anti shake turned off, the second with it turned
on. Here is a 100% crop of the image to show the results.
As you can see, with anti shake turned on, the images are
much sharper than with anti shake turned
off. This feature really does seem to make a difference and
could mean capturing a successful, sharp shot or missing
the opportunity altogether.
Overall Image Quality
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 produced images of above average quality
during the review period. The 7 megapixel images were
soft straight out of the camera at the default sharpening
setting and ideally require some further sharpening in an
application like Adobe Photoshop, as you can't change the
in-camera setting. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12 dealt
well with chromatic aberrations, with limited purple fringing
effects appearing only in high contrast situations. Macro
performance is average, allowing you to focus as close as
5 cms away from the subject. The built-in flash worked well
indoors, with no red-eye but slight under-exposure. The night
photograph was fine, with the maximum shutter speed of 60
seconds allowing you to capture plenty of light. Anti-shake
is a feature that sets this camera apart from its competitors
and one that
works very well when hand-holding the camera in low-light
conditions or when using the telephoto end of the zoom range.
The Panasonic
Lumix DMC-FX12 produces noise-free images at ISO 100 and
200, but ISO 400 shows some noise and loss of detail. ISO
800 exhibits
obvious noise and blurred detail, and the fastest setting
1600 should only be used in an emergency. The new High Sensitivity
mode extends the ISO range to 3200 and allows
you to freeze subject movement effectively, but does so by
reducing the effective image resolution and signifcantly blurring
image detail.
 PhotographyBLOG
is a member of the DIWA
organisation. Our test results for the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX12
have been submitted to DIWA
for comparison with test results for different samples of
the same camera model supplied by other DIWA
member sites.
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