FZ20 v S1 IS

Joel wrote:
"Kilroy_Woz_ere" wrote in
:

I've narrowed my choice down to either Panasonic FZ20 or Canon S1
IS.
Price is a factor but better night time, floodlit football
photography
would swing the decision as would decent movie capture under the
same
conditions. It's main use would be at football so 90+ minutes of
battery life is essential taking approx 100 photos and 20 movies.

The S1 IS has better movie capture. But, the FZ20 performs better in
low
light and is faster at auto-focusing - important for action shots.

FYI, I have some side-by-side comparison shots taken with both
cameras
inside a synagogue. Not night shots - but, indoors, mostly without
flash.
This was a photo shoot that I was asked to do, and, by coincidence I
had
just gotten the FZ20 so I brought it along to test out.

The S1 IS was set to ISO 100 (not reported in the EXIF data). Also,
Flash
value of "15" or "16" (don't remember which it is) means NO FLASH. A
value
of "25" means FLASH WAS FIRED.

http://joelraskin.smugmug.com/gallery/257631

Is it just me or are the photos from the S1 IS a little over-exposed
compared to the FZ-20? Also, FZ-20 photos look sharper (could be
because of the 5MP vs 3.2MP sensor). But I agree, to the casual eye
there doesn't seem to be much of a difference in the shoot above.
Cheers,

Siddhartha

Siddhartha Jain wrote:
[]
Is it just me or are the photos from the S1 IS a little over-exposed
compared to the FZ-20? Also, FZ-20 photos look sharper (could be
because of the 5MP vs 3.2MP sensor). But I agree, to the casual eye
there doesn't seem to be much of a difference in the shoot above.
Cheers,

Siddhartha

All these cameras have different metering algorithms which better or worse
in different circumstances.

Between the S1 IS and FZ20 I would recommend comaring the handling in a
shop. In particular, ask to see the manual focus working.....

Cheers,
David

In article ,
(Joel) wrote:

http://joelraskin.smugmug.com/gallery/257631

Thanks for putting that page together. Useful comparison.

Andrew McP

Joel wrote in
:

"Kilroy_Woz_ere" wrote in
:

It was late when I originally posted, and, there were some other comments I
should have added. So, here goes...

References to test photos- see http://joelraskin.smugmug.com/gallery/257631

Both cameras did quite well - but, both also had their problems. I took
about 100 photos with the S1 IS and 140 with the FZ20. While I don't
remember the exact numbers, there were somewhere around 5 or 6 bad photos
(mostly out of focus) with the S1 IS and about 25 bad ones from the FZ20.
But, I need to stress, again, that I was totally unfamiliar with the FZ20's
controls. I knew how to use the review feature of the Canon (by holding
down the shutter release after taking a photo.... I have auto-review turned
off). I did not know how to do this for the FZ20, so, I did not get to
review any of its photos on the spot. More importantly, since I was using
default settings right out of the box, I wouldn't have known how to make
adjustments based on what the review showed. I guess I should also mention
that I need reading glasses to see up close, and I didn't have them with
me, so, I couldn't even read the controls on the back of the camera (not
very bright of me).

Some specific observations...


The FZ20 had trouble focusing on the memorial plaques on the wall. Why? I
don't really know. But, the last two photos on the first page shows this
comparison. The S1 IS focused on each of these very well. About half of
the FZ20 shots were totally out of focus.

However, there was another placque - more like a large white stone slab, on
the wall in a dark entry way. The S1 IS was totally blind there and could
not focus at all! I needed to whip out my trusty laser pointer and project
a pattern on the plaque to focus on. But, the EVF on the Canon allowed me
to see and compose the photo well. The FZ20, on the other hand, was able
to focus well on this (thanks to illuminated focus assist). But, it's EvF
was almost totally dark, making it very difficult to see and compose the
image.

