Fujifilm FinePix S5000 Zoom

Opinion: This was my first step up from the regular point and shoot digital cameras. it was very good value at the time and had a lot to offer.

even though it falls short in a lot of areas (see below) i still must say that this camera, for the price it was and what it offered at the time, was a fantastic bargain. i have taken some of my best photos on it and it served me extremely well. if the AF assembly hadnt been knocked out of place from a drop, i would still be using this camera.

Opinion: Out of the few beginner SLR type cameras out there this is one i choose to pick..i used this for about 6 months for bmx shots...and if it can keep up with that im sure it would do just fine for your use...so many features packed into a small affordable camera.

Opinion: For people that want to print just 4x6 and want an easy to use camera, this will do for them, but I would not recommend this camera. If you want to take picture of any object that is moving, FOR GET IT. With it's slow auto focus and shutter lag it is very dificult. As per below I have had problems and gave up and went out and purchased a DSLR while I was waiting for it to be repaired

Opinion: Although this camera has been superceded by the S5600, this is still an excellent camera. So much so that on my photography course I used it for one of the sections, and, needlessly to say, got a distinction for it. Its THAT good. Only down sides are that if you shoot at 800 ISO the resolution is only 1 mega pixel, not the usual 3, and that the smallest aperature is F8/F9 depending on the zoom. But apart from that, if you are still a film user and need a good digital camera, then don't overlook this. I have since bought a Digital SLR but still use this as a second camera and indeed when taking photos with my Film SLR's I still have this with me.

Opinion: At around USD345.00 this camera is reasonably perfect. This is an upgrade to my s3000 which i really liked. The s5000 has performed well and it's 10x zoom helped capture photos which will be used as evidence in court while keeping my distance. images taken at 10x are clear even while shooting through a bronze glass. the features are easy to access.

Opinion: Got my 1st F5000 some 18 months ago, and my 2nd F5000 some 8 months ago. My thoughts on the F5000 is that "it is the most exciting camera I've had in 40 yrs of 35mm photography". Quite a statement.

As an active photographer all this time, and with hundreds of awards at camera club level and many awards at Australian - National exhibitions of photography, I really push the camera and its functions to the limit.

After 9 months of use of the F5000, I donated all my 35mm equipt to a local college - lenses from 24 to 1000MTO + 2 camera bodies + various accessories ... all as a result of the capabilities of this fabulous camera.

I regularly make 8"x12" prints from my pix, and while it's the upper limit of where I want to print, when framed and hung on the apartment wall, no-one comments upon and sharpness issues - they can't be readily seen.

I really enjoy the beauty of the 10x zoom lens: the 3mpx is okay for me - the 6mpx option doesn't seem to make much improvement. The digital zoom from 10x to 14x I use almost daily for many landscapes and wildlife (kangaroos, emus, birds etc): and the 5pfs burst mode is fantastic.

See also review of 1 week old F5600

Opinion: I have had this camera for about 3 years now and have taken thousands of pictures with it accross the world. As a beginner but interested in nature photography I chose this model because of its fantastic zoom (10xoptical), good pixel size (was almost biggest 3 years ago), its continuous shoot option (which was invaluable at Badminton Horse Trials!) point and click usability but also for its fully manual features for dabbling in photography (that I fully intended on using), however, I found this camera so accurate and easy to use in its auto function that I have not exploited its manual ones as much as I would have liked! This camera is comfy to hold with its SLR styling, has an excellent menu system and most importantly of all takes amazingly accurate pictures. It has a minimal photographic delay in comparison to other cameras of its age and although it takes a great photo at 6m interpolated pixels I am satisfied with using the 3m option since you can save more on a card and it makes no difference unless you go above A4 printing, it also goes easy on batteries (I used only two sets of 4AA's taking over 1000 photos on my honeymoon using the LCD screen constantly). My brother photographed my wedding (800 pictures of the day) for me and it has taken such good photos of friends weddings that I have been asked as the official photographer to the next one! I recently bought the fuji wide angle lens for the camera which makes an amazing difference to the shot, however on full zoom with the lens on you get a 'bleeding' of the outer edges of the image but the focal point remains sharp. This may be seen as a flaw but I think it adds to the beauty of a shot if used correctly! Be careful of using the flash on close up shots with the lens on as you can get a crescent on the bottom of your shot from the shadow of the lens. I bought this camera upon first release so it was quite expensive but I believe apart from increacing the pixels (which as I mentioned before is quite redundant anyway) it would be a hard one to replace!

Opinion: I'm glad I got rid of this camera and moved up. Has been a terrible camera to use and spent most of it's life in a drawer after struggling to use it for months and I'm very capable with camera's

Opinion: I've had this camera for a year now, and I recently bought a Rebel XT. I mostly photo landscapes and action (mostly motocross). The biggest problems I had was the shutter lag. I had to press the shutter button way before to get the shot I wanted. Image quality is very nice. I was impressed by image quality, there is very low noise (but I mostly shot at 200 ISO). I shot at 6MP all the time and used 200 and 400 ISO mostly. I loved the 5fps, especially when shooting action. I do not understand why the lens sometimes shakes slightly when it is extended fully. Another problem I faced rarely was an out of focus photo. I used auto focus and listen for the beep, but still I would get an out of focus shot every once and a while. I would of liked to have a custom white balance. I still wonder why there is no hot shoe on this camera. I would of loved to of been able to use an external flash.