Head to a nearby electronics store and pick up a cheap card reader. It can be used with future cameras and will upload your photos faster than using the camera.

I usually don't recommend converters to add onto fixed lenses because they have a tendency to slow down the lens, cause clarity issues, and even barreling (where the image looks like it was taken inside a barrel with round black edges.

The difference is the number of pixels/size of the photos. A 7 MP photo has smaller dimensions than a 10MP photo. Unless you want to blow the pictures up to a large size, that spec really doesn't matter.

The amount of megapixels does not necessarily change the photo quality -- in theory it shouldn't anyway -- but a lot of time, manufacturers will boost the megapixel count without making the chip larger or adding better image processing. If this is the case, the picture quality usually suffers from graininess (noise) and sometimes funny color reproduction.

BUT, a lot of the

If you've already gotten all the pictures off of it, just reformat the card. It'll wipe the slate clean and rewrite the file.

But if not, I'd recommend a file recovery program like F-Recovery or Zero Assumption Recovery to recover your card and get back your pictures. google is your friend.

It isn't uncommon for an OS update to break connectivity. So I'd go to Fuji's site and download the latest drivers for the MAC. Or, you can do what I do. Get a USB memory card reader. Then all you need to do is insert the SD card (your Mac will recognize it as another drive), and then simply drag and drop wherever you want.

Often, this is due to underpowered batteries which don't put out enough juice to run the camera. You can't really use "heavy duty" or even "alkalines" anymore. Digital cameras require far more bang for the buck (measured in mAh). I'm betting you have underpowered batteries. You'll want to have batteries that have an mAh of at least 2500 to run your camera.



As for it "suddenly going black," can you elaborate? Was this just the batteries going dead or was this the result of a particular action? More details can shed more light on the issue.

You know, the irony is that you may not even notice it. Witness this exchange ( techguylabs.com/radio/ShowN...  ) between Leo Laporte and Photographer Chris Marquadt over lens scratches:



What do you do when your nice, expensive lens gets scratched?! Getting a 1A Skylight filter to protect your lens isn’t that great an idea. Anything in the light path will add reflections. The question you need to ask is, does a scratch really impact your photos? Chances are, no. At worst, it may reduce contrast marginally. And the lens is focusing on the subject and as such, any scratch would be completely out of focus. Even a cracked lens can have minimal impact if the crack is a hairline. And you can always have the front element replaced for a nominal fee. So don’t be so caught up with scratches.



But I would agree with the local camera shop - if you spend north of 50% what you paid for it to repair it, you're better off just buying a new camera. But it's worth getting an estimate from Fuji to see just how much the repair would cost.

You don't have a hard drive? Normally, you'd connect it via USB and download it or use a USB card reader to plug the card in, then it's a simply drag and drop to the PC. But you're saying you have no hard drive? Netbook perhaps?

sounds like a failing ccd to me. repair time. But before that, reset the camera and see if there's a firmware update. install it. if it doesn't work, then you'll need to send it in. But understand that the average cost of a camera repair is around $180. As such, it may cost more to repair than it is really worth. The rule of thumb is that if the estimate for repair is north of 50% what you paid for it, you're better off taking that money and buying a newer and upgraded model.

USB card reader. They work both ways. But if you edited the pictures in any way, your camera may find it very difficult to read them as saving an edited pic will strip the EXIF data.

I suggest you change your white balance setting to eliminate the blueish cast.

Great! Glad I could be of help and thanks for the points, too.

Actually, the problem is pretty common (not as in it happens to a ton of cameras, but it happens frequently enough not to be random error). So far, I think the only solution is hope its still under warranty and send it in to be repaired. I think its a motherboard (in the camera) problem with communication between the memory card and the computer itself. Hope this helps.

That's also a possibility, but I've seen this problem with a couple Fuji cameras, try plugging other things to the computer, or trying plugging in the camera to another computer. Either way, I would get an external memory card reader and use that, this will get you around the problem if its camera related, and is just a good investment in general.

I had this same problem. I removed the memory card from my camera, reinserted it, then tried again and the communication error was gone.

What you're referring to is maximizing the depth of field (the distance between the subject and the background). The larger the distance & wider open the lens, the more blurry the background will be. As for closeup, there is a macro setting.

I would say the easiest way is to use zoom. Zooming effectively increases the focal length and longer focal length gives you less depth of field while shorter focal length does the reverse.



However, there is a limit to what zooming can do because it narrows the field of view, and too much of it ends up in photographing only part of a picture you want, such as the face of a person, and not the whole body.



The next, and more refined method, is to set the camera to Aperture Mode. Turning the mode dial to ' A ' lets you play around with aperture.

A small aperture, like F 16, gives you greatest depth of field, and sharper picture, while the larger numbers, like F2.8, give you less depth of field, resulting in selective areas in focus and more blur in the background.



Lastly, you will find that in Fuji F700, shutter speed and ISOs are also linked to the Aperture setting.

Increasing the speed, using the ' S ' mode, or decreasing the ISO will result in wider aperture, and more blur in the background.



Macro lens + wide open aperture will definitely give you lots of blur in the background, if you are taking closeups of tiny objects.

thank you very much for going into so much detail!

You should be able to push in and it'll click. this will release it and pop it out. If not, you may have jammed it in the wrong way. As such, I'd have a pro remove it. But naturally, you have to push in to release it before it'll pop out.

Personally, I would use macro, so I'm not sure what you're looking for really. Perhaps landscape?

I guess I was wondering if anyone on this site takes a lot of flower pictures. Not macro pictures, but those of single flowers and what they found was the best setting for doing this indoors. Flash is not necessary because of the setting. I guess I could try landscape, but does anyone have any other suggestions?

It can take an 8GB SD card. Don't think it can accept larger SDHC cards, though.

Th

This is a pretty common feature, basically any movie editing program will do it, I'd recommend Adobe Premiere if you have a PC or iMovie if you have a Mac. Adobe Premiere is sort of expensive, but also comes with a free 30-full trial, so you can download that and use it, then keep it or discard it once the 30 days is over. There's probably a lot of cheaper ones out there that will just rotate movies for you, if you search on google, you should find a couple. Some of these programs may be kind of shady, and though they're free (or cheap), they can contain viruses, which is why I like going with the slightly more expensive programs to keep everything safe.

This camera is a lot newer than the H2, so it will produce better images, and has more features. This camera is actually a very good camera, and takes fantastic low light pictures; one of the things that the Sony H series sometimes has a problem doing. If you wanted to stick with a similar camera to your H series, Sony does make updated H series cameras, that you can find in a retail store, or online, but I think the decision to switch is fairly wise. You may also want to check out the Canon S5 and G9.

In fact you can, but resolution will be QVGA (320 x 240). If you want to take movies at VGA quality with a better compression, unfortunately you can´t.

I frequently use movie mode with this camera. The best that you can do is to purchase a higher capacity memory. With a 4 GB SD memory you can take about 72 minute video. SD´s are cheaper than XD cards, and you´ll find higher capacities

Something important: if you want to install memories higher than 2GB, you must upgrade the camera firmware. Firmware procedure and software is available at the official Fuji´s website.



Hope this helps!

Because the S700 doesn't allow you to capture in RAW format, you'll need to make bracketed JPEG exposures. The S700 has a special bracketed shooting mode that takes three shots in quick succession at -1, 0, and +1 exposure settings (underexposed, neutral, overexposed). You can then open these three exposures in CS2 and utilize the "Merge to HDR" function there to create your HDR image.



There are many tutorials for this out there. For example:



1 ( cambridgeincolour.com/tutor...  )

2 ( backingwinds.blogspot.com/2...  )

3 ( luminous-landscape.com/tuto...  )



There are also specialized HDR programs. The best of these is called Photomatix, and it can be found here ( hdrsoft.com/  ).



Hope this helps!

I'm not sure how to do this/ if it's possible. The easiest thing to do is take the memory card out, plug your camera into your computer, and download those photos from the camera in order to access them. I don't know about any way to transfer them physically onto the memory card. Some people try to do it via the computer (dragging and dropping them onto the mem card) but this often leads to card errors.

Okay; I looked up the manual online and I think I might have found it. Put the camera in Playback mode (the mode where you review the photos you've taken). Now push the Menu button. You should see Erase, Image Rotate, etc. Four down, is there an option to Copy? That should be what you need to pick up where the manual starts on page 99? Let me know if that works!

Ahhhh, that's awesome, I've been trying to figure out how to do that!!! Thank you!

ISO can be adjusted in all positions except the auto mode. Just press the ¨F¨ button (located on the right of LCD display, over the cursor keys). A menu let you select the ISO. I prefer lower ISO settings (64, 100 or 200). In auto mode, this camera has the tendence to use high ISO settings and, as a consequence, image gets noisy or grainy, even if flash is used.



Hope this helps!

Thanks bukit97!

The pictures are very natural looking. Course, your mileage may vary, but looking at sample pictures from the Fuji S line, I see very natural pictures that are crisp and sharp. Colors could be bolder, but they're doable.

