Panasonic introduces the 9.1-Megapixel DMC-TZ4 and 8.1-Megapixel DMC-TZ5, two new Compact Digital Cameras, achieving 28mm Wide Angle and 10x Optical Zoom* and featuring advanced Intelligent Auto Mode
*35mm film camera equivalent: 28-280mm
Panasonic is pleased to introduce two new Lumix digital cameras, the
9.1-megapixel DMC-TZ5 and 8.1-megapixel DMC-TZ4, each featuring a 28mm
wide-angle 10x optical zoom Leica DC lens (equivalent to 28-280mm on a
35mm film camera). The 28mm wide angle lens can capture the subject or
scene wider at the same standpoint than a normal 35mm camera, zooming
in or out with the 10x powerful optical zoom.
The DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4 are the latest members of the Lumix TZ family,
which is renowned for packaging a remarkable 28mm wide angle 10x
optical zoom lens in a compact body. The new DMC-TZ5 newly integrates
recording capabilities for 720p HD (high-definition) motion pictures,
together with its direct output function as a stills camera, allowing
users to enjoy watching both still and motion images in impressive HD
quality on a large-screen HDTV via an optional component cable.*
The DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4 boast Intelligent LCD function, which detects
lighting conditions and controls brightness levels of the LCD in 11
steps, to offer a display with the clearest image in any situation with
newly developed 460,000-dot high resolution in 3.0-inch (TZ5) and
230,000-dot in 2.5-inch (TZ4).
Panasonic’s Intelligent Auto mode, comprising various shooting-assist
functions, has been developed further for the DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4. New
Intelligent Exposure feature and Digital Red-eye Correction** are
included in addition to the conventional Mega O.I.S., Intelligent ISO
Control, Intelligent Scene Selector, Face Detection and Quick AF
functions. Mega O.I.S. to suppress unsteady hand-shaking and
Intelligent ISO Control to prevent motion blur. Intelligent Scene
Selector sets the appropriate scene mode by automatically selecting it
from the most frequently used scene modes such as Portrait, Scenery,
Macro, Night Portrait and Night Scenery. Face Detection system detects
human faces to set the focus and appropriate exposure for them
automatically within a potential shot. Unwanted red-eye effects caused
by the use of flashes can be digitally corrected** now and the newly
added Intelligent Exposure function automatically controls the ISO
sensitivity partially to increase the exposure of only darkened areas
in shot due to backlighting or insufficient flash lighting to capture
the scene as you see it, by suppressing extreme brightness and darkness
in the picture. Continuous AF system allows the camera to keep focus on
a subject without having to press the shutter button halfway, to
achieve the best result out of a potential shot by minimizing the AF
time. Once entering iA mode, these multi-capable functions happen
automatically to ensure users can shoot without the hassle of adjusting
settings every time conditions in the shooting environment change,
guaranteeing simple, trouble-free shooting for a range of environments.
The high-performance image-processing LSI has entered a new fourth
generation, reborn as Venus Engine IV. This assures higher-quality
images with an advanced signal processing system.
The slideshow format now offers a musical effect to match the mood of a
screening for audiences so users can personalise pictures for emotional
impact.
Integrating high performance, multi-capable lens and a host of unique,
easy-to-use functions in a compact body, the DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4 are
the ideally built for travel. Clad in stainless steel, the DMC-TZ5 and
DMC-TZ4 will be available in silver and black .***
* 720p HD(high definition) motion image recording capability comes with DMC-TZ5 only.
** Digital red-eye correction comes with DMC-TZ5 only.
*** Availability of models and colors may vary depending on the sales area.
1. 28mm Wide-angle* 10x optical zoom Leica DC lens and 9.1-megapixel CCD (TZ5) / 8.1-megapixel (TZ4) CCD in a compact Body
The 9.1-megapixel DMC-TZ5 and 8.1-megapixel DMC-TZ4 condense a 28mm
wide-angle**** LEICA DC VARIO-ELMAR lens with 10x optical zoom into a
compact body. Comprising 11 elements in 9 groups, including an ED
(extra-low dispersion) lens and 3 aspherical lenses, this advanced lens
unit surpasses Leica's exceptional standards and delivers an
outstanding optical performance. The 28mm wide-angle lens makes
capturing dynamic wide-perspective shots of a sweeping landscape or
large architectural structure as well as fitting a whole group of
people into a group shot indoors easy. In 3-megapixel resolution mode
the Extra Optical Zoom function provides additional magnification,
extending zoom power to 16.9x (TZ5) or 15.9x (TZ4) by using the centre
part of the CCD. Using this feature in combination with the 4x digital
zoom provides a total zoom factor of up to 67.5x (TZ5) or 63.8x (TZ4).
This powerful zoom also works during motion picture recording.
