Fujifilm has replaced the FinePix HS10 with the HS20 EXR.
 | Fujifilm FinePix HS20 EXR announced January 2011
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Fujifilm FinePix HS10
30x, f/2.8, 24 mm
Summary Fujifilm HS10
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| Also known as: Fujifilm FinePix HS11   |
Replacement
reviewsWhat are people saying about the HS10
"The HS10 offers DSLR-like look and feel and an impressive feature set including the longest zoom in this test but the camera struggles (more than some others) in low light."dpreview.com | talking about the camera's overall-performance
"Dual Image Stabilizer"dpreview.com | talking about the camera's image-stabilization
"DSLR-like controls (including a manual zoom ring) and build quality."dpreview.com | talking about the camera's build-quality
gallery
Explore our gallery of 50 sample photos taken by the Fujifilm FinePix HS10.
Videos
Pros
Report a correction The Fujifilm HS10 vs other recent digicams
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Cons
Report a correction The Fujifilm HS10 vs other recent digicams
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Report a correction The Fujifilm HS10 vs other recent super zooms
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Discussion
FinePix HS10
Fujifilm
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Showing 22 comments
(My hs10 has a panorama picture mode)
I'd recommend: Take a photo at half zoom (say about 360mm), at the widest aperture possible (hopefully lower than f/5.6), with your subject fairly close to you, say less than 10 ft, with lots of distance behind the subject, say 20 ft.
This site: http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html says that at 60mm (or 360mm effective), at f/5.6, with your subject 10ft away, you should only expect ~3" in front and behind the subject to be in focus.
As a experienced owner (I made around 30.000 pictures in less then a year due to a roadtrip through Australia) I can definitely recommend this camera (or better the HS20) to anybody interested into stepping into the world of photography. This bridge camera is for me the perfect bridge between point and shoot and DSLR. Why? Because it feels like a DSLR, is very versatile and relatively cheap. When I was shooting on a airshow in Melbourne I spoke with a lot of photographers. There where only a few with a lens which offered the same zoom capabilities (and those are really expensive). Turned out I could make pictures a lot earlier then most photographers. Although fighter jets are known to be fast moving (understatement!) most of my pictures where sharp.
There are some trade offs which you should be aware about.
1) The sensor isn't as big as on most professional DSLR's. That means that it's harder to make pictures with a shallow DOF and a lot of bokeh. There are some tricks though to make your subject stand behind a really blurred background. The first is to zoom out completely and make a macro while the background is far away. The second is to zoom completely in (126mm or 135 equiv. 720mm focal length), again with the background as far away as possible. Both need minimum aperture. There are some tutorials about it. Additionally you can add some extra blur in the post processing.
2) ISO. I advice a maximum of ISO400 on the HS10. This is where a lot of HS10 users limit themselves to. The noice reduction is simply not good enough. You can go up till ISO1600, especially when combined with noise reduction through for example Photoshop, and get reasonable results. Could be a option if the picture is intended for facebook or so. Definitely not for print.
3) The manual zoom is superb for fast changing the zoom. It's a bit shaky though, so it's not possible to zoom smoothly during video.
4) You need to wait after taking a picture till the picture is saved on the SD card. There are on the other hand a lot of options to make a burst of maximum 7 pictures, with a speed up to 10 pictures per second! Compare that to a Nikon D3100 (max 3fps), a Nikon D5100 (max 4fps) or even a Nikon D7000 (max 7fps)! With some practice you can select the right option in a blink of an eye. It's perfect to capture exactly the right moment. Invaluable when my brother graduated and had to throw it's hat into the air. Invaluable when a big crocodile jumped next to our boat to get a piece of meat hanging in the air. Invaluable when you want to make some jump photos.
Also be aware that the default image settings don't deliver the best results regarding for instance sharpness or color. Again there's enough to find online about it. I can really recommend everybody to take a look at the HS10/HS20 Flickr group.
There are a lot of benefits to this neat camera. Although the sensor isn't that big as on DSLR's, it's definitely bigger then point & shoot camera's. I use it extensively for night photography and I love the results. You'll find some limitations again here (maximum shutter speed of 30 seconds and no possibility for a trigger cord). There is a simple workaround for the last mentioned problem: just set a timer for two seconds. You won't get a blurred image then because the camera moved while pressing the shutter button. Another benefit is the image stabilisation, it's AWESOME! It's no problem to zoom in 30 times in daylight and take a sharp picture. That's just incredible. There are also a lot you can change without even entering a menu. With a blink of an eye you select the right ISO, the right shutter speed and the right aperture. White balance? Just hold one button and navigate with the cursor through all the presets. Release the button and you are set. Same applies for the way you focus and how the light metering works.
Long story short, it's a great device with some drawbacks, but as long as you know them and adapt to them it's great. It's the perfect tool to learn how to shoot photos. You need to anticipate with this camera, think at least one step in advance and it will pay off. So Freeshoot, next time try to adapt to the camera instead of demanding that the camera adapts to you.
This is the video's link: http://www.infosyncworld.com/reviews/search/?q=Fujifilm+HS10&sa=Lookup
Thank you
the most i care about is the image resolution and features.
for the pro digicam i think they wouldn't have the feature that this camera has, like controling the shutter speed and the focus..., things like that right ??
for the panasonic i need more than 2x or 3x zoom and also i want to have a camera that have that pro. shape and look like the fuji HS10 or S4000....etc
is there any better camera in the same price range ??
30x zoom might be overkill for many people, and something like the Panasonic ZS7 with 12x zoom might is a great overall camera. If image quality and compactness is really important then you might look at the Canon S95 or Panasonic LX5, which have larger sensors than most compact cameras, but little zoom.
How is the Fujifilm HS10 compared to the Nikon D3100 ? Which one should I get if I'm looking for a cheap camera (500$ max) that doesn't have too many options, but that is good overall ? Any suggestions ?
You might also consider a travel zoom like the Panasonic ZS7, which still has more zoom than most cameras (12x), but is much smaller and hence easier to bring with you everywhere.
If you are more serious about photography, about manual controls and image quality, you should consider a pro digicam such as the Canon PowerShot S95 or Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5, these have larger sensors, wide apertures, shoot RAW and tend to have the best image quality you can get without going to an interchangeable lens camera, but don't have much zoom.
Reading over the thread at dpreview, the post about "firmware 1.03" is meant to be funny, what the person is saying is that he doesn't like the performance of the HS10, and thinks it has a number of problems (e.g. fuzzy pictures, high batter consumption, low resolution, lots of noise above ISO 400).
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1012&message=35401106
FIRMWARE 1.03 Addresses Following Issues:
1) Fix for unsharp fuzzy pictures at wide angle
2) Fix for extreme battery consumption
3) Correct inconsistant sharpness in pictures
4) Dramatic Improve resolution in all modes/focal lengths
5) Improve noise reduction for above ISO 400
INSTRUCTIONS:
Gather camera and all accessories
Place in box camera was purchased in.
Sell Camera and buy Fuji S200EXR or S100FS