Electronics : Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd Digital Camera - Black (10.0MP, 18x Optical Zoom) 2.5" LCD

Rating: - Good camera - but small.
I bought this camera to replace my very trusted S9600 which I managed to accidently fry last week. I still plan to have it repaired by Fuji, so at this point in time, I don't know which will become my first choice camera. This is a sturdy feeling camera - some posts have said heavy - but I disagree. I like a camera to feel businesslike, and this one does. It's small - I'm a woman with small hands, and even my fingers tend to feel a little cramped on the body. And putting the lens cap on invariably means you put a big thumbprint over the viewing screen - annoying, but it's new, so maybe I just haven't got the hang of it yet. It seems to be a good camera - nice sharp pix and easy to use, yet able to go a little further than basic beginner photographs. The lens is automatic - again, I'm used to my more manual S9600 and being able to screw the lens cap on while it's out, and have found myself chasing this one back into the body of the camera a couple of times. So far, enjoying it. It's got slightly more pixels than my other camera, so we'll see what happens in the end. This one is certainly lighter, and more compact, so maybe a better camera for carrying about unobtrusively.

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Rating: - Excellent value for money
I was looking around for something to improve on my pocket digital. I wanted a true SLR but my budget couldn't stretch to that. This one met virtually all of my criteria. Powerful optical zoom, image stabilisation, built in flash, standard batteries, quick and easy to use. I set it on fine mode which means each jpeg is around 4Mb, but I wanted to be able to enlarge any picture I took. I put in a 4GB SD card which holds around 400 pictures and have a 2Gb one in case I fill it. I have already had 12" x 8" enlargement prints of some images and they have been crystal sharp.
I bought 8 2700mAh AA batteries and a charger (it uses 4 at a time). Battery life is really good and will easily do a few hundred pictures. Only small criticism is I cannot find a filter to protect the lens, which has a 38.1mm thread.
Very pleased with it and consider it great value.

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Rating: - Brilliant camera
Originally, I had hoped to buy a digital SLR. I went to Jessops to some research and the assistant told me £300 for the lens I wanted, and £500 for the camera body! Way too rich. Then he showed me the S8100. This is such a versatile camera. It does almost anything an SLR can within the limitations of its lens. I wanted a camera that allowed me close ups. It does macro to 1cm. I have taken some amazing shots of a dragonfly, bees, hoverflies, flowers etc. I have taken shots at full zoom (18x) without a tripod and the results have been excellent.
I also wanted a camera that could take rapid pictures. My previous camera was so slow, that by the time it took the picture, the action was gone. Depending on your image quality setting this will rapidly rattle through a series of frames.
An added bonus is video with sound!
The expanded manual comes on CD. There are many features that allow the operator to control shutter speed, the ISO settings and other stuff I haven't even started considering yet.
It certainly does everything I want. It does need an expanded memory card. I use a 2GB and that gives over 800 shots at 10MP.
The Finepix viewer (ver.5.4) has expanded features over my previous version. It downloads quickly and gives more options for viewing folders.
If you are in the market for a state of the art compact camera, look no further.

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Rating: - 'I am well impressed!'
After many weeks of deliberation I decided to purchase the Fuji Finepix s8100fd. I ordered it from Amazon on Thursday afternoon (about 3.30pm) and it arrived in the Channel Islands the following day at 11.30am - what superb service! Thank you! I went out on Saturday to see what the camera could do - it was a very bright, blustery day. The pics I took were great, even with the zoom. I used the image stabiliser for most of the pics - and there wasn't one blurred image. I took a picture of Castle Cornet through a shop window - the detail, colour, etc are so very clear. (I haven't yet printed onto proper photo paper, but I am sure I won't be disappointed). Yesterday, Sunday, it was very dull and stormy - and I captured some very good images of the sea crashing over the rocks, etc. I used the full zoom (digital+optical) to photograph the rock + flag (forgotten name), which is way off the coast - and you can see the Guernsey flag very clearly. I then went onto a flower festival and even managed to capture a bee pollinating the flowers! For a very amatuer photographer, who wanted a little more than a small compact camera could do, I am well impressed with this camera. I have now purchased a Lowepro bag for the camera (Edit 110), for carrying around + an SD card.

I read many glowing reviews on other cameras but chose this camera, over the Panasonic DMC-FZ18, because it seemed more robust and was more comfortable to hold. I felt the Panasonic had a 'plastic' feel about it - it didn't feel very strong at all. I have not been able to find any reviews on the Fuji camera, despite many weeks of trawling the Internet. Hopefully this will be useful to other people. I haven't yet begun to look at what else it can do - when I do I will get back to you all.