Shoshot
Member
Why I bought it: my beaten Panasonic DMC-LX3 is in agony. Too much mud and sand on three continents, too many shocks, and bathing it in whiskey didn't help. I'm thus after something both small and versatile, usb-powered, that does not need a lot of care and thinking.
Hands-on: coming from the bright and brilliant LX3, the Tough TG-5 indeed disappoints a bit when it comes to image quality - blame it on a smaller sensor and slightly soft lens. Still, I took it for a week-long hike in the snowy mountains and as a result I have to admit it does the job in almost any situation: landscapes, closeups, sunsets, indoors with the efficient flash... It definitely deserves the "tough" name, even if paranoid users like myself may want to add the silicon case, lens adapter, and some protective filter for extra peace of mind. Once properly configured and if shooting raw, this all makes for a rather pocketable, very decent all-weather go-anywhere year-round don't-worry point-and-shoot. The HD/4K video features work as expected and even offer some enjoyable functions (timelapse, hispeed etc.), although the noisy mechanical zoom is too audible.
Use cases: I consider it as a photographic Swiss Army knife of sorts. This TG-5 is at ease during a long hike under harsh weather, it is versatile, quite lightweight, and takes no rocket science to handle. Besides that, throw the LG-1 Led Light Guide in the mix, then its clever macro modes work wonders with insects, flowers, minerals and the such. Being a geologist, this is now my camera for both field- and labwork. However, it quickly disappoints for anything else (portraits, pets, dark scenes...) so better use a more conventional, larger-sensor camera in such contexts - I happen to own a ZS100 too.
What's wrong: My main criticism comes from the lack of both a fully "Manual" mode and/or a "AE/AF Lock" button, for e.g. quick panorama shooting (the provided Panoramic Mode feature is a crying shame). Also I sometimes hit a limit due to the quite slow, 4x only (100 mm eq.) zoom reach in front of a noisy 1/2.3" sensor. Taking out one star for these shortcomings. As observed by other users, the misplaced Log/GPS switch is way too easy to turn on accidentally - it cost me half a battery load once; a half-star again for this.
Hands-on: coming from the bright and brilliant LX3, the Tough TG-5 indeed disappoints a bit when it comes to image quality - blame it on a smaller sensor and slightly soft lens. Still, I took it for a week-long hike in the snowy mountains and as a result I have to admit it does the job in almost any situation: landscapes, closeups, sunsets, indoors with the efficient flash... It definitely deserves the "tough" name, even if paranoid users like myself may want to add the silicon case, lens adapter, and some protective filter for extra peace of mind. Once properly configured and if shooting raw, this all makes for a rather pocketable, very decent all-weather go-anywhere year-round don't-worry point-and-shoot. The HD/4K video features work as expected and even offer some enjoyable functions (timelapse, hispeed etc.), although the noisy mechanical zoom is too audible.
Use cases: I consider it as a photographic Swiss Army knife of sorts. This TG-5 is at ease during a long hike under harsh weather, it is versatile, quite lightweight, and takes no rocket science to handle. Besides that, throw the LG-1 Led Light Guide in the mix, then its clever macro modes work wonders with insects, flowers, minerals and the such. Being a geologist, this is now my camera for both field- and labwork. However, it quickly disappoints for anything else (portraits, pets, dark scenes...) so better use a more conventional, larger-sensor camera in such contexts - I happen to own a ZS100 too.
What's wrong: My main criticism comes from the lack of both a fully "Manual" mode and/or a "AE/AF Lock" button, for e.g. quick panorama shooting (the provided Panoramic Mode feature is a crying shame). Also I sometimes hit a limit due to the quite slow, 4x only (100 mm eq.) zoom reach in front of a noisy 1/2.3" sensor. Taking out one star for these shortcomings. As observed by other users, the misplaced Log/GPS switch is way too easy to turn on accidentally - it cost me half a battery load once; a half-star again for this.
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