Customer Reviews

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LC33 3.2MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the fourth digital camera I have bought, and I love it! Before I talk about why, let me answer an earlier question from "customer in Atlanta", who asks "does the camera print the date on the photo?".

The answer is that almost all digital cameras, including this one, comply with the DPOF (Digital Print Order Form) standard. This means that they all record the date, time, aperture, shutter speed and a whole host of other information for every photo. You don't have to do anything, they do all this by themselves. As to whether you can print the date on your photo, well, that depends on your printing software, not on your camera. Therefore, with the right software, almost every digital camera will print the date on the photo. The software that comes with this camera DOES allow you to print the date on the photo.

The camera itself is superb. The lens is from Leica, the best lensmaker in the world since 1925, and you can tell by the pictures. They are as sharp as a tack, with good color saturation and contrast, and will print to 11" x 14" size with no problem at all.

I got this camera for my wife, who was a little intimidated by the SLR film cameras that we have, and by the Olympus C730 digicam that we have. She wanted something that would be point-and-shoot easy, but produce good sharp photos. This camera fits the bill perfectly. It handles well, is very light, and is just the right size in my view. There are smaller digicams (the Canon Elph and the Pentax) but they are TOO small in my opinion, and that makes them hard to hold steady and keep your fingers out of their way. (By handles well, I mean fits well in the hand, feels good, feels balanced, and you can easily keep your fingers away from the flash, light sensor, and lens).

By the way, if you read the editorial tech specs on Amazon for this camera, they talk about the "MEGA optical image stabiliser". This is a mistake, this camera does NOT have MEGA. MEGA is on Panasonic cameras with a 12x zoom, whereas this camera has a 3x zoom. The good news is that you don't need MEGA with a 3x, only with a 12x. (Long zooms such as 12x suffer from severe camera shake when fully extended).

We run our Lumix on rechargeable NiMh batteries. They are very long lasting, and work out to be a fraction of the price of any other batteries. Make sure to get NiMh's with more than 1800 mAh. Ritz Camera have a great 4-pack of "Sunpak" NiMh's at 2000 mAh for only ten bucks - half the price of Radio Shack or anyone else. Speaking of price, check the Panasonic camera web page for the MSRP of this camera - you will find that neither Amazon nor anyone else is discounting the price.

They don't have to in my view - this camera is better than others I've seen at $400. And my wife's opinion? She loves, and I mean loves, this camera. She is now excited about photography (to my delight) and takes pics just about every day. I can easily see the Lumix becoming our main camera because of its easy portability and use, and its great results.

If you plan to get a 3.2 megapixel camera like this, you should also budget for a 128Mb memory card. The 16Mb card that comes with it holds only 10 or 20 pictures (depending on the compression you choose) at 2048 x 1536.

If you are looking for a good point and shoot automatic camera, you will not regret buying this one.

Its very hard to select a digital camera for purchase with dozens of models out there. Reviews will help but its you who has to make the final decision.

LC33 is one of the rare non-Canon's worth considering. Its got a lot of features, fast performace, sharp images and reasonable price.

Pro's,
1. The image quality is very good, sharp & clean.
2. Fast performance, quick to do everything.
3. Got a unique mega burst mode to capture 5-8 images per sec, extremely handy for sports pics.
4. Build quality is very good and camera feels perfect in hand.
5. Runs on standard NiMH AA batteries, has video out and uses standard SD/MMC cards.
6. Panasonic is running a promotion currently for free 128MB SD card and 4 NiMH batteries after a rebate.
7. Uses only 2 batteries unlike 4 for A70, making it light weight.

Con's,
1. Bigger than Canon Elph's (about the same size as Canon A70).
2. Plastic tripod mount.
3. No manual controls except white balance.
4. Some noise in photos.

Overall LC33 is better than elcheapo Fuji's, Olympus D560 and Nikon 3100. (Cameras like those from Gateway, Samsung, Vivitar, Argus etc are just pathetic in comparison, don't waste money on them.) My recommendation is to get either Panasonic LC33, Sony P72 or Canon A70.

