Panasonic has joined Sony and Canon (and maybe sometime soon, Nikon if they can overcome the problems, whatever they may be, which have delayed release of the DL series for almost a year) in the rush to produce fixed zoom lens cameras which use one or other version of the Sony 8.8 x 13.2 mm (so-called ‘one inch’, which it is not) sensor which provides very good picture quality.
Some of these are compacts including the Sony RX100 (versions 1-5), Canon G,(5,7,9) X and Panasonic TZ/ZS100, LX10.
Some are much larger hump top style (DSLR –like) models including the Sony RX10(1,2,3), Panasonic FZ1000, FZ2500.
The Canon G3X seems not to know what kind of camera it wants to be with a long lens but no built in EVF and sluggish performance compared to the competition from Sony and Panasonic.
The Sony RX100 (versions 3-5) are the premium models with a built in, pop-up EVF. But they are also considerably more expensive than the LX10 and G7X (versions 1 and 2) without an EVF.
The LX10 has many advanced and sophisticated features for still and video capture or both simultaneously.
Setting up the camera can be daunting for a novice so I hope the hints in this post are helpful.
Accessories
Battery and charger
As is becoming very common, the LX10 comes only with USB charging in camera. This means you cannot use the camera while a battery is charging. I recommend getting an aftermarket battery compatible with the Panasonic DMW-BLH7E and an external charger.
ClearViewer ?
There is a device called a ClearViewer which you can search for online. You can get one specifically for the LX10. I bought one for testing. It works as advertised providing a magnified view of the monitor screen.
Is it worth getting one ?
I suspect that a few years ago when monitor screens were not as bright as they are now, the answer might have been yes. But I find I can use the LX10 screen even in sunlight.
Of course the image preview is not as clear as that seen when the camera is in shade but it is serviceable.
Therefore I did not find the ClearViewer particularly useful for this camera. But some users report they like the ClearViewer. It does make the camera data easier to read.
Wrist Strap
Due to the slippery nature of the camera I recommend fitting this right away and using it always.
Handle
Like the TZ/ZS100, the LX10 has a smooth front face with a low ridge where a handle could have been located. Presumably this is to create the ‘sleek’ style promoted by Panasonic.
Some owners are happy to use the camera as is but others feel that some kind of holding assistance is required. User forums have offered several options including Croc Grip, e-Grip and various stick-on mini handles.
My own impression is that something is needed to improve holding security.
Carry bag
Some owners will put the LX10 in a pocket. In this case I recommend slipping the camera into a ziploc plastic bag or similar to keep dirt and other grunge out of the camera.
My practice is to use a belt pouch. There are many options. I chose the Lowe Pro Portland 20. I turn the pouch inside out to cut out the red divider, making more space in the pouch.
The Aperture Ring
This is the only way to change aperture. Unfortunately the ring is not well designed so some practice using it is recommended. I found there is no easy way to use it at all so I infrequently use A Mode on this camera.
Custom Modes
The first thing to grasp is that the LX10 has three Custom Modes available from the C icon on the Mode Dial. See Page 85 of the ‘Operating Instructions for advanced features’ (the Instructions), available on any Panasonic national website under the ‘Support’ tab for the camera. This is a PDF which is easy to navigate and comprehensive in scope.
Almost everything except the items on the Setup Menu can be assigned to a Custom Mode.
This means that in effect you can have four completely different setups each for a different capture circumstance.
For instance the standard setup might be for general photography then perhaps C1 for tripod work, C2 for video and C3 for something else.
Dial operation and functions, Fn button functions, Mode Dial position and most Rec, Motion Picture and Custom Menu items can be captured in a Custom Mode.
Of course if you change your mind any of the Custom settings can be changed at any time.
The only potential downside of this extensive configurability is the need to remember all the settings saved on each of the Custom Modes.
Dial function
See Pages 35-36 of the Instructions.
On first sight of the Instructions it might appear that one could set up the dials to any kind of personal preference and that is partly true. But there are limitations on what the dials can and cannot do depending on the Mode Dial position. For instance if you allocate [Exposure Compensation] to the rear dial it does nothing in Manual Exposure Mode, which is exactly when I would expect it to switch to changing shutter speed. (By the way the rear dial on FZ2000 does what I would expect it to so why not the LX10 ??).
There is also substantial duplication of functions between the two dials and between the dials and the cursor buttons.
For the record I have assigned [Exposure Compensation] to the lens ring and [Default] to the rear dial. This changes Program shift in P mode, Shutter Speed in S Mode and M Mode and does nothing in A Mode because the only way to change Aperture is with the Aperture Ring.
