With each new update to Fujifilm’s F-series, they have added features that promise to push the boundaries of what’s normally expected from a compact digital camera.
These cameras have been popular with enthusiasts looking for something compact, due to their inclusion of manual exposure control, low noise at high ISO sensitivities, or extended dynamic range.
With the Fuji F550 EXR price tag at £270, Fuji’s latest high-end compact sits at the top of its range of compact cameras and sports a rear illuminated EXR CMOS sensor, which has a few extra tricks up its sleeve.
The red, green and blue photosites are arranged in such a way that pictures can either be taken at the full 16-megapixel resolution if conditions are ideal, or at a reduced resolution of eight megapixels in either of the alternate EXR modes.
One mode is designed to reduce the amount of noise when shooting in low light, and the other increases the dynamic range captured in high contrast situations.
The 15x zoom lens covers a range equivalent to 24-360mm, without making the camera overly large or bulky. The 24mm wide angle is great for capturing groups of people, whilst the telephoto is useful for picking out details over distance, or for isolating subjects.
As it may be difficult to hold sufficiently steady at maximum telephoto, the CMOS-shift image stabilisation is a welcome addition. This works by moving the sensor around behind the lens to counter motion associated with hand-holding the camera.
Aperture and shutter priority exposure modes are included alongside full manual exposure control. Automatic scene recognition will suit those who prefer to point and shoot along with other photographic aids, such as face detection and red-eye removal.
If pets are more your cup of tea, rather than people, dog and cat detection is also provided.
Raw and JPEG images can be captured simultaneously, which is a feature not often found at this price point and should please many enthusiasts. SilkyPix Developer Studio is bundled with the camera to process the Raw files, along with Fujifilm’s photo management software.
As HD video recording seems to have become a standard feature on digital cameras, the F550EXR sports full 1080p capture at 30 frames per second. Unlike many other compacts the built in microphone captures stereo sound and the zoom can be used during recording.
An on board GPS function automatically tags images with location information, including the names of places visited. Images can then be searched for by place name in the software provided or in camera, which is great for sifting through hundreds of images quickly.
If you’ve lost track of where you’ve been, the GPS can be used to navigate back to the spot from which a picture was taken. The direction and distance to where a particular image was taken can be displayed on-screen.
Fujifilm has definitely paid attention to this camera’s target audience as far as the external design is concerned. The shiny black metal finish with gun-metal trim certainly looks the business.
A slightly raised section above the lens seems like a nod to classic camera designs, almost like a faux viewfinder or hotshoe. It feel very well built and a rubberised section on the front provides a secure grip of the camera body.
Zooming is performed by rotating a bezel around the shutter button. The location of this control is perfect, placed exactly where one’s index finger falls naturally.
In fact nearly all the controls are very well placed, especially the bezel on the rear, which is used for adjusting the aperture and shutter speed.
The buttons are small though, and those with limited dexterity may struggle to get to grips with certain functions. The raised exposure mode dial can also be an issue.
As it stands proud of the camera body, it is easy to knock off the desired setting, either during use, or when removing the camera from a bag, case or pocket.
Direct access to macro, flash, self timer and exposure compensation features is provided via the circular directional control on the rear and an additional ‘F’ button provides quick access to image quality settings, film simulation modes and ISO settings.
The main menu is well laid out, but some features are hidden away in its depths and take a bit of hunting to find, such as the Raw image quality setting. The natural place for this would be alongside the other image quality settings in the ‘F’ menu.
Even in bright daylight, the three inch screen is a joy to behold. It is bright, contrasty and has a wide viewing angle, which is useful when taking shots from obscure angles. The high resolution of 460,000 dots ensures images and menu text are rendered very clearly indeed.
Two power options are provided for the screen. If battery life is paramount, the power saver option dims the screen slightly, saving precious charge.
As a result it can be more difficult to see clearly in bright conditions. If using the GPS function, it is well worth enabling the power saver, as using this function seems to sap the battery rather more quickly.
At just under four seconds, the start-up time isn’t the quickest, which can be a little frustrating, especially when faced with a Fujifilm EXR logo as the action unfolds. Once the camera is awake and ready focusing is quick for a compact, even in relatively low light conditions.
Fast moving subjects may still be a step too far though, even in subject tracking mode. Over long distances, especially at the telephoto end of the zoom, the camera can miss-focus completely resulting in soft images, which can be highly frustrating.
The flash automatically stands proud of the camera body, increasing the distance between it and the lens, which should help to reduce red-eye slightly. If the flash is pushed back into the camera, it is instantly disabled until you re-enable it, which can be handy if the flash needs to be disabled in a hurry.
Although there are niggles with the handling, this camera can be pleasant to use with care.
For such a high resolution compact, the F550 EXR performs commendably at higher ISO sensitivities. Chroma noise is rarely an issue, with only a little speckling apparent in the shadows at higher settings, although as the sensitivity is increased beyond ISO400, the level of fine detail starts to drop rapidly.
This appears to be due to aggressive noise reduction in camera, which gives images a blotchy pointillist appearance on close inspection. Saying that, even at the highest sensitivity of ISO 3200, images should still be usable for decent 9x6in prints.
ISO settings beyond 3200 are possible by reducing the resolution, and the amount of noise is still commendably low, although smaller print sizes should be considered due to the reduced resolution.
