Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD Review

April 26, 2010 | Mark Goldstein | Rating star Rating star Rating star Rating star

Introduction

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD is a new super-zoom digital compact camera that looks and feels like a DSLR. Featuring an 18x zoom lens with a 28-504mm focal range, 12 megapixels and a 3 inch LCD screen, the Fujifilm S2500HD offers full manual photographic control for the more experienced user and an Automatic Scene Recognition mode for beginners. For movie makers the S2500HD has the must-have feature of 2010, high-definition 720p video recording at 30fps, with a mini HDMI Port for quick and easy connection to a HDTV. Dual Image Stabilization, an electronic viewfinder, ISO 64 up to ISO 1600 at full resolution, high-speed shooting of up to 20 frames at 8 fps (at 3 megapixels), Tracking Auto Focus and Panorama Shooting mode complete the S2500HD's main specifications. With a competitive price tag of £219 / $249.95, the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD is one of the cheapest super-zooms available.

Ease of Use

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD bears a striking resemblance to its predecessor, the S1500 model. This is a bridge or 'super zoom' camera that, despite resembling a digital SLR that's been shrunk in the wash, shouldn't scare off those more used to operating pocket-sized point and shoots - which happens to be exactly the main audience that Fujifilm are targeting. The cost is likewise unthreatening, which at a suggested asking price of an affordable £219 / $249.95 is less than both more fashion-orientated snapshot models and competing super-zoom rivals. Size and pricing aside, this 12-megapixel camera is as much about user friendliness as creative flexibility. For those with kids or subjects that don't stay put its auto focus tracking ability will doubtless come in handy, as will its most prominent feature, the immensely versatile 18x optical zoom, which has been both widened and lengthened in comparison to the S1500's mere 12x lens.

Given the enormous lens reach of 504mm, image stabilisation is included, here the 'belt and braces' arrangement of CCD shift anti shake plus high ISO speed (up to ISO 6400, albeit with a drop to 3 megapixels if straying above ISO 1600). In practice therefore with the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD it's mostly a case of a half press of the shutter release button and the camera does the rest, particularly with Fujifilm here including an 'auto everything' scene recognition (SR) auto mode. Although far from infallible - if you're not paying close attention and it's presented with a busy scene it'll call up landscape when macro is needed and vice versa - it adds to the beginner friendly feel. And, if there's not time to set the photograph up manually, with a single button press an instant zoom feature crops in closer (using either 1.4x or 2.0x digital zoom), providing either a landscape or portrait format image.

Also worth a mention up front is the S2500HD's high speed-capture capability - up to 20 pictures sequentially at 8 frames per second - albeit with, as perhaps expected, resolution dropping to three megapixels to achieve its headline-grabbing numbers. A compromise would be 10 sequential photographs at 3.3fps at a reduced resolution of 6 megapixels - at least that way a level of quality might be achieved that you would actually want to produce a print from.

Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD
Front Rear

As its name suggests, the S2500HD introduces high-definition video for the first time to the Fujifilm S-series, capturing 1280 x 720 pixel footage at 30fps with mono sound, full use of the 18x zoom and a maximum recording time of 15 minutes per clip. Alternatively there are also 640 x 480 pixels and 320 x 240 pixels modes, also at 30 fps. As with all other cameras with HDMI ports, there's no HDMI cable included in the box. You could use Fujifilm’s optional HD Player Kit instead, which includes an HD card reader that connects the camera to your HDTV, and even a wireless remote control.

Given its beginner market the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD's buttons and controls are for the most part large, particularly the familiar mode dial on top. They're also sufficiently self-explanatory that the manual - a full version here on CD only - doesn't need to be digested before you're up and shooting. As for the remainder of the box contents, you'll need to supply your own SD, SDHC or SDHX card for image storage, though thankfully the four AA batteries required for power are included.

The front of the S2500HD looks much the same as any bridge model; that's to say it's dominated by the lens barrel, the tip of which extends 1.5cms past the grip when the camera is inactive, and then extends by a further 3cms when zoomed to full telephoto. Above the lens sits the forward sloping ridge housing the integral pop-up flash. A dedicated button for activating this spring-loaded mechanism sits to its right, three pin prick-sized holes for the built-in microphone just below.

Over at the other side of the lens is a portal housing the AF assist light, to the left of which is the comfortably moulded grip, with some leather-effect padding to help prevent your fingers slipping. For anyone with average sized hands there's just enough room to squeeze three fingers around the grip, leaving your forefinger automatically hovering over the shutter release button situated at the front of its slope, and your thumb pressed against the slightly indented pad at the rear. While you certainly wouldn't want the grip to be any smaller, it feels just about right given the overall size of the camera.

Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD
Front Side

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD's L-shaped top plate looks at once familiar and approachable, the largest control being a ridged mode wheel featuring 10 settings. Starting with full auto mode and moving clockwise we come to one of the camera's main selling points, the aforementioned SR (Scene Recognition) auto, and, continuing in the same direction next alight on SP (Scene Position). This mode features standard pre-optimised settings for 15 familiar scenes and subjects, accessed by pressing the 'menu' button at the camera's rear, and includes portraits, landscapes, sunsets, fireworks plus a natural light and museum mode amongst its selection.

Continuing clockwise around the dial we come to another of the Fujifilm's user-friendly features, its panorama mode, which allows the user to shoot a sequence of three images that the S2500HD automatically stitches together in-camera - no additional software or technical skills required. A narrow portion of the previous frame is displayed as the user pans from left to right taking shots, so you can line up the joins with a reasonable level of accuracy. Though not essential, it's another fun extra that should appeal to the family target market, and will surely come into its own as an aide memoir for holiday vistas. After a little practice, surprisingly successful results can be achieved, although the overall resolution of the resulting picture is limited to 4880x1296 pixels.

Next around the dial is a setting for the already mentioned video capture - note that there's no one-touch video-record button on this camera. What's more of a surprise is that with a successive turn of the dial we come to a user-attributable custom setting, a feature more commonly found on a DSLR proper. Compounding the indication that the S2500HD perhaps has something to offer the photo enthusiast after all, there follows the creative quartet of manual, aperture priority, shutter priority and program modes, allowing full access to manually selectable ISO speeds, quality settings and of course colour effects. And, with a further twist, we're back to full auto again.

Alongside the shooting mode dial is a larger than average on/off slider, partly recessed into the bodywork to prevent accidental activation. Slide this to the right and the S2500HD powers up in just over a second - pretty quick for this class of camera - the rear LCD displaying a Fujifilm logo initially before blossoming into life. There's also the option of an electronic viewfinder for shot composition - more on which later.

Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD
Top Side

Forward of this slider are a pair of raised, identically sized buttons. To the left is a dedicated control for activating face detection which biases the focus and exposure toward any faces in the frame. Press it once to couple this with automatic red eye removal (if using flash obviously), or again to shoot without the red eye removal option. Joining face detection are blink detection, which warns you if any of your subjects have blinked, and Smile Detection, which automatically takes the picture when your subject bares their pearly whites.

The button to the right is for accessing the various burst mode settings, as mentioned above. This replaces the S1500's Image Stabilisation button, which is now found in the main menu system. Like every other such system in existence, the one employed by the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD isn't infallible - it's tricky, if not impossible, to get a perfectly sharp image when shooting handheld at maximum telephoto even in seemingly ideal light conditions. But, given the focal range, its inclusion here is a must.

Forward again of these buttons is the shutter release button, surrounded by a lever for operating the zoom. Happily the former has a definite halfway point so that a premature capture is avoided, the camera giving an affirmative 'beep' when focus and exposure have been determined and the AF point highlighted in green dancing around the screen if either your camera or subject is moving. With a nudge of the zoom lever, the camera takes just under four seconds to move through the range from maximum wideangle to telephoto. Full resolution JPEG images are saved almost instantaneously when shooting in single shot mode, so no complaints there.

At the rear of the S2500HD we find the rest of the operational controls. Like the top plate, these are well laid out and their functions ably illustrated. Starting top right of the 3-inch, 230k-dot LCD screen, there's an EVF/LCD button for alternating between the two features, although, with the larger screen literally staring you in the face when you pick the camera up, it's hard to see the S2500HD's target audience bothering to squint to use the EVF situated above.

Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD
Memory Card Slot Battery Compartment

Directly below this button there's an identically sized one for playback, and, to its right, one for Fujifilm's 'F' (for 'Foto') mode. As with the rest of the manufacturer's compact range, one press of this provides access to an abbreviated menu containing just the essentials: resolution and compression level, ISO setting and, arguably less essential, three different colour effects. Immediately below this again we have a four-way control pad/jog dial with a familiar menu/OK (set) button at its centre. Placed at the four points are icons for deleting images and setting the monitor brightness, selecting flash modes (auto/slow synchro/forced flash), the aforementioned image-cropping 'instant zoom' feature which presents a choice of two successive landscape ratio crops and two portrait ones, plus macro and super macro settings.

