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Fujifilm FinePix S1800 Review
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I love to photography, for better photograph better instrument is require. I like this camera, today this is one of the most popular camera in the market. The specifications are great and the main thing i like of it is its 3-inch display and Electronic viewfinder. It will easily fit in the palm of hand.
It looks like it doesn't support CR-V3 batteries.. Why not? It would only have needed a very small difference in the battery compartment layout, and would have done wonders for the power lifetime.
hy. i want to buy a camera, but i'm confused. i want to chose between nikon l110, fuji s1800 or fz38. my old cam is sony cybershot w80 and i want a camera especially for calitative pictures. if somebody who realy know about, please help me find it. thanks!
hi guys…i am planning to buy Fujifilm FinePix S1800…but b4 i had plans to buy Canon SX120…plz help me in choosing between this two cameras..as i want some manual features…but my budget is not much…
I am thinking of buying this camera, but I want to know if the video is compatible with iMovie, and how choosy the camera is with memory cards.
Hey guys. I just bought the Fujifilm Finepix S1800 and I love it! It is a great camera that takes great photos from a far distance and AMAZING features! My only issue with it is that when you take videos, you can hear the camera zooming in if you zoom in. It is not much of an issue, but I just thought I should let you all know.
I plan to buy this camera this month. The zoom wont be an issue for me during movie, as i have an HD video camera with 30x zoom. I plan to use both at the zoo this summer.
This is a gud camera if you want to do some creative works. Taking into consideration, the price , specifications, design etc. I have done some basic research on similar cameras of different brands and found this one the best in overall aspects. It has both auto and manual functions and the view-finder which you won't find in others usually .
Had the fine pix S1500, Used it on vacation in the Bahamas and loved it. So much that I sold it on Craigs list and bouthg the S1800 and so far I love that to
Bought this from Newegg on sale and its a great camera,Takes just as good pics as my Canon SX20.
Not very good video,The sound is awful,But after all its a camera not really a true video recorder.
I give it 5 stars!
i bought this camera recently and this is my first venture on a digital camera. i have taken some good shots with its auto mode. can somebody help me with some technique on its other features too….
I have owned this camera since May and find it absolutely incredible. Takes perfect shots almost every time and if it doesn't than it was probably user error. It say's in the instruction manual that you might hear the camera mechanism while zooming and recording. On Fujifilm's facebook page someone else brought this up and like Fuji Film said there "People don't normally zoom during recording- And if you notice in movies the zoom is not panned it is a series of different shots taken from different locations. So I highly recommend this camera 5 stars
This Camera is absolutely amazing the features that it offers is amazing its one of those camera's that will go with you for a while as you progress in photography and get more intellegent on its features having it only one day now i have compleately gone through every setting and have realized its capabilities. for a beginner this Camera is incredible, for an intermediate this camera is incredible and for an expert this camera is alright. i couldnt love the camera more. like mentioned above the only down falls are hearing the zoom in video and the battery issue. otherwize AMAZING and the price you cant beat.
thanks fujifilm
I think I will buy this camera, many good features but but in low price.
When buying an SD card for this, what speed is appropriate? Also, will it accept the largest capacity SD card, 32G?
I wonder why they didn't print that in the specs?
What on Earth is the difference between the S1800 and the S2500HD? I've been through both reviews and the specs and I can't work it out!
Robert, from what i can tell, the S2500hd has an hdmi port. I think that is the only difference
ANSWER @ Dagny Taggart—the info for which memory card you can use is found on the Fujifilm website. they have a compatibility page which shows us that SD card 512MB - 2GB, and SDHC memory Card 4GB - 32GB with class 4 recommended (especially for the HD video)Here is a link to the website. Hope this info is helpful to all.
Thanks for that Jeff - now I know that either will do for me.
Class 10 (high speed) SD HC cards will not work with the S1800. A "Card Error!" message will appear on screen and if you attempt to format the SD card, it will tell you the card is protected (when it isn't).
Failed with an Adata (brand name) 16G Class 10 SD HC card. Worked with a 4G Class 4 and 16G Class 6 card from MicroCenter.
The Classes represent the max speed. The higher the Class #, the faster the speed.
To john - i am using a class 10 high speed SDHC 32gb card in my S1800 and it works very well
I bought this camera two months ago and I am very happy with the picture quality and the camera as a whole.
I know it is list as being capable of HD video, but I have found that using a 16GB Sandisk card only gives 9 to 10 minutes of video. This is not an issue for me as I use a HD camcorder, but it is something to note if you plan to use this feature.
Richard.>So you're saying, if i get a 4GB card i'll only get a few seconds of high definition video recording? That is a huge issue for me as i plan to take alot of HD vids. I'll have to rethink about if i want this camera or not.
The 9m 16s video limit is per video clip not total capacity on my s1800. Each time I start a new video it gives the same 9m 14s limit. I haven't filled the SDHC card yet so can't say how much video it stores. Quality is great, sound is awful if you're not close to subject.
Good in daylight . Not so good in low light.
I just took my new s1800 to Key West . I loved it when it was daylight, but as soon as the sun went down it started slowing down . It could not focus fast enough to stay with the action. I finally gave up and went back to my trusty Canon A580.
If you were in a slower environment it might be ok , but it was truely taking 3-5 seconds to focus , even with new batteries. All this in the auto mode. It might do better in a manual mode.
OK, thanks Philimorr.
So i just got the S1800 delivered today and it was faulty. Would constantly shut off after taking two photos. Was using a Sandisk SDHC 4gb (class 4) mem card. Disappointed as i read similar experiences online. Returned it. Going to look into the S200exr now.
I bought this camera on October 4th 2010.
This camera And photographyblog both disappointed me very much because i bought it after reading the reviev from http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/fujifilm_finepix_s1800_review/image_quality/ FinePix S1800 Review.
The main problems of this camera is - the pictures are extreamly
underexposed,low saturated,dark though the LCD shows very shiny and
excellent picture but when ever u transfer it in to PC it shows worst quality of image…
now i do't understand where the main problem actually is,
either it is the problem of LCD Or the problem the Sensor?
i spent 14000/- rupee for this camera where as my selected
alternatives were like Nikon(P100),Canon(Canon PowerShot SX210 IS),
and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H55.
Conclusion: Please think 1000 times before buying this Camera.
Due to its Image quality.
Its not a Digi Cam its a camera like toy which costs 14000/-rupee.
Thanks Pritam. Your comment here made me decide not to get this camera today. As I as planning to buy it this afternoon. Thanks a lot!
I bought this camera just a couple of days ago.
It's great for the price. You can't expect great quality from $150 camera, you know.
It does everything that's needed in normal life well. you're not gonna make money by selling photographs taken with this camera, but it's great to capture part of your life and save memories.
In good lighting, this camera excels. In low light, noise is apparent, and loses its quality a bit, but once again, this is not a professional camera.
Zoom works well, and so does image stabilization. It wasn't too difficult to capture focus image at full zoom.
This is quite an upgrade from your normal point and shoot compact camera you see in everyone's pockets and purses.
Ok, Dagny Taggart, are the trains running on time?
To be short and straight to the point, it's image size is okay; but it's resolution is not more than 72 dpi which is the screen resolution. Please, check the image properties and you'll understand what I mean. You're missing a lot of details using this camera; I bought it and returned it immediately, I'm thinking about Nikon L110 or Canon SX120. Nikon by the way has a resolution of 300 dpi. As PRITAM GUPTA said "It is just a toy"; sorry but I was really depressed…
ok so i bought the camera, was very happy with it, good quality except the audio on the video recording ..... but it broke down. i sent it back, got a replacement and so far is going well. i guess it was just bad look. overall i'd recomend this camera to anyone taking up photography.
First off to all of the sad faced users. This is an entry level camera, it is a wonderful one up level from a point and shoot. If you want a camera for videos then buy a video camera. I have taken some great photos and enjoyed it. There has been one issue with it and maybe user error, once in awhile it will put a colored line in the photo typically comes in from the right side, it can be seen on the display screen ans well in the photo when downloaded. Has anyone had similar issues?
I'm confused - It says in the manual that the only aperture settings are f/3.1 and 6.4 or for telephoto f/5.6 and f/11. Yet the sample photos on this site show f/9 and others that don't fit with this. Is there another setting that allows these?
I'm thinking about buying this camera..can anyone tell me how the battery life is? I don't want to go through many batteries in one day on my vacation.
it depends, if you have a 'long life' battery set it could go for about three days (of very often use) in my expierience, but if you are going to use it ever day, id recomend getting rechargeable batteries.
Rechargeable AA batteries of at least 2500miH are (mine is Sony) quite good and can take more than 500 shots in my experience. Be sure to bring extra alkaline batteries though if it ran out of power. Good thing is you can buy AA alkaline batteries almost anywhere.
I can't figure out if this camera is for me. I don't have much money to spend so maybe it is.
I have a Kodak Z 1012 and it's very slow processing pictures. Is this camera FAST???
Richard, Rechargables are the way to go, it takes 4 but I always have an extra set on hand.
Matthew, You can get one on "home shopping network" at reasonable price and you can try it, if you don't like it send it back (free), As far as "fast" i think it is, taken some holiday pictures from a tri-pod at 10ft processed and ready to shoot again by the time i got back to look at the picture. This camera has a lot of great features the big dogs have, easy to use just take the time to cruise the manual.
i cant decide witch camera to buy this is one of them but is it good for its price?
Cameron, You need to set down and think about "what is it I want my camera to do for me" If you want an automatic then this will have way more features than you will need, If you want versatility of setting and have a slight above beginner knowledge of photograghy but don't want to break the bank on a 6-7 hundred dollar unit. for about 150.00 you will have a easy to use great photos with lots of features of the big guns. Had mine about 9 months now and love it, it has 18x digital zoom which = approx 540 zoom, if you want big dog camera get ready for big bill for similar lens zoom. go for it, if you don't like it give it next year for a gift. hope this helps
Hi. I just got the Fuji S1800 for an early Christmas present. I was wondering sometimes when i zoom it blurs, how could i fix that? Is it my fault or is it just what im taking the picture of?
