Panasonic FZ35 and Canon SX20 IS superzoom cameras shoot it out in group test, rise to the top
By Joseph L. Flatley 
posted July 6th 2010 4:01PM
posted July 6th 2010 4:01PM
The DP Review gang (motto: "blood in / blood out") has just done another one of its world famous superzoom group camera tests, and the results are guaranteed to frighten and enlighten you. Both the Panasonic FZ35 and Canon SX20 IS were singled out for boffo kudos (that's right -- boffo kudos). Apparently they're "the most refined models in this test," with lenses deemed "sharp across the zoom range," and kickass quality images and HD video. Of course, each of these bad boys has its own character, with the Canon feeling more like an entry-level DSLR to the reviewer, even with "by far the best viewfinder in this test." Panny's entry, on the other hand, gets points for portability and an intuitive user interface. Besides those two guys, there are a half dozen or so other cameras in the test. How did your favorite hold up? Hit the source link to check it out for your own self.
FZ38??
@wegap
In Europe, the FZ35 is known as the FZ38 (for whatever reason).
@wegap
Yaaayyyyyyyyyy another cammeraaaaaaa... awsm.
@wegap
lol that is 10 month late.
@wegap
FZ35 (North American Model a.k.a. FZ38 in other continent)
own it for about 7 months, love it. very wife-friendly. extremely light with battery inserted and all. dedicated video record button is a very nice touch and handy for those 720p hd recordings :) 18x zoom is great, always gets the 'wow's' from showing pictures. great battery last for about 400 shots with flash. also can shoot 2000 top res photo or about 1 hr hd video on an 8gb sd card. built in hdmi and manual flash are both very convenient. a few cons though: i wish the lcd could be slightly bigger like the Lumix ZS3 (3") instead of 2.7" and lcd produces a purple fringing line when pointing at extreme light source, but photos looks fine so it could be just an issue w/ the lcd.
overall it's a great camera that i will surely enjoy for many up coming years.
So if you do a flyby of the Death star and take a picture of its side will you be able to see a critical Exhaust Vent that you can take advantage of to blow up the entire thing?
If not then it ain't good enough.
@Ninjakid4
It would be funny if Darth Vader said it.
No, the question is: Can I get all my friends in the picture without knocking out one wall of the restaurant? No? Then I'm probably using an idiotic "super zoom" camera, which has no wide angle.
Who is carrying a tripod around with these cheapee cameras and shooting wildlife?
@Information Central
These are not "cheapee" cameras. They are actually quite decent supplements or alternatives to a DSLR when small size is at a premium. I've used a (now rather old) Canon S3IS for three years now, which is a couple generations behind the Canon SX20IS, but it still produces fantastic shots.
Remember, it's not the camera that's most important-- it's the person behind it. The wide angle on the SX20IS is equivalent to 28mm, a standard for most normal DSLR kit lenses, and you SHOULD be able to get good shots with it. Don't insult good cameras just because you can't take a good picture.
I've owned an FZ20 for quite a while; granted, it's an old camera by today's standards, but at 12x zoom and a beautiful lens I noticed that it did manage to flatten my pictures quite a bit.
Point being, unless things changed, if you want sharp focus, you can't have both that and zoom (unless you spend thousands on the pro canon lenses, I suppose...)
@whiskers And by "at 12x zoom" I meant "having 12x zoom". Pictures were flattened at most zoom levels.
@whiskers
Most of these cameras produce ugly results past 10x zoom. The colors get washed out into an ugly gray looking image. The ultra-zoom race is just as ridiculous as the megaschmixel race (that has finally quieted down). The guy with the biggest multiplier wins, and nobody cares about the actual pictures.
@pretol Yes exactly! It's a dumb number race. All these superzooms are complete garbage!
@abnorm
Did you guys read the review? Dpreview knows what they are doing. They aren't just comparing spec sheets.
Why don't any of these manufacturers put a larger sensor in these cameras? It could deliver massive IQ improvements if they would put a 4/3" sensor in this camera class and I think plenty of prosumer-type consumers would be interested in paying extra for it. What's the technical hold up?
If there's a market for Micro 4/3, then there's probably one 10x as big for a super zoom with a similarly large sensor.
@inept
A larger sensor also requires larger lenses so they produce an image circle big enough to cover the sensor, they also require more space between the sensor and rear element and it increases the price a fair bit. If you were to put an APS sized sensor in a point and shoot it loses the compact size (unless you compromise on the focal range). A mirror-less interchangeable lens then becomes a better option as you won't be stuck with the fixed lens.
@inept I do not assume you have actually thought about the size of a 30x zoom lens for an APS-C or larger sized sensor.
@inept
If you look at "compact cameras" with large sensors eg: Micro Four Thirds (olympus PEN/ Panasonic G series) or the Sony NEX, the lenses get big. Its easier to make large range supper zooms for smaller sensor cameras.
I have a 10x zoom for my dslr (crop sensor) and it while it works well it doesn't have the sharpness of some of my lessor zooms (3x).
