Time for a New Digital Camera! Fujifilm FinePix S5200

[WarEagleNR88]

I've been using my Olympus Stylus 300 for too long now and am fed up with its ****ty performance.

After much research, I came down to the Fujifilm PinePix S5200 (5.2MP). For the quality of pictures as well as its many functions and it's SLR-like performance, along with it's great price ($235 from BuyDig.com) made it a pretty good purchase for me. And with 4 NiMH AA's and 1GB+ xD cards means I can take lots of pictures to boot.

Some of its perks that helped my decision are a whopping 10X optical zoom or a 38mm to 380mm with digital zoom sending it to 57X, a Super CCD, ISO from 64-1600, Shutter Speeds from 15 seconds to 1/2000th of a second. Plus its auto modes make this camera both a pretty good manual camera as well as a decent P&S camera if need be.

At first I was contemplating one of the SLRs, perhaps the D50 from Nikon. But the price of lenses would just kill me if I weren't a hard core photographer. But then again, maybe by getting a camera like that (or better) would make me into one?

Well it is on order and should be here shortly. Please check back as I'll try to take some shots with it and start to get familiar with its settings.

 

[spline9]

I have a friend who bought the FinePix S5200 a few months ago. She absolutely loves it. The pics I've seen are pretty good and the zoom totally makes the camera. She went to a baseball game and had seats way way back. She was practically able to full-frame the batter with impressive results. I dont think you'll be unhappy with it. For the price, I think its an awesome camera.

As for getting an SLR; I wont lie, if youre any bit into photography, you WILL get the "I need more lenses" bug. The kit lenses are fine for everyday use but you'll soon learn their limitations and have the urge to fill those gaps. Right now I'm debating on a macro lens or a nice wide-angle... The price doesnt bother me because I believe its a good investment (despite me being a broke mofo no thanks to these 'spensive hobbies I keep picking up). My pics are considerably better than what they were before and I can only gain more skill in the future.

Pictures like these make the cost totally worth it. This is my friends 2 day old baby born Sept 3rd '06.
Taken with a Canon Digital Rebel XT w/ 50mm f1.8 II lens.

 

[WarEagleNR88]

Nice pictures, thanks for the post.

Yep it is as I suspected with the "lens bug". But to be fair to my spouse and my budget, I'm really trying to keep only one expensive hobby at a time. Having two of them--even if one helps take outstanding pictures of the other--in my mind doesn't justify a SLR body with a hefty price tag that I have to buy expensive lenses for anyway. By doing that, I can utilize the money more on upgrades for my aquaria.

One thing I'm curious about are the filters you can attach to the cameras. The S5200 has a 55mm thread on it and I'm wondering if a small kit like this would benefit the macro picture taking.

http://www.camerafilters.com/pages/closeup.aspx

I know I'll need to order at least a UV filter to keep the lens scratch free and while I'm at it, I may order a set of those macro filters.

 

[Blazer88]

Close-up filters can work pretty well but those pictures on the website can be deceiving. Keep in mind that it won't actually magnify the image at all, they just allow you to get closer to the subject (hence the name). So you won't get any good macro's on stuff unless you can get the camera right up on the subject. I used a close-up kit for a while with my Kodak P&S, I would have to have a coral right up on the glass to get a decent macro so the flexibility is pretty minimal.

 

[spline9]

Yeah, your wallet will take a hit but I figure on SLR's, lenses can last longer than the bodies (especially digital) so its a once-time-expense (uh, for each lens haha). Once youve built up your aresenal, you dont need to spend much more.

There are most likely a ton of 3rd party filters available that you can use with your camera. I have an old Nikon CoolPix 995 (still a great camera and does AMAZING macro out of the box) that even had some 1st party filters. The wide-angle was definately worth the cost. I dont have any experience with the kit you linked but I've seen it before. I dont see why it wouldnt work. You can always get adapters if it doesnt fit your lens. And your right, a UV filter is imperitave for the safety of your lens. The price for a little insurance on your new camera goes a long way.

 

[mfisher2112]

Those are fantastic shots! Just had to say it.

I just used my D70 to shoot a friends wedding. The DSLR has become part of the family! LOL!

http://www.kemmcosolutions.net/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=106

I'm BY FAR not a pro, but she needed to save some money. Believe me, these cameras are money well spent!

 

[WarEagleNR88]

Arrived!

Arrived!

Well the FinePix S5200 arrived today and man am I excited!

Right out of the container it took awesome pictures. Add batteries, plug in the xD card, rotate the selector to pictures and away we go. And with the 1GB xD card it bought extra, I am really impressed at the amount of 5 MP pictures it can take over and over and over. It even has a high speed shoot where you just hold the button shutter down. With a high speed xD card it just fills it up one picture after the next. There are different options as well. Examples: focus shoot, focus shoot, focus shoot; shoot, shoot, shoot; or focus then shoot, shoot, shoot.)

I really am pleased with the 4xAA batteries it uses. I was able to pick up an 8 pack of 2650 NiMH Duracell rechargeable batteries along with an on-clearance charger for about $25 bucks and it handles them very well--I'm not sure if you use the flash a lot though. It came with unrechargeable E2's, but they suck since you can't recharge them.

One extraordinary thing I notice with this camera is the way it handles flashes. On taking pictures around a darkened home, it does exceptionally well at highlighting the background. I knew that it said it did that before buying it, but seeing it actually do it is an entirely different experience--and a good one at that.

