Fujifilm FinePix S Series S1000fd 10.0 MP Digital Camera - Black

Let me start off by saying that I am not a photographer. I took one class in college and the whole aperature, f-stop, etc. went completely over my head. I am for sure a point and shoot type person. I might zoom in or out sometimes but that's pretty much it. This camera takes fantastic pictures with out me having to know much at all. I leave most of my shots in the auto setting or the natural light setting (which turns off the flash.) The first thing I like about this camera is that I did not notice as much shutter lag as I did with other cameras. The moment you're shooting is or is pretty close to the moment you get in the picture. Secondly, the auto focus does very well with close up and zoomed in shots. Other cameras I've owned, once you get too close or get past a certain closeness of the zoom, forget about focusing. Third, I also like what it can do with low light and natural light. I usually only use the flash when taking traditional portrait or group type pictures. Lastly, the panoramic shots came out great (once I figured out how to line them up correctly. The bad ones I got were mostly due to user error.) I can't say how this measures up to other cameras though because I'd never tried a panoramic before this one. Another thing I like about this camera that I didn't realize until recently is that it can use either SD or XD cards which is nice if you already have one or the other from other cameras. I found the user menus easy to use but I might not be the most reliable person for that since I'm so used to them and maybe don't remember what it was like to learn them. It seems like I figured it out pretty quick though.Just for a reference point, other cameras I've used are:-Kodak easy share 6.1 mp: not a bad camera but 6.1mp is low these days and the camera is old-Olympus Stylus 770sw: not a terrible camera and I like the slim design but shutter lag was my biggest complaint with this one. This however is a waterproof digital camera so I use it mostly for that. The Finepix is better for the above mentioned reasons.-GE x500(?) 16mp: Not entirely sure about the model but I bought it because it looks similar to the finepix and I thought it might be one of those instances where, though the products were from different companies, the manufacturer might be the same so I assumed performance would be similar. Plus, more mp. Not so much. Not a bad camera but the zoom/close up focus was poor and I never got shots near as good as with the finepix. Still haven't figured out the menus either.The Finepix s1000fd I'm buying off Amazon is actually the second one I bought. The first one I got used off ebay and worked great until I dropped it... twice. The first time was on a hard basement floor. The only damage it showed was that one of the prongs that held the battery door shut broke off. It didn't quite close all the way but the battery door still made contact and the camera still worked fine. The screen was fine and the lens didn't get knocked out of place. The second time I dropped it the other prong broke off so now the camera won't stay on. I bought the GE as a replacement but it wasn't as good so I'm going back to the finepix. I will be posting some pictures that I was able to take with the camera. Not sure how many Amazon will let me post but I'll label them with my user name.

I used to have a BenQ 10 MP digital cameral, very simple to use, with lots of features even for a newbie like me. but it only had a 3x optical zoom, and after a series of continued pictures, camera would overheat and turned off on it's own, precisely in the moments when picture WAS perfect to shoot. Still have very good pictures from that unit. But the FUJIFILM is a superior camera in all senses. Optical zoom is way much better, the LCD panel on the back is clearer, larger, and has more definition. You can also switch off the LCD to save batteries and use like a conventional camera. You can program the settings for landscapes and many types of outdoor situations. Has a continious shooting option with manual/automatic shutter, up to 15 consecutive images, perfect for motion photos. Panoramic pictures are amazingly easy to take, and images are incredibly crisp and clear. Even the video option allows you to film with considerably good definition and sound. Very happy about the choice I made with this camera. Would fully recommend to anyone out there.

This camera was purchased for my wife after her old camera bit the dust after taking pictures in a haunted building.(True)Out of the Box this camera has performed flawlessly, the automatic function is wonderful for those quick shots, which by the way are beautiful in focus with correct light balance. It also has the capability to manually set up for specific shots for the purist. My wife takes lots of pictures and the 2gb SD card included allows one to shoot all day. She has filled the card once with close to 800 pictures on the highest definition. Many more could be taken at the two lower settings, but she likes to play with the photoes in Picassa, and Photoshop. The high definition allows her to do almost anything she wants. Additionally the back view screen is wonderfully bright even in low light, the use of the view finder is almost never necessary. In Low light situations it will take a very nice pic with ambient lighting. Admittedly, the flash is needed in dark conditions and for shadow fill outdoors, (under trees for example).Would recommend this camera to anyone who wants to take great pictures. It has great value to price paid, due to the many functions built in. When my existing camera goes belly up this camera or current version will be the one I look for.