Panasonic FZ80 /FZ82 Bridge Camera Review Part 2 - Good For Photographing Wildlife in 2021?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

See how the FZ82 compares to a more costly Entry level DSLR and 200mm lens option. kzbin.info/www/bejne/j4iWmZ54fMyjY7c

[@garystefan3995]

I love my fz82. I do a bit of bird watching and it has been fantastic in getting pictures of birds for ID purposes. A lot of birders aren't photographers they just want a record of what they've seen. And for that purpose the fz82 is great.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching Gary. It's a good little camera.

[@Chickp424]

Thanks Andrew…very informative, I’m having to give up my heavy wildlife kit due to health reasons and am looking for something light to carry, I have the Lumix FZ1000, which I love but need more reach. Found this video very helpful 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Paula, the fz82 definitely has the reach, it is harder to use for birds in flight but 1000- 1200m is really handy for reaching up into the branches.

[@akjl01]

Thanks for the video Andrew.. Good work mate! Local lad I hear. Probably somewhere between Sunderland and Boro..🤔 I've had this camera for about 6 months now. Picked it up from CeX for £165. Can't complain for that and in mint condition too. Yeah, it's great for shots at the zoo and some of my best shots were had there last summer. Quite impressive to be fair. I'd never owned a zoom camera like this before so I thought why not. It's quite versatile. It does seem to favour good lighting conditions though. I'll be honest, I've never really moved from auto on this camera. I really should experiment. I have taken some quite remarkable pictures of the moon though and only in Auto. Amazing really for the price of the thing. I've just getting a tripod so we'll see what improvements can be made with this. I'll check out the rest of your videos when I get a chance. There's also that guy called Graham on KZbin who's got a whole load of content related to this camera. I'm sure you're aware of him.. Keep up the good work. Alan.. Washington UK.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Hi Alan, thanks for watching and commenting. Yes I'm North East based and in the East Durham area. CeX has some great deals and 2 years warranty which is 1 year more than I got from Panasonic new! The FZ82 does take great photos in good light. I have managed to get the camera to work well on grey days by keeping the ISO low and shooting in RAW mode. There are loads of features packed into this camera that can help you take some really impressive photos and video. Timelapse is one of them, now you have a tripod you might want to give that a go. I have a video which explains how easy it is to do. Graham Houghton makes some really excellent technical videos on how to operate these cameras and was one of the reasons I bought the camera and also started featuring Fz82 videos on this channel. I decided there wasn't much point doing the really in-depth technical info as Graham had that covered so instead I decided to focus more on getting out and using the camera and letting everyone see the results.

[@angusyoung5398]

Great video mate

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching and commenting 🙂

[@rlgenge]

Great video. I brought this camera two years ago to discover wildlife photography. I've learnt a lot, get hours of pleasure and have achieved some pretty good photos, even at 1680mm if the conditions are favourable. I would recommend it to any beginner. I'm now looking to upgrade to the G9 and the 100-300mm lens.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching Bob, it's a great beginner's camera and great for travel too.

[@KatyLiedToMe]

this was chock full of useful info. Mute Swan photo was phenomenal

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks, I'm pleased you are finding these videos useful. 👍

[@dennismurray703]

Thanks for the video Andrew. If I get some photos half as good as yours with my new FZ80 I'll be happy. Loved your comment regarding those expensive long lenses and totally agree with your perspective.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching Dennis. Once you get a feel for the camera I'm sure you will be fine. Just keep the ISO as low as you can to keep the noise as low as possible.

[@stevetopp9016]

I enjoyed the video as it was concise and to the point. To many contributors waffle on but you don’t.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thank's Steve, I'm glad you enjoyed it.

[@j.w.grayson6937]

Great job on the video! I am in a bit of a quandary over what camera to use on a trip next year. I have a Sony A68 (APS-C) with a few Sony zoom lenses. It has been in my closet for a long while as I find that my cellphone works well due to size and weight. Recently we booked a 4 week trip to South Africa trip for Dec 2024, during which I turn 79. Well, I got out the Sony and put on an 18-250mm zoom lens and was surprised at how heavy it fells. So, I've been looking at P&S bridge cameras with wide-range zoom lens. I wondered what the downside would be to the 1/2.3" sensor. I really don't think I would ever need a large print. So, do you feel that a camera like the Panasonic FZ80 (US) or Canon PowerShot 740 HS would be acceptable? Or, would you have another similarly priced alternative?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