I have been researching for my 1st Dig cam for a month now. I have tried Minolta F300 (grainy, too complicated with manual options), Sony P72(noisy at night, pics on LCD look awesome but not on computer), Fuji 3800 (good, but awkward to hold etc). So returned all 3.

Bought this Panasonic 33, very nice ! Good pics, very accurate colors( see sony's is not natural, I will prove it to you !), Very smooth operation, no noise at all, no lags, cheaper, easy to hold, light - fits in pocket, fully auto - no manual operations, very easy for novices.

Problems:
Plasticky body (buy pana DCM F1S with metal etc if you want metal), Not great in Low light conditions (how many times we will take pics in low light ? let us face it).......it still takes good pics in normal night light conditions but not faraway ones, night scenary is not bad etc...., will have to buy AA NIMh battery, charger( get that Kodak at amazon.com - it has 5* rating), no sound in playback mode for video but it does record sound...

Overall, you won't regret if this is your first & want a pocket camera !

I bought this camera 1.5 weeks ago, and used it at several family Thanksgiving gatherings. I have been very pleased with the results so far. It has really met all my expectations.

I had been looking for a $200 travel camera, and had been watching the features I wanted come down the price curve. I am an experienced photographer and wanted all the key features and controls, but it had to be easy enough for my wife and kids to use. I purchased the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LC33 on a short local sale for $200. This camera has had little publicity and distribution, but is very competitive at the the standard $269 price. It is a hidden gem.

Details:
So far, everything working as it should.
The Leica lens, which drew my initial attention, produces VERY sharp images. For indoor family shots with limited light, setting the ASA at 400 produced amazing results without flash, and at the low resolution setting. I kept the flash off most of the time. Battery life has been excellent, but since I have not yet used up a set of high capacity rechargables I am not sure how good. Camera feels good in the hands, but I found that to take steady pix, it helped to use the optical viewer and hold the camera against my face. There are many controls accessible and easy to use, but you have to know or learn what they mean to get the most out of the camera.

On the other hand, if you just want point and shoot simplicity, just put it in that mode using the top dial (the heart) and start shooting.

Transferring images to my pc (WInXP Pro) was quick and very easy. I connected the camera to the pc with the USB cable. A new F disk drive appeared in my Win Explorer window. I just copied the files to the new directory for my Thanksgiving photos. Then unplugged. Click on the file to display the image. I have not bothered to install the software that came with the camera. I don't envision doing a lot of editing.

The movie mode with sound works well. The review functions work well when playing back the photos and movies, and deleting unwanted images was easy. Little shutter delay noticed, and there was quick recovery between shots. Optical telephoto function works smoothly, but digital telephoto hard to figure without practice. The multi-shot button will come in handy when shooting kids.

Tips - turn off LCD display when not in use. When battery starts to show running down, turn it off for a while to let it recover.
For web posting and emailing, use the lowest resolution setting. JPG file size was about 60k, and they looked great.

Negatives:
Found it a bit confusing when clicking the shutter switch as to whether a photo was taken, partly because of flashing diode lights and slight shutter delay.
A bit larger and heavier than the smallest Canons, but at a lot smaller price. The choice is yours. This one is small enough for a jacket pocket or micro pouch, but perhaps too much for a shirt pocket. All very small cameras such as this one need special care when taking shots to avoid jiggle and fuzzy focus. The sound recording option made me wish I could plug in headphones to listen, but I can live without it. LCD will get smudged and probably scratched pretty fast. I will look for a Palm type cover sheet. Sometimes forgot to switch back from review mode to photo mode on top dial, which caused confusion when trying to take the next shot.

The DMC-LC33 is my first digital camera; I've been using Leica "M" rangefinders for 20 years, and, candidly, the Leica lens was a major draw. I just returned from my first real outing with the camera and I love it!

