Fuji FinePix F200 EXR - HR vs. SN mode @ ISO 800

Here we compare the F200's two EXR modes - the full 12 MP resolution 'HR' mode and the pixel-binned, 6MP 'SN' mode. As we climb up through the ISO range, the benefits of the combined-pixel mode should start to become apparent. Looking at the two, side-by-side should allow us to establish which we should use to compare with other cameras.

None of the EXR modes allows control over the aperture and under our studio lighting has selected F12. However because the F200 achieves this through the use of a slightly reduced aperture and ND filter to achieve the exposure equivalent to F12, rather than a tiny physical aperture, it won't be suffering unduly from diffraction effects.

Studio scene comparison (@ ISO 800)

  • Fuji FinePix F200 EXR: EXR HR mode, ISO 800, Default Image Parameters,
    Manual white balance, +0.33 EV compensation
     
  • Fuji FinePix F200 EXR: EXR SN mode, ISO 800, Default Image Parameters,
    Manual white balance, +0.33 EV compensation
     
  • Lighting: Daylight simulation, >98% CRI
Fujifilm FinePix F200 EXR
Fujifilm FinePix F200 EXR
ISO 800, 1/75 sec, F12, HR mode
ISO 800, 1/75 sec, F12, SN mode
4.4 MB JPEG
2.5 MB JPEG

Here's how the camera performs at ISO 800 in its full resolution 'HR' mode and its pixel-binned 'SN' mode. The 6MP version is not only cleaner (which the 12MP image might match if it were downsized to 6MP), but also fractionally more detailed, which no amount of resizing would recover from the HR image. So this suggests that the benefits of SN mode are slight. But how does it compare against other cameras?