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S9000 |
Fujifilm FinePix S9000 Review
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Review
Date: Nov 14, 2005 |
Category:
Prosumer
- Advanced Amateur
HANDLING & FEEL
The Fujifilm FinePix S9000 has the great
looks and feel of a dSLR. The camera fits well
in the hands, and the large lens barrel helps
provides a secure way to hold it rock steady.
The camera is very well designed and looks quite
professional in its black high-impact plastic
body. Overall construction feels solid and the
build is very good. Startup time is fast at around
1 sec. and there is no practical shutter lag.
Autofocus is fast and precise.
| STYLE |
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Colours: overall black with silver
accents |
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Looks: professional, SLR-look, very
attractively designed |
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| FEEL |
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Comfortable to hold and operate |
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Non-slip rubberized handgrip |
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| DIMENSIONS &
WEIGHT |
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Best way to carry this camera is slung
over the shoulder or around the neck |
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Dimensions: 128 x 93 x 129 mm / 5.0
x 3.7 x 5.1 in |
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Weight: 645g / 22.8oz. (excluding
batteries and xD-Picture Card) |
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Takes 4 AA type alkaline batteries
(included) or 4 AA rechargeable NiMH
batteries (optional) |
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| SPEED OF OPERATION |
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Fast startup - no lens extension required
and LCD turning on in about 1 sec. |
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Shot to shot time in about 1 sec.
(including AF lock and time to write
to card) |
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Included in the box are 4 AA Alkaline batteries;
we recommend purchasing rechargeable NiMH batteries
and optional battery charger. The Fujifilm S9000
has dual memory card slots and accepts both the
xD-Picture Card and CompactFlash (CF) memory cards.
Controls
The circular projection between the flash and
the handgrip is the AF-assist illuminator (and
which also does double duty as Self-timer lamp).
The AF-assist illuminator (green light) is very
effective, allowing focus even in near complete
darkness. You have to remember not to get your
fingers in the way; also, the relatively long
lens barrel can be in the way of the AF-assist
light illuminating a subject that is very close
(e.g. in macro photography).
Besides the AF-assist Illuminator is the External
AF Sensor.
Below them is the Flash Synchronizing Terminal.
| FRONT VIEW |
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Shutter Release button
is angled; has a release socket for
a cable release |
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External AF Sensor |
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AF-assist Illuminator (also Self-timer
lamp) |
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Flash Synchronizing Terminal |
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There are lots of control buttons placed where
they make sense -- and, for the advanced photographer,
that's good! The Mode Dial has the standard AUTO,
PASM (Programmed Auto, Aperture-Priority, Shutter-Priority,
and Manual) modes, plus Movie mode and 5 Scene
Modes: Anti-Blur, Natural Light, Portrait, Landscape,
Night.
The Mode Dial is rotated with the thumb alone
or with thumb and index finger, and has a positive
locking click to it. During an actual shooting
session, there is not much risk that the Mode
Dial is inadvertently switched to another shooting
mode.
The Natural Light Scene Mode is currently unique
to Fujifilm. It disables the flash (even if it
is popped open) and takes full advantage of the
low-light capability of this camera (made possible
by the use of Fujifilm's 5th Generation SuperCCD
HR image sensor and Real Photo Technology) to
capture an image that retains the natural ambience
of low-light photography (indoors, by candlelight,
in restaurants and museums).
The Anti-Blur scene mode is a new scene mode.
Anti-Blur tells the camera to use a fast enough
shutter speed to minimize camera shake (generally,
the slowest shutter speed required is approx.
the reciprocal of the 35mm equivalent focal length
in use). Having decided first on the shutter speed
required, the camera then figures out the appropriate
aperture and ISO required for a correct exposure.
This works quite well in the Fujifilm S9000 thanks
to the low-light capability of its image sensor.
You can record movies with monaural sound at
either 640 x 480 pixels 30fps (you'll be able
to record about 14.9 min on a 1GB card) or 320x240
30fps (record about 29.3 min on a 1GB card). Since
the zoom is manual, you can zoom during recording.
