Customer Ratings & Reviews

This camera is amazing! The zoom on the camera is awesome and the pictures look very good. This is a great camera for a beginner photographer. For now I am using mine on the Intelligent Auto setting and it has yet to let me down. I took pictures of the moon the other night, using a tripod, and I could actually see the craters!

His camera for the price is awesome. I was looking for something with good zoom and found this on clearance. It can zoom so much you can see the craters on the moon and whales off Maui. Easy to use.... it looks like the price has gone up as my friends try to get this camera. Well worth an all around great camera.

I used and abused my first Lumix FZ70 in deserts, windstorms, mountains, rainstorms, and had no problem taking some 10,000 pictures (birds, scenery). It still works fine, but at the price I couldn't resist having a new one, with the old one in reserve. The 60x zoom is marvelous for bird pictures.

it takes great picture. I am so pleased by panasonic product that I got a couple of months ago. I am not a PRO about a camera but this is the best one I've ever owned. For the last 10 years of buying cameras this is the BEST! one yet. I"m surprise because, I owned 3 different brands before which are more pricey this one. Everything is good about this camera. I have no cons because, I am not that picky. I just mainly used it for family pictures, that's all. If you want something professional then get the pricey ones.

We upgraded from an older, 5mp point and shoot to this awesome, DSR-like, 16.1mp LUMIX. We aren't the best with cameras, but this one is so easy to use and the results and absolutely incredible!! Can't wait til Spring/Summer to get outdoors with it to capture more future memories.

This camera has a lot of settings that that can help taking great pictures in any conditions. Takes a while to go through and learn how to use them but worth the effort.

This camera has surprised me with its high quality images, even hand-held at 60x zoom. It holds focus and the stabilization cuts the jitters. Sure, the rest of the features are pretty basic, but it provides great bang for the buck.

See attached pictures. Moon was captured with x60 zoom from hands

The best camera I have ever purchased. easy to use takes beautiful pictures Excellent movie capability. all I can say it is A awesome Camera great deal at a great price.thank you best buy

I was looking for an SLR replacement for my older Sony Alpha camera when I ran across this camera on sale at Best Buy. The reviews here and on Amazon were great but Amazon was $100 more... Bought the camera and so far have taken some amazing pictures. Its rated at 60x zoom which is like a 1200mm lens for your SLR camera. That type of lens would cost you 3x what this camera costs. Plus, it turns out this camera also has 120x digital zoom! OMG you need to check out the picture of a full moon I took. I will try to upload it for the review. I use it as my screen saver now, its just amazing. For the price, I don't see how you can go wrong with this camera.

I'm not a camera expert so I'm not going to pretend I know everything about cameras. That said, I've had a number of point-and-shoot cameras that worked without a problem. This camera goes far beyond anything like that and approaches DSLR territory, especially with its 60x magnification. My wife and I were looking for a new camera that wouldn't break the bank, but also got really great reviews. So we looked up a number of models and came into Best Buy to compare. This one stuck out to us as a particularly affordable model and it happened to be the Deal of the Day for Best Buy's website. According to a lot of online reviews, it was one of the better cameras of 2013 (keep in mind, we got this three years after that). All I can say is that this camera is STILL one of the better cameras out there, even three years later. The optical zoom is absolutely fantastic. We can take this camera virtually anywhere and zoom in to levels that I didn't think possible without a telescope-like lens. Even while zoomed all the way in, there is no blurriness or distortion. The camera is fairly hefty, so make sure you bring a tripod or have decent arm strength if you intend to hold it for a long time. It comes with a built-in flash and the ability to add a more advanced flash if you wish. I don't believe (I could be wrong) that you can swap out the lenses, which is one of only a couple downsides to it. The other downside is that the software is really, really complicated. I work in the tech field, so I'm pretty savvy and adaptable when it comes to technology, but the software here really made me raise my brows. There are so many options that it can be overwhelming. Even for camera experts, it apparently can be a bit much. That said, if you're into options, this one has some fine-grain controls that are absolutely wonderful. My wife spent a lot of time playing with the options and found certain "smart" modes that allowed her to take shots that look like they're from the '70s, as well as another that adds a naturalness to the colors which I haven't seen reproduced even in most of the smartphone apps people can download today. The battery life is decent, though we haven't played with it enough to know how long it lasts. I also recommend getting a decently sized SD card because 16 Megapixel shots take up more storage space than you expert, especially if you're snap-happy like my wife is. I definitely recommend this one to people who want a really good, quality camera but be advised that the software has a learning curve to it.

