s5pro review by dpreview

[madmacs]

Technicalities aside, I have many issues digesting the "Recommended" label on the S5 pro, considering that the S3 Pro was "Highly Recommended (just)". DP is effectively saying that the S5 is worse than the S3 given their respective competition! :dunno:

There have been many opinions lately expressing the view that the S5 is a "niche" camera and therefore it only deserves "Recommended" by virtue of its niche-ness. What's so niche about it? Yes it produces nicer colours, higher DR and better skin tone - that makes it a better camera not niche. You don't have to be a wedding/portrait photographer to enjoy all those attributes. I still don't get why the S5 is considered niche when the Canon 1Ds mark XYZ is not. heck even the 5D has more reasons to be considered niche than the S5.

To enjoy these attributes I'd have to sacrifice speed. Correction, *some* speed, as I can still do 3 fps if I'd wanted to. I lose 2 fps compared to the D200. Woop-dee-doo.

Sure, the camera has flaws. The menu system can be improved, perhaps more resolution is needed for the pixel peepers. But for what it is, the S5 is a great camera. Thanks to the S5, I finally moved into digital with confidence, having used Fuji emulsions on my F5 for many years.

(okay I feel better now lah...)

:lovegrin:

then again...B&W Photography magazine says this of the s5 pro

"there's no better choice for b&w buffs"

so who are you going to believe?

i believe most of those who have s5 are very pleased with it. :lovegrin:

 

[nightwolf75]

i believe most of those who have s5 are very pleased with it. :lovegrin:

amen. to rehash an old cliche - the proof is in the pudding. if u worry whether the s5pro is up to scratch vis-a-vie the Big 2... probably this camera is not for u.

i've got a lot of happy frens after today's ceremony, one of them will be getting a 20"x30" s5pro print fm me this sat. :bsmilie:

 

[madmacs]

amen. to rehash an old cliche - the proof is in the pudding. if u worry whether the s5pro is up to scratch vis-a-vie the Big 2... probably this camera is not for u.

i've got a lot of happy frens after today's ceremony, one of them will be getting a 20"x30" s5pro print fm me this sat. :bsmilie:

wooooo 20"x30"!!! :thumbsup:

 

[nightwolf75]

wooooo 20"x30"!!! :thumbsup:

first time doing a 20x30 from the s5. lets see how it goes.

 

[initialE24]

first time doing a 20x30 from the s5. lets see how it goes.

wat resolution r u using?

let us know the result ya.....

 

[Ah Kiat]

One reason why it's only 'recommended' is because its improvements are nowhere 'revolutionary'. Fujifilm DSLR's biggest selling point is its dynamic range, but that is already available in S3pro. As for the rest of the features, they are better than S3pro but mostly comparable or inferior to other brands that are cheaper. Other imaging benefits like cleaner noise are to be taken for granted (any DSLR maker that sells a new model with a poorer noise control than the predecessor ought to be shot!)

S5pro seems to be for the niche market because it satisfies the group of people who loves shooting in film. And people who shoots film do not (and cannot) review the photos instantly, and they don't waste their film by shooting in burst mode. Fujifilm's DSLR satisfies this small group of people by continuing to provide excellent sensor technology at the expense of the usual advantages of fps, huge buffer, instant review.

I hope my analysis is logical.:sweat:

Hey Chester I like your reasoning very much! Because this means that I'm a niche shooter! :lovegrin:

 

[nightwolf75]

wat resolution r u using?

let us know the result ya.....

had a look at the shop today after they printed it out. but, rejected it cos the print came out a little too orangy. the shop folks told me mebbe becos they din reset the printer bet jobs. kudos to them tho, for re-doing the print again without hesitation. :thumbsup:

still, i must say the 20x30 from s5pro held up well to close inspection. and, the best comment i got abt s5pro's quality was from a chap in the shop. when he saw the print, he asked wat film i used. enuf said, IMO, abt s5pro's quality. :bsmilie:

initialE24 - i'm using the max res. but, the default DPI is 72. so, u need to go into the menu and change the DPI setting under system setting, IIRC. after dat, i used a FredMiranda Stair Interpolation plugin to upsize the pic. the FM plugin, so far, only works with CS2. it automates the process of upsizing - u can do it in PS under adjusting image size, but at small increments. have fun trying.

 

[yowch]

20" x 30" looks good, I have done a few inkjet prints from S5. Originals are 6MP Fine Jpegs.

Looks like film because of the way the processing is done by Fuji, the artifacts or pixellation is somewhat 'rounded', making the image less sharp (boohoo, for the pixel peepers) but feels more film like (yay, for the film-grain and dynamic range analysts).

I am keen to push another print even larger, for myself, at 30"x45" froma 12MP Fine Jpeg. Let's see how...

Actually, the trick in in using a good up-res software, and good sharpening in the processing for print. I send a file of minimum 150dpi for inkjet, better 250dpi, and 250dpi for photo print, better 300dpi.

 

[yowch]

This thing about film-look leaves me thinking, maybe Fuji is going towards an analogue-looking image (film like) while being digital, like what hi-res audio (SA-CD) is doing.

