Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX7 review

The Panasonic LX7 is a pocket-sized camera for keen photographers, perhaps as a lightweight alternative to an SLR. Its 1/1.7in sensor is only slightly larger than the 1/2.3in sensors used in most compact cameras – and much smaller than any SLR sensor – but features such as a wide-aperture lens, fast performance and lots of physical controls distinguish this premium compact camera from cheaper point-and-shoot snappers.

In the last couple of years such cameras have struggled to compete with compact system cameras (CSCs), which offer the advantages of an SLR’s large sensor and interchangeable lenses in borderline-pocket-sized dimensions. However, if the LX7 is anything to go by, the demise of the premium compact camera is a long way off.

It’s not quite as slim as the Canon PowerShot S100 but smaller than our current favourite premium compact, the Fujifilm X10. The lens protrudes 20mm from the camera body when switched off and the lens cap adds another 4mm, but we were still able to fit it into jeans pockets – something that’s not so easy with even the slimmest CSCs. The slim rubber handgrip and contoured rear are just enough for a secure grip.

As with its predecessors, the LX7 has a switch on its lens for auto/macro/manual focus and another for aspect ratio. In most digital cameras this would mean simply cropping the image, but the LX7’s sensor is designed for multiple aspect ratios, so 16:9 photos are both shorter and wider than 4:3 ones. A 3:2 option is there too for those who like their photos to resemble an SLR’s output, and so too is 1:1 for Instagram fans.

The LX7 also has a lens-mounted control for setting the aperture. This harks back to the days before film cameras had batteries, and is a big boost to both the aesthetic charm and practical design. With aperture controlled on the lens and shutter speed on the rear dial, manual exposure control is extremely fluid. There’s another control for manual focus adjustment, but this rocker lever isn’t as quick to use as a dial or lens ring. Still, a momentary 5x digital magnification makes it possible to adjust the focus with confidence.

The 3-stop ND filter let us use a two-second exposure to exaggerate motion blur in this shot

Meanwhile, pushing the focus lever enables a three-stop neutral-density (ND) filter, which reduces incoming light by a factor of eight. This is perfect for slow shutter effects such as turning flowing water into wispy ethereal fibres. It’s also extremely useful for controlling motion blur in videos.

AE/AF lock, ISO speed, white balance and drive mode have dedicated buttons. There’s a customisable Fn button that controls autofocus area by default, and pushing the command dial accesses exposure compensation. Meanwhile, a Q.Menu button gives quick access to other key settings. Rival cameras have even more buttons and dials but the LX7 delivers comprehensive, efficient control.

There’s no shortage of creative effects and advanced shooting modes, including automatic panorama stitching and 3D capture. The high-dynamic-range (HDR) scene preset combines three shots at different exposure settings to capture high-contrast scenes. Although there’s no control over the process, the results looked more natural than other cameras’ HDR modes.

This is a fast camera, taking just 1.2 seconds to power up and shoot, and 0.7 seconds between subsequent shots, even in raw mode. Full-power flash shots were 3.8 seconds apart. The plethora of continuous shooting modes includes the ability to shoot eleven shots at 10-megapixels or forty shots at 5-megapixels, in a second. Best of all is the ability to shoot at 5fps with continuous autofocus. This lasted for 23 frames before slowing to 2.3fps – still an impressive pace.

5fps shooting with continuous autofocus is ideal for capturing action, and the bright lens means fast shutter speeds needn’t come at the expense of noise-inducing fast ISO speeds

Panasonic has cut no corners with the LX7’s video mode. 1,920×1,080 capture is at a choice of 50p, 50i or 25p frame rates, and there’s a 100fps 720p mode that plays back at 25fps for quarter-speed slow motion. It’s great to have slow-motion footage at such a high resolution. The video setting on the mode dial offers priority and manual exposure control, with the ability to adjust the aperture and shutter speed while recording. The autofocus point can’t be moved, though – the camera appears to switch to multi-AF mode as recording commences. Video quality was outstanding, with rich colours, crisp details, a clear stereo soundtrack and a smooth, virtually silent zooming action.

The LX7 was just as impressive in our image quality tests. The f/1.4 lens is the star of the show, capturing twice as much light as rival cameras’ f/2 lenses, and almost seven times as much as CSCs’ f/3.5 zoom lenses. Whereas certain rival cameras aren’t so impressive at the long end of their zooms, the LX7 manages a wide f/2.3 aperture here too. This means the LX7 can afford to use much slower ISO speeds in low light. We compared it to the Sony NEX-F3 and Panasonic GF5 – two CSCs with 3x zoom kit lenses – and set them all to a 1/200s shutter speed. Despite its much smaller sensor, the LX7 came top for detail clarity thanks to its wide aperture that allowed a much slower ISO speed.

The wide-aperture lens means the LX7 can outperform cameras with much larger sensors in low light

When very low light demanded faster ISO speeds, the camera still produced acceptable results up to ISO 1600. Processing raw files in Lightroom 4.2 (Release Candidate) extended the useable range to ISO 3200. Noise was never completely absent, though, with a slight turbulence in areas of dark, smooth colour even at ISO 80. Still, we appreciate the gentle approach to noise reduction, letting a little noise through in order to preserve as much detail as possible.

The tops of the trees in this shot are incredibly sharp, but Panasonic’s efforts to squeeze as much detail as possible from the sensor sometimes leads to moiré and other artefacts, such as the rainbow-like colours in these ripples 

In fact, details were often startlingly sharp. It seems that Panasonic has pulled out all the stops to dispel any concerns about the modest 10-megapixel resolution. The downside was occasional evidence of insufficient anti-aliasing: high-contrast diagonal lines had a pixelated appearance, and there was swirling moiré interference on repeating patterns and discoloration on very sharp details. We’re used to seeing these issues in videos but it’s less common in photos. They were rarely serious, though, and processing raw files in Lightroom provided a cure.

There’s lots of subtle detail in this dense foliage, too, but note the slightly pixelated appearance of the diagonal blade of grass just to the left of the top of the path

We can’t remember the last time a camera was so consistently impressive across the board. Our only real criticisms are the features Panasonic has omitted. An articulated screen would have increased the camera’s size, but that’s a compromise we’d be willing to take for the benefits it would bring to the video and macro modes. We’d also have liked a touchscreen for moving the autofocus point, particularly during video capture. GPS, Wi-Fi and a microphone input would be welcome, too.

There’s an optional electronic viewfinder that sits in the accessory shoe, and while it’s well-specified with a 1.44-million dot resolution and the ability to tilt upwards by 90 degrees, it’s expensive at around £200 including VAT. People who need a viewfinder might be better served by the excellent Fujifilm X10, which has one built in.

The X10 is just as impressive as the LX7 in low light, with its superior sensor offsetting the LX7’s brighter lens. The X10 is the bulkier of the two, though, and its continuous shooting and video capabilities aren’t a patch on the LX7’s. The X10 is still highly recommended, but the LX7 surpasses it to be our favourite premium compact camera.

Even more impressively, it surpasses any CSC we’ve seen at this price, too. Admittedly, it can’t deliver the high-resolution, noise-free images of the best CSCs in bright conditions, and it lacks the shallow depth-of-field effects that come from a big sensor. However, no entry-level CSCs can match the LX7’s controls. CSCs can be upgraded with wide-aperture and macro lenses, but having it all in one pocket-sized camera is extremely attractive. The LX7 brings the battle to CSCs, and overall, it comes out on top.