Fujifilm FinePix S3 Pro

Reviewed September 2005

Introduction

At a glance, the Fujifilm FinePix S3 Pro cannot be confused with one of the mass audience digital SLRs: it is large, has an imposing weight, and is studded on all sides with knobs and dials.

Yet, at least with respect to its external controls, the S3 has much in common with the S2, the previous flagship camera of the Fujifilm line.

Although only slightly bigger than the S2, the S3 is thicker and more rounded. Just like its predecessor, the S3 is based on a Nikon F80/N80 body as can be seen by the design of the upper portion of the camera. The lower part however — the digital section — is pure Fujifilm. The exterior of the S3 Pro is composed of a rugged polycarbonate enhanced by a large rubberized section, but the skeleton of the camera is metallic, ensuring strength.

On top of the S3, commands are laid out on either side of the viewfinder’s pentaprism. On the right, topping the grip is the primary Shutter Release which is surrounded by the Power Switch.

Directly behind are two small buttons:

On the left is the Exposure Compensation button, which provides a compensation range of ±3EV in 1/2 EV increments, selected by pressing the button while rotating the Main Command Dial, located on the top rear of the camera. Moreover, when this button is pressed in conjunction with the Bracketing button (see further), it allows resetting the S3 Pro to its defaults.

To the right is the Flash Exposure Compensation button which operates in a similar manner to the Exposure Compensation button, but which has a range of -1 EV to +3 EV in 1/2 EV increments.

Identified by an icon, , a small round button serves to light up both the Top Display Panel, and the one directly above the LCD monitor (see further), called the Rear Display Panel. In addition, an option is available in the Custom settings of the S3 that allows having all the information screens light up as soon as a button on the camera is pressed.

The Top Display Panel shows the current status for a large number of camera settings:

• Shutter speed and aperture.
• Exposure compensation setting when the button is pressed.

• The symbols for exposure compensation or flash exposure compensation when these are active.
• The auto bracketing symbol when bracketing is set.
• Custom, when a customized setting is in use (see the Characteristics section of the review for more information about the Custom settings).
• The battery state.
• The symbol for the Flexible Program mode once the shutter speed and aperture combination is changed with the Command Dial for the camera's Program Mode selection.
• The flash mode.
• The active focus point.

The Sub-command Dial is located at the top front of the grip, directly below the shutter release, and it serves to select the aperture when the S3 Pro is set to either Aperture Priority mode, or the Manual mode.

To the right of the Sub-command Dial when facing the camera, the AF Assist lamp comes On automatically — unless set to Off in the menu — when the ambient light is insufficient for the S3’s autofocus to function reliably. In addition, the lamp also serves as the red-eye reduction system when the mode is selected.

Below the AF assist lamp and close to the lens mount, a small button activates the Depth of Field Preview, closing down the lens diaphragm to the selected aperture and making it possible to visualize the depth of field a given aperture will produce.

On the other side of the pentaprism the Exposure Mode Dial dominates the small Release Mode Switch Unlock button and the Release Mode Switch, which is underneath the Exposure Mode Dial.

The Release Mode Switch provides for 4 modes:

Similarly, the Exposure Mode Dial also provides 4 shooting modes:

Programmed Auto: lets the camera establish both the aperture and the shutter speed to capture the exposure. But, if the Command Dial is turned, the camera enters the Program Shift mode, and alternative combinations of aperture and shutter speeds can be selected.

	Shutter Priority: allows selecting the shutter speed using the Main Command Dial while the camera selects the aperture. A shutter speed range of 1/4000 second to 30 seconds is available in this mode.
	Aperture Priority: allows selecting the aperture using the Sub-command Dial while the S3 automatically selects the shutter speed.
	Manual: provides full control over the aperture and the shutter speed, but in comparison to the Shutter Priority mode, the range has the addition of an unlimited Bulb mode, and the exposure compensation scale in the viewfinder is used to indicate under or overexposure compared to the camera’s meter. For long exposures, an old-fashioned and inexpensive cable release can be screwed into the shutter release button or, alternatively, an electronic Nikon wired remote control (MC-20, MC-22, or MC-30) can be used to avoid camera shake.

The two remaining positions of the Exposure Mode Dial allow setting:

	CCD sensitivity allows selecting the ISO setting (100, 160, 200, 400, 800 and 1600 ISO) with the Main Command Dial, and the settings are indicated on the Top Display Panel.
	Displays the Custom menu on the LCD monitor, making it possible to adjust some of the default settings of the FinePix S3 to one’s needs. (See the Characteristics section of the review for a complete listing of the Custom settings available).

