FZ50 replacement - Fed up Waiting - so designing own!

So I think by now we FZ50 lovers know the unique features from an FZ50 that we never see in cameras today. And since no-one listens, and we have all this experience to hand, how about we design our own?

For years I have accumulated 'nice to haves' for the replacement to the FZ50 which I have used for a kick off. Basically non extending lens, first class grip, great hand ergonomics and vastly enhanced flash capabilities. I will pretty much be doing my own thing here, but also see the chance for the FZ50 backers here to set comment on progress and have an influence on the design.

I have called the camera the LUNIX FZ60. Catchy?!





This could well prove quite a bit of fun. I'm up for this if you are.

For those that don't know, we rough out a model, as above, to get all the bits and pieces in place. This is a virtual clay model of the camera. Then, when it's looking pretty (a couple of months from now) we start to rebuild it of components, which come together as an assembly. These will have all the little screw holes etc. And the joint lines in the body will become visible.

Download the photos, write on them, post 'en back up again. Get stuck in a be a part of the Panasonic Forum Design Team. If we reach the 150 reply mark we'll just crack open a new post.

How did you know this most secret of foretellings in the Codices ? I suggest a radical new package:


"Eat your heart out, fanboys of the Order of the Pinhead Sensor and Pinocchio Proboscis"

The Die is Cast, The Trigger is Tripped, The Boat is Floated, Photon Armageddon is Nigh !

Hi,

Rip roaring response there. No matter - onwards.

This iteration sees some shape come to the sharp edges, plus screen and EVF.

The thumb recess is removed temporarily for modelling purposes.

The lens saddle has been drawn back to allow zoom action in portrait hold.

Set into the front of it are preliminary forms of the projector and laser.

The focus assist lamp will be there soon also.





Next will be the thumb grip, flash unit (fancy - real fancy) and a bit of a familiar look to the lens. The hot shoe will wait until quite late on.

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The FZ50: DSLR handling of a bright Leica 35-420mm lens that's this good: http://www.flickr.com/groups/panasonicfz50/pool/show (some real gems in there). With the FZ200 performance so good, I live in hope that Mr Ichiro Kitao has triggered the update to the FZ50. Our desire for IQ was taking us in the wrong direction. http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1033&message=42366095

Please put a PC-sync socket on this one! I use my FZ50 with off-camera strobes all the time and I now have to install a hot-shoe to PC adapter.

(It will just be a circle with a dot -- real easy).

Understood. It has wireless flash control as well. I intend the batteries (two envisioned, but the second not positioned at all yet; waiting to see what space remains) to be as big as possible for flash usage etc. Camera will charge by both external charger and plugging camera in directly (using any mobile phone charger).

Well no change to the lens, bar the manual focus grip is lumpier. I use the lesser fingers of my left hand to adjust focus ongoing. I rotate the control by walking these fingers along the underside of the lens, and these larger lumps would help greatly.











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The FZ50: DSLR handling of a bright Leica 35-420mm lens that's this good: http://www.flickr.com/groups/panasonicfz50/pool/show (some real gems in there). With the FZ200 performance so good, I live in hope that Mr Ichiro Kitao has triggered the update to the FZ50. Our desire for IQ was taking us in the wrong direction. http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1033&message=42366095

The key to the visual form of the design as it has progress so far is to radically overhaul the way digital cameras operate. I looked at the design from a point of view of target acquisition in weaponry, added to the all but forgotten art of filter use.

I thought: Cameras are gun sights without the gun. I didn't even know what I meant when i thought that, but later it struck me that another military term, painting a target, could be very useful in close camera work.

So new to the 'Lunix 5Z60' is the powerful projector. Yes this is an image projector to review photographs on impromptu screen surfaces, but my intention is to make it much more than that. For a start it will be a shaped delivery flash unit, capable of working in conjunction with the top flash, to provide a blistering array of intelligent flash options. Just as an example, consider an indoor portrait. When the top flash is closed it will nevertheless always be pointing up and 45 degrees forward for bounce work. So in composition the projector will work in conjunction with the camera sensor and test paint the subject with a grid of small dots. Using face recognition the camera tracks the subject and maintains this flash map during composition. Meanwhile the background is being assessed in camera for an amount of bounce flash required, A low intensity pre-flash is fired and light returned to the camera sensor and analysed. The resulting photograph is a combination of controlled close projected light onto the subject, with a balanced background light provided by the top flash.

Another projector feature will be the opportunity to project capture information onto the subject for a heads up approach to photography. Photographers working with close still life subjects will be able to use projected information for a simple as a level line to set up a subject, to advanced features that might included flashing dots on the subject to indicate dark spots where projected flash might be needed.

The FZ60 will have two sensors. A prism will divide 1/3 of the light onto a second sensor under the EVF. Both sensors operate in every capture, but the manner in which their output is combined will be driven by camera setting.

Both sensors are BSI CMOS, capable of a high rate of image capture. Image stacking will be a standard feature, with an external dial selectable between 1 and 6 stacked images. At the 1 setting a shutter speed of 1/2000 will be available, reducing to a fastest composition exposure of 1/200 on setting 6 (six captures in 1/200).

No camera processing capacity is available for movies.