Just a thought.

 

[yowch]

Oh... forgot to mention, I use Photozoom to up-res.

 

[nightwolf75]

20" x 30" looks good, I have done a few inkjet prints from S5. Originals are 6MP Fine Jpegs.

Looks like film because of the way the processing is done by Fuji, the artifacts or pixellation is somewhat 'rounded', making the image less sharp (boohoo, for the pixel peepers) but feels more film like (yay, for the film-grain and dynamic range analysts).

I am keen to push another print even larger, for myself, at 30"x45" froma 12MP Fine Jpeg. Let's see how...

Actually, the trick in in using a good up-res software, and good sharpening in the processing for print. I send a file of minimum 150dpi for inkjet, better 250dpi, and 250dpi for photo print, better 300dpi.

actually, i personally find the 'less sharp' definition a little subjective. there's a long long long thread/debate ongoing now in dpreview wrt the reviewer's POV. even the big guns like thom hogan got into the fray.

still, personally, this camera is a marvel cos i like to shoot people. just pass the 20x30 to my fren today. had her jumping up and down happily - dats all the proof i need abt the cam, cos it gives me the shot i need. will be using it to shoot a few more convo pics for my frens this coming week...

 

[sammedia]

I wonder which firmware version of the S5 Pro they use for the review? Cos after using the S5 Pro & D200 for the past 1 month, I find that the Auto W/B of the S5 pro is much better than the D200.

 

[Viewpoint]

I wonder which firmware version of the S5 Pro they use for the review? Cos after using the S5 Pro & D200 for the past 1 month, I find that the Auto W/B of the S5 pro is much better than the D200.

I totally agree that the S5 has superior AWB compared to the D200 -- it is an important reason why many picked the S5 over the D200.

Simon of DP apparently used version 1.02 in his review of the S5. This led some to comment that they (using later firmware) are not getting the poor white balancing results that Simon got in some of his tests.

 

[Viewpoint]

had a look at the shop today after they printed it out.

initialE24 - i'm using the max res. but, the default DPI is 72. so, u need to go into the menu and change the DPI setting under system setting... have fun trying.

Hi nightwolf, can you please tell me if I must change the default setting to say 300dpi in the camera if I want to get high resolution prints, either at the shop or from a home inkjet? I ask because I have left it all the while at the default setting, but the prints I am getting so far are very sharp and detailed. Would it make a difference if I were to change the default setting before printing?

Many thanks.

 

[nightwolf75]

Hi nightwolf, can you please tell me if I must change the default setting to say 300dpi in the camera if I want to get high resolution prints, either at the shop or from a home inkjet? I ask because I have left it all the while at the default setting, but the prints I am getting so far are very sharp and detailed. Would it make a difference if I were to change the default setting before printing?

Many thanks.

well... i've printed pics at 72dpi up to 8R. somehow, the shop manages. i'm not too sure abt dpi and all dat jazz. wat i was advised to do by a printing-guru is to give my stuff to the shops as TIFF in 300dpi (minimum) for printing, especially if i wanna go big. my FredMiranda plugin has the option to set the dpi.

perhaps, some folks with a better understanding of printing can explain?

 

[jeffreyk]

well... i've printed pics at 72dpi up to 8R. somehow, the shop manages. i'm not too sure abt dpi and all dat jazz. wat i was advised to do by a printing-guru is to give my stuff to the shops as TIFF in 300dpi (minimum) for printing, especially if i wanna go big. my FredMiranda plugin has the option to set the dpi.

perhaps, some folks with a better understanding of printing can explain?

i'm no guru but I think many are confused dpi with resolution (or am i?):bsmilie:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/techcorner/January_2005.html
this article by Mike Chaney, author of Qimage Printing software, is a good read for those confused.

nw, i believe your printing guru is advising u to interpolate your S5 files to 6000 x 9000 54mb:bigeyes: ). This is 300dpi for 20" x 30" prints.

 

[Viewpoint]

Thanks very much for the link. It seems clear that modern day printers and commercial labs are able to re-size the image file properly such that you get optimal print quality. I never had to change the dpi setting before printing -- not a problem at all.

 

[ZeroDivine]

hi S5pro users,
just wish to know how big is the file when you shoot at 400%DR and RAW?
and what software is used to optimally process fuji's raw file?(can change White balance, exposure etc?)
I am thinking of either S5pro or D200... the S5's image and noise is better, but wonder if the raw workflow is convenient or not.

 

[thinkvision]

S5pro, no regret at all...

image quality not determined by sharpness....

 

[Viewpoint]

hi S5pro users,
just wish to know how big is the file when you shoot at 400%DR and RAW?
and what software is used to optimally process fuji's raw file?(can change White balance, exposure etc?)
I am thinking of either S5pro or D200... the S5's image and noise is better, but wonder if the raw workflow is convenient or not.

Fuji RAW file is 25MB each at wide dynamic range. If you use Adobe CS2 or 3 to edit, you get all the usual control tools like exposure, WB, color temperature, etc. You would need minimum CS2.

S5 comes with free Fuji software that is a bit slow and cumbersome to use. Otherwise usable.