Panasonic LUMIX DMC FS8 User Manual

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Preparation
∫List of [REC] modes
Note
• When the mode has been switched from [PLAYBACK] mode to [REC] mode, the previously set 
[REC] mode will be set.
• Refer to P32 for details on selecting Intelligent auto mode.
¦ Intelligent auto mode (P32)
The subjects are recorded using settings automatically selected by the camera.
! Normal picture mode (P36)
The subjects are recorded using your own settings.
 My scene mode (P58)
Pictures are taken using previously registered recording scenes.
Û Scene mode (P58)
This allows you to take pictures that match the scene being recorded.
$ Motion picture mode (P73)
This mode allows you to record motion pictures with audio. 
						

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[REC] mode: ñ
BasicTaking pictures using the automatic function 
(Intelligent Auto Mode)
The camera will set the most appropriate settings to match the subject and the recording 
conditions so we recommend this mode for beginners or those who want to leave the 
settings to the camera and take pictures easily.
• The following functions are activated automatically.
– Scene detection /[STABILIZER] /[INTELLIGENT ISO]/ Face detection/Backlight 
Compensation/Digital Red-eye Correction
Slide the [REC]/[PLAYBACK] selector switch to [!], and then press 
[MODE].
Press 3/4 to select [INTELLIGENT AUTO], and then press [MENU/
SET].
• You can quickly switch to Intelligent auto mode by pressing [¦] A when the [REC]/
[PLAYBACK] selector switch is set to record. Pressing [¦] again takes you back to the 
previous mode. • The status indicator 3 lights when you 
turn this unit on 2. (It turns off after about 
1 second.) 
(1: Shutter button) 
						

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Basic
∫When taking pictures using the flash (P48)
∫When taking pictures using the zoom (P39)
Note
• Be careful not to move the camera when you press the shutter button.
• Do not cover the flash or the AF assist lamp with your fingers or other objects.
• Do not touch the front of the lens.
Hold the camera gently with both hands, 
keep your arms still at your side and stand 
with your feet slightly apart.
BFlash
CAF assist lamp
Press the shutter button halfway to focus.
• The focus indication 1 (green) lights when the subject 
is focused.
• The AF area 2 is displayed around the subject’s face 
by the face detection function. In other cases, it is 
displayed at the point on the subject which is in focus.
• The focus range is 5 cm (Wide)/50 cm (Tele) to ¶.
• The maximum close-up distance (the shortest distance 
at which the subject can be taken) differs depending on 
the zoom magnification.
Press the shutter button fully (push it in 
further), and take the picture.
• The access indication (P16) lights red when pictures 
are being recorded on the built-in memory (or the 
card).


1
2 
						

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When the camera identifies the optimum scene, the icon of the scene concerned is 
displayed in blue for 2 seconds, after which its colour changes to the usual red.
•[¦] is set if none of the scenes are applicable, and the standard settings are set.
• If a tripod is used, for instance, and the camera has judged that camera shake is minimal when 
the scene mode has been identified as [ ], the shutter speed will be set to a maximum of 
8 seconds. Take care not to move the camera while taking pictures.
∫Face detection
When [ ] or [ ] is selected, the camera automatically detects a person’s face, and it will 
adjust the focus and exposure (P89).
Note
• Due to conditions such as the ones below, a different scene may be 
identified for the same subject.
– Subject conditions: When the face is bright or dark, The size of the 
subject, The distance to the subject, The contrast of the subject, 
When the subject is moving, When zoom is used
– Recording conditions: Sunset, Sunrise, Under low brightness 
conditions, When the camera is shaken
• To take pictures in an intended scene, it is recommended that you take pictures in the 
appropriate recording mode.
∫The Backlight Compensation
Backlight refers to when light comes from the back of a subject.
In this case, the subject will become dark, so this function compensates the backlight by 
brightening the whole of the picture automatically. 
Scene detection
¦
 >[i-PORTRAIT]
[i-SCENERY]
[i-MACRO]
[i-NIGHT PORTRAIT]
• Only when [‡] is selected
[i-NIGHT SCENERY]• Only when [Œ] is selected 
						