All 'thoughtful' commentary aside, this camera is just plain fun. I already have Panasonic ZS20 and ZS40, with 20x and 30x zooms, but when this FZ70 went on sale for under $200, I couldn't resist getting a 60x Leica zoom lens with the 35mm equivalent of a 1200mm lens. And, that is the way I think of it -- I bought a fabulous zoom lens with a very smart camera attached. Does it have limitations? Sure, any camera with a sensor that tiny does. But if I want to shoot something that I plan to blow up to wall size, I have dslr's, mirrorless cameras, and film cameras to do that with. How large of an 'acceptable' quality print can you make with this? I don't know, as I have not printed out anything but snapshots and an occasional 8x10 over the last several years. I can say that I use a 39 inch Seiki 4k TV for my computer monitor, and photos displayed at full screen look crisp and sharp. Any serious photographer who tells you he hasn't at times wanted a seriously long zoom lens is lying to himself, you, or both. There is undeniably a fun factor in long lenses, and at time it is plain useful to be able to reach out to capture something that would otherwise be unapproachable. The truth is that few can afford to reach to 1200mm in the 35mm or full frame digital realm. The 'affordable' long lenses (mirrors and cats) are nearly all of a single focal length, with tiny maximum apertures, and generally produce rather soft images either due to lack of lens quality, or camera shake, or both. Shooting on a tripod is a must, and a drag. This camera has the zoom equivalence of a 20 to 1200 mm lens in 35mm, and the quality is superb -- not just 'for such a long zoom' as techie snobs often opine -- it is superb by any standard. It is much wider on the low end, and FAR longer on the upper end than your typical zoom lens. And, the long end can put you in position to obtain shots you would never have the opportunity to get without this lens. The shake compensation works so well that it is no trick to getting most of those long shots handheld. And while the long end of the zoom usually gets all the glamour and glory, it should be noted that at the wide angle end, this lens does something else that is also somewhat unique in photography -- it performs ultra wide angle macro photography. At the widest setting (20mm equivalent) the lens can focus to within about 1-2 inches of the front element of the lens. As most macro photography is usually done with normal to short tele focal lengths that have a narrow angle of acceptance, shooting macro with a 90 degree field of view, and much greater depth of field in a wide angle view, is an eye opening experience when you first encounter it. Perhaps other cameras can do this trick as well -- I don't know, as my only experience with it has been with the Panasonic TZ and ZS models, and now the FZ -- but it works with this camera, and it has provide some unique close-ups. The super zoom aside, the camera is at or near the top of the pile when it comes to features and capabilities. It offers so many features and settings, I'm sure I will never know them all. The basic functions work fast and accurately, and I cannot imagine complaints of functioning in everyday usage that I would take too seriously. I have never had a camera in over 50 years of photography that I did not have to 'learn how to use.' They all have quirks, and most can be worked around. Fatal flaws quite often lay with the photographer, and not the equipment. Read all the reviews and study the specifications to decide is this camera offers what you are looking for. I have had Panasonic TZ and ZS compacts for years, so I was already familiar with the basic functions and feature sets in their upper tier compacts, the only 'unknown' for me was the quality the zoom lens would provide. It has not disappointed. As for myself, the FZ70 is performing the function I purchased it for with great aplomb. I couldn't be happier with this purchase.

This camera is an unbelievable bargain! For $150 you get a camera that presently lists for $300, and originally listed for about $400. When you examine its features you will see why. It is a bridge camera that goes from a 20mm wide-angle, up to a 1200mm (optical) zoom. In addition, it comes with a EVF. I have had it now for two weeks, and I love how it fits my hands. It can be set for full automatic, or stepped up to fully manual. It also can take photos in RAW, as well as JPEG and JPEG+RAW. It has a full-featured optical stabilization. I took a photo of the moon with full optical zoom, on automatic, holding it without a tripod, and got a really sharp shot. The photos look amazing when displayed on my 37inch TV. The only negative I have seen is that the display screen on the back might use a little more resolution - but given that it has been discontinued I think that is understandable. This is still a great camera!!

I looked around for the best long zoom camera after alot of comparing this definitely was the best in terms of quality and price. very clear pictures with the right settings.I absolutely love this camera I definite would recommend for anyone who wants something better then a camera phone but not willing to commit to a full fledged dlsr camera.