Hi John,

The area where the FZ-50 houses the front scroll wheel is dramatically redesigned in your model. This concerns me as a person with big hands. In the existing FZ-50, there is very little vertical space between my ring finger and my pointer finger when holding the camera by the grip. The FZ-50 is open straight up through between the grip and the lens barrel and you have incorporated a "roof" over this area. I worry that having this thick plastic between my fingers, thus spreading them out further, would negatively effect the feel of the camera.

You may have built this in as a place for control buttons, switches, and dials. I guess I should wait to see what is going here and then decide if it is worth the trade-off.

Just don't make the camera any smaller than the FZ-50. I am not a fan of the "smaller is better" movement with the micro 4/3 cameras.

This is a fun little "let's dream" project.

The shutter release is right up front, perfect for keeping the finger in a straighter and more natural position. It will be along fairly soon, recessed into the top edge.

I'm in half a mind to borrow the mouse wheel idea, where front wheel and shutter become one. It would certainly save valuable reaction time in composition.

I'm pleased you appreciate the fun of this. I do think the stills camera needs to make a fight back, so with luck I can expand the role and abilities of the stills camera into new and exciting areas. For instance the projector can shine any colour onto subject fro filter style effects, or test areas of white balance by projecting calibrated colour and reading back through the sensor.

Oh and to add:- The basic camera is exactly the size of the FZ50, and would fit the same typical shaped camera bags.

Please bear in mind I dont know much about the technical side of things but could you not keep the same body & set up as the FZ30-50 just give it a better viewfinder & screen, a bit more zoom range if that can be done without spoiling the wonderfull lens & also a better battery life if possible,

Keep the body & lens the same, as despite trying all sorts I have not found anything I like better & have started using my old FZ30 again as a everyday camera.

One of the problems with such designs is that they are designed for dextrous people and not for sinister individuals. A basic tenet of good design is that controls should be ambidextrous. So how about duplicate shutter release buttons etc. on the left and right sides of the camera which are in actually USER- programmable function buttons so the lefties of the world are not left struggling to master (for them) back to front controls? (I am right handed by the way).

bluemoonman said:

bluemoonman wrote:

Please bear in mind I dont know much about the technical side of things but could you not keep the same body & set up as the FZ30-50 just give it a better viewfinder & screen, a bit more zoom range if that can be done without spoiling the wonderfull lens & also a better battery life if possible,

Keep the body & lens the same, as despite trying all sorts I have not found anything I like better & have started using my old FZ30 again as a everyday camera.

Click to expand...

From my limited knowledge of optics I suspect that it may not be possible to extend the optical zoom range of the excellent non-extending FZ30/50 lens without degrading its performance.

However based on the resolution and improved high ISO performance of the 14MP ZS20/TZ30 and 18 MP ZS30/TZ40 I believe it would be possible to replace the FZ50's 10MP 1/1.8" CCD sensor with a 24 MP CMOS sensor with updated signal conditioning electronics and signal processing software.

In the DPReview Cameras section the specifications for the FZ50 and ZS30 show their sensor dimensions as 7.144 mm x 5.358 mm and 6.17 mm x 4.55 mm respectively.

As shown in the following calculations based on these dimensions and the 4896 x 3672 pixel size of the ZS30 the resolution of the 1/1.8" (3648 pixel x 2736 pixel) sensor of the FZ50 should be capable of being increased to 24.9 MP which by means of the increased ability to crop in camera or in PP would allow an effective increase in focal length.

Sensor size (4896 pixels x 3672 pixels) x (5.358/4.55) = 5765 pixels x 4324 pixels = 24.9 MP. For a 10 MP in-camera crop that would give an equivalent focal length of 420 mm x 4324/2736 = 420 mm x 1.58 = 664 mm

The increase in resolution provided by such a sensor would therefore allow the 24 MP image to be cropped to 10 MP by means of an in-camera EZ crop with the same resolution as the current 10 MP CCD sensor and improved IQ at higher ISO values. That should in theory make it a very popular camera however due to the reduced pixel pitch that increase in sensor resolution would also require an increase in the accuracy of the OIS system.

Jimmy

I agree Jimmy. Blumoonman you ask for the one thing thing that can not be given without compromise to image quality. The FZ50 lens is a real masterpiece.

Jimmy I accept your advise on sensor selection, happily deferring to your greater understanding.

Oh I would accept an upgraded, looks the same, FZ50 in a heartbeat. But given the opportunity to mess around, I'm looking at anything that would expand the photographers creative options with the upgrade; money no object.

This camera requires equal effort from both hands. However handed a person is the practice to operate it proficiently will be the same hopefully.

Good idea. I had wireless flash and photo transfer in mind, but not charging.

OK no change for the hot shoe. But the on board flash is a major upgrade. It is shown stowed and already tilted for bounce flash. Once released it adopts spring retained pre-set angles forward until macro shots are supported.

There are three flash units, each capable of independent function. Each unit is larger than the present FZ50 capacity. These flashes can be combined in any combination as required by camera operation. Notably three stacked flash images can be achieved.





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__________________________________________________________________________
The FZ50: DSLR handling of a bright Leica 35-420mm lens that's this good: http://www.flickr.com/groups/panasonicfz50/pool/show (some real gems in there). With the FZ200 performance so good, I live in hope that Mr Ichiro Kitao has triggered the update to the FZ50. Our desire for IQ was taking us in the wrong direction. http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1033&message=42366095