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Panasonic LX7
The Panasonic LX7 is the company's latest premium camera to sit right at the top of
its Lumix compact range.
A few years ago, the LX3 was a big success story for Panasonic, but its follow-up, the
LX5 - which is now two years old - didn't prove to be quite as popular.
In the intervening time since the LX5's launch we've seen several advancements in the compact
camera market, including the introduction of small cameras with larger sensors including
the Fujifilm X10 and the Sony RX100.
Panasonic clearly sees the Sony RX100, with its large, one-inch sensor, as its biggest
competitor, which left many surprised at Panasonic's decision to stick with a smaller, 1/1.7 inch
sensor.
However, the company is keen to point out that the decision to use a smaller sensor
allows for a wider maximum aperture at both the wide angle and telephoto end of the 3.8x
optical zoom lens. It starts at f/1.4, rising to just f/2.3 at the 90mm (equivalent) end
of the lens.
Other features of the LX7 is a 3 inch 920k dot resolution LCD screen, the ability to
shoot in raw format, full manual control and full HD video recording and a fast Venus processing
engine.
In terms of the physical design of the camera, little has changed between it and its predecessor,
the LX5. However, a couple of interesting additions include an aperture ring around
the lens, which can be used to quickly change apertures and an in-built ND grad filter which
is activated by this button here.
As on the LX5, there's also a switch on the lens to change between automatic, manual and
macro focusing along with a switch for altering aspect ratio - here you can choose between
4:3, a widescreen 16:9, 3:2 and square format 1:1.
Full manual control is one of the key features of premium compact cameras, with the LX7 also
giving you the ability to shoot in semi-automatic aperture and shutter priority. When using
these modes, this scroll dial here can be used to change aperture or shutter speed,
and handily it can also be pressed in and scrolled to control exposure compensation.
Autofocus points are also manually selectable. To change the point you want to use, hit the
left button and then use the arrow keys to position the square around the frame. It's
a shame that Panasonic didn't choose to include a touchscreen on the LX7, as this would have
sped up the process of making selections such as autofocus point much quicker.
In terms of image quality, the LX7 is capable of producing some extremely pleasing results.
Regardless of the fact that it uses a smaller sensor than some of its competitors, images
are bright, clear and sharp and you can still produce images with a restricted depth of
field. That f/1.4 lens is currently the joint brightest on the market and is a real bonus
when shooting in lower light conditions.
In a much more crowded market than existed at the LX3's launch, it's difficult to judge
whether Panasonic will be able to recapture the same successes, but it's fair to say that
the LX7 will appeal to a large amount of people, and is more than a match for others in the
marketplace.
For my full review of the Panasonic LX7, check out TechRadar.com/this month's issue.