The CCD in DMC-TZ5 can reproduce images shot with the lens set from
28mm to 280mm in any of three aspect ratios – 4:3, 3:2 or 16:9 –
ensuring you can always capture dynamic, richly expressive shots with a
wide perspective. New Multi Aspect mode***** allows the camera to take
an image in all three aspect ratios simultaneously and allows the
photographer to choose the one that best takes the advantage of the
scene after shooting.
**** When the picture size is set to 3 megapixels or larger, the photo
is automatically resized to 3 megapixels. When the lens is shifted back
to the wide-end, the picture size is set to the original size
automatically. The original size is maintained for photos smaller than
3 megapixels.
***** In standard compression format only.
2. Great Photography is not only for Professional Photographers Anymore -- Intelligent Auto Mode
Panasonic has incorporated Intelligent Auto mode in pursuit of ultimate
simplicity in operation and reduction of misshots. This mode is further
advanced with the inclusion of Intelligent Exposure feature for DMC-TZ5
and DMC-TZ4.
Mega O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) which compensates for hand-shake
and Intelligent ISO Control to detect and suppress motion blur, are
built into all Lumix cameras as the industry’s most advanced measures
to counteract blurring. Both image stabilizing technologies have been
enhanced in terms of detection accuracy and correction effect thanks to
new image-processing LSI, the Venus Engine IV. In addition to these
anti-blurring technologies, Panasonic continues pursuing the ideal that
anyone at any technical level of photography should aim for, being the
ability to take beautiful pictures with ease and this can be aspired to
by incorporating the new Intelligent Auto mode.
Increasing the number of scene modes is one step, but taking advantage
of them is another, and that’s where the Intelligent Scene Selector
comes in. This function automatically sets the appropriate scene mode
according to the scene you’re going to take from among the most
frequently used scene modes, such as Portrait, Scenery, Macro, Night
Scenery and Night Portrait mode. The Face Detection System helps the
camera to recognize human faces and sets the to focus and exposure
automatically in relation to these, with up to 15 faces being located,
plus with the DMC-TZ5 red-eye effects can be digitally corrected.
The Continuous AF system allows the camera to keep focus on the subject
while the camera is in recording mode even before without pressing a
shutter button halfway, to get best result out of a shutter chance
because the focus is always near the subject and the AF time is
minimised.
New Intelligent Exposure function increases exposure only in the
under-exposed areas by detecting the brightness level part-by-part in
the picture. For example if the background of an image includes the
sky, both cameras automatically adjusts the aperture and shutter speed
to keep the setting slightly under-exposed. This prevents a washed-out,
dullness common with some cameras, as it brightens the darkened area by
only increasing the ISO in that area. If the background of an indoor
portrait receives insufficient lighting from a flash and becomes dark,
the ISO sensitivity is raised in only the low-lit area to make the
image brighter without causing graininess in the subject's face
resulting in a well balanced picture.
These multi-capable functions are automatic and allow for shooting,
without the bother of adjusting the settings every time conditions
change as the Powerful Intelligent Auto mode does all the work.
3. Exciting options to expand the fun of photography in the High-Definition Era
All Lumix cameras have the ability to take 1920x1080 pixel HD
(high-definition) quality photos that perfectly fit a wide-screen
(16:9) HDTV for full-screen viewing. The new DMC-TZ5 records dynamic HD
motion pictures in 1280 x 720p at a smooth 30 fps, in addition to WVGA
(848 x 480) and normal VGA (640 x 480). The powerful zoom of the
DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4 also works with the recording function to capture
the distant subject up close, allowing for more dynamic movie making.
With newly added HD component output capability, users can enjoy
watching their stunning stills and motion pictures by simply connecting
the camera to the HDTV via an optional component cable (DMW-HDC2).******
The DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4 provide new slideshow capability complete with
additional music option. By simply selecting the pictures users want to
showcase and choosing the mood that best matches the selection from
natural, slow, urban or swing, users can inject personality and emotion
into a slideshow alongside a variety of slide change effects. If the
slideshow is compiled with HD photos in 1920 x 1080 pixels, you can
also enjoy watching an impressive HD slideshow with music on a
large-screen HDTV by using the optional component cable.
****** 720p HD(high definition) motion image recording capability comes with DMC-TZ5 only
4. 3-inch 460,000-dot super high resolution (TZ5) / 2.5-inch
230,000-dot (TZ4) Intelligent LCD Assuring Clear View for easy shooting
and playback
The DMC-TZ5 incorporates new easy-to-see 3-inch 460,000-dot super high
resolution (2.5-inch and 230,000-dot for DMC-TZ4) LCD for comfortable
viewing while monitoring shots in detail and playing back results, even
in thumbnails as tiny as 30-split. Intelligent LCD function detects
light conditions and automatically boosts the LCD backlighting (by
maximum of 40% when shooting outdoors in bright sunshine and adjusts
the frame rate when shooting in low-lit situations) in addition to
using the pixel mixed readout method to ensure the clearest possible
image is captured. Detecting the precise lighting condition and
automatically controlling the brightness with a total of 11 steps, this
function gives the display the clearest possible image in any situation
without using extra energy.