* I shoot every image at maximum resolution and print using Picture Window and an Epson 2200 -- 5"x7" prints are glorious; 8 1/2" x 11 " (~A4) are really good if viewed from a foot or more away.
* There are enough controls to put the photographer in charge if need be (I use the +/- EV control a lot), but on pure auto-pilot the exposures are always at least decent, usually better.
* I've had good experiences in "Leica mode" -- turn off the flash and display, compose through the optical viewfinder. The exposure lag is the only downside I've found with this camera.

Highly recommended to any traditional photographer wanting to get their feet wet in the digital realm.

Panasonic digital cameras are not anywhere near as ubiquitous as Elphs, and it's unfortunate. I think these Lumix cameras, which are slightly larger than the Elphs, compare more favorably in many ways.

I recently upgraded from my Panasonic DMC-LC20 to this camera and have not been disappointed. The LC-33 is slightly smaller, is 3.2MP versus 2.1MP. It still delivers many of the functionalities I was looking for in a DC.

The most important features on this camera are:
- Leica lens: Perhaps one of the most important features of a camera is its lens. With a good lens, you can take good pictures. With an excellent one like a Leica...
- AA batteries: Proprietary batteries suck. They're expensive and they sometimes inexplicably just die or lose their charge. It's much better to rely a few sets of AAs. And if you're ever out on vacation and run out of power, just run out and buy more batteries instead of having to wait to look for an outlet and charge up for a few hours.
- Burst mode: Allows you to take as many as 3 (manual says 5, but I've only gotten 3) pictures within a second. This only works in ideal light conditions, but if you've ever tried to take sports/action shots with a DC, you know how frustrating it can be with the lag between clicking the button and the camera takig the picture, and the lag between pictures.
- Short Lag time: Speaking of lag times, the Panasonic seems to have a shorter lag than Elphs.
- Picture Review: Some cameras require you to switch from camera mode to picture mode to view the last picture you took. This is a foreign concept to me. With the LC33, press a button, and it's back on the screen for 5 seconds.
- Movie mode: Although movies don't come out all that great (10 fps compared to 15 on some other cameras), the camera does allow you to record for as long as you have memory.
- Audio annotation is a fun feature to have. This allows you to automatically store a few seconds of audio with your picture.

- They fixed the battery storage fip-door thing. The LC20 had a horrible design that just felt like it was going to break anytime.

Cons:
- Weak Flash
- The body of the LC33 doesn't feel quite as sturdy as the Elphs, but I haven't had any problems with the LC33, and my LC20 is still going strong despite some short falls.

The camera I was comparing it to was the Canon A70, which I've heard and read is supposedly the best in this class. The Elphs are nice, but more pricey. And since I wasn't as concerned about size, I opted to look at the LC33 and A70.

I eventually settled on this camera for the following reasons:
- It takes 2 AAs rather than the A70's 4 AAs. If a camera takes 4 batteries, you'll need a minimum of 8 rechargable batteries at all times. With the LC33, I get away with having 6 AAs. Each pair gives me a good 100+ shots.
- Panasonic takes SD memory instead of the A70's Compact Flash. CF is a dying technology. Even Canon's moving away from it. (Note their newest Elph, the SD100 takes SD.) SD, is here it stay. It's being used in PDAs, phones, and other mobile devices.
- A70 fit poorly in my hand. The battery storage area for the A70 is in the handle. Before you buy any digital camera, go to a store and see how it fits in your hand first!!!
- Last, my previous positive experience with the Panasonic swayed me towards the LC33.

I'll conclude with the end to my review of the LC20: The key to buying a DC will be to ask yourself what you will be using the camera for most. Is it something you want to bring with you EVERYWHERE? If so, you'll probably want something ultra-small, smaller than this camera (and thus probably twice the price of this camera). I just wanted something to replace my Point-and-Shoot, something that allows me to take a lot of pictures without worrying about the cost of film, development, etc. IMHO, this is a great starter DC. It's relatively cheap, has a lot of great features, and it's compact enough to carry in a jacket pocket. Overall, it has exceeded my expectations and continues to please.

