FZ1 upgrade to FZ2

PT · Nov 7, 2003

Erasmus41 said:
Guessing only... It seems to me that with aperture and shutter
priority, the existing sports and panning modes would be redundant,
and that these dial settings could be reassigned along with new
menus by the updated firmware.

Looking forward to developments with great interest!

The FZ2 still has the sports & panning function, what happens is that on the P function (not the heart) the menu button gives you access to aperture or speed functions which you select which one you want and exit the menu, then you press the four way selector up button which gives you the setting for the mode you have chosen, from there it is left or right arrows on the four way selector to raise or lower the setting.
I hope i have explained it OK
regards
PT

dres · Nov 7, 2003

I'd really really like to see a manual focus option added..... I am sure this could also be done with a firmware upgrade. I've even thought about how it could be implemented....

1. Press the focus button ... the focus button screen icon comes on switching the camera to manual focus mode and enlarging the central view.

2. In this mode the zoom lever now becomes the focus control... focus and press the shutter..... once the shutter is depressed and the photo taken... the mode is manual focus mode is automatically switched off.... therefore the zoom lever becomes a zoom lever again.

I think this would be a much better use of the focus button than the current implementation.
What do you think ?

Erasmus41 · Nov 7, 2003

Thanks for that, PT. I have an FZ1, so no idea how the FZ2 works. Does it retain the settings betwen pics, and after the camera is turned off?

PT said:
Erasmus41 said:

Guessing only... It seems to me that with aperture and shutter
priority, the existing sports and panning modes would be redundant,
and that these dial settings could be reassigned along with new
menus by the updated firmware.

Looking forward to developments with great interest!

Click to expand...

The FZ2 still has the sports & panning function, what happens is
that on the P function (not the heart) the menu button gives you
access to aperture or speed functions which you select which one
you want and exit the menu, then you press the four way selector up
button which gives you the setting for the mode you have chosen,
from there it is left or right arrows on the four way selector to
raise or lower the setting.
I hope i have explained it OK
regards
PT

PT · Nov 7, 2003

dres said:
I'd really really like to see a manual focus option added..... I am
sure this could also be done with a firmware upgrade. I've even
thought about how it could be implemented....

1. Press the focus button ... the focus button screen icon comes on
switching the camera to manual focus mode and enlarging the central
view.
2. In this mode the zoom lever now becomes the focus control...
focus and press the shutter..... once the shutter is depressed and
the photo taken... the mode is manual focus mode is automatically
switched off.... therefore the zoom lever becomes a zoom lever
again.

I think this would be a much better use of the focus button than
the current implementation.
What do you think ?

YES

But I think that after pressing the Focus button the four way controller left or right selections should be the adjustment buttons as the FZ2 in Aperture or Shutter priority mode use these to alter the settings, it would mean that all manual settings would use the same adjustment sequence.
I think it would work well.
regards
PT

Erasmus41 · Nov 7, 2003

Yes, I'd buy manual focusing too! In fact, it would be even more useful than priority modes. I have not had too many problems without those, but I find almost all of my dud pics are the result of focusing problems under particular conditions. As I have posted here before, you have to work to get it right, and many people may not be inclined to bother. (This is not a criticism of the camera, but a result of having a long zoom and wide aperture, and very narrow DOF sometimes. Though a focus assist for close in work would have been nice too.)

It seems Panasonic may have let the genie out of the bottle here...

dres said:
I'd really really like to see a manual focus option added..... I am
sure this could also be done with a firmware upgrade. I've even
thought about how it could be implemented....

1. Press the focus button ... the focus button screen icon comes on
switching the camera to manual focus mode and enlarging the central
view.
2. In this mode the zoom lever now becomes the focus control...
focus and press the shutter..... once the shutter is depressed and
the photo taken... the mode is manual focus mode is automatically
switched off.... therefore the zoom lever becomes a zoom lever
again.

I think this would be a much better use of the focus button than
the current implementation.
What do you think ?

PT · Nov 7, 2003

Erasmus41 said:
Thanks for that, PT. I have an FZ1, so no idea how the FZ2 works.
Does it retain the settings betwen pics, and after the camera is
turned off?

