A 101% Great Camera (Fujifilm Finepix A101)

Member Name: stikx

Product:	Fujifilm Finepix A101
Date:	04/04/02 (1126 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Ease of use, Good value, Generally pleasant to use

Disadvantages: EATS batteries

Being female, and with minimal spacial awareness, photography isn't my strong point. A once-in-a-lifetime snap of my favourite popstar through a fence, will end up with a picture of the fencepost; not of the gorgeous man standing in front of me. Again, a similar situation with those "special moment" photos. a head chopped off here, no legs on that one, eek, red eys... the list goes on.
So, to avoid the disappointment as finding a pile of useless photos after my £10 APS developing fee (I'm always stupid enough to get an extra set), I decided it was time to get a digital camera.

The prospect of finding the right camera and then depositing the price on my credit card was a daunting prospect, so many hours of research both online and in actual shops was done. My camera had to be:
* Good value for money
* Under £200
* Made by a reputable manufacturer
* From a well respected store - either online or off.
* Of a reasonable quality
* Easy for a first-time user
* Have a zoom (pop concerts coming up!!!)
* An LCD screen to minimise the chances of decapitating my family and friends
* Have a self-timer
* Be of a suitable size and weight to be able to carry around with ease
* ... the rest of the things are trivial preferences, i.e nice colour!

And after all that, I decided on the Fuji FinePix A101. Fantastic!

The cheapest package was from www.dabs.com (separate review for them) at a price of approx £140 including a 32MB Smart Media card, and UK delivery. A minimum of 32MB for a media card is a MUST so as to ensure enough memory for the whole holiday/day out/wedding etc. The 32MB card I received holds up to 180 exposures.

On taking the camera out of the box, the initial appearance was very neat, compact and thankfully simple. In a subtle silver colour, and weighing a little more than my Nokia 3310 mobile phone, I was pleased. On the front, is a small Fujifilm logo and name, al
ong with the flash, shutter (I'm not too good on techinical bits!) and viewing hole. Also a switch to alter between normal shots and macro (within 30cm of the object), a tiny red light (used for self-timer indication) and a very small flash, used to minimise red-eye.
The top of the camera has a dial giving the options of normal mode, gallery, and movie mode, along with the on-off switch.
On the back is a reasonably sized LCD screen, the viewing hole to use it as a normal camera, the "operations light" (is flash ready? Camera busy? etc), a navigation button for the LCD menu, and 3 further menu control buttons.
A carry handle is on one side, the port for PC connection and AC adaoptor on the other, and a slot for the optional tripod on the bottom. Batteries and SmartMedia card are inserted into the area in the bottom.

As I was dealing with, for me, an expensive piece of equipment, for a change I read the instructions first. They are simple to understand, showing diagrams and step-by-step methods. Even I could understand them! 10 minutes of reading and a couple of shots of my nice pink cushions in my bedroom, and I knew that I had the basics of taking pictures, viewing them, and deleting them.
Reading further, instructions for the many features of this camera are explained. Included in these features are:
* Self-timer
* 20 second (no sound) movie mode
* 4 picture quality options
* A 2x zoom
* Red eye reduction
* Different flash settings for outside, inside, dark, light, background shots, etc
* Options for manual or auto setup
* The camera can also be connected to your PC and used as a webcam.
* More than enough basic software to edit your videos and pictures
* Loads more features I don't even use!

When using the camera, plenty of light is preferable, as darker shots do not come out nearly so well. The flash is contantly used on "auto" mode, but does not seem to provide
adequate light for optimum shots. Macros are of a lesser picture quality by default, and take more effort and adjustment to get right.
The 20 second "movie mode" is always fun, but with no sound, does not serve a great purpose. Actually, come to think of it... ;)
The self-timer is fantastic for group photos etc, but, unless it's just my incompetence, the pictures do not come out so well using this mode.

NOT included with the camera, which prospective purchasers should be aware of, is an AC adaptor. 10-15 minutes of continuous use of the camera with the LCD on, ran my brand new batteries, supplied with the camera, fully out. As transfering the pictures onto your PC will require power from the camera for up to several minutes, an AC adaptor is essential. One of these will set you back around £25. If the camera is to be used for long periods of time at a party/concert/wedding etc, then rechargable NC batteries plus recharger will save you both money and the frustration of dead batteries. Another thing, while I think of it - a carry case. There is no carry case supplied with the camera, which I find to be a small yet valuable item that could easily be thrown in at minimal extra cost. I haven't gotten round to buying one yet, and so wrap a piece of fleece round mine to protect it while it's in my bag.

On the whole, I am extremely satisfied with my choice of digital camera. Everything I wanted for a nuch cheaper price than I expected. The controls are simple and large enough to be able to press without hastle, the LCD screen is perfect for my complete inability to fit a whole person into the shot, the software supplied is easy to use and quick to install, and best of all... I haven't broken it yet!

I would recommend this camera to anyone for a first-time digital camera, because of the price, ease of use and extended picture functions. This isn't a camera that will be "out-grown" within a month or
so; I am contantly using more advanced options to improve my picture quality and style, before even getting them to a photo editor. So go out, buy one, and enjoy. But remember to stock up on the batteries!!!

Summary: