Big Zoom + Small Camera = Wow!

The zoom on the Lumix camera just keeps getting better. Experience the power of an incredible 18x optical zoom in a 8.1-megapixel camera that fits in the palm of your hand. From vast landscapes to super telephoto shots, the DMCFZ18K gives you crisp, stunning images using a 28mm wide-angle Leica DC Vario-Elmarit lens. For macro shots, the wide-angle setting lets you shoot all the way down to one centimeter from your subject, while the telephoto setting can be used up to one meter (3.28 feet) from your subject. With the Extended Optical Zoom function, zoom power is boosted to around 28.7x (in 3-megapixel resolution mode).

Save Face — With New Face Detection Technology

You just showed your girlfriend all the pics you took at her birthday party. Everything looks great — except her: in every picture she is blurry, hazy, and has red-eye. Not only that, but super-cute Jean Smilefeild looks perfect, as usual. If you want to save your relationship, we suggest you invest in the Lumix DMCFZ18K. The new Face Detection function automatically chooses the optimal settings to make sure faces appear well-lit and in focus. This advanced technology can detect up to 15 faces in a scene, and will even automatically readjust the settings if their positions change. In Intelligent Auto Mode, the camera automatically begins focusing even before you press the shutter button, so you'll never miss an opportunity for a great shot. Believe us, your girlfriend will thank you.

Get Into The Right Scene — With Scene Detection

Now you can be an excellent photographer at the push of a button — minus all the hazing or having to wear matching jackets. With your Panasonic Lumix digital camera in Intelligent Auto Mode, the Intelligent Scene Selector will sense the ambient conditions and automatically select either the Scenery, Portrait, Macro, Night Portrait or Night Scenery mode accordingly. With the camera choosing the settings for you, you'll get beautiful results every time you shoot, no matter what the scene or subject. Finally, changing scenes won't make you sacrifice a thing.

Prevent Blurry Shots

The MEGA O.I.S. compensates for the blurring caused by hand-shake. It is now featured on the entire LUMIX range, and is highly popular with users around the world. Even slight hand-shake movement is accurately detected by a sampling frequency of 4000 times per second, and compensated to produce sharp, clear images. This is true, of course, for zooming and macro shots, which are especially susceptible to hand-shake, but it also lets you shoot in dimly lit rooms or uneven illumination, without a flash, to preserve the mood. In short, it lets anybody take beautiful, blur-free shots with ease.

Intelligent ISO

When the intelligent ISO control (I.I.C.) in the DMCFZ18K camera detects subject motion, it automatically raises the ISO setting and increases the shutter speed to prevent motion blur. On the other hand, when the subject is still and no movement is detected, it lets you take beautifully natural photos with a low ISO setting. Have you ever mistakenly used a high ISO setting to take a photo of a subject standing still? If so, you may remember the noisy, grainy result. Of, if you have tried snapping a moving subject at a low ISO setting, your photo was probably spoiled by motion blur. Intelligent ISO Control gives you stunning images with ease because there is no need for complicated settings. The new mode dial on the DMCFZ18K also lets you select I.ISO (Intelligent ISO Control) Mode. It allows the sensitivity to be raised to a maximum of ISO 1600, or to be set to a limit of ISO 400 or ISO 800. I.ISO Mode produces exactly the image quality that you intend. And, selecting High Sensitivity mode from among the Scene Modes allows the sensitivity to be raised all the way up to ISO 6400. This makes it possible to take sharp, blur-free shots of active children of pets even in indoor settings with limited light.

You And LUMIX Agree — No Need For Hand-Shake

The DMCFZ18K helps you get clear shots every time. Panasonic invented the MEGA O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) system to fight against hand-shake, the major cause of blurry images. This system, which takes advantage of Panasonic's outstanding lens technology, has long been incorporated into the LUMIX range of cameras. In addition, the DMCFZ18K compensates for the other major cause of blurry images — subject movement. The Intelligent ISO Control function, made possible by the Venus Engine III, detects subject movement and adjusts the ISO setting and shutter speed to best suit the movement and light conditions automatically. Together, they form Intelligent Image Stabilizer, which makes it easy for anybody to take crisp, clear photos in just about any situation. It's automatic, so you can leave everything to the camera.