I bought this camera recently, and the features that appealed to me most are (a) 18x zoom. Small mini tripod necessary (b) Viewfinder, which allowed me to see my subject when the digital screen went dark, due to sun behind me. (c) The gridline display which encourages good photo composition -thirds, etc. and help prevent non-level shots (e.g. horizons going uphill).
(d) The Display feature of automatically showing photos in the upright position.
As for batteries I use EverReady Lithium batteries. Lasts a very long time but a bit expensive. Very highly recommended camera.
Still use my analogue Olympus SLR camera;fast becomming a museum piece.
This camera is a joke. I bought it as a present to my relative. I myself have Panasoniz FZ35. S1800 cannot be compared to FZ35 at all. FZ35 is faster, has better focus, better lens, more aperture settings, better menu system, better noise handling, better IS, better image quality. Its build looks better as well.
Granted, the s1800 is a lot cheaper. What about image quality comparisons with similarly priced cameras?
Well… s1800 lags behind here as well. The thing is that s1800 uses quite poor noise reduction algorithms which smudges the image and reduces resolution. Even at 64 ISO, or 100 ISO the noise reduction is apparent and images (when looked @ 100% on the screen) look artificial - as if painted with watercolor. This is mostly apparent where there are a lot of fine details - peoples hair, animals fur, fine textures. It is not possible to turn this default noise reduction off.
Canon SX130IS and Pentax Option I-10 (which are priced very similarly as FinePix s1800) produce better pictures @100 ISO (I judged based on sample pictures here on photographyblog). Their pictures have more fine detail and less artificial look.
So s1800 (and its siblings S1600, S2500HD) are cameras to avoid, if you want good quality and good resolution pictures.
waiting, wondering.. what this camera is going to be like. i have been using fujifilm S5500 for many years. It has been good for me. Hoping that this one is going to be as good or better.
has anyone compared these????
I bought this camera for my daughter for xmas. It seemed to work fine initially but by the end of the day the LCD screen has become fuzzy with blue pixels flashing all over it.
Has anyone else experienced this? Should I be sending the camera back as faulty? Please let me know your thoughts as I have a rather disappointed daughter.
Santa brought this for my 9 year old - but we're having problems with a "read error" message - and I can't find any trouble shooting page in the manual
Please can any one help
B.J.s has this camera on sale for 129.99 is it really worth it
The problem with these Finepix cameras from Fuji does not seem to be one of their design nor their camera per se, but most certainly with their quality control, which seem to be zero or next to non existent. I have an S1800 and it works perfectly from the time I start using it till now; but at the same time others I know have had nothing but trouble from day one. Take it back if it shows any sign of trouble and keep taking back the troublesome camera until you have one that works. Better still don't buy this brand.
This is an absolutely great camera to use. My photos come out looking like that from a professionalone. The pictures are sharp and bright and I can see all minute details.
Defintely something to buy. Also it is also good to know all the cameras features. this helps in getting great shots.
I have just spent some serious time testing/comparing 4 cameras side by side. the 2 at the "top" ending up being the Panasonic ZS6/zs5 and the Canon SX 130 is.
( the other 2 the Samsung HZ30 W and the Fuji S1800. Samsung, more noise, "Better over all color balance?? To much noise if you blow pictures up. But Price, and best setting and features. It does not remember that you have forced the flash off. when you turn the camera back on. Then Fuji, took the Worst indoor shots! Dead Color and Noise. Outdoors good color?, Good focus in the center of the pictures, But focus gets soft as you leave the center of the shot. It also will often focus on something to the Side of what you are trying to take a picture of, if it is in front of the subject. Instead of focusing on what you want. I Dismissed the Fuji. the Samsung might be good for smaller prints, you can see the noise more and sometimes not quite as good of focus as the Panasonic and the Canon. But still usable, and probably the best control of all settings. and the most "toy settings features" If you don't want to blow up and frame your shots. I Probably a good camera to play with. I picked it up for only $149. It also has the most zoom 24mm with 15X optical. But If you doing that once in a life time trip down the grand canyon, or that "perfect shot" that you want to blow up and frame… do you want to risk it being on the Samsung… Samsung was also Slower than the Canon or Panasonic to start up and take a picture. If your not that picky about start up time. And only print 4"x6" pictures for photo albums, then Samsung might be the camera to bye. Great price. Lots of zoom 15x optical, Good color. Lots of Control and Setting/features to play with. I sadly have dismissed the Samsung and the Fuji for myself.)
As far as the quality of the shots for the "finalists" the Canon and The Panasonic go…
The Canon 130 clearly produced the Best Sunset shots. More Pure , clean, higher chroma blue" sky "More colors" better transition from colors/shading, Sunset) And Somewhat "better overall color" particularly with the "warmer colors. (late afternoon/almost sunset shot have a strong Golden Hue to the light though, can be nice, but a bit "stronger than it is in real life"? )
The Panasonic produces "dirty blue (brown blue or grey blue? Particularly at Sunset ) skies. less color/ limited color. and poorer "color shading and transition", and sometimes? often? "usually"?over exposed as it gets "closer to the sun, during sunset".
When you look at the "tone" of the picture produced by the Panasonic it seems colder and a bit more lifeless than the canon. A bit of a "bluish wash"? to the picture. say by a" half step or a step" Then canon appears to have a Golden warm wash to the pictures, say by 2 "steps"? The Canon will produce Much Better color for sunsets, and possibly more pleasing pictures printed straight from the camera. But the Panasonic may be More Accurate with Color.( Except with Sunsets) Just a little "cold" And have "better contrast".
So Canon 130 Much better sunsets. Warmer over all picture. But Panasonic ZS6/5 More accurate color? With "regular scenic pictures, NOT Sunsets, leaning towards "cool blue" and when you click on view full size on the computer, the Panasonic Had Clearer Sharper focus. and in the daylight. often "finer/better"? noise control. The canon never seemed to be able to lock in on that final focus, I mean Never. Obvious when viewed "full size" THE Canons focus was always "Soft/and not quite in "Final" sharp focus", when viewed Full Size. And its screen goes, a bit grainy indoors at night while Shooting. and while testing I used like 6 sets of new alkaline batteries. Canon says that is should take 130 shots with Alkaline. I could only get 40 shots out of a set of batteries. I asked Canon about the grainy screen indoors, when shooting, and the Not quite being able to "finish focusing" and the batteries only getting 40 shots instead of 130, to see if it was a defective camera. there answer was to tell me not to use digital zoom, (duh!) and to take the batteries out and reset camera. took the batteries out longer than they said. and it all had no affect on the focus ( or settings) results. And when addressing the shortcomings with the batteries, they would not answer my questions, they just told me "lithium ion" batteries would get 330 shots. Nice misdirection and Not answering my questions. and Kind of Meaningless when they already told me the alkaline would get 130 shots. Very Lame and Annoying. Does that mean the "lithium ion batteries will on get 100 shots? ... When It comes down to the bodies of the cameras. the Panasonic is the smallest and lightest. it has all the style of an old candy tin or cough drop tin painted black. Not much to hold on to, and you have to remember not to block the flash.. or the mics. or the focus assist light, etc. the Canon looks more like a "real camera", and weighs more. It will Not fit in your shirt pocket. maybe your pants pocket. ( it fit in mine. Get a belt case with closed cell foam padding and put it in there anyway.) But the Canon is the easiest to hold on to, it has a more raised pronounced chrome decoration/grip on the front, and some "notches on the back for your thumb , and it is easier to work, especially for "man hands" and the "selection wheel on top it less like to get changed accidentally. and the way it is designed. you naturally do NOT block the flash, the mics, and the focus assist lame. You would pretty much have to Try to interfere with those things while taking a picture. its screen is also adequate for outdoor shots in the sun. I just hope they don't dim/fade after use. We Really should Demand "eye view finders" on cameras costing $140 and up. Maybe we should just stop buying them until they do that, that and demand that they provide USEFUL, PRINTED operators manuals. a CD is Worthless "out in the field" canons manual is Slight better than Pansasonics, still…. Worthless. The canon Being bigger and heavier is a Relative description though.. Compared to my old Pentax point and shoot IQ90-WR Film camera that I carried all over the place, hiking and back packing, the canon is about "half the size", and weight. Or even less than half the weight?. It is also more stable if you want to set the camera on something, set the timer, and step pack to get in the picture. The lens train also extends out from the body on the Bottom of the camera, making it more stable when set on something. The Pansasonic is thinner and its lens train bulges out on the side instead, it is More wobbly and like to fall over when setting/balancing it on something.
The Canon also has the manual flip up flash. I like this. I don't know why many people don't. the flash will often/usual go off on Cameras, when "not needed" (setting off flash, and raising ISO is the "easy/lazy way out of dealing with dimmer light.) and "mess up the pictures" On the canon, if you don't flip up the flash, it will not go off on you. You just have to remember to put it up at night or indoors and leave it up for low light shooting Where it is Actually Needed.. You don't have to worry about the flash going off when you don't want it to. and the flip up flash raises the flash up above the lens train, minimizing shadow, and red eye.
Although at least on the Panasonic if you "force off the flash" it will remember to keep the flash off when you turn off and on the camera. But just by looking at the camera body you can not tell if the flash is on, or off. ( the Samsung hz30 W will Not remember if you forced of the flash, when you turn it off and on. very annoying. and an noisier/grainier camera. But the Samsung has the best "features/settings and price, and "over all color balance"? though. But not in the running with its noise level showing up more when you blow up your pictures)
Strangely at twilight. the Panasonic ends up with better color range, )In auto or ISO set also?) But Much More noise than usual, and noticably more noise than the canon at twilight. Some how they switch at twilight/Low light. The canons noise was Better, but then its "color range" range ( and contrast?) Went Dead.
The canon also uses Common AA batteries and hook up cable" which is nice. the Panasonic, "Proprietary"
Believe it or not I am leaning towards the Panasonic for it Sharper/ Clearer focus on landscapes,(and everything) and its better Contrast. I am hoping I will not regret losing the canons Clearly "superior sunset picture quality". For the clearer focus. And "better contrast of the Panasonic. And sometimes that "golden wash" of the canon MAY be a bit much. The Canon "gold wash" also sometimes makes shots of people look really " tan" as In .. " I didn't know you were Indian" or a kind of Jaundiced looking yellow.