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Basic
• When [‡] is selected, [ ], [ ] or [ ] is set depending on the type of subject and 
brightness.
• When [ ] or [ ] is set, the flash is activated twice.
• Only the following functions can be set in this mode.
[REC] mode menu
– [PICTURE SIZE]
¢ (P81)/[BURST] (P90)/[COLOR MODE]¢ (P91)
¢The settings which can be selected are different from when other [REC] modes are used.
[SETUP] menu
– [CLOCK SET]/[WORLD TIME]/[BEEP]/[LANGUAGE]
• The settings of the following items are fixed.
• The following functions cannot be used.
– [AUTO LCD OFF]/[EXPOSURE]/[AUTO BRACKET]/[DIGITAL ZOOM]
• The other items on the [SETUP] menu can be set in a mode such as the normal picture mode. 
What is set will be reflected in the intelligent auto mode.
About the flash
Settings in intelligent auto mode
ItemSettings
[ECONOMY] 
([POWER SAVE]) (P26)[5MIN.]
[AUTO REVIEW] (P27)[2SEC.]
Flash (P48)‡/Œ 
Self-timer (P55)10 seconds/off
[QUALITY] (P82)A
[INTELLIGENT ISO] (P84)
[WHITE BALANCE] (P86)[AWB]
[AF MODE] (P88)š (Set to [ ] when a face cannot be detected)
[STABILIZER] (P92)[AUTO]
[AF ASSIST LAMP] (P93)[ON]
ISOMAX1600 
						

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[REC] mode: ·
Taking pictures with your favourite settings 
(Normal picture mode)
The camera automatically sets the shutter speed and the aperture value according to the 
brightness of the subject.
You can take pictures with greater freedom by changing various settings in [REC] menu.
∫To adjust the exposure and take pictures at times when the image appears too 
dark (P56)
∫To adjust the colours and take pictures at times when the image appears too red 
(P86)
Slide the [REC]/[PLAYBACK] selector 
switch to [!], and then press [MODE].
A[MODE] button
B[REC]/[PLAYBACK] selector switch
Press 3/4 to select [NORMAL 
PICTURE], and then press [MENU/SET].
• To change the setting while taking pictures, refer 
to “Using the [REC] Mode Menu”  (P81).
C[MENU/SET] button
Aim the AF area at the point you want to 
focus on.
Press the shutter button halfway to 
focus.
• The focus indication (green) lights when the 
subject is focused.
• The focus range is 50 cm to ¶.
• If pictures are to be taken at an even closer 
range, refer to “Taking Close-up Pictures” (P53).
Press the halfway pressed shutter 
button fully to take a picture.
• The access indication lights (P16) red when 
pictures are being recorded on the built-in 
memory (or the card). 
						

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Basic
Aim the AF area at the subject, and then press the shutter button halfway.
AFocus indication
BAF area (normal)
CAF area (when using the digital zoom or when it is dark)
DFocus range
EAperture value
¢
FShutter speed¢
GISO sensitivity
¢If correct exposure cannot be achieved, it will be displayed in red. 
(However, it will not be displayed in red when the flash is used.)
1Aim the AF area at the subject, and then press the shutter button halfway to fix the 
focus and exposure.
2Press and hold the shutter button halfway while moving the camera as you 
compose the picture.
• You can repeatedly retry the actions in step 1 
before pressing the shutter button fully.
We recommend that you use the face 
detection function when taking pictures of 
people. (P88)
Focusing
FocusWhen the subject is 
focusedWhen the subject 
is not focused
Focus indicationOn Blinks
AF areaWhite>Green White>Red
SoundBeeps 2 times Beeps 4 times
When the subject is not in focus (such as when it is not in the centre of 
the composition of the picture you want to take)
B
EDFG A
C
1/301/30F2.8F2.8ISOISO 80 801/30 F2.8ISO 801/301/30F2.8F2.8ISOISO 80 801/30 F2.8ISO 80 
						

