Considering an S5 Pro, I have some questions

jhob

jhob

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I am increasingly shooting more and more weddings and currently have a D200 and D70. I am looking to move the D70 on as it is getting rather long in the tooth. I was initially looking at the D300 but then my eye turned to the S5 Pro and after a bit of reading up and playing with the camera in jessops today I am definitely interested. It has also recently dropped in price over here and so now is really attractive.

First I have a few questions which I'm hoping some of you may be able to answer.

I am a little concerned about the speed. I tried it in the shop with a bog standard CF card and write times seemed rather painful and I found it irritating that I couldn't instantly review my photo and had to wait for the card to write (I don't have auto-review turned on btw). Does this improve significantly with faster cards? My general card stock is sandisk extreme III 2GB.

I'm somewhat confused by the different file options. There appear a multitude of options for jpegs and RAW files. I shoot exclusively RAW for the flexibility it gives me in post-production and would intend on doing the same with the fuji. Do the film emulation modes work with RAW? What sort of file size am I looking at for the RAW files?

I'm also rather confused by the expanded dynamic range thing. I am largely intending on getting the camera for this extended range and better skin tones. If I shoot in one of the lower dynamic range settings would I then lose this? I've read that using the full range can produce flat images straight off the camera which require a lot of post-production, is this true? I've also read that the file sizes for the full dynamic range RAW files can get a bit hideous and the write times for them a bit slow, is that right?

What file setting do you wedding shooters using the S5 pro use?

On high ISO performance, what is the maximum you are ordinarily happy shooting at?

What's the maximum you would be happy to print an S5 photo at?

Sorry, lots of questions! All answers very much appreciated.
 
Three things must ye know about S5's.

1). They are slow. Making use of their advanced features results in a painfully slow camera - better than s1, s2 and s3, but dreadful in comparison to competition

2). They are very good at high ISO and you'll still get good photos as long as you watch how far you push any shadows

3). They product the best skin tones out there. I'm a canon user and I'd have a Fuji sensor in a Canon body (full frame though) like a shot if such a thing was available.

Cheers,
James
 
SimonTALM said:
Fuji's another reason to buy in to the Nikon system IMO. As to the OP's question - I have no experence here but I have read that all the Fujis are poor when it comes to speed, but then you don't buy the Fuji for sport.
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I figure that between the S5 Pro and the D200 I will have most bases covered. You're right, I am not getting the S5 Pro for speed, what I am (potentially) getting it for is the greater dynamic range and improved skin tones. I specifically want to use it for people photography as this is an area I am specialising in.
 
Moos3h said:
1). They are slow. Making use of their advanced features results in a painfully slow camera - better than s1, s2 and s3, but dreadful in comparison to competition.
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I don't find the S5 Pro too slow for my needs- probably wouldn't be good enough for a sports pro (only 3 fps) but it's probably fast enough for most weddings!!

A faster CF card will improve things. I'd shoot in the RAW+JPEG mode if I was doing anything important like a wedding. AFAIK the film simulation modes don't affect the RAW files (which come out at 25Mb) but I generally shoot in standard mode and play with the colour later.

Quite good at high ISO nearly all the time I leave mine set at 400 but have used it often at ISO1000 for long lens wildlife work.

The dynamic range extention feature is a mixed blessing. In use it will slow the camera down a fraction (won't be an issue for weddings or landscapes or if your using RAW). On the plus side you can get shots that other cameras can't achieve. The main use for it I have found is for sunset photo's where burn out would otherise be an issue. They're supposed to be good for the 'bride in white dress groom in black suit' scenario- but I've not done a wedding with this camera (yet).

As far as skin tones go I think they're pretty good but this is quite a subjective area.

This online gallery features a few shots taken exclusivly with my S5 Pro. They are large 2200x1600 files (about 1/4 original) but bear in mind jpg compression took them down from 5Mb to 250Kb!

http://s48.photobucket.com/albums/f206/laser_jock99/Fuji S5 Pro/

Have look see what you think- in the meantime I'll try and upload some S5 Pro portraits to this gallery.
 
And dont forget that the fujis are legendary at shooting in jpeg but are renowned for under exposing, the idea being that an image can be lightened up but a burnt out image is harder to save, dont you just love the fuj pro slrs.

I have the s2 pro and love the images and colour but hate the battery set up, however the 3 and 5 have addressed all the issues.

My friend who is a top notch proffessional wedding photographer check his site http://www.tomleephoto.co.uk/

ditched his fuji slrs in favour of the nikon d2x..he earns his living from weddings and so if it were me I would be looking for a d2x..cos i'm a copycat..lol
although he also has a book out at present that has a chapter dedicated to the fujis and their optimal settings, for wedding shots.

sorry for the shameless plug for his book
 
There's one thing which is putting Fuji a way ahead other cameras and that's why I've bought it: EXTREME tonal range.

You can easily recover up to 3 steps of EV every way and if you are smart - then you can manage 4. That's incredible and shadows/highlights are no limitation anymore, which - I assume - is crucial for the wedding photographer.