Good question

I have just been playing with it and yes once you have selected aperture or shutter priority in the menu, that stays as default untill you change it again in the menu, power off\on does not effect any functions selected in the menu.

The selected speed or aperture value remains the same as well even after the power off\on sequence, if the correct exposure cannot be obtained with the manual value you have chosen then when the shutter is half pressed the aperture & shutter values are displayed in red rather than white.
Regards
PT

PT · Nov 7, 2003

PT said:
Erasmus41 said:

Thanks for that, PT. I have an FZ1, so no idea how the FZ2 works.
Does it retain the settings betwen pics, and after the camera is
turned off?

Click to expand...

Good question
I have just been playing with it and yes once you have selected
aperture or shutter priority in the menu, that stays as default
untill you change it again in the menu, power off\on does not
effect any functions selected in the menu.
The selected speed or aperture value remains the same as well
even after the power off\on sequence, if the correct exposure
cannot be obtained with the manual value you have chosen then when
the shutter is half pressed the aperture & shutter values are
displayed in red rather than white.
Regards
PT

Also as an afterthought I left the lens cover on at power up and although I never did it with the FZ1 I heard someone say that the lens tries to extend? well the FZ2 does not do this, it says you must remove the lens cover and press the four way controller down button to reset the start sequence, is this different?
regards
PT

dres · Nov 7, 2003

PT said:
Also as an afterthought I left the lens cover on at power up and
although I never did it with the FZ1 I heard someone say that the
lens tries to extend? well the FZ2 does not do this, it says you
must remove the lens cover and press the four way controller down
button to reset the start sequence, is this different?
regards
PT

No this is the same. The FZ1 gives the same message. What happens is it tries to extend then a motor overload is detected and the message is displayed....Bob explained this once

dres · Nov 7, 2003

PT said:
YES
But I think that after pressing the Focus button the four way
controller left or right selections should be the adjustment
buttons as the FZ2 in Aperture or Shutter priority mode use these
to alter the settings, it would mean that all manual settings would
use the same adjustment sequence.
I think it would work well.
regards
PT

Yeah... maybe that would make more sense. It's just I've always thought the zoom lever would make an intuitive focus control.

dres · Nov 7, 2003

Erasmus41 said:
It seems Panasonic may have let the genie out of the bottle here...

Maybe not a genie ... but extra profit for very little effort.

Still I'd be happy to pay £30 for that feature ... even on top of the FZ1-> FZ2 upgrade.

Hariette · Nov 7, 2003

choi said:
Panasonic japan has release a firmware upgrade for FZ1 which will
make it
have all the function of FZ2

Price is 6000 Japanese Yen
Include a 8MB SD
Camera serial no. not need.

http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2003/1107/pana.htm

--
'Don't believe anything you read on the net. Except this. Well,
including this, I suppose.' Douglas Adams

dres · Nov 7, 2003

some1 said:
shouldn't fz1 owner get this firmware upgrade for free? via
download or something. it practically costs panasonic nothing,
since the firmware has to be written for fz2 anyway.

there shouldn't have been a fz2, just fz1 (firmware 1.1)

I think it's reasonable to charge for extra features the original camera did not have. But in other software markets it's common place to offer the upgrades for free to those who have purchased the product recently.

In any case I'll just be glad to see the offer made beyond the Japanese border !

John_Reed · Nov 7, 2003

I heard from Mr. Castaneda that Panasonic had done something to "enhance color quality" in their compression encoding between the FZ1 & FZ2. He says that whereas he used to be able to store about 300 shots on a 256MB SD card with the FZ1, the FZ2 only projects about 250 shots on the same card.

Ramblin said:
"By doing version rise, in in case of record picture prime
1600×1200 mode, picture quality is improved. (Attendant upon
picture quality improvement, the record quantity decreases
somewhat.) "

zele said:

choi said:

Panasonic japan has release a firmware upgrade for FZ1 which will
make it
have all the function of FZ2

Price is 6000 Japanese Yen
Include a 8MB SD
Camera serial no. not need.

http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2003/1107/pana.htm

Click to expand...

It's also on Panasonic.jp site:

http://panasonic.jp/dc/fz1/dmw_vuz1.html

Click to expand...

