Customer Reviews

Fujifilm Finepix A345 4.1MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

This was my first digital camera. My daughter has a Kodak Easy Share camera and I had played around with it some, but I wanted an easy camera of my own. After doing some research and comparing I decided to go with the Finepix A345.

This camera has a lot of features, yet it was easy to learn how to use it. I had to get used to mastering the Auto Focus feature. Some of my shots came out blurry if the camera couldn't auto focus. If you are too close to your subject or not holding the camera still it will flash an AF! warning which means it can't auto focus. Most of my prints have come out great, very clear and with great coloring.

I have taken this camera to a concert and was very pleased with the Optical Zoom feature. I got closer shots that I could have gotten with my film camera. I used the Action mode and got some pretty good shots considering how far back our seats were. I've also taken this camera to an aquarium while on vacation and was very pleased at how my prints turned out.

I also like the size of this camera. It's small without being too small. I like the large LCD screen as well. The price was also right. The Amazon price was about $20 cheaper than Target or Best Buy. I also bought a 128 MB XD card. The 16 MB card that's included only holds about 20 pictures.

My only complaint about this camera is that I couldn't get the software to load correctly on my home computer. I have Windows XP and from what I've read from other Fuji camera reviews, sometimes the software can't be loaded without calling technical support. I just haven't took the time to do that yet so I go through "My Computer" to up load the pictures. That works perfectly so I may not even fool with the software.

I gave this camera 4 stars because I am basically pleased with this camera. However, this is my first digital camera so I don't have anything to compare it to. But for a beginner camera I think it's great.

I've owned probably 15 digital cameras over the past several years, this is my sixth fuji finepix. My other digital camera (that I currently own) is a DSLR and I am a photographer by trade so I'm quite possibly a little spoiled by the BETTER cameras that I've owned.

With that said, I wanted a cheap (around $100) camera that I could stick in my purse and take everywhere, a camera that even (GASP!) my husband was allowed to touch. This camera fit the price guidelines so I bought it.

First of all, it's small. VERY small. It is perfect for that in the purse/glovebox camera. It takes AA batteries which can be found at any backwoods bait store if needed.

For indoor shots, it lacks. Yes, it can take a picture that is in focus (sometimes) but it's often over or under exposed. The macro mode is worthless because you have to be around four feet away from an object before the camera will focus on the subject. For me, this is really a non-issue because when I'm at home, indoors, I'll use my GOOD camera.

For outdoor shots, this camera shines. Crisp, sharp pictures with little effort. The processor in this camera produces rich, vibrant colors. This is especially noticeable in the bright blue skies.

In conclusion, if you are looking for a cheap, SMALL digital camera to take along on vacation - this fits the bill perfectly. If you are counting on this camera to preserve your precious memories of your family, taken mostly indoors, I'd look elsewhere.

I bought this camera back in July and I love it. some people complain about clarity and i get great shots. You truly have to know how to set any camera to get the picture you want. you can't take a picture in the dark with no flash right? so in other ward you need to change settings to get clear pictures. that's with any camera. about the battery life. i was using regular batteries at first that lasted oh about a week. then I found some digital camera kind for $10 at target and haven't had to change the battery since then. i even got concerned thinking maybe i changed the battery and forgot, but no sill have the whole pack left and its been 3 months and i use my camera almost ever weekend. This camera really is great for taking pictures on your every day journey through life.

This is my first digital camera experience and with nothing to compare my praise with, I give it...praise. For $199, this camera performs and then some. I love the fact that it has a large LCD screen and that it's nice and bright. The pictures look nice and clear and thats all that matters. I still havent mastered the different settings and whyfore and wherefore but all in all I am pleased with this camera. The sound on the movies is lacking but again $199 later and I am not complaining.

Before I begain, let me first say that my commets are backed by 7 years of professional photography. So I hope that I know what I'm talking about.

I bought this camera at best buy during chrismas season of 2005. Before buying it, I compared it to an olympus 900 and a Sony S60. In the end, I went for this one (obviously). After fumbling with it for 2 days, I have to say- It's pretty good.

