With the Lumix ZS100 digital camera, Panasonic is taking its tradition-rich ZS series in a very interesting new direction! The Panasonic ZS100 is the first model in the ZS series to be based on a relatively large 1-inch image sensor, rather than the typical 1/2.3-inch or smaller sensors of earlier models. If that size sounds familiar, it’s for good reason: it’s the same size previously used in the larger SLR-style Panasonic FZ1000 and in the unusual Panasonic CM1 non-zoom communications camera. Perhaps not coincidentally, the Panasonic ZS100’s sensor has an effective resolution of 20.1 megapixels, the same as the FZ1000 and CM1. However, instead of pairing the image sensor with a powerful 16x optical zoom lens with a fast aperture of f/2.8-4.0 as in the FZ1000, Panasonic has opted for a still wide-angle 10x zoom lens with a maximum aperture that drops from f/2.8 at wide-angle to f/5.9 at telephoto. This change makes the camera much smaller than the FZ1000. In fact, the Panasonic ZS100 is only a few tenths of an inch larger in any direction than a popular competitor, Sony’s pocket-friendly RX100 IV. It’s also impressive that it’s barely heavier than the RX100 IV when loaded and ready to shoot, despite offering a zoom range nearly 3.5x that of its competitor. We should note that while the Panasonic ZS100 is unusually compact for a model with a large sensor and long zoom, it’s not exactly pocket-friendly. However, it fits easily into a jacket pocket or a small handbag, so you can take it anywhere. That’s despite the fact that the ZS100 is suitable for more experienced photographers, with a generous helping of physical controls that keep you out of the menu system. According to the manufacturer, the ZS100 offers physical controls for all common exposure variables, including shutter speed, aperture, ISO sensitivity, focus and lens zoom. Other enthusiast features of the ZS100 include support for RAW or RAW+JPEG files with in-camera raw development and bracketing for up to seven images.
