Panasonic FZ200

[Rodbender]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

That looks great. No I have hardly scratched the surface regards trying out inbuilt featchers. I really must get the handbook out and refresh my memory. So many things to try when you first get the camera, you tend to forget a lot of them.
Been very busy house painting and it's not that easy at my age in my condition. Not seen my camera for weeks now.

[Pol]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

That looks great. No I have hardly scratched the surface regards trying out inbuilt featchers. I really must get the handbook out and refresh my memory. So many things to try when you first get the camera, you tend to forget a lot of them.
Been very busy house painting and it's not that easy at my age in my condition. Not seen my camera for weeks now.

The pano feature couldn't be easier, honestly. You simply choose 'panoramic' from the scene modes, click ok and you get the option of directions (left/right, right/left, up/down,down/up) - then all you do is pan the camera in your chosen direction as you hold down the shutter. No faffing about, no need for the handbook - just choose the pano scene mode and that's it.

You're ever so good for doing the painting! You can come and do ours after you've finished yours.

Pol

[Pol]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

My fun for today was fiddling about using the extra features on iA+. I can now tweak the colour temperature, bokeh and EV when in iA+ mode ... very useful features, useful additions to iA.

Pol

[Rodbender]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

My fun for today was fiddling about using the extra features on iA+. I can now tweak the colour temperature, bokeh and EV when in iA+ mode ... very useful features, useful additions to iA.

Pol

Well you sure are making progress with the FZ200. Only time I have used the iA mode is to test the extended zoom. Today I was helping a friend put some of her images on her desktop as a background. I was using my computer at the side of her so she could copy me and learn how it's done. I happened to select the image below as my desktop and was quite pleased with the result. It's one I shot some time ago with the FZ200. Your honest opinion on the quality of this image. Considering it's about 7 times bigger than life on my computer I quite like it.

[Pol]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

... Your honest opinion on the quality of this image. Considering it's about 7 times bigger than life on my computer I quite like it.

My honest opinion? Well I think that's a fantastic image, brilliant and also very beautiful.

I'm cheesed off because we lost our best Buddleia last winter so we didn't have anywhere near the number of butterflies this year. Our wild flower patches were also hammered (drowned out then the couch grass ran amok) so David's been going at it flat out to try to sort it all out - but we're not planning on replacing the lost Buddleia.

Pol

[Pol]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

This one isn't in quite the same league as your superb Brimstone butterfly but I was quite pleased with it. It's from yesterday's experimental shots when I was fiddling about with iA+ additional features.

Shot at full stretch (35mm equivalent: 1200mm) and with maximum background blur courtesy of the slider in iA+. It's also a crop using approximately 75% of the frame (I cropped off some of an intrusive branch on the left and some excess nothingness along the top.



Pol

[Rodbender]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

Well at 1200mm plus a crop that's not bad at all considering the small size of the sensor. The image stabilizer does a good job too at that range. Maybe, just maybe I'll soon have time to try some of these things out myself.

[Pol]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

Well at 1200mm plus a crop that's not bad at all considering the small size of the sensor. The image stabilizer does a good job too at that range. Maybe, just maybe I'll soon have time to try some of these things out myself.

The weather's yucky here, the camper is about to go in for a new cam belt, the car won't start and David has his trigger thumb in a splint so there's not a lot I can do other than sit either just inside or just outside the back patio door and fiddle about with the camera, binos or issue instructions to David (eg to stop whining and make us summick to eat, grumpy).

Pol

[Rodbender]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

Weather here is not good at all. Had to wear my builders thick annorack to take the dog out. House painting still not finished. Got to go visiting tomorrow, so what's a camera? My memory fades so quickly these days I have forgotten I own one.

[Guest]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

Agreed.

DennisP is well into his 80s and still likes to splash out on new kit occasionally. Didn't he get himself one of the latest Oly models a few months ago? I forgot the details of what it was he chose.


Pol

Hi Pol - Yes I am Into my 80s, to be precise 86 !! You are right I did invest in a new camera last year but it was not an Oly. I did consider an OM E 1 but in the end I stuck with Pentax and did a trade in for the latest K3. Nice to know still remember me.

[Pol]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

Hi Pol - Yes I am Into my 80s, to be precise 86 !! You are right I did invest in a new camera last year but it was not an Oly. I did consider an OM E 1 but in the end I stuck with Pentax and did a trade in for the latest K3. Nice to know still remember me.

How could I ever forget you, Dennis! You're part of the furniture around here, same as me. Good choice of camera, good for you for sticking with Pentax. I still have all of mine, the most recent being the K20D.

I'm still in my (very) late 60s but only for another week. I didn't expect to be so lame at my age but there y'go. RSI and a series of accidents and mishaps took their toll but I am gradually improving, albeit slowly.

Stay well Dennis, you're an inspiration - you really are.

Pol

[Rodbender]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

Pol I did a quick Pan panorama picture but was not happy with the quality. Perhaps I need lessons or at least try again. your shots looked far better than mine so it's not the camera it's ME.
Not had much time to use the camera but did take these yesterday.






Here's the not so good pano

[Pol]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

Pol I did a quick Pan panorama picture but was not happy with the quality. Perhaps I need lessons or at least try again. your shots looked far better than mine so it's not the camera it's ME.
Not had much time to use the camera but did take these yesterday.

Wow, there's nowt wrong with any of those, they're all much more than acceptable and the Hedgehog picci is especially fantastic!

I can't see anything wrong with your pano either. You're never gonna get the same sort of quality pano that you'd get from faffing about with tripods, manual settings etc. but I still think it's a brilliant feature to be able to grab a handheld 'sweep' that includes so much more than a regular WA. It's also brilliant in that it comes straight off the camera ready stitched, no need to be correcting perspectives etc.

I love your pano, I really do. It's a fabulous view of the Park - lovely setting, great image and I dare bet some of the neighbours would be interested in having printed copies.

It's so quick and easy to get panos from the FZ200. Dunno about you but I keep grabbing them just for the fun of it. I even tried it indoors but it failed 'cos there wasn't enough light.

Pol

[Rodbender]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

That pano is the view from my back door. The hedgehog was a surprise to see 3o'clock in the afternoon. Must have over slept. Like what I do regularly.l

[Pol]

Re: Panasonic FZ200

That pano is the view from my back door. The hedgehog was a surprise to see 3o'clock in the afternoon. Must have over slept. Like what I do regularly.l

It's nevertheless an interesting view, an interesting image of everyday life. I don't know about where you are but there's virtually no movement or activity in our road and cul-de-sac these days. David watches out for Nellie though.

You were every lucky to see that hedgehog AND to be able to get such a superb picture. We always had quite a few in the garden until about a couple of years ago. Pops and I bought 'Hogitats' for them and he's had them moving into his whereas ours remains empty, no hogs even in the woodpiles etc behind the trees and shrubs in the bottom corners of the back garden.

Dunno if the bad winters killed them off. I wouldn't be at all surprised , though we keep hoping they'll eventually return. I always enjoyed watching them during the night, I miss them.

Pol