Fujifilm FinePix F50fd

Manufacturer: Fujifilm USA Part number: FINEPIXF50FD

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$185.95 - $293.87 at 7 online stores

CNET Editor rating:
3.5 stars Very good
Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 12 reviews

More product information:: Editors' review; Product brief; User reviews; Specifications; Manufacturer info

Bottom Line:: The Fujifilm FinePix F50fd should please most snapshooters and its above-average exposure controls should appeal to advanced photographers, too.

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CNET editors' review

Fujifilm FinePix F50fd

price range: $185.95 - $293.87

The Fujifilm FinePix F50fd should please most snapshooters and its above-average exposure controls should appeal to advanced photographers, too.

The good: This camera has aperture- and shutter-priority exposure controls, sensor-shift image stabilization, a nice slim design, and face detection that outperforms the versions offered by most of the competition.

The bad: The camera is sluggish between shots, shows minor noise even at its lowest ISO, and doesn't include a full-manual exposure mode.

The bottom line: The Fujifilm FinePix F50fd should please most snapshooters and its above-average exposure controls should appeal to advanced photographers, too.

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Ever since Fuji introduced the FinePix F10, the company's double-digit-named F-series has been all about low noise at higher ISOs. Over the years, though, Fuji has developed the line into the very compact, classy-looking FinePix F50fd under review here. The F50fd sports a 12-megapixel Super CCD imaging sensor, 3x optical 35-to-105mm f/2.8-5.1 zoom lens, and 2.7-inch 230,000-pixel LCD. Its sensitivity reaches up to ISO 1,600 at full resolution, though the camera offers ISO 3,200 at a reduced resolution of 6MP and ISO 6,400 at 3MP. Better than that, the F50fd includes manual exposure controls, including both aperture- and shutter-priority.

While the old F10 had a somewhat bland, blocky shape, the F50fd has a gentle curve along the top toward its right side and the back is black plastic, which is nicer when viewing the pictures you've shot than the brighter silver that some cameras have. The plastic parts of the body definitely help keep the camera from being too heavy, but the plastic on top bent inward a bit when I pressed the power button. I don't think it's a serious issue, but I was a little extra careful to keep the camera in a case when I wasn't using it. If you use a tripod with the F50fd, be sure not to overtighten it, since you may strip the plastic tripod socket.

Fuji separates its menus into the F-mode menu, which lets you adjust ISO, pixel count, and color modes, and the main menu, where you can get to metering (Fuji calls it "photometry"), white balance, AF mode, and drive mode, as well as the setup menu. It's also the place where you can choose between aperture and shutter priority when you set the mode dial to A/S. Strangely, the camera doesn't have a full manual mode, though Fuji does include exposure compensation if you want to tweak the camera's meter a little. While last year's F40fd didn't have serious image stabilization, Fuji has added mechanical, sensor-shift image stabilization to complement the camera's digital, ISO-boosting stabilization.

The camera also includes face detection, which can see a face in a scene and use it to set exposure and focus, so the camera won't get confused and focus on something in the background instead of your friends or family. Fuji has updated its face detection this year, and though most cameras need to find two eyes to detect a face, Fuji's new Face Detection 2.0 can find a face even when it's in full profile, just as advertised. Fuji's system is also quite responsive, noticing a face in the frame very quickly, as long as face detection is enabled.

In CNET Labs' performance tests, the FinePix F50fd took longer than we'd like between shots, but was otherwise good. The camera took 1.8 seconds to start up and capture its first JPEG. Subsequent JPEGs took 2.9 seconds between shots with the flash turned off and 3.1 seconds with the flash turned on. That's a long time, especially compared to cameras such as Canon's PowerShot SD1000 and Sony's Cyber-shot DSC-T20 checking in with shot-to-shot times of half that or less. The F50fd's shutter lag measured an impressive 0.5 second in our high-contrast test and 0.9 second in our low-contrast test, which mimic bright and dim shooting conditions, respectively. In our continuous shooting test, which we conducted in the Top Three burst modes, we were able to capture an average of 3 frames per second regardless of image size.