First, I will say that this camera is a great value at the listed price. But with the certificate Amazon offered, along with a rebate from Epson on the 825, you effectively get a free photo printer afer rebates and credits. Wow.

I took the camera to a weekend baseball tournament to take a few pictures. Instead of taking a few pictures, I was asked to take pictures for the team's digital yearbook. I ended up taking 230 pictures over three days. Most were outdoors so no flash was used, but there is still life in my second set of batteries for the weekend.

The pictures are consistently excellent. I simply pointed the camera and took a picture, using the standard auto mode the whole weekend. The only pictures that were poorly exposed were my fault, and were easily fixed using software. It fit in my hand nicely for such a small camera, and felt solid.

Consider rechargeable NiMH batteries a requirement, and get at least a 128 MB SD card, preferrably 256. Also consider a carrying case (I found an inexpensive Case Logic fabric model that works very well). This will add about $100 for the accessories, but they are well worth it.

I could go on and on with praise, I really have no complaints. I wish that there was zero lag between pushing the button and being ready to take the next shot, but all cameras have that. The display is very nice, even in bright daylight, I recommend covering it with a screen protector. The rapid 5-shot sequence mode was very cool, especially for capturing a batter's swing or a pitcher's release. The menus and controls were easy to use and had a good feel.

It would be hard to imagine finding a better value in this range.

I did fair amount of research and concluded that the Panasonic Lumic DMC-LC33 is the best value overall. With the Leica lens, it takes absolutely great pictures that are comparable to those of film cameras. It is very easy to use. The mode dial (choice of simple, normal, macro, portrait, landscape, night portrait, motion) help beginners to take nice pictures. For sophisticated users, it has many control enable you to adjust ISO, EV, white balance, etc. Besides the picture quality, its speed is one of the best among digital cameras. You almost don't feel any shutter lag. I especially like the burst mode which let you take 5 continuous shots in one second, perfect for those hard-to-catch moments. The movie mode appears a bit jittery at 10 fps, but like its still images, the picture quality is very good. I have seen other reviews mentioning the flash being weak. However, I found it adequate and can be easily enhanced by setting ISO to 400. Its size can fit into a pocket.

I think maybe because Panasonic is not as well known in camera as brands such as Canon, Nikon, Olympus, etc., so it prices its models very competitively. This is a great camera at a valued price. I couldn't be happier with it. Strongly recommended.

This camera offers extreme ease of use for those new to digital photography. The instruction manual is very well written and the camera, while small, has a feel of quality. The picture quality is very good up to and including 8 x 10. The only area of improvement here would be the included 8 megabyte SD card. This is unacceptable in a 3.2 megapixel camera. My advice would be to get at least 1 128 meg SD card and give the 8 meg card to someone still using a 1 megapixel camera.

This camerae is fabulous. The photos are clear and crisp. The settings enable you to tweak almost anything you want. There are special photo modes. Including a 'heart' mode which is basically point and shoot friendly. The quality is outstanding and the price is comparably less than the cannon A60, but without sacrificing quality standards. Plus this camera takes 2 AA NiMH at a time and not four like other cameras, a huge plus. This way you can carry extra batteries much easier. A battery charger is a must so plan to buy one. With usb 2.0 you'll have your pics on the computer in a flash. Don't be discouraged by all the special settings. Just make sure you have the photo on enlarge quality and not internet, so that it looks good. All resolutions come out nicely. The movie mode is in quicktime format and the movies come out surprisingly clear and the audio is great esp for such a small mic, it picks up everything. I can't say anything bad about this camera but...

The only cons are, make sure you hold the camera on your subject(s) for at least 2 seconds or the pic will come out blurred. Bad lighting makes for some digital noise (grainy). And make sure you purchase at least a 128mb SD card. This camera has been discontinued due to it's lighter remake, LC50. Go buy one and take awesome photos :-)