The new camera was at the PO Box this morning, a Fujifilm FinePix F550EXR.  So I mailed off the completed tax return (61 cents postage) and picked up the camera.  I’d checked the measurements, and it was supposed to be about the same size as my Sony, but in reality, it’s smaller!

I’ve snapped a couple of photos.  The large LCD screen on the back reveals a very clear image.  Here are two shots of Tarzan sleeping (I figured out how to turn on silent operation).

This one is in 16:9 mode.

This one is in the default 4:3 mode.

The camera has a light but solid feel.  I have a tendency to have my hand on the upper left corner, but that’s where the flash is, and it pops up when power is applied to the camera.  That will take a little getting used to.  It has stereo microphones just below the shutter button on the front.

The zoom/macro control is a toggle surrounding the shutter button.  Here’s shot zoomed in on Natasha’s ears.  She’s lying about four feet from me:

As noted in the caption, this camera has a 15X digital zoom.

One thing I really appreciate is an external charger.  That will make it worthwhile to have an extra battery.  I have three batteries for my Sony, but they charge in the camera.  I can remove and replace and get each one charged, but by the time I need them, they’ve usually lost most of their charge.  With an external charging cradle, I can charge one battery, use it for awhile, and when I get close to needing another battery, I can charge the spare and swap it out when needed.  Because of this, I’ll order at least one spare battery.

One driving factor in wanting a new camera was video capability.  The Sony would do video, but I noticed when videoing the kittens, it was only MPEG quality.  The Fuji will record in full HD video.  I don’t take videos very often, but when I do, these should be crisper.

This camera doesn’t have a hot shoe for an external flash.  My Sony had one, but I never used it.  I can use this camera in full auto mode or configure it for manual controls should I wish.

I haven’t begun to experiment with the GPS feature on it yet — I may use it when we’re on our Northeastern Trek this fall just to see how it works.  It looks like I’ll be very satisfied with this camera.