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| Photo by Jack Howard |
There's very little difference between the colors of the red and cream two-tone classic when captured in infrared with the Fujifilm Finepix IS-1. 1/20 @ f/2.8 ISO 80.
Click photo for more image quality images from the Fujifilm Finepix IS-1. |
The Fujifilm Finepix IS-1 is a versatile camera, capable of capturing images in infrared and visible light in many different ways -- limited only by the photographer's imagination and/or IR-capture needs. Low ISO monochromes handle noise well, and despite high noise at ISO1600, the noise doesn't feel detracting -- it feels artistic.
In the lab, we tested the IS-1 with the Peca 916 IR cutoff filter attached in JPEG capture, and it put up respectable numbers for a 9-megapixel camera in the visible-only spectrum.
Resolution is Excellent at ISO 80 (1850), dropping to Extremely High (1575) at ISO 1600. Noise is Very Low at ISO 80 (1.4) and ISO 100 (1.5), Low at ISO 200 (1.9), Moderate at ISO 400 (2.5) and ISO 800 (2.6) and High/Unacceptable at ISO 1600 (4.4). Color accuracy is Excellent (Average Delta E: 7.6 ISO 80 Manual White Balance.) The 10.7x Fujinon zoom shows Visible Barrel distortion at 28mm (.55%), and Imperceptible Pincushion distortion at 150mm (.04%) and 300mm (.08%).
Visible-only image quality is Excellent. Visible plus Infrared image quality is simply weird and unsettling, as a sample photo shows in the image quality gallery.IR-only image quality is top-notch.
Autofocus is fast and responsive with the IR-cutoff filter attached. Although it is a little slower with an IR-passing filter attached, it is amazing that it manages to focus at all in IR-only.
Fujifilm Finepix IS-1: The Bottom Line
The Fujifilm Finepix IS-1 is one of the most interesting cameras to visit the PopPhoto lab this year -- for both good reasons and bad. We are impressed with the image quality and build of this DSLR-like EVF that can see into the infrared and bring a hidden world into plain sight with an impressive real-time Infrared preview. However, we are very concerned about the overly restrictive User Licensing Agreement Fujifilm has attached to this camera, and we are worried that this ULA may be the start of an ugly trend with camera companies dictating their beliefs and policies on otherwise law-abiding creative photographers.
Certified Test Results
With Peca 916 IR-cutoff filter attached: visible light only test results
Resolution: Excellent (1850) at ISO 80, Extremely High (1575) at ISO 1600
Noise: Very Low at ISO 80 (1.4) and ISO 100 (1.5), Low at ISO 200 (1.9), Moderate at ISO 400 (2.5) and ISO 800 (2.6) and High/Unacceptable at ISO 1600 (4.4).
Lens Distortion: Visible Barrel distortion at 28mm (.55%), and Imperceptible Pincushion distortion at 150mm (.04%) and 300mm (.08%).
Color Accuracy: Excellent (Average Delta E: 7.6 ISO 80 Manual White Balance.)
In the Box: (Camera-only)
• 4x AA Alkaline Batteries
• USB Cable (Mini-B)
• A/V Cable
• Shoulder Strap
• Lens Cap & Lens Cap Holder
• Lens Hood
• Software CD-ROM 1 (USB Driver, FinePixViewer, ImageMixer VCD2 LE for FinePix, RAW File Converter LE)
• Software CD-ROM 2 (Hyper Utility Software)
• Software CD-ROM 3 (Owner's Manual in PDF format)
• User Guide
• 1-Year U.S.A. Limited Warranty
Street: $800.00 (camera only)
Competitive Set: Other IR-sensitive digital cameras
• Fujifilm S3 Pro UVIR: The IS-1's big brother takes Nikon lenses and can also see into UV.
• Sigma SD14: Sigma's newest DSLR is easily convertible from visible to IR capture with a removable IR-cutoff filter.
• Sony Cybershot DSC-H9: Sony's 15x zoom EVF has an infrared Night Shot mode, but it's only high ISO, doesn't work well in daylight and is always tinted green.
• Leica M8: Leica's digital rangefinder is accidentally sensitive into the infrared.
Leave your feedback on this review or the Fujifilm Finepix IS-1 in general on our forums.
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