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| Click photo to see images of all the Editor's Choice 2007 products. |
Given the massive pixel counts of today's compact cameras, more megapixels is a debatable advantage. But Panasonic's new Lumix is the only such camera to combine the highest resolution in its category, 12 megapixels, with a true 28mm-equivalent focal length (in 35mm terms) -- wide-angle capability sorely lacking in most compact models. Yet the camera's 28-100mm f/2.8-5.6 optical zoom, a Leica DC Vario-Elmarit with five aspheric surfaces among its seven elements, goes long enough for undistorted tight portraiture. And the lens has optical image stabilization, which, along with its fairly wide maximum aperture and the camera's top sensitivity of ISO 1600, allows you to shoot very effectively without flash in low existing light. (In a pinch you can boost speed to ISO 6400, with resolution reduced to two or three megapixels.) Some action-oriented subject modes even feature an "intelligent ISO" capability that automatically raises the ISO when it detects motion in a scene, to help keep moving subjects sharp.
All that speed and resolution might seem like a recipe for noise, but the FX100 keeps it well under control thanks to improved image processing and a larger-than-usual CCD image sensor (1/1.72 inches), which lets all those pixels stay bigger. (The camera can shoot in 16:9 HDTV proportions, the better to show pictures on your wide-screen TV.) The slim, metal-bodied camera is extremely compact, and comes in black and silver. Plus, it's unusually versatile in its video capability, allowing you to shoot 1280x720 pixels at 15 frames-per-second, or 848x480 (wide-screen) and standard 640x480, both at 30fps. It saves files to ever-bigger SD/SDHC memory cards. Other outstanding features include a more powerful flash and bursts at up to eight frames-per-second. That's also with reduced resolution, but who's counting pixels anymore? About $400.
American PHOTO Editor's Choice 2007
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