Please help...Panasonic LX5 or Zs7 or other?

Hi. I would love some insight on this topic. I'm looking to (mega) upgrade from a little Fuji Finepix. The main purpose of this camera will be for my three month trip to France and Germany, beginning this April. I'm in no way a pro, and will be mostly shooting in auto-mode... but I'm still an artistic person and I want a camera with excellent photo quality, AND I intend to blow-up several of the pictures to poster size.

I love the 12x zoom on the Zs7... but it seems so many of features on the LX5 stand out: wider aperture for better low light, larger sensor, RAW ability, etc. However, it has such a small optical zoom! It's barely more than my ole Fuji. Is this very important? Is a 3.8 optical zoom enough for my trip?

I'm completely open to suggestions for camera purchases that are NOT these two models. I will buy any brand; I just want whatever will best meet my needs. I'm looking to spend $350 or less (but that can be used off of Amazon or E-bay.)

Any help/suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Jaclyn

 

You'll love the LX-5 or LX-7. You will lose the long telephoto end of your Fuji, but having the equivalent of a 24mm lens at the other end more than makes up for it. And, you can shoot RAW with the Lumix (Fuji doesn't do this). Shooting in RAW means you're much better able to edit your images. Seriously, shoot in RAW!