M walker, I would have a look at the Canon line if I were you. Most any Canon will deliver quality photos.

Unless you have to have a sub-compact I would go for one of the compact A series, because they will give better over all results.



Here is a web site that should help you out. The prices shown are retail not actual selling prices.



imaging-resource.com/WB/WB.HTM 

I would definitely say to go for a Canon Powershot.

The size is definitely not an issue, and the design of these cameras is simply amazing.

Shutter speed is one of the biggest strengths of the Powershots since there is seemingly no lag.

I have a regular memory card in my canon sd550 and it provides a great difference in image quality and shutter speed over my old nikon.

If you dont blow up your pictures to poster size, then 6 or 7 mp is DEFINITELY enough for regular image viewing.

You wont even notice a difference with more megapixels. If you consistently print 8x10 photographs, I'd go for the 7 mp.

That way you get a really good deal, excellent shutter speed, no need to buy a crazy memory card, and amazing picture quality.

Unfortunately,not. Just up to 4 secs is the shutter time. Even if you set the night or fireworks ambient, the max time is 4 sec. Too low for me if I want to take pics in a very low or dimmed light like city night landscapes. But I love this camera!



Hope this helps!

I often take close - up pics with this camera. I work with electronics, in service, and I found S700 useful for this task. It has a couple of macro lenses. With the supermacro lens you can take pics as close as 1cm !!!. As all macro lenses, some barrel distortion is expected, but it can be corrected with Photoshop plugin , or any soft that could perform lens distortion correction. I attached a DIY tube with a 35 mm slide holder for take pics from negatives by using close-up functions. And it works amazingly fine!.



For sunsets or any landscape, S700 has predefined adjustments for several situations. I took too many landscapes, because I frequently fly to different cities. With snow, sand, and mountains, it worked fine. If you want to take pics on water , be careful to avoid sun reflections that darkens or saturates the pic. If this is your case, lt me recomend you to purchase a circular polariser, like I got.



Hope this helps!

I think they're comparable, although I find Canon's portraits using flash to be more natural looking in color and clarity. I know a friend who loves his S700 and gets fantastic shots from it.YMMV though.

Ramesh, I like the Fuji if you will spend time with the manual and take many shots you soon learn that the s700 can take very clear sharp photos, but I had to spend time learning how my camera works. I understand from the Pros that each one of the digital cameras even though mass produced acts differant and a person must spend time learning their camera. As for me I like the Fuji. I would recommend the Fuji S700 to anyone.

Ramesh,

As you will find on so many other threads on this site and others, we really do enjoy responding to the many questions that are offered. The one we have the most difficulty with is choosing the "best" camera. So I will tell the truth (as always). There is no one best camera. Each camera has its good's and bad's so that which one is right for you depends a lot on what kind of photography is important to you. Can you give us a little more information about what kind of pictures you like to take, do you make prints or only look at the pictures on a computer, does it matter whether it takes AA batteries or not.

We all want excellent resolution but resolution cost money. That's why we end up asking ourselves, "How much resolution do I really need?" The three cameras you list are all reasonably good but each does have strong points and weak points. Tell us what you really must have in a camera and what you really want to avoid in a camera and what really does not matter to you at all. We will do our best to help. Thanks.

Thank you very much Larry and james for your guidance. actually i m looking for a camera which will give minimal noise even in night shots, a clear image at maximum zoom level. the colours of the photos should appear natural and clean may be i m getting too proffessional. i dont mind whether it runs on AA batters or lithium ones. i would use this camera for my outings day and night time. inhouse parties, i like to shoot people in potraits so it should give a really best image quality so that i can print it at least to A3 size.

please advice which one should i choose from this brands.. 1) Canon PS 720 IS. 2) Canon PS SX100 IS. 3) Fuji finePix S5700 or 4) Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8. Please advice.

Thank you

ramesh, i have the a720 and the s7oo and an sd1000...all good cameras but i can tell you the a720 gives me fantastic shots everytime especially in low light.this is where the "i.s." really helps....the small sd1000 i carry everywhere and i never miss opportunities.i like playing with the s700,its a fun camera.but if i was to have one camera of those three its the a720!

Hi José!.

Did you try to remove your memory card and take pics with the internal memory?. There are too many counterfait brands (the first is Kingston). Kingston is a well known brand, but there are lots of memory cards that aren´t of this brand, but are labeled as if they are original Kingstons. In general, many generic memory cards are labeled as leader brands in order to keep the attention to customers. One sign of this is their low price (many times are offered as OEM or bulk packages, and not in their original blisters). For example, a 2 GB labeled card is, in fact , an old 512 MB altered to show a 2GB in windows. Other times, counterfait cards are discarded lots or failed series. Many of then could work fine, but there´s a serious possibility of a failure in the short term.

If your unit doesn´t work after removing the memory card, is time to consider a claim call or camera replacement!



Hope this helps!



Luigi (From Buenos Aires, Argentina)

your screwed bud get a new camera.

They are the same camera. In the United States the camera is titled S700, whereas in Europe it is titled S5700. Same features, same everything, interchangeable name.

Tracy,



I used a similar set-up with a Canon S2 a few years ago and found that it worked great. You might have to zoom a little bit when using the adapter tube to avoid a pin-hole effect on your photos (black circle around the edge). I would just experiment with your photos to get the best settings.



Andrew

Tracy, Did you order the Opteka brand? I have had great luck with their wide-angle macro.

webix - "the adapter tube" was necessary on the cameras that had protruding lenses. Don't need it with this one.

According to the specs, Battery life is about 500 shots. But that's according to Fuji, tested under controlled conditions. I'd half that for real life.

A very experienced report, Mike. Even I wasn't aware of the discharge setting. Great idea. Every camera should have that. However, with advances in battery tech, memory effects have been largely designed out of the system.

My recommendation is to try Picasa ( picasa.google.com/  ). It's a much better photo management tool. And it's free!

And you can't beat the price! ;) It's about as close to iPhoto that PC users can get.

Jebb,



This camera takes photos at 7.1 MP when set at its finest resolution. If you are taking large sized photos with sharper resolution, they will take up a lot more memory. You can either change the settings on your camera to take smaller photo sizes, or downsize them with software before emailing them to family and friends. I'm sure they will appreciate getting smaller sized pictures as well in their inbox.



As a hint, I would save the smaller sized photos under a different name so you can still print larger photos if need be from the larger files. Good luck and happy shooting.



Andrew

This should be a good camera. The s1000 will have a 12 to 1 optical zoom and 10 megapixel resolution versus 10 to 1 zoom and 7 megapixels. All things being equal, the s1000 should be a better choice, especially since they both sell for @ $249.00. The s700 is a great travel camera nad the s1000 is even smaller.



I have an s700, which I like, but I will probably move up to the s1000, if I don't get an s8100.

Lance, I'm so happy you posted that info! My husband thought I was nuts when I just told him almost the same thing about the 2 cameras.



I purchased the S700 in February 2008. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that camera. I intentionally purchased a non-pocket camera so I could wear it around my neck and shoot with one hand (while wrangling a toddler). It has taken hundreds of wonderful pics for me. It's very easy to use, as you say, and to navigate with one hand. The zoom is wonderful. The short videos I take are always great. I've found it to be very good on batteries.



My great camera was stolen on a Disney trip recently. So sad! So I set out to replace it and came across the S1000fd. Thought, great, better zoom, face detection. Must be even better than my s700.



NOPE. Just got it last week and I'm not loving it. The handhold isn't as good, I keep moving the lens whenever I try to take a pic, it seems much slower than the S700. The lens cap is a different style, doesn't lock on, and I keep bumping it off accidentally. The flash doesn't automatically pop up, even in auto mode. You have to manually pop it up and THEN it will auto flash if needed. I will play with it a little more tonight for Halloween pics but I'm pretty certain I'm going to return it and rebuy an S700.

my camera freezes up everytime i try to view my pics its sooooo annoying and when i go to delete it will take up to 15 mins to delete 1 pic.

I can't comment on the S700 but I have now owned an S1000 for about six months and I love it. Selecting image stabilization on the S1000 sets a higher shutter speed when using a long lens, which then freezes the effects of any shake. However, it's effectivity is limited by the lighting conditions. This is my first digital camera. Having only recently switched from 35mm film SLR cameras I don't miss what image stabilization provides. I just make sure to hold my camera steady or use a tripod.

Macro focusing for the S700 is 1 - 300 cm/0.4 - 122.4 in, whereas the macro range of the A900 is 9 - 80 cm/3.7 - 32.7 in. So clearly the S700 is much more effective for close up photography.

In order to see the barrel distoryion on close-up pics, I placed a pattern (squares) and then compensate distortion by using Photoshop lens distortion correction plug-in (standard on CS3 versions). In fact, I essayed this super macro feature when taking digital copies of old negatives. It´s simple if you take a white balance by using an orange film (the one that ends every film strip) , this let you compensate the orange cast present on negatives (or cyan cast on positives). Then you apply the lens distortion correction and ... negative is in digital file.

