This is my second Finepix S Series camera. It just arrived today and I already love it. The majority of the time I used the first Finepix camera to take photos at events (parties, weddings, my boyfriend's band's gigs) and it takes amazing photos without loading me down with a whole bag of attachments. This one is very similar, easy to use, has all the same features, only super sized, and a few more features that I did not have before. I cannot wait to use this new camera on an upcoming vacation!

I have had the camera for 4 days, it meets my basic needs in a digital camera.

The Good:
18x Zoom, SLR like features, 8MP, regular batteries (why? this is good for travel where you are not sure if you will be able to charge the unit, just throw in or bring more batteries and you are good to go).

If you have a limited budget this camera fits between a good subcompact with some feature of a dSLR and has an all in one lens (you cannot change lenses). Overall easy to use.

The Bad:
Picture quality is ok, not great. Some functions are slow in operation.

Buy it if you want a camera that does is all, but look at the Canon S5 IS first....also uses regular batteries.

But, if you have the cash, buy a real dSLR from Canon or Nikon and then maybe spring for a good subcompact for times when you dont need to drag a full size camera around.

My suggestion is a Nikon d40x or D80 if you want to learn how to take real pics....and then a Canon Powershot subcompact.

For $327, I cant complain about the Fujifilm S8000fd, but I expected just a little better picture quality.....the Fujifilm S700 would perhaps come very close to this camera in overall functionality and the S700 is under $200 now.

I bought this camera as an upgrade to my 3.2 mp, 10x zoom Olympus c-740. However in side by side comparison the image quality was inferior. The lesson learned is that more pixels does not translate to sharper photos.The quality of the optics, sensor, and focus mechanism are more important. Other than disappointing image quality I liked the camera. It has many features, uses AA batteries, choice of different memory cards at a bargain price.

This is my first Fuji Camrea. I owned a Canon G2 for 5 years.

My Initial test on the camera was disppointing as I was shooting most pics in Low light condition in Auto Mode, P mode with very low ISO setting 100. I decided to return this camera.

Before returning I wanted to give it one more try with all combination of ISO and SP modes. I took lot of pics with differnt ISO setting in P mode and all Kinds of SP modes. In P mode I have got very good pics both in Low and Day light conditions.

Here is my recommended settings on P mode. In Bright Day lights Set ISO to 64. In low light conditions set ISO to 400 or 800 depending on the brightness of light. Set the Sharpness to HARD for Lowlight if you are lover of sharp pics. Also take pics by boosting the Exposure little bit if needed. Lowlight pics taken with these settings produced very less noise, vewing 100% on computer screen was not that bad at all. The Print qualtity will be still good if we stick to 6x4/5x7/8x11 size.

Get closer (4-6 Feet) to the object in Low light conditions even if you decide to use flash.

The AUTO and SP modes are not useful. The Pics taken with these modes shows lot of noise when viewing the Pic 100% on the computer.

Stick to P mode always in Day or Lowlight.

The Macro mode is very good, Excellent job done by the camera. I have shoot pics on morning dew set on the window in macro mode, I was stunned by the quality of the pics.

The Image Stabilizer worked very good.

The Face Detection works very well.

The N and N plus Flash is a very good feature on this camera.

WORTH THE MONEY. I cannot expect anything more on a NON SLR Camera.

This camera qualifies for 5 Star rating. I have given 4 Stars because the qualtiy of buttons feels very cheap plastic and the Battery door is very Flimsy. People with bigger fingers may find it diffcult to feel the buttons. The buttons on Panasonic FZ8 is very good.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED......

If Fuji used their Super CCD in this camera, it would be the best in the market.

I have had this camera for about a week, the 4th fuji I've owned and am very pleased with all it can do. The camera is quite quick, and the different continues modes allows me to not miss the shots that I may have with a slower camera. The 18x zoom is a lot of fun, I can really see this being beneficial at my kids plays and performances.
It also seems to do well with indoor lighting. I suggest that anyone who ownes this to play with the different settings because auto a lot of the time doesn't give the best results. A lot of times I have been using the P mode and lowering the AUTO ISO to 400.

My original intent was to purchase an Olympus camera with the same pixels and optical zoom, however the other cameras I own use the SD memory card and the Olympus uses the XD card. I ended up buying the Finepix since it uses the SD card as well.
I think in the end I made the right choice since the Finepix has several features the Olympus does not. After reading the owners manual I am able to take great pictures with the camera, even in low or natural light.

