Typical price: £370
What is it: 11-megapixel, 14.3x zoom bridge camera
What we think: The long lens makes this a heavyweight in size, features and performance
Average user rating
9.0
spectacular
Average user rating from 2 users
Agree? Disagree? Write your own review of the Fujifilm FinePix S100FS
Fujifilm FinePix S100FS user reviews
July 17, 2008
Posted by: Dr Nelmes
"Perfect for me"
What I like:
SLR-like features - all in one package
What I don't like:
Battery life too short
Review:
Let'sfirst get the price issue out of the way. It is entirely subjective so I haven't considered this in my appraisal.
After nearly 30 years of lugging around a large and very heavy bag full of lenses and equipment I'd had enough so I was looking for everything all in one package. This is where the S100FS meets my needs perfectly. I'm no longer picking which lense to use as it's all in one. The range of features - Auto, Selective Bracketing (very useful), Fully Manual, Aperture priority, Shutter priority to name but a few leave nothing wanting for total control of shooting conditions and subject matter.
The fringing is there (as with many other manufacturers' offerings) but it is easily corrected in Photoshop Elements (earlier versions being almost given away now).
Shutter lag is virtually non-existent and, when compared to the Panasonic Lumix FZ18 and the Canon Powershot S5 IS, the digital viewfinder is streets ahead remembering that it is not an SLR!
Optically it is very good and having been a frequent user of 28mm wide angles it is one of the few bridging cameras with it as I have found in the past that 35mm isn't wide enough for me and the 400mm "other end" is more than enough.
The tilting screen is superb and the best bridging camera offering that I've seen by a long shot with images being crystal clear, even on a sunny day.
Although it has a miriad of features it is relativley easy to work through the menus and the 2 Custom settings are great for creating such things as a one-touch external flash manual mode. Just put on the flash, switch to custom 1 (or 2) and you're ready to go.
On the subject of flash, as it doesn't support dedicate flash, I can use my old Olympus-dedicated and Vivitar non-dedicated units with perfect results.
Build quality is very good and although heavy, it has a great balanced feel, unlike many other that felt and looked cheap.
If I were to loose it tomorrow would I by the same camera again? Without hesitation. To me, the perfect all-round solution has arrived.
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