Fuji S5 Nikon Mount DSLR to Hit Stores in February

Fujifilm’s Finepix S5 Pro, the latest in the company’s line of professional-level digital SLRs based on Nikon bodies, should start hitting stores in February.

The S5 is based on the Nikon D200, but Fuji says its electronics give the Fuji version better color quality and less digital noise at high ISO settings among other advantages. It’s also 12.3 megapixels under Fuji’s dual pixel system – 6.17 million S-pixels for high sensitivity plus 6.17 million R-pixels for wider dynamic range – rather than the D200’s 10.2 megapixels. The camera lists for $1,999 but the street price is $1,899.95. The D200 – driven down in price since the arrival of the 10.2 megapixel D80 last summer – is currently selling for $1,424.95.

“Confirming Fujifilm’s commitment to professional photographers, the Finepix S5 Pro carries a number of features that appeal to wedding, portrait and studio photographers,” Fuji said in announcing the camera.

The new Fuji has two particularly interesting features not seen elsewhere. In the first, “Film Simulation Mode” gives the photographer the choice of an F1 setting that simulates the look of Fuji’s professional color negative films, touted as “ideal for studio and portrait photography.” In the F2 mode, the camera simulates Fuji slide films for “highly saturated, high-contrast images,” a sort of electronic Velvia.

The other unique feature is “Face Detection” technology available during playback mode. This zooms in instantly and automatically on the face in a portrait shot, allowing the photographer to check facial detail, focus and other factors more easily than before.

The S5 accepts Nikon mount lenses with generally the same functionality as the D200: recent lenses offer all autofocus and metering functions while functions for older lenses depend on their age, but virtually all Nikon lenses can still be mounted and used. It has the same 1.5 magnification ratio as Nikon bodies.

The number of recorded pixels is 4,256x2,848, which are stored on compact flash cards as RAW, jpg or RAW plus jpg. Shutter speeds are 30 seconds to 1/8000 with flash sync up to 1/250. ISO is 100-3200. The LCD is 2.5 inches.

Click here to see the Fuji press release.

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