What do you do when your heart wants a Sony RX10 IV, but your stock portfolio just took a beating since the start of the year? You turn to superzooms of yesteryear, and that's where I've come up with this interesting specimen from 2006: the Panasonic Lumix FZ50.
What makes the FZ50 different from the common superzooms of today?
Well, for one, it uses a CCD sensor. I'm not one to find CCD superior to CMOS or vice versa, but some folks swear by the color reproduction of that older technology. And for another, it uses a slightly larger 1/1.8" sensor compared to the more common 1/2.3" sensor found in most cheap superzooms today. And indeed, the color is actually pretty good:
How Does It Handle?
For a camera that's nearly 20 years old, I wasn't expecting much, but I was pleasantly surprised. There are some omissions that are glaring in 2025 but were probably acceptable in 2006, such as the lack of a sensor to automatically turn on the EVF when you bring the camera up to your eye, as well as the absence of any sort of actually functional tracking autofocus. This was probably a bit too much to ask of what is essentially an amped-up point-and-shoot camera rather than a full-fledged DSLR.
Still, the controls make a lot of sense. There's a button on the lens to quickly select an autofocus point (something many cameras in this class/style lacked back in the day), as well as a button to switch from the EVF to the LCD screen. There are two control dials, allowing you to easily adjust aperture and shutter speed in manual mode, and a function menu that lets you quickly change settings such as ISO and metering mode.
There's also one of the strangest articulated screens I've seen, with a hinge at the bottom. In theory, it makes sense, but when you flip it around for selfie purposes, you quickly realize that the tripod mount gets in the way of the screen. It's a very tiny 2.0" screen as well.
The camera takes SD cards up to 32 GB, so it's still pretty easy to get files onto any modern computer. Overall, it's actually still a pretty functional package.
The Specs, Such as They Are
The body helps make the camera usable in 2025, and the sensor can actually keep up. It's a 10.1-megapixel sensor paired with a 35-420mm equivalent lens. The lens aperture goes from f/2.8 to f/3.7, which is a reasonable expectation for the kind of camera this is. That's a whole lot of range, which is really why this camera can still be relevant compared to something like an iPhone.
In fact, during some local flooding, I put the camera through its paces as a photojournalism tool. It didn't do too badly:
And, signaling how high-end the camera was in the lineup when it was released, the camera shoots raw files, allowing for a decent amount of shadow and highlight recovery even with a small sensor.
I could easily see a reporter keeping one of these in a drawer to add easy photographs to a story that an iPhone just can't capture due to the zoom range.
What I Liked
- Surprisingly Usable in 2025 – For a nearly 20-year-old camera, the FZ50 still holds up well, especially in good lighting. The manual controls, solid build quality, and zoom range make it a viable option for certain shooting scenarios even today.
- Good Color Reproduction – The CCD sensor provides pleasing colors that some photographers still prefer over CMOS. The images have a natural, rich look, which helps the camera stand out from modern super-zooms.
- Extensive Zoom Range – The 35-420mm equivalent focal length is a big advantage, allowing for everything from wide-angle shots to serious telephoto reach. Combined with Mega O.I.S., it’s still a solid performer for outdoor and daylight shooting.
- Decent RAW Capability – The ability to shoot RAW files adds flexibility in post-processing, which is rare for older super-zooms. It allows for some shadow and highlight recovery, making the camera more versatile.
- Dual Control Dials – Having two control dials for adjusting aperture and shutter speed in manual mode is a great feature, especially for a camera of this class. It makes handling much more intuitive compared to most compact cameras.
What I Didn’t Like
- Small Sensor Limitations – Despite its usability, the 1/1.8" sensor is still tiny by modern standards, limiting low-light performance and dynamic range. Shadows can get noisy quickly, and highlights are prone to clipping.
- Slow and Outdated Autofocus – Tracking autofocus is practically non-existent, which makes action shots difficult. Even single-shot autofocus can be sluggish compared to modern cameras.
- Lack of an Auto Eye Sensor for the EVF – Switching manually between the EVF and LCD is cumbersome, especially for quick shooting situations. This is a small but noticeable annoyance in daily use.
- Awkward Articulating Screen Design – While an articulating screen is a nice feature, the bottom-hinge design makes it impractical for selfies and inconvenient when mounted on a tripod. It’s a missed opportunity for better usability.
- Limited Low-Light Performance – The combination of a small sensor and a maximum aperture of f/3.7 at the long end means that low-light shooting isn’t this camera’s strong suit. Without good lighting, image quality quickly degrades.
Conclusion
In what's possibly the wildest kind of conclusion I've written for one of these look-back pieces, this camera is still actually usable in 2025. It's aged quite gracefully, and I've been using it when I know the light's going to be good and I just need the range. I have no jokes or even ways I can poke fun at this camera—it's that good.
In an age where point-and-shoot cameras have made a real comeback, perhaps it's time that Panasonic revisited this line?
If you want to try to impress people, you can buy the Leica V-LUX 1, which is the exact same camera just with different badges, and a ludicrously-inflated price because of it.