Great Shooting Options

With the DMCFZ18K you can snap off consecutive shooting at 3 frames or 2 frames per second with full resolution. Just keep the shutter button pressed to fire off consecutive shots of a moving subject or a person's changing facial expression. Then save only the best ones. With a digital camera, you can just delete any shots you don't want. In addition, the Unlimited Consecutive Shooting function lets you continue shooting until your memory card is full. Now, even the self-timer is able to take three consecutive shots. Never again will you have to reset the self-timer because somebody blinked. Just choose the best one from the three consecutive shots. The aspect ratio is easily selectable between 16:9 wide, 3:2 and conventional 4:3 to shoot in the framing aspect that best suits the photo's composition or purpose of use. You can shoot images in the wide 16:9 format and save them onto an SD/SDHC memory card. Then insert the card into a TV equipped with an SD/SDHC card slot to view them in perfect, wide-screen size. Some TVs will display the images in stunning high definition. The DMCFZ18K also lets you shoot smooth moving pictures at 30 frames per second, complete with sound, in WVGA or VGA size. You can also shoot at 10 frames per second to reduce the file size.

Built-In Memory and RAW Format

Take photos even when you don't have an SD/SDHC Memory Card on hand. The built-in memory holds up to 27 MB of image data, which you can later copy to an SD/SDHC Memory Card or PC. You can also copy images from a memory card or PC to the built-in memory, and vew them on the LCD anytime you like. You can get original image data, recording the image directly from the CCD without any image processing. SILKYPIX Developer Studio 2.0SE software utility lets you develop RAW data files. For example, you can develop RAW data to create an image with the effect you were trying to capture when you took the shot. You get high-level basic image processing abilities that give you control over such things as unnatural edges from saturated color borders, false colors in structures with intricate detail, and chromatic noise in photos taken at high sensitivity settings. This utility provides a unique combination of high resolution and extraordinary color separation performance.

Start Your Engine

The Venus Engine III in the DMCFZ8 allows high-sensitivity recording up to ISO 1250 at full resolution. The noise reduction system is also greatly improved while maintaining high resolution. It removes noise at the processing stages in series. First, critical noise is roughly undraped and the chromatic noise and the luminance noise are separated so they can each go through a supplemental noise reduction process that appropriately minimizes the remaining noise. Panasonic slashed the release time lag to 0.005 second minimum by increasing both the circuit speed itself and the point at which the shutter release signal is detected. They also shortened the shutter interval to around 0.6 second (minimum). These improvements help make the DMCFZ8 an extremely quick, responsive camera that's a pleasure to use. Despite the significantly increased performance of the camera, the Venus Engine III consumes only 80 percent of the power utilized by the Venus Engine II and is able to achieve a longer battery life of approximately 380 pictures on a single charge.

Included With Purchase

Battery charger, battery pack, lens cap, lens hood, lens hood adapter, AV cable, USB connection cable, strap, CD-ROM. Included software: LUMIX Simple Viewer, PhotofunStudio, SILKYPIX Developer Studio, AcrSoft PhotoImpression, AcrSoft PanoramaMaker, USB driver.

Comparison Specifications

• 8.1 Megapixels (Effective)
• 27 MB Built-In Memory, Uses Optional SD Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card, MultiMedia Card
• 18x Optical Zoom (Up To 28x Extra Optical Zoom), 4x Digital Zoom
• Modes: P(Program), A(Aperture Priority), S(Shutter Priority), M(Manual), Simple, Scene (20), Motion Picture, Playback, Print, Intelligent ISO, Cutom, And More
• Flash Modes: Auto, Auto with Red Eye Reduction, Forced On, Forced Off, Slow Sync
• QuickTime JPEG Movie Modes: 4:3 Aspect Ratio (640x480, 320x240); 16:9 Aspect Ratios (848x480)
• Conversion Lens Compatible
• 2.5-Inch Polycrystalline TFT LCD (207 K Pixels), Power LCD Mode, High Angle Mode
• USB Connection, DC Input, A/V Output (NTSC/PAL)
• Built-In Microphone, Built-In Speaker

