Introduction:
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 (also known as
the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS100) was announced at the start of 2016 and
features a 20.1 million pixel 1-inch MOS sensor. It’s also got a 10x
optical zoom which covers a 35mm equivalent focal length range of
25-250mm. The maximum aperture range is f/2.8-f/5.9.
Panasonic says that the TZ100 forms a new market in the compact camera arena, as its the first compact camera with a large, one-inch sensor, to also feature a notable (10x) optical zoom. That should make it ideal for travelling photographers who want the flexibility of different focal lengths.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 also has a new Venus engine, and the same 4K video and photo modes as found in some of Panasonic’s compact system cameras. That includes the ability to “post focus” and extract photos from 4K video files. A 0.2-inch, 1160k-dot electronic viewfinder is joined by a 1040k-dot touch-sensitive screen.
There’s not really any like-for-like competition with the TZ100 as it stands, but in terms of its size and shape, it’s reasonably similar to the Canon PowerShot G9 X.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 / ZS100 is available in silver or black for £549.99 / $699.99.
Panasonic says that the TZ100 forms a new market in the compact camera arena, as its the first compact camera with a large, one-inch sensor, to also feature a notable (10x) optical zoom. That should make it ideal for travelling photographers who want the flexibility of different focal lengths.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 also has a new Venus engine, and the same 4K video and photo modes as found in some of Panasonic’s compact system cameras. That includes the ability to “post focus” and extract photos from 4K video files. A 0.2-inch, 1160k-dot electronic viewfinder is joined by a 1040k-dot touch-sensitive screen.
There’s not really any like-for-like competition with the TZ100 as it stands, but in terms of its size and shape, it’s reasonably similar to the Canon PowerShot G9 X.
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 / ZS100 is available in silver or black for £549.99 / $699.99.
Ease of Use
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100's body is impressively small considering it houses a one-inch sensor and a 10x optical zoom. It's also a little heavier than it looks, which gives it a nice weighty feel of quality.There are three colour ways to choose from, all-black, black with a red stripe, or black and grey with a stripe - the latter is what was supplied for our review.
The front of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 is slightly indented, which helps it to sit comfortably in your hand. There's no textured grip though so it can feel a little slippery in your hand - it's recommended that you attach the supplied strap to keep it secure.
A pleasing number of buttons and dials can be found on the TZ100, with all of them grouped on the right hand side of the camera for easy reach with your thumb when using the camera one-handed.
Front of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100
On top of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 is a mode dial for selecting
from different exposure modes, including aperture priority, shutter
priority, iA (intelligent auto) and panorama. There's also another dial
which is used for altering different settings depending on the shooting
mode you're in - for example if you're using aperture priority, then it
will control aperture. You can also use the dial to scroll through
menus, and you can customise the dial to control a different setting if
you prefer.The zoom lever which surrounds the camera's shutter release is reasonably small, but it feels pretty well constructed. If you're shooting in raw format, you won't be able to use the digital zoom, but if you have that switched off there will be a short pause before you enter into the digital territory which is useful for keeping it within the optical range if you want it to.
Just to the right hand side of the shutter release button is a small video record button. It's pretty unlikely that you'd accidentally be able to push this, which is good news for avoiding accidentally video recording.
Moving to the back of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 and there's four different function buttons. Three of them are on the right hand side, while the fourth is next to the viewfinder. All of the buttons have default functions, but you can customise them, along with a further five “virtual” custom buttons which can be accessed via the touchscreen
Rear of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100
By default, the Fn3 button accesses a quick menu which gives you
quick access to commonly used settings such as white balance, ISO and
metering modes. You can use a combination of the touchscreen and
physical buttons to move to and change settings. There's also function
buttons for 4K photo modes, switching on and off Post Focus mode, and
altering how the viewfinder behaves. Again though, if you'd prefer a
different function to assigned to any of these buttons, you can do that
via the main menu.A control ring around the front of the lens again has default settings, but can also be set to different functions if you prefer. For instance, in aperture priority, by default it controls aperture, but you could change it to a different function.
There are number of different autofocusing modes to choose from, including Face/Eye Detection, 49-Area, and 1-Area. If you have 1-Area mode selected, you simply need to tap the area on screen where you want to focus. As with its compact system cameras, you can continue to use the screen to set AF point while using the viewfinder - which makes setting the point very quick.
Top of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100
Speaking of the viewfinder, it has a sensor which means that it will
automatically switch on when you hold the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ100 up
to your eye, and the screen will automatically switch off. This makes
for a clean transition between using the two. The viewfinder itself is
relatively small when compared with some of the viewfinders which you
might find on a compact system camera (such as the Panasonic G7), but it
is never-the-less useful when you're photographing in bright sunlight
and want to avoid using the screen.
The screen gives a reasonably good angle of view, and while it
doesn't suffer too badly from glare or reflections unless the sun is
very bright, it would have been nice to have an articulating or tilting
screen - it's likely that this would have boosted the price of the
camera.
For the TZ100, Panasonic has introduced its DFD (Depth From Defocus)
technology, which is designed to boost how quickly the camera can focus.
This is the same DFD technology which has been used in some of the
company's compact system cameras, and here it does a great job to lock
onto subjects, being almost instant in bright light, and only dropping
slightly in darker conditions. General operational speeds are also
excellent, with shot-to-shot times being quick.