Fujifilm FinePix HS50EXR 16 MP Digital Camera with 3-Inch LCD (Black)

This camera has a number of good features. In no particular order, they are: o The lens is long and fast o The viewfinder and LED screen (920kPixels) are EXCELLENT. o The sensor is larger than that of many of its competitors. This sensor has 8 times as many pixels as a full HD display. If you're going to put your photo on your computer, you will have a lot of pan and zoom available to you. o CMOS sensors like this are better at low light. o The artificial horizon is a helpful tool o The focussing aids work well - as long as you know they are going to come on o The hybrid autofocus is indeed faster, often seeming almost instantaneous o Both in spot and average, the focus is very good at bringing into focus what I want in focus o The manual zoom is a wonderful thing to have (for all stills and low dynamic video) o The manual zoom saves an enormous amount of battery life o The manual focus is actually usable - using a lens ring is a wonder o The manual exposure controls are the easiest I have seen in a non-SLR o The camera has an unmarked knob to which almost ANY function may be assigned. Majorly COOL. o Saturation and color accuracy are the best I have seen from Fuji and easily rival a Canon HS we also own. o The camera is easy to handle (though it certainly won't fit in your pocket) o Battery life is more than satisfactory, though from 1st Low Battery warning to DEAD can be very short indeed o The solidity and build of the camera are substantial and pleasing o The number of features available in the UI is impressive and most are quite usable o Under Advanced, the camera has a mode in which it will rapidly take 2-4 pictures with a very high ISO setting and then combine them into a single frame to eliminate the usual high-ISO noise. The results are ASTOUNDING. You can take shots by candlelight that look like 25 ASA Kodachrome (if you're old enough to know what that even means). NO NOISE. o I found the complaints about the ON/OFF switch to be unfounded. This is the third or fourth camera I have owned with a power switch of this design and it has never been an issue with me. o Motion panorama needs a tripod if you have any zoom on at all, but does produce excellent images. o Movies are crispy and well exposed. Focus and exposure are both dynamic and accurate. Manual zoom's a litte rough for video o The ability to vary the camera's dynamic range is useful and enables some creative tricks you never saw outside of Photoshop o This camera supports both sides of "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance": an expert can use it and a complete novice can use it (as long as the novice doesn't start messing with the knobby bits). It has a truly brainless AUTO mode that will take care of everything and in almost all cases, take excellent pictures. The only drawbacks are, as I have already noted, that the manual zoom makes long, slow zooms in videos very difficult to accomplish, particularly if you are not on a tripod. TIP: always use a tripod when shooting video. TIP: Viewers get rapidly tired of long zooms and pans; shoot primarily static shots; allow your subjects to do the moving. You will need to spend some time really learning how to use this camera. Like any new, upper end camera, it has a LOT of features and if you just pick it up and try to start shooting, you are going to get confused and/or frustrated. Have the camera in front of you as you go through the full manual. Operate every feature and setting till you at least know what it is doing - whether or not you think you will ever use it. The reward will be feeling much more comfortable and being able to get the camera to do what you want it to, which is a LOT. As pointed out by several other reviewers, replacing the capability of this lens with interchangeables would cost a fortune and you will, of course, have to stop what you are doing to dig out the next lens, switch them and put the old one away by which time your Pileated Woodpecker has flown the coop. I keep telling myself I'm going to get a DSLR, but if they keep producing point-and-shoots like this, I believe I never will. Genug.

The camera is everything I expected it to be. The phase detect is really fast and I like the ability to manipulate/tweak the auto focus settings for different shooting situations. The macro/super macro works well. The optical zoom is great. The intelligent digital zoom is ok. The stabilization is very good. Although my personal preference, for long range shooting, is to use a tripod whenever possible. The 'filters', although not necessary, do add a layer of simplistic fun to the camera. Being able to shoot in RAW is definately a big plus! My personal opinion is that this camera is not for novices. If you have never changed a setting to take a picture on any camera you have ever used then this camera is not for you! If you are a beginner and have lots of patience and are willing to spend the time to learn, then this camera will serve you well. If you are an experienced user and value the importance of being able to customise your settings 'on the fly' you should be quite satisfied with this camera. The main reasons I love this camera are portability, versatility and RAW! It is much easier to walk around with this camera for casual shooting than a DSLR with kit. Once you master this camera's settings you will be able to manipulate it very quickly to suit any occasion. In terms of picture quality, I'd consider it quite suitable for non-commercial purposes.

