Fujifilm FinePix S9000

Front (7.0)
The Fujifilm FinePix S9000 looks like a single lens reflex camera from the front, with the handgrip protruding on the left and the lens protruding even farther on the right. The handgrip is coated in a rubber material and has a divot on its inner curve for fingers to grip. At the top of the handgrip is a slanted surface connecting the top and front. On this surface is the silver shutter release button with a release socket in its center. Surrounding the shutter release button is the power switch, which turns the camera from Off to Recording mode to Playback mode. The rubber surface on the grip extends over to the lens. In the space between the grip and the lens, there is a small metal plate with the Super CCD logo and a synchronizing terminal at the bottom. Above the rubber surface is the external auto focus sensor, which appears as an oval-shaped window with two beady eyes in it. To its right and slightly raised is a lamp that illuminates to assist the auto focus system and indicate the self-timer mode. The lamp is a wide circle and lights up a bright green color. Directly to the right of this lamp is the pop-up flash, which has the Fujifilm logo imprinted on the front. When open, the rectangular flash mechanism can be seen. Just below the flash is the 10.7x optical zoom lens that looks detachable – though it’s not. Around its rim, the lens boasts its specs: "Fujinon Zoom Lens, 10.7x Optical, f=6.2-66.7mm, 1:2.8-4.9, 58mm." In the bottom right corner of the front face is a "9.0 Mega Pixels" imprint.

Back (7.5)
The back of the S9000 looks mildly intricate with an array of buttons, dials, doors, and its folding liquid crystal display. The right side of the back curves to fit the palm of the hand and features a thumb divot for prying open the memory card compartment. At the top of the door is an indicator lamp that blinks orange when the camera is recording. This lamp is situated above a slight incline, which acts as a comfortable thumb grip for users. Between the thumb grip on the right and the LCD monitor on the left is a set of buttons that look a bit disorganized. At the top and to the right of the viewfinder is the AE-L button, surrounded by a ribbed dial that selects the metering mode indicated by the icons above it. To the southeast of this button is another control combination. Two vertically aligned buttons each comprise half of an oval shape. The top button switches the display from the viewfinder to the LCD and the bottom button magnifies the image in certain modes to check the focus of the subject. Below these buttons is a circular black button with a ‘F’ on it. This is the Photo mode button that lets users select image size, color mode, and ISO options.

Below and to the right of the ‘F’ button is the multi-selector with a Menu/OK button in its center. The arrows are raised from the rest of the dial, which makes navigating much easier. To the bottom right of the multi-selector is the Disp/Back button, which selects the display information and allows PC-like navigation through camera menus. To the left of all these buttons is the dominant feature on the back of the S9000: the fold-out 1.8-inch LCD monitor. The screen has hinges at the top and the bottom and can only be pulled downward to roughly a 35 degree angle. However, it can be pulled upward 90 degrees and then pulled outward from the FinePix S9000 at the same 35 degree angle. The LCD has the Fujifilm logo embossed across the top and the FinePix logo printed across the bottom in white lettering.

Above the LCD screen is the stationary electronic viewfinder. The square viewfinder is surrounded by a thin rubber eye cup and raised ever-so-slightly from the rest of the camera body. At the left side of the eye cup is a plastic dial that adjusts the focus of the viewfinder.

Left Side (8.0)
The left side of the Fuji S9000 shows off the large 10.7x optical zoom lens. The lens extends outward; this zoom is controlled by the large rubberized zoom ring. There is also a smaller ribbed focus ring. On the top of the camera body, there is a round protruding button that enables the pop-up flash, which is directly above it. To the right of the flash button is a wide eyelet for a neck strap. To its right is the built-in speaker, which consists of 15 tiny holes. Below the eyelet are three buttons. At the top is the clearly labeled Info button. In the center is a button with an icon that looks like a bowtie. This is the one-touch auto focus button, which is surrounded by the auto focus mode selector. At the bottom is a button with a flower on it; this is for the macro mode. To the right of these three buttons is a rubber port cover with a finger grip at the bottom and the flimsy hinge on the right side. USB, A/V, and DC jacks are located in this area.

Right Side (7.5)
The right side is comparatively featureless, but functions as a comfortable handgrip with its textured rubber surface. Across the top of the rubber surface is a divot for the index finger. This minor feature is like the finger’s equivalent of a plush bucket seat. At the very top of the right side is an eyelet for threading the neck strap.

Top (6.5)
When viewing from the top, the lens protrudes almost four inches on the left and the handgrip protrudes about an inch on the right from a body that is almost two inches thick itself. On the left, below the lens, is the top of the flash. A FinePix logo is printed above the S9000 Digital Camera model name. Below the main portion of the pop-up flash is the hot shoe for flash accessories. To the right of the flash deck is a bulbous protrusion that looks like the jet engine on an airplane wing. This protrusion is where the AF illuminator beams from the front. Behind this feature is the main mode dial, which has manual, priority, automatic, movie, and scene modes located on it and represented by letters and icons. The sides of this thick dial are textured for easy gripping. To its right is a much more shallow dial; this is the jog dial used to scroll through options when buttons are simultaneously pushed. Above this dial are three circular buttons, each with a clearly distinguishable icon on it. At the bottom left is the burst mode button; above it is the exposure compensation button. To the right is the flash mode button. Above this set of buttons, the camera’s façade slopes down toward the front. The shutter release button and power switch are located on this protruding plane.

Bottom (7.0)
The bottom of the Fujifilm S9000 features a metal tripod bushing, which is much more durable than the plastic ones on many compact cameras. The bushing is under the centerline of the lens. It's easier to line up a camera when it's not offset from the pivots on a tripod. The battery compartment door forms the bottom of the handgrip. It's a large door, because it has to cover the space of four AA cells. Fuji did not put a latch on it, instead counting on a stiff spring and friction to keep the door closed. It looks as though it could loosen up over time.

The bottom of the camera also features a small plate with the camera's serial number and several small bumps that the camera sits on, which protect the bottom from being scratched when the camera is set down.