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On this page we've put the Lumix TZ20 / ZS10's Handheld Night Shot mode to the test. This automatically selects the sensitivity so we've compared it against the closest manual ISO setting in traditional modes.

Our first example was taken in a dim bar where Handheld Night Scene automatically selected a sensitivity of 500 ISO. Unfortunately the Lumix TZ20 / ZS10 doesn't offer manual ISO increments 1/3EV apart, so we had to choose either 400 or 800 ISO for comparison. In this first example, we've given the standard mode a slight advantage by selecting 400 ISO.

Looking at the crops below, the shot taken in Program at 400 ISO contains much more visible noise than the one taken in Handheld Night Shot at 500 ISO. As we've seen before, the presence of noise can give the impression of a sharper image, and this coupled with an absence of noise on the Handheld Night Shot version certainly make the latter look soft in comparison.

But look closely and you'll see there's little if any difference in terms of real-life detail captured. This means the Handheld Night Shot mode has managed to retain a similar degree of detail, but with considerably lower noise levels - and this is even more impressive given it was actually operating at a sensitivity 1/3EV higher. Interestingly the Handheld Night Shot version has applied a slightly warmer white balance in this scene.

A good start for the new mode, but scroll down for another example.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ20 / ZS10: Handheld Night Shot at 500 ISO
f3.3, 1/8, 500 ISO		f3.3, 1/8, 500 ISO		f3.3, 1/8, 500 ISO

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ20 / ZS10: Program at 400 ISO
f3.3, 1/8, 400 ISO		f3.3, 1/8, 400 ISO		f3.3, 1/8, 400 ISO

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ20 / ZS10: Handheld Night Shot versus Program mode (at 400 ISO)

In the crops below you can see a similar effect to that described above. The version taken in Program mode is visibly much noisier, which gives the Handheld Night Scene version an impression of softness. But look closely and you'll again see similar degrees of real-life detail captured.

Interestingly as in our first example, the Handheld Night Shot version applied a slightly warmer white balance. We also noticed it captured a slightly broader area, automatically adjusting the focal length by a fraction from 7mm to 6mm. This is most likely to give greater latitude for matching frames which don't perfectly line-up, while still delivering close to what you saw on the screen during composition.

Overall, this is another good result for the Lumix TZ20 / ZS10. Now for more real-life images, check out our Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ20 / ZS10 Sample Images Gallery, or head straight over to our verdict!

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ20 / ZS10: Handheld Night Shot at 400 ISO
f3.7, 1/8, 400 ISO		f3.7, 1/8, 400 ISO		f3.7, 1/8, 400 ISO

Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ20 / ZS10: Program at 400 ISO
f3.8, 1/8, 400 ISO		f3.8, 1/8, 400 ISO		f3.8, 1/8, 400 ISO