My first day out with my FZ50

Yesterday was my first day out with my newly arrived FZ50.

It's brilliant, no masterpieces but I've posted a few samples, mainly birds as that is what the primary use will be.

Criticisms, very few at this time:
I wish it hung better on the strap

The options are vast and it will take me some time to master, I knew that some of the things that I wanted to do were possible but I couldn't remember how.

The battery life was very disappointing but I was reviewing what I'd taken and I tried a couple of raws and a couple of flashes but even so I only got something like 140 pictures.

I have been having some difficulty with the macro mode. I don’t seem to be able to focus and all my results are way out. I assume that I must be doing something wrong. Is it about setting the zoom at one end.

Sharp eyed bird fans amongst you may recognise Ring-billed Gull, this should be 3000 miles away in the US but arrived this week to spend its 4th winter on the south coast of the UK

very good trevor

Trevor Carpenter said:

The battery life was very disappointing but I was reviewing what
I'd taken and I tried a couple of raws and a couple of flashes but
even so I only got something like 140 pictures.

Click to expand...

The LCD consumes more power than anything else. I review through the EVF and use it for almost everything.

http://trevorg.smugmug.com

PS Great pics

Good shots.

Macro mode has quite a long minimum focussing mode in anything except extreme wideangle settings (try manual focus to see if focussing is possible at your chosen zoom/distance).

I'm still waiting for my Raynox 150 and 250 macro adapters to arrive to overcome this.

--
Colin
http://www.pbase.com/cdyckes

Terrific start with your camera. I just got my last Friday and am doing the same thing you are.

Sure outperforms my Sony DSC-F707 which was "state of the art" 6-7 years ago.

David

Lovely shots, Trevor! Very nice!

Trevor Carpenter said:

The battery life was very disappointing but I was reviewing what
I'd taken and I tried a couple of raws and a couple of flashes but
even so I only got something like 140 pictures.

Click to expand...

After you have recharged that battery for 3 or 4 times, you will find that it will last longer. It's still new.

Trevor Carpenter said:

I have been having some difficulty with the macro mode. I don’t
seem to be able to focus and all my results are way out. I assume
that I must be doing something wrong. Is it about setting the zoom
at one end.

Click to expand...

Minimum focus distance is 2 meters (6.56 feet) on the long end. Anything closer and you will not be able to focus.

Olga

Great first day out! Goodluck and enjoy your new 50!
--



Regards,
Kirwin
http://timebandit.smugmug.com

You and your new camera will go far, Trevor!

Trevor Carpenter said:

Criticisms, very few at this time:
I wish it hung better on the strap

Click to expand...

You may want to consider a wrist strap. Many of us prefer it.

Trevor Carpenter said:

The options are vast and it will take me some time to master, I
knew that some of the things that I wanted to do were possible but
I couldn't remember how.

Click to expand...

If you go through your manual from cover to cover, spending 45 minutes a day performing all the options with your camera, you will learn a lot in very little time. You can do this sitting at your computer, using the downloadable PDF manual from Panasonic:

http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/vProdSupportResults?storeId=15001 Just click the DMC-FZ50K link, wait a while, and save to your hard drive.

Trevor Carpenter said:

The battery life was very disappointing but I was reviewing what
I'd taken and I tried a couple of raws and a couple of flashes but
even so I only got something like 140 pictures.

Click to expand...

Don't worry. It is typical of lithium-ion batteries that they take several charge-discharge cycles to attain their full capacity. If you don't see any improvement after 5 cycles, contact Panasonic or your dealer for a replacement. A more normal charge life is in excess of 300 shots for your camera.

PS: The very cheap generic battery substitutes found on ebay are excellent value for the money, should you want a spare or two.

Trevor Carpenter said:

I have been having some difficulty with the macro mode. I don’t
seem to be able to focus and all my results are way out. I assume
that I must be doing something wrong. Is it about setting the zoom
at one end.

Click to expand...

In macro mode, at full 420mm zoom, you cannot get closer than 2 meters to your subject. Sort of annoying, I know. You can get achromatic macro add-on lenses if you want to get closer while zooming in macro.

Your photos are smashing!

--

I have the FZ50 as well, and I also found the strap holders made it hang awkwardly. You'd think they could have mounted them on an angle - but since that's about the only problem I have with this great camera I guess I can't really complain.

Anyway, what I did was get a couple of thin metal split rings (like on keychains, but very small). I put them throught the strap holders, and attached the strap through them. This allows the camera to hang almost vertically, which feels much better, and makes the lens less susceptible to bumping into things as well.

Great start Trevor. Lovely images. I was quite frustated with my battery too. It has improved a little bit over last few weeks, but I am not quite happy yet, I haven't seen much improvement over FZ30. Pana should make better batteries.
aftab