.6 seconds in normal conditions. 2.2 in low light. You can lessen that by as much as 80% simply by pressing the shutter button half way to focus, recompose the picture and shooting it.

All I can tell you is that I have a friend who has one and loves it. I think you'll do fine with it. Just remember that you're much better off with a tripod and a good three point lighting kit when shooting pictures of your portraits.

What about battery life?

Email attachment size is usually limited. Like for the online email services such as hotmail, gmail, yahoo, etc, the limit is usually about 10MB per email attachment(s). This means that if the attached file (video in your case) is largers than the 10MB limit, then it won't go through.



Work around for sending large files: -



1. Get a file splitter utility/ program and split the video file into segments not larger than 10MB and then send them in separate emails, and ask the receiver to also get the same program to combine the split files back together.



2. Send the file through one of those online file sharing services, some of them offer trial period for sending file with sizes up to around 100MB, just do a google search for this type of service.



3. Get some video editing software to either split the video into smaller segments, or reduce the resolution/quality, so that the size of the eventual file(s) are smaller than 10MB!



4. If all else fails, then burn the video to a cd/dvd and send it via post! haha!

Just use an ordinary eyeglass cleaning cloth without chemicals. You can get them at camera stores, optometrists, and K-mart. Wipe gently back and forth and the cloth will pick up all the oils and grease. If there is actual dirt on the LCD you should blow it off the best you can before wiping with the cloth to avoid scratches.

You can also buy LCD protective covers which are slightly adhesive on one side but peel off easily for replacement. Your local camera store is your best best for those. You may have to trim it to fit using scissors.

Amber,



When purchased new, this camera comes with a software pack and a USB cable that work with your PC. If you don't have the software, you can get software updates at the Fuji website ( fujifilm.com/products/digit...  ).



If you don't have the cable either, I woudl recommend purchasing a memory card reader ( amazon.com/Sandisk-SDDR-99-...  ) that reads both types of memory used by this camera. You can plug this directly into your computer without extra software needed and save battery life on your camera. I prefer this method and have found it to be much easier. When you plug your memory card in the reader, your computer recognizes it as another drive (like a floppy or CD-ROM). You can then just drag and drop your photos and videos directly to your computer. I hope this helps.



Andrew

Speed,



If you've installed the software that came with your camera, you may need to change the default settings so it won't do this anymore.



You could also use a memory card reader ( amazon.com/Sandisk-SDDR-99-...  ) so the card acts as an additional drive on your computer. You can drag and drop the photos you want to upload to your computer with this setup. Good luck and happy shooting.

I got a finepix camera just recently.I figured out how to do all of the picture stuff but am having trouble uploading videos onto the web from my camera.

Well try this. press the little button with a +/- on it. then press left and right on the circle button

Tina,

Unfortunately, FinePix software bundled is bad. It force you to download all pics everytime camera is connected and there´s no option to select the desired photos.

If you use windows XP Pro, there´s a download manager useful for this purpose.If not, you can simply drag and drop pics from the explorer, or, better, use another program (like Photoshop, Picasa, etc)



Hope this helps!

You can simply drag and drop from explorer. A folder named S5700 S700 is opened when unit is connected.

Something I noticed is that when large video files (larger than 200MB) are recordered, couldn´t be downloaded (an error message appears). In this case, if you use this S700 for taking large movies, best you can do is to purchase a card reader. Card readers are cheap and faster than download speed of this camera.



Hope this helps!

Katherine,



While some cameras do have a crop and edit feature in playback. This camera does not. Any edits need to be done on a computer. Good luck and happy shooting.



Andrew

Too early for evaluate the best answer!.



I own this camera and it has the crop and save function in playback mode. If menu is called, select the ¨trimming¨ function and by moving the zoom slider the crop size is modified, and by using the arrows, the crop area is moved. Once crop area and position are selected, just confirm the ¨save to card¨ message.

But cropped image is saved in a lower resolution. For example, a 7 MPix pic could be cropped and saved at 4, 2 or 0.3 MPix resolution, depending on the cropped surface. No intermediate resolutions are supported.



Hope this helps!

Hi Katherine. I suppose you owned a Sony H7 Camera. If it is so then follow this step.

1. Open your picture un play back mode.

2. Press MENU and scroll down to <retouch>

3. Scroll right or left untill you find <trimming>

4. Press the center button then zoom in to your liking (Max 5X)

5. Press MEU again and select <OK>

6. Press the center button. You will see the word <recording>

your new image is automatically save to you memory Dusk.



Try It. Said Andong

In fact, I use the XP download manager. Bundled FinePix software is bad, and I found impractical to download all the memory every time the camera is connected. With XP DM, you can select pic / videos to be downloaded, but there´s an inconvenience: videos larger than 200MB couldn´t be downloaded. The solution: If you record large videos, just purchase a memory card reader, like I did!



Hope this helps!

Kim,



The word "best" is really subjective in the type of memory. Your camera will only work with xD or SD cards. I've had great luck with SD cards and have little experience with xD memory. If you get a card with faster write speed, your camera will be more responsive. The "extreme" cards are usually the ones with a faster write speed.



As for the larger, 4GB SD cards, you have to be careful with these. Not all of them are compatible with digital cameras. They are not necessarily faster than xD cards either. They will store more than a 2GB card. Your camera is not compatible with any 4GB cards though. Page 22 of the user manual ( fujifilm.com/products/digit...  ) outlines the SD cards that are compatible with your camera.



You can purchase a multi-card reader ( amazon.com/gp/product/B0006...  ) that will work with multiple memory types. This one ( amazon.com/gp/product/B0006...  ) works with both SD and xD cards. Good luck and happy shooting.



Andrew

Kim,



Good luck on your search. Thank you for visiting DCHQ ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  ); we look forward to you coming back.



Andrew

I use compact flash from lexar and the notation on it is 80x, 133x, etc. the higher the number the faster the write speed.

Ann,



You can purchase after market lens adapter tubes to add conversion lenses to this camera. They run around $40 with an additional lens on eBay. Good luck and happy shooting.



Andrew

Ann,



I'm glad we could help. Please let us know if you have any other questions.



Andrew

Kelly,



I had one for a Canon S2 IS that worked fantastic. You can see photos I took with them:



- Fisheye connection photo ( gallery.blackdoorphotos.com...  )

- 2x Tele-extender ( gallery.blackdoorphotos.com...  )



Andrew

I frequently use the video mode of this camera, and no time limit was found. Well, recording time is limited by memory size only. For example, with a 2GB SD card, you´ll have 36 minutes of video at VGA quality (640x480) with a frame rate of 30 fps.



S700 doesn´t limit the video lengh, like others models do, even if installed memory has room enough for larger videos...And don´t forget that you can zoom in / zoom out while camera is recording



Hope this helps!

Well, you really don't have the choice of whether to go XD or SD. The Fuji cameras only take XD cards, and no camera will take both SD and XD, its either/or. Olympus and Fuji take XD, while Nikon, Panasonic, and Cannon take SD. Sony is in its own world using the memory stick duo. SD are cheaper because there is a bigger market for them and more competition to drive the prices down, while XD is pretty limited. If you have any other questions feel free to ask.

Sorry, you are correct. According to all of the research the SD is slightly faster than the xD, and is cheaper again because of the market consumption. So in my opinion go with the SD. Again, sorry for the confusion.

Thanks.

I have never really used Ifranview before, but it could be a problem with the camera compatibility, which is why you didn't experience it with your Sony. What I would do is manually go into the camera through My Computer, go into the DCIM (or whichever its called for your camera), the copy all the pictures and paste them in the folder of your choice. Either that or use a different program like Adobe Photoshop Album (free) or Picasa (also free), which lets you choose where to save the photos. Hope this helps.

what is maximum sd card size? I found some picture frames, for example, cannot use above 2gb cards.

That can happen in zoom point and shoots with longer focal lengths. What has happened, essentially, is that the lens gets stuck having become out of alignment. Often when the lens is out but it can heppen when the lens is in as well. The camera then refuses to move either to focus the lens or to retract when powered off. It often happens when the camera is struck or dropped.



If your camera is still under warranty, the best thing you can do have Fuji should fix it. If your camera is out of warranty, the one thing you can try is to If you gently, and I do mean GENTLY push against the lens with the PALM of your hand as you turn it on, it may cause it to depress back into the camera. If that doesn't work, and you can't reset it or turn it on/off several times, then you may have to send it in for a repair estimate anyway.



It can also occur if you're using batteries that aren't recommended by the camera manufacturer. So check that as well.

You bet. That's what we're here for and we're happy to help. Let us know how it works out.



BTW - If you're happy with the answer you received, you can simply click on "Mark for best answer" bubble and it will place the question in the "Answered" category for all to see. Thanks for posting it and Good luck!