Or the Cool blue white wash of cameras can often make people look a bit unhealthy/dead. Hopefully I will be better with the less heavy "blue wash" of the Panasonic?
I also just when taking last shots. I saw somebody with their dog and I put the canons "wheel" on kids/pets later I looked at that shot.. Awful! Blurry! and Noisy? .. And then their is canons whole lack of support on the questions of battery, lack of focus, and screen. My questions were Not Properly addressed. Oh and it might be nice to be able to put the Panasonic in the shirt pocket at a party or something. Although the Canon handles "easier/better" And really is not big or heavy compared to my old film point and shoot camera that did Not even have a 1/4 or a fifth of the zoom of the Canon.
the Panasonic has a Wider zoom lens that takes a somewhat Noticably wider picture. 25mm equiv. for Panasonic 28 MM equiv. for Canon. The Canon will zoom in tighter… I'm thinking the extra wideness will be more useful then the extra zoom…?
To bad none of these Digital point and shoots will take as good of a picture as my old, less expensive, film point and shoot camera.
For some Annoying reason the Canon has the most Limited "pictures size/format" settings. your are limited on the "4:3 or 3:2 or 16:9 setting" options, and the mega pixel settings… for example if you want to take a 16:9 picture to see on your plasma screen TV. You have to take it only in 10MP size, and eat up your memory space on Everything. when the TV Can't even show 2MP or detail.
So, Panasonic, a Little bit cold/blue, Sharper pictures better contrast, smaller and lighter, but more "difficult" to handle. Canon can't quite finish focusing/soft. (at full size) Overly warm? ("more off/increase on "golden warmness", than Panasonic is on "cool blueness" But Canon takes Superior Sunsets! ( and that's probably it for its superior shot taking ability?) "Bigger and heavier" but "easier to handle, less likely to block things or accidentally change the Canons settings. And it has a flip up flash. ( Panasonics wheel is "not that bad" at accidentally changing, although it may have been getting easier with use…,
Samsungs unintentionally changes wheel settings noticeably easier)
but what is with that battery life on the Canon? Well I stayed up Way to Late, and I'm tired and forgetting stuff. I am going to bed. I spent allot of time and energy checking out, testing and comparing these cameras. hope that was helpful information. And honestly, I am kind of let down with the new digital cameras. my 5 or 6 year old 6MP Kodak camera will take much better indoor pictures with Noticeably Less noise/"smudging" and Better Color than these 2 (4) new "better" cameras.
Frustrating! I am not sure with what new camera I will end up getting. My Kodak apparently just quit today. Dang I Need Sleep! Good Luck!
It is kind of a tough choice between the Canon and the Panasonic…As I may have already said, as of today… I am leaning towards the Panasonic as my next camera. If the Canon Could "finish focusing", (Problem Obvious when viewed on computer, "show full size") and get a good , clear, Sharp focus like the Panasonic… I would probably get the Canon for $179.99 (on sale) instead of the Panasonic that will cost me $219.00 at the moment. ( who knows maybe the Canon I had was Defective, but no help from Canon on that question.)
When it comes to "consistent photo quality" It Really seems to be hit or miss with these digital cameras
. Just More hit or miss with some than others.
OH and if you decide on the Panasonic "ZS5" , the "ZS6" can be found for about the same price as the ZS5. It is primarily a ZS5 with Possibly an extra button on the back, and Maybe A couple of Minor technical differences? or not… The Primary difference being the ZS6 Does have the bigger?
And Better 3" LCD screen of the ZS7 with "460k dots instead of the 230k dots of the ZS5.
And it is not to hard to find the Canon SX130is for around $180 in "real live stores".
STRANGE MEMORY NOTE THOUGH… I took the shots on finest settings and the 12 MP setting. the Canon SX130is shots usually came out to be 2.something MB (ie 2.8MB 2.4MB etc.) While the Panasonic ZS6/zs5 would be 5.3 MB etc. The Panasonic's "5.3 MB" seemed more appropriate, since my 6MP Kodak shots come out to be around 3.2MB. I'm wonder how Doubling the MP on the canon is ending up taking up Less memory space, than the 6.1MP Kodak, and about half the memory space of the Panasonic, with the same settings(fine & 12MP) Is there not enough Info on the Canon shots to blow them up well. the Canon 2.8MB seemed very strange compared to the Panasonic 5.3MB for the "same shots"?.....
Does anybody Know anything about that?
which will be better….....Finepix S1800 or Sony Cybershot H55?????
I couldn't tell you anything about the sony. But the Fuji took HORRIBLE Indoor shots("low light shots") It was very Noisy/grainy, dark, and color went away, It made the Worse indoor shots of any of the 5 cameras I've "studied".
Out doors in the Sunlight. It worked much better. Nice color. Good clear/sharp focus. Then the you notice that the focus goes "soft" when you move out of the center of the frame.
Its shape does give a nice grip, especially for one hand. But it appears that if you don't have Small hands it would be pretty Easy to block a focus lens, or the flash lens while holding the camera at its grip. You always will have to pay attention hold the camera "not quite right", "naturally" to remember not to block what is positioned there at the top of the camera. It also has a "problem focusing on what you want." if something is sticking in the frame to the side of what you are trying to take a shot of, but in front of your "subject" it will often/usually focus on the material on the side, and not what you want your picture to be of. Annoying at best, quite often if you don't notice it on the little screen your shot will be ruined.
I Blew the Fuji S1800 camera off.
I would look at the Canon XS130is. But the unit The Canon had did have issues with soft focus,not quite able to "finish getting sharp focus" Might have been a defective unit. it is often on sale in the same price range of the Fuji.
or spend some more money on a panasonic ZS6 or ZS5 ? It's a tough choice. But I would take a Serious look at the canon and the panasonic.
You could look for my long comment on those cameras above, from—- "Paying Attention"
I'm now totally confused: Earlier comments all lean to the Fuji S1800 being brilliant for the price, but most recent comments all slate it for soft focus & excessive noise in low lighting. I may still buy it on the basis that latter reviewers are being excessively picky, and if I want to shoot 'art' photos I still have my analogue SLR.
Re the comments on video performance: I shoot short films on my own 3CCD camcorder & my film club's Sony Z1. If you are serious about film you won't rely on a digicam "extra feature" to record your latest opus. I have been in situations where I want to record something fairly unique & don't have a camcorder to hand, so end up using my mobile phone as a better than nothing option. I feel sure that whatever film quality the S1800 delivers must be better than that!
Re comments on poor sound & zoom: If you are filming anything serious you'd use an off-camera mic anyway. My 1st digital camcorder was pretty clunky & picked up zoom noise, but it's a rule in filming that you only use zoom to set the frame you want to shoot in. If you want to get closer to your subject mid-shoot you have to track, ie physically move the camera closer, as that gives an on-screen result much nearer to what our eyes do…
Hallo from Germany,
i own the Finepix S1800 since mid October 2010. Got it new from ebay for 115 €, and I am very pleased with it. The pictures are sharp (over the whole focal range), colours very natural. I have absolutely no problems with focus, blurs etc. I started my "photograph career" back in the late 70's with a Canonet28, later on a Canon T50, then two Canon T70, which I still own and use. Lenses range goes from 24mm up to 300 mm (what a monster!). During the last few years several no-name digital point&shoot; cams. But now it was time for a change, I didn't want to carry such a lot of equipment with me anymore. First of all, I would have picked a Panasonic FZ38, in my opinion still a benchmark in the superzoom-scene. But it was sold for around 300€, quite a lot of money. I tried several superzooms in the local camera store (Olympus, Nikon, Canon, Panasonic, Fuji) and with the S1800 it was love at first sight. Very easy to use, well built ergonomic body. I think the people who complain about noisy pictures in low light use either the fully-automatic setup or choose iso-levels above 400. If you change to P-setup and choose the right iso, white balance etc. you get wonderful pictures. Night shots (on a tripod) are always very good. I can't complain about sharpness, made a lot of shots of birds in winter. Distance 7 meters, zoom at max, without tripod: you can see every single fibre of the feathers! I truly can recommend this cam, I think you won't find a better one for this price. Here is my personal pro / con list:
pro:easy and intuitive to use / good-very good picture Quality / well built / use of standard AA-cells / very long battery-lifetime (recommended use of eneloop-accus, really great) / effective image-stabilization / very good for macro-shots (almost a microscope ....) / capable flash / automatic barrel-distortion correction / last but not least its look (there are so many ugly cams out there)
cons: no hot shoe / display should have a better resolution / display is noisy in low light (but the pics are ok) / no remote connector / focus is a bit slow in low light / several not useful setup-options / no manual focus
I don't use the video-mode often, but the few minutes of video sequences showed a satisfying result on the TV-screen.
Thumbs up for this camera! Hope it will last a long time.
Yes the fuji did have nice color outside and decent final focus. Sometimes a Little slow to get it.
The focus was nice and sharp in the center but getting "soft" all around outside of the center of frame. Maybe a the same level, Or a Little Worse(?) than the canon did. But the canon did it across its soft focus thing across the entire field of the shot. A defective canon? I don't know. (this is obvious when viewing the shots on your monitor at "show full size". or at least it is when you're comparing it to a camera that is producing clear,sharply focuses shots.) The Fuji took a nice shot out doors But Indoor it was by far the worst! so much noise. and "no color" it all just went "dead" If you care about getting any kind of "snapshots to turn out good indoor. (ie, Dim Light) This is NOT the camera for you.
That and the fact that it will OFTEN/USUAL lock on something of to the side of the shot, but Closer to you than the actually subject. Was enough to "blow Off the cameara" well that and the fact that you can get cameras Like the Canon SX130is etc, with 12x zoom, smaller body, and better indoor shots for around the same price. If you don't mind the soft focus. Which your are going to get all around on the sides of the Fuji too, Maybe worse. I don't know how big you have to blow your shots up before this will bother You. ( and who knows the Canon MAY have been defective.. soft focus, and only 40 shots per set of new alkaline batteries.) Then Canon may also produce More Pleasing over all color quality right out of the camera. And Better indoors. The Fuji was NOTICEABLY worse indoor?dim light than the other 4 cameras.