I did a lot of research before purchasing this camera. My major requirements were high quality photos and a zoom lens. I finally decided on this particular camera because it looked like I was getting a lot for my money, and I believe I have. I took it on a trip within a week of receiving it and took excellent scenic photos, both close-up and with the powerful zoom, with almost no learning curve. I was pleasantly surprised that even with all of its power, the camera is not heavy and bulky, and its design makes it easy to hold. I also love the size of the screen and that I have the option of using the viewfinder or the large screen. I highly recommend this camera.

This camera does not allow for the attachment of any filter lens (UV, Polarizer, etc), rendering the camera mostly useless unless you never use and have no use for lens filters.

Amazed Fuji allowed this huge design flaw on an otherwise great camera.

I bought this elsewhere and completely overpaid for it. I bought this camera to replace my FinePix 3800 (which I COMPLETELY LOVED, but wore it out), and I have to say that I am very disapointed with the photo quality in this new one. I'm just a stay at home mom of two boys thought I was buying a camera equal to my old one--to capture all my boys milestones and family moments. My previous camera only had 3.2 megapixel and 6x optical capability and the photo quality was so much better... how does that make sense?

On the pro side for this camera, the macro (close up) function is amazing--those pictures do come out extremely high quality and the video shoots non-stop (until your mem card fills up) instead of in 60 seconds intervals. There is also black and white, and sepia--all kinds of neato features, but when it comes down to it, this is not a point and shoot camera.

I wish they'd just add all these new neat features to the 3800--I wasn't looking to shoot artsy fartsy close-ups of flowers, or award winning videos, just really great, clear and impressive pictures of my children an family with an easy to use camera (like my old finepix 3800)--this wasn't it.

I got the S8000fd one week ago and i still learnig all the features. The camera body is very confortable, strong and well designed, but im disappointed with the image quality. Even with firmare update (1.0.0 to 1.0.1) the images are below other cheap cameras:

- The "auto" mode works very bad to me, it produces a bit dark images, and even in very good light conditions the "auto" sets the iso too high. In indoor photos, even with the flash activated, generally the pics are taken in iso 800, and its very common take pictures in iso 200 during day light. Maybe its not a problem if you will see the photos only in your monitor or at small sizes, but if you intend to print in large sizes, the qualit will not be good;

- The sharppen is fairly, but could be better. An overview of the photos at full size in monitor, shows images a little blurry;

- The autofocus is good, but not perfect, its common to see pics out of the perfect focus;

At bottom line, i recommend a "test drive", only this way you will see if this camera will be good to you. Its true that the S8000 has a lot of good features, not a bad cam, but as i said, i was expecting a better image quality, and im not affraid to say that my old Sony P200 produces best, more sharppen and accurated photos than S8000fd. Take a look at Fuji S700 too, its cheaper and i think produces much better photos than S8000fd

PS: Sorry bad english

I am just an amateur photographer and I love this camera. I bought it to replace my old Fuji that was having some problems after being dropped a couple of times, and because of my first grandchild being born. I love the image stabilization, the 18X zoom and all the other features that I have figured out so far. Takes great clear pics. Would definately recommend this camera.

I have had the camera for a month now and it has exactly met my expectations. The zoom is great and I have found it easy to adjust the settings for the various scenes that I shot.

I was hesitant to buy the Fujifilm S8000fd because there were a few reviewers who found problems with the pictures it produced. I considered other cameras in the same genera and discovered there were a few reviewers who were not all that happy with those either. It was clear to me that pictures shot with the Fujifilm S8000fd were at least equal to those made by its competitors and it had a lot more features and capacity.

I think the people who fault the quality of photos taken with the Fujifilm S8000fd are either unable to read the instruction manual or are so "picky" about their pictures as to be neurotic. I have had my Fuji S8000fd for about a month and find the pictures I am taking are just great. I am not a professional photographer, but I have been an advanced-skills hobbyist for decades.

This is my forth Fuji digital camera and it is the best of the bunch. I researched my head off prior to buying the S8000fd and concluded that it was the best in its class and price range. There are really only three cameras currently occupying this "hybrid-SLR" group--the Fujifilm S8000 of course, the Olympus SP-560 UZ and the Panasonic FZ18. For my money--the Fujifilm S8000fd wins.