Press the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD's central 'menu' button in anything but auto mode and you're presented with two clearly read screens of shooting options when in capture mode or review mode (if shooting using one of the auto settings, options are abbreviated to turning self timer or high speed shooting on or off, plus access to the set up menu). The set up menu itself is divided into three folders allowing the adjustment of operational volumes, screen brightness, and the ability to format the inserted memory card or internal memory. Thankfully here Fujifilm has indeed gone with the more widely available SD than retaining historical loyalty to the now outgunned (in terms of available capacity) xD-Picture Card, a slot for which is provided at the base of the camera where it's shared with the four regular AAs required for power. This means that if you're shooting with the camera on a tripod, you have to first remove the camera to remove the card, which is a bit of a pain but far from uncommon.

Located beneath this central four-way pad is a final pairing of buttons. On the left we have the self-explanatory 'Display/Back'. Pressing this turns off the visible icons on screen and/or calls up a nine zone compositional grid when in capture mode, or, as it sounds, jumps back a step if you are poised to delete an image in playback mode but think better of it. The final button to the right is for exposure compensation. Press this in any of the auto modes and a live histogram displaying the areas of brightness across the image is revealed. Press it again in any of the creative modes and the user not only gets a histogram but an adjustable exposure slider too, plus the ability to change the aperture and/or shutter speed, depending on which mode you're using.

The right hand flank of the S2500HD (when viewed from the back) features a plastic flap covering a combined AV out and USB port, above which is an eyelet for attaching the provided shoulder strap. On the left hand flank there's another eyelet at the top plus a built-in speaker near the base. The base of the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD meanwhile features a plastic screw thread for a tripod next to the large compartment housing the memory card and batteries.

Image Quality

All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 12 megapixe Finel JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 5.5Mb.

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD produced images of good quality during the review period. This camera handled noise very well, not becoming obvious until the relatively slow speed of ISO 800 and then becoming progressively worse at the faster setting of ISO 1600. The fastest setting of ISO 3200 and 6400 are recorded at 3 megapixels and therefore aren't really worth using.

Chromatic aberrations were well controlled, with limited purple fringing effects appearing only in high contrast situations. The 12 megapixel images were sharp enough straight out of the camera at the default sharpen setting and don't require further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop.

Macro performance is excellent, allowing you to focus as close as 2cms away from the subject when the lens is set to wide-angle. Barrel distortion is clearly evident at the 28mm focal length. The built-in flash worked quite well indoors, with just a little red-eye and adequate overall exposure, although there is noticeable vignetting at 28mm.

The anti-shake system works well when hand-holding the camera in low-light conditions or when using the telephoto end of the zoom range. The maximum shutter speed of 8 seconds is a little disappointing but just allows the camera to capture enough light for most after-dark situations. The Panorama mode makes it fairly simple to take wide-vista shots, although the resolution is limited to 4880x1296 pixels.

Noise

There are 8 ISO settings available on the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD. At ISO 3200 and 6400, the number of recorded pixels is limited to 3 megapixels. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting:

ISO 64 (100% Crop)

ISO 100 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 200 (100% Crop)

ISO 400 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 800 (100% Crop)

ISO 1600 (100% Crop)

   

ISO 3200 (100% Crop)

ISO 6400 (100% Crop)

Focal Range

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD's 18x zoom lens provides a focal length of 28-504mm in 35mm terms, as demonstrated below.

28mm

504mm

Sharpening

Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the camera images are sharp enough at the default setting and don't really benefit from further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop.

Original (100% Crop)

Sharpened (100% Crop)

   

File Quality

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD has 2 different image quality settings available, with Fine being the highest quality option. Here are some 100% crops which show the quality of the various options, with the file size shown in brackets.

12M Fine (5.26Mb) (100% Crop) 12M Normal (2.82Mb) (100% Crop)

Chromatic Aberrations

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD handled chromatic aberrations excellently during the review. Just a little purple fringing was present around the edges of objects in high-contrast situations, as shown in the example below.

Example 1 (100% Crop)

Macro

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD offers a Super Macro setting that allows you to focus on a subject that is 2cms away from the camera. The first image shows how close you can get to the subject in Macro mode (in this case a compact flash card). The second image is a 100% crop.

Macro Shot

100% Crop

Flash

The flash settings on the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD are Auto, Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Slow Synchro, and any of those modes combined with Red-eye Reduction. These shots of a white coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.

Flash Off - Wide Angle (28mm)

Flash On - Wide Angle (28mm)

ISO 64 ISO 64
   

Flash Off - Wide Angle (420mm)

Flash On - Wide Angle (420mm)

ISO 64 ISO 64

And here are some portrait shots. Both the Auto or Red-eye reduction mode caused a small amount of red-eye.