While Fuji is able to keep noise very much under control up to ISO 400, with very little loss of detail, I saw some noise even at the camera's lowest sensitivity setting of ISO 100. At those lower ISOs, noise manifests as a minor dusting of off-color speckles and is greatly minimized when you make prints. At ISO 800 I saw a slight loss of both fine and shadow detail, but not much, and noise increases noticeably when viewed on a monitor. At ISO 1,600, noise increases greatly, taking away most fine and shadow detail, though you still should be able to get an acceptable print at small sizes. While we don't run our lab tests on ISO settings that reduce the camera's pixel count, in my field tests the ISO 3,200 and 6,400 modes did manage to keep the noise from getting significantly worse than it was at ISO 1,600 and even at 3MP you should be able to make a 4x6-inch print, so it could be a useful feature for low light snapshots. Still, I'd try to stay below ISO 1,600 whenever possible when using the F50fd.

Other aspects of image quality were also good. The automatic white balance does a good job of neutralizing colors in different types of lighting, though photos shot under incandescent lights were a little warmer than I like, but still usable. Colors look accurate, I saw almost no fringing, and images are quite sharp with a wide dynamic range that does a good job of maintaining details in highlights.

As long as you don't mind the between-shot sluggishness or slight texture that the noise creates, even at lower ISOs when viewed on a monitor, then the Fujifilm F50fd would make a nice choice for advanced photographers looking for a pocket camera to supplement an SLR. I say this not only because of the merits mentioned above, but also because the camera's aperture- and shutter-priority modes give you up to 10 choices when choosing an aperture or shutter speed, while a lot of compact cameras with those shooting modes limit you to significantly fewer choices, sometimes as few as two. Of course, if those manual exposure controls don't matter to you, then you may also want to check out the Canon Powershot SD1000 or Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T20 mentioned earlier, since they'll provide cleaner images at lower ISOs and are faster between shots. Of course, the SD1000 doesn't include image stabilization and is 7.1MP, and though the T20 has optical image stabilization, it is an 8.1MP camera. Even if the megapixel count isn't important to you, and it shouldn't be, you should keep the Fujifilm F50fd on your short list.

Shooting speed (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)

Typical shot-to-shot time

Time to first shot

Shutter lag (typical)

Casio Exilim EX-Z1000

3.5

1.8

0.3

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T20

1.3

0.4

Canon PowerShot SD1000

1.5

0.5

Fujifilm FinePix F50fd

2.9

1.8

0.5

Typical continuous-shooting speed (in frames per second)
(Longer bars indicate better performance)

Fujifilm FinePix F50fd

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T20

Canon PowerShot SD1000

1.7

Casio Exilim EX-Z1000

0.4

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Product brief

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User reviews

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Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 12 reviews

Showing opinion 1 to 10 out of 12

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7 stars

Good value for money

by greeng4309 on November 20, 2007

Pros: ease of use, cropping tool, user friendly menus, nice clear daylight pictures, clear lcd display, excellent value for money

Cons: Poor battery life, sluggish between shots, average dark photos, face detection works best in indoor conditions

Summary: I'm not a camera expert but I do enjoy updating my equipment every couple of years. Basically I was fed up with the poor night performance of my Sony ...

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Summary: I'm not a camera expert but I do enjoy updating my equipment every couple of years. Basically I was fed up with the poor night performance of my Sony Cybershot I owned previously. When looking at reviews of camera, I realised most of the reviews were from Camera experts etc, talking about Photo noise!!! whatever that means. Basically I was looking for a compact, easy to use camera that I can switch on and take some photos. Simple as that. The F50FD fits that bill and was a lovely companion for my recent trip to Cuba. Easy to switch between modes and the picture quality seems to be excellent. The clear LCD screen is also excellent, and the cropping tool, where basically you can zoom in on a photo you've taken and save a new image of the original photo, is another welcome feature.
The negatives, the battery life is pretty poor, I had to charge the battery 3 times in 10 days whilst in Cuba. And I was not over impressed by how slow the camera was between shots, especially frustrating when I was on a bus tour around Havana and trying to capture that moment quickly. I missed a few good shots becasue it took approx 3 seconds for the camera to be ready between shots. Fuji states on website that the F50FD is perfect for night time photos, but this is correct for close shots, but colours and detail are lost when you zoom into distant shots. Very bleak results but still better than my Sony. Face detection works fine indoors but suffers in bright sun or dark light conditions.
Overall, I would say that if you were looking for a cheapish camera with some nice features then look no further. If you are after that perfect companion, then this camera may frustrate you. One of my friends just bought the Canon Ixus960 which also has face detection and 12mp, and although this is currently £100 more than the F50fd I would say the picture quality, face detection and overall performance of the Canon is better than the F50FD and perhaps worth that extra bit of cash.

