Panasonic ZS3

Panasonic ZS3 is Panasonic's Small Sensor Superzoom camera first announced on May of 2009. It uses a 10 MegaPixel, CCD 1/2.3" size sensor with a maximum resolution of 3648 x 2736. It is referred to as "Lumix DMC-TZ7" in other regions.

The ZS3 is placed #237 out of 244 in Small Sensor Superzoom cameras & all around #1091 out of 1465 for cameras in our database. Remember to try out our Smart camera filter to find camera rankings based on your customized factors.

Here is a chart of multiple criteria used in the scoring system.

The Panasonic ZS3 is part of a family of cameras. You can see the detailed list underneath.

You can look at the ZS3 from various angles in the gallery here.

Here is a selection of positives and negatives of the Panasonic ZS3 based on things which are generally viewed as essential in a camera.

The sensor measurement on the Panasonic ZS3 is 6.08mm x 4.56mm (1/2.3"). The 28 mm² sensor has the ability to resolve 3648 x 2736 pixels using aspect ratios of 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9. The camera has Image Stabilization (Optical). In body stabilization is better than digital stabilization since the latter might produce cropping.

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The CCD sensor has 10MP and supports a native ISO range of 80 to 6400. Sadly, RAW format is not saved so you have less room to maneuver in post.

The picture underneath shows the ZS3's sensor size in comparison to other common sizes. The ZS3 sensor has a crop factor of 5.9 and is presented in green.

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To get an idea of various aspect ratios, you can refer to the visual below.

Panasonic ZS3 weighs about 0.50 lb (229g or 8.08 oz) & has exterior size of 103mm x 60mm x 33mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3"). The weight of normal Small Sensor Superzoom camera is 387g and the Panasonic ZS3 is lighter as compared to its competitors.

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Here is a shot of the Panasonic ZS3 next to a soda to help you get a feel for its size.

The top view just below will provide the button arrangement on the ZS3.

The ZS3 comes with a fixed lens offering a focal range of 25-300mm making it a 12.0 x zoom which is not at all very good but it will probably be valuable in a few scenarios.

At it's widest 25mm, it has an aperture of f3.3 and that is very sluggish and not the best for low light occasions and you will find it hard to get good bokeh. You might also have to increase your ISO setting which causes noisy pictures. For the long end, 300mm is exceptional zoom and comes at f4.9 making it fairly sluggish and you would have to set slow shutter speeds.

The ZS3 has the following connectivity:

• USB Yes
• HDMI Yes

Cameras that feature NFC and / or Bluetooth support can easily be used wirelessly through smartphones. You can easily send photos and oftentimes change camera settings without connecting physically with the camera.

Some apps also allow a Liveview and click the shutter when you aren't close to the camera. If the camera provides a HDMI port, it could be connected to an external monitor. Virtually all cameras enable you to charge the battery through the USB socket.

The maximum video resolution on the Panasonic ZS3 is 1280 x 720 and you can record in AVCHD Lite format. 720p is awful for today's standards. You really should try to get at least 1080p resolution for video recording. The body doesn't feature a microphone and / or headphone socket so you get absolutely no control over the audio. It is probably a better idea to look at another model should you require good audio for your video clips.

There is no weather proofing for the Panasonic ZS3 so you have to be cautious in wet and dusty situations.

The Panasonic ZS3 houses a 3" fixed display having a resolution of 460k dots.

Please be aware that the display screen has no touch support.

Photography Glossary

The View Finder specs for Panasonic ZS3 are as follows:

• ViewFinder None

For sunny outdoor situations that make the camera screens washed out and challenging to see, viewfinders can be particularly useful.

Panasonic ZS3 has the ability to shoot continuously at 2.0 fps. The max shutter speed is 1/2000 seconds.

Panasonic ZS3 has just integrated flash lacking external flash ability.

Panasonic ZS3 has only Contrast Detect Auto Focus & is missing Phase Detect Auto Focus. Phase Detection autofocusing is a lot more faster and accurate as compared to Contrast Detect autofocusing.

The AF system boasts 11 focus points to pick from. Panasonic ZS3 does not have manual focus. Manual focus option can be good in low light or you require more accurate depth of field control.

The general Small Sensor Superzoom camera battery life is 316. Fujifilm HS35EXR has got the highest possible (600) battery life in this class of cameras.

Underneath is a list of Small Sensor Superzoom cameras with the best battery life:

ModelVisualizeBattery LifeRAWNFCBluetooth

Fujifilm HS35EXR
ZS3 vs Fujifilm HS35EXR600 yesnono

Nikon B500
ZS3 vs B500600 nonoyes

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Nikon L840
ZS3 vs L840590 noyesno

Panasonic FZ200
ZS3 vs FZ200540 yesnono

Leica V-Lux 4
ZS3 vs V-Lux 4540 yesnono

The following illustration presents a analysis of the Panasonic ZS3 for specific types of photography. To understand more, check out the specific section underneath.

The Panasonic ZS3 gets a rating of 19 which is low, and means the camera is simply not good to use for portraits. Photographing portrait photos leans greatly towards sensor dimensions, RAW support in addition to the ability to use external flash.

Coming in at a moderate score of 60, the Panasonic ZS3 is reasonably adequate for street photography. A decent street photography camera provides a perfect balance of image quality and portability.

A low sports photography points tally of 24 means the Panasonic ZS3 is simply not good for taking photos of sports. A camera needs to have very good tracking plus shutter speeds for sports photography.

Portability is really crucial when buying a travel camera. On the whole, the Panasonic ZS3 gets a above average 63 as a travelling camera which is a good pick to purchase for your trips.

If you're looking to buy a digital camera for landscape photos, the most essential factor will no doubt be image quality. The Panasonic ZS3 at it's low grade of 35 for a landscape camera is simply not good in the current marketplace.

A camera for vlogging ought to posses a moving screen, mic input and ideally IBIS. Taking all things in to account, the Panasonic ZS3 is simply not good for vlogging as it delivers a low rating of 30.

If you are interested in alternatives to the ZS3, below is a collection of the top placed cameras that fall within the family of Small Sensor Superzoom.

The graph below provides you a bird's eye view of the ZS3 compared to it's highest ranked competitors listed previously.

Following are additional cameras you may consider as alternatives. To read through a comprehensive comparison, visit the "compare" link.