Additional Specifications

• MEGA O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilization) (Mode 1/Mode 2)
• 28mm-504mm (35mm Equivalent) LUMIX DC VARIO-ELMARIT Lens, 11 Elements in 8 Groups, Face
• AF (Auto Focus) Metering: 1-Point, 1-Point High Speed, 3-Point High Speed, Multi-Point, Spot
• AF Assist Lamp
• ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1250, 1690 (High Sensitivity Mode: 1600-6400)
• White Balance: Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Halogen, Flash, White Set 1/2, White Balance Adjustment
• 1/2.5", 8.32 Megapixels (Total) CCD, Primary Color Filter
• Exposure: Program AE, Aperture Priority AE, Shutter Priority AE, Manual
• Shutter Speed: 1-1/2000 Sec., Aperture/Shutter Priority: 8-1/2000 Sec., Manual: 60-1/2000 Sec., Starry Sky Mode: 15, 30, 60 Seconds
• Aperture: Wide: f2.8 - f8.0 (2 Steps), Tele: f4.2 - f8.0 (2 Steps)

Manufacturer Specifications

• Still Image Record with Audio (5 Seconds), Audio Dubbing (Max. 10 Seconds)
• Auto Review: 1 Second/3 Seconds/Zoom, Review: 1x/4x/8x
• Color Effect Mode: Cool, Warm, Black & White, Sepia
• Image Sizes Ranging from 3264 x 2448 Pixels to 640 x 480 Pixels
• Burst Shooting Mode, Unlimited Consecutive Shooting, Real-Time Histogram
• Scene Mode Help Screen, Composition Guide Lines (2 Patterns), Auto Angle Detection, Flip Animation
• Several Playback Modes Including Thumbnail Display, Calendar Display, Zoomed Playback, Image Rotation, Slide Show, Resizing
• Multi-Language On-Screen Display (19 Languages)
• Li-ion Battery Pack (7.2 V, 710 mAh) Included, 380 Pictures (CIPA Standard)
• Included Software: Lumix Simple Viewer, PhotofunStudio, SILKYPIX Developer Studio, AcrSoft (PhotoImpression, PanoramaMaker), USB Driver

Dimensional Specifications

• Dimensions: 2.96" H x 4.63" W x 3.47" D
• Weight: 0.68 lbs., 0.79 lbs. With Battery and Optional SD Memory Card

Panasonic DMC-FZ18 Warranty Details

One Year Parts/ 90 Days Labor

Check ti

Reviewed By: Alex Lynch - Saint Augustine, Forida

I was looking for a professional camera to work with to start a job. Well, this is perfect. Great stablization, great pictures and great price. Ubelieveable deal. I will evenually upgrade, but this is one camera I will use for many, many years ahead.

Great product, great service.

Reviewed By: Joel Slotnikoff - St. Louis, MO

On receiving my FZ18 from Vanns I charged the battery and went out for a walk and came home with sixty fine pictures. The camera is a dream. The IA mode does it all, the OIS works superbly. The camera is ergonomically designed such that you can hold it comfortably in your right hand and take good pictures using just that hand. You can then drop it back unobtrusively at your side...perfect for street photography. Vanns order taker was polite and informative and delivery was fast and free. Couldnt be more pleased.

Panasonic DMC-FZ18

Reviewed By: Christopher Vonderau - Parma, Ohio

First off Vanns delivered on time without any problems. This is my second Panasonic, the first worked well but I wanted something with a bigger zoom but not a dslr.This camera fit the bill perfect! Ive just spent the last few weeks getting to know this camera & so far I have had no problems... very user friendly. The pictures are coming out clean except for a few, user error. When I get more comfortable they offer an extra zoom lens that I plan to purchase.

Fantastic camera

Reviewed By: Paula Rochniak - Wallingford, CT

In April 2008 I purchased a Panasonic DMC-FZ18K. Honestly, it was the fact that it has a LeicaNikon lens and 18x zoom that grabbed me! I probably spent 10 hrs. analzying the best camera for me with the best price and I stumbled upon this company, which is a company I would definitely purchase from again. I read many many reviews and thought that the panasonic was the way to go...boy was I right!