By the way, the price on this camera on Amazon.com is almost fifty dollars cheaper than it was when I bought mine only a few weeks ago.

The camera is fine as long as nothing goes wrong. Fuji has the worst customer service I have ever delt with. They pass you from one person to another and do everything they can not to help you. Be prepared to deal with the worst customer service in the business. I really hope this helps you.

This is absolutely a fantastic camera. It has so many functions and features that it can be difficult at first to enjoy clear pictures, but the zoom and night mode make this well worth the price. Easy to hold and great for videos this camera makes the holidays last forever. Be sure to read up on the manual to take advantage and aim the Infa-Red AutoFocus at the people not the background!!!! Couldn't be happier !

I absolutely LOVE the 18x zoom feature of this camera. I took a "photography spree" at the zoo with my friends to see what my camera can do. Let's just say that everyone gave up taking pictures because they couldn't zoom in as much as I could and take as good of quality pictures as I could. My friend's dad saw the pictures and videos I had taken at the zoo, and he ordered the camera RIGHT ON THE SPOT. THAT is how great this camera is. And the supermacro feature and videos are great quality. I also love how I can take pictures in a moving car (while zoomed in as much as I want) and still have the pictures look as if I was standing still the whole time. You will not regret A THING about this camera. As a photographer, I couldn't ask for more. Thank you FujiFilm!

People who don't like this camera are either 1) Looking for the features of a high end SLR, or 2) Don't know how to use it and are too lazy to read instructions.

This is an awesome camera. The pictures, both in a macro and zoom setting, are sharp and clear and the battery life is outstanding. The camera is lightweight and easy to use. I will admit that if you are too lazy to learn how to use the camera you may have out of focus or dark pictures but once I figured it out, there was absolutely no problem.

The camera was sent back to Back camera, we had X-mas without a camera, it was defected when I received it.

When I was searching for a replacement digital camera that was stolen....I came across many that sounded nice. I had my choices narrowed down to three cameras one of which was the FujiFilm. I wanted a camera like my old one that was not too small, that would fit my hand and be easy to hold. I wanted a big optical zoom and that narrowed the cameras down to just a few. I liked the looks of the FujiFilm, however, some of the reviews said the SD card was hard to slide in as it went in at an angle. Also, several reviews talked about one of the doors being flimpsy. Anyway, I finally couldn't make up my mind, so I went to local camera shops and finally found the ones I liked in stock. The FujiFilm won out heads down. There is nothing short of amazing about this camera and it is well built. The only thing that I see the others must have been talking about is the rubber cover that fits over the power/usb openings. My other camera that was stolen had a rubber cover and I didn't fine that to be any problem and after several years of use never had a problem. The macro for close-ups is awesome and the 18x zoom is as well. Finally, thru reviews and actually seeing the different cameras at photo shops I decided on the FujiFilm FinePix s8000fd. It really fits my hand perfectly and feels like a camera and not a toy. Not easy to drop as a much smaller one would be. The hand holding and shutter button are in the perfect position. Don't wait another minute..this one is awesome.

I'd buy it again a million times over. It's simple to use and produces spectacular results from afar w/ the 18x zoom! Having the ability to use both image stabilization and face detection on every shot PLUS an additional option to customize your shot for the setting is a definite plus. The 3 continuous shot option is also fabulous for capturing high speed movements though I wish you could program it to default with the other settings. For the price and the quality of the results it's a fantastic buy!

I ready through a number of reviews (a LOT of them), and could live with the limitations described there (mostly about the lens at extreme zooms). And I did not want to spend $70 for a replacement Li-ion battery in case I needed one, so the Fuji looked like a good option.

First impressions weren't bad : good menu system (though I never really understood why the F-button functions and the Menu were so confusing). The lens did extend longer than expected, but I could live with that.

But when taking the first pictures, I was truly disappointed. The images looked grainy, unsharp, undetailed. Like a camera from several generations ago. I then started experimenting with all the settings, abandoned the AUTO, tried every imaginable manual/high-quality/Low ISO setting, but I felt the results remained poor. I then compared with my little Canon Ixus 55, compared identical pictures... and found the Canon - smaller, lower Pixels,..) came out WAY better, WAY sharper, WAY more natural.
And that was just on low ISO. Going to ISO 200 and above? Forget it, quality was so terrible, you thought you'd be looking at one of those VGA cameras they give away as business gifts.

