Fujifilm Very Nearly Finepix (Fujifilm Finepix A201)

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Product:	Fujifilm Finepix A201
Date:	20/01/03 (106 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very good value for money, Ready for immediate use, Intuitive LCD panel

Disadvantages: Exposure of early morning shots (around sunrise) is not the best

A few months ago, upon the arrival of my new German Shepherd puppy, I found myself camera-less and unable to record a precious time that wouldn't be here for long; after all: puppies grow so quickly. Not wanting to pay less than £100 for a low-resolution digital camera, or more than £200 for one packed with features I wouldn't use, I did my research and decided that at £140 UKPounds, the Fujifilm Finepix A201 (2.0 MEGAPIXEL) model was the best for the job.

Inside the box is a well-organised carton containing the very stylish silver camera accompanied by two LR6 AA-size alkaline batteries, one 16MB 3.3V Smartmedia card, a USB cable, Finepix VE software (for Windows and Mac) and two very thorough manuals; one camera specific, one software specific. There is also a 'quick-start' leaflet which is not optimistic in the slightest. Taking your first pictures is as simple as popping-in the batteries and smartmedia, switching on and clicking the shutter button. Brilliant!

Although AA cells are a big advantage (you can buy them anywhere if you run them down), a wise owner would invest in some Ni-MH cells and a charger. I recommend Ni-MH cells because they are available with more capacity than Ni-Cd cells (translation: they will last far longer) and unlike some digital camera's, this Fujifilm camera comes Ni-MH ready.

Generous is the word to describe Fujifilm for providing a 16MB Smartmedia card. Although it wont hold a lot of high resolution shots (approx. 15-20 at 1600x1200; approx. 80-90 at 640x480), many manufacturers only provide 8MB worth of media or none at all. Regardless, if you intend to get any serious use out of this camera, it would be a good idea to purchase an additional 32MB or (even better) 64MB Smartmedia card. At £20-£30 for 64MB, all that extra storage space will hardly break the bank.

Installing the Finepix VE software on Windows and Macintosh machines (I've tried both) couldn't be easier


(can you point and click?) and for me at least, was error free. Plugging the camera into a PC or Macintosh is hardly difficult either (can you plug in a USB lead?) and is enough to automatically launch the Finepix software on both platforms. Aside from the intuitive image viewer (many thumbnails expandable to full size images), the software can generate information required to print using a DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) printer; a standard developed by Canon, Kodak, Fujifilm and Matsushita (Panasonic) to create better finishing results. Also included is a PC Camera Driver which effectively turns the camera into a webcam (for videoconferencing, etc.) and a Mass Storage Driver allowing the camera to be used as a USB Mass Storage device (effectively a portable hard disk drive). Linux users may also wish to note that the FujiFilm Finepix A201 works out of the box as a USB Mass Storage device. Getting the image and video files is as simple as copying (or moving) them from one drive (the camera/smartmedia) to another (your computers hard disk).

The camera itself is deceptively simple to look at considering the features under the hood. Operating the LCD panel on the rear (for setting preferences, viewing thumbnails, videos, etc.) is intuitive to say the least. After following the quickstart leaflet, I was viewing and deleting images on the LCD panel without having even seen the manual.

At first you might feel a little overwhelmed by so many features and preferences. Thankfully however - you can play it safe and remain in Auto mode; a Still Image Mode of which there are two: Auto and Manual. Auto attempts to automatically adjust to current light and weather conditions; Manual gives you full control over EV Exposure Compensation (translation: optimum brightness of subject compared to background) and white balance. Whether in Auto or Manual mode, you can easily adjust the flash settings with two button presses. Available flash modes are: auto
flas
h mod
e, red-eye reduction (fires a preliminary flash to adjust subjects pupils before main picture is taken), forced flash (flash always on), supressed flash (flash always off) and slow synchro (a slow shutter speed for nighttime use that picks up both the subject and the backdrop). Also adjustable via the LCD panel is image resolution and compression ratio, LCD brightness and the digital zoom (only available for shots taken at 1.0 Megapixel or VGA resolution).

SO WHAT IS THE PICTURE QUALITY LIKE?

In both 1.0 (1280x960) and 2.0 (1600x1200) Megapixel modes, the picture quality is absolutely outstanding and perfectly suitable for printing on regular 6"x4" paper (the standard paper size for 35mm film prints). At the highest resolution, 2.0 Megapixel cameras like the A201 are capable of professional A5 prints, although with my photographic printer I have gone larger (A4 glossy prints) and am blissfully unaware of any problems with the images. At VGA (640x480), the images, despite their brilliance, are more suitable for webpages and email than for professional printing.

Colour separation is excellent, blurring only tends to occur when using the slower shutter modes with a shaky hand and light exposure is brilliant - most of the time. Indeed, this is my only gripe with the Finepix A201: on a typically dull, overcast English morning - Automatic mode is simply no good for photographing earthy tones and outdoor long shots. Although you have the advantage of deleting images via the LCD panel and reshooting, it takes a bit of fiddling with the EV and white balance to get the exposures just right. For those of you unlikely to be taking pictures before 8am this is unlikely to pose a problem and in fairness, the darkest of images can be brightened to perfection with an image editor (Adobe Photoshop, The Gimp, etc.); although I've done this with perfect results, I still think the camera should be capable of exposing early
morning im
ages prope
rly in the first place.

One feature that impressed me the most, and which has helped me produce my finest photography, is macro (close-up) mode. Despite the manual claiming a minimum distance of 8cm, I got as close as 2-3cm to many subjects and got absolutely outstanding results. Photographing plants, the logo on a Coca-Cola glass, even words on a computer screen - the output was frankly - amazing!

Like most digital cameras in this price range, the Finepix A201 also has a short Movie Mode. Twenty second long AVI movies can be created and although many reviewers will write such features off as gimmicky - particularly due to the low resolution of the AVI - I think they're the modern day equivalent of Cine8 (silent movie) footage.

Overall, the Fujifilm Finepix A201 is a fine digital camera which I doubt can be bettered by anything in its immediate price range. Although not the best for outdoor shots at dawn, it is more than adequate at other times - day or night - and is absolutely perfect for indoor use, regardless of the light source.

Sample images (GSD puppy and garden shots) from my Fujifilm Finepix A201 can be found at my homepage (see profile).

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