Yes, it is slow. It can **** you off sometimes because of it, and the RAW files are huge (up to 25 mb - I am converting them to DNG for later Lightroom development). But I love this camera - and I would not change it for anything else. I shoot mostly portrait/fashion (which is not far away from tonality expected in weddings) and art nude - and for these things S5 rocks!

The only reason why I would like to change it some day would be if I'd move into sports or wildlife (animals) photography.

Buy it, connect GOOD lens to it and this camera will shine, giving you absolutely stunning results. But be warned - this toy really needs good glass. With crap, kit zooms it won't kick any buttock. :)

You will not be disappointed if you will master it. It's a king.
 
Impulsive as I am, I'm now the proud owner of an S5 pro!

I will be using it primarily with a tamron 17-50 f2.8 lens, a nice bit of glass. I also have the 70-200VR and 50 f1.8, all of which will suit the camera well.

I have a question on the dynamic range thing - I can set it from 100% to 400% as well as auto. Is it faster at the lower percentage dynamic ranges? How well does the auto setting work? Does it just judge the dynamic range required for each frame and set it appropriately?

How's the dynamic range with jpegs? Is it as recoverable as with raw?

radiantvision - what do you use to convert to dng? Does this lose any quality?

I've 3 weeks to test it all out before my first wedding, looking forward to getting to know it.
 
jhob said:
Impulsive as I am, I'm now the proud owner of an S5 pro!
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Congratulations :D

jhob said:
I have a question on the dynamic range thing - I can set it from 100% to 400% as well as auto. Is it faster at the lower percentage dynamic ranges? How well does the auto setting work? Does it just judge the dynamic range required for each frame and set it appropriately?
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Camera will be faster at lower DR, but it won't capture as much details as on higher ones. Auto feature works ok, but if you want the best quality possible, go for RAW in 400%.

jhob said:
How's the dynamic range with jpegs? Is it as recoverable as with raw?
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Not as much, but still satisfactory in most cases.

jhob said:
radiantvision - what do you use to convert to dng? Does this lose any quality?
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I am converting files to dng while importing to Lightroom (Fuji software sucks so I don't use it, but I have it - got it when I bough my camera (used)). No, it does not loose any quality, but you can't edit the files later in Fuji HyperUtility if that is of concern.

Enjoy your camera. It's a great tool :)
 
Thanks for the answers radiantvision, very much appreciated!

I have a couple more for you -

what colour mode do you find works best for portraits?

What resolution do you shoot at? I understand that the higher resolutions are interpolated, but that this interpolation is best done in-camera than in post production.

I used to live in Sheffield, it's a great city! I think I will move back there one day, I call myself a naturalised Sheffielder.
 
Hi, Newbie here,

I was suprised that no one mentioned the Nikon D300 as being a possible better purchase, albeit at a slightly higher price.

I have the S3 and it is a great camera but as mentioned slow. To me the D300 seems to be a more sensible option as a second camera. Seems to win reviews hands down.

Regards

Chris
 
G2EWS said:
Hi, Newbie here,

I was suprised that no one mentioned the Nikon D300 as being a possible better purchase, albeit at a slightly higher price.

I have the S3 and it is a great camera but as mentioned slow. To me the D300 seems to be a more sensible option as a second camera. Seems to win reviews hands down.

Regards

Chris
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I bought the S5 for a very specific purpose - people photography. For that I believe it is the best camera currently available. I shoot weddings and the extra dynamic range provided will prove invaluable and greater depth to skin tones I hope will really give my photos that extra punch.

I had considered the D300, indeed that was the camera I had originally planned to upgrade to to, but it is significantly more expensive than the S5pro, currently retailing at £700, the D300 is about £1100.

Having looked at the quality of the S5 compared to the D300, for what I want the camera for, the S5 delivers higher quality results. The D300 does not have the dynamic range of the S5 (someone please tell me if this is otherwise).

It's true that the S5 is not a versatile camera, but then I have my D200 for when I want versatility. Undoubtedly my next camera upgrade will be a D300 to replace the D200 but I can't see that happening any time soon. First lens upgrades and additions are on the card.
 
Hi jhob,

Totally see your point. I guess it will be the other way round for me. I have a Fuji S3 and have been smitten by the Fuji bug.

Went to Focus and took a good look at the S5. The improvements are definitely worth me upgrading. However when I look at the D300 it seems that it would as you say be an overall more versatile camera.

However, as you will see on my other threads, I am covering my three Childrens weddings this year. I am only an amateur so bow down to you chaps who know better, but I am beginning to think a new S5 along with second flash and maybe when someone can tell me which, a better lens, may just be money better spent for peace of mind!

Regards

Chris
 
jhob said:
Impulsive as I am, I'm now the proud owner of an S5 pro!
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Congratulations- I'm sure you'll be well pleased with it.

I rarely bother with the film simulation modes either- shoot RAW if it's critical work anyway.

Regards the Dynamic range setting- I generally leave this on auto and only manualy intervene if I know it will improve things. There are two situations- 1) if you want to shoot rapid action frames at max frame rate (then turn off Dynamic Range Expansion). 2) If shooting something with extremes of dynamic range (e.g. a sunset) then switch to 400%.