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11 out of 12 users found this user opinion helpful.
5 stars

OK but not as good as Fuji F10

by CajunDilbert7 on December 25, 2007

Pros: Compact Size, Aperature and Shutter Settings, Outdoor photos are excellent

Cons: Pictures are soft, exposures indoors are inconsistent.

Summary: I bought a F50fd for my daughter because I really like my Fuji F10. The performance of the F50 is better than most compact camera's but it is worse ...

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Summary: I bought a F50fd for my daughter because I really like my Fuji F10. The performance of the F50 is better than most compact camera's but it is worse than the F10 even though it's resolution is double. The sharpness of the photos is worse as is color reproduction. The optical image stabilization adds at most 1 stop. The video is good. Bottom line is that the camera is better than most compacts but not as good as a F10 or F30.

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5 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
5 stars

Disappointing

by dennisfan on November 12, 2007

Pros: Lightweight, compact, great A/V feature

Cons: noisy photos, can't charge using A/C.

Summary: So my Canon G6 Powershot is starting to die, so I needed a new camera. I knew that I wanted something smaller than the G6 to tote around, and the ...

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Summary: So my Canon G6 Powershot is starting to die, so I needed a new camera. I knew that I wanted something smaller than the G6 to tote around, and the Fuji Finepix boasted 12 megapixels. I tested the camera at the store and was impressed by what I could see on the LCD display, so I bought it.

I immediately took it on a vacation, but was very disappointed when I downloaded the pictures to my laptop that evening. Almost 100% of them were noisy/grainy. None of them came out clear and crisp. Not even the autoshoot ones with plenty of daylight. I spent $300 on this camera, and it is a piece.

I took it out at night-time using their night mode, which says that you will get beautiful, clear, skyline shots. NOT!!! The images look okay on the lcd, but when I put them on my display at home, they are blurry. Honestly, I have gotten better images from throwaway, one-use cameras you get at a drugstore.

The best features of this camera are the low-weight and portability, and the video feature. The quality of the video is quite good for such a small camera (still somewhat grainy, but more acceptable than other cameras' video features). As you are filming, the camera also tells you how much time you have left to film in those conditions with your video card.

By the way, the thing does NOT come with a memory card. It comes with a TINY internal memory that can hardly hold 10 pictures. You will have to buy an external memory module. The other issue I had is that in order to charge the battery, you can't just plug the camera into an A/C charger or your USB. You have to physically remove the battery and plug it into Fuji's wall charger. This makes it IMPOSSIBLE to recharge this thing on the road or in an on-the-go situation.

Overall, I would not recommend this camera for the money. It's not worth it. For the cost, it should be better than it is.

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6 out of 9 users found this user opinion helpful.
3 stars

Very disappointed

by rhderanek on December 11, 2007

Pros: Many features; small and light; big screen

Cons: Worse picture quality than my 3-year old sony digital camera

Summary: I purchased this camera to replace a three year old 5MP Sony Cybershot. The 12MP, stabilization, red-eye removal, and face recognition were big pluses for the Fuji F50fd, and the ...

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Summary: I purchased this camera to replace a three year old 5MP Sony Cybershot. The 12MP, stabilization, red-eye removal, and face recognition were big pluses for the Fuji F50fd, and the multitude of various settings you could manually control was very appealing. It didn't measure up ? my three year old camera beats it!

When I got the camera, I tried it out at my in-laws on Thanksgiving. The light was moderate - not very bright, but certainly not dark. I tried many different settings - full auto, indoors, manual, etc. There were posed shots and impromptu. I also took some video. 80% of the photos were very disappointing.

First off, the "face detection" worked only in bright lighting - the moderate lighting of my in-laws living room (overhead and lamps) was not enough to enable its use. The red-eye removal was very spotty - sometimes it worked and sometimes not. Now let's move on to the real disappointments...

The picture quality was terrible. Most of the photos came out incredibly grainy, almost like tiny pebbles that were used in a mosaic of my loved ones. Not only that, they were dark and sometimes out of focus. And the image stabilization touted simply did not work very well. I had blurry shots, even in posed photos. This is from a line of cameras that are famous for being great low-light cameras!

