photoxels
PANASONIC EXPANDS POPULAR LUMIX FZ SERIES WITH PREMIUM 24X SUPER-ZOOM, 3D SHOOTING COMPACT DIGITAL CAMERA
New Panasonic LUMIX FZ150 Digital Camera Packs a Powerful 24x Optical Zoom in High-Quality 25mm Ultra Wide-Angle Leica Lens that Shoots Full HD Video
MISSISSAUGA, ON (August 26, 2011) – Panasonic Canada Inc. today introduced the newest addition to its super-zoom LUMIX FZ-Series digital cameras. The new LUMIX DMC-FZ150 is fully equipped with a 25mm ultra wide-angle LEICA DC VARIO-ELMARIT lens and a powerful 24x Optical Zoom (35mm camera equivalent: 25-600mm) available for shooting stills and videos. Additionally, the LUMIX FZ150 has two of Panasonic’s newest features – newly advanced Nano Surface Coating technology which helps minimize light reflection that causes ghosting and flare, and the new 3D Photo Mode.
As the top-end model of LUMIX’s popular FZ series, the FZ150 combines a new 12.1-megapixel MOS sensor and the renowned Venus Engine, giving the camera high-performance image recording capability in both higher light sensitivity and speed. And as a step-up from the recently announced LUMIX FZ47’s 1920 x 1080 60i video feature, the FZ150 realizes 1920 x 1080 60p Full-HD AVCHD Progressive (MPEG-4 / H.264) format. This camera also makes it possible to take still images while recording video simultaneously (3.5-megapixel) and the powerful 24x optical zoom is available in video recording. The FZ150 incorporates a stereo zoom microphone with a Wind Cut function, so that videos come with high-quality stereo sound through Dolby® Digital Stereo Creator.
“Panasonic continues to strive to meet the demands of its consumers by providing unique features and advanced technology in all our LUMIX digital cameras,” said Doug Borbath, Senior Product Manager, Imaging, Panasonic Canada Inc. “With amazing zoom and 3D shooting capabilities the FZ150 is a versatile, powerful camera that gives users endless options to take creative, high-quality images and videos.”
The Light Speed AF of approximately 0.1 second never misses fleeting photo opportunities, and to encourage step-up users to enjoy shooting even more, full manual control is available. Users can also enjoy image shooting while expressing their intention, not only in photos but also in video, using a host of options including the new Creative Control and Photo Style with a wide variety of preset options. And the effective hand-shake correction system POWER O.I.S. now gains Active mode, which helps to record stable video even if shot while walking.
The LUMIX’s popular iA (Intelligent Auto) Mode powerfully assists in any shooting situations to get the best results. Thanks to the Intelligent Resolution technology, the Intelligent Zoom is available with the FZ150 which extends the zoom ratio by approximately 1.3x, maintaining the picture quality while combining a digital zoom. This means the 24x optical zoom can virtually extend to 32x equivalent. Not only drawing near the subject that is far away with its powerful optical zoom, the 25mm ultra wide angle lens captures a wider angle of view (approximately 196 per cent wider) compared with a standard 35mm camera. It is helpful for shooting dynamic landscape shots or indoor group portraits.
The popular iA (Intelligent Auto) Mode is also available in video recording. The POWER O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer), Face Detection, Intelligent Scene Selector and Intelligent D-range Control also support shooting beautiful videos with ease. The Intelligent Scene Selector automatically switches between Normal, Portrait, Macro, Scenery, and Low Light modes according to the situation, to optimize visual quality. The Intelligent D-range Control makes images look more natural by preventing blocked shadows and blown highlights to optimize the exposure for each part of an image. It also ensures a beautiful reproduction of gradation and details.
A new 12-Megapixel High Sensibility MOS sensor pursuing Resolution, Sensitivity and Speed has been incorporated along with the renowned Venus Engine enabling the FZ150 to excel in image processing power. The combination of these powerful components results in the S/N ratio improvement by 3.9dB (ISO 100) to 4.7dB (ISO1600) compared with the predecessor – the FZ100. Newly developed Multi-process Noise Reduction applies optimum noise reduction according to the brightness of the part of the picture. Both high frequency noise that occurs in the dark part and low frequency noise in the light part are suppressed and as a result, images recorded in low-lit situations are now dramatically clear.
