Panasonic’s worthy Lumix Fz150 will soon get a new lease of life courtesy of Leica which has just announced a rebranded version of this digital camera that will be known as the V-LUX 3, once it arrives in January of 2012. Leica’s V-Lux 3 isn’t a radical departure from the two models before it. It still has a 24x zoom lens which shoots at the equivalent lengths of 25-600mm, but now it can finally record video in 1080p and 60 frames per second using the AVCHD codec.
Leica V-LUX 3 Camera
A newly-developed 12.1 megapixel CMOS sensor ensures exceptional image quality, performing particularly well in low light and at high speeds, according to Leica. The company claims that the high contrast, low noise, and rich and natural colours delivered by this sensor set new standards in a camera of this class for both still images and movies. The key aspect of this camera is its Leica DC Vario-Elmarit 4.5 – 108mm f/2.8 – 5.2 ASPH super-telephoto zoom lens (24x) that has an enormous range of focal lengths equivalent to 25–600mm in 35mm format. Its frame rate is impressive too; 12fps at full resolution and all to 60fps if you crank down the dial to 3.5 megapixels. And you’ll also get 60fps on the 1080p videos too, in AVCHD format. If you’d prefer MP4 files, that option is available too.
Moving to the back, the V-LUX 3 greets us with an articulating 3-inch LCD with a 460K pixel resolution as well as with a 0.2-inch electronic viewfinder that provides nearly 100% frame coverage. There’s also a side lever that allows control of the lens zoom function, freeing the user to control the shutter button with the right hand.
But the features list doesn’t end here and the camera also includes full support for P/A/S/M modes, an ISO 100-3200 range, a special starry sky mode with a maximum 60s shutter speed, a built-in Flash and RAW shooting support.
Available from the company’s dealers starting with January of next year, the V-LUX 3 will come with the latest, full versions of Adobe’s Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements.
Crafted only in black, the Leica V-LUX 3 will be priced at $949. Is the upgraded warranty, comprehensive software bundle, and, of course, that familiar Leica red-dot logo enough to justify a hefty price premium in comparison to Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150?
Leica V-LUX 3 Camera
