Fujifilm FinePix A920

Viewfinder (0.0)
The Fujifilm FinePix A920 doesn’t have an optical viewfinder because its 2.7-inch LCD screen takes up most of the back. The LCD has a live view of the action, but hopefully it isn’t moving too quickly, because the refresh rate of the screen isn’t great. Moving subjects, especially those close to the camera, look blurry and jittery.

There is a display button that changes what appears on the live view. The screen can show only the image, or it can add basic file info and composition guidelines, or just basic file info. After a picture is taken, the screen blacks out for a moment. That blackout time lengthens when the battery is worn down.

The screen is a good size, but its resolution isn’t great and its refresh rate is unimpressive, so it isn’t perfect. It does have a 100 percent accurate view of the recorded image, however.

LCD Screen (5.75)
The 2.7-inch LCD on the Fuji A920 upgrades from its predecessor by only 0.2 inches. It isn’t much, but it’s something. The resolution remains equally bad at 115,000 pixels. This poor resolution makes it hard to see if subjects are in focus, whether they’re moving or still.

The poor resolution is common on budget digital cameras, though. The Canon PowerShot A630 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W55 both have 2.5-inch screens with 115,000 pixels. The $199 Kodak EasyShare V1003 has a 2.5-inch screen with 154,000 pixels.

The LCD doesn’t have very wide viewing angles. Users have to look at it straight on or from above, because when the camera is held above eye-level or to the sides nothing but a negative-like image can be seen. Outdoors in sunny weather, the A920’s anti-glare coating doesn’t work very well: the screen often looks washed out.

The amorphous silicon TFT LCD’s brightness can be adjusted on a +/- 5 scale in the Setup menu, and features a live view so users can see the effects of their changes. The LCD can also be brightened more quickly with the top of the multi-selector – one push automatically brightens it a notch. There is also an LCD Power Save mode that can be turned on and off; when on, it dims the image on the screen after 10 seconds of inactivity.

The Fuji A920 may have one of the biggest LCD screens offered on a $199 camera, but its resolution is nothing to boast about.

Flash (5.5)
The Fujifilm A920 has a relatively large flash located in the upper right corner of the front – just where the left fingers sometimes wrap around the camera. Beware: fingers may block the flash and render it completely ineffective.

The flash fires automatically most of the time, but there are a few Flash modes that can be accessed in Manual and a few other exposure modes, Options include Auto, Red-Eye Reduction, On, Off, Slow Synchro, and Red-Eye Reduction + Slow Synchro.

The flash is effective from 2 to 12.8 feet when the lens is zoomed wide and 2 to 5.9 feet when in telephoto. In Macro mode, the flash is effective from 1 to 2.6 feet.

The Fujifilm FinePix A920’s flash lets off a surprisingly even light. There aren’t major hotspots or serious darkening on the edges like on some budget digital cameras. The corners of the frame aren’t quite as bright, but this is common, even on pricier models.

There is a Red-Eye Reduction preset exposure mode on the mode dial. It has the same menu options as Auto mode, but uses only a red-eye reduction flash, theoretically. But because it takes the camera nearly 15 seconds to reboot between flashes, pictures taken in that 15-second window don’t use the flash at all.

This slowness isn’t only in the Red-Eye Reduction scene mode – it happens anytime the flash is used, although the window can shorten to about six seconds at times. The flash has decent coverage and typical reach for a camera of this caliber, but its slow reboot leaves a lot of photos in the dark.

Zoom Lens (7.25)
The A920 has the same Fujinon 4x optical zoom lens included on the A900. It measures 8.8-35.2mm, an equivalent to 39-156mm in the 35mm format. This is quite narrow, making group portraits a tough photography feat. The Canon A630’s 4x lens is wider with its equivalent 35-140mm focal range.

The zoom is controlled by a zoom ring that surrounds the shutter release button. It doesn’t move very much; it feels like it is wound too tight. When pushed gingerly, users can stop at 12 focal lengths throughout its range. This is good for a camera in this price range. The lens doesn’t backfire or breathe, but it does make a little mechanical noise when it zooms in and out.

There is a Macro focus mode that is turned on by pushing the left side of the multi-selector. Lens barrel distortion is most evident in this mode. Be careful when photographing close-up objects or text, because straight lines will look bowed.

Digital zoom can be turned on and off in the Setup menu, although there is also a Digital Zoom exposure mode on the dial. Despite its prominent placement, it should not be used often because digital zoom degrades image quality. The Digital Zoom mode uses 3x digital zoom and doesn’t allow the optical zoom to be used; it fixes the focal length at its most telephoto 156mm. The standard digital zoom that operates in any mode has 7.6x power – enough to make photos look absolutely horrific, even with poor LCD resolution.

Overall, the 4x lens is decent for the price. It’s nice to have more than the average 3x camera, but the lens is still narrow and low-quality.