I tried and tried again to make the pics look good - in bright light, customized settings, everything... but again, disapointment....

Oh, I also noticed that at full lenght zoom, the camera refused to focus on objects 2-3 meter further. And there is an unacceptable amount of purple fringing.

So, after 2 weeks, I sold it, and bought the Panasonic FZ 18. And, though that too isn't perfect, at least that's acceptable, qualitywise!

This is an excellent camera. I own the S5100 and wanted to upgrade to the 18x zoom and antishake feature.

I had owned a Fuji camera some time ago and was very satisfied. When I received this one I had high expectations only to be very disappointed in the results. I tried many different settings but always the same off color results. Every thing I tried couldn't eliminate the washed out and smudged color. Perhaps this was a defect in this particular camera and others are fine. But I returned it and bought a different make.

This is a great camera. I admit it's a lot to take in at first. The book is thick and at points unclear, but with some patience it's do-able. I am still strugling with the seemingly hundreds of different setting combinations, but it will come with time and practice.

The pictures are turning out well, and it is what I expected. I'm glad I got this camera.

It's not that I won't be pleased with the 8000fd, it's Amazon Export Sales I warn you about. First, Amazon promised free shipping. Then it recanted and charged close to $50 to ship to Spain. No surprise, but please be honest and up front. Second, Amazon promised a free Fujifilm 2GB xd memory card with the purchase, just plug in the promotional code, as Amazon calls it. I did. Twice and with the same result. Your code doesn't work. Well, it's the same damn number Amazon uses. And finally, there's the custom's tax deposit. This appears a sham. Because Amazon doesn't credit buyer with unused fees charged, and normally, according to my expat friends living here, there is typically none. That means another nearly $60 goes to Amazon in a hidden deposit account. Ever hear of fraud, Amazon? I was forced to buy only because I wanted this camera and could not get it here. Amazon Export Sales should be civily prosecuted for the tax deposit sham. How many millions does Amazon pocket every year from this?

I purchased this camera a couple of months ago and used it on a trip overseas in various situations. I am overall very happy with the quality of the pictures, esp. those taken using the sunset mode, macro and supermacro. The pictures taken in low light were blurry. I am not sure if that is a result of me using the wrong setting. I took about 300 beautiful pictures.

Hi
I was looking for a new camera which should have good optical zoom.I found that there were 3 of them Fuji S8000,Panasonic DMC-FZ18 and Olympus SP550.I read through reviews of all of them and found them to be very similar.

So I looked at cost and buydig has ot for 289-50(MIR) so I choose it.And the rest are comparitively expensive.Ya of course the reviews does say of sligh problems like abberations at full zoom etc.But these are not visible to normal people unless you look for it.Other mentions are lack of hot shoe and RAW.The flash of Fuji is very strong.So it doesn't need an external light and if you need such set ups a D40 would be better.Coming to RAW format who has the time to change RAW to JPEG in computer.So basically none of them were important.

I am happy with the camera and it's functions though I am yet to play with the manual modes.Its good enough in auto.Best bang for bucks considering the MIR before end of March.

They have ABSOLUTELY the WORST CUSTOMER SERVCE!!! Save your self a lot of wasted phone time, DON'T BUY A FUJI CAMERA!!! My S7000 died outside of warranty. Sent it to them, they said a board burned out and would be $170 to fix. I ask why if their board burned out I should be held accountable, especially since they would not guarantee it wouldn't happen again, and warrantee repair only has a 3 month guarantee........
I AM BUY A CANON, A PRODUCT MANUFACTURER WHO DOES HAVE GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Still learning the functions, but so far I love this camera. Downside is--
you have to take the lens cap off BEFORE you turn it on or you will get a ZOOM ERROR, but if you press the zoom button, the zoom engages and the error goes away. You have to do this even if all you want to do is review your pictures.
With the camera off, the lens is fully retracted and when you turn it on the lens advances a little and then stops. If the lens cover is on, the lens can't advance which creates the error. Do this too many times and I would think you could damage your camera. This is actually called a
HUMAN ERROR (heh heh) and I'm working on it.