I noticed it was exceptionally bright outside my window tonight so I decided to step outside. This is what I saw -57X magnification, though. I am really impressed with it's picture taking qualities coming from the Stylus 300. And let me tell you, it does a pretty good job if you stand about 4-5 feet away from the tank specimen you are trying to photograph and go to near max zoom. IMPRESSIVE. Pretty good for a $235 camera.

Well I thought I'd leave you with a little preview of my work so far. And it does take pretty good aquatic pictures, too. (No buyer's remorse here!) But check back and I'll have some of them. I'm tired tonight.

The first pic should be an easy one... a beautiful full moon over Oklahoma. The second pic is one I tried to mix with an oak tree's leaves. The third is the same pic but with less zoom and offset to a corner. The fourth is my lush backyard--you can't tell it but my grass sucks right now because of the drought we've been having. A sodium and MH street lamp makes for an interesting night-time scene IMO.

Stay tuned for some tank pictures!

 

[spline9]

Thanks for the compliments.

Glad to hear that youre pleased with the camera. I'm also surprised at the price for a decent P&S like this one. Try to avoid using the digital zoom unless you really need it. Its basically the same as enlarging a digital photo and cropping it on your PC so youre not gaining any detail. With that kinda zoom, you may want to look into using a tripod. It will help you take sharper pics since camera shake is unavoidable when its hand-held.

Lets see some daytime pics! Or maybe... pics of your tank!

 

[WarEagleNR88]

I am VERY pleased with the camera.

I'm currently taking apart my house to move to AZ on Wednesday. Give me a week and I'll give you daytime pics and pics of my tank. If I see any cool pictures along the way, I'll post them.

 

[BeanAnimal]

Best NiMh batteries I have ever found are the PowereX though the Sanyos and some of the energizers (the 2300s) don't fare to badly.

PowerEx Website The powerex MAHA charger is also one of the best out there... I have not tested the new 8 cell charger.

 

[BeanAnimal]

ahh... and thank you for your service!

 

[WarEagleNR88]

Thanks for the PM and kind words BeanAnimal. I tried to send a PM back but your your mailbox is full. As far as batteries, I went with 8x Duracell 2650mAh batteries with the standard NiMH 6 hr charger. While 4 are charging I'm using the other 4. I may pick up another 8 pack to have on hand. Thanks for the add, I'm sure someone will see them.

OK, I have two quick pictures for you from my new camera. I definitely need to get a tripod and work on my picture taking skills. Practice, practice, practice!

This first one is my healthy and very active GSM clownfish. I've now had her for almost a year and 4 months and am going to be upgrading her home soon to a 20G Long.

I hope you enjoy the pictures! Woohoo, Go Broncos!

 

[WarEagleNR88]

Oh and she just finished kicking up against the glass with her tail in the picture so a lot of the spots are actually fine aragonite particles settling.

I should try to get some videos of her doing that. Sometimes she picks up hermits and takes them across the tank and spits them out. Talk about a good laugh after a long day at work!

I thought she would beat up the little Kupang Damsel I bought, but she's very tolerant of him. It may help that he's only about 1" long.

 

[BeanAnimal]

Yes my maroon clown pick ups anything it can carry (up to stuff as big as a softball) and re-aranges it. Kind of anoying. Did I mention the intenional sand storms and what they do to my oceans motions?

 

[WarEagleNR88]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8309501#post8309501 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by WarEagleNR88
If I see any cool pictures along the way, I'll post them.

Well, not really any awesome pictures. But here are a few that I thought were decent. All were shot under the landscape setting as I was driving ~80 mph on I-40 from OKC to Flagstaff.

The first picture is of the windmills on the way out of the state. I'm not sure the exact town they are near. It's kind of cool to see them all so close to the road. Nowhere near as many as the windmills of Palm Springs on I-10 between PHX and LA, but cool nonetheless.

The second and third are as the sun was setting behind some clouds.

The fourth are the mountains of Flagstaff. Pics of my new 20G setup are next.

 

[WarEagleNR88]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8309127#post8309127 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by spline9
. . . Or maybe... pics of your tank!

At your request, here are pictures of my new 20G setup at my new home in Phoenix. I tried to pick the best pictures out of the ones I took tonight. I actually just transferred all the animals over to the tank this afternoon out of their 5G temporary living bucket, so the tank is still a little dusty. I need to get a 50/50 65W bulb for this tank, as it was my FW 20G long and used a planted tank bulb. Right now, it has a 6500K bulb so the colors may not be as good as they could be. On to the pics!

(These pictures were taken free-standing without a tripod and without a timer. Some of the pictures I helped a little by bracing against the tank with my fingers while they were wrapped around the lens barrel for the shot.)

The button polyps in the third picture are the oldest saltwater animals I have. They actually hitchhiked in on a piece of live rock and really don't look a lot different, there are just more of them now. But they have been through a lot! Here is a quick picture of them being attacked by a majano--which was subsequently nuked by joes juice! The picture was taken by my Olympus Stylus 300.

Well thanks for looking at my pictures and I hope you like them. My next post will be my thoughts on the FinePix S5200.

 

[BeanAnimal]

Glad to see you and the critters made the trip safely! Let us know how the new jet handles

 

[WarEagleNR88]

Here's a new picture for you! I finally bought a tripod and am working on the manual focus feature of the camera. Still learning...

This is my Randall's goby in my 10G macro algae tank. He has a little Randall's shrimp that he's buds with. I'd get a picture of them both, but the little one won't stop digging behind the rocks.

 

[jedininja]

Got your PM. Congrats on the purchase. Although not a dslr, I think the higher end fujis are excellent cameras.

And a tripod was a good purchase. One of the best tools for tank photography IMO.

 

[spline9]

Great shot of your Randalls Goby. Youre definately improving your skills!