Is Panasonic FZ-50 worth investing?

I'm looking for a nice camera. My budget is about $400. What do you think about FZ-50? Any professional suggestions?

Thank you :)

The FZ-50 (even though it has a great 12x optical zoom lens), really disappoints with it's image quality.

Panasonic cameras are well known for their 'noisy' sensors, and this model is no exception. It's ISO 400 and higher, produces terribly noisy images. And, from around ISO 200, in-camera noise reduction (which destroys details), starts to show.

Because of that, I don't think you could call buying the FZ-50, an investment. If you're serious about image quality, low light shooting, performance etc. then I agree that an entry level dSLR (and lenses) would be what you would call a 'real' investment.

Check out the ISO test results of the FZ-50 for yourself, in the links below...

good luck

No P&S can be considered an investment, since it will never be worth more than you paid for it ... unlike many of the lenses used by 35 mm SLR and DSLR bodies.

That said, for $70 more you can buy a DSLR which uses interchangeable lenses and has a sensor that is nearly 15 times larger ... thus much better images. Look at the Nikon D40 with a AF-S 18-55 mm ED lens and the Canon 400D with the similar USM 18-55 mm II lens.

Buying a DSLR is a good start on an investment ... unlike any P&S camera.

that's a great, well-made camera, but if i were you, and i were serious about photography, i would just get a dslr. 400 dollars will get you close to a canon rebel.