Fujifilm UK Press Release

Experience the deep blue see with Fujifilm FinePix cameras and underwater housings - Freedom for your sub-aqua photography with new underwater housings for the FinePix F30 Zoom and FinePix A500 and A400 Zoom cameras

3 August 2006 - Fujifilm today announced the release of a durable underwater housing unit for the TIPA and DIMA award-winning* FinePix F30 Zoom. The WP-FXF30 is a sturdy, watertight casing that keeps the camera dry and copes with the pressure of dives as deep as 40 metres. It also gives protection on a sandy beach, from splashed water or bad weather on boats and in snowy conditions. So once you’re done diving in summer you can ride the slopes with it in winter. In addition, Fujifilm has released its first waterproof case for entry-level cameras. The WP-FXA500 is suitable for the FinePix A400 and A500 Zooms and is waterproof at depths of up to 3 metres.

FinePix F30 Zoom - the ultimate diver’s compact The FinePix F30 Zoom is the perfect camera for divers. In addition to its low light performance, which makes it great for capturing all the detail in the deep, it features a dedicated underwater mode that acts as an in-built red filter. Choosing this setting automatically reduces the blue cast of subjects in your underwater images. It also means that you are not reducing the amount of light going into the lens, which is a drawback of traditional red filters. The underwater mode ensures that shots from your dive expeditions will look as vibrant as you remember them, recording images with stunning clarity. And with no need for an external red filter that’s one less bit of kit to remember.

The FinePix F30 Zoom and underwater housing are perfect if you’re tired of shots being spoiled by the inevitable low light underwater. Even when you’re just ten metres down, light levels tend to be around one eighth of those at the surface, which is why conventional digital cameras can produce blurred or ‘noisy’** photographs on dives.

To help with this, the FinePix F30 Zoom’s Real Photo Technology gives an unbeatable sensitivity of ISO 3200 at full resolution. What this means is natural looking pictures with no blur even in the low, blue light of the ocean. When paired with its dedicated underwater housing unit, the FinePix F30 Zoom is truly in its element in the deep.

For those occasions when you could still use a little extra light, the Fujifilm underwater strobe kit is available. This is a lightweight external flash in its own waterproof housing with a flexible arm that can be moved around to direct the light where it’s needed. Combined, the FinePix F30 Zoom with underwater housing and underwater strobe flash is one of the most affordable comprehensive kits for underwater photography on the market today.

Another photographic bugbear highlighted by divers is battery life. Power-hungry digital cameras that run out of juice during a dive mean that you are left with an incomplete record of underwater expeditions. The FinePix F30 Zoom achieves a class-leading 580 shots on a single charge. This is a camera that will be with you throughout even the most extended dives, making it the perfect dive buddy.

Fujifilm’s first waterproof case for entry-level digital cameras Fujifilm’s WP-FXA500 is a robust polycarbonate casing specifically designed for the entry-level digital FinePix A400 and A500 Zooms. The casing matches the cameras’ simplicity and ease of use, whilst also delivering great results, and will provide protection from sand, snow, water and bad weather. Its ability to stay waterproof at depths of up to 3 metres offers a great introduction to underwater photography, and makes it the perfect solution for summer holiday swimmers and snorkelers.

Tania Payne, Fujifilm’s Marketing Manager for Digital Camera Accessories, said, “Underwater photography is central to Fujifilm’s product development. Putting any compact digital camera in a waterproof housing does not necessarily make it suitable for a dive enthusiast. This is because underwater photography places specific demands on the camera’s sensitivity and battery life, and these are two areas that the new FinePix F30 Zoom puts right. We think it’ll be just as appreciated by the diving fraternity as its predecessors, the FinePix F10 and F11, were.”

*The FinePix F30 Zoom was voted the ‘Best Digital Camera in Europe 2006’ by the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA), and also won the ‘Innovative Product’ category at this year’s Digital Imaging Manufacturers Association (DIMA) Awards.

Noise: The appearance of random coloured speckles in a digital image taken at high sensitivity. This arises from a camera sensor’s inability to collect a sufficiently accurate and clear light signal when the light conditions are poor.

FinePix F30 Zoom Underwater Housing features at a glance:
*Pressure resistance: 40 metres
*Made from tough, transparent polycarbonate *Dedicated design retains full camera functionality when sealed *FL reinforced glass lens window *ISO 100 - 3200 sensitivity for excellent results in the low light of the ocean *Dedicated underwater mode
*6 megapixels, 3x optical zoom
*Underwater housing dimensions 129 mm x 94 mm x 96 mm (W X H X D) *Underwater housing weight: 295 G (excluding camera and accessories)

Package includes:
*Underwater housing
*Flash diffuser
*Hand strap
*Silica gel and grease

FinePix A400 Zoom and FinePix A500 Zoom Waterproof Case features at a glance:
*Pressure resistance: 3 metres
*Made from tough, transparent polycarbonate *Reinforced glass lens window
*4 megapixels (FinePix A400 Zoom) / 5 megapixels (FinePix A500 Zoom), *3x optical zoom *Underwater housing dimensions 110 mm x 65 mm x 58 mm (W X H X D) *Underwater housing weight: 193 G (excluding camera and accessories)

Package includes:
*Underwater housing
*Hand strap
*Silica gel and grease

Pricing
F30 underwater housing: Suggested Retail Price £149.99
A400/A500 underwater housing: Suggested Retail Price £59.99

For information about Fujifilm and its products, please visit: www.fujifilm.co.uk or call 0870 084 1310

About Fujifilm
Fujifilm is a global leader in imaging technology, products and services including digital cameras, photofinishing, digital storage and recording media, consumer and professional film, motion picture film, professional video, printing systems, medical imaging, office technology, flat panel displays and graphic arts. The company employs more than 73,000 people worldwide, with 178 subsidiaries stretching across four continents.

Uniquely placed to be a market leader in digital imaging, Fujifilm develops and manufactures its own sensors, lenses and processing technology.  In addition to its production plants and R&D operations in Japan, the company has key manufacturing facilities in Europe and the USA for core products such as colour film, colour paper, single use cameras and CTP printing plates, and has further factories in Brazil and China. It has a global turnover in excess of £13 billion.

In the UK, Fujifilm has been supplying the imaging, printing and graphics industries, as well as consumers, professional and enthusiast photographers, with high quality, innovative products and services for over 25 years.  Fujifilm UK currently employs more than 450 people and has become one of the country’s most popular photographic and imaging brands.

© 2006, Fuji Photo Film (UK) Ltd.  Specifications are subject to change.