Reason I did not Keep the Fuji.
1. HORRIBLE indoor/"dim light" results.
2. Soft focus when you look around the "outer thirds of the picture".
3. Issues with "deciding on what to focus on/Focusing on stuff in the periphery of the picture instead of subject." and sometimes slow focus.
Sure you can remember to lock focus on what you want, and then recompose your picture. But do you want to have to bother remembering to do that "all the time"... If you don't care about indoor?dim light" shots, and are pretty much only going to print "4x6" snap shots for photo album. This might be a camera for you. should be able to find the Fuji S1800 for LESS then $179 now or soon. since its replacement has been out for while. Ah the but then that issue of it focusing on things of to the side, in the foreground. Instead of on the subject… Annoying. And bad news if you don't catch it until later.
And and in general… be "suspicious" when people qualify an evaluation, with the "disclaimer" —- "nice for the price" I once heard somebody say a Yugo is nice… for the price… And remember , a moped is good transportation, for $75 ;-)
Oh yah… And Most ANY camera will look like it produces good pictures. IF You are only looking at the results on the little LCD screen on the back of the camera. It does not and can not show much.
A $69 camaera will look pretty much the same as a $260 dollar camera. You have to blow up and PRINT your shots.
or at least look at them on your computer,monitor, and scan around the screen in "show full size mode" to get an idea of what kind of shots the camera is taking. Looking at the screen on the back of a camera (or a "picture frame display screen") Will only tell you how much you like the little screen on your camera. It will Not/can not tell you Picture Quality.
I Know, It Is So Frustrating!
And consider the size of the camera. sometimes they get to small for "man hands" to work right/easily. and then sometimes they get to big to have on you, you'll always be setting them down somewhere, and not have them around to take the shot. Kind of like with the Fuji S1800 or "real SLR's" :-O ;-) Its nice if a camera can at least fit in your pants pocket.
Good Luck!
I have a Canon Power Shot A480 that was given to me as a gift about a year and a half ago. It's a cam that you could probably by now for 70€ or even less. There is even a review here on it(look in canon reviews of 2009). At that moment the price tag was on 130€.
The cam is small and has a pretty nice design to it. I thought to myself that being a 10MPX camera it should take great pictures, and it did.
It does have some probems indoors though, but they have a solution, or using the flash or using a tripod and the indoor scene mode that most cameras have. Or even night snapshot or low light function.
People think they can shoot any picture in Auto mode and the truth is you can`t!!!!!!!
Thats why most cams come with "P"(program mode), rhis means you can alter the ISO that should always be in the low end and use your flash in slow sync. For moving objects use the flash too.
In low light or night mode open the shutter for more time, my canon can open it for 15 seconds for still images.
I bet anyone that the Finepix S1800 can make incredible pictures at night and indoors.
If you want to see the pictures my cheap Canon can take register in this website and look for my nickname. http://www.clubcela.com There are very good photographers in this web, but most of them are just normal people that like to take pictures of abandoned places.
Got this S1800 for Christmas. Worked well until today 1/27/2010 when got read error when i went to play back pictures i took today. Was able to play back all pics taken prior to today. Went thru trouble shoot ie clean contacts on memory card ( fuji card 8 gb ), re formatted the card. Still got read error. Tried using camera with just internal memory and could not playback pics. Got blank monitor and indicator light flashing orange/green. Bought from Amazon. At this point I am going to see one of my camera expert buddies and see what he says. maybe a bad memory card? has anyone had any experience returning things to Amazon?
Dennis Murtha.
You might have an error on your Sd card. I had this problem with my Canon A400 a few years ago. I didn't work by any means until I put a new Sd card in it.
I hope its just the SD card, and if it isn`t, I hope you have good luck sending it back to amazon.
I see people have problem with battery's, I found out the Lithium battery work's splendly with my S1800. I do have a question, I have a basic manual that came with camera, and it keeps referring in some area's to page 97 etc. and I cannot find another owners manual. Tell me where to go find the actual owners manual with more then 43 pages? thanks
Camera not bad. However, i've had to return it three times already. First time there were missing oixels (white blank areas) on the lcd screen. That was corrected. Now there are purple / blue vertical lines on the display and no amount of adjusting will cure this. So back it went for repairs. Came back with identical problem. When shooting at night, there are a multitude of blue pixels all over the display. This is so severe that the camera cannot be used. Admittedly they do not show once downloaded, but this should not happen anyway. Perhaps Fuji has an inherrant problem with the display that they will not admit to. When the camera comes back from repairs, if these faults are still present then i want a full refund. I will NEVER by a Fuji product again. If one was given to me for free, i will give it back. I am most dissapointed. I will be buying either a Nikon or a Canon next. No more Fuji, thank you very much.
i have fujifilm pinepix camera butwhen i slide the pictures it stocked up and would no longer worked.
this fujifilm pinepix S1800 will stock up when viewing the pictures and has no good shoots without using the flash even in an open area. with blurry shots and dull shots if not using flash….
I sold my Fujifilm hs10, too much camera and heavy. Pictures with the S1800 are just as good, doesn't have all of the bells and whistles but takes very good quality pictures after all that's the bottom line, right? This camera proves that you don't have to go out and spend a small fortune for a digital camera. Price doesn't seem to produce results that are very apparent, at least not between these two models. I even see better full zoom results with the S1800, pictures are a lot sharper.
I bought a S1800 at the end of 2010 and am very disappointed in the quality. Basic problem is ALAISING. I use Faststone as my photo storage area and this has a smoothing feature which eliminates the alaising effect so when printed out photos are clear. However some friends and I often go away on holiday and we always have a show and tell of our days photos which are displayed on the accommodations TV. Mine are absolutely terrible because of the alaising effect. Displaying them on my 50inch TV is a nightmare. The best way to describe the effect is - imagine a brick wall, all the grout lines are all jaggered instead of being smooth. I sent the camera back to the supplier (camera was bought as a parallel import) they said this is how cameras are. After much discussion with them they agrred to replace camera which duly arrived (different serial number) but it is just the same.
If I take the sd card out and insert it into the
Tv - perfect picture. I also have a Panasonic
DMC l23 and if I put the card in there and connect to the tv - perfect picture. The alaising effect happens on all camera settings.
Can anybody throw some light on ths problem.
I recently bought a parallel import S1800 and am having trouble with Alaising. Viewed on the tv straight lines are all jaggered (example a brick wall all the pointing joints are all jaggered). When a photo first displays on the tv it is perfect them a milli second after the alaising effect appears. If I take the sd card out and insert it directly into the tv I get a perfect picture. Also if I put the sd card into my old panasonic dmc - lz3 and connect that to the tv I get a perfect picture. The supplier of the camera has replaced the original with another (different serial numbers) and that does the same.
The problem occurs on all camera settings.
If I enlatge the mage by 1 when displaying it on the tv the effect seems to disapear.
Any ideas folks?
how did u get aperture f/7.1 or f/10? i can only get f/3.1 and 6.4 as it says in manual, please help.
I am taking a motrocycle trip down the east coast and am considering the fujis1800. I have a kodak which i hate, batteries used up in like an hour.
I am looking for quick shutter speed, good zoom image stabilization and a camera that i dont have to spend a fortune on batteries.
Take a look at the panasonic ZS5 or ZS6 or ZS7.
or the Canon SX130 IS or something like that. (both are 12 mega pixel (actually more pixels than you need/to many pixels.) And a good amount of optical zoom! 12X.
the canon does not get good life out of alkaline double A's, (40 shots instead of the 130 listed) But it is more "full size". Looks more like a camera, instead of a cough drop tin box. It is still smaller than my old pentax point and shoot 35mm film camera, and lighter. (noticeably!) but it is big enough to have easier to work buttons, easier to grip, and you pretty much have to try and block the flash or anything else. easier grip, and easier to operate buttons. especially for man hands.
I ended up with the Panasonic ZS7, which I am still checking out to make sure I did Not get a defective unit.
I did not get the Canon because I MIGHT have gotten a defective one. and I did not get a "legitimate" reply from Canon about the questions in my email. So the Canon was dismissed. ( not that I have heard great things about panasonic support.)
It could com down to How Large you want to blow up the pictures, and how nicely you want to camera to operate and handle in your hands. (especially if you are a man.) The canon looks more like a 'real camera" and Has the nice flip up flash which helps eliminate red eye, and the flash going off on its own, when you don't want it to. And digital cameras like to "cheat" and take the easy way out when taking a picture, and set off the flash, when you don't need it to, or want it to.. and "messing up the picture" . they use flash instead of doing the "work" of adjusting aperture and exposure time, etc. Although you can select the Force flash off on the Panasonic, and it will remain off. when you turn the camera on and off. the Samsung competing model of these cameras would not do that. it would set the flash to come on, when you turned the camera off, and then back on. Very Annoying!
I liked the Feel and look of the Canon better than the panasonic. But you can fit the panasonic in your shirt pocket. But not the Canon, it can only go in a pants pocket, or in a belt bag/case where the cameras really belong.
Then real problem with the me not getting the Canon was the Short battery life, 40 shots with ALKALINE batteries, instead of the 130 rated for alkaline. Although i KNOW someone with an older canon with only six times zoom. and he puts the… ahh I can't think of the type right now, I am tired. its not lithium ion recharcheables,, it the other long lasting , nor rechargeable, and not cheap batteries. Something like cadmium,(but no) oh well…. he gets MANY Hundreds of shots out of those. And the rechargeable lithium ion batteries should get you at least 150 - 220 shots out of these cameras, I would hope/think.?
The Strangely short battery life of the canon, and then fact that when I looked at its pictures on the monitor at "show full size" display option. the Canon looked obviously not as sharply/clearly focused, as the panasonic. no matter the settings. And the canon really blurred on the 2 Pet setting shots I took. but who knows if that was set up right. And the camera MAY HAVE BEEN DEFECTIVE. But the Shoddy reply from canon when I asked about these problems, and those problems. Made be buy the Panasonic instead.