The bundled SilkyPix software doesn’t deal with noise as well at high sensitivities, and isn’t capable of replicating any of the EXR sensor effects, such as the high dynamic range mode. It is best suited for images taken at full resolution at low sensitivities.
A ‘Pro Low Light’ mode is provided which takes several images and adds them together to allow higher quality in low light conditions. It is capable of producing surprisingly good results, although care needs to be taken to keep the camera and your subject absolutely still during shooting.
Panoramic images can be produced using the motion panorama mode by simply sweeping the camera from left to right. Best results are obtained using a support, but it still manages to produce a decent enough panoramics hand held.
Another trick mode provided is the ‘Pro Focus’ mode, which simulates the look of shallow depth of field by taking two shots and combining them. Sometimes it can be difficult to get the result you might expect from this mode, and it seems to work best with portraits using face detection.
Using the standard ‘Provia’ film simulation setting, colours are faithfully reproduced, if a little subdued. For more punchy images a ‘Velvia’ mode is provided and for even more subdued colours there is an ‘Astia’ mode. Black and white and sepia monochrome modes are also included.
Auto white balance works well under a wide range of lighting conditions, producing fairly neutral images in most cases, with a little hint of a colour cast retaining some of the atmosphere of the scene. This is especially true is the appropriate scene mode is selected for the conditions.
Multi segment, spot and centre weighted metering modes are available to choose between, so long as face detection is disabled as this uses the detected face to achieve the correct exposure.
For general scenes the multi segment metering seems overly influenced by light and dark subjects, resulting in exposure compensation being needed to correct wayward exposure readings.
To test the Fuji F550 EXR image quality, we shot our resolution chart with the F550 EXR’s Fujinon 15x optical zoom lens.
If you view our crops of the resolution chart’s central section at 100% (or Actual Pixels) you will see that, for example, at ISO 100 the Fuji F550 EXR is capable of resolving up to nearly 14 (line widths per picture height x100) in its highest quality JPEG files.
Examining images of the chart taken at each sensitivity setting reveals the following resolution scores in line widths per picture height x100:
Each image was shot at f/5.2
JPEGs
ISO 100 (View full size)
ISO 200 (View full size)
ISO 400 (View full size)
ISO 800 (View full size)
ISO 1600 (View full size)
ISO 3200 (View full size)
ISO 6400 – because the resolution is lower at this sensitivity the images are smaller (View full size)
ISO 12,800 – because the resolution is lower at this sensitivity the images are smaller (View full size)
The 24mm equivalent wide angle is useful for capturing a wider view (View full size)
The Pro Focus mode can be used to blur backgrounds, but in this case the effect is very subtle (View full size)
Colours are vibrant, without looking unnatural (View full size)
Autowhite balance performs well under a wide range of conditions (View full size)
Having higher ISO sensitivities at your disposal makes this camera suitable for the occasional action shot (View full size)
ISO Test
Each image was shot at f/4.2
ISO 100 (View full size)
ISO 200 (View full size)
ISO 400 (View full size)
ISO 800 (View full size)
ISO 1600 (View full size)
ISO 3200 (View full size)
ISO 6400 – because the resolution is lower at this sensitivity the images are smaller (View full size)
ISO 12,800 – because the resolution is lower at this sensitivity the images are smaller (View full size)
Sensor
1/2-inch EXR CMOS with primary color filter
Lens
Fujinon 15x optical zoom lens. Focal length – f=4.4 – 66mm, equivalent to 24-360mm on a 35mm camera.
Memory
Internal memory (Approx. 39MB). SD / SDHC / SDXC(UHS-I) memory card
Viewfinder
N/A
LCD Screen
3.0-inch, approx. 460,000 dots, TFT color LCD monitor, approx. 100% coverage
Video resolution
1920 x 1080 pixels / 1280 x 720 pixels / 640 x 480 pixels (30 frames / sec.)
ISO range
100-3200 expandable to 12800
Focus modes
Single AF, Continuous AF, Face Detection, Pet Detection
Max burst rate
Approx 2fps for 4 frames at 16MP
Shutter speeds
8secs to 1/2000sec
Weight
Approx. 195g / 6.9oz. (excluding battery and memory card) Approx. 215g / 7.6oz. (including battery and memory card)
Dimensions
103.5(W) x 62.5(H) x 32.6(D) mm
Power supply
NP-50 Li-ion battery (included) / CP-50 with AC power adapter AC-5VX (sold separately)
Billed as the perfect compact camera for travel by Fujifilm, the F550 EXR offers very good image quality, even at moderately high sensitivities and a level of creative flexibility normally only found in higher priced cameras.
Advanced users will love the ability to take control of exposures, and the ability to shoot Raw files. However photographers who prefer to point and shoot may find the wayward exposures under certain conditions, plus the odd niggle with handling, start-up speed and the camera’s ability to focus reliably over long distances at the telephoto end of the zoom range a little frustrating.
Despite its flaws, this camera offers a lot of useful features for the money and it may suit those after a well specified camera for travel at a reasonable price, just as Fujifilm intended.
We liked
A great range of features such as GPS, high sensitivity and a very useful zoom range, for a very reasonable price.
We disliked
Slow start-up time, general handling niggles and unreliable autofocus at maximum zoom may cause frustration.
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