The camera arrived on time right before our trip to Disney. While in Animal Kingdom, my family and I went on a safari ride. I went crazy taking pictures on this VERY BUMPY ride. I was astonished with how well the camera performed. I ended up with crisp and clear pics in the IA mode. I love the fact that the camera can be used manually or automatically. I think I took over 900 pictures in Disney in 5 days! I took beautiful pics in portrait, sports and night mode. At night in Disney they have a parade of boats with flashing lights on a lake...even those pics came out great! Plus I took fantastic firework pics there as well.

The only problem I had was with the lens cap...there really isnt a place to hang it while taking pics. I read other reviews with the same complaint.

Then when I came home I used the 18x zoom to take a pic of a mamma bird with her babies under my high deck. Since I didnt want to scare them and therefore, I didnt want to get to close, the 18x allowed me to take a fantastic up close pic from afar.

I would definitely recommend this camera. Overall, it is a great price for the quality that you get and its light weight.

The battery that comes with the camera is fantastic. I feel like I went from my dinosaur camera to the stars in the sky! While taking over 900 pics in Disney, I only had to charge my battery once during our 5 day trip...and that was with reviewing pics as well! The battery is fabulous! With my old camera I went through batteries and battery charges almost every time I used the camera. This alone was worth the price to me!

I would also suggest you purchase a 4GB card because youre going to want to take a ton of pics. I have children and when I take their pics now, I take at least 10 every time to catch them at the right moment. Its a great family camera...even my 6 year old can use it!

In love with the FZ18!

Reviewed By: Melanie Instefjord - South Jordan, UT

After 4 years, it finally became a necessity to replace my dependable but slow shutter speed Olympus Stylus 400.

I am a typical home user of a camera, but I want to keep up with my zooming 5 year old, whether shes on the soccer field, or in the dance studio...and get the shot that I see in my minds eye. After reading everything I could get my hands on, out of all the variables on cameras, I finally decided that for me, the three biggest must haves were

1 a fast start upfast shutter response
2 a good zoomimage stabilization
3 good quality images to print

The Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ18 has all that and more than I could want.

I used a PNY Optima 60x 2GB SD card, and filled it in two days...just with playing around with pics and video.

Start up speed I can grab the camera from the desk next to me, and with one hand be turning it onchoose its setting, and the other hand taking the cover off...and by the time I have the camera in front of my face, its ready to take the picture Im seeing. Its usually ready before I am!

Shutter lag minimal. While I think the only way to ALWAYS get the shots I want is to take that step up to SLR, this camera gets the majority of the shots I want...and would get more if I started a bit earlier and used burst mode, instead! Im VERY happy with the low lag time on this camera.

ZoomImage Stabilization Im just astounded by this camera. Considering the HUGE zoom factor on this camera, Im just floored by the clarity of the picture, and how confident one can be just by looking at the EVF. The image is there, its stable, and waiting for you to hit the button. Add to that, it uses the stabilization factor in its camcorder mode, and one might think Id mounted the thing on a tripod! Excellent!

Good Quality Images The Leica lens makes this a bit of a cheat, but that was part of the draw for me. Image quality is fantastic, and looks great on not only the camera screen, but on my computer screen, and on paper.

Others have mentioned no zoom on the camcorder mode...theyre right...you cant control the zoom in camcorder mode. HOWEVER. If youre already zoomed in while in another mode, and flip over the camcorder, then it stays zoomed it. You cant zoom out without stopping the recording and changing modes, so thats a drawback, but this is not a camcorder...its a digital camera with a camcorder mode...Ill take it!

All in all, this is an excellent camera with more features than I know what to do with. And the add-on of the camcorder ability just makes it more of a value I wont have need of a camcorder, now...the quality is that good!.

Looking forward to a good, long relationship with my FZ18!

Great Camera

Reviewed By: Glen Neve - Yakima, WA

I got this camera a few weeks ago and as I get to know what it can o I like it more all the time. The instrustion book was a little confusing at times but with a little work Im getting betting at understanding it. I have owened sveral film SLR cameras before nd have taken classes in photograaphy and you get to know basically three settings. Here you have so many more choises and some of them will take you longer to gat them ste up the picture you want might be gone.
I bought this camera because of the long zoom and that works really well. If you add the digital zoom or the extended optical it really gets out there. I have taken macro picture of flowers with amazing results. I know as I get to know it better I will love it more all the time.
My daughters college graduation is this weekend and it will get quite a workout.

