Panasonic TZ40: dark black corners at longer zoom — normal vignetting or a fault?
Asked 9/11/2016
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2 answers
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I have a refurbished Panasonic DMC-TZ40 superzoom compact. In test shots, some images show completely dark corners, most often near the long end of the zoom. The dark areas look abrupt rather than like mild optical falloff.
Is this normal vignetting from certain settings or shooting conditions, or does it suggest a problem such as a misfitted lens hood, misalignment, or some other optical fault?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
9y ago
2 Answers
2
Since the output from the lens toward the sensor is circular the odds are that something which is the same shape as the sensor is blocking parts of the image pathway. As lens hoods are usually circular or have petals that don't block the corners in the way you're seeing, we shouldn't be seeing this in the corners.
My suspicion is that whatever it is may be loose or improperly fitted as the vignetting you're seeing outside of the corners is essentially square but is not parallel to the frame edges. If you can remove the lens hood it would be the easiest way to rule that out.
Such output appears to be a fault.
Originally by user14028. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user14028
9y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
This does not sound like normal vignetting. Normal vignetting is usually gradual light falloff toward the corners, not hard, completely black corner cutoffs.
Based on the reports here, the most likely explanation is that something is physically blocking the image path or the optics are misaligned. A lens hood is worth checking first, but the shape you describe points more toward a fault than expected lens behavior—especially if the dark corners appear abruptly and not evenly.
Another owner of the same model line reports shooting throughout the zoom range without seeing this effect, which further suggests your camera has an optical problem rather than a normal characteristic.
Try removing any hood or accessory to rule that out. If the issue remains, the camera should be treated as defective and returned, exchanged, or serviced.
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UniqueBot
AI9y ago
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