The Fujifilm Finepix HS50 EXR feels like a DSLR. It is much larger and heavier than other superzooms, though that may not matter to some users. This camera has the fastest shutter of any camera I've used (I don't use any DSLR). You point, you press the shutter, and the image is almost instantly captured. I think this feature sets the Fujifilm apart from all other superzooms and is its major strength. One unusual feature is that the zoom is entirely manual. Just as with a DSLR or traditional film camera, you turn the barrel to move the zoom. Sony has a feature similar to this except that the zoom is powered, whether you use the lever or the barrel. The Fujifilm zoom is very smooth and absolutely quiet. The lens is threaded for 58mm filters and the lens cap fits very securely. A sensor detects your face near the viewfinder (EVF) to automatically switch between the LCD and the EVF. This feature worked very well for me (Sony has this on some superzooms, as well). The EVF has the highest resolution of any point and shoot and is a real pleasure to use. The image processor in the Fujifilm is slightly larger than other superzooms. I didn't see any significant benefit, though in theory is should result in better images. Two years ago, I tried a predecessor to this camera and returned it to Amazon. Almost all of my objections to that camera have been resolved in this camera. In the past six months, I have used the Canon Powershot SX50 HS, the Sony CyberShot 200v, and the Fujifilm Finepix HS50 EXR, arguably the top 3 superzoom point and shoot cameras on the market at this moment. Each has its strengths and weakness, its fans and foes. None of the three is perfect. All three produce great images in bright light outdoors, making them excellent for landscapes and wildlife. My complaint that applies to all three is that the image quality doesn't live up to the superzoom. You'll get close, but you may not like what you see, especially as you crop. Updated 03-06-14: I ended up returning this camera because the quality of the images wasn't superior to the Canon PowerShot SX50 HS 12MP Digital Camera with 2.8-Inch LCD (Black) . I have since purchased the Fujifilm X-S1 12MP EXR CMOS Digital Camera with Fujinon F2.8 to F5.6 Telephoto Lens and Ultra-Smooth 26x Manual Zoom (24-624mm) , which has better image quality.

I did a lot of research before I bought this camera, I compared features to lots of different cameras and this was a real winner. This turned out to be a major upgrade from my previous Canon camera which I also liked a lot. I've owned quite a few different Canon cameras, and it is my subjective experience that the Auto-focus of this camera is superior to anything else that I have used. Tracking focus on a moving subject is also very good. There are other cameras on the market that have a slightly longer zoom, but this is the only one with manual zoom and the option of manual focus using a focus ring. If you are doing snapshot photography these features are not important to you, but if you are doing serious photography, these 2 features make all the difference in the world. Being able to zoom quickly and accurately without tedious button pushing makes a huge difference. I get shots with this camera that would be impossible with a camera that uses buttons to control the zoom lens. 6 frames per second burst, in a camera this cheap just blows me away... fast enough for serious action shots. The low light capability is also quite remarkable. The auto-everything mode also produces good results and makes intelligent choices. Even though this is not as well known as some of the other camera brands, it is a real jewel for the serious photographer. I feel that it is much better than similar cameras from other companies. There are a zillion other reviews that go into a lot more detail, so let me just summarize by saying that I am a very experienced photographer and ... I absolutely love it! P.S. I've had this camera for one year now and it has held up great. The manual zoom was initially a bit rough but either it's gotten smoother over time or else I simply don't notice it anymore. Anyway, I have absolutely zero complaints about this camera.