The main downsides to the FZ80/82 is the noise and low light performance of the small sensor but the zoom is incredible. It is a very light camera, however a monopod may be useful as no matter what the weight, holding a camera steady enough at long zoom ranges is very tricky. A few alternatives could be the Sony HX350 - again a smaller sensor, slightly shorter focal range. If you can run to a Lumix FZ1000ii or FZ2000, these have the 1 inch sensor in them which is better than a 1/2.3 sensor in low light. They are heavier though due to the size of the diameter of the lens. Both will shoot 4k video. If you can find a camera store which stocks all these cameras then I'd pay them a visit and see which feels best in the hand. I hope this helps.

[@j.w.grayson6937]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography Thanks for the reply. I looked at the HX350 and FZ1000ii. The HX350 is pretty old and not available, at least not new. The Lumix is a lot more expensive, but not out of reach. It does have a larger sensor; because of that the zoom is limited to 14x. Would that be enough an early morning game drive?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

@j.w.grayson6937 the fz1000 ii is an equivalent of a 400mm lens on a full frame. I'm not sure how close one gets to the wildlife on a safari as I've never been lucky enough to have had that opportunity.

[@fdrico9889]

I have noticed the issue with far away objects too, like a boat for example. A 300mm lens on a MILC fares far better in those situations, but for fairly close objectslike birds, the fz80 really shines!

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Mirrorless and DSLRs do benefit of having much larger sensors so inevitably they can produce a more refined image. The FZ80/82 does provide a great camera for the money.

[@MudMaxMetalDetecting]

I love your videos, nice example photos. I am thinking of the FZ82 for country walks shooting wildlife, nothing at massive zoom maybe a close up of a rabbit or bird that's 50-60 yards away, the odd bird high in a tree above etc. This camera is at the maximum of my budget, will it do a good job? (mostly daytime walks, not low light) Thanks.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Check out a few of my other bird or wildlife videos using this camera it will give you a feel for it's capabilities. It does like good light which isn't always possible in the UK. The zoom works really well on close subjects where there is no atmosphere to get into the way so ideal for birding or taking photos things like rabbits. I got a great shot of a Hare on a caravan site in Eyemouth in Scotland, being able to zoom in from a distance and not startle it paid off. If you are on a budget, keep watching for deals on this camera as the price can fluctuate and you can find offers where it drops to around the £250-£270 mark. The current retail price seems to be over £300. Alternatively used tech retailers like CEX often have them in at around half the price but you get 2 years warranty which is a year longer than you get from Panasonic buying new! Thanks for watching.

[@MudMaxMetalDetecting]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography Thank you that's great advice, just been watching your other videos. Just seen this 2 lens package for 500 quid - CANON EOS 2000D DSLR Camera with EF-S 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 III & EF 75-300 mm f/4-5.6 III Lens. It's more than I can realistically afford but would this be a big advantage over the Lumix?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

@@MudMaxMetalDetecting The canon has a bigger sensor inside it so will give you better image quality particularly in low light. You will have to check the specs but it may be able to shoot more frames per second (ideal when shooting wildlife). If the camera didn't have the 300mm zoom then I would have said the 18-55mm kit lens would have left you wanting because the reach isn't that good for wildlife photography. 300mm is probably the minimum you will need for wildlife, a 600mm lens is ideal but will cost the same again. It will also be a heavier set up. Ultimately if you think that you might want to get into photography then the Canon may have more options ( there are thousands of Canon cameras/lenses out there, it is the most popular brand, so second hand lenses as easy to find and cheap. The advantage of a bridge camera (whether it's a Panasonic, Sony,Canon or Nikon) is that it is fairly light and compact, often has a huge zoom lens as standard but that comes at a price with a smaller sensor. I have a Nikon D3300, very similar to the Canon you are looking at and it provides the best image quality out of all my cameras but I tend to use it least. Why because I don't have enough suitable lenses for all the things I want to photograph (mainly because I shoot a bit of everything) but mainly because the bridge camera is more convenient so it's ideal for travel. Probably not the straight forward answer you wanted but a few things to consider before you make a decision.

