Panasonic LX-100 Review: An Underwater Shooter Goes Small

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JackConnick

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New Blog Review: The Panasonic LX-100 and Nauticam NA-LX100 housing combo is a winner for a compact camera system. Great performance, fast, sharp lens and very good close focus ability.

Panasonic LX-100 Review: An Underwater Shooter Goes Small

LX100-11.jpg
 
What does 'The camera has direct controls for ISO, notably lacking in the Sony RX100' mean? You can assign the control buttons to ISO on the RX100 if you wish so. It is just that Sony and Panasonic ergonomics are different The LX100 with housing is 1.6 Kg and 18 cm wide, the RX100 is 1.15 Kg and 14.5 cm wide. In terms of size and weight the LX100 is the same of a micro four third and has also a port system albeit more limited due to the fixed lens in fact the OMD-EM10, GX7 and A5000/A6000 housing with port are actually even lighter
 
To each his own.

The size and weight differences are meaningless underwater or in traveling, IMHO. They are both small cameras. Yes, you can slip the RX100 in your pocket, but other than that in real world diving I can't see a difference. In fact a slightly larger footprint is more stable and controls are easier to access. If you add the dome port, it is the same weight or less than a large wet mount dome like the Inon or UWL lenses.

As noted, the Panasonic has direct controls, and much better layout than the Sony. You have to reprogram the Sony, maybe using up another control to get to something as simple as ISO. I know you like the RX100 series, but I think this is a better camera, notably for close focus and video. That's my opinion from shooting both, you're welcome to yours.
 
I have a Panasonic mirrorless too.
panasonic have a fixed layout of buttons and Sony don't.
There is no notable difference as you mention it.
Other observations that look incorrect, depending on the camera version, are about focus distance: the new generation Sony rx100 3/4 is pretty much identical to the lx100. E
ither way I rather have a camera with a longer lens the mark II even if it focuses further away in tele but at least you can have a decent scene
And the lx100 eeds the same inon on top for the equivalent or less field of view you could run the RX100 with the wetmate and would still be lighter
So in this occasion I think you got the facts slights biased the LX100 is a bulkier camera and its sensor is in fact the same of the GX7 so not million miles away better than the RX100 either
 
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I stand by my review. Controls and close focus are much better out of the box, IMHO. You can program any of these cameras how you like, but the LX100 overall controls are more advanced and easier to use. Macro is much better.
 
Macro is much better compared to what exactly? The LX100 has the same interface of the lx7 on the lens and now you have old school dials for exposure and shutter speed that ultimately make the housing 20% more expensive than comparable compact housing and ultimately brings in more cash in the manufacturer and retail pockets.
If you are into still images and are happy to entertain the port system the best of the new cameras is the canon g7x. The housing is not much cheaper but the camera is and the macro is the best in class of the new 1" cameras due to the 100mm lens and short working distance at tele
 
"Then I tried a Panasonic LX-100 out. I was impressed by it’s super sharp and fast Leica f/1.7 lens and large 1 inch sensor."

Doesn't the LX-100 have a 4/3 sensor?
 
"Then I tried a Panasonic LX-100 out. I was impressed by it’s super sharp and fast Leica f/1.7 lens and large 1 inch sensor."

Doesn't the LX-100 have a 4/3 sensor?

Yes but it only uses part of it as part of the multi aspect sensor implementation
The max resolution is 12.5 megapixels in 4:3 and 12 in 3:2
Practically is the same as a 1" sensor camera like the Canon or RX100 but effectively with around half the pixels (Sony and canon are 20 mp in 3:2) in theory that helps with low ISO
The sensor itself is the same of the Panasonic GX7 but using less of its surface

This means you have not got so much to crop off a picture
 
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It seems to me these compact cameras requiring port changes to go WA or macro eliminates one of the biggest advantages for using compact cameras. If you have to commit to going macro or WA why not just use ICL camera? Is the performance and IQ of the LX100 that much better than RX100?
 
It seems to me these compact cameras requiring port changes to go WA or macro eliminates one of the biggest advantages for using compact cameras. If you have to commit to going macro or WA why not just use ICL camera? Is the performance and IQ of the LX100 that much better than RX100?

Valid point about the ports and with an ILC dedicated macro lens of fisheye lens you get better results anyway

IQ: No the benefits of the LX100 are only at ISO higher than 1600 where the small number of pixels is an advantage but at normal working ranges the LX100 does worst

There are some comparisons here Panasonic LX100 Review - Image Quality

The exciting thing about the LX100 was 4K video but now this is slowly making headway into other models and make. If you are not interested in the 4K the GX7 (that has the same sensor but uses all of it) with a kit lens is a much more versatile unit. The new GX8 instead is also much bigger format
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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