First digital camera - I bought this specifically for the large zoom capability for use on a European tour. Pros: performed as I had hoped, although I spent the tour with the camera in AUTO mode. This allowed me to shoot while on the move, in and out of buildings. There are a large number of available settings I did not fully explore that might have helped me with subjects in the foreground that were darker than the background (a person with the sky to their back, for example). Good combination of zoom and low light capability, this allowed me to take pictures of frescoes and paintings found in historical buildings and churches where the lighting is subdued. Picture storage. This defaults to the add on memory card (not included) if one is present. This is handy, since it means that all your pictures will be on the removable card to transfer to a computer for uploading, posting or editing. Pictures are stored under the DCIM folder on the memory card, in a folder that stores each photo with a sequence number, and date and time. The camera's stored file structure (FAT32) is compatible with Windows (serialized file number, date and time) and was readable by my smartphone so I could send a couple of shots by e-mail while on the road. Cons: No GPS on this device, but this was not an issue for me. One nit - if you silence the "beeps" the camera makes when powering on or pressing buttons, a side effect is that it also suppresses the flash. This is observed by a crossed out icon on the display. Settings to correct this noted below. Workarounds: Took me a moment to search the Internet and discover how to get the flash operating again (to highlight the dark subjects in front of a light background). You re-enable sounds, just turn the sound volume down so the camera operates quietly. The full operator's manual is on the supplied CD and is also downloadable, but it is over 100 pages long. Rather than haul a book around I kept the full copy on my smartphone and the abbreviated Basic Manual in my camera bag for the trip. Recommendations: Removable memory cards. Amazon will recommend buying an extra memory card, and will offer the SD series of cards. I bought the smaller micro SD that came with an adapter to fit the SD slot in the camera. This allowed me to use the removable card in both the camera and my smartphone while traveling (the smartphone only takes the smaller micro card). Individual photos with this camera are about 5 MB a shot. You may find yourself posting photos rather than e-mailing them (transfer to computer or

Update 3-16-2015: I have downgraded my rating from 4 to 1 for two reasons. Reason 1: the camera in movie mode does not work as advertised. When using MOVIE mode the MANUAL FOCUS it still goes in and out of focus sometimes never re-focusing. So considering the camera has two basic modes, still and movie, and one of the two doesn't work as advertised in the user manual this camera is a failure. Reason 2: I emailed FUJIFILM customer service on 5/23/2014, 12/30/2014, 01/17/1015 and 03/02/2015. Each time I received and automated reply but NEVER a reply from a person. There is no phone number to call for customer service. I have been a Fuji camera user for 15 years. and this is my third camera. Given the above NON response it will be my last. Update 6-10-2017. Got a replacement from Fujifilm but the problem is still happening. ================================================================================================ I've scanned the manual twice. Played with as many settings as my mind could absorb. How long does it take to figure it all out? Ran a test the day I got it to see if I could use it for a dance recital. I was concerned about quality and whether it could run continuously for 2 + hours. It ran for more than that. I noticed in the manual there is an over-heating indicator, and it got warm but not hot in a 74degree room. During the test I used two Halcyon 1800 mAH batteries and the Fuji battery. One of the Halcyon 1800 mAH batteries lasted 35 min the other 50 min, and the Fuji 2hr 10 min. I also tested a Komputerbay 64GB SDXC class 10 SDXC card to see how many minutes of continuous HD 1080 video I could get. If you read the manual very closely the camera records in 14 min increments. I did get 2 hr and 10 min on the card with no glitches. It looked great in playback on my computer. I recorded TV shows and they played back a little brighter than the TV and liked to put a bluish tint to everything. I'm not surprised. I have reviewed sample videos from other reviewers with no blue tint. CON!: The playback sound on the computer was fine, full and clear. I could not hear the zoom lens movement over the TV sound. While playing back the video on the camera with the sound at volume 10 I could barely hear any sound with the camera held to my ear. Any comments about camera volume would be greatly appreciated. I would hate to have to send back for replacement. Update 5/19/2014 I did zoom during the above test. There was no sound from the zoom at least not louder the recording subject. If the zoom was much looser it would move around when the camera was pointed up or down. Part of the test was to run continuously on HD video in 14 min (see manual) increments , using the Fuji battery and a 64Gb SDx card. The card and the battery ran for 2hr 10 min. Very pleasantly surprised! As I said I bought the camera for a Dance recital. I tested it during practice to verify continuous focus for a staged event with stage lighting, a dark back curtain, in a dark auditorium. Auto-focus was a disaster. Sometimes the auto-focus would get lost and never come back. What to do?? So, of all things, I read and reread the manual. It offered little help but presented some parts of the puzzle. One of parts was that some of the settings in camera mode carry over into movie mode. Of course one of the items was to use the manual focus mode switch on the side of the camera, but with any camera screen size it's difficult to see when the camera is truly in focus. On page 85 there is a setting called "Focus Peak Highlight". You set the focus using this setting in camera mode then press the movie button and the camera stays focused. The other automatic functions such as WB and aperture seemed OK. So even though this camera does not have all the features of a Cam-corder it does the same beautiful job in video as with stills. PS> When outdoors in daytime the auto-focus in movie mode doesn't seem to have this problem. Of course the auto-focusing problem is the same in still mode in dark settings. June 15 2014 I videoed my granddaughters at a track meet. I was sitting at the starting line near corner one. I did a video of them making the turn in corner three, hand held by the way. This is full auto. There was NO zooming search, zoomed about halfway out and you could even see the chain link fence behind them. There wasn't even any motion blur. I was most impressed. It looked terrific on my 55" Samsung tv.

