11 out of 11 people found this review helpful.
Even better value than you think...
Date of Review: Mar 1, 2007
The Bottom Line: Quality flash-less pics with manual modes for fun, usefulness and flexibility.
[later addition to this review :
The camera is particularly good for kiddy pics because of it's extreme light-sensitivity, and thereby fast shutter speed (anti-blur). However I had thought that the shutter-delay, which is average-good, merited a 4 star rating, as it's not instance. However I've stumbled across the fact that the camera unusually supports a continuous focusing mode, in common with SLRs, which while draining the battery faster gives practically instance (SLR-like) performance. It needs turning on manually (see M-mode on the dial). I'm undecided whether to change the rating.
End of addition.
]
Original review :
What the other reviewers haven't mentioned I want to mention. This camera is much better value than its price would suggest.
But before that I'll quickly roll through the epinions writing guide:
Reason for buying : flashless photographs of people (rather than objects) because they look so much better: pro look, better colours, natural highlights - like for hair, proper depth to faces and less nasty shine etc. Candid shooting - sensitive enough that even nuisance AF beam only comes on in candlelight - and you can switch it off without many pictures lost even so. I also wanted portability/small size.
Experience : 4 months, I can't really do quite as many candid pics I wanted without a faster lense and greater zoom (but I've found a compromise which I'll mention below). But we aren t talking SLR, folks, and anyway the Ricohs and Kodaks of similar size with greater zoom don't have the ISO or have other significant compromises (the Ricoh is apparently very noisy). My candid shots solution: promising everyone that I'll only choose flattering pics, and then taking so many they start to forget I'm taking them.
Love: Expensive feel to camera. Nice flashless pics. I mean really nice. Beautiful. Had ooohs and aahhhs from relatives without prompting.
Hate: lack of histogram: boys need their gadgets, and histograms are one of them. Flash setting does not follow mode switch : switching modes (auto/semi-auto/manual) changes flash setting to last for that mode - flash has gone off in some embarrassing circumstances.
Would have liked: The holy grail : image stabilisation in order to multiply against high ISO (but not as important as high usable ISO since it copes with subject movement as well which IS doesn't). Auto-ISO800 (which the F31fd has, but at a price - not worth it to me). AUTO-ISO in manual modes.
Dislike : Contrast is too high. Some pics have darker clothing that sometimes come out featureless, and light areas that are too bright/blown-highlights. It's a price I am willing to pay.
VALUE!!!!!!
Why is this camera such good value? At the time of writing it is already stormingly cheap for what you get. I really can't believe my eyes. But on top of that.....
1)Image quality is so high that it is effectively equivalent to higher megapixels or greater zoom (via enhanced cropability). You get more than you thought you paid for. I read one pro review that mentioned that they took the shots again because the image quality was so close to SLR that they felt confused!!!! Now that's a cool story.
2)Memory card : so everyone hates xD cards. So do I since they are much less likely to work with standard card readers even with xD slots (though the supplied USB cable does the job anyway and fast). However as it happens Fuji have a reputation for producing normal mode jpegs that are very close in quality to fine mode jpegs. However the file size is drastically smaller for normal mode. The F30 is no exception: the difference is almost imperceptible. The upshot, as I found, is that for almost all purposes normal mode is great, and so a 512MB xD card can carry as many pics as a 1GB SD card for almost the same quality, but at a cheaper price (only a small difference though). So don't be too worried about xD cards. It's not going to cost you what you thought; just get a smaller card and only use fine mode in extraordinary circumstances. Disregard that advice if you intend to do a fair amount of videoing. And remember you must get "Type H" cards or this camera will disappoint for speed.
3)Battery : it's a Li-Ion. But this is a good thing! Why? Firstly there are no hidden costs : you don't need to buy batteries or a charger. Second this camera has a ridiculous 580 shots per a charge CIPA rating. That seems to be accurate. It means that you won't need to charge it much, you'll probably not run out of juice except in extraordinary circumstances, and you'll probably never need to buy a replacement battery even with natural capacity leakage. Plus you don't have the expensive disadvantages of NiMH : very fragile - break with a slight knock and that's the end of them - I've done it myself, and they leak charge jolly quickly which means you can't just pick up the camera and expect it to be working - sometimes it won't. Li-ion does not have these problems.
Finally : Fuji has an extended warranty deal that includes accidental damage (but not loss) that includes the first year. This is perfect for me as I'm clumsy and my brother's kids are a significant danger to this camera.
But really what is truly amazing about this camera are the pics. They are gorgeous by virtue of the natural lighting. My family are Catholics, and I have to go to a lot of events (baptisms, etc). This camera has been fab so far.