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| TOP OF CAMERA |
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Mode Dial (AUTO, PASM, Movie, Anti-Blur,
Natural Light, Portrait, Landscape,
Night) |
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Exposure Compensation |
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Continuous Shooting |
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Flash (only when the
flash is popped up) |
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Command Dial (controls
Program Shift, shutter speed, aperture,
exposure compensation, flash, continuous
shooting) |
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Shutter release button
has a release socket that will accept
ISO 6053: 1979-compliant cable releases |
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Hot Shoe accepts ordinary
external flash units |
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| CONTINUOUS SHOOTING |
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Top 4-Frame: allows you to shoot up
to 4 frames at 1.5fps |
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Auto Bracketing: takes 3 shots of
the same image with different exposure
settings (correctly exposed, over-exposed,
under-exposed). The Auto bracketing
settings can be specified in the MENU
as ±1/3 EV, ±2/3 EV, or
±1 EV; available only in PASM
modes |
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Final 4-Frame: This is an incredibly
useful feature for increasing your chance
of catching action at just the right
moment. Press and hold the shutter release
button down as the action nears the
point where you want to take the shot.
The camera will take up to 40 shots
as you follow the action. When you let
go of the shutter release button at
the right moment (say, as the puck or
soccer ball goes into the goal), the
camera retains the last 4 shots. |
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Long Period: allows you to take up
to 40 continuous shots (max. 1.1fps);
available only in AUTO and Scene modes |
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| EXPOSURE COMPENSATION
/ HISTOGRAM |
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Once set, the Exposure Compensation
Indicator conveniently stays displayed
on screen until it is reset to "0" |
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Range: -2 EV to +2 EV (13 steps in
1/3 EV increments) |
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The screen brightness will increase
or decrease to reflect the value you
use |
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Note: the exposure compensation value
selected is retained even when mode
is changed or camera is turned off (so
remember to reset to "0" after
using it or the next time you turn the
camera on, your shots may be over- or
under-exposed.) |
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In MF mode, you use the focus ring to focus.
It's a bit slow but the LCD resolution is enough
to see the image come into focus. You can magnify
the center part of the image by pressing the Focus
Check button. To further aid in the focusing,
press the One-Touch AF button to do a quick AF;
a yellow focus indicator mark (yellow arrow) appears
at the bottom of the (now circular) AF Frame to
indicate the direction to turn the focus ring.
Playback is on the power switch around the shutter
release button between OFF and ON (which Fujifilm
calls, Photography Mode).
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| BACK OF CAMERA |
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Photometry (Light Metering) Selector
Dial (a bit difficult to turn) with
AE-Lock button in the middle |
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EVF/LCD monitor selector |
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Focus Check (magnifies central portion
of image) |
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Photo (F) Mode (Image Quality, ISO,
Color) |
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4 Way Arrows (Digital Zoom) |
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MENU/OK |
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DISP/Back |
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Diopter Adjustment Dial besides EVF |
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| SIDE VIEW |
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Flash (manual pop-up
button) |
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INFO button |
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Focus Mode Selector Switch with One-Touch
AF button in the middle |
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Macro/Super Macro button |
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Rubber Terminal Cover opens (and stays
open) wide for easy access to USB, A/V,
DC IN |
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LCD pulls out for easy view looking
up above crowd or looking down for ground
level shooting |
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Focus Ring (thin, closer to the body) |
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Zoom Ring |
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LCD & Menus
There is an electronic viewfinder (EVF) with
a large eyepiece and diopter correction, as well
as a 1.8 in. LCD monitor with a standard 115,000
pixels resolution and approximately 100% coverage.
The LCD has a fast refresh rate for a smooth display.
It gains up slightly in extreme low-light situations
to permit you to compose.
You can also brighten the LCD monitor (and, by
extension, the EVF) by holding the Exposure Compensation
button down and pressing DISP/BACK. This is not
the same as the LCD 'gaining up' in low-light;
you are literally adjusting up the brightness
of your monitor. This feature is also useful when
the sun is shining on the LCD, and increasing
the brightness of the LCD helps you to view the
image.
The LCD tilts from 0° to 90° up, and
0° to 45° down.
