Camera Labs

I am looking at buying a high-end, all-in-one to replace my lost(stolen) Canon PRO90 IS.
I'm favouring staying with Canon because of the very useful flip-out screen (I've seen nothing on the market to equal it; have I missed something?) but the FZ30 comes close (but why have they pivoted the screen to the left, when for round-the-corner shots for the right handed user, the opposite would appear to be preferrable?)
Any way, to get back to the main point of this posting, viz.
Can you please clarify your comments about the shutter speeds in your review of the FZ30

" . . the mode dial offers the usual Automatic, Program, Manual, Shutter and Aperture Priority modes along with selecting playback, a movie mode, or two user-defined Scene options. Shutter speeds range from 1/2000 to 30 seconds, along with a programmable Bulb option up to three minutes. . . "

Panny's own website gives down to 8secs in AE mode and 60 in manual; also no mention of the (useful) bulb settings.

P.S. I was disappointed that you hadn't reviewed the Canon S2 IS , hence not being able to compare the FZ30 with the S2. (or are you waiting for the S3?)

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Gerry

I could sure use a bulb setting, as I'm into astrophotography! How is this done?

Hi guys, apologies for the delay in replying to this one - I've been looking into it, and I believe I made a mistake concerning the longest exposure. I have spoken to Panasonic UK who have confirmed the longest exposure time on the FZ30 is indeed 60 seconds. Sorry for the mistake.

I will update the review pages soon to reflect this.

If you are into long exposure photography and are torn between, say, an all-in-one like the FZ30, or a digital SLR, I would whole-heartedly recommend the latter for two reasons: first they really do offer a genuine Bulb mode offering long exposures, and secondly they generally offer higher sensitivities (and lower noise too).

I'm quite into astro photography myself and have made several 5 minute exposures at ISO 1600 through a variety of tracked telescopes with cameras like the Canon 350D, and the results can be really good. I hope to show some astro photos and other long exposure photography in some up-coming reviews and features.

If 60 seconds sounds long enough for your requirements though and you're after an all-in-one with a flip-out screen and long lens range, the FZ30 should certainly be on your shortlist. You should also check out models like the Fuji 9500 and Sony R1. Do compare the handling with a budget DSLR too though such as the Canon 350D, as you may prefer it even though the screen isn't used for composition.

Once again though, sorry about the FZ30 mistake,

Gordon

Thanks for clearing this up Gorden.