Wondering if anyone is still rocking this or even knows what one is. Released in 2015, and the reaction from the PAS world dominated by X100, GR, and RX100 was a lukewarm, “Oh.” But I eventually jumped on it during a sale in 2018 anyway. 1” sensor, F1.4 Leica-design lens, and 4K video in a pocketable body. These all sounded too incredible for under $500. 

Then got huge buyers remorse after scanning online forums. Artificial sharpness. Weird green jpegs. Corners blurrier than a Monet painting. F1.4 only at 24mm, then quickly stepping down to 2.5 at 28mm. No one on the internet liked this thing, and the only prescription was to upgrade to one from the golden pocketable PAS triumvirate, mentioned above. 

Well, I could never find an X100, so I kinda just stuck with my red-headed stepchild.

8 years later, the LX10 now my most used camera. I travel a lot each year, and the LX10’s been everywhere. It’s been dropped, banged, and thrown by children to the point that the lens blades don’t open all the way. But the guess the F (stop) what (har har)—it has a shutter and a flippy screen, and the dials all work. I’ve totally grown to love the hell out of this pocket rocket. 

Don’t know why I shot only in jpeg for the first FOUR years of owning it, but I eventually realized that you MUST shoot in RAW to maximize mileage. No amount of profile preset tweaking is going to save you from these awful jpegs. Trust me, doing it in RAW is definitely the cure. However, number of people who walk up to me in the field and go, “Hey! A Lumix! You can always tell a Panasonic shooter from their love of amazing colors!” still remains a resounding: 0. 

The LX10 has not helped me get laid one bit, but MPB’s been selling these for more than they used to cost new now, so who knows. Maybe Panasonic will get the message one day, stop crapping the bed with incremental USB-C parts bin retrofits each year, and finally make a proper Mark 2. 

Final score: 9/10. Must REALLY love Panasonic or remain in love/hate abusive relationship in waiting for a successor. 

Lumix LX10 — the camera and the photos