I would welcome a firmware upgrade to enable the Aperture Ring to be disabled and Aperture adjusted with the Rear Dial. This would be much better ergonomically as the Aperture Ring is badly designed and awkward to use whereas the rear dial is easy to use.
Moving the active AF area
In the Custom Menu I set [Touch Screen] ON, [Touch Tab] OFF and [Touch AF] to [AF].
On many other Panasonic cameras there is an option to set [Direct Focus Area] but the LX10 does not offer this.
The only way to activate the AF Area Box is to touch the screen. See the AF Area Box change to yellow with bounding arrows. Having done this you can move the box with the touch screen or the Cursor Buttons.
Change the box size with the Rear Dial. Return the box to center with one press of the Disp button. A second press returns the box to default size.
Panorama Settings
First turn the Mode Dial to the Panorama icon. Until you do this the [Panorama Settings] tab in the Rec Menu will be greyed out.
For [direction] I use and recommend the bottom of the four options available.
To make a panorama hold the camera in Portrait orientation, handle side up and sweep from left to right.
For [Picture Size] I use and recommend [Standard] which is actually very wide.
Function button settings
There are three hard Fn Buttons and several more soft Fn Buttons on the right side of the screen accessible by setting [Touch Tab] ON in the Touch Settings in the Custom Menu. The problem with these is that one’s fingers are forever brushing against the screen and activating one or more of these tabs unexpectedly.
I find this irritating so I switch [Touch Tab] OFF.
This leaves the three hard Fn buttons.
Fn3 is allocated to the Q Menu by default and can be left with that function.
To select a function for Fn 1 and 2 press and hold the button for about three seconds until the Fn Button Set options screen appears with 11 pages each with 4 options.
At first sight the need to select from 44 options for each button may appear to be a daunting prospect.
But there is a logic to this.
The idea is to locate the parameters you want to use in Capture Phase of use onto the Fn buttons and items required in Prepare Phase onto the Q Menu. Items infrequently required can stay in the main menus.
Individuals have their own priorities about this which may be different depending on whether still photo or video is being used.
For the record I have
On Fn 1, AFS/AFF/AFC
On Fn 2, Stabiliser
On Fn 3, Q Menu
Q Menu settings
You can leave the Q Menu at default settings or create a Custom Q Menu in which you can have just the items you require without the screen being cluttered with unwanted items. See Pages 44-45 of the Instructions.
For the record I have Sensitivity, AF Mode and Quality on the Q Menu.
There is no list of Q Menu items in the instructions, you have to view the available options in the camera.
Menu settings
I will just refer to the Menu items which I think could benefit from more explanation than is found in the Instructions which are actually very comprehensive.
Rec Menu
* Photo Style. I use a Custom Photo Style with contrast +/- 0, Sharpness -1, Noise Reduction -5, Saturation +/-0. Panasonic (and other makers) uses rather heavy handed noise reduction on JPGs by default. As a result I find the best quality JPGs use the lowest level of NR available.
* AF Mode. Panasonic cameras have many options for AF Mode but I find the most reliable is [1 Area] which I use almost all the time with [Pinpoint] on occasion when I want to focus on a bird in a tree or similar.
* AFS/AFF/AFC. AF Single and AF Continuous are reasonably self explanatory. AFF is an attempt to have the best of both worlds. So AFF works like AFS until the camera detects subject movement when it switches to something resembling but not the same as AFC.
* Metering Mode. I always use Multiple metering for the most reliable results.
* Burst Rate. The fastest burst rate which gives AF, AE and Live View on each frame is Burst M. The camera can easily follow focus on moving subjects in Burst M and AF-C.
* iDynamic works. When there is high subject brightness range the camera reduces exposure to protect highlights then applies a tone correction curve to JPGs to bring up the dark tones. I leave this at AUTO.
* Shutter Type. I leave this on MSHTR (Mechanical) unless for some reason I want a shutter speed faster than 1/2000. Mechanical is the most versatile as you can have flash sync at all available shutter speeds.
Custom Menu
* Zebras are very handy for detecting overexposure of highlights before exposure, allowing exposure compensation to be made prior to exposure. I set the level at 105% for RAW and 100% for JPG.
* Lens retraction. At last Panasonic has fixed this annoyance. On previous Panasonic cameras the lens would automatically retract about 15 seconds after pressing the Playback button to review a shot. If you set [Lens Retract] OFF this does not happen.
* Exposure Comp Reset. If you set this ON then any exposure compensation applied is cancelled when the Mode Dial position is changed or the camera switched off. I find this very handy to prevent inadvertent exposure compensation when I do not want it.
* Self Timer Auto Off. When set to ON the self timer will automatically cancel when the camera is switched off but not when the Mode Dial position is changed.
I think the Instructions are quite sufficiently clear for the remainder of the Menu items.