Finepix is fine (Fujifilm Finepix 2600 Zoom)

Member Name: jonotinx

Product:	Fujifilm Finepix 2600 Zoom
Date:	14/07/04 (165 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: 2 x AA batteries for power, Robust design, Ease of use

Disadvantages: Lack of settings may become restrictive, display screen difficult to see in bright light, Weak flash

I've had my Fuji digital camera now for about 3 years, and it's been everywhere with me; from deserts to skiing down mountains to city breaks.

By today's standards, it's a rather heavy bulky affair (although maybe they have updated newer models). It's got 2.0 million mega pixels and I am happy with the general quality of the results. - I use the 'medium' setting which is a compromise between quality and space, so I still get a reasonable amount of pictures on the smart media card, but the quality is still good enough.

If you want top quality photos, then you can change the settings but each picture takes up far more memory space on the card.

I put a lot of my photos onto disc, and playback with a DVD player through my TV - on a larger screen, some of the photos can become a bit 'blocky' as the loss in resolution becomes a bit more obvious. However, on say a PC screen or a portable TV, resolution is fine.

The photos I've had printed (either 6x4 or 7x5 format) have been very god and true to the original.

The camera connects easily to a PC using Fuji "finepix viewer" software. It connects via USB. Here you can do basic editing and resize the image. You're also meant to be able to connect the camera up and use as a web camera, although I've never got this to work....

One big plus I like about the camera is that it uses standard AA batteries (2 of) for it's power - this means wherever you are, if your batteries run out, you should be able to replace easily.

The camera is really easy to use, and the zoom isn't too bad. I've found that as my skills develop, the camera can become a bit restrictive as there's not much you can change on it for different settings etc. Sometimes you are left wanting a wider angle lens to fit more in, and it would be nice to have some control over shutter speeds and maybe 'f' stops. But then you're
going away from the ease of a 'point and shoot' and into a more complicated (expensive) camera

However, having said that, because it's so simple, there's not much wrong you can do with it either.The macro function works well - and allows for some great close up shots.

There's a cover over the lens that you have to slide back, but if it's not 'clicked' right the way back, it turns the camera off - and it can be quite easy to accidentally knock it and turn the camera off just when you don't want to.

The flash is not very powerful, and really only any good for indoor use of people quite close. But the red-eye reduction facility works well.

There's a colours LCD screen at the back, which shows things in good detail - all menu options are done off the screen. However, when outside in anything but the dullest light, it can be very difficult to see the screen. I actually use the normal view finder for framing most of my shots - it uses far less battery power, and as I've said, the screen display can be difficult to see.

Battery power is good, and a decent set of batteries will get you lots of shots (I use rechargeable one, but the higher the 'mah' rating the longer they last (camera came with 1 set of Fuji batteries with a 1700 mah rating, and I have purchased extra one at 2300 mah)

It's easy to access the battery compartment (also where you put the smart media cards) by sliding the cover at the bottom of the camera.

The only thing I'd say here is that the low battery level warning comes on far too late - you've only got a couple of shots left if you're lucky by the time the indicator tells you battery level is low. So - always carry a spare set just in case.

As I said at the start, the camera has been to a lot of places around the world with me and has endured well below zero to far too bloody hot temperatures. It's been knocke
d about with big skiing wipe outs, and jiggled around on mountain bikes and thrown about on boats. It's now got a few scratches and a cracked lens cover, but has never failed to take good photos to remind me of my travels.

At the end of the day, the main thing you want from a digital camera is good photos - and this is what this delivers. In most conditions, you'll get some very nice photos to look back on.


Thanks for reading -
Say Cheese

Jon

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