Overall without doing any processing on the picture. the Canon had the most PLEASING color. AND BLEW the competition away on sunset shots. But at everything else during the day, the panasonic was better at. (defective canon?) ALTHOUGH at Twilight things reversed, the panasonic got better color and more noise/graininess , the canon took less noisy/Grainy shots, and its color got flatter. But who knows, the canon may have been a defective unit.
I would have gotten the canon if it did not have those "problems/defects. and I had found it on a sale for cheaper at the time.
I have looked at the fuji s1800 and 2800 or whatever they were calling them, and the Samsung "competing model".
I would definitely get the Panasonic or the Canon over all the competition. they both have a good amount of optical zoom. 12x I think the panasonic has a wider angle wide end of the lens, that will be noticeable/usable. 25MM Wide equivalent for the Panasonic, and 28mm wide equivalent for the canon, if I remember correctly. ( Both lens ranges are so much nicer than my old/first camera, a Kodak with 3X zoom, and starting at a 39mm equivalent.) I would Not get the fuji. Strange picture quality, not up to" par" And the smaller lighter size makes them easier to have with you/on you, and ready to take a picture, And easier and lighter to carry around.
I got mine to take hiking and be out doors. the panasonic also has a " fast" start up, focusing and picture taking time, for a point and shoot. the Samsung was noticeably Slower than the panasonic and canon. the canon started up and took pictures a pretty good pace to, If I remember correctly. but MAYBE not quite as fast as the panasonic, but still nicely usable.
ease of use , and the size of the pictures you want to be able to blow up, may be the deciding issue between the panasonic, and the canon, and if that was a defective canon I had , and the focus just as sharply as the canon… then it could just com down to price and handling/size. I would have gotten the canon if the unit I had would have focused as well as the panasonic, when viewed "full size" at the time, the canon was cheaper. I looked at and tested/compared the 'best of the cameras for in my price range,with the amount of zoom I wanted" and I narrowed it down to the panasonic or the canon.
the bit of extra zoom with the fuji, will probably Not make up for its "questionable picture quality. And reliability"?
Definitely not worth the extra bulk. With the amount of zoom available on the point and shoots on the Panasonic and the Canon. you don't have to put up with the extra Bulk and hassle of carrying around the bigger "toy wanna be SLR cameras" You wont want to have to cary the fuji around its bigger case. and you probably will miss some shots from not having it on you/with you… Oh and on the fuji I did notice it wanted to lock focus on "junk" on the side of the shot, but in the foreground, And not on the subject a bit further away. so making the "important" stuff in the picture blurry. It would lock focus on a bit of branch or something up close , and off to the side. but your "subject material a Little further of in the "distance" would be out of focus/blurry. Ruined pictures, and a hassle to have to remember to adjust for. And really bad if you don't notice your subject getting blurry on the little LCD view finder on the camera, and then finding out when you get home, that your shots are out of focus and ruined. Oh and if you want to get More "candid shots of people" you are better of with the smaller cameras too. I do believe they also attract Less attention from Thieves…
Especially if you can put the camera in you're pocket instead of setting it on a table.
Oh and if you are concerned about such things, the canon seemed to have a nice lens. and the Panasonic has their lenses made for them by the Leica "lens company". And I have heard it from multiple 'relatively reliable sources" that if you buy a Leica camera, Panasonic is actually making the "guts" of the camera for Leica. But you are going to pay more for it with it being "branded" by Leica.
If you get the canon be sure to get the 130 not the older similar looking 120 or 110. (SX130 IS? I THINK that is its model number.)
Good Luck!
i m new to photography i have recenly generated wild life photography can i use this camera for same purpous if not which camera will u guys refer for newbies.
I have no problem with this camera. I bought it from street retailer in my country (indonesia) about $140.
Shooting the moon is excellent, shooting landscape is good, shooting macro is good (excellent if you know how to shoot macro), shooting at lowlight is ok. I'am pretty dissapointed with its slow performance of auto focus. But, overall, if you understand how to shoot, fujifilm s1800 is an excellent cheap versatile camera.
This is my album about fujifilm s1800:
OH I forgot to mention,, the fuji 1800 by far had the worst indoor shots,("low light" & flash photos).
Color went all "dead", and pictures were noisy/Grainy. the worst of the 5 cameras I took the tests shots with.
this camera is a great one with compatible features in low rate of money….but my only problem is when i connect it with PC and open the images,they get blurred.
Ador Roy , you are funny. :-)
The s1800 is Not a great camera. IF you just look at the pictures on the little LCD screen on the back of the camera. Which tells you Nothing. Just about everything looks good. Even Bad shots can look good or alright on the back of a camera. :-)) you will see how bad the shots really are when you print them/blow them up. Or look at them on a larger monitor ie. Computer screen. Computer screens do not necessarily have the detail to to truly show you If or which shots will have the best..? Print quality. but if your comparing cameras side by side they can often show you which camera Is taking the better/clearer picture. Or if a camera is just taking blatantly obviously Bad Shots. (when not just viewed on the back of the camera.)
And if you are looking at indoor shots/low light shots. It took by far the worst indoor shots of the 5 cameras I compared side by side.
That or your monitor is bad. Do just the picture from your S1800 look bad on your Comp. monitor?
Or do all pictures from all sources shown on the computer look look bad? if so you have a bad monitor or something.
If its limited to only pictures from the 1800 camera, then maybe the problem is you need to reload its "operating disc drive or something. (probably not the problem but maybe)
More than likely the real problem is that the S1800 is NOT a great camera, of the 5 I tested side it was down at the bottom of the list. If your concern is indoor, or in turn, probably all low light situations. It was by far the WORST.
If your judging the picture quality of a camera by looking at the back of a camera's monitor LCD screen. YOu are Wasting your time. All you can tell is the quality of the LCD screen that way. A camera that takes better pictures with a "worse screen" will make You think it does not take good pictures. a camera that takes the same quality pics as another camera, but has a better LCD screen. ( more "dots per inch") will make you think it takes a better picture. etc, etc. but the screen on the S1800 gets even the worst at night/dim light, I mean the unit I had got super grainy and "sizzle".
Don't be Fooled, the problem is probably just the the S1800 is not a great cameera, there are other point and shoot cameras that will get you better pictures, and 12x optical zoom. I have heard that Fuji does make another " toy wannabee SLR Looking camera" that is Supposed to ( i have never checked it out) above average pictures? But it costs a Whole Bunch More that the S1800. and much more than other good point and shoots.
Good look. And do NOT count on the LCD monitor on the back of a camera, to "tell you" if the camera takes good shots. If you could do that, you could just go spend $69 on a camera and call it quits. :-)) ;-)
One thing you may still try before getting rid of the camera( I would get rid of it and get a panasonic or a canon) is to go into the menu and see if there is is a sharpness setting you can raise. ON some cameras this can really help A lot. I cant remember if the s1800 has that option or not. It also will have a "picture quality" setting somewhere, make that the highest and give it a try.
I don't know what you do with your pictures, If you like to scenic outdoor pics, and blow them up, frame them and hang them on the wall. or if you just want to take snap shots of birthday parties for a photo album… You know what either way, it just is not the best camera for either one of those things. If you mainly want "party shots" for photo albums, you don't need to carry that "big clunky" thing around for that, Just get a little point and shoot with a "wide angle lens".
For outdoor scenic shots, get a smaller easier to carry around point and shoot camera with 12X Optical zoom or so, that also produces Better Quality shots than the s1800. Such as some from panasonic or Canon. Or you could go spend a lot more money checking out the Better " toy SLR Looking" camera that Fuji Makes.
And remember If any salesmen try to get you to judge a cameras picture quality by the display on the back of the camera, they do Not know what they are talking about. Or they are try to "play you for a sucker". Remember the only thing you can tell by looking at the screen on the back of a camera is.. How good of a screen the camera has. NOT the quality of the picture the camera can produce.
I think not of all thing in this world are perfect,include camera. I read the review and all comments in here,some people say good,some people say bad…it's normally coz like i said there's no perfect things,so if you want get some cameras with lower price,perfect features and perfect images,maybe you must build your own factory.
Wise words @badinda, thank you :)
I just wonder a man who devastatingly slams this product. Was he an ex-fujifilm-co worker? :D
Well, i can say, everybody can say: "comparing with Leica X1, fujifilm x100, Sigma DP2, etc… this fuji S1800 can produce better picture than those expensive digicams."
Everyone can say anything without proof it! :D
But no, i wont say anything without proof it my self. I said s1800 is a good camera and i can proof it. Check my facebook link i've wrote above! Theres some excellent macro dragonflys picttures. If you said s1800 is bad, can you show me any macro pictures from competitor camera that can beat my macro shots? Proof it!
Iam sorry for my english*
Pictures tell you more objective rather than language
Hi friends,
i personally reviewed this Camera, Its one of the best budget zoom camera with lots of features inbuilt, Picture quality is good at both Day and night time.i have tested the camera by taking shots in different light conditions and posted in below link.
I compared this camera side by side with 4 other cameras. 3 of its "contemporaries", and an at least 5 year old.(6 year old?) 6 megapixel 3x zoom Kodak. (the cheaper, OLD 6MP kodak usually beat them all in indoor/low light shots, and in other conditions. it just does Not have enough zoom for me. and I would like to have 8 or 9 mega pixels, for making "large" prints to frame, and put on the wall. But the picture quality on these small sensor cameras go down more and more as they jack the pixel count up above that 6 MP mark. they should not make "small sensor" point and shoot cameras go above 9MP they need to work on 9MP (or 8MP if they can't get it to work "right" beyond that size) sensors producing good prints. and not trying to jam more and more pixels on to sell to "Suckers" and as a result lowering the picture quality.)
