Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ30E-K Bridge Camera - Black (16.1MP, 35x Optical Zoom, 25mm Wide Angle, Panaroma Shot, HD Video) 3 inch LCD

I recently bought this camera from Amazon and so far I'm really impressed with it. For starters the build quality is really solid and it looks great in the black finish (much prefer that to red!).As for the camera it takes excellent quality photos with good colour and detail, and with the flash on it can make the images look more bright and vivid. The 35x optical zoom is also quite impressive although it does take a bit of time to set itself, especially when you use it on the max setting and to get the best results you definitely need to use a tripod otherwise it will be blurry and out of focus.The camera also has plenty of other features and different modes such as program, manual, potriat, scenery (landscape) and creative control. Creative control offers some different effects which can be added to a photo such as sepia and monochrome (which was my favourite) and I had some fun messing around with these settings. It is also capable of taking really good macro shots, which I enjoyed using and was quite impressed with the close up detail in the results.I'm giving the camera four stars though because I feel the manual mode is a bit limited and you only have two aperture settings so it isn't very customisable manually speaking. I also felt in low light the images could be a bit noisy and lack detail and at times the colours in some photos can appear a tad muted. Another negative is you cannot zoom in when using the video recording mode which is daft given the size of the optical zoom! However this doesn't bother me too much as I only intend to use it for photos anyway.Despite that I think the LZ30 is a great camera and its got lots of really good features and takes excellent photos and if you are looking for an entry level bridge camera this is definitely worth it.

I was looking for a camera with a high optical zoom to enable me to take landscape photos. This camera allows me to do this but is equally as good for portrait photos. It's a great all rounder. It has a large viewing screen to view your photos and you can also record video however I've not tried this yet. I downloaded the pdf user guide but still found it difficult to work out how to move the photos that were saved on the camera memory to the memory card. I love this camera, It looks good and the red colour makes a nice change. Great camera, great price.

I already have a Lumix fz38 which I have had for 4 years and I love it, but wanted a bigger zoom and better macro.The DMC-LZ30e has both of these things. I have only been out today for the first time with the new camera and the batteries ran out, after only a couple of hours. These were the duracell batteries which came with the camera and I would have expected ithem to last longer. Also the battery compartment cover seems quite flimsy. The zoom seems to take a few seconds to respond when the trigger is pressed but I guess I'll get used to it.I made a point of taking some shots with both cameras to compare, and was very pleased with both the zoom and the macro shots with the new one.The screen is bigger than my fz38, but there is no viewfinder, which I really missed. I guess that is also something I will get used to in time.It is too soon to say very much more at this stage. At £89.99 it was considerably cheaper than the fz38 (close to £300) probably a good buy, time will tell.

I was looking for something that was a step or 2 up from my old point and press, and the pics I can take on my phone.The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ30E is as easy as pie to use. 99% of the time I have it in point and press (auto) mode, but I do have the facility to explore the full semi auto mode if I want.The camera is smallish, and light enough without loosing any feeling of robust build. It uses 4 x AA batteries and I find that they last reasonably well. I tend to use rechargeables, but it is reassuring to know that I can usually get AAs anywhere.The lens is good quality and opens out from wide angle to a useful 35 times optical zoom, As well as panorama and HD video facilities.I got it for photos at work, and to be honest, I can go into fairly harsh environments, where it has always performed very well. I have had some cracking photos from it, certainly good enough for brochures and posters, and I have even played with some of the on-board effects.This is a camera that I would be happy to bung in a case or rucksack and take anywhere. I'm not saying it is the best featured, or has the best optics, but for my needs, it is great.