Less important, the video was very grainy and pixilated. It was a little better than the Sony I have now, but not by much. I expected more from something much newer than what I had.

Look, I bought this camera having seen the other bad reviews out there, but I figured they were blowing it out of proportions, and not only that, but the camera got good reviews from a lot of people and a lot of reputable websites (CNet, for one). But I was wrong - this was a terrible camera. I'm now back with my Sony (the pictures look better than the Fuji's) until I can find a camera that beats it.

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4 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
6 stars

Good in the light

by Rhionin on February 25, 2008

Pros: 12 Megapixel resolution, lots of camera features

Cons: Grainy image in dark scenes, flash isn't very effective

Summary: This is my experience with the Fujifilm FinePix F50fd as a first-time point and shooter with no real photo experience.

This camera is very, very good in many of it'

...

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Summary: This is my experience with the Fujifilm FinePix F50fd as a first-time point and shooter with no real photo experience.

This camera is very, very good in many of it's features, such as automatic red-eye removal, face detection, and having 12 megapixels.

However, I have found that the only time I can get a good, clear, noiseless shot is if the lighting in the scene is set up perfectly. Otherwise, the edges are blurred and little black spots appear all through the picture. The camera's flash feature doesn't seem to help much in adding light to a picture unless you're right next to the object / scene.

Often times the whole scene will turn a shade of red if any powerful backlight is thrown in, such as a TV or window.

I even took the time to take exact picture comparisons between this camera and my friend's 7.1 megapixel camera. Although her image resolution was only about 60% what mine was, her images still came out with brighter color and sharper edges.

So in the end, if you plan on having good lighting most of the time, and are willing to retry the same picture a couple times to get it right, this camera would be worth your money. But for the most part, the huge increase in megapixels is counterbalanced by the overall poor quality of the picture.

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1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
8 stars

It is a good point and shoot...READ THE MANUAL! You will get images you expect.

by pt35mm.com on January 23, 2008

Pros: Good photos in the ISO 100-400 rrange.

Cons: Does get considerable noise as it goes up past 400ISO.

Summary: This camera is my first point and shoot digi and after reading reviews and looking at what others had to say I must say that the images could be better ...

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Summary: This camera is my first point and shoot digi and after reading reviews and looking at what others had to say I must say that the images could be better when referencing past models in the Fuji line BUT they are very good considering that this is not a pro camera and is a point and shoot.
I was considering a Canon and when calling the trusted camera store I get my equipment from I told them what I was looking at, what I was looking for, and my experience (Pro Shooter for 15 years). The Fuji F50 is what was recommended. There is a 15 day return policy at their expense so it is not as if they gain anything but an open box camera they have to sell for less.
The first 30 photos I took were in all the various settings that were pretty much auto in one way or another. I noticed grain etc in low light but then looking at the camera settings you see it is at 1600ISO often. When turning the limiter on to Auto400 (only works in certain modes!) the images were sharp and the color was great. 100ISO is better than 400 etc. Honestly though I am still fond of film, digital is not there yet.
After reading the people who reviewed this camera as poor or average and what they described I can be sure they did not read the manual cover to cover nor did they explore the different settings and how they affect the ISO. YES This camera is very noisy at 1600 ISO and 800 ISOâ?¦ so you have to adjust and use a flash which it does an excellent job with (not a large range though).
Bottom line I took all my photos at night and mostly used flash and made sure I was in the recommended distances etc etcâ?¦ It is slow between photos but when we used to have to wind the film between shots it is about the same.
If you bother reading the manual and how the ISO settings are affected by the mode you are in you will find you can get excellent photos from this point and shoot. I think they might have done better going to 10megapixels rather than jamming in 12 and worked on getting the quality they had in the F30/31â?¦ but if you go to http://www.digitalcameratracker.com/fujifilm-finepix-f50fd/ and scroll down to the sample photos you will see this cameras images and then can look for other cameras you might be looking at and see the quality of the images they produce.
Bottom line so far I like this camera though it is not my workhorse Nikon SLRâ?¦

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1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
8 stars

Excellent overall camera despite mixed (confused) reviews

by vicwinner on December 31, 2007

Pros: Better resoulution, build, and high iso than any others

Cons: Not as feature laden as Canons

Summary: I've done my research on compact cameras far and wide. From Canon sd950is to canon a650is. Despite all the chatter about this camera's "noise", the truth is- unless ...

