Viewfinder (0.0)
The EX-Z57 has no optical viewfinder. In the past couple of years, optical viewfinders and LCD displays have been competing for space on sub-compact cameras, and the LCDs have started to win. The optical viewfinders died an ugly death, however. In the end, the few still shoehorned into the smallest cameras are tiny, inaccurate and uncomfortable to use, although they will provide a power-conserving alternative when needed.

LCD Screen (7.0)
The EX-Z57 has a remarkably large LCD display. At 2.7 inches, it's unique in a field where 2.5 inches is rare, although that has obviously begun to change. The difference amounts to more than bragging rights; a 2.7-inch screen is noticeably bigger than a 2.5-inch display. While this will provide a larger displayed image, it inevitably results in far less room on the compact frame to access controls.

The LCD, as large as it is, is incredibly short on resolution. While the 2.7-inch screen is a bit ahead of the trend, the screen’s 115,200 pixels is at least a year behind. Many LCDs composed of essentially the same resolution are only 1.8 inches diagonal. The combination of expanded surface area and lack of resolution makes it nearly impossible to focus the camera manually with any degree of accuracy and distorts the replayed images enough to counteract one of the camera’s intended functions as a digital viewer.

One particular strength of the EX-Z57’s screen is that it remains viewable at very wide angles. When the camera is tilted to the left or right or when viewed from below, the displayed image retains visibility, although the angle of view isn't nearly as good when viewed from above. The expanded angle of view is much more useful to groups of people looking at images together than it is to one person taking pictures; however, in pairing the oversized screen with tiny buttons, it appears that was Casio’s intention all along. For these people, the large screen is functional as a photo album, although the low quality display will encourage users to take their favorite images to print.

Flash (5.0)
The EX-Z57's flash is very small, which seldom translates to flattering portraiture. The tiny light source will make for very sharply-defined dark shadows, accentuating wrinkles, blemishes and most imperfections on skin. It's also unfortunate that the flash is mounted to one side of the lens. This will cause the subject's shadows to consistently show up quite clearly. If the flash were shifted over to the lens axis, shadows cast by the subject could be neatly hidden behind them.

Unfortunately, the EX-Z57’s fixed flash is also relatively weak: Casio says it's effective as far as 8.5 feet when the lens is zoomed to wide angle, but to only 6.5 feet at the telephoto setting. This is far shorter than the 10-15 ft. range available on many competing models.


Zoom Lens (6.5)
Casio applied a Pentax zoom lens to the front of their EX-Z57. The available focal range extends from 5.8 to 17.4mm, which is comparable to a 35mm to 105mm zoom lens on a 35mm camera. In terms of perspective, the lens offers a slight wide angle to a mild telephoto range of view. At the wide angle end, the lens will be wide enough to take pictures of small groups of people at a reasonable distance, but not wide enough for expansive scenic vistas. At the telephoto end, the applied Pentax lens is long enough for comfortable and flattering individual portraits, but not long enough for sports or action photography, bird-watching, or covert surveillance.

Casio lists a maximum aperture of f/2.6 at 5.8mm to f/4.4 at 17.4mm. The minimum apertures range from f/4.6 to f/7.7 over the zoom range.

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