The Venus Engine has a quad-circuit system for processing large amounts of progressive Full HD data at high speed. Not only 1920 x 1080 60p smooth Full-HD video recording, but also super fast consecutive shots at 12fps (without auto focusing) and 5.5fps (with auto focusing) in full resolution. It is also compatible with recording high-speed video at 220fps in QVGA. At the same time, the multi-tasking image-processing engine, the Venus Engine, realizes a super-fast response time. The auto focus gains approximately 50 per cent faster speed compared with the FZ100, achieving Light Speed AF of approximately 0.1 second. The speed in AF Tracking also becomes faster, thanks to the improved tracking performance which doubles its sampling frequency.
The FZ150 provides the new Creative Control mode with a selection of artistic effect modes including: Expressive, Retro, High Key, Sepia, High Dynamic, Miniature Effect, Film Grain and Pin Hole. In addition, Photo Style is newly added to the FZ150 for the expression of finer nuance featuring: Standard, Vivid, Natural, Monochrome, Scenery, Portrait presets, while enabling finer adjustment of contrast, sharpness, saturation and noise reduction.
As a further step-up from the FZ47, the FZ150 is equipped with a hot shoe allowing attachment of various accessories including an optional stereo microphone (DMW-MS1) or an optional external flash (DMW-FL220 / FL360 / FL500). The FZ150 is also compatible with an optional remote shutter (DMW-RSL1) for advanced expression in photography.
The newly-added 3D Photo mode takes 20 panning shots and then the camera automatically selects the two most suitable images – one for the right eye and one for the left eye – to synthesize a 3D composite. The 3D image can then be viewed on any VIERA 3D HDTV. The format of 3D images is compatible with MPO which can be played back on other MPO-compatible equipment.
Other features of the Panasonic LUMIX FZ150 include:
- Motion Deblur Mode, which helps to prevent blur.
- Intelligent Handheld Nightshot Mode, which generates beautiful night scenery with illumination by layering multiple images shot consecutively.
- PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.5 BD Edition Software makes it possible to sort and organize photos not only of those newly taken but also of those stored on the PC with quick startup and fast read-in of images. Recorded videos can be edited with the Short Movie Story function and written into MPEG2 to burn onto a Blu-ray or DVD disc.
The Panasonic LUMIX FZ150 will be available in black for a suggested retail price of CAD $499.99, starting in late-September 2011.
The “AVCHD Progressive” is a high definition (HD) digital video recording / playback format jointly established by Panasonic Corporation and Sony Corporation.
Leica is a registered trademark of Leica Microsystems IR GmbH.
The LEICA DC VARIO-ELMARIT lenses are manufactured using measurement instruments and quality assurance systems that have been certified by Leica Camera AG based on the company’s quality standards.
Dolby and the double-D symbol are trademarks of Dolby Laboratories.
All other company and product names are trademarks of their respective corporations.
This unit is compatible with both SD/SDHC/SDXC Memory Cards. You can only use SDHC Memory Cards on devices that are compatible with them. You cannot use SDHC Memory Cards on devices that are only compatible with SD Memory Cards. (When using an SDHC Memory Card on another device, be sure to read the operating instructions for that device.)
Some accessories are not available in some countries.
The use of recorded or printed materials that are protected by copyright for any purpose other than personal enjoyment is prohibited, as it would infringe upon the rights of the copyright holder.
Design and specifications are subject to change without notice.
Panasonic products are marketed in Canada by Panasonic Canada Inc. (PCI). PCI is an affiliate of Panasonic Corporation (PC) of Japan, one of the world’s largest producers of electronic and electric products for consumer, business, and industrial use. Consumers seeking more information on the company’s products can call Panasonic’s Customer Care Centre at 1-800-561-5505 or access Panasonic’s home page at www.panasonic.ca.
