My parents got this camera a few weeks ago. Despite having access to this camera for a while, I’ve only just got round to taking some ‘real’ photos with it. I’ve already tested it in poor lighting conditions on full auto (green) mode here. On that page I show how this camera has a nice wide angle lens with good zoom capability and strong low light performance.
In summary, it takes good photos with no effort. One thing you notice straight away when using the WX10 is that the build quality is not as good as it’s predecessors. My W7 had a ‘metal-alloy’ shell and the W300 a titanium one, the WX10 is plastic and the buttons feel cheap too. Do I think it’ll fall apart? No, but it is a step backwards.
The WX10 is packed full of features I personally have no use for, like HD video recording and 3d panorama sweep. Both great features to have (so ideal for my parents) but I couldn’t be bothered to test them out here. There was one feature I wanted to share and that is the built in HDR within the scene selection. It works well and will make a huge difference to holiday shots in cathedrals and other ‘difficult’ light environments.
Built in HDR demonstration
The camera was positioned pointing predominantly at the sky for both shots (as seen) and metering set at default (multi position). The shot of the left was taken on full auto (green) mode and on the right on HDR mode (via SCN).
I’m impressed at the results, the camera only took a second or two to save the picture. A lot less time than it takes to edit a RAW shot from a DSLR to get the same end photo. The detail on the under side of the trees is much more clearly visible.
Worth noting that these photos, other than being aligned and cropped, are untouched.
I rushed taking these photos and unfortunately due to the dim light, the photos are all a little fuzzy. Although tempting to blame the Canon 450D for sucking in low light, it was because I was meant to be catching a train so didn’t get the flash out! Anyway, you get the idea…
Quick Stats
- 16.2 Megapixels
- 7x Optical Zoom
- 24mm (35mm equivalent) wide angle
- ISO 3200
- Continuous Shooting for 10frames at 10Hz or 2Hz
- Sweep Panorama
- 1080(50i, Interlace) Video Recording (& 720p 30fps)
- Carl Zeiss lens
Sample Images
Also on Flickr in original sizes.
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