Then cameras were set on "smart auto" or Intelligent auto" etc. As most people will be using them that way. I boosted the sharpness when I could, and set "Fine detail". additional indoor shots may also have been taken, set on a pre-programed "scene setting", if available.
the Fuji 1800 was by far the Worst for taking indoor pictures. all color went Dead, "brownish" just plain BAD! The view screen went to coarse, "dancing grain/noise, the lower the light. it also had a strange Nice Clear Sharp focus in the center third of the picture field. then all of the outer thirds of the shot go "Softer/Fuzzier" if you blow up your pictures and frame them, seeing your pictures "go soft" on the outer thirds of the picture, might really Annoy you.
it also had issues on what it locked focus on. ( and often slow to lock focus) It quite often locked focus on some minor object on the side of the shot, closer to you. and then let the Main subject/rest of shot, go blurry. A big problem if you don't notice that on the little LCD screen on the back of the camera. Not good to get home and find out your shots are Garbage.
there were other problems too…
Test shots were compared or judged by viewing on a computer screen, on " show full size" setting. or by printing. You can NOT judge picture quality of any camera, by looking at the little LCD screens on the back of a camera. they do Not show that much detail.
Even looking at a little snap shot 4"x6" print Might not show you that much detail. Then again if you just want to take little snap shot pictures of birthday parties and stuff for a photo album. What the heck are you looking at a "big clunky" camera with 18x zoom or more, for?
And all this may be a mute point. As the store I saw the Fuji 1800 in already has it replaced with a new Fuji, that Looks better, and says it has a the Next Generation Sensor. who knows if it will be better or worse. The trend of trying to jam more and more ( Excessive) pixels on the little sensors is having a Bad affect on picture quality. Especially in Low light/indoors. this excessive pixel count has a bad affect on "low light" Graininess, color, exposure and contrast issues. It is not as bad in bright light out doors, but still has adverse affects.
LOOK FOR THE LOWEST MEGA PIXELS YOU CAN GET THESE DAY. If you do not have the time to do a test comparing "similar quality cameras" the Odds are you will get better picture quality from the LOWER mega pixel camera. And these days. the Lower Mega pixel camera will still have Too Many pixels. (regarding "point and shoot" cameras)
Not only is the excess pixel count producing lower picture,quality. It is eating up more space on your cameras memory. Wasting more space on your computer, and eating up more space and not letting you save as many pictures on a single CD. Kind of Bad all the way around. Especially now that they are making cameras with enough optical zoom. that you really hardly ever need to crop and blow up your shots.
Hi friend,
I love this camera, It has 18x zoom lens, Good resolution, at awesome night mode pictures. Excellent and colorful pictures at Budget price .
I personally tested this camera by taking photo's at different light condition,You can see it by clicking the below link.Sure you will like it
I have tested macro shooting with this digicam, like i said before (with samples), its results are awesome!
Now let me show you another results on macro shooting, this time with cheap magnifier 100 mm attached in pvc pipe 4"-2" (total: less than 3 US dollar)
here it is: http://www.flickr.com/photos/63466319@
pictures speak louder than words
FujiFilm finepix S1800 or S2950?
Hi i am a beginner to photography and want to take hd picture on the go on general topics, I am planning to buy one of these cameras for my birthday, and wandering what is the best spec and is it worth the £25 pound extra??
I've been using this camera for a few months now. My 'serious' SLR is an expensive Minolta Dynax with 35mm film, but I was looking for a much lighter, more portable digital device which would still give me reasonable quality shots & the option of manual overrides. I didn't go for a digital SLR as I don't need to change lenses if the zoom quality is OK and they are all much bigger & more expensive.
For the price I think this Fuji delivers amazingly good quality pics. I've mainly been shooting close-ups of distressed trees & results seem very crisp on screen at least. I've just ordered an A3 canvas print, so will see if that is still good quality.
The telephoto end of the zoom is a bit more challenged - prone to shake hand-held & lugging a decent tripod around defeats my portability aim. However, a light compact monopod seems to stabilise it OK.
My overall verdict is that it's a fine piece of kit for the price, which is less than many more limited compact cameras.
PS: Can anyone explain an earlier post which suggested that cramming more & more pixels into small camera chips actually reduces image quality? I once worked for Kodak & assume more pixels = finer grains on celuloid, which should give better definition!
There is a HUGE difference between chemically treated film, and the electronics for a digital sensor chip in digital cameras. When the digital cameras first came out and they were 1.2 MP, 2MP , 3MP, Yes you wanted the most megapixels you could get. But once they got/get above 6MP things started getting "tricky
The " mega pixel" race is now just a Marketing Scam, to sell cameras to people that don't know any better. and are still thinking. that more pixels means better pictures and cameras. Which was usually true back in the days of 2 and 3 mega pixel cameras… But usually means the opposite in these days of double digit megapixel cameras.
When your at double digit megapixels. ie. 11MP ( and less actually, I would like a GOOD 8MP-9.5MP Point and shoot camera sensor. That Works VERY WELL. But you cant find those.) There are to many "dots/pixels" on the SMALL point and shoot camera. SENSORS. When talking about digital cameras, and between point and shoot, and SLR digital cameras. When it comes to the sensors, think of the difference between that old 110 film cartridge, and 35 millimeter film. (the difference in sensor sizes affect May actually be more extreme with digital sensors, but the best analogy for now.) The sensor chips in the point and shoots are still Small, they just keep jamming more and more pixels on them. there are NOT film, they are electronics, and they are "Fighting" for the light that lands on the little chip surface, over packed with "pixel sensors" There really is Not "enough light" for all of them. The results are More "Noise" Poor color and color saturation, contrast issues, etc… And when you are not in bright light or indoors. the lack of light compounds the problems. (Poor color and Noise/graininess etc…)
OH and by the way. lowering the megapixel recording on your camera, will not fix the problem. Then sensor chip still has the same amount/"Size" of pixels on the chip. That can not be changed. You can only change " how much" is being recorded, not the quality that the chip can achieve.
OH AND DO NOT TRUST ANYTHING YOU ARE SEEING ON THE SCREEN, TO TELL YOU HOW GOOD THE CAMERA IS. even the best do not show that much detail. yet some screens show Twice as much detail as others. and they simple are to physically small, to let you know what is going on. All you can judge by looking at that screen, is how good of a screen they put on the camera. The sensor will always be physically the same.
This is why that in GENERAL, with point and shoot cameras, of the same "quality" these days if you don't have time to test and compare… the Lower mega pixel camera, will Probably produce better prints. ( just going with the odds ;-) )
To judge/compare cameras the best way it to take the same shots, at the same time. have them blown up and printed. (to expensive, wait until you have narrowed your camera choice down, and it is a close call before you burn your money making 11"x14" prints.) then next best thing to do, and it will give you a basic idea of what is going on with your shots, and a decent way to compare cameras taking the "exact" shot, side by side. Is to down load the shots onto your computer, then view them " full size" scan around the pictures to see how they came out, across the entire field. Shots that look good or alright on the back of a camera screen may suddenly take a drastic turn for the worse when you look at them full size on the computer. there can/will be big differences in the shots taken of the same thing, at the same time ("same composure" too") when you view them full size on your computer monitor. Don't forget to scan around to the sides and corners of the picture. And if your comparing your camera's shots to the shots your MP3 player, or telephone took, yes just about any "Real Camera" should look "great".
The Fuji 1800 in Bright day light had a fairly nice clear sharp focus in the center of t he picture but went soft, (Blurrier)at the outer thirds of the picture. OH and damn did the color go off indoors at night, "dead brown" color. and it Might have been the grainiest of the 5 cameras too. I think it was but can't remember for sure. It was Dismissed. And its picture quality was not worth the bulk. OH and it had Focus issues. Slow to focus, and OFTEN would lock focus on some "junk" up front and to the side, instead of the "subject" .... And on the little screen on the back of the camera, it can sometimes be difficult to notice that, until you get home. And find out your "awesome" picture, really is out of focus and "sucks" . the Fuji 1800 would have really ended up pissing me off way to much! And they won't pay to send you back in time, fly you back to your vacation spot, or your backpacking/hiking trip, to retake your pictures. I know, So Rude of them!
trying to find a GOOD new digital camera is a huge pain in the butt AND A LET DOWN. in order to take as good of shots as my old under $150 pentax point and shoot camera with 100 speed kodak film in it. I would probably have to spend $850 plus or minus $200? That will not be happening. I'm worried that in really life when I take my new 12 MP camera out for "real use" it may not produce as good of pictures as my old, kodak 6MP camera. (I can already see that in some instances that my new 12MP does NOT appear to be as good as my old 6 MP camera. :-( ) And my old kodak Digital camera is obviously not as good as my old point and shoot film camera. so Frustrating and Annoying!
Yep that's right, I was not paid enough to bother checking this for any typos. :-O can you tell? ;-)
Good Luck! :-)
:-O Ooo Typos! Sentences out of place. yes there may be be confusion :-))
Like my earlier report I said I felt you did not have to spend a small fortune to buy a digital camera to get good results. I sold my S1800 and went out and bought a new Canon SX30. They built a very nice camera with a lot of bells and whistles but forgot two things, ease of operation and picture quality. The S1800 wins or at least ties the Canon in those two departments. I took a trip up into the mountains to try out the new Canon and got so frutrated with it's sometimes slow operation it almost ended up un the river. By the time the zoom lens makes up it's mind what it's going to do and the autofocus settled down when in shaded areas I missed some great shots of my dog running into the river. By the time I got the camera booted up and focused and the zoom quit going back and forth I missed some great shots. I did not have a problem like that with my Fuji. Also the Canon was pretty inconsistent with taking good pictures, about 20% were out of focus and were under or overexposed. When we got home I went out and bought another new Fuji S1800 and the Canon has to go. I was really surprised because I felt spending over $400 would really result in a giant leap forward but ended up just stepping sideways. My wifes little Canon A590 beats them both for clear sharp pictures.
I had a fuji S1800 and really liked it,great size,could easily hold it in one hand. I find the shutter priority setting is the most useful and reliable for these large zoom cameras. I was a little concerned about the battery door on the camera,it seemed a little fragile,apart from that it was great,however when I saw the S4000 with 30X zoom,I took it back and purchased it, the S4000 is slightly larger,but not as bulky as the HS10, it has a better build to it and almost identical to the S1800 but with 30X zoom. I've still got the S4000, I haven't seen anything better yet for that price.
It would seem that many of the posters here switch the camera on and expect perfect results in less than optimum conditions
Havign owned one of these cameras for just over a year I can say they are very good for the money *IF* YOU READ THE MANUAL
To those too stupid, arrogant or uneducated to read the manual ...