I got my first 'wedding photo' with my S5 Pro this weekend. I was on the battlements of Warwick Castle and the newlyweds were having photos in the gardens below (bit of a candid really). Sadly I had dynamic range on Auto so bits of the brides dress are burned out. But considering the bright sunlight it's not too bad. In the full size picture there's still plenty of detail in the shadow areas of grooms black suit. Had it not been a 'grab shot' I would have tried 400% dynamics range setting to see what happened?

Dscf7035.jpg
 
jhob - congratulations on your new camera.

Until this thread I didn't know anything about the Fuji range. I didn't even know they were Nikon F mount. Now I'm rather intrigued and want to have a closer look at one. I'm not sure if I would be able to get one as I would have to sell my D80 and I would still be a fair bit short.
 
After further research it seems that I would only have to make up about £100 for body only if I sold my D80 + grip.

The only gripe I have is that it uses different batteries to the Nikon so I assume you would also need a Fuji battery grip?
 
Snake Man said:
The only gripe I have is that it uses different batteries to the Nikon so I assume you would also need a Fuji battery grip?
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No, but you will need Fuji batteries. Fuji S5 uses Nikon MB-200 grip but does not accept nikon EL-3 (if I remember the symbol correctly) batteries. But it will run fine on Fuji ones. Confirmed!

:)
 
^^^ That is good to know. The Fuji batteries aren't too badly priced, just a pain when you already have the Nikon ones.

Also (sorry to hijack the thread) does the Fuji have the flash commander options or similar to what the D200 has?
 
Snake Man said:
^^^ That is good to know. The Fuji batteries aren't too badly priced, just a pain when you already have the Nikon ones.
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Poo happens. :D

Snake Man said:
Also (sorry to hijack the thread) does the Fuji have the flash commander options or similar to what the D200 has?
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All of them. As far as I know. After all, it's D200 with a different sensor. :)
 
radiantvision said:
All of them. As far as I know. After all, it's D200 with a different sensor. :)
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That is what I was thinking. But I did read that it uses a completely different menu system to the Nikon and the commander controls are built into the Nikon menu.
 
Snake Man said:
That is what I was thinking. But I did read that it uses a completely different menu system to the Nikon and the commander controls are built into the Nikon menu.
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I think these options are still there, somewhere. I do not use it, so it's hard to confirm just by recalling my memory (which is poo anyway :) I can check it at home though if you'd like.
 
radiantvision said:
I can check it at home though if you'd like.
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If you don't mind that would be great. I'm very impressed by what this camera can offer and it would be a perfect second body to the D300 (other than another D300).

But one of things I love about Nikon's is the creative flash system. And if the Fuji is supposed to be perfect for portrait shooting then it really needs to work with the creative flash.

Of course I could buy the separate commander or use the SB-800 on the camera and add another SB-600 but that is all extra expense.
 
Snake Man said:
If you don't mind that would be great.
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Looks like I don't need to: read here. Good news ;)

Snake Man said:
But one of things I love about Nikon's is the creative flash system. And if the Fuji is supposed to be perfect for portrait shooting then it really needs to work with the creative flash.
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I am using it with Elinchrom Skyport triggers and a pair of old Vivitars 283, therefore I am not interested in Nikon features. But, as you see, nothing to worry about as the camera supports CLS. :)
 
Thanks for that. Looking good for the Fuji.
 
Damn, that's £100 less than I got mine for just 2 days ago! Mind you I got it on interest free credit which I'm not sure jacobs offer. Still mildly annoying though.
 
^^^ Yeah I spotted that one earlier. I want to make sure I have the difference first before I sell my D80, otherwise I will just waste the money. Hopefully get this next month. Hopefully get £400 for the D80 + grip + memory.
 
I was in conversation with Camera World today regarding my impending D300 purchase and they told me that they would still sell the S5 at the Focus price whilst it was in stock of £499!

Got to be worth a punt if you want one.

Regards

Chris
 
When I bought my S3 they where nearly £2,000 and I found one at £1,200. Felt supremely proud of saving all that money!

Oh how times change!

Chris
 
G2EWS said:
When I bought my S3 they where nearly £2,000 and I found one at £1,200. Felt supremely proud of saving all that money!

Oh how times change!

Chris
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I'm afraid it's the way things are these days cameras aren't the investment they used to be. In the days of film they held a bit of value but now technology evolves too quickly. My S2 Pro cost 1,400 (with a lens) I was lucky to get 300 for it less than two years later!
 
^^^ I think the low price is also to do with the fact it is not a Nikon or Canon. Like the Sigma slr, the Fuji just isn't fashionable to have. I know cameras shouldn't be thought of in this way but it does seem that is the way it is going these days.

It's got me wondering now though, which will be worth more in a years time - a two year old D80, or a one year old S5.
 
radiantvision said:
Yes, it is slow. It can **** you off sometimes because of it, and the RAW files are huge (up to 25 mb - I am converting them to DNG for later Lightroom development).
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I am currently considering doing likewise, the file sizes are half that of the RAFs. Do you find that the original image data is properly preserved? Do they have the same tonal range as originally captured? What about meta data, is that all preserved?
 
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