Flash On

Flash On (100% Crop)
   

Red Eye Reduction

Red Eye Reduction (100% Crop)

Night

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD's maximum shutter speed is 8 seconds, which is fairly good news if you're seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 8 seconds at ISO 64. I've included a 100% crop of the image to show what the quality is like.

Night Shot

Night Shot (100% Crop)

Anti Shake

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD has an anti-shake mechanism, which allows you to take sharp photos at slower shutter speeds than other digital cameras. To test this, I took 2 handheld shots of the same subject with the same settings. The first shot was taken with anti shake turned off, the second with it turned on. Here are some 100% crops of the images to show the results.

Shutter Speed / Focal Length

Anti Shake Off (100% Crop)

Anti Shake On (100% Crop)

1/8th / 24mm
1/3rd / 504mm

Panorama Mode

The Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD allows you to take panoramic images fairly easily, by taking the first shot, then lining up the edge of that with the next shot, and then repeating the process for the third and final shot. The camera does all the processing and stitching. The main catch is that the resulting image is of fairly low resolution - the number of recorded pixels is limited to 4880x1296 - and you really need to use a tripod to get the best results.

 

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD camera, which were all taken using the 12 megapixel Fine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample Movie & Video

This is a sample movie at the highest quality setting of 1280x720 pixels at 30 frames per second. Please note that this 10 second movie is 34.5Mb in size.

Product Images

Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Front of the Camera

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Front of the Camera / Turned On

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Front of the Camera / Pop-up Flash

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Isometric View

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Isometric View

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Rear of the Camera

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Rear of the Camera / Image Displayed

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Rear of the Camera / Turned On

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Rear of the Camera / Main Menu

 

Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Rear of the Camera / Function Menu

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Top of the Camera

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Bottom of the Camera

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Side of the Camera

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Side of the Camera

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Front of the Camera

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Front of the Camera

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Memory Card Slot

 
Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD

Battery Compartment

Conclusion

You certainly get a lot of camera for your money with the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD, with most of the key features that you need and above par image quality. If you can resist the bells and whistles that more expensive rivals offer, then the S2500HD is an appealingly cost-effective way to join the super-zoom crowd.

Fujifilm have improved four key areas since last year's S1500 model - the rather inevitable megapixel rise from 10 to 12, a larger 3 inch screen, new HD movie mode and a larger 18x zoom. The latter two in particular make the biggest difference to this model, bringing the S2500HD up to speed with most of its main rivals. 18x doesn't sound like much when there are a couple of 30x cameras now on the market, but in reality the 28-508mm focal range is more versatile than most people will ever need. Likewise the HD video mode may not be full 1080p quality, but the 720p mode is more than adequate - something that can be said about the S2500HD as a whole.

Image quality, although not the best in class, is also up to scratch, with a usable ISO range of 64-400 with 800 as a backup, commendably little sign of purple-fringing, an effective image stabilisation system, and good exposures in most situations. Only the rather obvious barrel distortion and visible softness towards the edges at wide-angle settings detract from what is otherwise a solid performance.

All of this would be fine if not particularly noteworthy on a £300 / $350 camera - but given that the S2500HD only costs £219 / $250 full-price, we wouldn't blame you for wondering where the catch is. There are a few more caveats - only two available aperture settings, an all-plastic though not flimsy construction, somewhat misleading burst mode settings, and a rather low-resolution EVF and LCD - but all-in-all, the Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD represents a cheap but certainly not nasty entry-point into the literally eye-opening world of super-zoom photography.

4 stars

Ratings (out of 5)
Design 4
Features 4.5
Ease-of-use 4
Image quality 4
Value for money 4.5

