Canon S3 IS vs Sony H5 vs Fuji S9100/9600

[otispunkmeyer]

looking for a new camera.

more functional and meaty than a compact (coming from a SD400 here)

but not as complex or expensive as an SLR (+ my skills arent up to that just yet)

i have narrowed down to these 3, all have their pro's/con's.

i have about a week to decide

i like macro, long exposures and a lot of shooting at night (especially at break dancing competions, so its dark, the actions fast and i like to try NOT to use the flash)

so comments please on these 3

 

[imported_cheapdude]

Go with the Fuji

 

[Hyperlite]

i had a difficult time getting pictures that weren't incredibly noisy during the 5 days or so that i had to work with my dad's S3 IS. i think i took something like...1200 pics?

 

[nakedfrog]

Fuuuuuuuji!

 

[Aharami]

dpreview doesnt have an in-depth review for the fuji out yet. but here are the specs
fuji
canon
sony

When i was looking for my camera, it came down to between the S3IS and the S6500fd. I really liked the PQ of the sample fuji pics but didnt like how fuji's answer to image stabilization is to jack up the ISO. So I went with the Canon. Been very happy so far. 0mm focus range at Super macro mode is awesome (thats, right 0mm. subject could be touching the lens and it will still be in focus)

Also keep in mind that the fuji will be a much bigger camera than the S3IS. S3IS is considered compact whereas the S9500 is considered SLR-like

 

[Hyperlite]

Originally posted by: Aharami
dpreview doesnt have an in-depth review for the fuji out yet. but here are the specs
fuji
canon
sony

When i was looking for my camera, it came down to between the S3IS and the S6500fd. I really liked the PQ of the sample fuji pics but didnt like how fuji's answer to image stabilization is to jack up the ISO. So I went with the Canon. Been very happy so far. 0mm focus range at Super macro mode is awesome (thats, right 0mm. subject could be touching the lens and it will still be in focus)

Also keep in mind that the fuji will be a much bigger camera than the S3IS. S3IS is considered compact whereas the S9500 is considered SLR-like

that was a feature of the S3 IS i couldn't not get enough enough. i walked around the yard for like 4 hours just taking super macro shots. i took some really cool macro shots of the pin side of an Athlon XP-M.

 

[Aharami]

it seems the S9600 has a lot more features than the S3IS (hot shot flash capability, etc). But it will be a much bigger camera (i can slip the S3 in my jacket pocket but not my pants pocket...doubt you'd be able to fit the S9600 in any pocket.)

I really wish Fuji adds on IS to their high end P&S cameras. I love IS on my S3, but could use all those extra features on the Fuji

 

[otispunkmeyer]

Originally posted by: Hyperlite

Originally posted by: Aharami
dpreview doesnt have an in-depth review for the fuji out yet. but here are the specs
fuji
canon
sony

When i was looking for my camera, it came down to between the S3IS and the S6500fd. I really liked the PQ of the sample fuji pics but didnt like how fuji's answer to image stabilization is to jack up the ISO. So I went with the Canon. Been very happy so far. 0mm focus range at Super macro mode is awesome (thats, right 0mm. subject could be touching the lens and it will still be in focus)

Also keep in mind that the fuji will be a much bigger camera than the S3IS. S3IS is considered compact whereas the S9500 is considered SLR-like

that was a feature of the S3 IS i couldn't not get enough enough. i walked around the yard for like 4 hours just taking super macro shots. i took some really cool macro shots of the pin side of an Athlon XP-M.

yeah i love macro too, the super macro feature is a big draw for me.

also, im not sure if the 9100/9600 has proper IS, but IS is definately a big tick box for me becuase i dont have very steady hands.

i like long exposure too, but non of these cameras do over 30 seconds, and the canon only does 15 seconds, which i feel is a little limiting, but its fastest shutter speed does best the sony which is good for outdoor sports shots i guess.

i understand its difficult to get good shots from cameras like these, especially (so i have heard) from the S3. dpreview note that it provides great out of the box shots though. the SD400 i have now did too, and its taken me over a year to really find out where the camera works best, what settings work where and what not. ill enjoy doing it all over again.

nice touch on the fuji is the screen, doesnt rotate and swivel like the S3's but it is higher quality. S3 also has a dedicated iso button which for me is a good thing. i hate having to go into the menu to change ISO on my SD400.

shame canon had to lose ISO50 from the 5MP CCD used in the SD400 and S2 IS tho

 

[otispunkmeyer]

Originally posted by: Aharami
it seems the S9600 has a lot more features than the S3IS (hot shot flash capability, etc). But it will be a much bigger camera (i can slip the S3 in my jacket pocket but not my pants pocket...doubt you'd be able to fit the S9600 in any pocket.)

