Fuji FinePix S5 Pro Digital SLR Camera Review
By Alex Burack
Reviewed.com Editorial Staff
September 05, 2007
Niche products like Fujifilm’s FinePix S5 Pro are divisive in nature. With industry-leading image quality in some capacities, the S5 is also markedly behind the curve in other core respects. Fujifilm constructed a more durable DSLR by borrowing the Nikon D200’s chassis. The S5’s new framework stands as the most dramatic improvement from its precursor, the FinePix S3 Pro. Without giving much attention to increasing its speed, Fujifilm’s $1,999 S5 Pro is a more mature version of the S3, with familiar strengths and recurring flaws.
Fujifilm has an interesting 6-megapixel image sensor that adds supplemental pixels to yield additional dynamic range. The manufacturer advertises the S5 Pro as a 12.3-megapixel DSLR, but don’t be fooled by the marketing hype. Resulting images will not approach the sharpness of actual 12-megapixel designs, like Canon’s EOS 5D or Nikon’s D2Xs. However, the Fujifilm S5 Pro does trump other 6-megapixel DSLRs in this department.
Standing in front of the S5 Pro’s image sensor is Nikon’s acclaimed F-mount. This has been a staple of Fuji’s DSLRs and has opened its market up to the slew of Nikon shooters who house trunks full of Nikkor optics.
Extended dynamic range has been a hallmark of Fujifilm’s DSLR line since its inception. Fuji has even gone so far as to apply a dedicated mode to control this parameter. The S5 Pro offers customizable D-range settings that can be extended up to 400 percent in six steps. Currently, this is a unique inclusion and has yet to be replicated by other manufacturers. The resulting pictures look impressive; the Fujifilm S5 Pro surpassed Canon’s full-frame EOS 5D as well as all Nikon DSLRs on the market in terms of its dynamic range.
Fujifilm’s DSLRs have become a popular choice among wedding and portrait photographers, and for good reason. Historically, Fuji’s DSLRs have delivered poignant colors with an emphasis on skin tones. The S5 Pro is no different. The FinePix S5’s colors lacked the accuracy of Canon’s EOS 5D or EOS 30D, but we suspect that’s an intentional adjustment by Fujifilm. The S5 Pro’s performance indicates a deliberate oversaturation of particular tones, optimizing for portraiture. Fujifilm strives to produce useable JPEGs straight out of the camera, without requiring photographers to shoot RAW and spend an excessive amount of time processing the files – time they might not get paid for. The S5 Pro’s adjusted colors cater to this and its resulting “look” has become a standard among many DSLR portrait shooters.
The Fujifilm FinePix S5 Pro delivers clean images across the bulk of its expansive 100-3200 ISO range. The camera keeps noise, the digital equivalent of film grain, to a minimum. It controls noise much better than its genetic counterpart, the Nikon D200.
The most visible improvement to the S5 Pro is its build quality and external design. Fujifilm’s S5 Pro is constructed into Nikon’s celebrated D200 shell. Utilizing the strengths of the D200, the S5 Pro is the first Fujifilm DSLR to offer professional-grade build quality and weatherproofing. The new skin also packs a slew of well-conceived external controls that expedite frequent shooting adjustments.
Unfortunately, the S5 Pro doesn’t follow the Nikon D200 in all respects. Detractors of previous Fujifilm DSLRs have consistently voiced discontent with the cameras’ pedestrian shooting and processing speeds. The S5 Pro slugs along at just about 3 frames per second (fps) – roughly 40 percent slower than Nikon’s D200. Further, the S5 Pro is only capable of capturing a maximum of 22 full-resolution JPEGs in succession without pausing to write some of the data to the inserted media – of which, it accepts CompactFlash and xD. Alternatively, Nikon’s D200 shoots at 5 fps for 30 successive shots, while Canon’s EOS 5D shoots only slightly faster than the S5 Pro, but continues for more than three times as many shots.
The Fujifilm S5 Pro’s Burst mode slows even more when D-range is expanded or shooting RAW. Granted, portrait and wedding photographers generally don’t need as much speed as a sports shooter, but the money shot for a wedding photographer could be a fleeting moment only recordable in a quick succession of shots.
Fujifilm prides itself in replicating the “look of film.” We still don’t think the S5 is a true film replacement, but Fuji loyalists seem to appreciate the continued inclusion of “Film Simulation” modes on its DSLRs. These presets are designed to mimic the aesthetic of a few particular film stocks. In truth, the look of these modes are not that disparate and don’t approximate the richness of the films they were modeled after.
Face detection has been an “it” feature in point-and-shoot cameras for the past year or two, and Fujifilm was one of the forerunners with its compact FinePix F-series cameras. Now it has integrated the tech-feature-of-the-week into its SLR bodies to assist its target demographic. The S5 Pro sports a dedicated button for this function, zooming-in on faces in pre-captured photos during image review. This offers an expedient way for photographers to check for focus and ensure no eyes are blinking during those essential group shots. Gimmicky as it may be, this is a great addition to the line and will be surprisingly invaluable to pro shooters with time constraints.
Unlike other DSLR manufacturers, Fujifilm has successfully cultivated a following based on a single camera. Fujifilm has made it apparent that its strength is in image quality and sensor design, and has since constructed a lineage of SLRs around these attributes. The Fujifilm FinePix S5 Pro bulks up and amends issues of durability and weatherproofing that plagued previous designs. Dynamic range and portrait-tailored colors remain at the cusp of DSLR innovation in the S5 Pro. Speed, however, continues to linger in the adolescent stages, and wedding photographers often require more. The S5 Pro's limited quickness and exceptional image quality make it ideal for studio portrait sessions and an acceptable choice for wedding shooters.
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