Panasonic FZ1000
Dream Starter.
FZ1000 & Me
Panasonic FZ1000 was technically my first camera. I used it for about 2 years and never hated it even in the slightest bit.
It was the first year that my college’s library renewed their cameras from the old Canon’s to this new Panasonic FZ1000.
I didn’t like that old Canon, and I tried the new Panasonic and never came back. I started borrowing FZ1000 from the library every single weekends, and somehow kind of bought it after an accident, but that was another complicated story.
The result was, Panasonic FZ1000 started my enthusiasm for serious photography.
Panasonic FZ1000
Max Spec. Min Price.
Panasonic FZ 1000 comes with a fixed 25-400mm F2.8 Leica lens. While it keeps the package in a relatively small size, the price is a stunning 600 USD.
The bad news is that FZ1000’s sensor is an 1-inch CMOS, which is not significantly bigger than some phones’. However, when you see the quality of the pics from that camera, you would immediately know that this Leica certification was no joke.
Panasonic FZ1000
Reality Unwinds.
The richness of color and texture from the FZ1000 is fascinating. It carefully processes the spectrum received and exports amazingly accurate colors and makes them look just slightly better than what you would have seen with your bare eyes(value & saturation-wise).
Speaking of values of colors, this little camera also performs shockingly well with monochrome. Even if the photos were originally shot colored, and then imported into Lightroom to cancel its saturation, you would find the contrast of value’s enhanced beforehand just for a better, more authentic view whether in monochrome or not.
Panasonic FZ1000
Space Compressor.
One fun thing I love to do is to play graphic design in reality with FZ1000. I honestly don’t use the 400mm that often, but the 200mm was one of my favorite partner to play with.
When you’re shooting the subject, especially architectures, from a long telephoto lens, it compresses the space into a flatter piece. It would make you lose sense of dimensions, and the photos would start looking like a collage, but that’s the fun.
Panasonic FZ1000
Shapeless, Like Water.
Having a super duper portable 25-400mm is unimaginably magical. When I was shooting with it, I could barely see and feel the limitation of this thing.
You saw a cute dog passing by your feet, and you captured that moment. The next second you are shooting at a flag on an architecture an mile away.
FZ1000 adapts to everything you can ever shoot. If you are an photographer and you don’t understand what Bruce Lee was talking about, get a FZ1000 and you’ll see.
Panasonic FZ1000
Overall
The FZ1000 is probably not the greatest entry-level camera even to Panasonic. There is the successor FZ1000 II, and even an upgraded model called FZ2000. But FZ1000 was the one camera that blew my mind and started my journey.
In fact, I am not super recommending this camera, because it is kinda out of its time.
I guess I was just trying to pull out this one tiny, fame-less, rusty little coin from the grand ocean of photography, and hopefully polish till it could tell its own glory.