Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Camera build quality


Clover, originally uploaded by jiihaa.

White beauty, originally uploaded by jiihaa.

Roof, originally uploaded by jiihaa.

Luminous Landscape comments about the quality of current cameras: "What one gets in terms of features, functions and image quality is higher than ever before, but the satisfaction of owning and using a high quality mechanical and optical device has for the most part evaporated. Only the top models within any brand produce a tactile satisfaction and please ones esthetic sense."

I guess this refers to the DSLR-type cameras, not compact cameras, so my view on the matter may not matter much. But here I feel a need to praise the Panasonic LX3.

I have had mine for over 21 months now, in regular (daily) use, with over 105,000 photographs taken with it. I have dropped it a couple of times (on ice and on a rock), but it is still working well.

The paint has been worn away from some of the edges, and there are marks of wear here and there, but it is in good condition. In all I feel the LX3 has to be one of the most durable compact camera on the market.

I do recommend a wrist strap (to avoid dropping it), but the camera is easy enough to handle one-handed. All the buttons and switches work perfectly.

One winter I had a bit of a scare, the lens got stuck and didn't want to come out. After switching the camera on and off a few times all returned to normal. This may have been caused by some dirt or moisture or just some random happening. Nothing like that has happened since then.

In any case, here are three photographs from yesterday and today. Yesterday was hot and dry, today we have rain.

2 comments:

Rich Gift Of Lins said...

I love the picture of the seagull, sorry I meant the roof!

Juha Haataja said...

Thats is from the bridge to Seurasaari, a park in Helsinki.

The seagulls and other birds are rather unafraid of people there, trying to catch food if you are having a picnic. Not to speak of the squirrels which are a real nuisance.