Canon G10 and Panasonic Lumix ZS3
Like many photographers I look for a small camera to carry with me all the time. This narrows down to one of these P&S cameras like the Canon 10 and the Panasonic ZS3.
What re the main criteria for such a camera:
- Pocketable
- Ready for video notes
- Zoom range at least 28 - 130mm (here the otherwise good Panasonic LX3 was out of considerations)
- Image stabilization
- 3” LCD with at least 400K pixels (here the Canon SX200 was not a choice for us)
- Manual control vs. automatic exposure
- RAW or JPEG only
- Build quality
- Battery life
- If JPEG only: How are the colors
- If JPEG only: Sharpening and JPEG artifacts
- Overall image quality
- Lens quality
- Bracketing
- Price (G10 about $499 and ZS3 about $399, this difference would not influence our decision much)
We like the results from both cameras very much. If the ZS3 would allow RAW and more manual control it would come close to the camera we are looking for. The main issue with the G10 is just size and weight. I would say if you plan to own only one camera the G10 has lot going for it. If you look for a smaller pocketable camera the ZS3 could be your choice. As so often a hybrid of both cameras would be closer to the ideal pocket camera for critical photographers.
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