Review: Panasonic LX3

TOP NOTCH: The Panasonic Lumix LX3 is a classy camera well-suited for pros after a good compact.

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Panasonic's Lumix LX series cameras have always been the pocket camera for professional photographers and enthusiasts with retro good looks reminiscent of Leica.

The Lumix models combine an easy access to full manual exposure control with facilities not usually found on compact point and shoot models, such as white balance adjustment, and their solid metal cases signal old-fashioned quality.

In its latest incarnation, the LX3 ($900), Panasonic have updated everything and addressed those faults, to a point.

The LX3 comes with a hot shoe, allowing a range of Panasonic or generic flash units, to some extent getting around the need for raised ISO settings, and the same accessory shoe accepts an external viewfinder, neatly overcoming the bright sunlight issue and rendering the camera even more Leica-like.

The new model has lost some of the classic good looks, and it's bigger all over. It's less an upgrade than a whole new camera.

It looks a lot like the LX2, but every dimension is ten per cent or so greater, it is heavier and it is just little more capable in every respect.

The screen is bigger, the maximum aperture on the 24mm lens is now f2, up from f2.8 allowing faster shutter speeds or lower iso settings, and the maximum iso speed is up one stop, to 3200. The lens is equivalent to a 24mm to 60mm lens on a 35mm film camera. The minimum sensitivity is now iso 80, down from 100. Shutter speeds go to 1/2000...

It starts up instantly, its autofocus is fast and there is no discernible shutter lag.

Battery life is too long to notice, certainly in 100s of exposures.

Functionally, the joystick controller now not only manipulates shutter speed and aperture, but can quickly summon the basic menu commands. The focus point can be moved around the screen and there is now a custom white balance control. (Show it a sample picture of a completely white subject and it can automatically neutralise the ambient light conditions.) For die-hard enthusiasts who don't mind huge files it can shoot in several RAW image modes, with or without a second JPEG file.

One of the Lumix's most useful features is unchanged; it can vary its image shape, from a portrait ratio of 4:3 up to 16:9 landscape setting, though the maximum pixels are now only used at the 4:3 aspect ratio.

The sensor is the one thing that hasn't grown, but at 10.2 megapixels it didn't need to, though apparently the LX3's pixels are bigger and better. If the image size is set to less than maximum megapixels, and for most purposes three megapixels are enough, it can use the spare ones as a digital zoom, with no image degradation.

The mode selection dial on top has gained a couple of very useful settings. It can remember two sets of favourite shooting parameters. For snappers who like the camera to do all the work, it can be as easy as they want to make it, or they can select one of a huge range of programme modes, far too many to list.

It is now possible to accessorise the little pocket camera with a big bag of toys. A retro-look leather case is very much in keeping with the Leica styling. There is a range of filters that would at least save removing the lens cap for every shot. There's also the external viewfinder, a wide-angle converter lens and two dedicated flashes,

Panasonic have only partially fixed those flaws; there is still some noise in higher iso JPEG images but it is nevertheless a great little camera and a delight to use.