Fujifilm FinePix S1500 10MP Digital Camera with 12x Wide Angle Dual Image Stabilized Optical Zoom Order Now

After owning the Fujifilm s700 model for over a year, I thought I would upgrade and purchase the newer s1500. $159 w/free shipping! How could I resist? Anyway, it is several steps up from the s700 model. 10 megapixels, 12 power optical zoom, a really rapid high-speed shooting feature, good quality video capture, long battery life and high quality photos make this a no-brainer. The down side is that you are limited to a low-range of aperture settings (you CAN'T set your aperture at f16 for example) in any of the "manual" or "aperture/shutter" modes. This prevents you from getting extreme depth-of-field shots. The panorama mode is great. Very easy to use for great, super-wide shots. This camera, unlike the s700, cannot use add-on filters or attachments because of the un-threaded lens. I went back to my s700 to be able to use polarizers, a lens hood, etc., (46mm threads on the s700). The ability to use high-capacity cards is not a reason to purchase this camera unless you want to keep an un-manageable number in the memory. I find that a 2 gig card holds MORE than enough shots at the top-quality setting for my purposes. Video does not link each clip together, but keeps them as separate images. You must, therefore, review them one at a time. But, this is not a primary video machine, just a high-featured digital still camera that can also shoot video (like virtually all others on the market). I prefer shooting thru the viewfinder, but the lack of a diopter adjustment requires that I use reading glasses to see the image properly. All-in-all, this is a fine piece of equipment for all but the most demanding user. It will do everything a camera should do, and give you the option of many entertaining (but not essentially practical) features to play around with. Keep your ASA settings on AUTO400 or lower for best quality and set your sharpness setting on "hard", because the normal setting is a little soft. The "hard" setting is not too sharp (on my camera at least) but check out your images to make sure. It's a great point and shoot with the ability to do professional work as your skills develop. Oh, Fuji, PLEASE include a FULL manual and stop with the downloadable one! If you're not near your computer and you need to review an advanced function, you're lost! Anyway, after doing a lot of research, I have NOT found a camera that can compare to this one feature-for-feature at even twice the price! If you want less features and can deal with 7.1 megapixels, then the older s700 is, also, a GREAT choice. Get more detail about Fujifilm FinePix S1500 10MP Digital Camera with 12x Wide Angle Dual Image Stabilized Optical Zoom.