I have for many years been reluctant to move into the digital age being a solid fan of film, using my excellent Minolta Dynax 500SiSLR camera. However this had to change especially after my local film processing shop went bust and I just never got round to getting my film developed anymore!
I started to do some research on the internet and quickly found good reviews of the Fuji 2800. This camera seemed to offer most of the features that I was looking for in a digital camera including on board flash. It was reasonably small,looked a bit like a traditional SLR and had an excellent optical zoom that would mean that I could expect to get similar shots with this camera as I was doing with my Minolta.
Price wise I couldn't beat Amazon who had it on sale for £189 but with
some vouchers to credit against this I got my shiny new digital camera for only £170!
To date the camera has not disappointed! When it arrived several days prior to Amazon's own delivery date, I immediately thought that it looked more like a small SLR rather than a digital camera. Many of the mass market digitals look bland and box like whereas the Fuji is contoured to fit well in the hand.There are few control buttons but they are marked up well and are straightforward to use.The on/off button curiously is coloured green whereas you would have expected it to be red.
Some reviews have critisised this camera on the basis that the control buttons are too small and difficult for large fingered users.I have large hands but have found no problems to date with using the controls.
To take pictures with this camera is simplicity itself and I was doing so with some good results within 5 minutes of opening the box.The camera comes with a quick guide as well as a more comprehensive manual and both are written in a concise and clear manner which means that you can be up and running within a very short space of time. The camera does allow you more control over how you take your photos and this feature will appeal to traditional SLR users but it is somewhat limited and it may be best just to keep the camera in auto mode and let it do all the work!
The camera allows you to compose your shot either by using the electronic view finder or the rear LCD screen.The screen seems to work well in most light conditions but but if there is bright sunlight you may wish to use the view finder.Battery power will also be saved if the LCD screen is not used. The electronic view finder may appeal to those like me that have been used to using a traditional SLR.
The camera comes with a 16mb smart media card which will give you something like 49 shots using the cameras default quality setting.This setting seems to produce perfectly adequate quality photographs but if you wish to increase the quality then you will get less shots on the memory card. The on screen display does inform you how many shots you have left remaining till the card is full.I will probably upgrade to a 128mb card in the near future ( about £20 off the internet). The camera also allows you to make 60sec video clips which may come in handy for some people, although I can't say that I will be probably using that feature too often.
The camera will also allow you to add a voice caption to your photos which may be a useful addittion if you are taking many photos before downloading onto your computer and would risk forgetting what your subjects actually were!
The camera is a bit limited when you are taking shots in the dark so if you intend to take may shots at your local nightspot then this may not be the camera for you.In dark conditions the image shown on the viewfinder or the LCD screen becomes difficult to see so you have no way of knowing exactly what you are taking a picture of.
The software bundle that came with the camera seems to be ok.It is quick and easy to load onto your computer and appears to let you do all the things that you would expect such as editing,creating albums,sending pictures via e-mail etc. Downloading your pictures is as easy as connecting the camera via its USB cable (included) to the computer and starting the Fuji Finepix Viewer program.Within seconds your shots together with any video is on your computer. Unless you save your shots to a folder on your computer you will have to keep your camera connected and powered up which may be a bit heavy on batteries. You may want the AC adaptor but that will be an extra £30 or so depending on where you purchase.
Have I found any weaknesses to date?I have to say that I would probably need to own the camera for longer, but at the moment initial impressions are very favourable and I can't really find fault with this camera which seems to be really good value at around £190. The only thing I would like to see however would be a screw thread on the lens to allow me to fit a protective skylight filter,this is a feature on later Fuji cameras.
The bottom line is that this is a cracking camera which is worth buying before it is no longer available.One retailer has already told me that this is a discontinued model,but who cares if you get an excellent camera with a full manufacturer's warranty at a great price!
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Advantages: upto 570mm zoom, movie mode, macro, a complete photography solution in one package Disadvantages: slow to focus and shoot, no manual focus, advertising in software, registration terms and conditions
Jun 20th, 2003
(Jun 21st, 2003)
very helpful by (100%):
