Fuji S3 shoot RAW or Jpeg?

[ike k]

For fuji shooters here on the forum, what settings you use the most? RAW or Jpeg? I've just bought an S3

last night and I use D2H currently (Always RAW set). Never have experience with Fuji before, the reason I

get it this time is I'd like to get S5 but D300 is coming out so I just hold on that and this S3 I can't really

let go cause got a real good deal ($600). I tend to use the S3 for posing scene and the candid I'll use D2H

(as speed matter). Thanks all for the infos!.

 

iKe

[mike_senesouk]

I think 3 shots and then the buffer is full. Then it's a somewhat long wait. Last month, I did a series of shots where I had the bride jump on the groom's back. I wanted to be able to capture the sequence as it was unfolding. I was able to put this in they album which looked very cool. The only way I could get those shots was to shoot in Jpeg. Other than that it's RAW. $600 for an S3 is a great deal. This puts a very capable professional camera in the price range of most people starting out or as a second or even primary camera. I still prefer it over my D200 and S5.

[ike k]

Do they (Fuji) still offer the buffer upgrade program? I have to wait my camera to be here to

check if it's already upgraded (the owner is not sure whether it has been or not). Btw from my

search here totally JPeg is the most commom set on the run but if we certainly have time to

do pose (in between ceremony and party) I guess shooting RAW would not be a bad idea. And

then again this camera is famous for straight out of camera Jpeg files isn't it?

[kari douma]

No doubt that the fuji S3 does beautiful Jpegs, that is why I bought the camera. If you are a perfect shooter, where your exposure and white balance are always right on, jpeg is fine. But, I use RAW with my S3's. I like the control of the file after fact with RAW files. The S3's auto white balance is terrible. When I was shooting jpeg, I had to custom white balance everything. Now I correct in the RAW converter. One of the reasons I switched to RAW was so I could batch correct in ACR. But, now with CS3 or Lightroom, you can do that with jpegs.

[ike k]

Kari, thanks and I read that you set yours standard, standard, standard? and what custom WB

you set? I can't wait to start using this camera (have a wedding coming up in 3 weeks).

[conraderb]

"I can't wait to start using this camera (have a wedding coming up in 3 weeks)."

 

I hope that you aren't shooting for a lot of money or calling yourself a professional.

 

And even if you are just doing it as a favor to the bride and groom, try to find a second body to have on hand...

[savagesax]

I had the S2 for about a year and the colors were somtimes off. You could make remarkable enlargements with that camera. I shot with the S5 one day and to be honest I liked it better then the D2X. Actually a lot better. At 3200 ISO beat the Nikon by a long shot. Anyway shooting RAW gives you a lot of room to play with, getting the picture the way you want it.

 

If you can wait a bit and money isn't too much of an issue see what happens with the new line of Nikons due out in 2 months or so.

[ike k]

"I can't wait to start using this camera (have a wedding coming up in 3 weeks)."

 

I hope that you aren't shooting for a lot of money or calling yourself a professional.

 

And even if you are just doing it as a favor to the bride and groom, try to find a second

body to have on hand...

 

Conrad, I have D2H (2 of them but I'm sending one for service) so I have total 3 cameras if

the Nikon finished service my camera by then.

[ike k]

Bob, money is an issue right now. I know D3&D300 coming out in November but I don't want

to or matter fact don't have $5000 or even $2000 to spend on a camera right now. I bought

this S3 for $600 and is "good enough" for me. Camera don't make you a better shooter, you

make the camera a better shooter for you.

[kari douma]

"Kari, thanks and I read that you set yours standard, standard, standard? and what custom WB you set? "

 

Yes, I do use Standard, Standard, Standard. When I would shoot jpeg, I would do a custom white balance set to the camera with a grey card. I would custom white balance for the formals and the ceremony. Then for the getting ready and reception I would use one of the presets on the camera, depending on the lighting at these places. I would usually test them to see which one looked the best. Auto WB wasn't too bad at the getting ready and the reception. But, It was terribally inconsistant for formals and ceremony(beacuse you want them all to match coloring perfectly. The problem was the camera would choose differently each time you pressed the shutter, making them inconsistant with eachother). But, I usually had better results if I did a custom WB in camera or if I used a preset.

 

Be careful with Custom WB or presets, don't forget to change your settings. Example, shooting Custom WB for the ceremony with no flash, then then turn on the flash for them coming down the isle at the end... they will be Blue! (Can you tell I did this once? Luckily I was shooting in RAW and I could fix it.)

 

Even shooting in RAW now I do a custom WB for formals, and sometimes ceremony. I usually shoot on Auto for the reception and getting ready and adjust them in Raw converter after the fact.

[savagesax]

Since money is an issue right now the S3 for $600 is one fantastic deal. Based on shooting the S2 and the S5 you will have a blast with the the S3 and you will get some really great shots. Whenever possible shoot in Raw until you get the feel on the camera. It has a pretty decent latitude in Raw as well as jpeg.

[josh_myers2]

I certainly prefer Raw with the S3, but the buffer is full after 3 shots and it processes images horribly slow. I can't imagine how people shoot raw with this camera throughout a wedding.

 

Please don't think I'm knocking the camera, I'm totally in love with my S3. It's slow, but I prefer the image quality over my Nikons so it's a decent trade off. Of course the D3 and D300 might change my mind.

[tam_vu]

I love the S3 for wedding and portrait. I have S5 now and still keep the S3 as a back-up. I shoot jpeg most of the time except for formal shots in Raw. I do the same with the S5.

[ike k]

Another update question, do you think using device like expodisc will help the auto WB

reading? thanks again.

[kari douma]

I don't care for the expodisk. Some people use it and like it, but I have borrowed a friends, and I didn't think the wb reading was accurate. When I custom white balance now, I use a Laso light ez balance target. It is basically an expensive grey card. I used to use a grey card, but you need to turn off the auto focus to use it. I forgot to turn the auto focus on a couple times, and figured it was worth buying the ez balance so that wouldn't happen again. So, if you can remember to turn back on your auto focus, you can save $100 and use a grey card instead of an expo disk.