Question from Steve Henry

So, Dan… Our grandson is going to be 13 this fall. He makes nice photos with his cell phone but would like to have some better equipment. Time for him to learn about f-stops. Any recommendations for a small, good, carry-around camera as a starter for him? Might that also apply to me? My venerable, but ancient Canon Powershot G11 is on its last legs. Best wishes. Steve (and Linda) Henry

This image was shot with the LX10

Great question Steve. It just so happens that I’ve been traveling around Europe the past month–with three weeks left to go–shooting two of the Lumix so-called, Point and Shoots. I say “so-called” since the quality out of these two cameras, the Lumix LX 10 and the Lumix ZS100 is hard to believe. The LX10 is probably the one I would be most inclined to recommend since it has a very fast lens that is equivalent to 24mm-72mm F/1.4-F/2.8. It also has an aperture ring which could be advantageous for learning about how the aperture works for your grandson. The ZS100 is a bit more automated but does have a longer, albeit slower lens which is equivalent to 24mm-280mm. It also has a very small, mediocre, built in EVF. But it does have one where the LX10 has none and all viewing is done via the back LCD, iPhone style.

Both cameras have flash and full Program, Aperture, Shutter and Manual priority controls. Both shoot RAW AND both shoot 4K video. The list of features goes on and on and the quality of the images is exceptional. The battery on each is nothing to write home about but both have the advantage of being able to plug the camera into a USB port for charging. That’s a nice feature. I’ve been using the ZS100 for over a year. It’s been dropped, banged and taken lots of abuse and has not once given me any issues.

Let me know if you have any further questions. Great hearing from you and say hello to Linda.