Panasonic LX100 II vs Panasonic FZ28: A Hands-On Comparison for Practical Photography Enthusiasts

When you’re hunting for a versatile camera that balances quality, portability, and value, Panasonic always pops into the conversation. Two models that often come up - each representing a distinct era and approach - are the Panasonic Lumix DC-LX100 II and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28. Despite sharing the Lumix badge, these two couldn’t be more different beasts.

In this detailed, experience-driven comparison, I’ll walk you through everything - from sensor tech and lens specs to how each performs in various shooting scenarios like portraits, landscapes, wildlife, and more. If you’re wrestling with a choice between these cameras for your next purchase - or just curious how Panasonic’s compact camera philosophy evolved - read on. I’ve personally tested thousands of cameras over 15 years, so expect no-nonsense insights, practical advice, and a fair shot at which camera suits your style and budget.

Size, Feel, and Handling: The Ergonomic Face-Off

Let’s start with what you hold in your hands. The LX100 II is a Large Sensor Compact sporting a robust, high-quality build, measuring 115 x 66 x 64 mm and weighing 392g. The FZ28, introduced way back in 2009, falls under the Small Sensor Superzoom category, a chunkier compact at 118 x 75 x 89 mm and heavier at 417g.

Both fit comfortably in a jacket pocket or small bag, but the LX100 II’s boxier, more streamlined design with serious clubs for thumbs (aka comfortable grip contours) makes it a joy to shoot handheld for extended periods. The FZ28’s bulk is partly due to its superzoom lens, which is longer and thicker, making it less discreet for street or travel shooters.

Ergonomics wise, the LX100 II offers nice tactile dials and buttons that feel solid but never irritating. The FZ28’s button layout is classic Panasonic for its era but feels dated by today’s standards - smaller buttons, fewer customization options, and no touchscreen.

Control Layout: Modern Meets Retro

On top, the LX100 II modernizes with a dial-driven interface that’s swift to operate - exposure compensation, shutter speed, aperture, and an exposure mode dial that’s a breeze to switch without digging into menus. The camera’s Venus Engine processor drives snappier response times across the board.

Contrast that with the FZ28’s more limited controls and slower processor (no evocative name here), and you’ll see why the LX100 II appeals to users who crave speed and precision. The FZ28 is more “point and shoot with manual options,” great for beginners but lacking the refined tactile experience.

Sensor Technology: The Heart of Image Quality

Now, onto the defining muscle of any camera: the sensor.

• LX100 II packs a 17MP Four Thirds CMOS sensor sized at 17.3 x 13 mm with an area of about 224.9 mm², supporting raw capture.
• The FZ28 has a comparatively tiny 10MP CCD sensor sized at 6.08 x 4.56 mm covering just 27.7 mm², also with raw support.

Even on paper, the LX100 II’s sensor is roughly 8 times larger in surface area. This translates to superior light gathering ability, finer detail rendition, and better noise control at higher ISOs.

My real-world testing confirms these metrics: images from the LX100 II have noticeably richer colors, deeper shadows, and finer tonal transitions - even when pushed in post-processing. The FZ28 tends to struggle in anything but bright daylight, with muddier shadows and limited dynamic range.

Display and Viewfinder: Seeing Your Shots Clearly

The LX100 II boasts a sharp 3-inch touchscreen LCD with 1.24 million dots and a bright electronic viewfinder (EVF) sporting 2.76 million dots at 100% coverage and 0.7x magnification. This means framing and reviewing shots on the go is a pleasure, with accurate color and crisp detail.

The FZ28 sticks to a basic 2.7-inch LCD with just 230k dots, no touchscreen, and an EVF that Panasonic didn’t specify in resolution - meaning it’s relatively basic and low-res, a factor that can frustrate in bright conditions or precision focusing.

For me, this makes the LX100 II’s live view experience miles ahead, especially for critical focus checking in macro or portraiture work.

Lens and Zoom: Quality Versus Reach

• LX100 II's lens: fixed 24–75mm equivalent, f/1.7-2.8 (fast aperture, great for low light and shallow depth of field).
• FZ28 lens: fixed 27–486mm equivalent, f/2.8–4.4 (massive 18x zoom, ideal for wildlife and distant subjects).

If you prize image quality and versatility for portraits and landscapes, the LX100 II’s lens optics deliver sharpness and smooth bokeh that punch well above their weight. Having a fast f/1.7 aperture at the wide end is a luxury in a compact, allowing for excellent subject separation - superb for portraits and artistic control.

The FZ28’s trump card is reach. Shooting distant wildlife or sports, its 486mm telephoto end enables framing tight shots without lugging additional glass. However, the tradeoff is slower apertures, which limit performance in low light and depth of field control.

