Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 Review

Review Date: March 27th 2006

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Page 1
Introduction / Features
Page 2
Ease of Use
Page 3
Image Quality
Page 4
Sample Images
Page 5
Design
Page 6
Specifications
Page 7
Conclusion

Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 5M Fine mode, which gives an average image size of around 2Mb.

Noise

There are 4 ISO settings available on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 which you can select at any time if the camera is in the normal shooting mode. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting:

ISO 80 (100% crop)

ISO 100 (100% crop)

   

ISO 200 (100% crop)

ISO 400 (100% crop)

   

There is virtually no discernible noise at the slowest settings of ISO 80 and 100, and ISO 200 isn't too bad at all, although the image quality has deterioated quite a lot at the fastest setting of ISO 400.

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 are quite soft at the default sharpening setting and benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop. Unfortunately you can't increase the in-camera sharpening level.

Original 100% Crop

Sharpened 100% Crop

   
   

File Quality

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 has 2 different image quality settings available, with 5M Fine being the highest quality option. Here are some 100% crops which show the quality of the various options, with the file size shown in brackets.

5M Fine (2,400Kb)
5M Normal (1,186Kb)
   

Chromatic Aberrations

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 handled chromatic aberrations well during the review, with only limited purple fringing present around the edges of objects in certain high-contrast situations.

Example 1
Example 2
 

Macro

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 offers a Macro setting that allows you to focus on a subject that is 5cms away from the camera when the lens is set to wide-angle. The first image shows how close you can get to the subject (in this case a compact flash card). The second image is a 100% crop.

Macro Shot (click to view full-sized image)

100% Crop

   

Flash

The flash settings on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 are Auto, Auto + Red-eye Reduction, Forced Flash and Red-eye Reduction + Slow Synchro. These shots of a magnolia coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.

Flash Off - Wide Angle (35mm)

Auto Flash - Wide Angle (35mm)

ISO 64
ISO 64
   

Flash Off - Telephoto (105mm)

Auto Flash - Telephoto (105mm)
ISO 64
ISO 64
   

And here are some shots of yours truly. As you can see, both the Flash On setting and the Red-Eye Reduction option caused a tiny amount of red-eye (or to be more accurate, purple-eye).

Flash On

Flash On (100% Crop)
   

Flash - Red-Eye Reduction

Flash - Red-Eye Reduction (100% Crop)
   

Night Shot

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 maximum shutter speed is 60 seconds in the Starry Sky Mode scene mode (there are also 15 and 30 second options), which is good news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 4 seconds at f/2.8 at ISO 80. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like. The camera takes the same amount of time again to apply noise reduction, so for example at the 4 second setting the actual exposure takes 8 seconds.

Night Shot (click to view full-sized image)

100% Crop
   

Anti Shake

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 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 lens set to a focal length of 105mm. 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.

Shutter Speed

Anti Shake Off

Anti Shake On
1/20th
1/10th

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-LS2 produced images of above average quality during the review period. The 5 megapixel images were quite 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-LS2 dealt well with chromatic aberrations, with limited purple fringing effects appearing only in high contrast situations. Macro performance is above average, allowing you to focus as close as 3cms away from the subject. The built-in flash worked well indoors, with very little red-eye and good exposure. The night photograph was good, 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-LS2's also dealt quite well with noise, which has been something of a traditional problem with Panasonic cameras. The 1/2.5 inch, 5 megapixel sensor used in the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 produces noise-free images at ISO 80 and ISO 100, with ISO 200 also looking quite good. ISO 400 does have easily visible noise, but overall this is an improvement on other Panasonic cameras that I have reviewed.

Page 1
Introduction / Features
Page 2
Ease of Use
Page 3
Image Quality
Page 4
Sample Images
Page 5
Design
Page 6
Specifications
Page 7
Conclusion

DIWAPhotographyBLOG is a member of the DIWA organisation. Our test results for the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS2 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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