Cameras

[snoopy]

I have a Fuji s5500 dslr with telescopic and wide angle lens. I am looking to upgrade to something lighter and easier to use. Any suggetsions? I still want to have access to lens and other accessories.

[OzzieTraveller]

G'day Snoopy

Welcome to the Forum :)

I know the S-5500 quite well ... as part of the S-5000 > S-5600 series of cameras
It has a very nice 10x zoom lens, the 35mm film camera equiv of 35-350mm, (and for the dSLR Forum readers, a 28-280mm equiv lens)

The camera itself is one of the lightest cameras on the market, coming in at about 475grams and its menuing system is nice & easy to follow (as it does not have '000s of options)

For anyone on the Forum to better answer your starter Q we would need to know more about you, the sort of pix you like to take and what sort of pix you cannot take with the Fuji where you want another camera to do it for you

BTW - an interchangeable-lens camera with its "basic" 3x zoom lens (your Fuji equiv of 35-105mm) will weigh in at about double the Fuji and cost you around $900+

Hope this helps a bit, Phil.

[swifty]

Hi snoopy, I'm a little confused.
As far as I know fuji only had 4 DSLR models: the S1, S2, S3 and S5 Pro, not counting the special UV/IR models.
Is ur S5500 a point and shoot prosumer model with some accessory attachments to make the existing (non-interchangeable) lens wider or longer?
If so, your choices might be quite limited if u want to be able to reuse those acceosries.
If u want somethng lighter and easier to use you could consider anything from eg. a canon S90, G11, panasonic lx3, to micro4/3 models like olympus ep1/2, panasonic gf1, to the just announced Sony nex range to even entry level DSLRs. It all depends on how small and what u define as easy to use.
I find my S5 easier to use than many p&s for example cos I hate searching for functions buried in menus.

[snoopy]

Thanks for the feedback. I like to take shots of whatever is around. My biggest problem is that I can't seem to get the sutter speed right and on the manual setting everything seems darker. Frustration plus as I am off to Cairns soon and would like to get some great shots especially around the daintree. The other down side I have is that due to circumstances my hands shake a lot and some times my pictures come out blured which is very annoying. I have problems holding anything for to long and just wanted to know if there is a better option for me especially with the stabilisation problems. I do have a tripod but I still have to touch the camera which results in the same outcome. Appreciate your help

[OzzieTraveller]

G'day again Snoopy

Your Fuji 5500 is very similar to my old Fuji 5000, so I know lots about what you are describing
For the moment and for the trip to Cairns, I suggest you wait before spending lots of $$ as you may find that in your rush, you've ended up with a less-than-perfect camera for your needs

What I suggest at the moment is:-
1- Use the "F" Fuji menu button to set the camera to ISO=400
2- Set the "S" on the top rotary dial to "Shutter" priority
3- Use the up/down arrows of the Okay panel to select a shutter speed of 1/250sec for your daylight photos. As you arrow up/down, the shutter speed numbers will show in the viewfinder/LCT screen as Yellow numbers

If you DO want to update your camera before the trip to Cairns (and you'll get many suggestions on this Forum) I suggest you consider either one of the dSLR twin lens kit offerings for about $1000, OR if you want to keep to an all-in-one camera system, then look at the new Fuji-1800 ($350) OR the Panasonic FZ-35 for about $650 OR the really fantastic Fuji S200EXR for $650-ish as well

Each of these cameras has some form of Image Stabilisation to minimise small amounts of human-wobble

Hope this helps a bit, and pl come back with more Qs as they arise
Regards, Phil

[ricktas]

even with image stabilisation, your shaking can be evident. The best option would be a small tripod to mount your camera on.

Post some of your photos into the member photos forums and explain your predicament. With real photographic examples, you should get some great advice from the members.

[swifty]

My biggest problem is that I can't seem to get the sutter speed right and on the manual setting everything seems darker. Frustration plus as I am off to Cairns soon and would like to get some great shots especially around the daintree. The other down side I have is that due to circumstances my hands shake a lot and some times my pictures come out blured which is very annoying. I have problems holding anything for to long and just wanted to know if there is a better option for me especially with the stabilisation problems. I do have a tripod but I still have to touch the camera which results in the same outcome.

Hi Snoopy, here are a few suggestions that might help.
Firstly, in manual if you're compensating for hand-shake with higher shutter speeds you'll need to also alter one of your other exposure variables ie. aperture or iso. Eg. if you half your shutter speed, you need to either open up your aperture one stop if possible, or increase your ISO one stop. Otherwise you're letting less light onto the sensor and photos will appear darker.
Electronic stabilisation can compensate to a certain degree, as can using faster shutter speeds. Also the longer the focal length, the more exaggerated the hand shake would be.
As a minimum, there's a guideline of using a shutter speed of 1/(focal length) eg. if you're using 50mm focal length use at least 1/50th of a second as your shutter speed. But depending on how much your hand shakes, you may need to adjust that.
Further you could try bracing yourself against a wall or tree or rest the camera/lens on a rail or whatever is available to you to help you stabilise the camera/lens.
But ultimately a tripod will give you the best results. If you're concerned about shaking the camera when pressing the shutter release, try using the self-timer function so there is a lag between shutter being pressed and the picture being taken.
Hope that helps.

[snoopy]

thanks heaps. tried it and it has helped some. will look at the other cameras you suggested.

[snoopy]

here are some shots I took recently on manual during the day.

[kiwi]

manual focus ?
As these arent focussed on anything

[snoopy]

That is my point. Actually I should have said manual setting. When I looked at the pictures they were in focus and not dark but this is how they have ended up.

[pgbphotographytas]

That is my point. Actually I should have said manual setting. When I looked at the pictures they were in focus and not dark but this is how they have ended up.

These look totally out of focus, are you using manual focus too?

[swifty]

Hi snoopy, this isn't at hand shake, shutter speed too low problem but rather a focus problem. The back LCD is usually not a good way to judge focus.
Manual focus can be difficult and I'd recommend just sticking to AF for now. Make sure the camera is set to autofocus (AF) and half press your shutter release button first. When u get a focus acquisition, it's usually indicated by a solid green round dot on your LCD. Then without letting go of the shutter release, depress it fully to take the shot.
When u half press the shutter release and the camera does not get a focus acquisition, u will need to let your finger off and try half pressing again. Sometimes the camera won't fire without a focus acquisition which leads me to believe you have somehow inadvertently put the camera on manual focus too.
When u don't get focus u either get a flashing green round dot or a red dot, instead of a solid green dot.

[ricktas]

Agree with the above, this is a focusing issue. Have a look in your manual and check the settings for auto focus (turning off and on).

[davesmith]

Having used the s5500 myself it could be the camera that's the problem too. It's quite an old camera now, and the autofocus on mine packed it in a few years ago. I always found manual focus close to impossible to use accurately. It was a great little camera though, but it could be the cause of the problem too.

[snoopy]

Thanks very much for your input. Actually thanks everyone. I now know I desperately need a new camera and in the mean time I will stick to A/F.