I really wish Fuji adds on IS to their high end P&S cameras. I love IS on my S3, but could use all those extra features on the Fuji

size/weight isnt really an issue for me.

im the same i'd love the features and the IS, but no one seems to do both! apparently the S4 isnt shaping up to be much better either.

 

[Aharami]

what news do you have on the S4?

Fuji doesnt have any IS. big drawback esp if you're gonna be shooting in dark places. I took my S3 to friend's new years eve party. Place was very dark. At first i couldnt get any decent shots with the flash off, but eventually i kinda got the hang of it and got some better shots. Were they as good as I would have liked? no. but would've been worse w/o IS

 

[Aharami]

sadly Canon will never release a P&S camera with all those features Fuji has since it will eat up some of their DSLR sales

 

[otispunkmeyer]

i dunno i jus read on a dpreview forums, some guy went with the S3 instead of holding off for the S4 because he was unimpressed with the spec's for it.

my mother is off to new york in a week, hence the weeks decision time. J&R (the only electronics shop i know in NYC lol not an american tho) sell both..... S3 is $330 and the S9100/9600 is $400. so they are similarly priced.

the only favourable thing about living in the UK comes into play here £>$

 

[ElFenix]

the S9600. Fuji's high ISO performance blows other compact cameras out of the water. image stabilization won't help you at break dancing competitions because IS doesn't do anything about subject movement. a usable high ISO will. additionally, the fuji has a wider lens, which will help immensely in tight locations (such as at break dancing competitions) where getting further away to get the FOV you want isn't a good option.

Originally posted by: otispunkmeyer
i dunno i jus read on a dpreview forums, some guy went with the S3 instead of holding off for the S4 because he was unimpressed with the spec's for it.

my mother is off to new york in a week, hence the weeks decision time. J&R (the only electronics shop i know in NYC lol not an american tho) sell both..... S3 is $330 and the S9100/9600 is $400. so they are similarly priced.

the only favourable thing about living in the UK comes into play here £>$

there is also b&h photo and adorama in manhattan. b&h is near the garden.

 

[The Stigenator]

I own an S3 IS and the S1 IS.

The big thing i love about the canons is the image stablization but i must say that the S1 has a superior IS to the S3.
i do concert photography with my S3 (previous with the S1) and i am quite happy with the results. SUre there is noise but depending on ambient light on subject you can run from ISO 200-800 (on the S3) or ISO 200-400 (on the S1).

Over all picture quality is good. I am going to give you a link to some of the pictures i took with teh S3 that are online.

http://picasaweb.google.com/manjul.bose/UNIQUEEvents

Try that link.

TGG

 

[AnitaPeterson]

I have the S3. I love it... and the video mode is absolutely breathtaking, as far as quality goes.
I took it to Europe with me over the winter holidays. The IS makes an enormous difference, and there was basically nothing I couldn't achieve with it.

IMHO, people who complain about noisy pictures should learn NOT to use the (automated) highest ISO settings...

The Fujifilm is not bad, either, from what I see... but I cannot comment on it, because I never worked with it.

I have 6 Canon cameras, out of which 4 are digital, so I'm a bit biased towards this brand... not to mention I have a sizable collection of film cameras.

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: TheGoodGuy
I own an S3 IS and the S1 IS.

The big thing i love about the canons is the image stablization but i must say that the S1 has a superior IS to the S3.
i do concert photography with my S3 (previous with the S1) and i am quite happy with the results. SUre there is noise but depending on ambient light on subject you can run from ISO 200-800 (on the S3) or ISO 200-400 (on the S1).

Over all picture quality is good. I am going to give you a link to some of the pictures i took with teh S3 that are online.

http://picasaweb.google.com/manjul.bose/UNIQUEEvents

Try that link.

TGG

wow those pics came out good. what ISO were those taken in? handheld or did u use a tripod? IS on?

 

[The Stigenator]

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: TheGoodGuy
I own an S3 IS and the S1 IS.

The big thing i love about the canons is the image stablization but i must say that the S1 has a superior IS to the S3.
i do concert photography with my S3 (previous with the S1) and i am quite happy with the results. SUre there is noise but depending on ambient light on subject you can run from ISO 200-800 (on the S3) or ISO 200-400 (on the S1).

Over all picture quality is good. I am going to give you a link to some of the pictures i took with teh S3 that are online.

http://picasaweb.google.com/manjul.bose/UNIQUEEvents

Try that link.

