(Note: All screens and menus can be displayed on either the EVF or LCD.)

The screen when using "iA" or Intelligent Auto mode. This mode is designed for the beginner with fully automatic operation. It will help eliminate blurring from camera-shake/subject movement, as well as detect up to 15 faces and automatically select the focus, exposure and scene mode for the best possible photos.

Menu options in Simple mode are minimal.

Aspect Ratio - Choose 4:3 (default), 3:2, or 16:9

Picture Size - Setting will change depending on Aspect Ratio

Stabilizer - Off, Mode 1 or Mode 2

Color Effect - Off, B&W, Sepia

As you rotate the Mode dial, this virtual dial will appear. It can also be disabled via the setup menu.

Shown here is the Program AE mode screen. We are using Auto White Balance, ISO is set to 100, image size is 8M, Fine quality, our battery is 1/3 charged, the MEGA O.I.S. (image stabilizer) is enabled in Mode 1, Metering is set to Multiple and there's enough room on our SD card for 156 pictures. The time and date is displayed for a few seconds when you first turn the camera on or change modes.

When the shutter is half-pressed and the autofocus is achieved, the AF target brackets will turn green (red if AF fails) and a focus confirmation "green dot" is displayed. This is also when the aperture and shutter speed values are displayed. Using its Program Shift option (press the AF/AE lock button), you can actively change aperture to the desired value and the camera will automatically choose the correct shutter speed.

The Aperture priority mode allows you to select a specific aperture value to control depth of field (range of focus). A small aperture number gives you a shallower depth of field to put the background out of focus.

Shutter-speed priority is the direct opposite of aperture priority, it allows you to select the desired shutter speed and the camera matches the proper aperture. Fast shutter speeds allow you to "freeze" rapid moving subjects or "blur" them with a slower shutter speed.

In Manual exposure mode you select both the shutter speed and aperture value - you must also select the right combination to get the proper exposure level. An on-screen meter will display the exposure value as you change the settings.

Custom mode allows you create Custom exposure modes, tailored to fit your shooting needs for up to 3 different situations. This is very helpful for novice and advanced users who like to "dial in" that certain look in their Portrait, Sports, landscapes, etc.

Rotating the Mode Dial to the SCN position gives access to 14 of the 18 possible scene specific modes, that are optimized for variety of shooting environments and subjects. You can choose from Food, Party, Candle Light, Sunset, High Sensitivity, Baby1, Baby2, Pet, Panning, Starry Sky, Fireworks, Beach, Snow, Aerial photo . While scrolling through the Scene menu, pressing the "Display" button will give a brief description of the Scene modes intended use (shown above).

Portrait, Landscape, Sports, and Night Portrait are located on the Mode dial, and classified as Advanced Scene modes. Here you can choose what more advanced option for these modes. Like Portrait for example, you can choose Normal, Soft Skin, Outdoor, Indoor or Creative modes. This will further help you capture better photos in these conditions.

Press the 4-way controller "Up" to enable AE Bracketing, apply Exposure Compensation or Flash Exposure Compensation.

Record Menu options:

White Balance - Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Flash, Halogen, Custom Set 1/2
WB Adjust - Adjust the Auto White Balance settings
Intelligent ISO - On or Off
Sensitivity - Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1250, 1600
Aspect Ratio - 4:3 (standard default), 3:2, 16:9
Picture. Size - 4:3 mode, 8M, 5M, 3m, 2m, 0.3M
Quality - JPEG Fine, Standard, RAW, RAW+JPEG
Audio Rec. - Record 10 sec audio note with still image, On or Off
Metering Mode - Multiple, Center-weighted or Spot
AF Mode - Select the desired AF-area sensor combination
Stabilizer - Off, Mode 1, Mode 2
Continuous AF - Continuous auto focus, On or Off
AF Assist Lamp - On or Off
AF/AE Lock - Set the use of the AF/AE Lock button (AF/AE, AF, AE)
D. Zoom - Digital zoom option, On or Off
Color Effect - Off, Cool, Warm, B/W, Sepia
Picture Adjust - Adjust Contrast, Sharpness, Saturation, and Noise reduction.
Flip Animation - Create small in-camera animations
Conversion - Auxiliary lenses
Clock Set - Set the cameras clock

Press the 4-way controller "Down" to enable the Quick Review function to view or delete the last image taken.

Macro (close up) focus mode lets you get closer than 0.39 inches (1cm) to your subject at wide angle.

Movie mode captures QucikTime video at either WVGA (848x480), VGA (640x480) or QVGA (320 x 240) resolution with audio, depending on the aspect ratio. You can also choose a frame rate of 30 or 10 frames per second. The length of capture is limited by the amount of available memory, with a maximum clip size of 2GB. Because the FZ18 records sound during movies, the optical zoom may not be used while recording. It can however, be preset before hand.

Movie mode recording options:

White Balance - Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Halogen, Flash, Custom Set 1/2
WB Adjust - Adjust the Auto White Balance settings
Aspect Ratio - 4:3 (standard default) or 16:9
Picture Mode - VGA (30 or 10fps), QVGA (30 or 10fps)
Metering Mode - Multiple, Center-weighted or Spot
AF Mode - Select the desired AF-area sensor combination desired
Stabilizer - Off, Mode 1, Mode 2
Continuous AF - Continuous auto focus, On or Off
AF Assist Lamp - On or Off
Digital Zoom - Digital zoom option, On or Off
Color Effect - Off, Cool, Warm, Black/White, Sepia
Conversion - Auxiliary lenses, wide or telephoto
Clock Set - Set the cameras clock