My Good Travel Buddy: the Panasonic Lumix Camera
Winter scene at the
Walpole, Massachusetts town common.
by Eric Hurwitz. Updated 12/21/16.
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My New England travels have always come into better focus
with a high
quality camera.
As editor of VisitingNewEngland.com, the opportunities to take photos
of this
beautiful region of the country are virtually endless with the
mountains, coast, scenic back roads, historic cities
and quaint small towns. There's little room for error, though,
when trying to capture a scene through the lens, as the chance to soon
return to a New England destination can be difficult. Case-in-point:
it's a six-hour ride from Boston, Massachusetts to Bar Harbor, Maine.
Better to get it right the first time, but that can be nearly
impossible with a pedestrian point-and-shoot camera.
That's why it is important for me to have a great camera. While a DSLR
is always optimal, I do prefer, however, to travel lightly and not be
encumbered by heavier equipment that often seems like an inconvenience.
Since VisitingNewEngland's inception in 2001, I have tried many
point-and-shoot cameras
with few meeting my requirements of having a high quality
lens and zoom, an automatic setting that gets it right virtually all of
the time, good video-taking capabilities, and a sturdy structure.
Enter the Panasonic Lumix point-and-shoot camera
that fit easily into a pocket. While many of the
other brands I tried had some fine qualities, the Panasonic Lumix
seems to put it all together better than the others -- by a
"long-shot" in fact. I truly love using this camera when traveling New
England or when on vacation in places like Cooperstown, New York...
4th of July parade in Springfield, New York, near Cooperstown.
Lakefront Park, Cooperstown, New York.
The lens makes all the difference. My Panasonic Lumix employs a Leica
lens, and the optics are truly amazing. What is a camera without
a great lens?
While I have no way of knowing the cost of the lens in the Lumix, it
seems like I am using an $800 lens in a camera that costs much less
than that. Leica has been traditionally known as having some of the
best lenses on the planet, so Panasonic smartly affiliated with this
esteemed camera company.
Boston Public Garden, Boston, Massachusetts.
I currently have a Panasonic
Lumix DMC-ZS3 10.1 MP Digital Camera. It's an older model, but
really a
joy to use. It really seems effortless to get sharp, accurate pictures
-- even in low light. Yes, I know the low-light issue is a common
complaint amongst those using point-and-shoot cameras. To that, I say:
read the camera manual over and over again until you have mastered the
camera. While you don't need much experimenting with a great camera
like the DMC-ZS3, it's always best to give yourself a little edge by
getting to know every aspect of the camera's features. I have virtually
memorized the manual, and it has helped me tremendously in taking
excellent photos. Even without the manual, however, it's easy to take
some high quality photos.
Adams Farm, Walpole, Massachusetts.
I don't want to sound like a techo-geek here -- that is, writing in
endless detail about the Lumix, so I'll just add this: the fabulous
25mm
ultra-wide-angle lens gets more subject matter in the picture; the
optic, image-stabilized zoom works beautifully up to 12X; the
automatic performs tremendously, accurately capturing New England
scenes; and using the HD quality video (with zoom capability) often
results in something you'd see
on-location in a TV broadcast. The heavier weight of a small camera,
overall, feels like it is substantial, as opposed to cheap plastic. Add
many other features including myriad settings (including night scenery,
portrait, sports, food, sunset and high sensitivity), a great
three-inch display that stays effectively visible
even in the brightest conditions, and a terrific face recognition
capability, and you pretty much have everything you need in a camera at
your fingertips. It's amazing Panasonic got so much into a small-sized
camera.
Flower scene in downtown Peterborough, New Hampshire.
Recently, I wrote two books, Massachusetts
Town Greens and The Best Diners
in New England and took virtually all the photos myself with the
Lumix camera. Here are two examples...
Peterborough Diner, Peterborough, New Hampshire.
Most importantly with the Lumix camera, I have found it easy to take
great photos in the crucial normal,
portrait, macro, scenery, and low-light modes. Again, it all starts
with the quality of the lens, and what better way to make that happen
than with Leica optics?
Motif #1 building, Rockport, Massachusetts.
Weston Town Common, Weston, Vermont.
I love my Panasonic DMC-ZS3, but when the budget allows, I can
hardly wait to purchase one of the newer Lumix cameras like the new
Panasonic
LUMIX DMC-LX10K that seems to bridge even more of the quality of a
DSLR. I am
looking forward to that moment of eventually buying the camera, as
taking pictures of New England has
become has more of a part of my professional job description. But if
that never happens, I will happily continue to take photos for
VisitingNewEngland with my Lumix DMC-ZS3. To me, there's really not
much of a drop-off in basic picture quality between that camera and a
good DSLR -- and with the added convenience of not having to lug
expensive equipment around.
I can't say enough good things about the Lumix line. Earlier in my
career, I went with some of the other commonly-known brands, but after
purchasing a Lumix, I will never go back to any of the other camera
lines!
Questions, comments on this article? Contact
the author, Eric Hurwitz
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