TGG

wow those pics came out good. what ISO were those taken in? handheld or did u use a tripod? IS on?

I am always running with IS on.. its always on for me in continuous mode. I am holding them in my hand though.

As for ISO, some of the pictures (like the ones in 49-52 in that set) were at ISO 100 .. the spot light was at them and i shot them at 1/125 or 1/150 at F/2.8 or F/3.5

The rest are depending on amount of light, usually ISO 400, sometimes ISO 800. I normally run between 1/25- 1/50 on the shutter speed with the same F-stop.

Edit: I am checking to see if what the ISO ratings are from picture 49 onwards for teh Ozomatli show.

 

[Aharami]

you got usable pics out of ISO 400 or 800? My ISO 400 pics were full of noise. 800 was pretty much useless

 

[The Stigenator]

Originally posted by: Aharami
you got usable pics out of ISO 400 or 800? My ISO 400 pics were full of noise. 800 was pretty much useless

show me some examples of pics???


Well you see i shoot somewhere between 400-700 shots per show. 10% of them is good shots, 1% is amazing shots.

Rest are worth keeping but i dont use them in my portfolio.

Most of my shots, including Jackie Green and Chris evans (the girl there) are at ISO 400.. F/40

 

[George P Burdell]

I'm happy with my S3

 

[otispunkmeyer]

nice shots TGG

man sometimes i hate choice lol. i wish, just sometimes, there was like one brand of everything, then i wouldnt have to chose.

so the S3 + points are ..... Image Stabilizer, funky rear screen, Super macro mode (0cm),big zoom
- points ...... seems hard to get noise free images, LCD and EVF are pretty low res, maybes doesnt expand enough from normal compact P&S?

9100/9600 + apparently good ISO performance (not sure how when the CCD has 3MP on the canon and is presumably roughly the same size), much fuller feature set, hot shoe, more SLR like, wider lense
- points......... no IS instead ups the ISO to compensate, its Fuji so the the controls will be alien to me, Macro isnt as good.


i jus dont know, i do plan on buying a decent tripod as well, so i guess IS wont be all that important in some situations. but it will be a pain if i have to get a tripod out every time i want a shake free shot. trying to sign up to DPreview so i can get some input from there, but i cant sign in with the password they give us. and their forum is just horrible.

 

[slpaulson]

Originally posted by: otispunkmeyer
9100/9600 + apparently good ISO performance (not sure how when the CCD has 3MP on the canon and is presumably roughly the same size)

The Fuji has a 1/1.6" CCD, while the others have 1/2.5" CCDs

I'd try to get some samples of low light pics with the Fuji before making a decision. I know their smaller cameras are supposed to have really low noise when compared to other cameras in the same class...

 

[otispunkmeyer]

Originally posted by: cRazYdood

Originally posted by: otispunkmeyer
9100/9600 + apparently good ISO performance (not sure how when the CCD has 3MP on the canon and is presumably roughly the same size)

The Fuji has a 1/1.6" CCD, while the others have 1/2.5" CCDs

I'd try to get some samples of low light pics with the Fuji before making a decision. I know their smaller cameras are supposed to have really low noise when compared to other cameras in the same class...

jus looked

the fuji's ISO performance is really strong, much stronger than the canons. both seem to produce very nice images during the day too.

S3 has a faster focusing time according to trustedreviews, and the IS really works well at the tele end of the zoom

i guess basically its gonna boil down to can i live with great ISO performance without IS, or will i be better off with adequate ISO performance and a good IS. really tough choice.

i love night time photography, i love macro too, i love to combine the two as well, if im getting a tri pod as well, i guess that blunts the IS arguement a little too. the fuji does have a 1cm super macro mode, ok its 1cm more than the canon but for all intents and purposes its probably not going to be as useful as i think.

leaning toward the Fuji here......looks like the best choice for my uses.

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: TheGoodGuy

Originally posted by: Aharami
you got usable pics out of ISO 400 or 800? My ISO 400 pics were full of noise. 800 was pretty much useless

show me some examples of pics???

warning, HUGE pics
ISO 400
Tv: 0.3
Av: 2.7

ISO 800
Tv: 1/5
Av: 2.7

I was just learning to use the camera during those shots, thats why they came out so bad. but as you can see lots and lots of noise at both ISO settings.

 

[The Stigenator]

dang that's a lot of noise.. I will take more night pics. Most time that kind of pictures, the noise increases due to the amount of ambient light. The noise is supressed if there is more light even with an high ISO rating.

Next time.. use flash!