Viewfinder
In the D200 viewfinder, coverage is less that 100 percent, but the magnification is very good. Our hands-on reviewer wears glasses (progressive bifocals, actually) and could see the whole frame at once, though the corners darkened a bit. We looked the S5 over at the cavernous yet opulent Las Vegas Convention Center so we couldn't test viewfinder accuracy (whether the viewfinder image is centered on the sensor image.) We'll have more to say in a full review.
The viewfinder shows the 11 autofocus points on screen. Below the image, it shows focus confirmation, f-stop, shutter speed, ISO, the frame counter, a flash ready light and EV compensation for both flash and ambient light. It might show a couple more things in various modes, but we didn't have a manual at the trade show. Look forward to learning more in our full review.
LCD Screen
The 2.5-inch, 235,000-pixel color LCD looked good in our brief time with the camera, but it didn't knock us out. The angle of view seemed limited, and the color was fine, but not notably superior. We look forward to comparing it with the D200 LCD so that we can provide a less subjective appraisal.
The monochrome display on the top of the camera is clearly the Nikon unit. It's very large and contrasty, so it's easy to read. The layout makes sense, showing a range of shooting data.
Flash
The S5's integral flash is a small flip-up unit. We didn't test its range, but we shot a blank wall with it, and the coverage looked even at the 28mm setting of the zoom Fujifilm provided. It's a small flash which might do okay as a fill unit. Flash exposure compensation runs from 1 EV over the meter reading to 3 stops under. The lopsided range indicates how common it is for photographers to dial down fill flash and how uncommon it is for them to want to overexpose. Flash syncs at up to 1/250 second that is a capability which makes outdoor fill flash an option even under bright skies.
Its major claim to fame is its ability to work in commander mode for wireless flash. We brought a Nikon SB800 flash along on our look-see, and we set the S5 to commander mode and used the two together successfully. The S5 menus suggest that it has all the capabilities of the D200 – multiple groups set to TTL or not, multiple channels, etc.
Lens
Fujifilm markets the S5 body-only, but it's compatible with current Nikon lenses and has the same menu options for use of old non-CPU lenses as the D200. In the constrained circumstances of the Consumer Electronics Show, we weren't able to experiment with those capabilities.
