UPDATED 14th May 2007 12:27am – added video
I got a new camera this weekend, a Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ7. It’s so new that not many websites have got proper reviews of it yet. I based my decision on Steve-Digicam’s review of the LZ5.
What appealed to me were: the optical image stabiliser (as opposed to software-correction), the fast power-up and low shutter lag, and the burst mode for taking photos in quick succession. Plus the ability to shoot 640×380 videos at 30fps. These are all qualities that are a big step up from my Fujifilm Finepix E500 which I had been using for the past 2 years.
These are also the capabilities which will help me take better photos in low-light environments, like say inside a club. I specifically chose a camera which runs on AA batteries, allowing me to use rechargable Ni-MH which last longer than the slim lithium ion batteries. Battery life is crucial when it comes to shooting 6-hour raves. 
I took it out for a road-test last night at my favourite haunt The Deen. I kept to ISO400 and slowed down the shutter speed to compensate for the low-light. Below are the results.
The above are usually the kind of photos that I’d take in a club and I never use flash unless I’m shooting people. I really liked the low noise-artifacts and minimal blurring, unless as an intended effect. Granted my trusty old Finepix isn’t too shabby in this department but the smaller shutter lag and burst mode on the Lumix allowed me to take more photos in the same amount of time. And I got a lot more usable shots than normal.
Next up are shots using flash on people (click through for larger versions). I wasn’t short of helpful strangers, including this group with the girls who kept posing for me. Don’t these photos make you smile?
But the coolest guy of the night has to be this older fella. He rocks!
The third test was low-light video recording. And I must say the Lumix trumps the Finepix in this department. The image is very smooth (thanks 30fps!) and bright enough to not require correction. But I need to learn to make it look better on Youtube, so no video to show for now. Found an alternative video-hosting site called Videoegg which doesn’t compress the videos to oblivion. Woohoo!
Overall, I’m very happy with my new purchase.
Technorati Tags: clubbing
i’m lovin’ my Panasonic Lumix FZ7, you should try it out~~~
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Thanks for the tip, though I prefer a smaller camera for nightclubs and raves so that I can still jump around.
OOoooOOoh … I like that camera. I like any camera that can take good pics in the dark – thats one of my major qualms with many camera. The lumix looks sweet.
Just wondering, what format is the video capture? It doesnt really specified in the website.
marina: videos can be captured at 640×480 or 320×240, and at 30fps or at 10fps. The video that I took was at 640×480 30fps, then I used Windows Movie Maker to resize it to 320×240. Because the original files were MOV I had to first convert them to AVI before WMM can use it.
If you are using a Mac, then it should be easier for you.
Those action shots are awesome! Gotta love using a new piece of technology, hey? and don’t ya love taking photos of randoms? looks like there is a pretty hot blonde in a few of those pictures too….accidental??
girlstar7: heheh yes, I didn’t approach these ppl except for the older guy. The rest just came up to me and said, “Take our picture!”
[...] I discovered Videoegg 2 days ago, and now after more research I discovered Vimeo. The easiest way to describe it is that, [...]