fuji hs20
 

hi there, im new to all this and want some advise on thefuji hs20 bridge camera, im getting one soon(my husband is buying it !) i all ready got a fuji s1000 that im not completly happy with and want to up grade but not a lot of buget. i dont want a dslr as im not expierianced enough. thank you in advance :)

mbkamrani uses a HS10 which is the fore runner to the HS20. He maybe able to give some thoughts on the camera. What you have to ask yourself is what problems you have with the s1000 and how is the hs20 going to remedy them.

If you have a local Jessops take a memory card in with you and try the camera out. Look at the images at home and compare with your current camera output. Does the camera feel right in the hand. Is it easy to operate and find your way around the menus.

Find out if the manufacturer's hype is really true.

Welcome to the forum. If you're going for a superzoom, try following this link.

www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q110superzoomgroup/

A lot of DSLR have full auto mode, point and shoot. Would be better quality results than a bridge camera. Then you can learn at your own pace to use the other modes.

I still have a Finepix S5600 that I learned on and use sometimes, so not against Fuji or bridge cameras. Now have a Lumix G1 just so much better quality and to use and not much bigger.

Forget the hype you hear about 'image quality'. Cameras don't make pictures, lenses don't make pictures; PEOPLE make pictures. in 99% of cases the quality of the photo will be determined by you. You choose the subject and the composition, the time and the place to take a photo. That is far more important than megapixels or lens resolution or any other piece of technical jargon you may hear. Pretty much anything these days made by a major manufacturer will produce sharp, correctly exposed pictures. You don't need to fork out $$$ for the fastest, sharpest lenses. In fact, a photo book has been produced with pictures taken only on an iPhone.

Similarly forget features like HD video and GPS and all the other addons crammed onto cameras these days. If your photo is rubbish, GPS tagging isn't going to improve it, and neither will any of the camera's 'features'.

However this does not mean you should choose any camera and what the hell (well, in theory, you could, as in the iPhone example) but there are some factors of the camera that relate to how well YOU as the photographer can use it. You have to be careful about the following factors:

1. Ergonomics. Take care to handle lots of different cameras in a shop. Does it feel 'right' in your hand? Are all the controls in places that your fingers can reach? This is an entirely personal thing and there is no absolute rule for deciding. You decide which camera feels best.

2. Interface. As above: are the menus easily navigable? Are important settings easy to find, reach and adjust? I personally like the Canon Powershot interface most but again it is a personal choice.

3. Reliability. This is difficult to judge in a shop, but how well does the camera feel put together? Is it mainly made of plastic or metal? Do user reviews on the internet suggest it has a tendency to break down often?

4. Battery life - simple enough. This will genuinely affect your ability to take pictures. Easy to find out.

5. Price - fairly self explanatory. Look for rival brands' offerings and compare prices. Canon, Sony, etc all do bridge cameras.

In summary: the best camera is the one you know how to use and you have on you working well.

thank you all for the great advice that you have given me and i will take it all on board when buying my camera, thank you again.