I am a Canon loyalist, but went with this Fuji because it had everything I wanted, including the ability to add filters (58mm), -without- buying or adding an adapter, it has a shoe for external flash (Canon flash does work), RAW format, and ergonomic zoom/focus rings. Where this camera comes up short is picture quality, much to my dismay. : ( Even with excellent lighting and a tripod, the pictures pixilate into oblivion as the ISO creeps past 200. I didn't get the Canon XS50 because of all the bad reviews about it's electric view finder. I figured what good is a super zoom camera if you can't compose a decent photo because of a lousy view finder? The Fuji has an excellent EVF, but takes sub-par photos. The only thing that saves this camera is the ability to come back and tweak the photos in RAW format, but this is time consuming.

I wanted this camera for a while now and when money became available I got it. Still learning how to use it . I wanted it for the manual zoom. I always love fuji I had fuji film camera in 2003 and fd 1000 in 2007 and a small point and shoot camera . My last fuji had problems with battery door . this camera could have fixed that problem but it to is cheap part on the camera the battery door . It is step above point and shoot and just under a dslr camera and the price was great too. It takes great pictures and us easy to grip . I take travel and pet photography . So it works great for that. Have not used it with a tripod yet or external flash yet. You can all so get lenses for the camera if you want which also drew me to the camera which no one mentioned before you really don't need them as I can plainly see now this camera is a beast I love it. It will workout great for my trip to vegas next year. The only thing I will get for this camera is a circular linear. Lens to help when I take pictures out the windows or in on my trip so there is no glare. Filters will save the lens . I'll let you all know how my next set of pictures come our. update after a little while of use i printed out pictures and they came out very bland like no color to them very light in color. still working on learning on the spec of the camera. if you want a camera that is a little more then a point and shoot and less then a dslr this is the camera for you. when i learn more ill let you know thanks ::::Update::I am so glad I got this camera . Even without circular polarizer lens it took great pictures through car window. It's amazing how this camera works . The zoom is why I got it . And it is not let me down. So you will not be disappointed with this camera . I fixed all the bland pictures . So color just pops off the photo paper. Love it . So if you love to take pictures of your travels this is the camera for you ....update ... Took camera on a bus trip to Las Vegas. The pictures threw the window came out great . I use a cpl lens. Also the color is fabulous looking on the prints it took . It took great pictures of down town Las Vegas too. You can not use the cpl lens at night . The camera takes awsome pictures at night. This is my go to camera from now on . Just try it you will not be disappointed.

