Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX3 Review

For beginners or anyone that just wants to "point-n-shoot" there's the Simple exposure mode (the red heart icon on mode dial.) The camera sets almost everything for you, the Simple menu options are shown in the next frame.

Simple menu options:

Pict. Mode - Enlarge, 4x6", E-mail (no image resolutions to confuse the user, just 3 choices: Enlarge for big prints, 4x6" for standard prints or E-mail for 640x480 images)

Auto Review - Show image after capture, On or Off

Beep - Camera makes "beep" sounds, Off, Low, High

Clock Set - Set the time and date

Normal mode (the red camera icon on the mode dial) is also an automatic exposure mode but the user has a wide array of menu settings available (see below.) The screen here shows the flash is set to Auto+Red-eye reduction, image size is 6M, image quality is Fine, the battery level is at full (3/3), there's room on the SD card for another 291 shots, and the image stabilizer is set to Mode 1 (shaking hand icon.)

When the shutter is half-pressed and the auto focus is achieved, the AF target brackets in the center turn green (red if AF fails) and a focus confirmation "green dot" is displayed. The shutter speed and aperture will also be displayed.

Normal menu options:

White Balance - Auto, Sunny, Cloudy, Shade, Incandescent or Manual set
Sensitivity - Auto, 100, 200 or 400 ISO equivalent
Aspect Ratio - 4:3 (TV), 3:2 (perfect for 4x6-inch prints), 16:9 (Wide screen)
Pict. Size - 6M, 3M, 2M, 1M, 0.3M
Quality - JPEG Fine or Standard
Audio Rec. - Record 10 sec audio note with still image, On or Off
AF Mode - Select the desired AF-area sensor combination (9-area, 3-area, 1-area or Spot)
AF Assist Lamp - On or Off
Slow Shutter - 1/8, 1/4, 1/2 or 1 second shutter speed (use of a tripod at these speeds is highly recommended)
D. Zoom - Digital zoom option, On or Off
Color Effect - Off, Cool (bluer), Warm (redder), B/W (monochrome), Sepia
Picture Adjust - Natural (softer), Standard, Vivid (sharper)
Clock Set - Set the time and date

Rotating the Mode Dial to the SCN position gives access to 17 scene specific modes that are optimized for variety of shooting environments and subjects. You can choose from Portrait, Sports, Food, Scenery, Night Portrait, Night Scenery, Baby, Soft Skin, Candle Light, Party, Fireworks, Snow, Starry Shy and Panning. While scrolling through the Scene menu, pressing "Right" on the 4-way controller will give a brief description of the Scene modes intended use. s

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 as close as 5 cm (0.16 feet) Wide or 30 cm (0.98 feet) Telephoto.

Movie mode captures QucikTime video at either 4:3 (640x480 or 320 x 240) or 16:9 (848x480) aspect ratios at either 30 or 10fps, with audio. The length of capture is limited only by the amount of available memory. Because sound is recorded, the zoom may be preset before recording, but it can not be used during.

Movie Capture Capacities

Movie mode recording options:

White Balance - Auto, Sunny, Cloudy, Shade, Incandescent, or Manual set
Aspect Ratio - 4:3 or 16:9
Picture Mode - VGA (30 or 10fps), QVGA (30 or 10fps), 16:9 (30 or 10fps)
AF Mode - Select the desired AF-area sensor combination desired
AF Assist Lamp - On or Off
Digital Zoom - Digital zoom option, On or Off
Color Effect - Off, Cool, Warm, Black/White, Sepia
Clock Set - Set the time and date