I've had the Canon for about 3 months now and the FZ20 for about 3 weeks.
Some general thoughts:

Both cameras have a tendency to overexpose - especially in bright, sunny
conditions. I think the S1 IS does so more than the FZ20. I've now gotten
used to adjusting the exposure (-1/3 or -2/3) in certain types of lighting
to compensate rather than try to deal with it in post processing.

The image stabilization works well on both cameras. I've gotten good
shots, handheld, at shutter speeds as slow as 1/8 or 1/6 sec with each -
but, I think the FZ20 is the better of the two at this (higher success
rate).

I think I already mentioned the FZ20's better performance regarding focus
speed and shutter lag. While I take photos of mostly inanimate subjects, I
do like to get it on, occasionaly, with some of the squirrels that live
around my building. I was using a Minolta Z1 for a while and it was
absolutely the best at focusing instantly and then being ready for the next
shot immediately after pressing the shutter release. The S1 IS is good -
much faster than other cameras I've had (specifically the Fuji S3800 and
S5000). But, I found it to be too slow for these shots where the subject
was constantly in motion. The FZ20 is faster than the S1 IS - almost, but,
not quite, as fast as the Minolta.

I find that I'm able to get photos with the FZ20 under available light,
that I am not able to get with the S1 IS. This is, I think, because the
FZ20 can zoom and still open to the full f2.8 while the S1 IS stops down
the aperture when you start to use the zoom (I don't remember the exact
point at which this happens). So, I guess with the larger aperture, the
FZ20 is able to use a slightly faster shutter - or, can just take better
photos under darker conditions than the S1 IS could. Since the original
poster spoke of taking photos at football games, this might be a factor,
when zooming - I'm guessing the FZ20 would get better results.

There are things, however, that I kind of got used to on the S1 IS, that I
wish the FZ20 had. One, for sure, is the swivel LCD monitor. It makes it
very convenient to take photos from within a crowd (holding the camera
above the crowd), to take photos without being too conspicuous, or for
taking shots that might otherwise be impossible - like holding the camera
out a bus window (not always a smart or safe move, I know) and using the
swivel LCD to compose the shot.

I also miss the smaller size of the S1 IS. It's almost ironic, but, I
started on this quest to replace my Olympus C2100UZ (Uzi) with something
else that was smaller, but, with similar picture quality and features, etc.
In the past 12 months I've gone through 2 Fuji, the Minolta Z1 and finally
the S1 IS before I was happy enough to sell the Uzi. But, I just wanted a
bit more resolution, so, I bought the FZ20. After this 12-month journey, I
sort of came back full circle to a camera that is probably just as large -
if not larger (with the included lens adapter/lens hood) than the Uzi.

I decided to keep the S1 IS as a backup k (now that I sold the Uzi). There
are too many things that I like about it. I also have the underwater
housing for it - since I love to walk around in the rain taking photos!
This came in handy on my recent trip to Florida (just in time for Hurricane
Frances!).

I'm sure there's lots of stuff I'm forgetting to mention. But, if you have
any questions, just ask.


FYI, I have other photos posted on Smugmug, taken with the Z1, S1IS and
FZ20 - not side-by-side comparisons, though.
http://joelraskin.smugmug.com

I also have photos posted that I call "Test Photos" - really just photos
around the apartment and outside, for lack of anything better to test the
camera with and demonstrate the zoom. You can't get at these without the
following URLs

Note: the FZ20 photos are NOT post-processed.... most of the S1 IS photos
ARE post processed.


FZ20: http://www.smugmug.com/gallery/250054
SIIS: http://www.smugmug.com/gallery/191510





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"Renee" wrote in
:
That's a very beautiful synagogue, b-t-w. Never seen one quite like
it. I always thought they were mostly modest, nondescript structures.


Yes, I agree. I pass by this synagogue frequently and never gave it a
second thought. It's very non-descript from the outside. I was absolutely
amazed when I saw the magnificent interior. The photos - which I don't yet
know if they will be using or not - are for their upcoming 125th
Anniversary journal.



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