Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FH20

Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FH20 Overview The Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FH20 is a 14.1Megapixel digital camera with an 8X zoom lens in a compact body. The lens starts at a wide 28mm and goes up to a long telephoto 224mm. This way you can shoot large subjects in a tight space or subjects far away. http://www.thetomorrowtechnology.co.keYou can also get an Extra Optical Zoom up to 16.9x using the center of the CCD chip. The camera is perfect for fast-moving subjects and in low light with features that include High Speed Autofocus, Optical Image Stabilization, and High Sensitivity ISO 6400. You can even capture HD quality video. Taking both stills and video is easy, framing and playing back your images on the 2.7″  230,000-dot high-resolution LCD screen. Other features that make taking photos easy include Advanced Face Detection, Intelligent Scene Detection, iA (Intelligent Auto) Mode, Intelligent ISO Control, Auto Backlight Compensation, and different Scene Modes. After you take the photos the fun does not end. You can use Text Stamp to mark the birthday and name of your subjects right on the image. You can also enter your destination and the date of travel in advance in the Travel Date setting. The included PHOTOfunSTUDIO 5.0 Software allows you to organize and fix your photos. You can also create slideshows with a variety of effects and use your iTunes music library as background music. Motion pictures can be uploaded directly to YouTube using the built-in YouTube uploader, even in HD (High Definition) quality. 14.1-Megapixel High-Resolution CCD The DMC-FH20 features a 1/2.33″ CCD with effective 14.1-megapixel high-resolution. 2.7″ 230,000-Dot High-Resolution LCD The DMC- FH20 features a 2.7″ 230,000-dot high-resolution Intelligent LCD and High-angle Mode. 28mm Wide-Angle 8x Optical Zoom Lens in a Compact Body The DMC-FH20 features a newly developed 28mm wide-angle high-quality LUMIX DC VARIO lens with powerful 8x optical zoom (35mm camera equivalent: 28-224mm) in a slim, compact body. Comprising 9 elements in 7 groups, including 3 aspherical lenses with 6 aspherical surfaces, this advanced lens unit realizes an outstandingly slim and compact profile, yet achieves exceptional optical performance. Up to 16.9x Extra Optical Zoom The Extra Optical Zoom uses the center of the CCD to further extend the powerful 8x optical zoom when a resolution of less than 14.1 megapixels is used. This extends the zoom ratio up to 16.9x (35mm camera equivalent: 473mm) for images with 3-megapixel resolution or less. Adding the Extra Optical Zoom to the 4x digital zoom extends the total zooming power to a maximum of 67.5x. Sonic Speed AF The Sonic Speed AF system in the DMC-FH20 has a maximum speed of approx. 0.35 second for auto focusing. It includes numerous re-engineering enhancements, including a higher-speed actuator, optimized algorithms and parallel software processing. The result is fast and accurate AF performance. You can quickly get moving subjects in focus, such as when you’re shooting sports scenes. Quick AF The DMC-FH20 features Quick AF. Ordinary AF is activated when the shutter button is pressed half-way, while Quick AF starts operating as soon as the camera is pointed toward a subject. This dramatically reduces the shutter delay time and lets you take images quickly. Its super-fast focus is ideal for capturing quick images of active children and pets. By setting the camera to Quick AF, images of sudden shooting opportunities won’t be out of focus or blurry. Fast Start-Up Time The previous linear processing program has been replaced with parallel processing to save 0.23 second off the start-up time. This has resulted in ultra high-speed start-ups of approx. 0.97 second. Release Time Lag The shutter release time lag is as short as approx. 0.006 second, making it easy to capture sudden, spur-of-the-moment photo opportunities. Venus Engine IV The image-processing engine, Venus Engine IV, uses advanced signal processing to give you beautiful images even when the sensitivity is high. Multi-task signal processing is employed for all images to enable high-speed, high-performance shooting. Venus Engine IV also effectively raises the precision of various functions, such as MEGA O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) and Intelligent ISO Control. Along with its extremely high performance, Venus Engine IV reduces power consumption thanks to a number of energy efficiency improvements. Extended Battery Life The energy-saving Venus Engine IV image-processing engine and the efficient, rechargeable lithium-ion battery – which has been slimmed down to fit into thinner camera bodies – work together to extend the shooting time of the DMC-FH20. This lets users take approximately 300 shots on a single battery charge. Unlimited Consecutive Shooting The Unlimited Consecutive Shooting function lets you snap off consecutive shots at approx. 1.5 frames per second until the memory card is full. You can take a series of shots, then choose the one you like the best and delete the rest. You can also select High-speed Burst Mode or Flash Burst Mode from Scene Mode. iA (Intelligent Auto) Mode When you don’t know which mode will give you the best shooting results, or when a sudden photo opportunity pops up and you don’t have time to make any settings, simply choose iA (Intelligent Auto) Mode by simply pressing the dedicated button and let the camera do it all for you. You just choose iA Mode, aim at your subject, and shoot. 