Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 Review
Written by Chris Lawrence Tuesday, 28 July 2009 09:55 - Last Updated Tuesday, 28 July 2009 10:20
Camera based on a production LX3 with V1.0 firmware (White balance section updated to reflect V1.1 performance)
Panasonic's LX series has always been home to the company's most ambitious compacts, offering a range of photographer-friendly features in a small, stylish and solid body festooned with external controls. It's been two years since the launch of the LX2 and the market has changed a lot in that time - the level of features offered even on inexpensive models has grown and the cost of all cameras, particularly DSLRs, has fallen drastically. Both of these trends risk reducing the potential market for premium compacts if their features are available on cheaper

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compacts, and much better photographic tools (in terms of flexibility of purpose and image quality) are available for only a little more money. So the LX3, more than its predecessors, has to play to its strengths - it needs to offer some of the best compact camera image quality, a good degree of user control and a body that is more convenient and pocketable than DSLRs can be.
And Panasonic seems fully aware of these challenges. When announcing the camera, the company pointed out that more pixels on the same sized sensor does not always result in better image quality and described its approach with the LX3 as: "boldly reversing the industry trend of pushing toward ever-higher pixel counts." It's an admirable position (though one that would be easier to acclaim if the company hadn't, on the same day, released one of the most pixel-dense cameras we've ever seen), and one that seems promising - the benefits of newer sensor and processing technology without those advances being strangled by the downsides of smaller pixels. (And we believe that if you offer more pixels with the hard drive clutter and slower camera operation they bring, then those pixels must be good at the pixel level, otherwise, what benefits do those additional pixels bring?) Headline features 24mm wide 2.5x optical LEICA DC lens F2.0-2.8 maximum aperture range MEGA O.I.S.(Optical Image Stabilizer) Venus Engine IV Joystick-operated manual control Large 3.0 460k dot LCD monitor Raw and JPEG recording modes Up to ISO 3200 sensitivity Up to 1280x720 (30 fps) pixel movie capture Manual exposure and focus options 1/2000th to 60 sec shutter speeds Available in black or silver
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LX3 vs LX2: main differences Although the outward appearance hasn't changed that dramatically, the LX2 and LX3 are very different creatures. The the easiest thing to miss about the LX3 is its lens - a part of the specification sheet that is sometimes easy to overlook as a string of numbers. With the LX3 it's really worth spending a moment thinking about it: starting at 24mm equivalent is pretty unusual in a compact camera. Offering an aperture range of F2.0-2.8 is extraordinary. But to combine the two and include Image Stabilization is simply astonishing - this is not an everyday lens and it's something that defines how the camera behaves and what it can be used for.
To put that aperture range in perspective, this means it's one 'stop' faster (brighter) at the wide end and over 1.5 brighter at the long end than the F2.8-4.9 lens fitted to its predecessor. And this means that you can get the same exposure using the same shutter speed but using a lower ISO setting than with the older camera.
Beyond that, there the new, higher-resolution rear screen that conforms to the more traditional 3:2 aspect ratio, rather than its forebear's 16:9 unit.
The other differences are: Similar pixel count sensor (10.1 vs 10.0 MP) Venus Engine IV (vs Venus Engine III) 3:2 aspect ratio 3-inch screen (was 2.8-inch 16:9) Flash hot-shoe Threaded lens barrel for adding optional conversion lenses or filters USB 2.0 Hi Speed interface (at last!) More internal memory (50 MB) 720p HD movie mode now at 30fps Closer minimum focusing distance: 1cm, rather than 5cm Faster continuous shooting (2.5fps for 8 frames, cf. 2fps for 5 frames) Separate component video out (for HD playback) Improved battery life Minor control and interface changes

Multi-aspect ratio Roll your mouse over the tabs to see the way the difference aspect ratios are taken from the

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sensor or click on the diagram to download the overlaid versions.
The LX3 does away with its predecessor's unusual 16:9 aspect ratio sensor, instead using a more conventional 3:2 sensor but then using only a crop from it, depending on aspect ratio. The key thing is that the LX3 even uses a crop from the sensor at 4:3 ratio, rather than using the entire sensor. Although this may seem perverse, the result is that the lens offers the same diagonal angle of view regardless of selected aspect ratio, making it much easier to get a feel for the behaviour of the lens. It also means you make the most of the sensor's area, getting similar pixel counts in all modes.
The image on the left shows the result of shooting the same scene at the same zoom setting usin DMC-LX3 specifications List price (EU) UK 399.99