This one is pretty good, especially for the price, but if you're looking for a better camera that would do these jobs better, I would recommend going with the Sony H7/H9 or the Canon S5. Both have more zoom (Sony is 15x, Canon is 12x), and also the Sony has one touch burst mode, which is definitely help for faster moving sports and action shots. If anything I would go with the Sony, (the H9 has the one touch burst mode and also a detachable screen, that is very useful to take pictures from different angles, the H7 doesn't have these features, but is also cheaper). Hope this helps, if you have any other questions about these cameras or others please feel free to ask.

I know several people how have the Fuji F700, and they simply love it. I've seen the shots too and it lives up to it's reputation. I've also been field testing the Olympus SP560UZ and I really like it. 18x super zoom can get some fantastic action shots. You just have to condition yourself to get ahead of the action power curve by prefocusing and panning with the action. Doing so, while relying on sports preset modes, will drop any shutter lag by as much as 80%.

I won't say the Cnet review is off base. I trust CNet. I'm just saying that I know others who own and shoot with the Fuji and love it. Me? I'm currently an Olympus man. I use both the [digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  and the SP550uz ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  ) and have gotten some stellar results in sports and kids photography.



Those solutions I mentioned are true for any point and shoot camera. And it isn't so much about "learning photography," so much as it's learning a good habit while taking photographs. Making prefocus and panning with the action a habitual part of taking photographs and you're ahead of the curve when it comes to kids. Especially under 7.



In addition, you can also shoot with a flash, even in daytime. Freezes the action and makes your subject "pop" in the picture.

Is there a reason you need a camera with such a long lens? Both of these cameras have at least a 10x optical zoom...



Anything over a 7MP resolution will give you great, clear prints when enlarged. Of these two cameras, I'd suggest the FZ8. It's a great value for the price and, as long as you have good light when taking your pictures (which would make sense, anyway!) you won't have a problem with any noise reduction issues. It has great picture quality and a lot of features for the price you pay.

The New Zealand consumer recommended the FZ8, then I spotted this website so thought it would be very useful to ask a question here. Thanks for your answer. Are there other cameras you would recommend apart from these two cameras?

I also will be taking landscape and flower pictures to paint. Our family does a lot of tramping and fishing, so there will be photos taken in the mountains and also sunset and sunrise paintings. I will also like wide angle pictures to paint as most artists also like the long oblong pictures as well. Thank you Matt for your informative input as I am really a novice with picture taking but I do know what scenes sell. I would like also for the pictures to be taken reasonably fast as sometimes the scene can disappear within seconds.

I am prepared to pay upto $700 new Zealand and really I am very much superior with landscape paintings so will forget about the flower pictures.They will probably only commission work. I want to burn off to Cd as a record. I do have all of the computer skills, but no camera experience. It is really is all to do with the image once taken so I can present the pictures when I get my web site. I don't know anything really about zoom, I would like to have pictures also with the slow motion with waterfalls rivers etc.

I have been told the bigger the megapixels the better and i have a Canon Powershot 85 4 megapixel at the present time but it is no good for enlarging. It is a great everyday camera and I have been pleased with it up to now. I enlarged a picture for trademe and it was terrible so that is when I decided I would have to up the megapixels. Thanks too by the way for more of your info you are brilliant.!!!

Thank you so much Matt I am very satisfied with your answers and I am going to get the Panasonic Fz18 Having gone on a site it is impressive. Also I have rung a professional photographer and he like you also recommended the FZ18. I went on a site where it showed lots of photographs someone had taken and they were very clear.It will be great for what I want to do with it. I am going to have to find some retailers here in New Zealand as the model seems to be not here yet. We are I suppose the last to get new models here.Thanks it is the one.

Tom,



I would recommend shooting in shutter priority mode (S in your exposure control dial). For football or basketball, I would use a speed of 1/250th of a second or faster. For car racing and other faster moving sports, I would use 1/600th of a second and even up to 1/1000th. Make sure that your lighting is good when using this. Lower light situations will come out dark, and you should use your highest ISO settings to let more light in with these shutter speeds in lower light. I hope this helps.



Andrew

Tom,



I agree with James on a lot of these points. I do want to add on to some of his points though.



First, the effective flash range for this camera is between 1 and 9.8 feet (see owner's manual ( fujifilm.com/products/digit...  ) page 11). Unless you use an external flash source synced with the camera, the flash will probably not "reach" your subject. This leads into my second point. While you will see more noise/grain with higher ISO settings, you will allow more brightness into the photo in lower light situations. Yes there is a trade-off, but you will be able to see the subject better.



If you need to know how to get a shallow depth of field, you will need to change to the aperture priority setting on the camera (the "A" on the dial). The lower the f/stop number, the shallower the depth of field will be. More items will be in focus the higher the number is. Remember that with a lower f/stop number, you have a greater chance of blurring your subject, unless you have your focal length exactly right. Good luck and happy shooting.



Andrew

The nice thing is that with digital you can go outside and stand safely away from a busy highway and practice taking these shots before your next race event so you will have your technique all ready to go and you will have spent zero dollars for prints to learn how to do it!

After you get the technique you want then you can try panning which is moving the camera while keeping your fast moving subject in view. This will blur everything else except the race car you are following. Enjoy. Larry

Yep, that's the beauty of digital, Larry. You can practice without having to pay for prints of the bad shots!

For Sony H7 camera or sony family.

Just set your flas to <always on>. Images of moving object will remain clear. The flash function serve to make the image static. I can even freeze the movement of the ceiling fan. Try it.

At a little over $200 the Canon SX100 IS probably the best candidate for your needs. It has a 10x optical zoom, which is a good length zoom, not the longest, but mroe importantly, it has IS, or image stabilisation. Because your going to zooming in in a dim enviroment, your shutter speed is going to be slow, which means that you could end up with really blurred photos. Thats where the IS comes in, it helps keep zoomed photos, especially in dim light, crisp and clear.



Its also relatively compact for easy movement and storage. I think this camera would be great for concert photos and vacation photos. Good luck choosing a camera and happy shooting :)!

I think I read somewhere not to use an HCSD card... I'm not sure if it was saying you can't use it, or if it was just a recommendation, though. I'm pretty sure a type H xD card or a high-speed SD card is recommended for the S700. Hope I helped.

Thanks for the definitive answer. I'll check it out. And thanks for the tip on cards. I saw some great buys on 4 GB on Ebay but didn't want to buy anything until I knew for sure it would work.

Well it sorta does. It comes with electronic image stabilization. What you really want is optical IS as that corrects for camera shake in the lens. Electronic IS "Interpolates" digitally and corrects for it in software while saving the picture. It's rather a best guess based on an algorhythym and not a proper mechanical compensation.

The Fuji S700 is tested at the following specs:

1.) Power-on to capture of first picture = 1.8 seconds

2.) When prefocused, shutter lag was less than .1 seconds (near instantaneous); including autofocus time, shutter lag was about .2-.3 seconds. This is very good.

3.) Shot-to-shot delay averages about 2.2 seconds without flash and between 2.6-3.5 seconds with flash (depending on subject distance and battery life, of course).



Also, continuous shooting can be as fast as 2.3fps (Fuji only claims 1.4fps). This is for a limited amount of frames, though, because you'll have to then wait about 7 seconds for the camera to clear its buffer and shoot more. Fortunately, unlimited continuous shooting can process at 1.8 seconds/picture. Don't expect going off and rattling pictures like the stereotypical tourist!



Of course there are automatic settings! There's Portrait, Landscape, Sport, Night, Fireworks, Sunset, Snow, Beach, Museum, Party, Flower and Text. Any one of these will set the ISO and flash to predetermined defaults for you.



If by taking pictures manually you mean just ISO and/or shutter speed, then this would be a good camera for you. If you want full manual range of control, you'll be very limited with this camera. But the picture quality is very good, the 38mm-380mm lens works well (no wideangle, but that's just a personal preference), good performance and strong flash (indoor shots are very good) make this a good camera for the money. For $184 or less, you can't go wrong.



As I always suggest, take a look at sample pictures others have taken, amateur and professional alike. flickr.com/search/?q=s700 

The S700 uses 4 "AA" batteries instead of rechargable Li-Ion batteries like most smaller cameras use. Most dSLR, dSLR-like and ultrazoom cameras use "AA" batteries.. a lot of power goes into a large optical zoom, stronger flash and LCD screen. A Li-Ion battery would have a lot of lag while the batteries refresh, as well as limited battery life. You can still use rechargable batteries, though. 2,500 mAh or higher would be appropriate.

Lithium batteries are generally just rechargables. Any "AA" batteries can be used for this camera, so yes, the Energizers will work. I'd still suggest they be 2,500 mAh or higher, as the extra mAh will allow the camera to be used longer before the voltage gets too low. Those Energizers probably are 2,500 mAh, though :)

That was my fault, I always equate Lithium as Lithium-Ion, which is not the same thing. You can get some good NiMH 2,500 mAh batteries for about $8-10, and then a battery charger for about $10-15 dollars. If you get 8 batteries, you'll always have that spare set fully charged and ready to swap with the ones in the camera. You should be able to get nearly 500 pictures with those batteries!