Maybe it's like that with all the cameras with a lens cover-My other camera is a point & shoot with no lens cover.

I recently purchased this camera for $319.65 and thought that it was good price being 8 MP and 18x Zoom. Typical of my luck, the price dropped to $286.00 after I received it. That really makes it a great bargain now; I should have waited just a couple more weeks, but how did I know?

After researching a lot of different digital cameras, I decided on the Fujifilm Finepix. It has all the features, and more, that I was looking for at a reasonable price. I have had the camera a little over a month. I have been taking a lot of pictures and getting used to the new camera. It takes great pictures with a little practice. Everything was great until I was going to take a picture, I turned the knob on top of the camera to select the setting, and the knob fell off! No pressure was used! The knobs are extremely cheap. I called Fuji service department, they were very nice. Informed me I had to send my camera in for warrenty repair. They told me to send it, insured and trackable. I took it to the local Post Office and the Post master saw that I was sending it to the FujiFilm Repair Center and they said I can not insure the camera due to it is broken. So I mailed the camera back thru UPS which cost almost $17. So now I am without my camera for 2-3 wks and didn't get such a good deal after paying shipping. I think I am going to only buy electronics from a retail store.

My husband was a little nervous that I should order a camera in this fashion, however, we found the site to be very easy to negotiate, customer service to be extremely cooperative when we were asking questions, and the pictures that this camera produces witht the 18X zoom are even better than we expected. My husband just could not believe the quality of pics it produced. All in all we had a great experience with purchasing our second Fugi Fine pix camera!
AptekaJ

This camera is gr8 deal for all the features packed in. It gives u beautiful pictures if you know how to use the different modes properly. Somehow, im not satisfied with the Auto Mode, i previously owned a Fujifilm FinePix S5100 which did gr8 in auto mode.
Overall a good pick.

This review is for the 8000fd which has been superseded by the 10MP s8100fd, but with the exception of the CCD sensor itself, they are exactly the same. First off let me say that it seems that a lot of the negative reviews concerning this camera are about things other than the camera itself. Filter through those and you will see this is a very good camera. And as for Fuji Customer service, I dropped my camera on the last day of a trip overseas and broke it. I sent it to the Fuji repair center and they promptly exchanged it for a new one. Yes, I had to pay $75, but it was my fault and Fuji was very fast - I had the new one a week later.

As mentioned in the title, this camera is more than a point-and-shoot model. If all you're looking to do is set it on Auto and shoot away, you will get VERY GOOD pictures most of the time, but to really get GREAT photos, you need to delve into the program modes. More complex certainly and if you're not willing to learn then this camera will go under-utilized.

The best feature of this camera is the focal length with the 18x optical zoom. This allows you to frame the photo properly before taking it and not have to crop much afterwards. The result: higher quality photos. YOU can capture scenes with 18x that you can't from most consumer digital cameras, and image stabilization makes it possible to get clear photos.

This camera is positioned at the higher end of the consumer line -appealing to those who want the smaller size and price of a consumer digital camera, but want many of the features found in prosumer models. In that aspect, the s8000fd hits the sweet spot very well. There are a lot of features that will appeal to those looking to be more creative.

I have taken some 500+ photos with this camera and have been very pleased with the results. I have used the photos for enlargements up to 11x14. There is some additional, noise when shooting in lower-light conditions, but the majority of the time this can be componsated for or eliminated by adjusting the camera's flexible exposure settings.

At the risk of being redundant, let me say that this camera has more features than a good 95% of people want or will even take the time to use. But given a chance this is a good camera and since it's been replaced with the 8100fd, it is a great deal at the sub-300 price-point.

This is my second FujiFilm SLR-like camera and I have been pleased with both.

I look around for a while and the more I looked, the more I liked this camera over the others in this price range.
I dont know a lot about the advanced features of high end "pro" cameras, so the presets on this one work great for me. Most of the time I take the shot I want using the presets, then take a few more trying the different settings. I am learning through trial and error.
I like the layout of the controls, so it was easy to get use them.
The pictures are great when I get the correct settings, and I am pleased.
I love the 18x zoom and have been amazed by the shots I have been abale to get that I could not have gotten before.

