Fuji S6500fd or S9600?

Dingleberry88

Dingleberry88

Dingleberry88

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I'm looking at upgrading from my current compact (Canon PowerShot A620) to something a little better.

I've pretty much narrowed it down to either the Fuji S6500fd or S9600, but I'm torn between the two.

I can get the 6500 for £150 and the 9600 for £225.



As far as I can make out, the differences are:

Titling LCD on the 9600 - After the movable screen on my Canon, it might feel awkward to go to a static screen on the 6500.

Lower ISO on the 9600 - 80 as opposed to 100 on the 6500.

9MP on the 9600, 6MP on the 6500 - Would 6 be alright for A3 prints?

Lack of a CompactFlash slot on the 6500 - I've read it's faster that xD?



So is the 9600 worth the extra £75 over the 6500 (bearing in mind I'll be getting a case and CF/xD card too). Or is there something else which is better, around the same price range?

And finally, does anyone have any pictures of someone holding them (to gauge the size).



Thanking in advance.:)
 
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6500 all the way ...

I had the same dilemma 2 weeks ago and went for the s6500FD and I'm extremely happy that I did.

I personally think it's the best camera around at that price.
Here's a few photos I've taken with it ... I've more but not got them uploaded yet.

My smallish Fuji Gallery

You could also check out this thread in DP review with some astonishing macros taken with the s6500FD and the Raynox 250D macro lens which can be had for about £30.
Amazing Macro Thread

I think those macros are unbeatable for and £180 all in combination ! :D
 
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Those macros look really good, but I thought the lens wasn't removable?

Do you have any night/dark pictures you could upload as I like doing long exposures.
 
The lens is fixed but it has a 58mm thread so you can add tele & macro lenses and filters etc.

I haven't got round to doing long exposures yet but did get out a couple of nights ago to take a night shot of the moon, it was low on the horizon ... about 15 - 20 degress and I took this at full 300mm zoom.

This is straight from the camera at 100%, just cropped.
moon1.jpg


Same image with a touch of post processing.
moon2.jpg


I'm sure it can do even better as I'm only getting to grips with it.
 
I'm another very very happy S6500fd owner too.

Check out my flickr pages for examples. Somewhere in there is a self portrait of me holding the camera which may give you an idea of it's size.
 
Another happy s6500fd owner here :) Check out my DA page in my sig to see example shots (admittedly edited though).

I tryed out my mates 9600 and I didn't like it very much due to being slightly bigger and although the screen was tilted, it was smaller than on my 6500. However I must admit the lens was slightly better as it could focus much quicker.
 
I recently returned an S9600 because I wasn't happy with it; among other things, the live-view gave no idea of exposure, noise seemed to be high sometimes at low ISOs and it was quite sizable. I don't know if the S6500 suffers the same problems.

I've bought a Canon Powershot S5IS instead and I'm much happier with it so far, and that's two days use versus about three weeks for the Fuji.
 
I must say im in the same situation - i was tempted to go straight for the s9600, but from reading this im starting to think whether i should go for the s6500..??

Any S9600 users willing to stick up for this camera?? - or do i buy the S6500?!

(sorry if im hijacking this thread Dingleberry88)
 
Even though I've owned the S9600 briefly and been disappointed with it; for the price the S6500 looks good to me...
 
Gambit said:
(sorry if im hijacking this thread Dingleberry88)
Click to expand...

You're not, you seem to be in the same position as me. :)


I've gotta admit, after looking through loads of photos taken with both of these cameras, there does seem to be quite a bit of noise, even at low ISOs. Though strangely no-one says a word about it. Infact quite the opposite, it seems to get a lot of praise about it's low noise at high ISOs...:confused:

Is it just me, or am I seeing the same thing as TheAlex?
 
I did a fair bit of reading up before going for the 6500 over the 9600.

From what I read the 6500 was a better balanced camera CCD size and lens combination and gave better iso results than the 9600 even though both use the same lens ... Tamron if I remember correctly.

6500 has one of the best low light high iso abilities around in this type of bridge camera.
 
Must admit, can't say I've noticed any noise on my shots. Mind you, I've not looked at them full size. I've magnified them a lot to do cloning work etc and when printed out they look great.

Like soupy says, the sensor/lens combo is a bit better on the 6500, purely because (I think) the 6500's sensor is a little bigger.

Having said that I have a flickr contact who uses a 9600 and his shots look great. Here's a link to his page...http://www.flickr.com/photos/s81photos/
 
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Just blatently copied and pasted form another thread....

S9500 owner. Don't use it too often anymore. But it still goes with out with me.

Few example shots form it - various sizes.

Frank Whittle Memorial @ Lutterworth
Frank Whittle Memorial @ Lutterworth
Jive Aces @ Rhythms of the World '06
Guitarist from The Blues Agents @ Rhythms of the World '06
Toque Tambor Dancers @ Rhytms of the World '06
A Dragonfly
Avro Lancaster PA474 @ Vulcan XH558 Roll Out '06
An owl @ Vulcan XH558 Roll Out '06
Another owl @ Vulcan XH558 Roll Out '06
Rolls Royce Merlin rocker cover @ deHavilland Heritage Centre
Brooklands Racing Club Emblem @ Brooklands surprisingly - 4.4mb - 3,488 x 2,616 pixels

S9500 is a very capable camera. Not too hot in low light, but can work.
ISO400 is ok for smaller images. ISO800 upwards is a bit ropey though.
ISO80-200 is fine for very large images - 30"x20" is easily possible.

Simon/~Flibster
 
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