The difference is only in speed. The Extreme III cards can read/write much faster than a typical SD card, which will increase performance in key areas, including shot-to-shot times, video recording, and continuous shooting mode.



With how cheap all these SD cards are getting, your best bet is to get the faster cards. As far as I understand, this camera doesn't accept SDHC (4GB and higher) cards, which is a shame. But I guess we should all be thankful they accept SD cards in the first place instead of those xD cards! But yeah, you'll definitely want to invest in the fast SD cards (it doesn't need to be Sandisk, it can be another brand, like Kingston .



The "Extreme II" cards get 9-10MB/sec read/write, the "Extreme III" cards get >20MB/sec. When a picture takes about 3-4MB of storage and you're in continuous shooting, a Extreme II card can take about 2 pictures/second before the cache is full and it needs to stop and transfer... it's essentially a bottleneck.



But here's where I'm confused as to why Fuji is suggesting this card: Continuous shooting on Fuji is only 1.4fps (probably higher). But even if a picture took 5MB to store, an Extreme II wouldn't have a problem with that. And it still takes the same amount of time for the camera to clear out its own buffer, anyway...



For a decent price, you're looking at $20 for an Extreme II (what they deem a 66x speed) and $35 for an Extreme III (133x). I don't think the extra $15 is warranted in your case. But the extra $5 to go from a standard SD card to Extreme II is warranted (unless you already own a normal SD card... then just keep it, you won't really notice any slowdown, and if you do want to upgrade, the Extreme II won't bottleneck this camera).



I hope that answered your question!

.95 MB/sec is an awful lot of compression for a camera of this type. Even my SD800IS is about 1.7MB/sec. Great video. Although, the firmware upgrade you mention is awfully nice!!



The normal SD cards will bog down in continuous shooting. And you may even have a hiccup in movie mode if the write speed stutters. Just a precaution. I'd still suggest a Extreme II type card to make sure you avoid these issues.



Thanks for the added information, Luigi!

It´s quite strange for me what happens with your camera. Please try with another memory card, or, simple, remove the memory card and test the unit by using the internal memory. If problem persists, it´s time for a warranty claim!

Hope this helps!

It´s quite simple!. Just use the menu button (the one in the middle) when you are displaying the video (not running it!), select Delete, and confirm it. Video hasn´t the same shortcut key for deleting it as photo has, but you surely can delete it.



Hope this helps!

Thanks so much Luigi. You are a lot of help, even reading your other answers and posts. I really do appreciate it. I am Caribbean bound and camera ready.

Looking at the specs, it supports both Memory Stick and Memory Stick Pro. You should be okay. But just in case, bring along one and go check them out at a brick and mortar.



But usually they're downward compatible unless it's a radical design change that prompts breaking the chain of compatiblity.

I don't own this camera yet but plan to buy soon. Best regards and hope you find the answer elswhere.

Luigi Trastorno, I see that you have used a lens hood, can you please tell me where you got it. I have looked all over and have not been able to find one. Thanks

I just got this camera, I have no experience with anything other than point and shoot film cameras. All I can say is you need an index finger, and a love of photographs. I am considering a small tripod, but up to this point I have taken photos of 747's landing in all stages: final approach, gear down, and reverse thrusters with no shake on 10x zoom; furthermore, I have 747's taking off, while in 10x zoom with no blur. I have taken macro and super macro and I can see the pollen in a "buttercup flower". , again no tripod. I have taken a picture of my den with the ceiling fan on high and it like it is off in the frame. Any accessory I can say is an absolute necessity it maybe some lens cleaning paper, and back up AA batteries, a nice padded camera case and an SD or xD card and you are ready to go. I hope you have as much fun as I do. Sorry for any mis-spells, I'm at work, and really shouldn't be on this site :)

SD memory is almost half the price of xD cards (essentially because they can mass-produce it on such a higher level because it's used for so many other things). Because of this, you can get an awfully big SD card and never have to worry about running out of memory again! (If James reads this, he'll give you his lecture about more cards being better than one, though :))



This S700 camera looks to be compatible with the SDHC cards, but you need to update the firmware at this site: fujifilm.com/products/digit...  you don't have any SD memory yet, you might as well start with SDHC, since it's replacing the SD standard. In terms of price, $25 for a 2GB SD card isn't a great price. You can get a good brand standard 2GB SD card for $14.95 here everyday: amazon.com/SanDisk-Secure-D...  can also get a 4GB SD card for $37.95: amazon.com/Sandisk-Secure-D...  a 4GB SDHC card for $37.95: amazon.com/Sandisk-Secure-D...  you can see, SDHC cards aren't exactly more expensive. I'd personally suggest starting with that one. If you want a standard SD card for now, don't pay more than $10/MB... even that's a bad price these days.

Go for SD cards as there are more devices that support it. I would recommend getting a high speed (e.g Sandisk Ultra II SD) card as the camera can save photos faster to these. High speed cards have dropped drastically in price, I bought a 2 GB Ultra II SD for about $30.

video does eat up a bunch of memory. I have a 1mb card, and it holds about 15+min of video with sound, plus over 300 pics. At about that full, it's worth printing/deleting. You wouldn't want to miss out on something because of pics you don't want, anyway, right? So - 2gb would solve that problem, or having access to a CVS or something, where you can delete/print easily also works great.



I use auto for stuff I don't have time to work through, but it's easy to pop it into another mode and experiment. I have consistently had trouble getting macro shots to work, but otherwise, it's FUN to play! PLAY!!!



I think this was a great choice for you for a 1st "real" camera - it has nice weight and takes some great pics! Have a great cruise and Happy 40th (I'm 1967 too!).

I have the S5200 and am very pleased with it's performance. I like to take shots in natural light, especially in low light. I find using the "N" setting works out best. I can take most indoor, outdoor day/night shots using the "N" setting. Try it for yourself. In caves I'll use the auto setting with flash but sometimes I find if you just compose your subject, a person for instance near artificial light in the cave, you can do without the flash. Try taking the picture both ways. The "N" will work in that situation and not "wash out" the natural colors of the cave like a flash would.

No, it does not.

You need to be careful about adding teleconverters onto any fixed lens camera, however. Doing so will cause you to lose about 1 to 2 f stops ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-number  ) (the speed at which the lens gathers light to record the image) and clarity will become compromised as well.



Here's how you can tell if a camera has a removable lens or not. If the camera description talks about the lens in terms of "X" (like 15x) then it's a removable lens. If it talks about the lens in terms of mm (like 28mm-105mm) then chances are it's a removable lens that you can replace with another.

Nope only SLR's have removable lenses

I'm afraid I may have missed your question and it's too late for this answer to be any good. The S700 CCD is nice and large, and with the 7MP resolution, this camera will do well in good-light and low-light. Face detection isn't as important as you may think -- it doesn't pick up all faces all the time, but that's fine, since faces are generally at the same distance and so autofocus does a good job of picking out what you need.



Optical image stabilization is the only large difference on the cameras that you may miss out on with the S700 (and the 18x zoom). For being such a relatively new camera, I'm amazed the S700 doesn't have it. 10x zoom shots may be difficult to take, but that's completely a user's scenario (have you used it and tested it to see if your shots were blurry at all? Some people just have trouble keeping their hands steady.)



The CCD on the S8000fd is actually smaller than the S700. Couple that with the extra resolution and you will actually have less effective low-light shots.



Does the 18x zoom REALLY matter, when you already have 10x? With 7+ MP, you can easily crop your pictures if you want more zoom. And going from a 10x to 20x by cropping to double the size will still be completely suitable to 4x6" pictures. I'm guessing that would be adequate for you, or else 10x wouldn't have been acceptable in the first place.



For the price of $220 or less, you didn't go wrong buying the S700. In fact, the only thing I could really say that's "bad" with the camera is that there is some overexposure in high-contrast areas when you're in bright-light. Will it be that noticeable? Not really, especially if you don't plan on looking at your pictures on a computer, pixel by pixel.



So in summary, the 18x zoom is a nice feature, but not necessary (I haven't checked, but you might be able to buy a teleconverter for more magnification). The face detection is nice, but doesn't work 100% and the difference between using it and not using it won't make much of a difference. And the image stabilization would be something you'd have to play around with on the S700 to see if you get any blurry pictures.



Best of luck, and let me know what you decided to do!

Obviously some changes in design have occurred. According to DCRP, the S700 is not nearly as large. Additionally:



This lens isn't terribly "fast", with a maximum aperture range of F3.5 - F3.7. What this means in layman's terms is that the lens does not let in as much light as other ultra zooms in this class. The focal range of the lens is 6.3 - 63 mm, which is equivalent to 38 - 380 mm. The lens barrel is threaded for 46 mm attachments, though the camera only supports filters as far as I know. The lens does not extend out of the body -- all the moving parts are internal.