Specifications

Model FinePix S2500HD / S2600HD
Number of effective pixels*1 12.2 megapixels
CCD sensor 1/2.3-inch CCD
Storage media
  • Internal memory (Approx. 23MB)
  • SD memory card
  • SDHC memory card*2
File format
Still image:
JPEG (Exif Ver. 2.2*3)
Movie:
AVI (Motion JPEG) with sound
Audio:
WAVE format, Monaural sound
(Design rule for Camera File system compliant / DPOF-compatible)
Number of recorded pixels Still image:
L: 4,000 x 3,000 (4:3) / 4,000 x 2,664 (3:2) / 4,000 x 2,248 (16:9)
M: 2,816 x 2,112 (4:3) / 2,816 x 1,864 (3:2) / 2,816 x 1,584 (16:9)
S: 2,048 x 1,536 (4:3) / 2,048 x 1,360 (3:2) / 1,920 x 1,080 (16:9)
Lens Fujinon 18x optical zoom lens, F3.1 (Wide) - F5.6 (Telephoto)
Lens focal length f=5.0 - 90.0mm, equivalent to 28 - 504mm on a 35mm camera
Digital zoom Approx. 6.3x up to 113.4x with optical zoom
Aperture Wide: F3.1 / F6.4, Telephoto: F5.6 / F11.0 with ND filter
Focus distance
(from lens surface)
Normal:
  • Wide: Approx. 40cm / 1.3ft. to infinity
  • Telephoto: Approx. 2.5m / 8.2ft. to infinity
Macro:
  • Wide: Approx. 5cm - 3.0m / 0.2ft. - 9.8ft.
  • Telephoto: Approx. 1.8m - 3.0m / 5.9ft. - 9.8ft.
Super Macro:
  • Approx. 2cm - 1.0m / 0.1ft. - 3.3ft.
Sensitivity Auto / Equivalent to ISO 64 / 100 / 200 / 400 / 800 / 1600 / 3200* / 6400* (Standard Output Sensitivity)
*3M pixels or lower
Exposure control TTL 256-zones metering, spot, multi
Exposure mode Programmed AE, Shutter Priority AE, Aperture Priority AE, Manual
Shooting modes
Mode Dial:
SR AUTO, Auto, P, S, A, M, Custom, Movie, Panorama, SP
SP:
Portrait, Landscape, Sport, Night, Night (Tripod), Fireworks, Sunset, Snow, Natural Light, Natural Light & with Flash, Beach, Party, Flower, Text, Smile, Zoom Braketing
Image Stabilizer CCD-shift type
Shutter speed (Auto mode) 1/4sec. to 1/2000sec.
(All other modes) 8sec. to 1/2000sec., (with mechanical shutter)
Continuous shooting
  • Top-3 (Up to 1.3fps; max. 3 frames)
  • Top-10 (Up to 3.3fps; max. 10 frames; size (M))
  • Top-20 (Up to 8fps; max. 20 frames; size (S))
  • Last-3: (Up to 1.3fps; last 3 frames recorded)
  • Long-period (Up to 1.3fps; maximum number of frames varies with image size and available memory)
Focus Single AF, Continuous AF
White balance Automatic scene recognition Preset: Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light (Daylight), Fluorescent light (Warm White), Fluorescent light (Cool White), Incandescent light, Custom
Self-timer Approx. 10sec. / 2sec. delay
Flash Auto flash
Effective range (ISO AUTO):
Normal:
  • Wide: Approx. 40cm - 8m / 1.3ft. - 26.2ft.
  • Telephoto: Approx. 2.5m - 4.4m / 8.2ft. - 14.4ft.
Macro:
  • Wide: Approx. 30cm - 3m / 1ft. - 9.8ft.
  • Telephoto: Approx. 1.8m - 3m / 1ft. - 5.9ft.
Flash modes
Red-eye removal OFF: Auto, Forced Flash, Off, Slow Synchro.
Red-eye removal ON: Auto with Red-eye removal, Forced Flash with Red-eye Removal, Off, Slow Sync with Red-eye Removal.
Electronic viewfinder (EVF) 0.2-in., Approx. 200,000 dots color LCD viewfinder Approx. 99% (shooting), 100% (playback)
LCD monitor 3.0-inch, Approx. 230,000 dots, color LCD monitor, Approx. 97% coverage for shooting, and 100% coverage for playback
Movie recording 1,280 x 720 pixels (30 frames/sec.) / 640 x 480 pixels / 320 x 240 pixels (30 frames/sec.) with monaural sound
Photography functions Instant zoom, Intelligent Face Detection with red-eye removal, High-speed shooting, Best framing, Frame number memory, Histogram display, Silent mode
Playback functions Intelligent Face Detection, Red-eye removal, Micro thumbnail, Multi-frame playback, Sort-by-date, Cropping, Resize, Slideshow, Image Rotation, Voice memo, Histogram display, Exposure warning
Video output NTSC / PAL selectable
HDM output HDMI Mini connector
Digital interface USB 2.0 High-speed
Power supply*4 4x AA type alkaline batteries (included)
4x AA type Ni-MH rechargeable batteries (sold separately)
4x AA type lithium batteries (sold separately)
DC coupler CP-04 with AC power adapter AC-5VX (sold separately)
Dimensions 110.2 (W) x 73.4 (H) x 81.4(D) mm / 4.3 (W) x 2.9 (H) x 3.2 (D) in.
(excluding accessories and attachments)
Weight Approx. 337g / 11.9oz.
(excluding accessories, battery and memory card)

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