[@MudMaxMetalDetecting]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography No that's helped me a lot actually buddy. Been thinking about this today, a lot. Spiralling costs, accessories, weight etc, all things I should avoid. The FZ82 will provide tons more options than my smartphone, at a one-off price that I can budget for. There are so many bridge cameras but this stil appears the best bang for buck in the price from what I can see. ATB MMMD

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

@@MudMaxMetalDetecting just to throw a spanner in the works, if you go out in wet weather then the FZ330/FZ300 has a bit of weather sealing. The zoom is shorter 600mm but it has a constant aperture lens which can get slightly better results. It is a bit more expensive though. I did a video on my 2 year review with the FZ82 where I mention this camera (fz300) as it can be used for vlogging too.

[@royrogers1604]

I guess by the quality of your images you are shooting in raw. What are your Jpeg images like?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

I have a confession, I normally shoot in RAW but when I'm on holiday I switch back to JPEG as there are so many shots to come back home with I don't want to process each image. So all the shots in this video from Fuerteventura were taken in JPEG mode. The key to good images with this camera is to try and keep the ISO as low as possible. If you can keep to ISO 80/100/200 I found I was able to edit some of the JPEGs without getting banding and other issues normally found with enhancing JPEGs in post production.

[@andreasgaliatsatos]

I have a question. There are some eagles in my area that I would like to shoot with this camera. They are usually seen flying at around 100-200 m from the ground. There have been closer encounters as well, when the birds just get startled and fly off as I go past them on the bike. Do you know what settings I could use for such occasions?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Andreas, shooting birds on the move is quite a challenge with the FZ82. 4k photo mode is probably the best solution as the camera will video every frame and you can select the perfect moment. The downside to this option is that it is only an 8 megapixel but you should always get the shot.

[@andreasgaliatsatos]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography Thanks a lot, I will give a try. I haven't taken any photos with the camera yet but I hope I will manage to get some decent ones once I get the hang of it

[@johnlehane8303]

It's amazing It's taken me a year to watch this video.... Totally agree with the content.... I bought the FZ82 for snapping surfers.... And yes things get washy at 1200mm as I discovered to my horror.... I had assumed the high ambient light levels in Fuerteventura would overcome this but it doesn't. Great camera for the money but washy on the long end.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Hi John, yes I find the image quality tends to fall off after 900mm particularly where long distances are involved and a high f stop is used. 1200mm is ok for taking shots of birds or animals which aren't too far away - I got some great shots of an owl at Edinburgh Zoo a few months ago. Thanks for watching.

[@ExplorerMelanie]

Interesting video, Andrew! The shot of the eurasian curlew was very nice because of the clear background. Looks like the sky at the first glance, then you realize it's the sea. Really liked that one.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Sorry for the late reply Melanie - yes that is a shot I was pleased to have captured.

[@barrypurcell1752]

Thanks Andrew love your content I ditched my old Canon 40d after coming across your excellent tutorials couldnt be bothered dragging diff lenses around all the time. Ive only recently taken up Photography (being a Musician myself) as a hobby to keep me sane during this lockdown.. Landscape and Wildlife being my fav ... you speak in laymans terms concise and to the point which is very beneficial for a numpty like me ...lol

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching Barry. I have a few cameras but find the one I tend to reach for most often is the FZ82. As you have found whilst they aren't as optically superior as a DSLR the make up for it with ease of use, convenience of not having to take a bag of lenses to cope with various scenarios and most of all affordability. I don't have the luxury of being able to afford high end camera gear or have a sponsorship for the channel so I'm very much like the majority of people, an enthusiast of photography. So again, thanks for watching and your kind words, it does help me stay motivated to keep making these vlogs.

[@hcahith]

It was a very clear, explanatory and realistic video. Thanks

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thank you for watching, why not check out my other videos using the FZ80/FZ82.

[@Opeth12341]

Very useful content! I just bought one for my 9-year old son and I think it will be a good introductory camera for him.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

It's a great camera, I've been pleased with the images I have taken with it. I have many other videos on this camera, feel free to check them out. Thanks for watching and commenting.

[@andreasgaliatsatos]

Τhank you Andrew. This is absolutely wonderful information you give us on how to make the most of this camera.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching and commenting Andreas. Enjoy your FZ82. Feel free to watch some of my other FZ82 videos.

[@luminaire7085]

has long as you use it in daylight all is good. piss poor results in low light/evening/night.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

For moving wildlife, yes you need good light. I have taken landscape shots at dusk but you need use a tripod and limit the ISO to 80. Check out my video on the FZ82 as a Travel Camera, I have a few sunset shots in there and talk about how it isn't much cop in low light handheld.

