Home > Consumer Reviews > Fujifilm FinePix S1000fd Digital Camera - Black (10.0MP, 12x Optical Zoom) 2.7 inch LCD

I am a complete novice at photography, but an artist eager to learn. I was torn between getting an 'aim & shoot' that would fit in my handbag, but still have good pictures or something with a few more features that would still satisfy when I'm more of a pro.

I purposely chose this camera because the 10mb pixels and zoom attracted me. Was a bit concerned that it would now be too big and heavy as it clearly won't fit the handbag, but I was wrong. I absolute love my little camera, it's nice & compact. I've taken it to a music gig over the weekend and it fitted nicely into my small backpack. I have emptied my 64mb card four times now and the bateries it came with are still going. The quality of the pictures is beautiful and it even tells you you're shaking too much before you take a blurry picture. The flash is very good, but not even needed unless it's really dark as the auto function adjusts the light very well.

To add, I decided to take a risk and also buy the Fujifilm Premium Leather Camera Case, which according to the Fuji website was made for FinePix S1000fd. Amazon didn't have a picture of the case so I wasn't sure what to expect, but the camera fits perfectly and it can also hold a memory card & 4 bateries. Not more than that, but that's all you need and it keeps the camera protected from bumps & scratches.
Fujifilm Premium Leather Camera Case for FinePix S1000fd

I bought this camera 3 weeks ago and I am absolutely delighted with it !This is not a simple point and shoot camera, but this is a well built gem resembling a small light weight SLR with very high specifications and a whole host of features including 'Macro' and 'super Macro'. It has a wide range of ISO ( 64 - 3200 ! )for all light conditions with Auto,Programme, Aperture priority, Shutter priority and Manual exposure modes. Additional bonuses are a 'Panorama mode'and 12 X optical Zoom with 10 MP and 2.7 " screen and Face Detection. Takes good videos.Controls are well placed. This camera is a good bargain now for £123/- on the Amazon web site! I will strongly recommend this brilliant camera for someone who is good with ISO and exposure controls etc.With correct settings image stabilisation is not a problem.

I read a few reviews on this camera on this site and a google search before i decided to take the plunge and buy it mainly because most said it was a good sound buy for someone who wants a little more than just a point and shoot camera but for a budget price.
so far i am not disapointed some say build quality is not up to scratch but i disagree i think it is a well constructed camera everything seems to fit well and the switches seem to be a decent quality i can't forsee any major problems from these maybe the idea of a plastic camera worries some people but in my experience in the electronics trade i find modern plastics on a par with metal in most cases as long as a decent one is used i think this is.
So far i have tested most of the features and they all work well, i am impressed with the face recognition software it works well and the macro is superb i have yet to test it to extremes in landscape mode but i soon shall be venturing up into the dales to do so ( my last camera let me down badly when it came to landscape photo's ).
I have to give it 5 stars because for the price £122 when i purchased it i think is amazing value for money and one has to wonder if fuji actually make any profit at all on that, and lets face it if you get two years use out of it before it falls apart well i think that would be money well spent and i don't think you could realy grumble at that.
and last but not least the size will amaze you because in the pictures it looks big it's not untill you get it out of the box that you realise just how small it is.
so go on if you want a superzoom camera for the price of a standard digital camera but this you will not be disapointed.

The Good:

The 12x zoom allows for nice wide angle shots, moving through to close tele shots.
The 10M pixel sensor, nicely detailed, works beautifully in low lights
Takes HCSD cards so you can get 4, 8 or even 16Gb cards to work in it.
Face recognition works well
Good quality optics
Nicely detailed high res rear screen
Good selection of shooting modes, allowing you to experiment a lot further than that compact you've been using
Good range of shutter speeds (8s to 1/2000)
Powers up from 4xAA sized batteries, should your camera die whilst out and about, you can get power from almost any corner shop, battery life is best described as ok, it lasts long enough, but i get the feeling that using 4 batteries it should be more.
Really light (especially if you compared this camera to an SLR with lenses to cover the same focal lengths)
Nice chunky design that feels well made, yet has good ergonomics, everything for framing and taking a shot falls readily to hand
The EVF (electronic viewfinder) is handy in sunny conditions
Seems to take good photo's that print well

The bad

The lens only has apertures from f2.8 to f5.0 I would have expected a bigger range (my wifes older s5700 goes down to f6.3)
Flash does not pop up automatically (my wife has the older s5700, and it does this on hers)
The front of the lens has no thread mount to allow the use of filters, a camera thats in the bridging section of the market should really be offering this.
No image stabilisation, with a zoom this long some form of stabilisation would be a usefull.
The lens cap is just a push on affair, and has a habit of slipping off easily when in your pocket. Had fuji put the thread for filters on, they could have used a proper gripping design, that wont pop off so easily.
The LCD screen is inset, I get the feeling it will be hard to clean dust out of the corners.
The image quality on the EVF (electronic viewfinder) is not so good this is not to say its poor, but a higher quality would be nicer, and if it stuck out a bit would stop nose prints in the rear screen when using it.
Autofocus can be a bit slow.
The door to access the batteries and memory car feels secure enough when fitted, but the hinge feels a bit odd while off. I'm not saying it will fall off after a few openings, but i feel that over time this could become a weak point.

The Ugly:

If you have small hands this may feel a bit to chunky.
This is definitely a right handed camera, with the exception of the flash pop up button, all the controlls are on the right hand side
Comes with a neck strap, personally i'd have liked to see a wrist strap included as well (I took the wrist strap from my old camera to use on this) I say this because as a right hander with big hands i find i can operate the camera single handed.
Your hand can get in the way of the AF light while using the camera.
Theres a panorama mode, that will stitch 3 photos together in landscape, in reality 3 differently exposed photos are stitched together, this means to get it all to work you have to be carefull about matching exposures, (it takes a bit of practice).

To summerise:

Its a good camera, lightweight yet well made. Takes good photos, and generally a good step forewards if you are wanting a bit more creative freedom than that compact you have offers. This is a true bridging camera, allowing a taste of DSLR usage with some of the convenience of a compact. Also be tempted by that 12x zoom, its proved itself for me every time i've had the camera out.

Whilst not without its faults (most annoying being the ease with which the lens cap pops off) they are all minor things that shouldn't put you off.

All in all I'd reccomend this camera to anyone (plus a few sets of rechargable batteries!) I'm happy with mine.

I purchased the S1000fd because I was looking for a new digital camera, but also wanted to get back into photography. I have never had a digital SLR, but used to use a completely manual one when I was younger. Although the S1000fd isn't an SLR, it offers a lot more freedom than many compacts.

The resolution is massive (10 megapixels) and is more than most people probably would need, but I chose the S1000fd for the 12x optical zoom, optional eye viewer (meaning you don't have to use the screen on the back to see what you are shooting) and face recognition technology. The zoom is fantastic - suprisingly clear. The camera feels good in your hand - it's reassuringly weighty without being too heavy. I have also purchased a set of rechargable batteries (the AAs it comes with didn't last me very long and aren't rechargable) and an 8 gb memory card, as the internal memory was full after only 10 photographs.

This is the best camera I have owned - it refreshes fast enough to shoot my two year old without blurring or missing the photograph, and the red eye reduction is faultless (my family all have blue eyes are notorious for red eye). Definitely a worthwhile purchase!