Customer Reviews
Nice feature set; mediocre picture quality 
2008-10-07
Major points:
1 In some cases (usually in dark or very dark conditions), the camera produces completely unacceptable results, with small white "bubbles" appearing throughout the shot. I have researched this and there are a couple of notes on the web that complain of how the lens may accentuate "dust dots". Understand I have verified this on 2 different cameras, sending the first one back the day that I got it, only to have the same thing happen with the second. [This is the only serious negative in the mind of this reviewer, and bubbles will not be an issue in most photos.]
2 The general sharpness of the images is noticably inferior to some other point and shoot cameras, such as the Canon SD1000, which I also have. This difference is completely inconsequential for printing 4x6 photos but can easily be seen for example, when displaying at large sizes on a PC. Still, to many people this is probably a non-issue.
3 The general layout of controls, menus, etc. is very well done. To me (and this is subjective), it is much better done and more intuitive than what you see on the point and shoot Canon cameras.
4 The software with the camera is okay, but I like the Canon software better.
5 Panasonic support has sucked in my attempt to get help. I registered my first camera (which I later sent back) online. Later, I filled out a form on the Panasonic site to request help with the bubble issue. It has been eight days since, and I have received no answer from Panasonic. Additionally, the nearest service center to me (Georgia) is Illinois. Luckily, Panasonic devices have good reliability and so you will probably never have to deal with their "support team".
6 The feature set (zoom, manual options, etc.) is clearly good compared to other cameras in this price range.
7 For whatever its worth, I have decided to keep the camera. Honestly I would be very enthusiastic about it if not for the bubble (i.e., dust?) issue.
Great Product 
2008-10-04
Camera works very well. Has a nice point and shoot feature for anyone not into all the details of photography. Extended zoom works very well. Has a lot of other options for someone more into photography. Easy to start using and easy to transfer pictures to a computer.
Near perfect little camera 
2008-09-29
I am happily using a Lumix FZ30 but wanted a pocket camera with as much zoom as I could get for a reasonable price. I looked at a lot of different cameras but the 5X zoom with image stabilization was a major selling point. Then I was pleasantly surprised to discover all the other capabilities built into this camera and am more pleased than I could have expected. The size is perfect for me; taking photos with even smaller cameras, as good as many of them are, always makes me worry about dropping them.
Super camera for the price 2008-09-23
This Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ 8 does exactly what I want it to, and a whole lot of other things I have not yet figured out.
I have a backround in film cameras, and use a company digital SLR for work.
For my own vacation purposes, I wanted a compact pocket-size digital that takes decent pix without costing too much (anything this small stands a good chance of getting lost somewhere along the way).
My last two pocket digitals were a 2-meg Olympus Stylus (OK but bulky) and a low-end Olympus FE-210 (poor lens quality).
The Panasonic offers a Leica lens (that used to mean something; guess it still does) which takes very good photos. It has a wide range of shooting modes, so many you want to take the big instruction book with you.
But if you just set it on full auto, it'll get you by until you become more familiar with it.
The features it offers in a camera at this sub-$200 price really are remarkable. It takes movies with sound (acceptable).
All cameras are going big and bigger in terms of image-size, but here's a hint - the average family photographer simply does not need a 10- or 20-meg image.
Something like this is just fine.
Lumix great 2008-09-09
This is an excellent product, a smart buy because is cheap and is a great camera, more than a same camera at this price
EXCELLENT CAMERA!! GREAT VALUE 2008-09-05
With both a 32mm wide-angle Leica DC Vario-Elmar lens and a 5x zoom, this is one camera that does it all. You can fit more in the photo than you can with a 35mm lens, so you can get more of a sweeping landscape in a single shot. The 5x zoom is great for capturing dramatic shots of small or distant subjects. There's also an Extra Optical Zoom function that boosts zoom power to 8.9x in 3-megapixel resolution mode. Simply set the Lz8 to iA mode and let the camera do the rest. Intelligent Scene Selector chooses the mode that best fits the situation; MEGA Optical Image Stabilization (O.I.S.) helps prevent blurring from hand-shake; Intelligent ISO Control helps prevent motion blur; and Face Detection helps produce clear portraits by optimizing the focus and exposure settings. The brightness and contrast of the large 2.5" diagonal LCD adjust automatically in 10 steps as ambient light conditions change, so images are clear, bright and easy to see day or night, indoors or outdoors. f=5.2-26mm (35mm Equiv. - 32-160mm) Focal Length 2.5 Diagonal Polycrystalline TFT LCD Display (230K dots) Focusing Area Normal - Wide 50cm/ Tele 100cm - infinity, Macro / Intelligent AUTO - Wide 5cm / Tele 100cm - infinity 8 - 1/2,000 sec. Starry Sky Mode - 15, 30, 60sec. Shutter Speed Auto / 100 / 200 / 400 / 800 / 1600 (High Sensitivity Mode - Auto(1600 - 6400) ) ISO 27MB Internal Memory (additional memory recommended to store more photos and video) Built-in Flash, Microphone and Speaker SD/SDHC, MultiMedia Card Slot DC Input, AV Output (NTSC/PAL), USB Connections PictBridge Compatible Approximate Battery Life - 260 Shots (Oxide Batteries) Approximate Unit Weight - 0.33 lbs
Excellent Camera!!!! 2008-08-03
I bought this camera as replacement for a A570IS Canon. I'm really surprised for the high quality pictures of this new camera compared to my old one. The new function of easy zoom its outstanding, and pretty cool. For the price I paid for this panasonic I got a smaller size, nice, easy to handle and great pics & video digital camera...
Pretty good little camera 2008-07-25
I've only used this camera two or three times, but so far I really like it. I'm reserving full judgement until I've had it awhile longer. I have had a problem with some point and shoot cameras not holding up well--especially the Nikon P5100.
Oh MY GOD I LOVE THIS CAMERA! 2008-07-23
I love this camera. It has many cool features which i'm still learning about. For example, the indoor outdoor night time portrait feature. As well as scenery which has nature, architecture. Sports for fast moving action. Scene mode which also has self portrait, sunset, beach, high sens, pet, baby, fireworks, starry sky, snow, aerial photo and etc. The camera takes great pictures. It met all of my criteria for a camera. So much better then the last one I had which was a kodak easyshare. I am very pleased with the performance.
Got Wider Angle, Manual Shutter/Aperture, Compact Size, AA Batteries 2008-07-23
This is my 5th digital camera; I've owned digital cameras since 1999. My 7 year old Cannon S30 got stolen so I was looking for an replacement. My must have criteria includes: wide angle, compact size, stabilization program & uses AA batteries. Of course I wouldn't mind having manual shutter & aperture control like my S30. I did a thorough search and there isn't any choice but the Panasonic's LZ8 or LZ10. The wide angle on my LZ8 is 32mm which isn't that wide as I thought, I should have bought the LZ10 which has 30mm and a bigger sensor.
Here is my review(1-5 pts):
*Construction: 5 (solid & beautiful esp in black)
*Picture Quality: 2.5(average-, not outstanding, except in macro mode which is excellent). My S30 was better
*Performance: 1 (very sluggish when using flash; I don't know if AA cameras are all this slow) Also slow start. However, picture play back is very fast.
Pros: *Wider angle
*Manual shutter & Aperture controls
*Solid construction
*Uses AA Long & battery life. I took 250 pix on my brand new Sony 2700 mah rechargeable batteries and still have 50% of juice left.
*Excellent LCD--high resolution & brightness.
*5x optical zoom can be boosted to 8x if using 2m
*Very good macro(close up) pictures
*Many scenes/modes to choose from
Cons: *Very slow performance esp when using flash
*Picture Quality only average to average minus with higher noise than average. Pictures come out very soft devoit of fine details and with a faded/washed look. In P mode, I adjusted the contrast & sharpness to help improve this shortcoming. Can see a lot of dust dots reflected on the lense when taking very dark photos.
*Too many restrictions on selection; for exemple, you cannot choose resolution less than 3m when in auto mode etc.
I wish the piture quality was better but overall I gave it a 4 because of it's very reasonable price & all the features it possesses like wider angle, compact size, stabilization program ,manual shutter & aperture control & uses AA batteries. Expected better image quality. To bad there isn't any other camera in this price range that has all of the features to compare to.