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∫Subject and recording conditions which are difficult to focus in• Fast-moving subjects, extremely bright subjects or subjects without contrast
• When the recordable range display has appeared in red
• When recording subjects through windows or near shiny objects
• When it is dark or when jitter occurs
• When the camera is too close to the subject or when taking a picture of both distant and near 
subjects
When the jitter alert [ ] appears, use [STABILIZER] (P92), a tripod or the self-timer 
(P55).
• Shutter speed will be slower particularly in the following cases. Keep the camera still from the 
moment the shutter button is pressed until the picture appears on the screen. We recommend 
using a tripod.
– In [NIGHT PORTRAIT], [NIGHT SCENERY], [PARTY], [CANDLE LIGHT], [STARRY SKY] or 
[FIREWORKS] in scene mode (P58)
Pictures recorded with the camera held vertically are played back vertically (rotated). (Only 
when [ROTATE DISP.] (P108) is set to [ON])
• Pictures may not be displayed vertically if they were taken with the camera aimed up or down.
• Motion pictures taken with the camera held vertically are not displayed vertically.
Preventing jitter (camera shake)
Direction detection function 
						

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Basic
[REC] mode: ñ· ¿n 
Taking Pictures with the Zoom
You can zoom-in to make people and objects appear closer or zoom-out to record 
landscapes in wide angle. To make subjects appear even closer [maximum of 7.1k 
(DMC-FS7/DMC-FS8)/6.4k (DMC-FS6)], do not set the picture size to the highest setting 
for each aspect ratio (X/Y/W).
Even higher levels of magnification are possible when [DIGITAL ZOOM] is set to [ON] in 
[REC] menu.
∫Types of zooms
• When using the zoom function, an estimate of the focus range will appear in conjunction 
with the zoom display bar. (Example: 0.5 m –¶)
¢The magnification level differs depending on [PICTURE SIZE] and [ASPECT RATIO] setting.
Using the Optical Zoom/Using the Extra Optical Zoom (EZ)/Using the 
Digital Zoom 
To make subjects appear closer use (Tele)
Rotate the zoom lever towards Tele.
To make subjects appear further away use (Wide)
Rotate the zoom lever towards Wide.
FeatureOptical zoomExtra optical zoom (EZ)Digital zoom
Maximum 
magnification4k7.1k
¢ 
(DMC-FS7/DMC-FS8)
6.4k¢ (DMC-FS6)16k [including optical zoom 
4k]
28.5k (DMC-FS7/DMC-FS8) 
[including extra optical zoom 
7.1k]
25.5k (DMC-FS6) [including 
extra optical zoom 6.4k]
Picture 
qualityNo deterioration No deteriorationThe higher the magnification 
level, the greater the 
deterioration.
Conditions None[PICTURE SIZE] with   
(P81) is selected.[DIGITAL ZOOM] (P91) on the 
[REC] menu is set to [ON].
Screen 
display
A
 [ ] is displayed.BThe digital zoom range is 
displayed.
TWTW
A
TWTW
B 
						

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∫Extra optical zoom mechanism
When you set the picture size to [ ] (3 million pixels), the 10M (10.1 million pixels) 
(DMC-FS7/DMC-FS8)/8M (8.1 million pixels) (DMC-FS6) CCD area is cropped to the 
centre 3M (3 million pixels) area, allowing a picture with a higher zoom effect.
Note
• The digital zoom cannot be set when õ has been selected.
• The indicated zoom magnification is an approximation.
• “EZ” is an abbreviation of “Extra optical Zoom”.
• The optical zoom is set to Wide (1k) when the camera is turned on.
• If you use the zoom function after focusing on the subject, focus on the subject again.
• The lens barrel extends or retracts according to the zoom position. Take care not to interrupt 
the motion of the lens barrel while the zoom lever is rotated.
• When using the digital zoom, [STABILIZER] may not be effective.
• When using the digital zoom, we recommend using a tripod and the self-timer (P55) for taking 
pictures.
• The extra optical zoom cannot be used in the following cases.
– In macro zoom mode
– In [TRANSFORM], [HIGH SENS.], [HI-SPEED BURST], [FLASH BURST], [FILM GRAIN] or 
[PHOTO FRAME] in scene mode
– In motion picture mode
• [DIGITAL ZOOM] cannot be used in the following cases.
– In [TRANSFORM], [SPORTS], [BABY1]/[BABY2], [PET], [HIGH SENS.], 
[HI-SPEED BURST], [FLASH BURST], [FILM GRAIN] or [PHOTO FRAME] in scene mode
– When [INTELLIGENT ISO] is set