You are *never* going to get the best from anything from a position of ignorance, RTFM and see the improvements immediately ;-)
Peace ...
Unfortunately you will find that many people are "uneducated" and buy their cameras from a "position of ignorance". (often because it is a pain in the butt and takes time to compare competing models side buy side, and find out what is really going on. ) Many people people then feel the need to rationalize about there purchase of a "substandard" camera. (in its price range) Yes they often feel the need to rationalize their poor "uneducated" choice in a camera. (and drag you down with them :-O ;-) )I don't know if this stems from embarrassment from making a quick sloppy choice in purchasing a camera that "looks neat" and has a bunch of zoom.
And now they feel they have to rationalize their poor, "uneducated" choice,(stemming from No side by side competing camera comparisons?)
Or Maybe they just work for Fuji. :-)) ;-)
But I can tell you this Fact, It Did not perform as well as the other 5 cameras I compared it to,under the same conditions. (3 other new camera with at least 12x optical zoom, and 1 old 6MP 3x zoom camera.) With side by side "matching shots"this camera over all did Not perform nearly as well.) And It did not produce as good of pictures as the other cameras, Overall) It to "often" had the problem of focusing on the "wrong subject, off to the side…)this is as fact. "but oh boy! It has allot of Zoom! Don't forget to carry a Tri-Pod! ;-)
(although with sharpness of focus It's hard to say about focus quality/sharpness compared to the Canon "SX 130" The Canon "130" had the "most pleasing over all color balance (and contrast?)" .."right out of the camera"(perhaps "a bit to warm") and Obviously produced the Best looking Sunset shots. but when you looked closely, no mater how you set the camera, it produces soft focus ("kind of blurry") shots, "evenly" across the picture, When viewed " full size". The Fuji 1800 had a fairly nice clear/sharp focus in the "center third circle" of the shot, but the outer thirds of the shot were "soft focus/blurry". I Do Not know if both of these cameras were defective models or not. contacting the manufacturer was no help in finding out with the canon. and I had no patience to waste time trying to figure out if the Fuji was defective. I think that is just the way both cameras are. But the fuji performed the worst Over All of all 5 cameras compared. Definitely not worth putting up with the extra bulk too.
When comparing the new cameras that you could get for around the $200 price mark. The fuji was clearly Over All the Worst of the 4 new cameras that I Compared.
You can read somebodies question on here saying that "it is a good camera" and that "my pictures look good on the back of the camera" But when they go to look at them on the computer or print them They look bad. What is the problem?" The problem, is it is Not that good of camera, and you can never truly judge picture quality by looking at a camera LCD screen.
And beware of anybody telling you a camera,(or anything) is " good for the price" watch out of that Disclaimer.
And in its price range, the Fuji camera was clearly the worst. Later, the store I picked it up from "dumped" their inventory of them for like $149 dollars or less. And replaced it with the Fuji S 4000. (If that tells you anything…)
The S4000 says it has a "next generation" sensor, and the operating program made to match the sensor.
Who knows, If that Fuji is any better.
I ended up settling on a panasonic 12x zoom, 12MP camera. ( before I would only be able to get the 14MP version that came out.) And who can say how happy I really am with that camera. I have not gotten out to take any "good" pictures and blow them up to see,only the comparison test shots.
But then again, for only $149 if you are not that picky and don't mind some of, (allot of) your shots being ruined by many factors, including focusing on junk off to the side, and Not on your subject. That Fuji would be a smoking good deal, for $149.
All of these cameras manufacturers are now putting "too many mega pixels" on the small point and shoot sensors. And are now having picture taking quality "problems"/loss of picture quality as a result. And then it seems that "many" manufactures are compounding that problem by possibly Compressing the file down even more, (to take up less memory space?) Down grading the end picture quality results even more…?
If you don't have time to compare cameras, and are trying to decide between 2 Similar Quality cameras, but one has Lower MP, Go with the LOWER MP camera. It will still have to many pixels. But the ODDS are that it will produce better pictures.
You know, somebody once told me a Mc Donalds 49 cent hamburger was "good for the price"... Lies! it was Awful regardless the price. :-& :-)
But maybe not comparing cameras is the best thing, if you only want to take some "party snap shots" and put the 4"x6" Snap Shots in a photo album. Getting better picture quality from another camera, for the "same" price, may not matter. Not knowing that fact, and Relaxing about it, may be better. :-) Then again if taking quick, sloppy, "party shots" for a photo album pretty much all that you want to do… what the heck are you doing getting a camera with 30X zoom, or 10X zoom?! :-O :-)) ;-)
Ooo but those indoor shots on the Fuji were so "substandard"... By COMPARISON :-)) ;-)
I would recommend that you Compare At Least 2 of the cameras you are thinking about with Side By Side "matching" shots. in a variety of conditions, and shots. then view them on a computer screen at " full size" and see how they compare. And if the cameras you are looking at look "the same" in quality on the screen. Go Print up a couple of "matching" pictures to 11"x14" and see how they compare. ( and make it a "Dynamic" picture that you are comparing.)
Good luck. Finding a Digital "point and shoot camera" it is a time wasting pain in the butt! And finding one that produces as good of a print, as an old and Cheaper, 35mm film "point and shoot" camera is Very Difficult. Oh heck, It Is Impossible. :-( You Just have to Take the Time and Compare, to see which camera comes the Closest.
Very interesting. In front of me are a now almost antique 3mp Fujifilm FinePix 3800 w/6X zoom and a newer EXR point & shoot. Both have produced excellent prints up to 8.5 x 11 inches in size with minimum work on my part—and neither cost as much as some of the lens for my old Minolta SRT-101. When writing comments it's good to remember that you are a sample size of one regardless of how much of an expert you think you are—or how adament you feel about what you're writing. On balance it seems the S1800 is a better than average camera for its price but from a manufacture that has had some quality control problems. I'll look at one but if I buy it will be from a vendor I'm confindent will stand behind what they sell.
please help. i am a very young photographer and for some reson, cannot for the life of mr figure out how to charge this camera! i just bought it, and i have no clue. i have tried connecting the usb to the wall and that has not worked. please, i beg, help me.
In reply to Lily's plea for help. You don't need to charge the camera,it takes 4 AA batteries, if you want to charge those batteries you will need a seperate battery charger (assuming they are rechargeable batteries )
If I remember correctly that camera took 4 AA batteries. and if it came with batteries in the box. they were Not rechargeable batteries anyway.
You need to go buy some rechargeable AA batteries, and a charger for it.
I don't what kind of "wall power supply" you were somehow plugging the USB cable into. But I hope you did not burn up your camera.
Some basic things like that, especially involving power, you should always read the owners manual. Although those "CD Manuals" are Lame. they should have at least included printed instruction on Power Supply Issues, and basic set up of camera. ie… putting in batteries, charging if capable, inserting memory card, turning on the camera. And where the on of button is ;-) and that is about it.
IF you fried your camera plugging it "into the wall" and you do not have those printed instructions showing you how to insert the batteries, and saying that the camrea does not charge batteries, or not saying that it charges batteries. MAYBE you can return it.
Lily, now that I think it about it, (it has been a while since I looked at that camera, and dismissed it for my own use.) It MIGHT have come with a power supply that would recharge Rechargeable batteries in the camera. But it did Not come with With rechargeable batteries. And if it does have a power supply for recharging batteries in the camera and you Tried to recharge NON rechargeable batteries , that is not a good thing. You need to go take those batteries OUT of the camera now. And hope that it did not cause them to leak acid in the camera.
Good luck.
Fujifilm S1850 - Review
This review is relevant for the S1800, S1850, s2500HD or any of the S series 12mp models as they're all pretty much the same camera.
Why did I want this camera?
I've been into photography for around 30 years and currently use a pentax K100d digital slr with a Tamron 18-250 zoom. I also use a fuji Z33 waterproof camera for on the beach and in the water and a Panasonic SD60 HD video camera. The problem I had is with the Pentax dslr. It takes great pictures but most of the time it's just too big, heavy and cumbersome. Also it's always in the back of my mind that leaving £700 worth of camera by a sunbed is risky and I'm conscious that's it's an expensive camera to get knocked about on holiday. So I don't take it with me. That leave's me using my Panasonic to take snapshots most of the time. The resolution is pretty low, effectively around 2.3 mp and I was concerned about damaging the switch constantly changing between video/photo. So I needed the flexibility of my Pentax but smaller, lighter and cheaper. Obviously I would take care of what I bought but I wanted something that I wouldn't be bothered about so much.
After studying many cameras and reviews I decided on Fuji. They had the best combination of functionality, picture quality and price. The latest S series cameras use a 14mp sensor - for me that's just too many pixels on a little sensor. This causes image noise and the Fuji noise reduction goes into overdrive doing what I would describe as `pixel painting'. This smooths the noise out across many pixels leaving a pleasing but pasty image. The problem is it also smooths away fine detail. Not a problem if you don't do enlargements, you'll be perfectly happy. The 12mp models still do this but not as much, so that's what I decided on.
This is bigger than a compact with a chunky lens and hand grip and a big 3 inch screen on the back. In fact the hand grip is around the same size as my Pentax dslr. However, the camera is still amazingly small and lightweight for what it offers. The handgrip allows a firm hold so you can shoot one handed most of the time. There's just enough room on the back for your thumb to grip the corner. The buttons are difficult to knock accidentally and have a nice precise click.
I have found the screen to be ok and the electronic viewfinder is perfect for it's most common purpose ie when the sun is too bright for you to see the screen. The resolution isn't high enough to show great detail but it does the job. You can also see your shutter speed and aperture while shooting and during playback you can display the key info including an exposure histogram. The on/off switch could be a bit better but it works ok. The control dial feels solid and contains most of the modes available. You have to delve into the menu to change scene modes.
The flash is an slr style pop up unit which requires you to release it manually. Compared to a compact this means it won't just flash automatically for you if there isn't enough light, you have to decide that you want to use it. I prefer this and I'm used to it but if you're moving up from a compact then this might catch you out at first. It's powerful enough to cover most situations. (The slow synchro option works quite well as long as you use it where there is some available light otherwise the shutter speeds will be too slow).