Wonderful Camera

Reviewed By: Tim Davis - aransas pass, tx

This camera was even better than we expected. We were driving at 35mph and took a picture and it was very clear. I took pictures of my kids running at full blast and still a clear picture. It can zoom up to 28x and that picture looked great. It is easy to use and Highly recommended.

Panasonic Lumix FZ18s

Reviewed By: Robert Bryce Fontenot - Ville Platte, LA

Vanns is great and the camera is awesome. You will not find a camera with more bang for the buck. This camera will take pictures as good if not better than cameras three times the price.

DMC-FZ18K

Reviewed By: John Musselman - St. Louis, MO

For over 3 years I had been using an earlier model DMC-FZ15 which had been a real workhorse and always performed perfectly. Based on its relibility I felt like the newer FZ18 would be a great replacement.

The newer FZ18 felt lighter and smaller in my hands and gave me the feeling it was of a lower quality but then I powered the unit up! Wow! Its menu just blew me away and was easier to navigate. The 28mm wide angle view quickly became a new way to view everything. I forgot how much I loved my old Nikon with its 28mm lens. The zoom lens tops out at about 500mm which gave me an additional 100mm to play with if the needs arises.

The zoom on the FZ18 was faster than my FZ15, Focusing was faster too. In about 5 minutes I forgot it was lighter and actually started to appreciate the slighty maybe 10 smaller size.

Many of the controls worked the same allowing me to grasp that comfort level right away. No steep learning curve on this model unlike when usually get a camera. In just 3 days Ive already taken maybe 200 pictures and I havent even cracked open the owners manual.

My favorite new feature has to be the intelligent auto mode. Unlike other cameras that offer an auto mode this features activates all the possibilites when it feels the need. For example You are focusing on a item for a close up and it automatically goes into the close up mode while indicating its done so with an icon on the screen.

The IA mode is perfect when you just dont want to keep adjusting to capture the perfect image. You can always override this feature but 95 of the time why would you?

On the downside Panasonic supplies one weird lens hood which attaches with a single screw that tightens down on an optional plasic filter ring. Thatll have to go & Im already looking for a third party lens hood thatll screw in the cameras metal lens mount.

So far Im very impressed and hope that 3 years from now I can look back and say the FZ18 has also been a real long term workhorse.

Most of my photography is sports related for web purposes so the 8 mega pixel just wont be utilized but its nice to know its there. Gosh! Maybe its time to start printing 8x10s because this unit will deliver!

I currently own 5 digital cameras and have owned at least 10 in the past. My old 35mm equipment never comes out of its box anymore.

I researched going the full SLR route but couldnt justify the cost for my needs. The FZ18 is even easier to carry around. Its ease of use has to given the highest mark. Value? Nothing compares to it. When others asked me how much I paid for the camera they were amazed. They had paid nearly the same price and gotten just a typical point and shoot 3X pocket camera. Why settle for average when you can explore the possibilities with the FZ-18!

A Photographic Bargain ---

Reviewed By: Theodore G. Palmer - St. Augustine, Florida 32086

After much research I chose the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX18K from Vanns in Montana. It looked like they offered the best deal and service, AND THEY DID! l Their sales person was courteous and well informed.
2 They really had the best price, and they had the camera in stock.
3 They ship no gray goods, only 1st line factory packed products.
4 I was kept informed via email all along the way.
5 I received my camera the day they said.
No dissapointments at all with this company.

The camera is amazing. I have owned Nikon, Miranda, Lieca, Minox, Olympus, Canon, and many other cameras, but nothing as capable as this. Some years ago, while chatting with a fine swiss made camera rep., he asked what I would want in a dream camera. I said fast lens like a Lieca or Nikon, etc., a great zoom like 28mm to 300mm, able to take several hundred good photos without reload, be small lightweight &reliable. Everyone laughed. But the FZ18 does all of this and much, much more. I already love this incredible camera. Nice job Panasonic-Nice job Vanns.