@Kieran
Thanks for the info guys, but surely they could do better than 1/2.33"? How about the 1/1.7" sensor from out of the Canon G-series cameras? These are not, after all, small devices. They're in-line with Micro 4/3 in most physical senses so there's gotta be room for something better in there. They're aimed at the "prosumer" market but they suffer in this critical aspect, IMO.
@inept
The closest example to what you're describing would be a Lumix GH1 with 14-140mm lens. It doesn't have as much of a zoom, the lens is twice as big, and the camera is twice the weight. And it costs 4 times the price of any of these cameras in the comparison.
Hopefully I answered your question.
@inept
Plenty of other cameras have 1/1.7" or 1/1.8" sensors, however few have focal ranges greater than about 5x because it would require much larger lenses.
@Kieran
That sucks. Damn you physics, and your good for nothing laws too!
@inept
Have you seen how big a 500 mm lens is for a DSLR? There is your answer.
@inept
How about a 4/3s sensor on one of these with a limited zoom range? Say 14-40mm (28-80 equiv?)
@inept
The only reason you can get such a lerge zoom range in such a small package _is_ a small sensor. If you make the sensor twice bigger, you will need the front element of the lens (rougthly) twise futher away from the sensor to get similar angle of view (unless you use mirror lenses that fold optical path or other special design).
Just to get an idea, this is the lens with a similar telephoto end ange for full frame camera:
http://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/attachments/post-your-photos/30107d1236920329-moon-sigma-50-500-test-dscn2167-jpg
Not it is 'only' 50-500mm (10x zoom) compared to this Cannon's 28-560mm equalent (20x zoom) and actuall loger tele end.
We have a Canon SX210 IS. Not quite the superzoom, but it;s got 14X zoon and 14MP, and takes amazing shots and 720p video at 30FPS. Also supports SDXC and WiFi enabled SD cards. Wife LOVERS the camera. Lasts a good while on a charge, plus easy to find spare batteries online at Amazon for $2-5 each depending on the day (instead of Cannon's $40), and a fast charger works well too.
Its a bit bigger than current elph models when closed due to the lens ring, but still quite pocketable (wife keeps it in her purse easy enough). Got some good shots of fireworks this weekend thanks to a fireworks assist mode, and it takes great low-light pictures in auto and low light modes. Action mode is really good at action shots, virtually no shutter delay and crisp shots every time. It's got a good UI, and it has nearly as many controls for manual/semi-pro adjustment as our good friend's DSLR. (I'm saving up for a 7D, probably be a mark II by the time I get one at this rate, I still have a film body in the meantime....)
The 20IS is nice compared to the 210, but a bit bulkier. Can't have superzoon without some bulk. We chose the 210IS for the 14MP and the newer card format support.
Oh, it shoots video in Mac MOV native formats as well, handy :)
Nice Comparo... though as the owner of 3 of the cameras tested (including the Canon and Panasonic), I still find the FujiFilm HS10 to be the better/most versatile of all the current 'super-zooms'
@DaHarder
There's no replacement for that manual zoom ring. I personally hate all zoom by wire superzooms, it's amazing how unresponsive it makes the camera feel...
@DaHarder
In review it doesn't look impressive at all. Though most expensive camera in the group, it only delivers mediocre (compared to the rest) performance. I guess personal preferences are also important, but it doesn't look like a "best" camera there.
i love my fz35 but the zoom lever is sticky at times. i think the processor tends to lag and you have to tweak the zoom lever in order to zoom in and zoom out. i might call panasonic if the problem persist.
fz35 is more responsive and produces better pictures (especially at high iso) - conclusion of the article. I think there's some canon snobbery going on... cause I can't tell from that description how it shares the pedestal with the lumix...
@pretol
It's because in bright light, the Canon produces the highest image quality. Panny is the only Superzoom that comes close to rivaling Canon under those conditions. And since those conditions are the optimal use of a superzoom, they should be afforded extra weight. The SX10 actually has the best IQ if you can find one, but it doesn't have HD video which is going to be a non-starter for most.
@FatDrunkAndStupid
Yeah, unfortunately NONE of what you're saying is in that article, or the conclusion.
So Canon snobbery it is then...
I own the FZ35 and would definitely recommend it. Images have good color and quality but can be a little "noisy" if all you use is the intelligent auto setting. If you learn to manually tweak the settings you can get some really nice shots. Although it doesn't have the highest zoom it's good enough IMO, besides it's fairly easy to get blurry photos with these superzoom cameras if you don't have steady hands, although they'll look fine on the small lcd, but you'll see it when you look at them full size.
@pleasantcrew
I haven't had any issues with the zoom lever sticking so you might want to call Panasonic on that and see what they say.
@Information Central
Err, except your wrong? Some superzooms are 28mm on the wide side of things, some even more. Thats pretty fucking wide if you ask me.
Not to be a a troll but how are these types of cameras relevant anymore?
@Kain125
how are you relevant anymore?
I have DMC-FZ28, and I really liked it. To have good/better pictures, get a tripods. I also have chance to try Olympus PEN E-P1, and, I think my FZ28 is much better, IMHO. :)