However, the zoom speed isn't bad - from wide-angle to telephoto in just 1.6 seconds. Focusing takes about 0.5 seconds for the camera to lock focus at wide-angle, with slightly longer waits at the telephoto. Low light focusing was accurate, but rather slow, with focus times over a second. If you're not johnny on the spot with prefocus, you'll miss the moment in low light.



But there are ways to speed that up which, if you make it a habit can bridge the speed gap:



there are also other tips to speed up your performance:



1. Prefocus. Hold down the shutter half way to get a prefocus of the image you're shooting. When it changes, prefocus again. This will speed up your camera's performance during picture taking since it won't have to autofocus before it shoots the shot.



2. Use faster SD cards. Yes, there are faster cards and it does make a difference in writing the image file to the card. This is especially key if you're taking multiple or burst images.



3. Fresher batteries. Use alkalines at least. But I recommend using high energy batteries designed for digital photography. Varta is a good brand. They are usually sold in camera shops, are long lasting (because they are sold in small quantities) put out alot of energy.



4. Shoot in "sports" modes when you're in situations that require action. Night or available light modes when in night time settings. These presets can help in speeding up your shots, rather than the camera taking a split second to evaluate the conditions of the lighting.



5. Pan with the action. You can create some pretty cool shots by panning with your shot, focusing on your subject. This will create the effect of your subject in sharp contrast to the blurry background.



6. Use a flash - even in day time. This will "freeze" the image and cause your subject to "pop" in the shot. However, flash is only designed for limited range and can dissipate outside of about 20-25 feet unless you're using a zoomable flash.



7. Stick with 100-400 ISO. Going higher will cause more noise/grain in your shots, particularly in darker settings.



Now, having said that, I have a friend who owns this camera and he takes some pretty remarkable photographs with it. Good color, sharp. Not top in class, mind you, but it gets the job done quite nicely.

Well it's certainly a longer focal range. An improvement? You mileage may vary. Just remember though that at the extreme ends of the focal range, camera shake is more pronounced.

I think you should and the best way probably is to change one at at time, see the effects and decide which setting you like before moving on to the next.



What you can do is open your manual in the computer, or download one at <a href="fujifilm.com/products/digit...  site</a> if need be, and click the 'binoculars' logo on the title bar. In the window that appears, type in ISO and you will see all the pages where ISO is found.



You can then select the relevant pages to see how ISO settings can be changed. This lets you play around with ISO settings, remembering that while higher ISO lets you take pictures in dimmer areas, it also brings along noise that makes the picture grainy.



Similarly, you can find instructions on how to set shutter speed to capture movements or any other functions that you want to control to get better pictures.



Instruction manual is the best place to find all the answers and exploring one at a time will eliminate any confusion.

Hi Lisa, it may not be that you need to choose a different setting. You may need to exchange the camera. I had a S700, and loved it, but auto focus went kinda squirrally on me. Some of my indoor flash photos were showing up blurry, foggie looking. I kept thinking the lens was smudged or I wasn't as steady as I thought...but it was the camera, not me. I sat in my den and put the camera on a tripod and continuously shot in auto mode pictures of my son. It only took 5 pictures and one showed up blurry. So I knew it wasn't me. So back to the store it went. So I purchased a Kodak Z712 IS in place of it. And love it. I really liked the Fuji but I was alittle leary since that problem showed up weeks after owning it, ya know? Hope this helps.

How dark was the lighting when taking these pictures? Generally, without a flash, the only options you have to make a picture lighter is by reducing the shutter speed and/or increasing the ISO (ie, CCD sensitivity).



If you're at ISO1600 and are getting dark images, try lowering the shutter speed (warning: the lower the shutter speed, the more motion blur and more reason to use a tripod/stable surface) there's nothing I can think of that could improve it. Sometimes a flash is needed.



Oftentimes, NightShot mode or different pre-selected scene modes on the camera can work. But that's just basically putting you at preset shutter speed/ISO/etc values. You can pretty much do the same in manual mode.

You might want to exchange it I believe it's a dud. Mine doesn't do that.

I'm not sure it's a dude. I agree with Matt that it may be a settings issue or simply getting used to the camera. And BTW it's not a bad idea to shoot even daylight pictures with flash especially for portraits. It can make your subject really "pop."



BTW - I noticed that you haven't marked any replies as the "best answer." Are you still looking for an answer? If so, I recommend you re-submit it on digitalcamera-hq.com  so it will have a better chance of being noticed. These days it looks like most questions are being answered within a few days. Good luck!

Perhaps your pics are well focused but some blur appears due your hand movement when press the shot button. The more zoomed image, the more blur you can obtain. Try to use the image stabilization feature or use a monopod / tripod.



Hope this help!



Luigi

thanks guys,

I frequently take pics of children. I have a little daughter and everytime she plays with her kindermates, pics are taken. Moving targets (such as children) often causes blurred photos when Auto mode is selected. What I do when this happens, is to set S mode. You can select the optimum shutter speed for your pics.

Hope this helps!

Hi Dennis,

I was having a problem with my camera also. I ended up returning it. There was something finicky with the Auto Mode going on. When I noticed something going on with it, I placed it on a tri-pod and shot the same picture of my son roughly about 4 times. One of the 4 pictures turned out blurry. I have read reviews of other people speaking up about this also. So my guess is that something is up internally on this camera. If you could, I would return it or exchange it. I returned mine for a Kodak Z712 IS. It is a very comparible camera to the S700. Same size and shape, a little more zoom and has true optical image stabilization. Something to consider.

Yes it does. I was concerned also, since I love the crisp photos Fuji gives you. I've had my Kodak for about two weeks and I'm so surprised how beautiful the quality is. Your definitely comparing apples to apples with both cameras. But I feel you get more bang for the buck with the Kodak. I bought the Kodak thinking that if I don't like it I'd go back to the Fuji. But so far I'm completely happy with it. The Kodak takes different batterys than the Fuji. It uses a CRV3 Lithium battery or you can use 2 AA lithium batteries. I have yet to change the battery, so although it takes two to Fujis 4, lithium lasts 5 times longer. So I hope this helps. By the way, indoor pictures with flash are just as nice as the Fuji. That was my worry.

No problem! This website is great for finding out info on cameras. We are all everyday people.

I've tried the S3-IS at Walmart. I took my card in and shot a dozen or so pictures with the one on display. I was not impressed. Photo quality was not of the Fuji. Canon has a definite problem with red eye. Even with the red eye feature on. After seeing what Fuji and Kodak can do, Canon is over rated. But thats my opinion on my experiences. Best of luck in camera shopping!!

It's absolutely one and the same camera but has different names. If you go on to the fuji website or you see the camera in any stores you'll see both names printed on the box. no idea why there are two names but there you go.

Dear Luigi Trastorno,

thank you for the reply.

Regards,

sathyajith.

Both answers are yes. You can. To turn off flash look for the big round button at the right of the LCD, at the right arrow you see a lighting like mark. Press it until you see force flash off. To change exposure you can not have the camera on full auto. At least select P mode and them press menu. Look for the exposure option, usually have a +/- sing and there you can select the exposure you want. There is an exposure button on the back of the camera, it should work as well by pressing this button.

Finally, if you're trying to figure out which camera to get, here's a few tips:



for comparison, you may want to check out this resource ( imaging-resource.com/IMCOMP...  ). It takes pictures with each and you can compare them side by side.



Comparing the A640 with the S600 (S700 wasn't available) the A640 had the edge in Macro and I believe has brighter, sharper colors. Now, the S700 may have improved some with more MP and bigger chip. But if they are similar in MP, you won't really see a difference when it comes to snapshots with mp above 7mp. So either will be fine. It's only when you get to above 8x10 that the MP difference would assert itself.



It may just come down to what camera feels good in your hand. Go to a local camera store and check both out side by side, holding them, feeling their center of gravity, the balance. How it sits in your hand. That usually sells me one way or the other.



Can I put another option into your mind?



I am currently testing the Olympus SP-550UZ ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  ) and have so far been quite pleased with the results. 7.1 MP, 18x zoom, image stabilization and some great scene based program features including a 15fps burst mode. This is great for sports photography.



Now some will argue that the 15fps burst mode only allows for about 1.2 mp. I think it's better than that. But even so, it will do for snapshots no larger than 4x6, and you still get that action shot. For full res, it does have a 3 fps burst mode as well.



It also has in camera editing features such as cropping, sepia and black/white alerations, nite modes, super macro mode for REALLY close up shots, panoramic guides for shooting multiple shots to stitch into a panorama, even a mode for shooting documents.



I'm really enjoying it. If I had to complain, however, I have found the menu structure wanting and difficult to use on the fly. But other than that, it's a top notch camera.

I was having exactly the same dilema when i was deciding on my new camera. i chose the s700 for the follwoing reasons:



- better performance at full zoom and low light.