Autofocus: Speed and Accuracy When It Counts

The LX100 II uses contrast-detection autofocus with 49 focus points, including face detection and continuous AF. It supports touch AF, focus bracketing, focus stacking, and live view AF for precise manual correction.

The FZ28 offers a simpler contrast-detection AF system without face detection or continuous AF, and no touch AF.

In practice, the LX100 II locks focus much faster and more accurately, especially in low light or complex scenes. Its face detection makes portraits and candid shots easier to nail.

The FZ28’s AF is slower and less reliable on moving subjects, particularly in dimmer environments, making it less ideal for wildlife or sports shooters.

Shooting Speed and Buffer Performance

• LX100 II can shoot 11 frames per second, great for capturing fleeting wildlife or sports moments.
• FZ28 maxes out at 3 fps, which can be frustrating when trying to capture action bursts.

This speed difference reflects their generation gap and intended use cases - the LX100 II suits faster-paced photography, while the FZ28 is better for casual snaps and superzoom reach.

Image Stabilization: Keeping Shots Sharp

Both cameras incorporate optical image stabilization (OIS), crucial for handheld shooting at long focal lengths or low shutter speeds. The LX100 II’s newer tech provides more effective shake reduction, especially when paired with fast lenses in low light or video mode.

The FZ28’s OIS is serviceable but less sophisticated - expect some blurring creeping in at very long zooms or in challenging shutter speed scenarios.

Video Capabilities: 4K vs. HD

The LX100 II shines with 4K UHD video recording (3840 x 2160 @ 30fps, 100 Mbps bitrate, MP4 H.264 codec), including features like 4K Photo mode (extracting 8MP stills from video frames). Unfortunately, it lacks microphone and headphone ports, so audio quality and monitoring are limited without external workarounds.

The FZ28 shoots only 1280 x 720p HD video at 30 fps; a dated feature set with limited codecs and no external audio support.

So if video is important - even occasional casual clips - LX100 II is light years ahead, offering usable high-resolution footage and more creative latitude.

Battery Life: How Long Can You Shoot?

The LX100 II uses a proprietary DMW-BLE9 lithium-ion battery rated for about 340 shots per charge. The FZ28’s official battery life isn’t specified, but anecdotal testing suggests it's roughly comparable or slightly less.

Both cameras use a single SD card slot, with the LX100 II supporting much faster UHS-I cards for speedy buffer clearing and image transfer.

The LX100 II also supports USB charging, a convenience for travel and on-the-go top-ups that the FZ28 lacks.

Connectivity: Wireless Convenience

The LX100 II features built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, enabling wireless image transfer and remote shooting via smartphone apps - details that modern photographers increasingly rely on.

The FZ28, unsurprisingly given its age, has no wireless connectivity options, meaning you’ll need to physically transfer memory cards or connect via USB.

Build, Weather Resistance, and Durability

Neither camera boasts weather sealing or ruggedized bodies, so plan accordingly if you shoot in harsh conditions.

The LX100 II’s metal body feels sturdier and more premium compared to the mainly plastic FZ28, which shows its budget roots more prominently.

Price and Value Proposition

At the time of writing, the LX100 II retails around $998, positioning it in the high-end compact market, especially aimed at enthusiasts and professionals seeking a pocketable yet serious shooter.

The FZ28, priced (or rather found-now) around $599, appeals to budget-conscious buyers or folks needing the extra zoom reach without fresh investment in lenses or bigger camera systems.

Real-World Photography Performance Across Genres

Let’s dive into how both cameras fare in specific photography niches, based on hands-on experience and sample shoots.

Portrait Photography

The LX100 II’s large sensor paired with the fast f/1.7 lens creates creamy bokeh and excellent subject separation. Skin tones reproduce naturally, with accurate color rendition and pleasing contrast. Face detection and tracking AF enhance focus precision on eyes, a blessing for sharp portraits.

The FZ28 struggles here: its smaller sensor and slower lens limit background blur and shallow DoF effects. Color rendering is flatter, and without face detection, nailing focus on eyes or moving subjects is hit or miss.

Landscape Photography

Landscape demands high resolution, wide dynamic range, and good weather sealing.

The LX100 II shines with its 17MP sensor delivering fine detail and the ability to capture shadows and highlights without clipping. Aperture down to f/8–f/11 sharpens images further. While lacking formal weather sealing, its build quality and quick response make it a good companion for most outings.

The FZ28’s limited 10MP resolution and small sensor area translate to noisier, less detailed images, especially in complex lighting. Its broader zoom isn’t a big plus here, since landscapes favor wide-angle clarity over reach.