This camera has proven to be above all my expectations and a really value purchase. The 60X zoom, coupled witha very wide lens offers all kind of capabilities for picture taking, without the fuss of changing lenses and or carrying extra equipment. We used recently on a week cruise to the Caribbean. It is equipped with excellent processor and sensor that improve the quality of your picture taking. The zoom lens at its maximum optical setting let you produce unbelivable pictures of distant subjects. I love this camera, is my best camera purchase ever. Highly recommend it, specially for old timers that like to have still photos without the complications of settings, focal distances, lenses, etc.

I'm a Nikon guy but when my beloved Nikon Coolpix L830 died I was really hoping to get a replacement point-shoot that sort of worked better, mainly at autofocusing. I'd always heard raves about Lumix, and since this was on sale I bought it. And the Best Buy sales associate said it was a good deal. Wow, it does things that the Coolpix won't, including focuses much better, quicker. I don't know how Panasonic engineers designed better focusing technology than Nikon, but it is a noticeable improvement. (Sorry to say for Nikon. I'm still a Nikon guy.) It has an exposure Mode dial, so I actually have a whole lot of control over the camera now. The Lumix lens is not as sharp as the Nikon's, a difference noticeable in still shots and videos when comparing the two cameras. The lens is fun and very useful, with angles of view from very wide to mega-telephoto. If I could put a Nikon Coolpix lens on the Panasonic Lumix camera I would have a really great point-shoot. The Lumix is larger than you might expect, but still much smaller than a DSLR. It just fits into the pleated patch pocket of my winter parka. The battery lasts a very, very long time. The built-in flash works nicely and is easy to control. Just leave it closed if you don't want flash. Like many P-S cameras there is a menu option for the more modern aspect ratio of 2 to 3, also typical of most DSLRs. This makes 4x6-inch prints without cropping. The camera's default is the older 3 to 4 aspect ratio, which looks boxier. Set once, that's it. The 2 to 3 aspect ratio reduces the megapixels from 16 to 14 since some picture area is being cropped, but I don't care. 14 MP is more than adequate resolution for most everything anyone would do with a camera. Video is full high def. Really good, with the familiar aspect ratio. The camera is discontinued (writing this in early 2016) but is still a very good deal. Glad I bought it. Works well.

I had a 9 year old FZ 30, sold it to a friend and paid the difference for this new model. Tremendous camera, especially for the price. Yes I could have paid more for WiFi, and some of the latest bells and whistles, It does things my Nikon DSLR can't even do, and the zoom. I had a 12 to 1 on the old one, but a 60 to 1. Wow. I can't wait for the next local air show. I am going to take this instead of the Nikon and all the lenses.

Purchased to replace my Fuji S8200. Read other reviews and decided to give it a try, and I'm glad I did. The big plus is the focal range. The overall zoom ratio is 60x, but a full 10x of it is at the wide end which makes for a great outdoors landscape. The long end is fairly fast to focus, but unless you are really steady the OS can't fully compensate for shake at the full 1200mm setting. Images are very clear, and even under low indoor lighting, it takes pretty good pictures. Lots of settings, so you will never get bored using the Lumix FZ-70. Just came back from a Caribbean cruise, and all the photos were great. There was a bit of white balance issues with a few of the horizon-meets-sky shots, but you can play around with the settings to compensate. Overall - a real value on a very good bridge camera.

It's a very affordable camera that comes fairly close to hitting all the marks, especially for its price. I like this camera. The FZ70 is good and easy to use. 60X Zoom, Aperture Priority, I like to have the best zoom I can get without having to carry a bag of lenses, without sacrificing image quality. CONTRARY to what the lens says Panasonic is still using LEICA lens but renaming them. It is a fantastic equipment for travel photography.

This is a great camera! Ultra wide angle to super long telescope lens without having to change a lens. You can add 55mm attachments like filters and a lens hood. Photos turn out pretty good in .raw and ok to good in .jpg. Shots in dark are either wait 15 - 60 secs or forget about it unless flash is an option. (manual shutter settings 8 secs to 60 secs) The digital zoom is nice but you have to use .jpg and some photos are leaving something to be desired. ISO to 6400 but unless you are a Photoshop wiz, forget about using those shots in print. The video for this camera is really good. I'm not talking THX movie experience good but good for the price. If you do buy the wrong size threads for filters you can buy a step up/down ring(s) to make it work. Remember 55mm size. Overall good buy for the money. Pros - light weight, affordable, doesn't take up a full suitcase for travel and records to .raw, .jpg, .jpg+raw, full HD Video Cons - not DSLR, horrible in low light conditions, it also doesn't do my taxes or make me breakfast in the morning