A Great First Digital Camera-Specific Mac Info.
Written: Mar 29 '03
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Pros: Excellent value, small size, macro feature
Cons: Poor low light performance, overwhelming flash
The Bottom Line: I would give this camera a hearty thumbs-up for casual picture taking. It's a great value. For Mac users, it's full compatibility with OS X is a definite plus.
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| gangofone's Full Review: FUJIFILM FinePix 2650 Digital Camera |
If you're looking for a camera that will take you into the digital picture realm but not cost you an arm and a leg, this camera is a great choice. It's certainly not for professionals but it has enough features to keep the casual picture taker satisfied.
The size of the camera is good and the integrated lens cover will assure that the lens doesn't get scratched, so you can store it in a pocket or purse without worrying. Even though it is capable of 2 megapixel, I use the megapixel setting for nearly all of my photography. It is fine for snapshots and it doubles the number of pictures you can store on a memory card. It is easy to go through the menus and change settings for the following parameters: Picture quality in megapixels (0.3 MP, 1 MP, 2 MP Normal, and 2 MP Fine), Flash (no flash, always flash, red-eye reduction, and auto), Macro (on and off), Timer (on and off), and Options (setup information, LCD brightness, auto exposure, and manual exposure). The macro feature is handy if you take any pictures close-up. My son likes hermit crabs and it's nice to be able to take pictures of these little critters close enough to be able distinguish one from another. The three position rotary switch on the top of the camera controls if you are taking pictures, reviewing pictures already taken, or taking a movie. The power switch and the shutter button are both on the top of the camera. The battery and memory card access are on the bottom. There is a conventional view finder if you don't like using the LCD display to frame your pictures. Once set up, all you really need to do is open the lens cover, turn it on and start taking pictures.
In most instances I've been very happy with the pictures I've taken with this camera. The only time I've been disappointed is when taking pictures in dim light from a long distance. Things like indoor sporting events and the circus netted quite a few bad pictures. When I was taking pictures at the circus, I noticed that even though the flash wouldn't reach to the item I was taking a picture of, I got the best pictures when I left the flash on. With the flash off, it lowers the shutter speed so low, you'd need a tripod to take a shake-free picture. Of course with the flash on all the time, the battery life is alarmingly short. But with most mixed picture taking (indoor and outdoor), the battery life is OK. Flash recharge time is rather slow too, especially when the batteries are low. There is a small red icon that pops up on the view screen when the batteries are low. This gives ample time to get them replaced. I've never tried any of the batteries specially made to use in cameras. They may perform better. With the flash on and close, many times the flash is so strong that it washes out the subject. Thankfully, this is digital media and most times this can be corrected on a computer. One item I wanted to point out is that the movies you take with this camera don't have any sound to them. This was disappointing to me when I found out (after the purchase) but the fact that a camera in this price range has any movie-recording ability is pretty good. It's just that not having sound limits its usefulness.
Lastly,I don't know how many other reviews addressed Macintosh users' needs specifically. This was an important consideration for my purchase so it was something I investigated closely. I've only used this camera with OS X 10.2 (Jaguar). I haven't used this camera with OS 9.X (or through Classic). This is information is specific to OS X. You'll notice that all of the software that is included with the camera is Windows-only. If you're using OS X, that won't present a problem. The camera is fully iPhoto-compatible. You just connect it to your Mac and turn it on. iPhoto automatically launches and looks for whatever pictures you have stored. You simply click the "Download" button and confirm if you want to erase the contents after downloading (which I usually do unless I think I'm going to take the memory card to the store to get some pictures professionally printed). The pictures are downloaded and thumbnails are created for each pictures. If you want, you can assign categories to each picture, take care of red-eye or adjust the color and contrast from within iPhoto. Downloading a movie isn't any more difficult. You just connect the camera and turn it on. This will show up on your desktop as a external device. Just double click on the icon and drag the movie file to your desktop. The camera saves the movie in .avi format (Windows Media Player) but will play as a QuickTime movie on your Mac. Regardless if you're downloading movies or pictures, make sure to eject the camera icon so that the camera can be disconnected safely. I've just disconnected it a few times and not lost any pictures but better safe than sorry.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 170.00
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Easy Enough for Anyone to Use
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Epinions.com ID:
gangofone
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Reviews written: 8
Trusted by: 0 members
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