I bought this for my niece so I can't say I've done extensive use of this camera. I did use one at a store and found the double stabilizers worked to make pictures much better even at decent zoom levels. Price for this camera mixed with the high zoom capability should make it a winner for pictures from holiday family pics to doing serious art pics.

The camera's pictures were fuzzy in every mode, but especially auto. I realize maybe tinkering with enough in custom settings I could have got a better picture, but auto should at least be able to take "some" still simple pictures okay. The cheapest camera out there can do that. We were upgrading from a Sony Mavica CD1000, and quality wise the sony still blew this away.

After only a week of very light use the camera suddenly said "Lens error" when turning it on and the lens clearly was not going in and out correctly. We called Fuji who told us to send it in for a "6 week turnaround" on repair. The fact that we only had this camera for a week didnt seem to surprise them. Very poor support.

I was skeptical but this near SLR packs a lot for its size and convenience with its very powerfull zoom and multiple modes for different types of scenes. And it takes great multiple high speed shots for action scenes that can capture 15frames burst. I would suggest for the newbie it is great on budget and features.

Only con is the scene dial broke off due to my after market case I purchased that was too small but this should be covered under warranty.

I purchased this camera after my Casio was stolen. I'm very impressed with the overall use of this camera. It does however take a little getting use to, as it has so many features. Fun camera and I look forward to many years of great photos.

The Fujifilm Finepix s800fd 8MP Digital Camera had most of the features I was looking for. But, until you put a camera in action, you do not know what kind of results you will get. I recently took it on a trip to Seattle and British Columbia. The camera did everything that I had hoped for. My first wish was for a lens with a strong optical zoom and good ability with low light without a flash. This camera does both, very well. My next wish was for a camera that would take "AA" batteries. I do not like to use rechargable batteries, especially in foreign countries that use different electrical currents and the possibility of leaving the charger at your last destination. The 8 Mega Pixels and image stabilization were added features I liked. There are many more features I am still learning to use.

The one design feature that gives me problems is the playback button on the back of the camera. I keep pushing it accidentally while I am trying to take pictures. It can get aggravating when you miss a shot you really wanted to get, because you ended up in the playback mode instead of the picture taking mode.

Overall, for the money, this camera gives me the versatility I wanted---excellent close-ups, excellent photos in low-light without a flash, "AA" batteries, and excellent pictures in the automatic mode.

This is probably the most versatile camera you can buy short of an SLR and it costs a lot less.

We could not be more happy with our decision to purchase this camera. You can'e beat it for the price. Our 6 year old son plays baseball and soccer. We canted a camera that could take decent action pictures. The rapid fire feature has captured numerous great shots that we would have missed on our old camera with single shot. It also takes excellent single shots. A more expensive camera with removable lenses miht do a little better, but so far the pictures we have taken have been very clear and it has been pretty easy figuring out how to operate this camera. Grab a set of Sanyo Eneloop rechargable batteries and you are set.

This is a great camera for people that are learning about photography or likes photography as a hobby. it takes great pictures in comparison to others shoot & point cameras. At first is a little complicated to get acquainted with all the features of the caamera ( if you are a person that doesn't like to read manuals don't buy this camera ) so you're first pictures might not be great. But as you learn how to use it within no time you'll be taking professional like pictures! Pros: Great quality pictures, incredible zoom( you won't believe the pictures you can take with this ), Price!, AA batteries, universal memory cards, image stabilization. Cons: In order to take good pictures you have to read the manual and know basic photography.

This is a great outdoors camera. If you want to take great pictures of people outside, this is your camera. It takes great portrait pictures outdoors. It takes GREAT super macro shots of flowers and other nature. The super macro shots are really astonashing. The level of detail is extreme. It's easy to view the screen in the sun, even on it's lowest brightness. The dSLR body is nice for people with big hands or who like the feel of a dSLR.

Now, when it comes to inside...the pictures are blurry (even when on dual-stabilization). I couldn't take a clear picture of my niece (3 1/2 years old), my nephews (2 years old), or any of my dogs indoors. They were all blurry, even with flash. It takes fairly quick pictures indoors, but for some reason they are all blurry (and I've played around with the settings). And the white balance inside is not true-to-life, and changing the white balance settings doesn't seem to help. The strap won't stay attached to the camera very long, which is getting kinda annoying. And there is no way to just view your pictures without having the camera come on, the lens come out, and the lens cover have to come off, and that gets a little annoying.