Great Product Best service

Reviewed By: Connie L Taft - Morriston, FL

I purchased this camera a few days ago and have been just amazed with its preformance. It is so easy to use and takes great photos every time. I love the iA mode. I would recommend this product to any one looking for a great camera at a low price. I would also highly recommend this company. I tried ordering this product from two other companies with no success. Vanns processed the order on the day it was ordered and i received it a day earlier than expected.

Great Camera

Reviewed By: Arlene Paris - Loganville, Georgia

I previously owned a Casio Exlim camera which was a decent camera, but did not have the features this camera does, especially the zoom. I like the automatic feature where the camera picks the best settings, and to date, this has taken wonderful pictures. I particularly like the battery charger because the size is small enough to fit in your camera bag and take along with you. Other charges I have had for cameras were larger and had a cord, so this was a welcome suprise. The weight of the camera is very balanced, not awkward to hold, and fits in your hand well, without feeling like it is going to slip out of your hand. The price is extremely good compared to other cameras with close to the same features, however, I found that other camera used AA batteries, and this had a rechargable battery - which was one of the major features I was looking for while camera shopping. This camera won out with me due to the rechargeable battery, the zoom 16 X zoom, and the face recognition feature up to 15 faces at one time - more then most cameras, even higher priced cameras. All in all, this is a great camera for a beginner on up. Kudos to Panasonic for making a great camera affordable!

Panasonic FZ-18.

Reviewed By: Dale Peterson - Stillwater, MN

I havent had a chance to really give my new Panasonic FZ-18 digital camera a true out in the field test yet, but so far...I really do like it. My hands are a bit on the large side, so I wanted to move up from my fairly small Olympus Stylus 410 to a larger bodied camera. This one fits my hands nicely. All functions and buttons seem to work great, and are very easy to learn how to use. And all buttons are located in a well-thought out manner. Plus, I was very surprised to found out that this camera is extremely light.

If I can mention just one thing that kind of scares me, its the pop-open door where you plug in your USB cord. I wish that it was a little better concealed. I have found that Ive accidentally popped it open by gently rubbing it on something, so Im in fear that it may snap off some day.

All in all, I would highly recommend this camera to anyone interested in a nicely priced 8MP camera with an unbelievably smooth 18X zoom.

As for Vanns.com, they shipped my new camera to me in a very quick and safe fashion. Ive dealt with them before, and would recommend them to anyone interested in buying electronics online.

Lumix DMC-FZ18

Reviewed By: susan rumble - Prior Lake, Mn

I just recieved my camera with extremely fast service. Riped open the package and started playing with my camera There was just enough of a charge on the battery to play a little with it. I live on a lake and I went right outside and used the zoom to see if I could see the fancy house on the point that is a beautiful house. Took a picture and fell in love with the camera at once. I have alot to learn so I hope to charge the battery as fast as I can and practice practice practice. Thanks you Vanns for your great price.

Best ever

Reviewed By: Robert Bettencourt - Dartmouth, Ma

Great camera, flawless sales experience,trust me you cannot go wrong with this camera. Zoom is crazy pic are perfect, you cant go wrong with Vanns the best and only honest dealer on the web.

I love my Panasonic Digital Camera DMC-FZ18K!

Reviewed By: Louise Walden - Willcox, AZ

The IA on this camera is awesome. I took a picture of the eclipse and it turned out great without any special setting on my part. It is very easy to use on manual settings as well and on the sunset setting the colors are brilliant, very realistic.
The Samsonite camera case, that came as part of the bundle, is nice but not big enough to hold everything.

The Panasonic FZ18k

Reviewed By: scott stephens - Rifle, colorado

the best all around Digital Camera I have ever seen if you like a good zoom at a good price then this ones for you

Amazing Camera Capabilities

Reviewed By: Carol Spalla - Coal City, IL

This is the best camera I have owned. I saw the camera did some research on it and it was must have. My son is in wrestling, I have used the camera at every match now. Everyone asks me where I got it and how great it takes pictures. I have taken 400 pictures so far in two weeks. The quality of the close ups and the action shots are extradinary. I cant believe how they look. And no flash required inside a gym.
I love this camera, I cant believe the quality.
#1 to me. Looked at similar cameras else where, cant come close to the price from Vanns. Bought the 7.2 for my in-laws for Christmas. Thank you Vanns.