The High Angle mode makes the LCD screen extremely easy to view when
the camera is held high, for example when shooting over a crowd.
5. High-Speed, High-Quality Image-Processing LSI Further Evolves into the Venus Engine IV
New image-processing LSI, the Venus Engine IV, features more advanced
signal processing technology for rendering even higher-quality images.
Parallel noise reduction in both luminance signal and chromatic signal
processing systems, a technology established by the preceding Venus
Engine III, has been further advanced. The luminance noise is
two-dimensionally separated and only the low-frequency noise is
eliminated without affecting the high-frequency noise that greatly
influences resolution. The information of the change point between
colours is minutely stored for precise determination of edges
dramatically reducing colour bleeding. This not only produces a clearer
image in high ISO sensitivity recording, but also accurately reproduces
details in low-lit areas of pictures taken at low ISO sensitivity.
The Venus Engine IV also elevates the detection accuracy and corrective
effect in both Mega O.I.S., which prevents hand-shake, and Intelligent
ISO Control, which minimises motion blurring. These new cameras feature
the multi-task image-processing engine, Venus Engine IV which supports
an incredibly fast response time. The shutter release time lag is a
very quick 0.008 seconds enabling users to capture those
spur-of-the-moment shots easily. In burst shooting mode, 2.5 (TZ5) / 3
(TZ4) shots can be snapped per second at full resolution.******* In
High-Speed Burst shooting mode,******** an incredible 6 (TZ5) / 7 (TZ4)
shots per second can be captured, with unlimited consecutive shooting
ability,********* allowing users to keep shooting until the memory card
is full.
The Venus Engine IV also supports a High Sensitivity mode that lets the
DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4 record up to ISO 6400, sensitive enough to capture
subjects in near-total darkness without using a flash.**********
******* Max. 5 (TZ5)/ 7 (TZ4) images in standard mode, 3 (TZ5) / 4 (TZ4) images in fine mode.
******** In 2-megapixel(4:3), 2.5-megapixel(3:2), 2-megapixel(16:9) recording
********* The consecutive shooting speed varies with the memory card,
image size, and image compression mode. The number of shots depends on
the memory card size, battery life, image size and image compression
mode.
********** In 3-megapixel(4:3), 2.5-megapixel(3:2), 2-megapixel(16:9) recording
6. Other Features
The new DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4 feature a variety of functions to provide
solutions and experimental fun for users to enjoy whilst capturing
beautiful images.
The energy-efficient Venus Engine IV imaging engine contributes to the
long battery life to shoot around 300 (TZ5) / 330 (TZ4) shots despite
their large, bright LCD on a single battery charge.*********** A total
of 22(TZ5) / 21(TZ4) scene modes help users to take more beautiful
pictures in a wide range of situations and environments. New Multi
Aspect mode featured on the DMC-TZ5, allows the camera to take images
in all three aspect ratios simultaneously giving users the ability to
choose the one that best takes the advantage of the scene after
shooting.************
Additionally new Title Edit function, allows text to be input as
additional information to accompany the picture, such as the names of
children and pets as well as travel places which can be particularly
useful when compiling a photo album for example. A Text Stamp function
allows this text to be added to photos and printed off. Around 50 MB of
internal memory is built-in to back up the SDHC/SD Memory Card
recording and copying.
All new Lumix cameras incorporate a REC/PLAYBACK mode switch, which
helps users switch instantly between recording and playback modes,
while always knowing which mode the camera is in. The GUI (Graphic User
Interface) has been upgraded with a more futuristic design and colour
while maintaining the visibility of characters.
The major features mentioned above can be quickly understood with the newly installed slideshow program called Demo mode.
The DMC-TZ5 and DMC-TZ4 are compatible with optional marine case
(DMW-MCTZ5) enabling users to shoot underwater, for example while scuba
diving..
*********** Based on the CIPA standard
************ In standard compression format only.
what's your opinion ?
In an effort to help you buy the best digital camera for your needs. We are
constantly trying to improve bytecamera.com so please take a moment and let
us know what features do you find the most helpful digital camera comparisons,
digital camera reviews, digital camera ratings, digital
camera buyers guide etc.by doing so it will enable us to
provide the sort of information buyers need to guide them thru the decision
making process…. and help insure they get the most from their digital camera
and accessories enabling them to fully enjoy photography.
