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Fujifilm Finepix S5000
by JJJJ
In the years before I owned my first SLR camera, I went through a range of digital compacts, many of which featured a long ranging zoom lens. The first of these 'superzoom' cameras that I purchased was Fuji's s5000 - a 3.1 megapixel shooter with a 10x optical lens. Of course, the average consumer wouldn't touch a camera with only three ... megapixels nowadays, but the device was responsive and well made, featuring a range of manual options. At the time of its release, the s5000 retailed at £250 - today however, you can pick up in the region of £25 - £35 from eBay.
Design & Appearance
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Predominantly constructed from black plastic, the s5000 is a professional looking model - however, at 113 x 81 x 79 mm it *isn't* a camera which will fit into your pocket. That said, it is fairly light at under 430 grams including the batteries, so you shouldn't suffer too much with aching arms. In general the s5000 is a comfortable camera to hold, feeling nicely balanced in the hands.
Instead of a through-the-lens optical viewfinder, The S5000 uses an electronic viewfinder (or 'EVF'), meaning that when you look through the eyepiece you'll actually be looking at a tiny LCD screen. Electronic viewfinders in general do take a little getting used to, but once you've used them for a while the experience is very natural. As well as composing your images through the s5000's EVF, you can also use it review the pictures you have taken - this is great in sunny conditions when the rear LCD is too reflective to see. Speaking of which, the camera's main LCD screen is rather small - tiny in fact at only 1.5 inches. That said, it's nice and sharp, displaying colours with vibrancy.
The Lens & Flash
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One of the s5000's main selling points is its 10x optical zoom lens, which is the equivalent of 37-370mm on a 35mm camera. If you want to use a 55mm filter with the lens, you'll need to attach the AR-FX5 adaptor, which handily comes complete with the camera when new. The lens comprises good quality Fujinon glass which limits distortions - there is however a touch of barrel distortion but nothing major. Starting at an aperture of f2.8, the lens is pretty good in lower light conditions, and ultimately I found it to be a decent camera for festival use. In terms of a macro mode, the camera will allow you to focus as close as 10 cms, which isn't especially impressive by today's standards. In regards to the flash, the camera's pop-up unit has an impressive range - it will happily illuminate to around twenty footy. There's plenty of flash modes to play around with too, including slow syncro, red-eye reduction, suppressed & forced, plus the good 'ol 'Auto' setting.
Image Quality, Battery Life, & Camera Speed
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On the whole, the s5000 manages to take high quality images - in daylight especially, the camera can compete with many of the supposedly "superior" cameras that I've owned since. By default I've found that shots are sharp throughout the zoom range, clear, and of the correct exposure. The only real downside is the fact that JPEG compression is a little high - good news for those who are after small file sizes, but you can see evidence of compression artifacts in solid areas of colour. Selectable ISO settings range between ISO 200, 400, & 800 - the lowest two are fairly respectable in terms of image noise, although ISO 800 is best reserved for emergencies.
The s5000 takes four AA batteries which i've found to last a reasonable amount of time before they need changing. The official line from Fuji is 280 shots, and I have found this to be just about correct. The camera will last even longer if you use the NiMh variety of recharchables, which are available relatively cheaply from Amazon. Speed-wise, the s5000 was considered quick when it was first released, but it's a little slow when compared to the cameras released in the last few years. The start-up time is roughly three seconds, whereas the shutter lag is around a quarter of a second per shot.
Additional Features + Final Word
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If you're after a camera with superb video capabilities, then the s5000 won't be for you - the movie mode maxes out at a maximum resolution of 320 x 240 pixels at thirty frames per second. The optical zoom lens is not useable during recording, although you can set it before you start. Storage wise, the camera takes the XD variety of memory cards - which, although not obsolete, are not as widely supported as they used to be. Finally, a quick word about the camera's menu system which is intuitive and should be able to be used by novices and experts alike.
Overall - the FinePix s5000 is a really good little camera, combining an impressive image quality with a solid build and ease of use. The only thing lacking about the camera is its megapixel count - and although the old adage of "Megapixels aren't everything" is very true, having just three will be a significant issue for those who like to print large or crop their images. What's especially good about the camera is the fact that it's fun to use and very reliable - plus the quality of the zoom lens is second to none.
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Fujifilm Finepix T200
by candy-pink
I have been away from the site for some time but anyone who remembers me will know I am a model and I therefore spend more time in front of the camera than behind one but I do love taking photos at a very amateur level and recently found taking pictures much easier with the purchase of the Fujifilm Finepix T200.
This is a very ... good looking and very well made camera and it looks and performs like a more expensive camera than what it actually is. I picked mine up online for only £95.99 which seems like great value for money to me.
It comes in a few different colours as most cameras seem to these days but I went for plain old simple black. I think in black with its impressive looking lens and the large rear screen it just looks very professional.
The Fujifilm Finepix T200 is a 14 megapixel camera with tons of features and functions such as face detection, dual image stabilization, YouTube capture mode, Blink Detection technology and Smile Detection technology.
It also offers you the option of setting things like the white balance and the ISO yourself, I am trying to learn a bit about this as my photographer assures me it will help me to capture better shots but I have to admit for now I am mainly in auto mode.
In auto mode or using any of the pre-sets such as Landscape, portrait mode, night mode, etc, etc, I find the image quality to be very sharp and the colours vibrant. The built in anti shake thingy means I have not yet taken a blurry image and I have taken over 300 photos with the camera so far.
I am super happy with my purchase and I am sure anyone using this camera will agree with what I have said. I have used it very successfully indoors and out and even in very dark situations like night clubs and the likes it does a very good job and having various flash settings you can reduce the dreaded red eye in pictures too.
There is a video function on the camera as there are with most these days, it does take decent video footage outdoors in good light but not so indoors in poor light but for what you are paying for the item and the great still images it takes you can hardly hold this against it in my opinion.
Battery power is good with this camera too, it uses a rechargeable lithium ion battery which I find gives you around 250 photos without needing charged, more if you use no flash and don't check them all on the screen.
Overall I would say this is a fantastic little camera that will do a good job for a long time, it seems robust and I have thrown it around in my handbag and dropped it on grass, I have even very clumsily knocked it off a pub table onto a hard floor and it has suffered nothing from any of these incidents. It is easy to use and takes great photos so I would highly recommend it to all.
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