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Summary: I've done my research on compact cameras far and wide. From Canon sd950is to canon a650is. Despite all the chatter about this camera's "noise", the truth is- unless you plan on making posters, this camera will print superb pics worthy of cropped 8x10s. You need to know how to work it, which is pretty easy. It's iso 400-800 embarasses canon and any others. It has proven better resoulution than any other compact. And it has the best face detection system. On top of that, it's build is not only sturdy with nice feel to all controls, but it's interface and operation are easier and quicker to operate than canon's, especially with one hand. The LCD screen is also the best on the market with best resolution and none of the smudging you get on a canon. If you print pictures and are of the 1% that take the picture beyond a blown up version on a computer screen, this camera will show out. Truly a professional's pocket cam. It's color is by far the most accurate without the "warming" of other processors. It has hardly any purple fringing. It won't overblow highlights like all canon's in tricky sunlight/shadow situations. And it's almost half the price. You kidding me. One more note - this camera has the best black/white pics. Canons tend to lean towards a grayish blue tint. This one is straight black. Great for art. And for anyone thinking I'm anti-canon, over 90% of pics on computer are either from a95, a620, or sd900.
I always recommend a bigger lens vs. small, but this camera does justice for small pocket cams. Don't get ripped off or misled by those who don't ever print their pics but just scrutinize them beyond their intent. If you want to make a 3'x4' get a DSLR. Otherwise this is a serious steal.

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1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
1 stars

Broke down in two weeks; still not fixed 2 months later.

by capnvague on May 1, 2008

Pros: Looks good in the photos on the website, which is the only way I can remember what it looked like.

Cons: It cost me more than $3.50 per photo.

Summary: Very unreliable and bad after-sales service so I have an empty wallet and no camera. It stopped focusing after 2 weeks of modest use and 2 months later Fujifilm still ...

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Summary: Very unreliable and bad after-sales service so I have an empty wallet and no camera. It stopped focusing after 2 weeks of modest use and 2 months later Fujifilm still haven't decided to fix it or replace it. I suggest you go your any other brand.

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8 stars

Good for all purpose

by Busybee228 on April 9, 2008

Pros: Crispy sharp pictures and brilliant color

Cons: Generally none

Summary: A very Good camera and a good buy. Images appears marginally inferior than those from my brother's F30fd model on similar resolution settings.

Summary: A very Good camera and a good buy. Images appears marginally inferior than those from my brother's F30fd model on similar resolution settings.
7 stars

Decent P&S with manual controls, but flaws keep it from being great

by rcs1125 on April 1, 2008

Pros: High resolution, nice LCD, compact for p&s with manual controls, ISO 1600 useful in good light

Cons: Wide end not very wide, low light high ISO shots very grainy, video mode not happy with low temps or bright light, slow operations

Summary: I really wanted a very compact p&s with manual controls and my research pointed me to this camera.

Here are my impressions so far (in no particular order)

...

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Summary: I really wanted a very compact p&s with manual controls and my research pointed me to this camera.

Here are my impressions so far (in no particular order)

In good light the camera performed very well at ISOs up to 1600 (great for freezing action), but in low light I wouldn't recommend anything over 400. Auto Focus also performed poorly in medium to low light conditions. This camera is supposed to shine at low light, high ISO shots compared to other p&s...I'm most disappointed with those shortcomings.

While I knew that the widest focal length was 35mm equivalent, I'm still disappointed. Just not wide enough for many social situations or landscape shots. Not a camera flaw I suppose, but still irritating when you are trying to 'fit it all in' the frame.

One quirk that may be limited to my camera was a strange pink haze during video I shot on a ski trip. Not sure if it was too bright for the camera or too cold, but either way a 2008 model camera should be able to handle a snow scene at 30 degrees.

I'm also annoyed that the camera has to do a little 'digital light dance' every time a photo is deleted, delaying operations for a second or two. Aggravating when you are trying to quickly sort the good from the throwaways. My old Canon SD300 performed much faster.

All in all better than some other compacts I've tried but not quite as good as some reviews suggest.

I'll keep it, but only til something better comes along.

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Fujifilm FinePix F50fd

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