Panasonic DMW-LTZ10E/DMW-LTZ10 Tele Conversion Lens

Panasonic DMW-LTZ10E/DMW-LTZ10 Tele Conversion Lens

This Panasonic LTZ10E/DMW-LTZ10 1.5X teleconverter comes with front and rear lens caps and a tripod adapter as shown in the left image below. It does not require an adapter tube because the lens itself has the needed thread to be screwed onto the camera body (below right). But, keep in mind that before mounting this lens you must take the lens ring off!

The LTZ10E is the largest, longest, and heaviest teleconverter for the FZ-10 and FZ-20. The following image shows a comparison of its size. From left to right, the converters are the LTZ10E, Olympus TCON-17 with a Yoshida 55mm adapter, Sony VCL HGD1758 with a Pemaraal PD62 adapter and a 62-58mm step-down ring, and Olympus TCON-14B with a Chen adapter. From this image, it is not difficult to see how large the LTZ10E is! The reason that each of the three non-Panasonic teleconverter is shown with an adapter is that the LTZ10E does not requires an adapter, or, more precisely, it includes an adapter.

The supplied tripod adapter is used to relocate the tripod hole of the combo. One end of the tripod adapter screws into the tripod hold of the camera (below left) and the other end wraps around the lens barrel. Then, tighten the screw to secure the tripod adapter and the lens as shown in the right image below. Once this is done, the combo can use the new tripod hole of the tripod adapter as shown in the left image below. This new tripod hole position balances the weight of the combo nicely and is on the line of view of the lens, which is much better than using the tripod hole on the camera.

The left image below shows the tripod adapter and the LTZ10E on a FZ-10. The right one shows the combo on a simple quick release, actually an Idesign Q Top. As you can see, the combo balances very well.

Some More Details

The LTZ10E is a 1.5X converter lens. Since its lens power is 1.5X, the LTZ10E brings the FZ-10 maximum focal length to 630mm = 420×1.5 (35mm equivalent). This telephoto converter lens does not have a front thread, and, as a result, it does not accept filters and lens hood.

With this lens on a FZ-10, there is no vignetting when the camera lens is at 6X or higher. This means that the combined focal range without vignetting is from 315mm = 6×35×1.5 to 630mm. Hence, there is no focal length gap with this LTZ10E. In other word, you have the coverage from 35mm to 630mm, with 35-420mm covered by the camera lens and 420-630mm by this 1.5X converter!

Panasonic indicated the following:

A Few Sample Images

The following are a few images taken with the DMW-LTZ10E and a FZ-10. All images used LOW for image processing parameters SATURATION, CONTRAST and SHARPNESS, auto-focus, auto white balance, ISO 50, 630mm focal length, and multi-segment metering determined by the camera.

The left image below shows a tree about 20 meters away, and the right one is the 100% crop of the indicated blue area. Click on the image to see a 100% unprocessed image. As you can see, even at F2.8, the image sharpness of the combo is very impressive.

F2.8, 1/320 sec 100% center crop
Click on the image to see the full size version

The left image below used fill flash with F4.0 and 1/60 sec. The focus area is the front end of the feeder, which is about 4 meters away. Since the feeder was swinging and the finches are moving, only the one shown in the right image below is the sharpest. It is easy to see the details and color rendition. Also note that chromatic aberration (e.g., purple fringes) is virtually not found. This illustrates the quality of the lens.

F4.0, 1/60 sec with fill flash 100% center crop
Click on the image to see the full size version

The following image was taken while two couples were celebrating something at a tourist spot where I was doing my work. They cheered and drank champagne, and everyone shared their happiness. This is the first couple and the focus area is at the elegant lady's eyes. I did this shot while other people were trying to photograph that moment. The focus distance is about 10 meters away, or may be more.

F4.0, 1/200 sec
Click on the image to see the full size version

The following three images are 100% crops of the above one. The texture of the lady's eyes and hair, and the gentleman's hand and shirt is very clearly rendered with all the details. Keep in mind that this image is taken with LOW in SHARPNESS. After some careful and slight sharpening, one can get the sharpness back easily. However, even with this low sharpness setting, the DMW-LTZ10E's resolution is, again, very impressive.

How about chromatic aberration? Yes, there are some. The following images show two types. The left one has a greenish fringe around the lady's fingers, and the right one shows a purple fringe along the edge of the lady's shoulder and the background. This is also an impressive achievement because virtually all teleconverter lenses that I have and used all are worse to much worse in the chromatic aberration department.

The following is the second couple. I still used F2.8 to "blur" the background. Since the gentleman was moving, the image is not as sharp as the previous ones. This teleconverter seems not being able to resolve the dark-colored cloth very well. On the other hand, except for a very light touch of chromatic aberration, the baseball cap is rendered very well. You can also find chromatic aberration along some other high contrast areas. The right image below also demonstrates the quality of this lens. One can easily get all the hair and face details back with a careful sharpening.

F2.8, 1/250 sec F2.8, 1/400 sec
Click on the image to see the full size version

In summary, this DMW-LTZ10E is a wonderful teleconverter lens and is better to much better than other teleconverter lenses that I have used on a FZ-10. Since the contrast and saturation are set to low, the color rendition of each image may seem a little flat and dull; however, a simple adjustment in Photoshop can bring the scene back to what I saw. Since it was near sunset, I added +10 to red and yellow saturation, and +10 to contrast, and the result is the following. A more careful fine tuning would definitely yield a better result.

Technical Data

Panasonic did not provide much details about this teleconverter lens. The lens construction data (i.e., 5 elements in 3 groups) is taken from an Internet source, which may not be accurate. This information is for the FZ-10 (and FZ-20) only, and should be different for other cameras.

Item Panasonic DMW-LTZ10E
Number of lenses 5 elements in 3 groups*
Magnification x1.5
Combined focal length 630mm (35mm equivalent)
Angle of View approx 5 degree
Combined max. aperture F2.8 at telephoto side
Minimum Focusing Distance approx 152 in
Rear Thread Size NA
Front Thread Size none
Size 920mm (W) × 133mm (L)
Weight 640g