Panasonic LX5 is in troubled waters!

Streetshooter

Administrator Emeritus
Location
Philly, Pa
I just talked with Panasonic Tech Support.
There is no firmware in the works to the knowledge of this agent.
I explained my dissatisfaction with the AF Target Size Memory.

I'm about done. The GF1 holds memory of this feature but the LX5 forgets it upon sleep or off/on.
This bothers me to no end....!
I'm probably going to sell it off, as good as it is..it isn't.
Does this bother anyone else or am I the only concerned shooter?
Shooter
 
I do not own the LX5, but something like that would bother me, too. The Canon S90 looses the setting of the metering method, which is extremely annoying, so I can understand you very well.
 
It doesn't bother me near enough to get rid of the camera Don. I'd surely prefer it to remember that, but I spend so much time shooting with this cam in manual focus/hyperfocal, that its ability to remember the focal point, zoom, aperture, etc, far outweighs the minor inconvenience of having to re-small the focus point. And, frankly, for the kind of shooting I tend to be doing with this camera when I AM in AF, the larger area generally does just fine. If I used that feature a lot, it would bother me more, but its too good in too many ways for me to consider selling it. I haven't found a camera yet that has EVERYTHING I want. I may get to a point of having 3 that have everything between them, but each one is lacking something...

-Ray
 
Doesn't bother me in the least. Landscape photography allows me plenty of time to set up things (usually) exactly how I want them. Having to switch a few things around at times doesn't effect the quality of my experience or the shots.

The camera is hardly in troubled waters, let alone due to this.
 
Don, I think you need to take several breaths and call me in the morning.:tongue:

I do find it annoying but I would not get rid of this camera now - I'd have nothing! Seriously, that annoyance isn't enough to put me off my LX5. Now, on the other hand, I would not like that metering mode issue that Christian has mentioned with his Canon S90.

I guess we all have our tipping points.:D
 
I too have given up on the LX5.
The image quality in reasonable light has never been up to my DLux4.

The lens above 55mm lacks resolution
The processing is too aggressive at default settings
The jpeg colours are difficult to like...
and my copy (the second ) can freeze after a menu setting input.

By looking back at the DPReview /Imaging Resource lens tests I can see the inferiority of the lens when compared to the LX3.
I do like the new sensor and the body build quality is very good but I haven't been so unhappy with a camera for years.
 
nippa, I'm sorry to read that you've been so unhappy - though I am glad to see you here. Of course, I have no other LX or D-Lux to compare it to. I've been very happy with my camera. I do miss the sensor that my X1 had, but have found the LX5 to be very good. I have often wondered if the D-Lux version was different or not. Everyone says it isn't but I always wished that I could try them both at the same time and see the results.

We've got another thread or two devoted to the Fuji X100...which is a contender I'm particularly interested in.
 
I've still got my X1 !
Nothing comes close to the image quality of the X1 but it's really a niche camera.
I'm on the X100 mailing list and that looks really promising.
Did you notice that a Norwegian Site had some high ISO images from a prototype until Fuji requested that they removed them?

I just wonder if Amazon UK had a bad batch of LX5s and would it be worth buying a DLUXE 5?
I'm in the States next month and wanted a small camera for my trip...might buy when I'm over at West Palm Beach
 
The AF size issue for me is crucial. Why? Because I do a lot of lowlight work. With the medium target size it's very easy to miss the part you want focused. Wide open at 3200 or whatever, there's no room for AF mistakes.
The small target hits right on all the time.
Like Ray, good light is great with hyperfocal shooting.
Bummer....
 
Which cameras do keep the preferred private settings in mind after power off?
I wonder why we can't configurate/set up our cameras by pc. (our preferred settings)
Selecting a prefered set up for what we need prior for going on shooting.
 
The GF1 remembers everything you set.... The issue with the LX5 is eating at me. Ray is right and I highly respect his input as we work in a similar way on common ground. As Ray mentioned, the camera does hyperfocal better than almost any other camera of this type.
The issue for me is really lower light and that huge target... maybe it's my neurosis and meds would help me but the meds won't help the camera.
I will probably sell it and get another GF1....
sadly, I know I will miss the LX5 but when it fails me...it fails me...
 
I rarely shoot the LX5 in particularly low light, so that may be why this doesn't bother me that much. When its all I have with me, I've used it in low light and done alright, but the gf1 or, more likely, the ep2 would be my first choice. When things get dim, the combination of a larger sensor and faster glass starts to MATTER! Since you already have one of each, why not choose based on the situation? Whatever you do, I know its not a decision taken lightly - I know how much you like the LX5 otherwise, so it must be important to you to even THINK about selling it. I just brought a Sony A33 home from the store, so I'm working the other side of the size/weight/IQ street of compromises (you've heard of Street of Dreams? - this ain't it!) at the moment. I know the LX5 isn't going anywhere and I'm quite sure I'll keep at least one m43...

-Ray
 
Please don't think I'm ditching the camera.

I work like this.....
When I see something, I frame in my mind first, then raise the camera to capture. The camera can not cause an intrusion in my vision.
If I'm using AF, which I really like, the target is to large to pinpoint the exact point of focus I want. If I have to make a 2 step adjustment, then the image is lost.
I don't have the luxury of time to play with settings.

Ray, you asked me a few times about how I see certain images.
I see them all the time...that is not the issue.
The key issue is to have a camera that will see what I see and not intrude on my vision.
The GF1 does that all the time.
The LX5 does it most times but not always.

Those missed images are more important to me than any camera.
Don
 
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