If you are going to predominantly take pictures indoors then consider another camera, or consider buying a more inexpensive Sony point-and-shoot camera for your indoor pictures. (my fiance' has a nice Sony T-70 point-and-shoot that was inexpensive and takes great quick (and non-blurry) indoor pictures) But if you love taking pictures of nature or people outdoors, then this is your camera, because it is great.

The features on this camera suit my needs perfectly. I use it as an all around work/pleasure camera. I take photos of special events so the 18x zoom is awesome. The multiple "Face Detection" comes in handy and I get pretty good shots at long range under indoor natural lighting conditions without flash (although the flash is pretty powerful).

The wide angle feature comes in very handy when taking pictures in tight spaces or of large groups. The camera is easy to use right out of the box and is versatile enough to satisfy "point & shoot" novices or the more advanced photographer. It is light weight (compared to cameras with similar features), easy on batteries (digital AA) and has a crystal clear display - even in strong daylight conditions.

The software is a little cumbersome as it doesn't let you preview and select the photos you want to down load - it just down loads all of them which can be time consuming, a small price to pay for such an awesome camera!

After months of research, I anxiously anticipated the release of this camera and was finally able to purchase it 3 months ago. I still have a lot to learn about its features, but so far, I am blown away by its clarity and quality. I knew I was limited by budget and not quite ready to make the leap to a DSLR, and the Fuji has all the features I was hoping to find in one camera. I can not go anywhere without it. The 18x optical zoom allows some great nature pics, and the macro and super macro can capture the details of all of my favorite flowers. I was expecting to have issues with being pretty shaky, but I seldom use a tripod and have not had any trouble, even at full zoom. The only cons I have noticed so far are that it's a little slow at startup and between shots, and the tripod port is plastic. I'd like to be able to add lenses, but I think for the average amateur photographer, this camera has enough of a range to suit my needs. I'm in love with it.

I have only had my new camera a short time so I have a lot of expiramenting and learning to do. I like it very much. I am extreemly happy this is a choice I made.

We are getting used to working with the Fugifilm S8000. It takes wonderful pictures and the zoom is fun to work with. I like the view finder and the stabilization features. The different settings are also easy to work with. The pictures download to the computer easily. I would recommend this camera to anyone who likes to take pictures.

So far I am impressed with this camera. My first real test was a few days after I got it I went to an indoor circus. There was very low light conditions and the camera seemed to do well. Granted I have to learn to adjust some settings to perfect my picture taking but I was impressed with the camera on a first time using basis. I am looking forward to other events to test this camera out.

The way I test the quality of a digital camera is to view its photographs on a computer at 100 percent. (After all, what good is a 8 megapixel camera if one could merely zoom the pictures from a 4 megapixel camera to 200 percent and get the same quality.) I find that my new Fujifilm FinePix S8000fd takes grainy (blurry) pictures. I took a number of pictures, all using a tripod for stabilization, and they all turned out grainy. (I used the Auto function to allow the camera to choose the "best" setting.)

The camera is light, but that is because where most quality camera manufactures use metal (usually an aluminum alloy) in the barrel (zoom lens) of the camera, Fujifilm uses plastic. And the plastic lens has around 125 thousandths movement from side to side when extended.

Fuji used to mean quality. I've owned several over the years, starting with the one I bought while serving in Vietnam. I wonder if Fujifilm is the same company. If so, the company seems to have lessened their standards.

Too bad a person couldn't "try before you buy," like some software manufactures offer.

I specifically looked for a Fuji camera when I wanted to upgrade. My experience with their customer service (after my daughter broke her camera) was one of the best experiences I've ever had - and sold me on Fuji as a company. That said, I still wondered how the product itself would perform. After putting it through its paces, I am very pleased with both the feel of the camera, the quality of the pictures, the great range of the zoom, the ease of use and the comments of others who can't believe that it didn't cost much more!

I've owned this camera for about a month now, and am generally very happy with my purchase - especially given the price I paid for it, which was $290. Of course, nothing in life is perfect - there are a few things I'm not too thrilled about. I'm really only a learner with respect to photography, so professionals and experienced amateurs may not find my opinions too useful.