[@simonstevens1631]

See getting better. You sound so much more relaxed and bubbly. Keep it up andrew

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Cheers

[@Jack-AV]

Is the fz82 and fz80 the same?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Yes, the same camera - it's sold as the FZ80 in North America and the FZ82 in Europe.

[@Jack-AV]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography thx

[@peterviragphoto]

Great in-depth video video Andrew with lots of useful info!

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks Peter, one of my early videos with this camera. It's a good little starting point for anyone moving up from a smart phone and looking for an affordable camera.

[@peterviragphoto]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography It certainly is!😊

[@pilarp8808]

Hahah 0:48 that is true 😂 and agre fz82 is not for objects on long distance.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching.

[@mickcalvert4514]

Great video do you know what size prints you can get from this camera? I know it depends on the image but an estimate would be good

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching Mick. It very much depends on the quality of the image as you say. For a clean image you really need to keep the camera's ISO down to around 80-100 to make sure there is little noise in the image as possible. The RAW files in a 4:3 ratio (which make maximum use of the sensor) come out of the camera at 41.45 x 31.09 cms @ 300dpi. For JPEGs the camera for some reason saves them at @210dpi but at a larger size. If you convert them to 300 the file resizes to the 41x31 size - I don't understand the logic but there it is. I hope this helps.

[@mickcalvert4514]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography Thank you, I have subscribed keep the videos coming 👍

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

@@mickcalvert4514 Thanks for subscribing. If you haven't watched all the FZ82 vlogs yet there are a good few to get through, even if they are just my days out using the camera.

[@highwayman1224]

I just bought one yesterday from eBay. Wanted a newer model like the Nikon P950 or the FZ1000 II but since it's my first camera I didn't want to spend too much money on one just to see if I wanted to get into the hobby or not. Seems like a nice camera and I got it for $329. I'm sure it will do the job for me.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

It's a great camera for the money. Yes I'd have gone for the FZ1000 too but they're more expensive than a lot of DSLRs. With the FZ82 it is best to try and keep the ISO down otherwise you can find you get grainy shots. I have seen some other photographers get stunning wildlife shots in P mode so you don't have to throw yourself into the deep end with Manual mode just yet. My personal preference with this camera is to shoot in Aperture priority (A mode) - I also limit the ISO to 200 (there is a setting in the menu to do this). Those setting won't work for fast moving subjects but still animals, flowers, leaves etc works just fine. Check out some of my other videos and see the types of shots this camera is capable of.

[@highwayman1224]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography thank you so much for the tips. I've never owned a high end camera before so the settings will definitely be a bit of a challenge for me.

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

@@highwayman1224 If you get stuck don't be afraid to ask. I think I'm going to have to do some short guides to the settings of the camera. One thing that is good about the mode dial - all DSLR and Mirrorless cameras have them so the knowledge is pretty transferable if you decide to upgrade.

[@highwayman1224]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography thank you.

[@republicofcasuals]

@@highwayman1224 I'm pretty much in the same boat. I was going to jump in the deep end and just buy something expensive that i have no idea how to use or know anything about.... yea not smart. So i took a step back and picked one of these Lumix FZ80's up off EBAY just yesterday to learn with so i have a better idea what to look for in a higher end camera later on, but to be honest, this camera looks fun and i can't wait to start messing with it and it's settings as all i have ever used is a camera on my phone 😁

[@coachjoechannel]

is it good for low light?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

The camera has a small sensor so it doesn't do well in low light like most compact and bridge cameras, certainly not for moving subjects. I have created a couple of videos, one entitled Grey Day Photography where I did some shots at a nature reserve in October/November last year. If you are doing night photography of cityscapes for example there is a work around with one of the camera presets - check out my video Night Photography Made Easy.

[@coachjoechannel]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography thank you very much sir. appreciate it. i already sub to your channel. keep up the good work sir.

[@jamieat8227]

Were you from mate?

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Durham, Jamie

[@jamieat8227]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography a new you were from up here somewhere just wondered whereabouts 👍

[@wankes.youtube]

Andrew ❤ perfect, beautiful!!!

[@AndrewWaltonPhotography]

Thanks for watching, feel free to check out my other videos.

[@wankes.youtube]

@@AndrewWaltonPhotography - I look at all of them one by one. I'm a big fan of budget photos and the Lumix DMC FZ in particular! Now I bought an FZ50 for my collection.