Shooting Modes
This camera offers many of the options that a dslr has and you should never be stuck for choice. The camera also offers great flexibility with ISO levels. This controls the sensitivity of the sensor. In practice this means that a low ISO eg 64 will need more available light but image noise will be low giving the best quality. You can set a high ISO (up to 6400) - this will operate in much lower light allowing you to shoot in darker conditions or use faster shutter speeds. However, as a lot less light hits the sensor it has to amplify it. The more it amplifies the more image distortion or `noise' is produced. High noise levels show as a mottled or grainy picture with less contrast and colour. So would you always want the lowest ISO setting? Well you will also still need a fast enough shutter speed to stop your picture from blurring. In this case you may need to increase the ISO to allow you to use an appropriate shutter speed. What a lot of fiddling about that is. The Fuji has a great way of managing this for you with Auto ISO. So you can set the ISO to any level manually but you can also let the camera adjust it dynamically. You just decide whether the maximum it will go to is 400 or 800. Setting Auto 400 will help keep noise down if that's important for the picture but in low light you may end up needing to use the flash. Auto 800 allows shooting in lower light or faster shutter speeds but with a possible increase in visible noise.
This is how I use mine;
Full auto - for use at any time but useful when the lighting gets lower, it has auto 800 ISO. If you just want to point and shoot this is a great option and I trust it, it works really well.
P Program - The same as full auto but I've set the ISO to Auto 400
S Shutter priority - I use this if I'm using a lot of zoom or for moving subjects. In auto mode the camera will try to increase shutter speed when you zoom and the antishake helps but sometimes it's not enough for a sharp picture. So this is set to 1/400th second with Auto 800 ISO.
A Aperture Priority - For me this is one weakness the camera has. Controlling the aperture means restricting the amount of light that can pass through the lens. This camera doesn't control aperture with an iris which can be closed down in stages (stops). It uses a neutral density filter which reduces light by 2 stops. It's either on or off. This is effectively a darkened filter snapped across the lens (internally). A bit like putting on sunglasses. The advantage of an iris is that you can increase depth of field (ie how much of the picture from front to back is in focus) by stopping it down. It also can also improve edge definition a little on zoom lenses. The only benefit of an ND filter is that you can restrict light to allow you to use a slower shutter speed. So say it's a bright summer's day and you want to use a slower shutter speed on a waterfall. Setting the higher aperture value will allow you to slow the shutter by 2 stops.
M Manual - Plenty of flexibility but I never use this. I prefer the auto or shutter priority modes letting the camera adjust exposure on the fly while I think about the picture itself.
C Custom - The same as full auto but with ISO set at 64 for top quality.
Movie - I've got this set to the HD 720p setting. It's not full HD and it's not as sharp as a dedicated HD video camera. But it's not bad either if you follow these 3 guidelines;
1) Try not to zoom during filming as you'll hear the motor noise. Zoom first then shoot, stop shooting, change zoom setting then start shooting again. The motor noise isn't that bad actually and I zoom during filming but it might bug some people.
2) The microphone is very sensitive to noises close to the camera such as the lens cap flapping about on a windy day so keep that in your left hand and avoid making noises with your hands on the camera.
3) Don't pan across scenes too quickly as you might get some jumpy frames.
Panorama - Let me tell you now, this is fantastic and I love it. It is a treat for wide angle photography. You can take 2 or 3 pictures side by side and the camera will stitch them seamlessly together. I like to use 2 pictures, it's a good compromise. This gives an image shape similar to a cinema movie. If you're really fussy it can highlight lens barrel distortion so try not to use the camera at full wide angle, tap the zoom in a little. Also try to keep the camera as level as possible in all the shots.
I was really surprised how good this is.
SP Scene mode - Choose (in the menu) from a big range of scene modes. These are fully automatic modes but they will bias the shutter, aperture, iso and colour settings in different ways. Most useful to me are the Sport mode for moving subjects and Natural and Flash. This latter option is great to use on bright days where backlighting may be a problem. Pop up the flash then for each shot you take it will actually take 2 pictures, one with normal auto exposure and one with flash. It will display them side by side. It seems to use the same exposure settings for both but adds fill in flash on the second. It works well and you have a choice.
This is so useful as it allows you to decide later which option is best and there's no fiddling about switching the flash on and off or changing settings.
SR Auto - A sort of super auto mode that tries to determine what type of picture your taking and set the appropriate scene mode. If it can't make it's mind up its sets standard auto. I don't use this.
Macro - Pretty good for the price - no focusing or exposure problems.
Anti Shake
Leave this on. It's not as effective as on other cameras I've used but nevertheless is still makes a worthwhile difference. I can take hand held shots without flash in low light with slow shutter speeds and it works well. It seems less effective with telephoto shots. I'd say it makes around 1.5 stops difference on average.
Image noise
Packing 12mp into such a small sensor seems like a recipe for image noise. The APS C sensor in my DSLR is several times bigger than in the Fuji and only has 6mp spread across it (Thus each pixel is a lot bigger so receives much more light). So inevitably the DSLR suffers from far less `noise' as it doesn't have to amplify the signal so much.
Having said all of that things are a lot better than I expected. In fact pretty good. Noise does creep in gradually but up to ISO 400 it's not bad at all. ISO 800 is still useable but the inevitable mottling and softness are noticeable if you look for it. Anything above that and noise get very noticeable but don't just dismiss this. The quality may not be great but at least these higher settings allow you to capture a shot which may previously have been impossible.
Set the ISO to auto 400 or 800 and in normal use you should be perfectly happy. The camera does a good job.
This is around 1600 lph, pretty much the same as my 6mp dslr. Ideally you would expect around 2000 lph from a 12mp sensor. The limiting factors are likely to be the fact that the pixels are so small and the resolving power of the lens.
This is still a good news story, enlarged to 8" x 10" or even 11" x 14" pictures should still look good.
Being ultra critical there is some barrel distortion at wide angle if you look for it and I would say that the lens is slightly less sharp at it's telephoto end but given the fantastic 18 x zoom range, compact size and the relatively low price it's a great performer.
Auto Focus
I've set this to use the central area. In this way I always know what it's focused on eg point at the focal point, half press the shutter to lock focus then reframe if needed while holding down the shutter before shooting . I've not had any problems with this. It does hunt a little at telephoto or in low light but always seems to focus ok. The focus light also works well in very low light.
I've set this to average across the picture. It seems to favour burning out bright patches in order to get things right in the rest of the picture but in practice this works well. Exposure levels are pretty much spot on to me(you can adjust the meter or bracket exposures if you want).
Colour is set to standard and again seems realistic and just about right. None of the garish pictures that you used to get a few years ago with Fuji cameras.
I've set sharpness back at standard. I tried soft as I thought less sharpening might also mean less noise reduction but there wasn't really any noticeable difference. The standard setting seems just about right.
A camera like this is always going to be a compromise, it's built down to a price so there are other cameras that do some things better. However, for the price this camera offers a wealth of functionality and great pictures. It's easy to learn and a pleasure to use. For most people this is all the camera they would ever need.
Phil Leese
why do people view the photos in "full frame" or blow them up to check quality. To me the best quality is at the size you will view them. Probably Noone that buys this camera will be getting it to make posters, or shoot for National Geographic. Come on, photography is supposed to be fun, who cares if the "edges are a bit soft" at 200%, hows it look at 5x7? just fine.
NOT that good of a camera at all. All pics are blurry and noisy… 18X Zoom means nothing if you want blurry pics !!! best just to get a regular point and shoot camera. ( I had a HP and better than this ). If you also have shaky hands the anti shake is crap and does not help at all. My recomendation is just go with point and shoot or jump up higher in quality and get cannon or nikon.
ive had this camera (fuji 1800s ) for some time now and have trouble with it from the start i had to have it reprogramed by fuji they sent me the disc. the it eats up batteries i cant leave batteries in it and let it set for a week, when i grab it to take some pictures its dead in the water. fuji was no help with this issue takes good pictures just cant take them on the same set of batteries
Entry Tags
hd video, hd, 3 inch LCD, wide-angle, 720p, 12 megapixel, manual, fujifilm, super-zoom, fuji, finepix, EVF, 18x, s1800, Fujifilm FinePix S1800 Review


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The other driver was bringing a mzungu lady and her daughter back to Jinja for Christmas. Heather and I did not mind sharing and by African standards we had plenty of room in the car. This was a small sedan that ended up carrying seven people. We enjoyed the coversation with the two ladies. Their family was a missionary family that have lived in Jinja for 25 years. The mother was a nurse and the daughter recently graduated from Union University in Tennessee. We found plenty of topics of conversation to talk about for the three hour drive. When we dropped them off in Jinja I exchanged contact information with the mother, Mrs. Evelyn.
After our trip to the orphanage for Christmas we then travelled to Jinja for two nights. We were there to do a bit of the touristy things and get a break from Kampala. During our first few hours in Jinja we noticed large sores developing on Hadley's legs. I have never seen anything like these before. They were large about the size of a half dollar and developed dime size blisters on top of them. Her legs became very painful and she developed a fever. After exhausting an internet search to determine what was going on I finally remembered the nurse we had met a few days ago. It was late in the evening but I called her anyway.
The next morning Mrs. Evelyn showed up at our guest house with her medical bag in tow. She gave Hadley a good look over. Once we determined what was going on Mrs. Evelyn then drove us to a pharmacy and assisted me in purchasing the correct dosage of the needed antibiotic. Hadley is now recovering from her skin strep infection and should be good as new in a few days.
I know that Mrs. Evelyn's driver's car broke down on the side of Jinja rode just so we would know a nurse to call. She was truely God sent.
Matthew 6:8
". . . For your Father knows just what you need before you ask Him."

subset: commoncrawl


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This firehouse is full of fun and sure to fuel the imaginations of young firefighters. Its sturdy wood construction, vibrant colors, attention to detail, and multiple features ensure hours of creative play, while its large size makes it perfect for group play.
Features a helipad with helicopter, garage with ambulance and fire truck, rooftop basketball court, 22 pieces of furniture, three firefighters, and a silver bell that hangs in front. 24 ½"H x 31"W x 18 ½"D.
Watch the video: