Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3 - Feedback for HD Video

[indiie]

- ZS3 (US model) is only limited in record time by battery life
- generic firmware compatible batteries available on ebay for cheap
- no low-sensitivity audio option...just low cut (but it seems like the audio processing applies auto gain adjustment)

forgot one thing, size of card. recording time is limited by the size of the card & battery life. When recording video, choose avchd so you can get the best video. MPEG takes way too much space up.

Well, I see your point, but you have an option of choosing a card that will take longer than 1 battery to fill.
So, battery life is the limiting factor of recording length....should get 75-95 minutes on a good battery and about 2 hours on a 16gb card.

That's why you buy at least one spare generic battery so you're not limited by battery (depending on how long you want to record for).

[exxile]

Thanks for the info + links guys, looks like the ZS3 is the one to try and get hold of.

[midside]

That's why you buy at least one spare generic battery so you're not limited by battery (depending on how long you want to record for).

We are talking about maximum length of a single clip.  Of course you can record longer with multiple batteries

[Ziggz]

I recently got the TZ-10, which finally came out here about 6 weeks ago. I did a test and got around 1:55 out of the battery recording continuous AVCHD-lite. It was basically sitting there rolling with minimal zooming, so would probably get less time with more zooming in & out. The mics pick up the 'zooming' noise when it's quiet. Ideally I want another battery and probably a 32gb card. I hope to capture some live music this weekend.

A friend has an older model, and that also does a nice job

(synced with AT853 audio).

[guitard]

- generic firmware compatible batteries available on ebay for cheap

You can get cheap replacement batteries on eBay for less the half the cost of an OEM battery.  But is it worth it?

In my experience, the answer is no.  Typically, the battery cycle life (number of complete charge - discharge cycles a battery can perform before its nominal capacity falls below 80% of its initial rated capacity) is very short.  Also the battery calendar life is also very short.

The advertised battery life is usually much less in reality - so you think the battery is going to go for 150 minutes, but find out it dies before hitting even 100 minutes.

I am all about making smart purchases so I can save my money.  But I really don't think generic batteries are a smart purchase.  Go with OEM - and only buy from a reputable dealer (because a lot of the "OEM" batteries on eBay are fakes).

[guysonic]

- generic firmware compatible batteries available on ebay for cheap

You can get cheap replacement batteries on eBay for less the half the cost of an OEM battery.  But is it worth it?

In my experience, the answer is no.  Typically, the battery cycle life (number of complete charge - discharge cycles a battery can perform before its nominal capacity falls below 80% of its initial rated capacity) is very short.  Also the battery calendar life is also very short.

The advertised battery life is usually much less in reality - so you think the battery is going to go for 150 minutes, but find out it dies before hitting even 100 minutes.

I am all about making smart purchases so I can save my money.  But I really don't think generic batteries are a smart purchase.  Go with OEM - and only buy from a reputable dealer (because a lot of the "OEM" batteries on eBay are fakes).

Some, but not all equivalent or sometimes better (1200 mah vs.895) rated capacity are suspect to be inferior or not made to OEM quality or specifications. 

I have two such batteries made by Power2000 so far working in identical to OEM fashion, but less than dozen partial discharge cycles experience, so time will tell. 

So far, only difference is OEM battery is 0.2 grams lighter than Power2000 version.

Run down test of both may give some differences, but reliability takes field use experience

[sullen]

Is this pretty much the best P&S for lowlight/concert shooting?

[Brian Skalinder]

Is this pretty much the best P&S for lowlight/concert shooting.

There've been a couple threads on low-light P&S, including this one on the LX-3.  Maybe the Canon S90.  I don't follow digital camera technology too closely, but I don't know of any better than the LX3 / S90.

Generally speaking, for low light you want fast lens (f/2.8 or smaller, i.e. larger aperture) and good ISO performance.  ISO performance generally isn't great with P&S, so a fast lens is even more important.  LX-3 zoom is only 24mm - 60mm.  But for concert shooting, you shouldn't need a huge zoom.  It's very common to shoot concerts with dSLR using a fast 50mm lens, so you're in the same range.

[midside]

Regarding generic batteries vs Panasonic:

In my experience, all of the 4 generic batteries I bought (all same manufacturer and batch) performed just as good as the Panasonic battery if not better.  At $50 retail per battery for the genuine Pannys, no thank you.  I'll take my stack of 4 for less than the price of one.  I think Panasonic made a great product but I'm not going to spend just as much on batteries as I did for the camera when I can get a product that works just as well for a fraction of the price.

[sullen]

Is this pretty much the best P&S for lowlight/concert shooting.

There've been a couple threads on low-light P&S, including this one on the LX-3.  Maybe the Canon S90.  I don't follow digital camera technology too closely, but I don't know of any better than the LX3 / S90.

Generally speaking, for low light you want fast lens (f/2.8 or smaller, i.e. larger aperture) and good ISO performance.  ISO performance generally isn't great with P&S, so a fast lens is even more important.  LX-3 zoom is only 24mm - 60mm.  But for concert shooting, you shouldn't need a huge zoom.  It's very common to shoot concerts with dSLR using a fast 50mm lens, so you're in the same range.

actually covered for low light stills with an SLR and video with a dv cam,

im just looking for something small that i can take to shows when i don't want to carry around either of the bigger cams that will take nice video clips.
whats posted here is impressive, but ill look into the s90 too before i buy, thanx.

[Chrisedge]

I bought 4 extra batteries (generic) and did have one completely go bad (It reads "Battery Not Supported" in camera even though it previously worked, and I still am on 1.1 firmware) but I would say they all run longer than the OEM battery. Add in that lots of the "OEM" batteries on eBay are fake, I will still to the $12 for the generics and just toss them after a dozen or two shows. Bring lots, and two 16GB cards.

I wish they could fix the focus and the striping issues and it would be perfect. But I will keep using mine for some time. I really like it, and it's got great sound.

Too bad we can't embed videos on here.

[midside]

The sound is ok, but compared to what we are used to here, I wouldn't go out on a limb and call it great

But, coupled with a dedicated recording rig, then synced in post, you can for sure make some nice vids with this little camera!

[rastasean]

The sound is ok, but compared to what we are used to here, I wouldn't go out on a limb and call it great

But, coupled with a dedicated recording rig, then synced in post, you can for sure make some nice vids with this little camera!

for a point and shoot camera, I think the sound is great. its stereo whereas most only have mono. you can't even compare it to a pair of DPAs running into a v3 and SD702 or something because they are two different things.

[carbine000]

I've been contemplating the move from audio recording to video recording for some time now. And I recently received a full nearly perfect recording in HD of one of my favorite groups: Moderat. Turns out this concert was filmed with this camera and now I am anxious to get one.

What do the suffix letters mean on the model numbers?
For example::
DMC-ZS3K
DMC-ZS3R

Anyone know?

[indiie]

I've been contemplating the move from audio recording to video recording for some time now. And I recently received a full nearly perfect recording in HD of one of my favorite groups: Moderat. Turns out this concert was filmed with this camera and now I am anxious to get one.

What do the suffix letters mean on the model numbers?
For example::
DMC-ZS3K
DMC-ZS3R

Anyone know?

I think it might indicate the colour of the camera housing. Pretty sure K is black. R might be for red but vaguely recall maybe a blue version available too (could be wrong)?