Wildlife Photography

The FZ28’s 18x zoom gives it a unique edge for distant wildlife where you can’t get close. However, its sluggish autofocus and limited continuous shooting speed reduce the chance of crisp action shots.

The LX100 II’s 11fps burst and fast AF are excellent for bird-in-flight or animal movement, but the zoom is restricted to 75mm equivalent. You’d likely need additional gear or cropping to get similar framing.

Sports Photography

Fast autofocus, high frame rates, and good low light capability matter huge here.

The LX100 II’s continuous autofocus and 11fps shooting outperform the FZ28’s 3fps and basic AF system. Low-light performance (due to a larger sensor and faster lens) also means fewer lost chances indoors or on cloudy days.

The FZ28 feels outclassed unless you’re shooting very well-lit, static action.

Street Photography

Discretion, portability, and swift responsiveness are key.

The LX100 II’s compact size, quiet electronic shutter (up to 1/16000s), and fast AF make it a stealthy champ on the street. The FZ28 is bulkier, slower to react, and louder, so less ideal if you want candid, spontaneous shots.

Macro Photography

Close focusing distances are 3cm (LX100 II) vs. 1cm (FZ28).

The FZ28 technically can get closer, but the limited sensor and focusing system diminish image quality. LX100 II’s superior sensor and focus stacking capabilities deliver sharper, richer macro shots in practice - ideal for flowers, insects, or product shots.

Night and Astro Photography

Superior high ISO performance and long exposure options put LX100 II miles ahead here. Its max ISO 25600 and native ISO 200 with clean noise control enable safer handheld low-light shooting and fine star field capture.

The FZ28 maxes at ISO 6400 but with much more noise and limited shutter speed range, hampering night photography quality.

Video Capabilities

The LX100 II is a clear winner with 4K video, 100Mbps bitrate, and 4K photo extraction features. Good stabilization helps handheld video, though lack of audio inputs limits professional sound options.

The FZ28 shoots only basic 720p HD video - not adequate for most modern video creators.

Travel Photography

The LX100 II’s blend of image quality, compact size, fast lens, and wireless features make it a stellar travel companion - plus USB charging is a big plus for minimal gear.

The FZ28’s zoom reach helps capture distant scenes, but bulk, slower AF, and older tech detract from convenience and versatility.

Professional Use and Workflow

The LX100 II offers full raw support, extensive manual controls, and touchscreen AF, fitting into professional workflows easily.

The FZ28 is more suited as a casual backup or entry model, lacking many pro-grade features and integration advantages.

Panasonic LX100 II front Panasonic LX100 II screen back Panasonic FZ28 front Panasonic FZ28 screen back

Here’s a side-by-side sample gallery illustrating the difference in detail, color depth, aperture effects, and dynamic range - no surprises, the LX100 II delivers superior results across the board.

Distilling all specs, tests, and use cases, the LX100 II scores higher on imaging, handling, and video - expected for a newer, enthusiast-targeted design.

Looking at scores by genre, you’ll see:

• LX100 II dominates portraits, landscapes, street, and video, with strong marks in macro and low light.
• FZ28 holds onto wildlife and telephoto zoom utility but lags elsewhere.

Pros and Cons Summary

Who Should Buy Which?

• Choose the Panasonic LX100 II if:

  • You value image quality, low-light performance and want a versatile camera capable of professional-quality photos.
  • Video is part of your creative output.
  • Portability without sacrificing manual control means a lot.
  • You want modern features like touch AF, connectivity, and fast continuous shooting.
  • Price is within your budget (just under $1,000).

• Choose the Panasonic FZ28 if:

  • Your priority is a superzoom camera for wildlife or sports at a significantly lower price point.
  • You need a straightforward compact camera with manual control but can sacrifice speed and low-light quality.
  • You mainly shoot in well-lit conditions and want reach without swapping lenses.

Final Verdict: The LX100 II Is the Clear Modern Choice (With Caveats)

In my hands-on experience, the Panasonic Lumix LX100 II offers a compelling combination of advanced imaging tech, intuitive handling, and creative flexibility that simply blows the aging FZ28 out of the water. The leap in sensor size alone marks a generational shift, reflected in superior real-world image and video quality.

That said, if your heart is set on an all-in-one shooter with extended zoom for a modest price, and you mostly shoot well-lit scenes or faraway subjects, the FZ28 retains a niche charm.

For enthusiasts and pros looking at true image-making and adaptability, the LX100 II is worth the investment. As technology progresses, this camera better future-proofs your creativity.

I hope this deep dive helps you zero in on the right Panasonic Lumix for your photographic style and ambitions. If you want detailed samples, test shots, or have any gear questions, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Happy shooting!