Review on 📷 Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ4K 8.1 Megapixel Digital Camera with 10x Wide-Angle Optical Zoom and Image Stabilization (Black) by Shree Carmean

I just competed in the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships on my newly purchased TZ4. I wanted a small camera with a wide angle lens and powerful zoom, as well as good speed and accurate capture (especially with color contrast), and a TZ4 or 5s seemed right up my alley. Since the TZ4 was cheaper and I didn't need any upgrades to shoot video, I chose it over the TZ5. It's not a DSLR, but then again, no DSLR will ever be this cheap or this small. It can slip into my usual purse unnoticed, which is important. I never took photos because I never wanted to carry a big camera around with me, but now that I have a small camera that I can take anywhere I take photos all the time! It's not a small shirt pocket, but it should easily fit in a jacket pocket. It takes a little practice to get the timing right, especially with figure skating and the shutter lag that all digital cameras have. but I did take some great photos during the event. If I had focus ready, there would be virtually no lag. (Uploaded and shot some footage mid-jump to prove it.) Sometimes the camera took a moment to find the focus point and the moment was lost, but c'est la vie. During the exhibition I had two other viewers. ask me what kind of camera I have because the photos turn out so good. Again, this isn't a DSLR so photos won't be very clear unless you're in strong lighting, but plenty of detail is still captured. You can even use it as binoculars because the 10x optical zoom visually picks up more information than your eyes can. The zoom requires a steady hand at full power to limit blur, but it's pretty cool. There isn't much manual control, but you can clamp the exposure and limit the ISO, which was about the level of manual control I really wanted. (Although manual exposure control would be very handy, especially if you want to take star trail photos, for example.) There are LOTS of automatic settings to choose from, so it's like manual control. It's a lot of fun playing with them and seeing what they can do. I haven't tried everything the camera can do, especially in video mode. But for my personal needs I couldn't choose a better camera.