News

• The Good: Comes with top-notch Leica glass; old school design will appeal to long-time photographers; live view function is both novel and handy; supersonic vibration technology keeps the image sensor clean; excellent image stabilization
• The Bad: It's a tad pricey for its class; the controls will likely prove intimidating to SLR novices; it's significantly bulkier than competing models; slow to start
• The Verdict: Panasonic's first Digital SLR is an impressive but complicated device best suited for experienced hobbyist photographers
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Given Panasonic's history of focusing their digital photography biz on compacts, I half expected the Japanese company's first single-lens reflex (SLR) camera to be little more than a gussied up point-and-shoot with an interchangeable lens and the option to manually focus—in other words, an SLR dumbed down for the masses .

As it turns out, the 7.5 megapixel Lumix DMC-L1 is among the more complex consumer digital SLR cameras on the market. It's got the kind of bulky form factor more common to professional grade cameras, has a wealth of customizable features, and offers users a rather complicated control scheme reminiscent of a film SLR. Oh…and it also comes with a decidedly non-consumer friendly price tag of $2,399.

So, if you're looking for one of the many inexpensive, easy-to-use digital SLRs currently creeping onto the market from camera and consumer electronics companies alike, read no further; the L1 is targeted squarely at the serious amateur photographer.

Doing it old school

The L1 is a photography traditionalist's machination. Its big, square, heavy black body was obviously designed for photographers familiar with film SLR cameras, and it doesn't shy away from providing a wide array of technical buttons and information that casual photographers used to digital compacts will find foreign and intimidating.

In fact, unlike most other consumer SLRs, the L1 provides very little in the way of simplified controls. There's no green square on the mode dial to switch to for care-free use. Heck, there's not even a proper mode dial (presets can only be found by drilling down into the L1's complicated menu system). Instead, users must spin the shutter speed dial to A, twist the aperture ring on the lens to A, and adjust the focus switch to AFS (auto focus single) or AFC (auto focus continuous) to achieve automatic operation.

Advanced camera users will likely prefer the L1's time-honoured, tactile, analog controls over more modern layouts, but someone experienced only with point-and-shoot models will almost certainly be confused by if not downright frightened of such a complicated physical interface.

Old Camera, meet New Technology

While the L1 may look and feel like your daddy's camera, its digital guts are 100 per cent 2006.

First off, it's only the second consumer SLR on the market with a live view feature (the other is the Olympus EVOLT E-330), which, in simple terms, means it offers the option to frame shots using the LCD rather than the optical viewfinder. This function is enabled by a moving reflex mirror that swings aside on command to provide the image sensor a direct view of the subject.

While most SLR users—and in particular the kind of traditionalists that the L1 is aimed at— prefer viewfinders, a live view can come in handy in situations in which placing your noggin directly behind the camera is impractical, such as taking pictures over the heads of people in crowds.

Another hi-tech marvel at work inside the L1 is its vibrating sensor cleaner. Whenever the camera is turned on, a dust filter vibrates at supersonic speed to quickly and safely shiver off any particles of dust that may obstruct the sensor. It beats the heck out of the annual (and costly) trip to your local dealer to get your camera cleaned. The only hitch is that the cleaning delays startup by a short moment (less than a second), which could result in missed photo opportunities as the camera boots up.

One last technological triumph worth mentioning is that the L1's lens employs optical image stabilization technology that does an impressive job of reducing the slightly jittery, blurry images that often occur when framing a subject from a distance or in low light situations. This function, called Mega O.I.S., can be flicked on or off via a small switch on the left side of the lens.

Is Panasonic hawking a lens or a camera?

On the subject of the L1's lens, it's an exclusive from notable optics vendor Leica, and some critics are saying is worth more than the actual body (we can't say for sure since neither the lens nor the body are sold separately)—which could account for the camera's exceptionally high price tag.

I'm no lens expert, but this, the first Leica lens designed specifically for digital cameras, certainly succeeds in delivering great pictures with natural colour, excellent clarity, and strong contrast.

Using my naked eye to judge image quality in the hundreds of frames I snapped, I found the L1 to have a subtle advantage over other consumer SLRs I've tested in terms of noise (image graininess) in certain environments, particularly at lower shutter speeds. But the noise reduction may also be attributed to Panasonic's new Venus Engine III image processor, which has been earning raves from the photography community.

A terrific camera - for prosumers

Aside from the fact that it will likely prove a little intimidating to novice SLR users, there's not much to criticize about the L1. It takes splendid pictures, and long-time photographers will almost certainly appreciate its rather retro design. Sure, it's a tad slow to start, and yes it's a bit bigger and heavier than competing cameras, but these are tradeoffs, and what we're trading for outweighs what is lost. It's a little pricey, but people who know lenses will likely understand why. Serious amateurs in the market for a new camera would do well to include the L1 in their list of possibilities to check out on their next shopping trip.