This is a really good camera. It comes with 2 year Canadian warranty. If you are looking for something better than just point & shoot but not wanting to invest into expensive SLR systems / lenses, this is the one. As far as I know this is the only camera that looks and feels as an SLR. Comparing to an actual SLR, this camera is really light and you could easily carry it for many hours at a time. I compared it to Nikon, Canon and Pentax models with similar features but this one stood out. For me it was the manual zoom lens that stood out above the competitors. Power zooms drain the battery quite a bit and can be rather noisy, (especially when recording videos the zoom noise can get recorded). The manual zoom on this camera is quite smooth even when recording videos. Being an owner of several film SLRs I wanted the flexibility of digital camera without investing into lenses again. This one has many features that SLR cameras have: Aperture as well as Speed priority, Automatic, Program, Fully manual exposure, & several more. Shoots RAW, JPEG files. But having said that this is not a professional camera, rather a bridge camera. Well designed, easy to operate. The swivelling LCD screen is a nice touch, excellent detail & contrast. The viewfinder is a little awkward since it’s not rubberized which is especially noticeable if you wear glasses. Also once you zoom in with 1000mm it has trouble focusing but this is easily solved if you select continuous tracking from the main menu, so not really a problem. Autofocus is pretty good. Shutter speed ranges from 30 seconds to 1/4000 which is pretty good. It does not have the Bulb feature so for very long exposures at night such as star trails (which could take several hours), this camera would not be able to do this. Even though the camera looks and feels as an SLR, it is not a digital SLR. So it really depends what your needs are. Instruction manual suggests the recommended cards are Fujifilm & Sandisk and they cannot guarantee operation with another brands. I bought the Sandisk Extreme Pro 16 gb (95mbs/s for about $54) which may seem as an overkill given the fact this is not a professional camera, but I think you should always buy the best media available, and so far it performs really good. Camera takes full HD videos but it will not replace your camcorder. The manual included is only a quick reference guide just over 20 pages. The full version is included on the CD-ROM which is close to 140 pages. Panorama 360 degree feature is really neat too. The quiet feature is very useful when you take photos in designated quiet areas since it renders the camera completely silent (no beeps or shutter sounds). Also once you install the software, the RAW file converter is not installed with it. You have to look through that CD manually and then install it separately (had I read the manual I would have saved myself a lot of frustration trying to figure out why RAW file converter did not install with main program.) I still haven’t tried all the features but just reading from the manual it is packed with tons of stuff. Battery life is not bad if you take photos but when you start taking videos, it can drain quickly. If you do a lot of photography / videos, buy a spare battery. The battery can be pricey but you can shop around. I would not recommend buying one of those no name replacement batteries as those could fall apart or may not even fit properly inside the camera. Why risk damaging your camera to save a few dollars. Buy the original battery. Before you decide to buy this camera, you can download the PDF instruction manual from Fujifilm website and really just go through it and decide for yourself if those features are really the ones you want. Also you can read reviews on other websites and watch demo videos. If you are looking for quality but don’t want to spend too much money or constantly change lenses, this is it. 24mm to 1000mm manual zoom lens is unheard of for this kind of price. I highly recommend it.

First of all I'd mention it's limitations -it has less effective megapixels (16) compared to DSLRs of professional use. -Not much focus field depth (f/2.8-11) as compared to DSLR lenses -it's a bit heavier compared to DSLR cameras -it's focus ring is just a dial that can be rotated endlessly. The user needs to be use to with such manual focus system -fixed camera lens. No interchangeable lens system! -Not much clarity in 84x zoom. Now the benefits -although it's focus field depth is limitated but still enough. -It's weight doesn't Matter for a photographer. -It's focus ring system is still good. We just need to be practiced with it. Although we can't change it's lens still it's native lens is damn good! 24-1000mm of focal length is too good. It will be too costly if we buy DSLR lens of such focal length! -it is a very good camera in the name of professional photography. -it has a special mode-exr which is the best auto mode one can have. -It has a very fast processor and image sensor. -It records videos in full hd and has very good further video options. -when we go down in video resolution it gives high speed video upto 480fps frame rate that is incredibly good. -16 megapixels is still very good. -For ease of focus it makes the focused part sharp so we can easily focus but makes normal for capturing. -it has a very nice image stabilization system. -it has some advanced shooting modes that are very useful. -it has a multiple exposure system which is very useful and RARE feature! Huh. I'm tired of typing.! Further more features you find out of your own. You may download it's user manual. I tell you.. for 22000rs it gives features of 1200000rs. Don't miss it.

Camera as expected, it is a spare/replacement for my much overworked and now slightly battered model. There does not seem to be a modern replacement for this model. None with a manual zoom control and the flexibility of use, hence the purchase of this previously enjoyed model. Came well packaged, and as specified. The condition was better than the description allowed me to expect.

I found it easier to use than a Canon I had ordered & returned. It takes pretty good photos & the better I get - the better the photo. Its has many options in the Menu from Manual, Aperature, Scene settings, Macro & Super Macro. Cannot change lens but at the time, for me, that was a bonus. Like the idea you can charge the battery (charger & battery were included) instead of having to replace batteries.

Picture quality dosen't meet my expectation. Any Way it's OK but not Like DSLR. - Initial Review after 2-3 days. (3 star) I Have used this camera for 5 months, and one thing i can say that, it's a perfect bridge camera for the beginners, who want to groom themselves in the world of pix-image. Get all my shot perfect. it's give me a DSLR look and i feel proud of it. I will give 5-Star, once i find what i am looking for, till than 4 star :)