After further research, I am still semi happy about my choice- the olympus downright sucks (according to cnet) and the Sony...well, let's just say it is more complicated than I expected it would be.

One thing that I do wish this camera had was the ability to capture movies at "TV MODE", which is at 600 by 500 or something pixels, and to do it at 30 frames per second. This camera could do it at a max of 300 something by 200 (see the specs at the top). Really, the movies do look good but if you view them fullscreen on a PC they look bloated and choppy. The Sony can capture better at the same price.

But a digital camera is supposed to take pictures, right?
This is where the camera excells in. I don't know howthe other reviewers could say that the image quality is bad, but all I can say is that from where I live here in Washington, the pictures come out nice and beautiful.
How does it look from your state?

Generally, this is a good camera for the average casual person. I'm planning to get a better one for my family (likely something from Sony) this spring though. But what can I say? This one do offer satisfactery shots in a small package.

Be warned however, this is not the most durable camera on the market. Its left side sports 3 uncovered and open areas: USB, Video out and Power ports which are totally out in the open. So don't accendentally spill water on that side. Proberly not good when taking pictures in the rain either.

And do get recharable batteries. My first set lasted me 20 shots, although it says that the camera can do around 100 on one set.

256 mb memory card is also recommended. Everyone says that they're cheap. I don't know how $30 sounds cheap. But you'll need them.

That's it! Overall, great camera.

P.s.
I love the seemingly huge 1.7 inch LCD.

This is a great little camera - easy point & shoot..the software is very user friendly and makes downloading pics/video a snap. If you have never had a digital camera it is a good place to start. My only suggestion is to get a larger memory card it only comes with a 16mb.

I bought this camera a little over a month ago. Before i bought it I did TONS of research to make sure i got the best camera for my money. I narrowed it down to this one, an Olympus camera and a Cannon one (<--tad more expensive) I ended up choosin this one. So far i have LOVED the little thing. *It fits great in my purse and i can take it anywhere with me.* If you are looking for a good camera for generic pictures then this is the camera for you. Latley Ive been gettin more into photography and even tho this little camera isnt the best for taking complicated shots it really isnt bad. The zoom is great for the price, EASY to use, GREAT photo quality. If I had to make the choice again Id definantly choose this one. Suggestions: Get rechargable batteries this camera DOES eat batteries, Its best not to drop it and such this camera scratches EASILY. Other than that Im LovIn It and Im sure you will too

I just couldn't get this thing to take a photo that wasn't blurry. I read the other reviews and tried that stuff, but man, this thing was sooo much harder to use than my trusty old Canon PowerShot A200 that there was just no point. I returned it (even enduring Best Buy's draconian 15% restocking fee, won't be shopping there again), and will be upgrading to another Canon, instead.

I also have a Fuji S5000 which is great, but this camera did not live up to the quality and ease of picture taking as I had expected. It is hard to see the LCD (very dim) and many of the pictures turn out blurry. You have to be very careful when holding the unit. The price and size was right, but I guess you get what you pay for.

I bought this camera to take with me to Europe because I was studying abroad. The day after I bought the camera I was trying it out and it "froze" after the flash went off. No picture came up on the screen and the camera wouldn't turn off or anything. So, I had to take the batteries out and put them back in before it would turn off. Well, I was leaving for Europe a week later so I didn't have time to deal with sending it off. So, I took it with me. I continued to have problems with it. The "freezing" continued to happen, but I also started experiencing another issue. Sometimes when I turned the camera on the lense would not come all the way out, like it was stuck. And when you look through the view finder the picture is completely blurred. So you would have to turn the camera on and off hoping that that would fix the problem. Well, my camera survived 9 countries and took great pictures. I was never caught without being able to take a picture, it may have just taken longer than I would have liked. Once I was home I plugged up my camera to my computer and the dreaded words "communication error" popped up on the screen of the camera and a message popped up on my computer screen telling me there was something wrong with whatever I had just plugged in. That was the last straw. I mailed off the camera yesterday (at my own expense) and I am waiting to see what Fuji is going to do. I am very disappointed with the camera and will not purchase another Fuji.