Zoom isn't the only thing that reaches far with the DiMAGE Z2. Its powerful built-in flash can cover distances of up to 6.1 meters (20 feet) with the lens at its widest angle. Four flash modes are included*: auto, red-eye reduction, fill flash, and slow sync.

* In Auto, Program, and Digital Subject Program Selection

Unlike most compact digital cameras, the DiMAGE Z2 offers extra versatility with flash photography. It has a hot shoe for attaching any of these powerful flash units: the Program/Maxxum Flash 2500(D), 3600HS(D), or 5600HS(D).

Get the right color with different light sources, or experiment with the appearance of your images. The seven settings are Auto, Daylight, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Cloudy, Flash, and Custom.

If you want to create an image with a different mood, try changing color modes. The DiMAGE Z2 has four you can choose from: natural, vivid, sepia, and black & white. You can change color modes for your movies, too.

When you want more creative control over how your shot is focused, just switch from autofocusing to manual focus control.

This feature lets you know, at a glance, the overall brightness of scene before shooting. You can then adjust exposure if necessary to capture the image you want. The real-time histogram is especially useful on bright, sunny days and also with high-contrast subjects or scenes. Histograms of captured images can be checked as well.

This handy feature automatically detects whether you're shooting a portrait, landscape, sports action, or standard scene. It then optimizes exposure, shutter speed, white balance, and other settings to match the scene.

Two modes are available for close-up shooting, Macro and Super Macro. Whichever mode you choose, your close-ups will look stunning as a result of the superior quality of the GT Lens and 4 megapixel resolution. In Super Macro mode, you can bring the lens as close as 3 cm (1.2 inches) to your subject

The DiMAGE Z2 gives you the freedom to experiment with exposure modes as you like. You can alter shutter speed (Shutter-priority mode) or aperture (Aperture-priority mode), or shift to Manual mode to adjust both. Program mode handles both settings for you.

The LCD monitor will brighten automatically in low-light conditions, providing a clear view of your subject in color. Shot composition becomes much easier.

For added flexibility, the flash button can be customized to handle different settings. So instead of pushing this button to switch flash modes, you can use it to change the drive mode, white balance, focus mode, or color mode. That's a quicker and easier way to change a particular setting than going through menus on the LCD monitor.

The DiMAGE Z2 supports PictBridge technology, allowing you to connect the camera directly to a compatible printer for printouts. While connected, you can use the camera's LCD monitor to check which image you want to print. No computer connection is required.

To help you get the best results in varying light conditions, three types of metering are included: multi-segment, center-weighted, and spot metering.