Two buttons are located immediately below the Exposure Mode Dial, on the back of the camera:

On the left, the button activates the auto bracketing feature of the S3 when held pressed in while the Main Command Dial is turned to select it or deselect it. When selected, the Sub-command Dial serves to select the number of shots in the bracket, either 2 or 3, and over a range of ±2EV in 1/2 EV increments. In addition, when the Bracketing button is pressed and held simultaneously with the Exposure Compensation button, the camera is reset to its initial values.

On the right, the button serves to select the Flash mode. Pressing it while rotating the Main Command Dial makes it possible to select: Front Synch, Red-eye reduction, Red-eye Reduction with Slow Synch, Slow Synch, Rear Synch.

The TTL optical viewfinder of the S3 covers 95% of the field of view captured by the camera horizontally and 93% vertically. It is equipped with a dioptre adjustment on the right side of its exit pupil, positioned behind the rubber eyepiece. An eyepiece cap that can be clipped onto the exit pupil is supplied with the camera, intended for use during long exposures when stray light may accidentally come through the eyepiece.

The Metering Mode Selector is positioned to the right of the viewfinder. It has three positions:

Worth noting, the use of Nikkor lenses from other series, or of third party lenses may restrict the metering modes available with the S3.

At the centre of the Metering Mode Selector, a button labelled AE-L/AF-L serves to lock the autofocus and the metered exposure, and the way the AE-L/AF-L button operates can be customized (see the Characterisitics section of the review).

The TTLl viewfinder of the S3 is very similar to the S2’s. The 5 AF points are clearly indicated, as is the 12mm circle that corresponds to the central section of the Center-Weighted metering pattern. Moreover, a composition grid can be activated in the Custom menu.

Both the grid and the focus point light up briefly in red when the camera has focused, making it easy to confirm that the focus is where it should be.

Moreover, below the image, a green LED display indicates many of the current settings: focus indicator, AF point, the metering system currently selected, Multi-exposure, AF-Lock, speed and aperture, capture mode, exposure scale, exposure and flash exposure compensation indicators, the actual compensation value, and the flash state.

Two displays occupy the left side of the S3 Pro’s back: the 2-inch, 235,000-pixel monitor and the Rear Display Panel above it with its row of 4 buttons directly beneath it. A plastic cover with an opening for the buttons is supplied to protect both.

To the left of these displays, two buttons are stacked one above the other:

During capture or playback, the FUNC button serves to cycle through the functions assigned to the 4 buttons below the Rear Display Panel and which are identified on the display. The buttons themselves are labelled directly on the screen as F1, F2, F3, and F4, and each of these control settings that are modified by pressing the F (1-4) button repeatedly (See the Characteristics section of the review for more information.)

The PLAY button starts the Playback mode, and presents the last captured image. The functions assigned to the F buttons above change to Playback functions when the mode is selected.

Two elongated buttons are directly below:

	Allows backing out — cancelling — a procedure without the change being registered.
	Displays the Menu of the S3 Pro, and confirms some choices. (See the Characteristics section for more information about the menu system of the camera.)

The FinePix S3 Pro is equipped with a manually released pop-up flash. The release button is on the left side of the pentaprism housing, directly below the flash. The flash has a Guide Number of 12, meaning that it is rated to 12m (39.3 ft) at 100 ISO, and synchronization is pegged at 1/180 second.

A flash shoe on top allows the use of numerous types of flash units that are compatible with Nikon cameras, including Nikon flash units and those of other manufacturers that are listed as being compatible with the S3.

Regrettably, there are no secondary command dials, and reaching either the Main Command Dial, or the Sub-command Dial while the vertical grip and shutter release are in use turns out to be impractical.

Although it has an impressive size, the Fujifilm FinePix S3 Pro is pleasant and generally comfortable to hold. A noticeable effort has been made to give this rather large camera good ergonomics and make it comfortable to hold horizontally as well as vertically. Moreover, with a standard lens, the camera’s weight is well distributed and it is only after holding it for extended periods that its weight starts to be noticeable.

Less positive is the fact that the S3 is rather thick, which has caused the viewfinder to become somewhat recessed in comparison to the back, making it difficult to see all the information presented in the viewfinder unless one presses one’s nose into the screens.