Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ300/FZ330 User's Manual (B&W)

This manual is a gift of clear education and guidance for anyone who has been frustrated to mildly confused by this camera. It definitely supplies the "missing pieces" of information about how to understand and use this camera. I was planning to sell my Lumix DMC FZ300 shortly before this was published. I was able to "take photos" with it, but I really didn't understand how to work with it in any kind of procedural way to get the results I wanted and avoid confusing problems. I also did not understand how to access the more advanced features. My level of experience with using cameras was practically zilch until I began taking photographs in 2015 with a much simpler point and shoot camera. I suppose somebody who has been using digital cameras for a long time would be less confused by it, but I really needed an instruction manual and there was nothing out there until Mr. Houghton published his very detailed and helpful guide. I recommend it even if you are not floundering with the camera like I was.

Mr. Houghton has an extensive knowledge of photography and uses his expertise to guide the new Lumix owner into a place of understanding where use of the machine will culminate in a great experience. Make no mistake, this is a VERY sophisticated camera, and though it will work fine for point and shoot, it has a great range of capability to go beyond the mundane. There is also an offer made that should you buy the B&W publication, upon receiving your request with your Amazon order number, Mr. Houghton will email you a free color PDF of the book. I loaded mine into my phone for field use. Overall, useful information at a reasonable price. Be confused no more!

The major item to note is that this is only a black-and-white version of a full-color book. Since many of the camera's features that are illustrated in the book involve color, we ended up ordering the full-color version as well - it's currently also available on Amazon (at roughly twice the price). The explanations of features and processes in the book are usually fairly straightforward and understandable, sometimes minimalist, and sometimes annoyingly incomplete. Some pages contain a mixture of different points that could have been much more clearly presented by collecting them under appropriate subheadings. Perhaps the author didn't notice that some passages are likely to leave the reader (even experienced photographers) with only partial understanding and/or hanging in mid-air with further questions but no answers to them. Then there are some unexpected pearls as, for example, the author's illustration of how an image with larger pixels can provide greater detail that an image with smaller pixels (for example, an 8 megapixel image that is noticeably sharper than a 12 megapixel image of the same scene). Things like this are very helpful indeed. As a result, we simply use this as a companion to the user's guide that came with the camera. This book will not replace the user's guide. It's nice to have TWO references so you can refer to the other when you come across a confusing or lacking passage in one.

The author's deep understanding of the Lumix super zoom cameras is obvious in this book. His knowledge of the inner workings of digital cameras allows him to present valuable information that goes well beyond most 3rd party "operating manuals" which usually gloss over the details and the how and why giving the reader only superficial "this does x and that does y" explanation of a camera's features. You will not just learn about your Lumix camera, but you are sure to learn a lot about photography by reading this book. Mr. Houghton also offers supporting videos and a great email newsletter!

This is a very good tools to help you uses the bridge camera. The Panasonic FZ 300 was my first non-point-and-shoot camera. I also bought the Panasonic HC-VX981 4K camcorder (I wish he made a book for this too) and a lot of fun accessories too. A note to PANASONIC & Amazon: Thanks for the paymant plan. Without it I would have bought these great products.

If you have the money, get the book in color. I didn't have the money and had to go with the black and white. It's difficult to see what he is explaining with the black and white examples. Informative book, however there are misspelled words and missing punctuation which has me reading some sentences over and over to figure it out. With better editing this would be a much better read.

Easy to read and find the information you need for FZ300. Well written and organized.

The FZ300/FZ330's best selling point is that it's a photographer's top choice for a fixed-lens point-n'-shoot. The lens that it comes with can zoom from wide-angle (25mm equivalent) to extreme telescopic (600mm), with image stabilization (needed for tripod-less shooting at the longer focal lengths). It has other useful features as well (the max f-stop, 2.8 stays constant throughout the zoom range, it's relatively weather-proof, etc.). The only knock against it, IYAM, is that it's getting a little long in the tooth. Tis user manual will help you get the most out of your FZ300.FZ330.

A very informative book. Includes everything you would want to know about this FZ model. It would be even better if some of the images were in colour to make learning easier. Cheers John

See above. If you have the camera or are considering buying one then I sincerely recommend this book - it's very readable and gets the techy parts over succinctly and clearly without bling you with science.

La explicaciones de uso de la cámara son mucho mejores que el manual que proporciona Panasonic. Es un libro muy útil.

Questo libro è fantastico: è composto da circa 250 pagine che guidano passo passo alla profonda conoscenza della Panasonic Lumix FZ300, fornendo al contempo anche molte informazioni sull'arte della fotografia in generale. Molto diverso dal manuale fornito di serie con la FZ300 (che è invece più un reference manual). Nel testo stampato le immagini sono in B/N ma dopo l'acquisto si può contattare l'autore per ricevere gratuitamente la versione pdf con le immagini a colori. Notare che il libro è completamente in inglese, per cui occorre una conoscenza intermedia della lingua (il testo è tecnico e ben esposto, ma ci sono talmente tante informazioni che se non si conosce abbastanza bene l'inglese si finisce con il dedicare più attenzione al linguaggio che non al contenuto del libro).

This book is a terrific replacement for the dismal user manual that comes with the feature rich Panasonic FZ300. The Panasonic user manual basically tells you how to turn the multitude of creative features on and off. And while this book does that too, it also tells you WHY and the HOW you can make the most of the settings. The author also assumes no level of photographic skills in the reader and covers from basic principals right up to advanced amateur. If You own a Panasonic FZ300 or FZ330 and want to step away from the iA mode to explore this camera's superb capabilities to make outstanding creative images - then this is the book for you.