There are 2 MENU screens and 4 SETUP screens.
The user interface is well implemented.
Depending on your type of photography, some of
the functions that are often used in the MENU
screens are:
- White Balance
- AF mode (Center, Multi, Area)
A great feature is the AF Area focusing mode
with (7 horizontal x 7 vertical =) 49 positions.
You can move the AF target point to any of these
49 positions and the camera will focus where the
AF target point has been moved. I find this very
helpful in macro photography and whenever the
subject is off-center.
Depending on your type of photography, some of
the functions that are often used in the SETUP
screens are:
- RAW
- Format
ISO is selected by pressing the F (Photo Mode)
button.
Advanced photographers will be glad to know that
it is possible to save images in the RAW file
format. It takes about 9-10 sec. to save an image
in RAW. Continuous Shooting is not available for
RAW.
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MENU 1 of 2
- Self-timer: 10 sec. or 2 sec.
- White Balance: AUTO; Custom1; Custom2;
Fine (Sunny); Shade; Fluorescent 1, 2, 3,
Incandescent
- High-Speed Shooting
- AF: Center, Multi, Area
- Flash Brightness Adjustment
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MENU 2 of 2
- Sharpness: Hard, Standard, Soft
- Saturation: HIgh, Standard, Low
Contrast: Hard, Standard, SOft
- Auto Bracketing Setting: ±1/3 EV,
±2/3 EV, ±1 EV
- Multi-Exposure
- External Flash (On/Off)
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SETUP 1 of 4
Image Display
Shutter Volume
Beep Volume
Playback Volume
Frame No.
LCD Brightness
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SETUP 2 of 4
- Media (xD or CF)
- RAW
- EVF/LCD Mode (30fps / 60fps)
- AE-Lock Mode (AE-L 1, 2)
- AF Illuminator
- Auto Power OFF
- LCD Power Save
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SETUP 3 of 4
- Format
- Date/Time
- Time Difference
- Language
- Background Color
- USB Mode (DSC/PictBridge)
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SETUP 4 of 4
- Video System (NTSC/PAL)
- [Ni-MH] Batteries Discharge
- Reset
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Photo (F) Mode - Image Quality
- Ships from factory set to 9M N
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Photo (F) Mode - ISO
- Ships from factory set to ISO 200
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PROGRAMMED AUTO MODE
Clockwise from Top Left:
- Super Macro ON
- Multi AF
- High-Speed Shooting ON
- Image Quality 9M F
- Available frames: 222
- ISO 80
- Camera Shake warning
- AF target point (bottom right)
- Shutter Speed and Aperture values (Program
Shift)
- Exposure Compensation Indicator
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NATURAL LIGHT MODE
- Camera disables flash and selects a higher
ISO for correct exposure
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ANTI-BLUR MODE
- Camera selects a fast shutter speed to
reduce camera shake (aperture and ISO are
adjusted accordingly for correct exposure)
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AF AREA
- Select AF Area in the MENU
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AF AREA
- You can move the AF target point to any
of (7 horizontal x 7 vertical =) 49 positions
on screen
- Very useful anytime your main subject
is off center, esp. in macro photography
- Framing Guide displayed
- Manual Mode with Exposure Indicator
- Press the Info button to display the Live
Histogram
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INFO (Playback)
- Displays when you press the Info button
- Besides a Histogram, Highlight Warning
will flash the areas that are overexposed
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MANUAL FOCUS
- Press the Focus Check button to magnify
central portion of image
- Press One-Touch AF button for a quick
AF, then turn focus ring in the direction
of the Focus Indicator Marks (yellow arrows)
to achieve focus
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LCD BRIGHTNESS
- Hold Exposure Compensation button down
and press DISP/BACK button
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MODE WHEEL DISPLAY
- When you turn the Mode Dial, it displays
on the monitor
- This is very convenient when it's too
dark to see the markings on the dial or
simply not to have to take your eye off
the monitor/viewfinder as you select a different
shooting mode
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The Fujifilm FinePix S9000 is a well-designed
long zoom digital camera with excellent handling
and super fast operations. It has excellent proportions
and successfully captures the SLR-like handling
we all love.
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