- the menu system was easier for me to learn and understand

- the macro is superb

- a more advanced camera to a standard compact, which if you are thinking of prgressing up to a DSLR then is a great stepping stone.

- its cheaper and for the money nothing compares

- for the difference in money like mentioned above you can get a decent sized memory card. 2gb on 7mp fine gives you aorund 600 pics.



fuji are releasing and upgrade to this model in sept. the 5800, which looks to me the same just with 8mp instead of 7. or wait for the s8000fd which is going to have 8mp and 18x optical zoom



hope this helps

Yes, in fact, you can take B&W pics with this unit. This question was answered in another post. Please refer to digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  this helps you!



Luigi

All cameras have tripod mount at the base.



Just turn it over and you will find a hole with screw thread meant for the tripod.

Yes indeedy it has a tripod mount, unless you have a totally different thread than most cameras or your tripod has a funky thread

Could it be that its 5 years old? However, Google is your friend. ( google.com/search?q=fuji+fi...  )

Well, Fuju does have newer models that you may like. How about the A800 ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  )? Or, if you're looking for something a little beefier that will grow with you, the S700 ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  ) is highly rated.



Both have MPs greater than your old 3800 - the A800 is 8.1mp and the S700 at 7.1MP. This is plenty for high quality images up to 8x10. You also end up with greater focal range in the zoom, movie mode with sound, and one thing I like about the A800 is that you can use either xD or SD cards. Nice feature.



Wrong settings are easy to fix. You simply reset the camera to factory settings. Shaking the camera wont' cause an issue.



But as I stated before, as for comparing it, I doubt it'll get on the radar here very soon due to it's age. I did find this overview at CNet, however:



The good: 6X optical zoom; simple interface.



The bad: Low-res electronic viewfinder; noticeable shutter delay; hard to see the LCD in low light.



The bottom line: Its 6X optical zoom, decent images, and aggressive price make this camera a good but not top choice for point-and-shooters.



Rates just over 6 out of 10 amongst editors. I think you can do better.

Well, there are some tips for improving your performance and getting those results with another camera -



1. Prefocus. Hold down the shutter half way to get a prefocus of the image you're shooting. When it changes, prefocus again. This will speed up your camera's performance during picture taking since it won't have to autofocus before it shoots the shot.



2. Use faster SD cards. Yes, there are faster cards and it does make a difference in writing the image file to the card. This is especially key if you're taking multiple or burst images.



3. Fresher batteries. Use alkalines at least. But I recommend using high energy batteries designed for digital photography. Varta is a good brand. They are usually sold in camera shops, are long lasting (because they are sold in small quantities) put out alot of energy.



4. Shoot in "sports" or "kids" modes when you're in situations that require action. Night or available light modes when in night time settings. These presets can help in speeding up your shots, rather than the camera taking a split second to evaluate the conditions of the lighting.



5. Go manual. If you are manually focusing, particularly in darker settings, you can constantly refocus the image as things happen. Also, the infrared does have a range and if your image is out of that range you can end up with the camera's "best guess" or infinity setting which may not help. You can also go manual on fstops and shutter speeds as well, getting more light faster when you choose.



6. Go with a shallow depth of field.



7. Follow the action. You can create some pretty cool shots by panning with your shot, focusing on your subject. This will create the effect of your subject in sharp contrast to the blurry background.



8. Use a flash - even in day time. This will "freeze" the image and cause your subject to "pop" in the shot. However, flash is only designed for limited range and can dissipate outside of about 20-25 feet unless you're using a zoomable flash.



9. Stick with 100-400 ISO. Going higher will cause more noise/grain in your shots, particularly in darker settings.

There are some people that swear by AA batteries, and some who can't stand them. To be honest, 4AA batteries are better than cameras that use 2AA batteries, because the flash charges more quickly, allowing you to take flash pictures faster, and the camera lasts longer.



Depending on which camera you use, the amount of pictures you can take varies, especially with or without flash. Take whichever camera you're interested in and read the specs. To be on the safe side, I would assume 10% less than what they advertise, just so you're not disappointed.



As for the hassle of changing batteries.... whether you carry 4 extra AA batteries or an extra rechargeable battery all ultracompacts use, you're still lugging around a battery. And if you use recharageable AA batteries, you'll probably want to bring a charger along (which you'll probably want to do for the rechargeable battery packs, too). Yes, it's a hassle, but if you have a camera pack, you won't notice carrying batteries. If you don't have a camera pack, 4 batteries in your pocket doesn't weigh you down.



The only thing I suggest is that you make sure you don't mind the weight and size of a camera that uses 4 AA batteries, and also that you buy good rechargeable batteries.

Thanks for the performance standard you experienced, Luigi. I'm sure that'll help his decision. 200 pictures is an awful lot of pictures before needing a battery change.

I have owned the Fuji S700 now for a little over a month. I used to own a Sony and was annoyed with the delay. I was looking at the prices of a digital SLR and felt it was a little more then I wanted to pay. I do own an SLR also. So after reading about the different cameras I made the decision I wanted a camera that would operate like an SLR> The Fuji S700 has done that. I have no problem getting the picture that is in action and if there is a time delay, it is so minimal that I have not noticed it. I love this camera.

I have the Canon S3IS and if you turn off the review after each pic, it takes them extremely fast. I am trying to find an ultracompact now to even come close to it's speed.

No doubt, dear Phu: come back to vendor and replace it!. It still under warranty period. Perhaps you purchased a lemon, but let me tell you that this is a pretty nice prosumer camera!

It´s quite strange for me that your S700 EVF works fine but not the large display, even after you tried to reset it by removing batteries. Did you exposed your camera under water or mist?...same as cell phones when drop in water, remove batteries, place in a ventilated and dry place, wait a couple of days and retest it.

Hope this helps!

Hello!



Well, my finepix s5700 which is the same camera as s700, just another sales area, was in proper function for 2 days! Then the EVF became grainy and then just grey. My LCD was working properly when the EVF was dead, thought. I now have my finepix replaced with another, functional one. I hope this one lasts longer...

I have no problems what so ever with red eye or the image stabilizer in my s700. you can alter the shutter speed and aperture to help reduce the blurriness also there is a button which fuji call their "Fuji's Picture Stabilisation mode" which can be found on the top of the camera and is of a head with lines coming off of it. if you do get any red eye this can be removed with their software or buy photoshop elements 5 which does all of for you. hope his helps

Both models are the same camera. Numbering depends on the country the units are offered. In fact, user manual is titled as S5700 / S700, and no differences are noted between these models.

Yep Luigi right I have the s700 and the manual says S700/S5700. By the way its an awesome camera!

Well the Kodak SD750 ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  ) is highly rated and fits in your price range. Nice camera. 7.1 megapixels; 3x optical zoom, 3 inch LCD; SDHC compatible.



There's also the highly rated Fuji FinePix S700 ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  ). It has a much larger zoom (10x), 7.1 mp, and gives you a full manual option.



That's where I'd be looking. If you could go a tad higher, I am currently testing the Olympus SP-550UZ ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  ) and have so far been quite pleased with the results. 7.1 MP, 18x zoom, image stabilization and some great scene based program features including a 15fps burst mode. This is great for sports photography.



It also has in camera editing features such as cropping, sepia and black/white alerations, nite modes, super macro mode for REALLY close up shots, panoramic guides for shooting multiple shots to stitch into a panarama, even a mode for shooting documents.



I'm really enjoying it. If I had to complain, however, I have found the menu structure wanting and difficult to use on the fly. But other than that, it's a top notch camera.

Finally, Steves Digicam published the S700 comment. You can read it. I guess that this unit is an amazing camera, I love it!

Well, the easy way to accomplish this is to simply shoot them as is and the turn them black and white in photomanagement software like Adobe Photoshop/Photoshop Elements or perhaps Google's Picasa.



However, there doesn't seem to be any mention of black and white photography in the manual. So I'd assume that you will be taking pictures in color and then changing them in some photo editing solution.



The Olympus SP-550UZ ( digitalcamera-hq.com/digita...  ) shoots in color, but does allow you edit to black and white IN CAMERA.

I agree with Kelly: camera has B&W feature and it´s easy to set this mode. Perhaps you wonder why it´s useful if pics can be converted to B&W by software from the color take. In my case, some photos are quite interesting in B&W mode, adding some artistic or dramatic impression to the pics. And watching them as soon as they are taken is very useful. Color information is confusing, same as illumination, shades, contrast and anything of the kind if you take a color pic and then convert it in B&W in your PC. Sometimes, photos dissapointed me if taken in such way because when desaturate them with Photoshop (or any software you like) they lost many of the things that I supposed to be clear in B&W. With S700 in B&W mode, live image is displayed in B&W, so light can be checked / changed at the same moment, before pic is taken, and you have a much better idea about the final result. WYSIWYG, truly.



Hope this helps you!



