Digital Trends

FujiFilm FinePix Z1

August 21st, 2005 | by David J Elrich

Performance

Setting up the FinePix Z1 is easier than most.  Once you pop in the battery (rated 170 shots per CIPA) and card, you place it on the supplied dock.  The battery charges in less than two hours and then it's time to set the clock and the basic parameters.  The onscreen menu is very simple and easy to read, thanks to the large LCD screen and distinct typeface.  As noted, the control layout is nicely done with little ambiguity.  I still feel, though, that camera makers should include a Quick Start guide in the box.  Fujifilm, to its credit, has one on its web site but you have to download and print it.  Come on, guys, take one more step and be really consumer-friendly.

The camera is supplied with a 16MB card, which is an insult because you'll need a much larger one.  Since there's no internal memory, I guess Fujifilm felt that they had to give you something; otherwise, the camera is useless.  I won't go into a rant about proprietary memory card formats, but corporations should think hard before they make these moves.  A Google search will help you find the best prices.  I found a 512MB card for $72 including tax and shipping. 

It was time to take some photographs and videos with the camera set on Auto (Multi Auto focus was selected instead of Center Weighted).  The camera started up in a heartbeat (Fujifilm claims less than a second); it seemed almost instantaneous to me.  Thank goodness, days of slow operating digicams are over.  The camera easily focused on flowers, plants as well as trees with strong blue skies quickly with little "grabbing." It was here that I had my first problems.  Since I purposely tried to shoot with the bright sun shining directly on the screen, I immediately ran into problems.  Although the screen didn't wipe out, I had trouble framing the image.  Instead of holding the camera in a comfortable arm's out position, I had to bring the camera much closer to my face so my head could act as a block (no jokes, please).  It was better, but a little viewfinder would've solved those problems like the one on the Canon SD500.  The LCD does have a number of adjustments, including an Auto Gain Up as you move into darker territory, but overall quality was weak compared to other digicams.  There were problems indoors as well with the screen getting very grainy. 

All was not totally negative; in less drastic conditions, I was able to frame the shots much more easily.  One of the hidden gems of this camera is the Natural Light setting, easily engaged via an onscreen menu.  This lets you take more natural-looking shots without a flash rather than a shot potentially washed out by a flash.  There's even Anti-Blur Technology, which helps eliminate the shakes during this available light shots.  I got some terrific results from this. 

The FinePix Z1 has a top ISO of 800, far higher than competitors (who usually stop at 400).  In Auto, the camera will use a higher ISO, such as 640, in order to take a shot.  Surprisingly, the amount of grain even at these high levels was more than acceptable. 

Image Courtesy of FujiFilm