I've been playing with the Panasonic for a few days now but still really haven't clocked all the features and adjustability. The manual is junk. Incomprehensible.
Canon do a much better job. Panasonic spent two pages about programing in your vacation dates so they will show up on your pics. Are they serious?

Explanation of other features are not done well either. So what I'm doing is reading a section and then playing with the camera and trying different things.

No where near as simple or versatile as either Canon.

But the images are very good. Much sharper than either of my three Canon's.
(G3, A540, or 20D with cheap kit lens)

The FZ-8 is so light it's hard to believe. About half the weight of my A540 which is a smaller Camera. It feels very flimsy and delicate but does produce the goods.....for now. I will see how the vibes and bumps of riding affect it.
I'm refining a sort of front harness for it.

The thing is tiny also, handling ergos are not great (its too smooth) but I can adapt. The fill flash works very well, but without it, in low light, anything moving is blurring badly (dogs). But that's my fault for not using manual settings....which are a bit of a pain at this point. I'm hoping once I learn them
I will be able to change settings quickly....so important in taking pics.
Will report from on the road.

Patrick

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Patrick passed Dec 2018. RIP Patrick!