Manual Control Options
The compact Z812 IS combines features of an automatic point-and-shoot with select manual controls of a single lens reflex camera, characterized by PASM modes. The camera offers plenty of control for users who like to play around with aperture, shutter speed, and focus, but lacks some white balance controls.
Focus
Autofocus (7.5)
The EasyShare Z812 IS has automatic and manual focus. In the PASM modes, users can adjust focus types from the default Normal AF to Macro AF, Infinity AF, or Manual focus. Users can’t change autofocus modes in Auto shooting or any of the scene presets. The focus type defaults to Normal in Scene modes like Portrait and Snow, which focuses when the user presses the shutter halfway.
In Normal AF, used in most shooting situations, the camera can focus as close as 1.6 feet to infinity zoomed out or 3.9 feet to infinity when zoomed in. To get a close-up shot of small objects, such as a wedding ring, Macro AF is more effective. Macro AF focuses at 4.7 inches to 2 feet in wide shooting and 2 feet to 4.3 feet in telephoto shooting. Because subjects are so close to the camera, the Macro AF mode disables the flash and uses ambient light. Infinity AF is useful for shooting landscapes.
Depending on the subject, users can switch the focus to Single for still objects or Continuous for moving subjects, like pets and children. Users can control where and how the camera focuses with the autofocus zones, located in the Capture + menu. Multi-zone AF is an all-purpose focusing mode that evaluates five zones in the frame. Center-zone, which focuses on the subject in the middle of the frame, evaluates from a smaller area in the center of the monitor. Selectable AF lets the user select from the five focus zones using the four-way control. The five focus zones form a cross pattern and are bunched in the middle of the frame.
The Z812 IS’s autofocus works quickly in bright and low light. In dim lighting, a white autofocus assist lamps shoots out from the camera to aid in focusing.
Like many modern cameras, the Kodak Z812 IS comes with a face detection system that combines autofocus with auto exposure. The Kodak system is reportedly effective for up to 10 faces. We found, that like many competitors, the face detection system is somewhat limited in that it can’t recognize faces that aren’t front-facing or too close to the edge of the frame. When the camera detects a face, the green bracketed box turns blue, indicating focus and exposure.
There is a slight purring sound when the camera is trying to autofocus. It’s only detectable if users are shooting through the electronic viewfinder with their ears close to the camera.
Manual Focus (5.0)
Unlike SLR manual focusing, users can’t focus by rotating a ring around the lens. Instead, Z812 IS users manually focus the way point-and-shooters do, by changing the Focus mode to Manual focus, then navigating with the four-way controller. Manual focus automatically zooms in on the scene, allowing users to more precisely select a focus point. Manual focus is surprisingly accurate if users are willing to take a few extra steps to adjust it.
ISO (8.0)
When shooting in the PASM modes, users can adjust sensitivity for varying conditions, from bright landscapes to dark bar scenes. The Kodak EasyShare Z812 IS has the following ISO options: Auto, 64, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 maximum at full resolution. ISO settings are accessed in the PASM modes with the pesky jog dial. Users must first scroll to ISO, then press the dial inward and scroll to the desired setting.
For low light situations, there is a dedicated High ISO setting on the mode dial, marked with “ISO” and an upward arrow. In the High ISO mode, sensitivity can reach up to ISO 3200, but at a reduced 2.2-megapixel resolution. In addition to degrading the resolution, the ISO 3200 setting introduces grainy, speckled noise that is noticeable in photos. While noise is low at sensitivity settings of ISO 64 to 800, high ISO settings are problematic. At ISO 1600, the camera applies noise reduction that blurs edges.
Overall, the Z812 offers a nice selection of ISO settings and does a good job of keeping noise levels low throughout its sensitivity range. See the Testing/Performance section of this review for more information.
White Balance (6.5)
The Kodak EasyShare Z812 IS white balance options are somewhat limited, particularly for a compact camera with PASM shooting modes. White balance choice includes Auto, Daylight, Tungsten, Fluorescent, and Open Shade. Noticeably absent is a flash white balance setting to be used in concert with the built-in pop-up flash. The other missing white balance setting is a Custom mode for manually changing white balance. Users can adjust white balance in the PASM modes, but not in Auto shooting or the Scene modes.
Since there is no Manual white balance, users are resigned to using the not-so-accurate Auto white balance or the presets. In Tungsten and Outdoor Shade, white balance is accurate, but the presets have trouble under white fluorescents. See the Testing/Performance section of this review for more details.
Exposure (7.75)
There is a full range of manually-oriented modes for advanced shooters. Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual modes are all accessible using the mode dial.
Exposure changes are permitted in the PASM modes but not the Auto or Scene modes, as expected. Exposure compensation ranges from +/- 2 EV stops in 1/3 steps, which is standard for point-and-shoots and compacts. Changing exposure can be a bit confusing if users aren’t familiar with this camera because of the odd jog dial that controls aperture, shutter speed, and exposure. If a user wants to brighten up the overall exposure in a dark room situation, the user has to roll the navigation arrow over the +/- icon on the display using the tiny jog dial by the thumb rest. The strange part is that the user then has to push the dial inward to make the adjustment.
Unlike most point-and-shoots, the Z812 IS has an Exposure Bracketing function, although oddly buried in the Drive mode. The Exposure Bracketing function takes three photos in succession, each at different exposure values; the first is one step above 0 EV, then 0 EV, and finally, 1 step below proper exposure, with intervals in 0.3. 0.7, or one whole step.
Metering (7.5)
The Kodak EasyShare Z812 IS is equipped with three metering systems: Multi-Pattern, Center-Weighted, and Spot. Users can change these through the Capture + menu. Multi-pattern uses all five zones, while the Center-Weighted metering system takes the average of the zones’ light values with more weight on the center of the frame. Spot metering selects one of the five zones. Metering can only be changed in the PASM modes and not Auto or Scene presets.
Shutter Speed (6.0)
For action photography, users need to consider the fastest possible speed permitted on the camera. The Kodak EasyShare Z812 IS has a shutter speed range of 1/2- second to 1/1000 of a second in 1/3 steps in the Automatic modes. Most point-and-shoots are twice as fast with a 1/2000 of a second shutter speed. With the Z812 IS, users will notice that restricted speed with the frequent blurring of fast action.
Users can manually adjust shutter speed in Shutter Priority and Manual mode with an extended range of 16 seconds to 1/1000.
Again, the unintuitive jog dial is a little disorienting, but once users are comfortable with the control they should be able to manually select shutter speed.
Aperture (7.0)
The Kodak Z812 IS allows users to manually control aperture in the Aperture Priority or Manual mode. Aperture reaches a maximum f/2.8 when zoomed out and shrinks to a smaller f/4.8 maximum when zoomed in. The aperture minimum is f/8.0. Some competing cameras, such as Canon’s S5 and TX1 models, offer wider apertures at the telephoto end. Wider apertures are useful for shooting in low light without a flash because they let more light onto the image sensor. Like shutter speed, users can control aperture via the jog dial – once they figure out how to use it.