4 detection and correction functions are simultaneously activated to optimize the settings, so you get stunning photos every time. Intelligent Scene Selector – Scene Detection When the camera’s in iA Mode, the Intelligent Scene Selector automatically sets the Scene Mode to one of Scenery, Portrait, Macro, Night Portrait, or Night Scenery. Sunset has also been added to the DMC-FH20. The camera judges the scene from the various detection results, such as the focusing and brightness levels of the circumstance. You are free from annoying settings every time the scene changes when taking images with these most frequently used Scene Modes. The scene modes will help you get beautiful results even before you know it. MEGA O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) – Shake Detection The MEGA O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) in the DMC-FH20 compensates for the blurring caused by hand-shake. Even slight hand-shake movement is accurately detected by a sampling frequency of 4,000 times per second, and compensated to produce sharp, clear images. The Venus Engine IV controls the shifting of the blur-stopping lens with even greater precision to further increase the detection accuracy and correction effect of MEGA O.I.S. It works for zoom shots and macro shots, which are especially susceptible to hand-shake, and lets you shoot in dimly lit rooms or evening illumination to preserve the mood. In short, it lets anybody take beautiful, blur-free shots with ease. Intelligent ISO Control – Motion Detection The Intelligent ISO Control function in the DMC-FH20 made possible by the Venus Engine IV, detects subject movement and automatically adjusts the ISO setting and shutter speed to best suit the movement and light conditions. When it detects subject motion, it automatically raises the ISO setting and increases the shutter speed to prevent motion blur. On the other hand, when the subject is still and no movement is detected, it takes beautifully natural photos with a low ISO setting. Intelligent ISO Control gives you stunning images with ease because there is no need for complicated settings. Face Detection AF/AE – Face Detection The Face Detection AF/AE function detects faces and automatically optimizes the focus and exposure settings. It prevents the blurry faces that happen when the camera focuses on something in front of or behind the subject, and keeps faces from appearing dark when shooting indoors or against the light source. It detects up to 15 faces at a time, making it extremely convenient for group photos. Once the camera detects a face, Face Tracking follows it even when the subject moves around. Plus, the system keeps on detection if a face turns sideways to the camera. The DMC-FH20 is also equipped with Digital Red-eye Correction (Red-eye Removal). The camera takes care of the red-eye effect that often happens when shooting with a flash, to ensure attractive facial expression. Auto Backlight Compensation When there is strong backlighting, the background appears nice and bright, but the subject is dark. This function detects backlight condition and compensates it automatically. HD Movie Recording The FH20 can record motion images in high-definition (1,280 x 720 pixels at 30 fps in Motion JPEG format). The pixel mixed readout method enables bright motion-image recording even in low-light settings. The FH20 can also record full-size motion images in WVGA (848 x 480 pixels at 30 fps) or standard motion images in VGA (640 x 480 pixels at 30 fps) and QVGA (320 x 240 pixels at 30 fps). Scene Mode The Scene Mode lets the camera make the optimal settings for you automatically, so anybody can take superb photos with ease. The versatile Scene Mode range, which handles just about any situation and subject type, is a major LUMIX feature. And to make it even simpler to use, the icons and display are designed for easy visibility. The DMC-FH20 lets you store a frequently used Scene Mode setting in the My Scene Mode. Macro Zoom You can pull subjects even closer than the closest point possible with the wide-angle setting by using 3x digital zoom, and capture dramatic close-ups. Selectable Focus Icon When using 9-area AF, the camera automatically determines the most appropriate AF area from the nine points. This ensures accurate focusing even for difficult compositions. You can also select the AF setting from Face AF or 1-area AF. With the DMC-FH20, you can select the icon from among 6 types that appears when the shutter button is pressed half-way. Slideshows The DMC-FH20 can play a slideshow with music. Choose from 4 types of music: Natural, Slow, Swing and Urban. Then, select the transition effect to match your music. For musical slideshows created with the included PHOTOfunSTUDIO 5.0, you can choose your favorite iTunes music file as background music. Text Stamp The Baby Mode and Pet Mode let you enter the date of birth and name of your subject in advance. You can also enter your destination and the date of travel in advance in the Travel Date setting. The name, age based on the birth date, date of travel information, and date of shooting are displayed during playback, and can be printed on photos. Quick Menu Frequently used functions can be quickly retrieved and easily switched by using the Q.MENU button. The function names are displayed in text form, making them easy for anyone to understand and use. View Photos on a Large-Screen HDTV The DMC-FH20 can take 16:9 HD (high-definition) quality photos that perfectly fit a wide-screen HDTV for full-screen viewing. You can enjoy slideshow of photos taken with the LUMIX in stunning HD quality by inserting an SD/SDHC/SDXC Memory Card in to the SD/SDHC/SDXC card slot with the VIERA HDTV (VIERA Image Viewer). PHOTOfunSTUDIO 5.0 Software The latest version of exciting PHOTOfunSTUDIO 5.0 software comes bundled with DMC-FH20. With quick start-up and fast read-in of images, the PHOTOfunSTUDIO 5.0 makes it possible to sort and organize photos not only of those newly taken, but also of those stored in your computer. The Face Recognition function recognizes the faces in the image, to automatically sort the photos by the registered faces without picking out each photo one by one when you only want images of a specific person. You can also enjoy slideshows with a variety of effects and use your iTunes music library as background music. Motion pictures can be uploaded directly to YouTube using the built-in YouTube uploader, even in HD (High Definition) quality. The new PHOTOfunSTUDIO 5.0 also lets you create a 360° rotation panorama file in MOV. The software is, of course, compatible with the Windows 7. Experience and feel the outstanding benefits of the PHOTOfunSTUDIO 5.0; it will allow you to view, edit and archive your captured photo and motion images with greater ease and fun. Buy it at The Tomorrow Technoogy LTD http://www.thetomorrowtechnology.co.ke