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US $499.95 11.3 million total pixels CCD 10.1 million effective pixels Primary Color Filter Sensor

1/1.63" sensor

MEGA O.I.S. (Auto/Mode1/ Mode2) Image sizes

Image stabilization

Lens-shift

4:3 Aspect Ratio:

3648x 2736 pixels
3072 x 2304 pixels 2560 x 1920 pixels 2048 x 1536 pixels 1600 x 1200 pixels 640 x 480 pixels

3:2 Aspect Ratio:

3776 x 2520 pixels 3168 x 2112 pixels 2656 x 1768 pixels 2112 x 1408pixels 2048 x 1360 pixels 16:9 Aspect Ratio:
3968 x 2232 pixels 3328 x 1872 pixels 2784 x 1568 pixels 1920 x x 1248 pixels

4:3 Aspect Ratio:

Movie mode
320 x 240 pixels 30 fps/10 fps
640 x 480 pixels 30 fps or

QuickTime Motion JPEG

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16:9 Aspect Ratio: 848 x 480 pixels 30 fps Output formats
HD16:9 Aspect Ratio: 1280x720 pixels 24fps" RAW
JPEG ( Exif 2.21 standard) Venus Engine IV 2.5x zoom

Image processor Lens

f=5.1-12.8mm (35mm Equiv.: 24-60mm)

F2.0 - F2.8

LEICA DC VARIO-SUMMICRON

8 elements in 6 groups

4 Aspherical Lenses / 4 Aspherical surfaces) Focus modes Macro Quick AF Continuous AF Manual Focus (Joystick) One Shot AF Normal

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AF Area Select AF Tracking AF assist lamp Shooting modes P(Program) mode A(AperturePriority) mode S(Shutter Priority) mode M(Manual) mode Motion Picture Custom1 Custom2 Scene mode Yes Intelligent AUTO
Scene modes Soft Skin Self-Portrait Scenery Sports Night Portrait

Portrait

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Night Scenery Food, Party Candle Light Baby1 Baby2 Pet Sunset High sensitivity Starry Sky Fireworks Beach Snow Aerial photo Hi-Speed Burst Flash-Burst Film Grain Pin Hole Metering Center Weighted Intelligent Multiple

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Spot AE Bracketing +/- 0.3/0.5 EV

Exposure compen.

+/-2 EV 0.3 EV increments

Sensitivity

Auto 3200

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High Sensitivity Mode : Auto(1600 - 6400)

Shutter speed

P: 1-1/2000sec (Selectable minimum shutter speed) A/S: 8-1/2000sec M: 60-1/2000sec Starry Sky Mode : 15, 30, 60sec.
Aperture values White balance Daylight Cloudy Shade Flash Halogen Color Temperature
Wide: F2.0 - F8.0 Tele: F2.8 - F8 Auto

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White Set 1 White Set 2 White Balance Adjustment Drive modes

Single Continuous

Burst speed
2.5 frames/sec Max. 8 images (Standard), Max 4 images
High-speed Burst Mode: approx. 6 frames/sec (recorded in 3M for 4:3, 2.5M for 3:2, 2M for 16: Self-timer LCD monitor 10 sec. / 2 sec. 3.0", 3:2 Polycrystalline TFT LCD Display

460K dots

Field of View : approx. 100%

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AUTO Power LCD mode Viewfinder Optional

Auto/Red-eye Reduction

Forced On
Slow Sync./Red-eye Reduction

Forced Off

Flash Synchro 1st / 2nd

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Flash output Adjustment (1/3EV step, -2 - +2 EV)

Hotshoe

FLash coverage
0.8 - 8.3m (Wide/Macro/ISO Auto), 0.3 - 5.9m (Tele/ISO Au

Connectivity

DC Input

AV Output (NTSC/PAL)

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HD AV Output (Component)

USB2.0 High speed
Storage SDHC Memory Card MultiMediaCard (Still image only) Internal Memory (approx. 50 MB) Power

SD Memory Card

Li-ion Battery Pack (3.7V, 1150mAh)
Battery life: 380 pictures (CIPA standard) AC Adaptor (Input: 110-240V AC) (Optional)

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Dimensions Weight (with battery)
108.7 x 59.5 x 27.1 mm Approx. 265 g

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