Fujifilm Finepix V10 5.1MP is the first model in Fujifilm’s 2006 digital camera line-up to use Real Photo Technology. Like its 2005 predecessors with Real Photo Technology, the FinePix V10 does an outstanding job of removing graininess or “noise” from its digital pictures. Image noise, much like static in a television signal, reduces a picture’s sharpness. The noise problem is compounded when digital pictures are shot at higher light sensitivities, which can vary depending on lighting conditions.
With Real Photo Technology, the FinePix V10 generates less noise than similar digital cameras and can therefore take pictures at light sensitivities as high as 1600 ISO at full resolution. Higher sensitivities open the door to a host of user benefits when combined with quicker shutter speeds. Those benefits include less shake and blur due to hand and subject movement as well as more detailed and natural-looking pictures taken in low-light environments.
With the FinePix V10 and Real Photo Technology, users can keep the lights off during the “Happy Birthday” song and still capture a clear picture without disrupting the mood with a camera flash. To help determine whether or not to use flash for a particular scene, the FinePix V10 has a Natural Light and With Flash function. This mode shoots two images in succession, first without and then with flash. This convenient function provides an on-the-spot comparison that helps the user decide whether the FinePix V10 will produce the highest-quality photo with flash or without.
Helpful consumer’s review
I just got this yesterday from Amazon. I got the orange model because it just looks so stylish (in picture and, indeed, in person). This is to be my backup compact camera, when I don’t have my beloved Fujifilm Finepix F30 6MP camera with me. (Compared to the F30, the V10 is taller but thinner and shorter. They weigh about the same, I think.)
Here’re my initial impressions:
PICTURE QUALITY: very good outdoors during the day, and average/above-average indoors. Fujifilm (aka Fuji) has produced a line of compact cameras, starting with the F10, renowned for their low-light, high-ISO performance. (ISO refers to the camera’s sensitivity to light; the higher the ISO is, the less light the camera requires in order to capture an image with enough brightness and contrast.) The F30, my workhorse, is just superb in low-light conditions, pretty much rivaling (or even besting) my digital SLR, the Nikon D70. The V10 uses a slightly older sensor than the F30 — in fact, the V10’s sensor and “Real Photo” processor are the same as the discontinued F10. This means two things: 1) When there’s enough light, the V10 turns in excellent-looking pictures; 2) When the light is dim, the V10 cannot match the image quality of the F30. In fact, it seems to be slightly worse than the F10 in capturing low-light images. But compared to most other compact digital cameras, even those from Canon and Nikon, the V10 does a quite respectable job. For example, if you use the V10 to capture a candlelight moment, the image won’t steal your heart, but it’ll make a nice memorable photo, provided you have steady hands or use a tripod.
VIDEO QUALITY: 640×320 (VGA) or 320×240 (QVGA) with sound. Recorded in AVI format which is great for mobile playback as almost all mobile video devices can support AVI. You cannot zoom during shooting (reason: zooming produces horrendous-sounding motor noise which could be amplified by the movie mode, hence Fujifilm disabled zooming during movie shooting). Very good video quality when played back on a PC or TV (in the VGA mode
