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Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ20 By: Dave Etchells Panasonic introduces a five-megapixel digicam with the high quality optics of a 12x Leica lens. Select a topic Reference: Datasheet DMC-FZ20 Sample Images DMC-FZ20 Imatest Results DMC-FZ20 Photo Gallery! --------------------------------- 1. Intro and Highlights 2. Comparison With Other Panasonic DMC-FZ Models 3. User's Report 4. Design 5. Viewfinder 6. Optics 7. Exposure & Flash 8. Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests 9. Operation & User Interface 10. Camera Modes & Menus 11. Image Storage & Interface 12. Video, Power, Software 13. Test Results & Conclusion --------------------------------- Print-Friendly Review Version Additional Resources and Other Links Reader Comments on DMC-FZ20 Review --------------------------------- Digital Camera Comparometer (TM) --------------------------------- <-- Digital Cameras (Home) <-- Digital Camera Reviews Index <<Operation & User Interface :(Previous) | (Next): Image Storage & Interface>> Page 10:Camera Modes & Menus Review First Posted: 12/17/2004

Record Menu: The following options are available by pressing the Menu button in any record mode, though some menu options aren't available in all modes:

• White Balance: Sets the white balance to Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Halogen, Flash, Manual, or White Set modes. (White Set isn't a separate white balance mode, it's just the option for manually setting the white point that's selected by the Manual option.)
• Motion Rate: (Movie mode only.) Sets the frame rate to 30 or 10 frames per second for movie files.
• Sensitivity: Adjusts the camera's sensitivity setting. Choices are Auto, 80, 100, 200, or 400 ISO equivalents.
• Picture Size: Sets image resolution to 2,560 x 1,920; 2,048 x 1,536; 1,600 x 1,200; 1,280 x 960; or 640 x 480 pixels, with an "HDTV" setting (1,920 x 1,080 pixels).
• Quality: Sets the image compression to Fine or Standard, or to uncompressed TIFF.
• Audio Record: Turns automatic audio recording on or off.

• Metering Mode: Designates the camera's metering mode as Multiple, Center-Weighted, or Spot.
• AF Mode: Sets the AF area mode to Nine-Area, Three-Area, One-Area, or Spot.
• Continuous AF: Turns the Continuous AF mode on or off.
• AF Assist Lamp: Activates the autofocus assist beam, which automatically turns on whenever the Shutter button is half-pressed in dim lighting to help the camera focus.
• Digital Zoom: Enables or disables the digital zoom option.

• Color Effect: Selects a color effect, with options of Cool, Warm, Black and White, or Sepia.
• Picture Adjust: Offers a range of picture adjustment tools, including Contrast, Sharpness, Saturation, and Noise Reduction settings. Each adjustment offers high, standard, or low setting options.
• Stabilizer: Turns the image stabilization on or off, and selects Mode 1 or Mode 2. The Mode1 setting enables image stabilization at all times, and Mode2 enables it only when the shutter is released. (This should save some battery power, but I personally like being able to see what the image stabilization is doing.)
• Flip Animation: Enables Flip Animation mode. "Image Capture" lets you capture the series of images (as many as 100). "Create Motion Image" puts them together as a motion file. The "Delete Still Images" option erases the series of still images, but not the motion file.
• Conversion Lens: Tells the camera that a conversion lens is in use. Options are Off, Wide, or Tele.

Scene Menu: If designated through the Setup menu, this menu automatically appears in the SCN1 and SCN2 modes. If turned off, pressing the Menu button calls up this page. (No screenshots here, these screens just have a little icon and text name for each mode.) You can select separate options for SCN1 and SCN2.

• Portrait: Utilizes a larger aperture to decrease the depth of field, resulting in a sharply focused subject in front of a slightly blurred background.
• Sports: Employs a faster shutter speed to "freeze" fast-moving action.
• Scenery: This mode fixes focus at infinity, and is best for capturing wide vistas and landscapes.
• Night Scenery: In this mode, the camera slows the shutter speed to capture more ambient light and preserve color in darker exposures. (The flash is disabled.)
• Night Portrait: As with the mode above, the camera uses a slower shutter speed for better color in night shots. However, the flash is set to Slow-Sync with Red-Eye Reduction mode.
• Panning: This mode is for panning the camera to photograph a moving subject, such as a runner or cyclist. You hold down the Shutter button and pan the camera with the subject, so that the subject is in focus but the background is blurry.
• Fireworks: Here, the camera uses a slower shutter speed and enhances color slightly to capture the full pattern and color of fireworks.
• Party: Best for taking pictures under dim indoor lighting with a flash, you can select between Forced Red-Eye Reduction and Slow-Sync Red-Eye Reduction modes.
• Snow: This mode adjusts the white balance and exposure to preserve detail in the bright highlights of snow scenes.
  
  

Play Menu: This menu is only available in the Review mode. It lets you scroll through captured images; erase, protect, and rotate them; or set them up in a slide show or for printing on a DPOF compatible device. The Play menu offers the following selections:

• Rotate: Rotates captured images 90 degrees clockwise or counterclockwise.
• Protect: Write protects the currently displayed image, protecting it from accidental deletion, except by card formatting. There's also an option for protecting multiple images at once.
• DPOF Print: Marks individual or multiple images for printing on a DPOF compatible printer.
• Slide Show: Automatically plays all images or only DPOF selected files in a slide show format. You can designate the display interval for images from one to five seconds.
• Audio Dub.: Allows addition of audio file to displayed photo.
• Resize: Lets you resize an image to a smaller resolution and save a separate copy.
• Trimming: Sort of like a cropping function, this option lets you "trim" an image and save it as a separate file.
• Format: Formats the SD/MMC card, erasing all files.
  
  

Setup Menu: The Setup menu provides universal camera control options that remain the same in both Shooting and Review modes. This menu is accessed by depressing the Menu button once and scrolling to the right with the Multicontroller. Following are the available settings:

• Monitor: Adjusts the brightness level of the LCD monitor in seven steps.
• Auto Review: Disables the automatic image review, or sets the review time to one or three seconds. A Zoom option displays the captured image for one second, then zooms it 4x for one second for easy focus verification.
• Play on LCD: If enabled, this function automatically displays captured images in the LCD monitor whenever the camera is switched to a review mode.
• Power Save: Lets you enable or disable the camera's auto power off feature, and change the time before the LCD display "sleeps" to 1, 2, 5, or 10 minutes.
• MF Assist: Turns the MF Assist function on or off, which enlarges the center portion of the LCD monitor for better viewing.

• Beep: Turns the camera's beep sound on or off, with low and high volume settings.
• Shutter: Turns the shutter noise on or off, with low and high volume settings.
• Volume: Selects playback volume for recorded audio.
• Clock Set: Sets the camera's internal clock and calendar.
• No. Reset: Resets file numbering with each new SD/MMC card (Yes setting), or continues file numbering from card to card (No setting). (Continuous file numbering is very handy to avoid accidentally overwriting images you've previously copied to your computer's hard drive.)

• Reset: Allows user to reset either all settings in the Record menu or all settings in the Setup menu.
• USB Mode: Sets the USB mode to PC or PictBridge.
• Highlight: Turns the blinking highlight display on or off in Playback mode.
• Video Out: Sets the video output signal to NTSC or PAL.
• Scene Menu: Options are Off or Auto. If Off, the camera automatically reverts the previously used Scene selection when the Mode dial is turned to SCN1 or SCN2. If set to Auto, the Scene menu automatically appears at either scene mode.
• Language: Changes the menu language to one of seven languages. (English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, and one other Asian language I didn't recognize.)