Luigi

Hi Rob,

I just got back from a long day at the Detroit Zoo and shot roughly 150 pictures. The zoom is fantastic on this camera. I think the only complaint I have about this camera is that occasionally is auto focus, like shooting through a fenced area, the camera focuses on the fence and not the animal behind the fence. I know there is ways around this but trying to keep up with family, its tricky. I only encountered this once or twice the whole day...but other than that, this camera is great!!! The detail I got on a peacock is wow!!! Smudges on the LCD is another rrrrrrr, but my fault. The LCD was good in bright sunlight...I was surprised. And I didn't have to change batteries at all. Its a definite performer.

Rob,

On the back of the camera is a silver button that reads F(F-mode). When pressed you'll see settings for different kinds of pictures such as chrome, standard, and black and white.

You learn something new every day. Thanks gang!

Frank,



This camera comes with batteries, lens cap, an AV cable, and a USB cable (to transfer the photos to your computer). It also comes with Fuji software on a CD-ROM. You should be fine to do what you want to do with all of that.



Andrew

I know DPI has to do with printing images and PPI has to do with display.

I was wondering if the default DPI/PPI for the images from my S700 can be increased to 150 to 300 dpi/ppi.

Thanks,

Chris

Hi John,



Thanks for the reply, I do try not to go over the ISO 100. The S700 unfortunately takes pics at high ISO in auto modes.



I'm not happy with the image sensor too, it picks up a lot of noise even in "P" or program mode. I'm disappointed with this camera. I'm yet not sure, if this is a defective item or the S700's are just crappy.



Thanks,

Chris

I have the S6000fd that I just bought for a trip to Alaska and when I came back and looked at the metadata I noticed that every image was 72 dpi. Needless to say I freaked out looking everywhere on how to change it (I had assumed it was at 300 dpi and they don't tell you in the specs), but alas, there was no way to go to 300 dpi (only afterwards in photoshop). When I compared it to some photos taken with the Nikon coolpix at 300 dpi, there was a huge difference when zoomed in, however, a professional photog told me all the finepix were 72 dpi, just to keep the quality at the highest 6M F (2848x2136) and be concerned about the finished print quality, and if I was keeping the size to 4x6, 5x7 or 8x10, I should be ok. He also said the Super CCD fujifilm sensor is better. It's feature rich and I like everything else about it. But I just like 300 dpi (there's no zizzies)!

when u turn on the cam after connecting the usb, the word usb shows up on lcd display of cam. if not, its not plugged in correctly. i never installed the cd that came with the cam, so when i plugged it in, the puter(win xp) used its cam wizard to extract the pics from cam. i hope this helps. write back.



heres hoping

wade

My computer will not recongnize my Canon xsi it is if it is not even plugged in it will not even show up in my computer and am sure i have it hooked up right, Any suggestions

I am having the same problem. It happened a month ago, then it worked fine. Today, both my computers do not recognize the connection. The USB cable is fine if connected to something else. Getting a bit frustrated with an essentially new camera!

mine finally showed the fuji finepix in the My Computer window, Then when I go to download, it says zero!! I know the pics are on it cause I can see them!

I took the camera into a "professional" camera store today, and they suggested to set the setting on "P" instead of "auto", and then manually change the ISO to 200 or 100. The lower the ISO, the less grain you get. I did try a few test shots before my batteries needed to be recharged, and this seems to work for the pictures, not the LCD screen. I guess the screen is what it is according to these guys. The guy did say that it's not a bad camera and it's comparable to the Canon S3 IS, and Olympus. For me it's a learning curve being that I'm a graphic designer and have extremely high expectations of what a camera should do.

Since I can't select ISO settings for auto, does this mean the Auto, anti-shake, N, SP1, SP2 are all pretty useless?



My camera gives grainy pictures indoors and outdoors. It must be defective.



I'm still with in the no questions asked return period, I'll get a second one to test out the ISO settings.



Have to read up on how to best use the P/A/S and M settings... the key to getting good pictures out of this camera seems to lie in these modes.



I'm still pretty bummed that the auto settings may not produce good results. Hope fully the replacement camera will give me some good pictures.



I'll keep you posted. Please do let me know if there is anything else I need to look into.



Thanks,

Chris

I know what you mean. I can deal with the crappy LCD screen if the end result is good. You can put your camera on the P/A/S and M settings, and tweek the ISO, appeture, ect. and the rest will be on auto. So what I was told was to keep it on the P setting and change the ISO to 200 to 100 (I saw better results with the 100 setting), and the rest is still on auto. After you've changed the ISO, you can switch to the "A" setting, and the ISO that you manually put in will stay, and then you can change the appeture setting, ect.



Like you though, am VERY tempted to go and exchange the camera for the exact same one just to make sure that it's not a defected camera. I've seen much cheaper point n' shoots have much better quality without having to mess around with the camera. I mainly bought this camera because it's supposed to be in between a point n' shoot and an SLR. I may just stick with my awesome film camera at this rate. I don't know yet though...I still have a week to decide if I want to return the camera or not.

I'm going to return the Fuji and test the Canon S3 IS. Will make a final purchase decision after I compare both image results.



Thank god for 30 day return policies.



I fell for the 7.1 MP and fully Manual mode on the Fuji.

I'll still test out the fully manual mode before I make a final decision.



Later,

Chris

Hi HS!". The Olympus camera you mentioned is the 510UZ. Before I decided to buy the S700, this was the camera that I was looking for. But the main difference I found between them is the ability on zooming while you are recording a movie on S700. Olympus 510 UZ doesn´t zoom while recording.

On the other hand, I agree with you about megapixels. The megapixel era has finished once it was demonstrated that there are not noticeable difference between a printed photo taken at 3 or 4 mpix and a higher resolution, except if you want to print large copies.

Hi HS,

I'm still testing the S700. I took some pictures in sunlight at a pool party.

The pictures in sunlight are stunning. Very very crisp, with great detail.

The pictures in shadow/shade, not so crisp and grainy. I'm still trying to figure out if I need to learn to use this camera better.

The Auto mode works well in sunlight. It's useless where there is indirect light or in the shade with plenty of light.

The "P" mode works better than auto outside of direct sunlight, but there is still some grain and I'm not happy with this either.



Congrats on your decision to get the Panasonic, I'll keep looking.

I found something interesting with this camera when working with negative slides in super-macro mode. I suppose that it might work for any photo you´ll take: the white compensation. Camera has several preset white compensations, but there´s a custom mode. It´s quite simple to use and I noticed an improvement when used. Is a fact that auto mode is an issue on this model, but not if the right WB is selected instead of letting the camera to do this work.

For digitiizing negatives I made a DIY slide copier placed at about 1/2 inch for let it hold uncut slide strips. Then, WB was taken by using the final / leading orange image on the strip and...obtained pictures were reasonabily good (I tested with 20 years old negatives)

Well ya know, I don't mean this to be offensive but maybe it isn't the camera's fault, it might just be the operator. If nothing else works take the camera back and get a different camera

Well that largely depends on the quality you are shooting at. Fuji lists recording capacity for a 512MB xD card as follows:



Still images:

3072 x 2304 (F)   147

3072 x 2304 (N)   293

3072 x 2048 (3:2) 329

2288 x 1712   523

1600 x 1200   819

640 x 480   3995



You can do the math from there to reach the 2Gb/4GB capacities. But allow me to make an pitch for using several smaller cards, rather than one large one. Reason being, insurance. Any memory card can fail or become corrupted. And when you're on vacation the last thing you want is to lose the opportunity to take pictures until you can recover that media card with a software utility. If your card goes bad, swapping another one for it at that moment is of advantage so you can keep taking pics. Then, later when you're in front of your PC, you can use a utility like F-recover to get back your pictures and recover your card.



No need to lose the moment because you relied on one large one when several smaller ones can solve that problem.

Well said, Luigi. I agree wholeheartedly. If video is a priority, then you'll want larger cards. I would recommend, however, having separate camera for video, or at least a separate card. But I recognize that isn't always practical.

You may want to check out a company called Digital Foci. THey have a hard drive based gadget called the Picture Porter Elite ( digitalfoci.com/picture_por...  )which allows you to insert your card and copy your pictures over to it. I tested it for a trip to Florida and found it very helpful without having to lug a laptop around.

How do you get the Camera to accept a 2gb and make the camera operate?

Not to worry, it will work.

After purchasing the camera, use the accompanying CD to install 'Finepix Viewer' and launch the 'Image Capture' with the camera hooked to the computer.



Should you need assistance, just print out pages 133 and 134 of the manual.

No, you don't. Often, the software that comes with the camera tends to be bloatware. The hassle of trying to troubleshoot this is really a waste of time. My recommendation is that you invest $10 in a USB memory card reader. Plug your SD card into it and your mac will read it as a drive. Then it's a simple drag and drop onto your mac and you can use any program you want to manage your photos. Then delete the photos USING THE MAC and you're back to shooting pictures.



File management is much better suited to your computer and Iphoto while letting the camera do what it does best, take pictures.

Yeah the software that comes with the camera is junk.