Panasonic

Reviewed By: Jenny Carey - Tampa, Florida

This camera is lots of fun. I have been a digital snob, preferring print photographs, so this is my first foray into this field and I am having so much fun with this camera. It does all that it promises on the spec sheet and more. I did have some problems with blurry photos with the zoom but they cleared up with practice.
Great first digital camera, could work for the sophisticated user that wanted something light for the weekend or someone who didnt want the hassle of extra lenses.

FMC-FZ18

Reviewed By: Henry Wilson - Odon, IN

I purchased the Panasonic LUMIX FZ18 because of the 18x optical zoom with Leica DC Vario-Elmarit 28mm wide angle to 504mm telephoto lens. 8 mega pixel. Image stabilizer worked flawlessly on 18x pictures. I used the camera to photograph mule deer and antelope in Wyoming. Exception digital pictures at long range. I like the extended telescoping ability to 115x by reducing the mega pixel quality. The image stabilizer does not function in the higher extended range but resting on a fence post or stable surface produced excellent photos with unbelievable clarity even without a tripod. The easy switching between viewfinder and 2.5 LCD monitor is great. I cant think of anything Ive tried to do with this camera that hasnt produced near perfect results. I wanted a camera for wide angle and long range capabilities without a hefty weight and two or three separate lens. This camera filled the need. If you want a camera that really zooms in quickly and takes great long range photos without a tripod along with wide angle capability this camera will do it. There are so many other features I havent even used but it surpasses what I bought it to do.
I ordered this camera from Vanns two days before leaving on vacation and it arrived as the shipping indicated it would. The day before I left. Great service, good price.

Panasonic FZ-18

Reviewed By: Douglas Cole - Bellingham,, WA

After having owned a model FZ-7 for 6 months, I was eager to upgrade to the wider and longer lens offered by the FZ-18 and gave the FZ-7 away as a gift. After several hundred photos, I have found the FZ-18 to be as easy and satisfying as the FZ-7. The lens delivers sharp photos in all modes and the camera is intuitively easy to use. It offers a full range of features on a very light body which will be easy to tote along in most situations. The FZ-18 is nearly $125 more than the FZ-7. If it were not for the new lens, the earlier model would have been most satisfactory.

Panasonic FZ18

Reviewed By: Winnie Lau-Heath - Bellevue, WA

I had a Fujifilm and would like to upgrade a camera for work that allows me to have zoom & wider angle. I have researched Canon, Olympus, Fujifilm or even brands that is not available in US....I love this compact, multi-functional Panasonic FZ18. 28mm wide-angle is good enough for work, quality is great. Its surprisingly light in weight that I could carry it around wherever I go!

I originally ordered at another store and the camera was back order. I found Vanns and they have it in stock. Price was reasonable, delivery was as scheduled and in good condition. The only negative was FedEx. It was an upgrade to 2 business days delivery and the delivery guy dropped the package off at door instead of signature required.

This is a GREAT camera!

Reviewed By: Jan Yegge - Ankeny, IA

I recently purcahsed the Lumix FZ18. It is my 1st digital camera and I was a bit worried about its performance and ease of use. I LOVE it! Its a great point and shoot camera and is so much easier than my minolta 35mm camera from years ago. You can set it to do all the thinking for you or you can make your own personal adjustments just the way you want. It really has so many features it will take some time to learn them all. I love the fact that it can be connected to the TV and run a slide show for a group of people. I also found the close up feature nice as you can get focused very close to an object-like right inside a flower for a beautiful picture. Using the zoom inside low light settings is a bit blurry even with the stabilizer but using the flash helps clear this up.I bought this as a back up camera for a trip coming up in June but this will definately be my main camera for this trip. I havent printed any pictures yet so will anxious to see the quality that comes out of this camera. I highly recommend this camera for any level of photographic ability.A great value for the money.