Things I really like:

The zoom - This is really amazing, and I don;t think you can get much better than this in a compact camera. I've been able to get really good close up shots of distant subjects. The problem of course is camera shake - if possible, use a tripod; if not, try to stabilise yourself in whatever way you can. I prefer to use the electronic viewfinder when using high zoom - I find it helps to stabilise the camera. Also, take many attempts at your zoom shots - without a tripod, many will be blurred, but you might get a few that are good.

The continuous shooting mode - I love this.... In this mode, you can take a series of shots of moving action, in a matter of a couple of seconds, just by holding the button down - excellent for sports. The problem with this is that when you review your pictures, you lose this setting, and have to go through the menu again to set it for continuous shooting. Also, it takes a few seconds after you finish a series of shots to save the pics, so you can't take any more shots in that time.

The natural light mode - I love the way this mode keeps the colour and produces high quality pics. It's particularly designed, I think, for less than ideal lighting conditions, but I find it works well in bright light too. In lower light, of course, there is the possibility of blur if your subject or the camera moves. That said, I think I take most of my pics in this setting.

Macro and Super-Macro modes - I get amazing close up shots with these modes!!! Possibly the camera's best feature!

The range of settings and modes - There are so many different things you can do with this camera that are so much more versatile than the basic compact camera (though I guess this is true of most cameras of this sort). Changing the ISO, colour saturation, white balance, different flash settings, etc, etc. I find myself shooting the same scene over and over in different settings to find which is the best. As a result I take A LOT of pictures.... But it's all fun! And I usually end up with some really good shots.

Things I really DON'T like:

The software - the Fuji software is slow, and takes up all my computer's processing power. Perhaps with a better computer this wouldn;t be a problem, but my computer does everything else I need to do as fast as I want it to... But running this software means I can't do anything else at the same time, and it takes ages to do anything. I've taken to using Picasa to edit my pics instead. On the plus side, the software saves the info on the settings used in taking the picture, so you can review your pics and work out what you;ve done wrong and what works best.

The menus - I find the menus to be rather complex and not particularly intuitive. This means when I want to try certain things, I have to spend a fair amount of time searching for the function I want. I guess as I get accustomed to the camera, though, this will be less of a problem.

Limited exposure time - the maximum length of exposure seems to be 4 seconds. I find this kind of limiting - with my old camera (Kodak DX7440 - a very decent camera in my opinion) - I could get exposure times up to about half a minute, and maybe more. I'm rather disappointed at this, though of course, the camera still takes very good night time shots.


Things I am having some difficulty/problems with:

Low light conditions, moving subjects, especially in combination with the zoom. I think this is probably the most difficult sort of shot I've tried to take. I find that I get some combination of underexposed, blurred, grainy shots, no matter what settings I use. If the subject is stationary it's not a problem - I use the night settings, and get very good results. This is something I am working on... Of course, if you WANT to get blurred shots, using the night setting can produce some interesting effects.

I've recently found that the electronic viewfinder sometimes goes a bit funny... I get white streaks across the image from one side, and sometimes the image is shifted a bit to the side too. This seems to happen particularly when I've been using the camera continuously for a longish while - like an hour or so. Switching off and then on again fixes it temporarily, but it tends to come back after a few minutes. It doesn;t seem to happen with the LCD, and I don;t think it's been affecting the quality of the pictures, so I think it's a problem with the viewfinder itself. I've been wondering if this might be caused by the camera getting a bit warm... Around the battery compartment does tend to warm up a bit after extensive use.

In general, also, I'd say I'm not thrilled by the quality of the image in the viewfinder, either. It tends to have a bit of a lined effect anyway, and the colours are sometimes off (reds often appear sort of magenta), but these effects are, again, only in the viewfinder, and don;t appear in the pictures. Despite this, I still prefer to use the viewfinder than the LCD for framing my shots.


On the whole, though, I am extremely happy with this purchase. I think I got excellent value for money, my photos have improved tremendously, and I am having a lot of fun and learning a lot about the art of photography. The problems are really minor compared to the things I love about it.

Some recommendations: buy a camera case, spare batteries and charger, and a fairly large memory card. And a tripod! And most of all, don't treat this like a "point and shoot". Use the wide range of settings to get the best results.

IT FINALLY ARRIVED AND WAS FINE. IT TOOK A LONG TIME AND A LOT OF CALLS TO GET IT HERE.