--
Olympus C5050, Panasonic FZ1
http://www.pbase.com/ramblin_mo/galleries

--
John Reed

Nikon CoolPix 4500 Panasonic DMC-FZ1

Hariette · Nov 7, 2003

to get that supposedly wimpy firmware that Bob has been cradling for so long... not so wimpy after all

choi said:
Panasonic japan has release a firmware upgrade for FZ1 which will
make it
have all the function of FZ2

Price is 6000 Japanese Yen
Include a 8MB SD
Camera serial no. not need.

http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2003/1107/pana.htm

--
'Don't believe anything you read on the net. Except this. Well,
including this, I suppose.' Douglas Adams

dres · Nov 7, 2003

Hmmm ... now I'm confused. So the FZ2 had lower compression ratios than the FZ1 all along ?! I thought it sounded like they were going to include a third quality setting ?

PS Who is Mr Castaneda ?

John_Reed said:
Ramblin said:

After update a 64 MB card goes from 74 to 64 shots with fine
setting. Less agressive compression it looks like.

Click to expand...

fmoore · Nov 7, 2003

Bob has long maintained that he had a firmware upgrade to the fz1 - the sample outline upgrade - but that it couldnt be implemented until all the Panasonic subdivisions - Japan, Europe, USA, etc - were ready to release it simultaneously so as to reduce danger of aquiring the wrong country upgrade. Now, suddenly, it is announced that Japan alone has an fz1 to fz2 upgrade available. What happened to all or nothing at all?

Hariette said:
choi said:

Panasonic japan has release a firmware upgrade for FZ1 which will
make it
have all the function of FZ2

Price is 6000 Japanese Yen
Include a 8MB SD
Camera serial no. not need.

http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2003/1107/pana.htm

Click to expand...

--
'Don't believe anything you read on the net. Except this. Well,
including this, I suppose.' Douglas Adams

--
Fred

John_Reed · Nov 7, 2003

You mean you weren't craving to put frames around those little thumbnail things that you use all the time? ;-) I dunno if I would want this thing generally known, if I were Panasonic, right on the eve of their FZ10 introduction. On the other hand (thinking out loud), since they're phasing out the FZ1 anyway, why not allow an upgrade for existing owners, since the FZ2 isn't marketed in the U.S. anyway, so U.S. sales of the FZ10 wouldn't be impacted? Sounds good to me. Whay Say, Panasonic?

Hariette said:
choi said:

Panasonic japan has release a firmware upgrade for FZ1 which will
make it
have all the function of FZ2

Price is 6000 Japanese Yen
Include a 8MB SD
Camera serial no. not need.

http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2003/1107/pana.htm

Click to expand...

--
'Don't believe anything you read on the net. Except this. Well,
including this, I suppose.' Douglas Adams

--
John Reed

Nikon CoolPix 4500 Panasonic DMC-FZ1

dres · Nov 7, 2003

fmoore said:
Bob has long maintained that he had a firmware upgrade to the fz1 -
the sample outline upgrade - but that it couldnt be implemented
until all the Panasonic subdivisions - Japan, Europe, USA, etc -
were ready to release it simultaneously so as to reduce danger of
aquiring the wrong country upgrade. Now, suddenly, it is announced
that Japan alone has an fz1 to fz2 upgrade available. What
happened to all or nothing at all?

I think Bob's a nice guy but I just can't believe everything he says these days... he's either a) no allowed to tell us b) just doesn't have the correct info from Japan ... he just ends up contradicting the facts too many times.

Ramblin · Nov 7, 2003

I was scratching my head over that "firmware" update also. I'm just totally baffled when I don't have those little yellow boxes to tell me which thumbnail I'm looking at. ;?)

John_Reed said:
You mean you weren't craving to put frames around those little
thumbnail things that you use all the time? ;-)

--
Olympus C5050, Panasonic FZ1
http://www.pbase.com/ramblin_mo/galleries

Erasmus41 · Nov 7, 2003

I never had this problem, and assumed it was confined to early releases. The little yellow frame always appears. (I got mine back in June.)

Ramblin said:
John_Reed said:

You mean you weren't craving to put frames around those little
thumbnail things that you use all the time? ;-)

Click to expand...

--
Olympus C5050, Panasonic FZ1
http://www.pbase.com/ramblin_mo/galleries

FZ1 upgrade to FZ2

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