Stevie Boy Blue
Senior Member
Well folks, unless you live on the moon, by now you’ve probably read or heard the rumours that there ‘may not’ be a FZ250 released this year (and by FZ250, I mean a brand new flagship model that actually replaces the current FZ200).
Personally, I’m waiting until at least the end of August 2013 to see if the only FZ camera to be announced this year is to be the FZ70. But even if we do see the anticipated FZ200 replacement this side of 2014, unlike some, I do not expect such a machine to maintain a constant F2.8 aperture as the FZ200 can. I may be wrong, but whenever it eventually does materialise, I fully expect the FZ200’s successor to have a much longer reach than the current 600mm; more along the lines of the 1200mm focal length announced on the FZ70 – the replacement for last year’s FZ60.
When it is announced, I also expect the FZ250 to boast a lens again designed by Leica and to don the appropriate brand name on the front casing. An additional guess is that F4.5 will be the maximum aperture achievable at a long end reaching anywhere from 1,000 to 1200mm. obviously, no matter what I write in terms of the FZ250, it is pure speculation at this stage. Yet it is my strong suspicion that the FZ200’s current bright lens will become longer and slower than F2.8 in its next incarnation, which makes the already announced FZ70 so attractive a proposition for my main hobby of wildlife photography. The fact is, an already available 1200mm reduces any current need I have to double the 600 mm of my FZ150 with my Raynox 2.2x T.C. The maximum aperture of my FZ150 is F5.2, and that of the FZ70 is F5.9, so I’ll lose very little light in comparison with a generally less cumbersome setup. And it will be very interesting to see exactly the point along the FZ70’s zoom that the aperture closes to the F5.2 associated with my FZ150 at 600mm. Could it be that the FZ70 allows 750/800mm or longer before the aperture reduces beyond, say, F5, with the final 300/400mm showing a gradual dimming to the max of F5.9? Anything would arguably be a bonus here.
And what about the new sensor? Could it be that the 16mp FZ70 churns out images that are equally as nice and perhaps lend themselves more to larger crops, as those rendered by the 12mp FZ150? I’ve so many questions. ;-)
So, personally I just cannot wait to see exactly what the FZ70 offers when it hits the shops. Although I’ll hang on a while longer to see whether or not those FZ250 rumours are true (because I’d prefer to own a flagship update with additional gadgets and a lens barrel zoom lever like that on the 150), the fact that the FZ70 has already been announced makes it a viable proposition indeed – especially for folks like me who are always looking to extend focal lengths as far as possible. For me, in the absence of a true FZ200 upgrade, the 1200 mm reach of the apparent value-for-money FZ70 just might prove too hard to resist this year.
So, whether you view it as a toy or not, is anyone else tempted by the FZ70’s feature set?
Regards and happy snapping,
Stevie Boy
http://www.dpreview.com/products/panasonic/compacts/panasonic_dmcfz70
Personally, I’m waiting until at least the end of August 2013 to see if the only FZ camera to be announced this year is to be the FZ70. But even if we do see the anticipated FZ200 replacement this side of 2014, unlike some, I do not expect such a machine to maintain a constant F2.8 aperture as the FZ200 can. I may be wrong, but whenever it eventually does materialise, I fully expect the FZ200’s successor to have a much longer reach than the current 600mm; more along the lines of the 1200mm focal length announced on the FZ70 – the replacement for last year’s FZ60.
When it is announced, I also expect the FZ250 to boast a lens again designed by Leica and to don the appropriate brand name on the front casing. An additional guess is that F4.5 will be the maximum aperture achievable at a long end reaching anywhere from 1,000 to 1200mm. obviously, no matter what I write in terms of the FZ250, it is pure speculation at this stage. Yet it is my strong suspicion that the FZ200’s current bright lens will become longer and slower than F2.8 in its next incarnation, which makes the already announced FZ70 so attractive a proposition for my main hobby of wildlife photography. The fact is, an already available 1200mm reduces any current need I have to double the 600 mm of my FZ150 with my Raynox 2.2x T.C. The maximum aperture of my FZ150 is F5.2, and that of the FZ70 is F5.9, so I’ll lose very little light in comparison with a generally less cumbersome setup. And it will be very interesting to see exactly the point along the FZ70’s zoom that the aperture closes to the F5.2 associated with my FZ150 at 600mm. Could it be that the FZ70 allows 750/800mm or longer before the aperture reduces beyond, say, F5, with the final 300/400mm showing a gradual dimming to the max of F5.9? Anything would arguably be a bonus here.
And what about the new sensor? Could it be that the 16mp FZ70 churns out images that are equally as nice and perhaps lend themselves more to larger crops, as those rendered by the 12mp FZ150? I’ve so many questions. ;-)
So, personally I just cannot wait to see exactly what the FZ70 offers when it hits the shops. Although I’ll hang on a while longer to see whether or not those FZ250 rumours are true (because I’d prefer to own a flagship update with additional gadgets and a lens barrel zoom lever like that on the 150), the fact that the FZ70 has already been announced makes it a viable proposition indeed – especially for folks like me who are always looking to extend focal lengths as far as possible. For me, in the absence of a true FZ200 upgrade, the 1200 mm reach of the apparent value-for-money FZ70 just might prove too hard to resist this year.
So, whether you view it as a toy or not, is anyone else tempted by the FZ70’s feature set?
Regards and happy snapping,
Stevie Boy
http://www.dpreview.com/products/panasonic/compacts/panasonic_dmcfz70
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