im thinking of getting a fuji s9100 is it good?

Question

im planning to get a fuji prosumer s9100 digital camera, with a 28mm to 300mm lens, but its lens is not interchangeable, it has the look, feel and feature of a dslr, is it a good buy, worth the money, at its reasonable price, rather than getting a canon 350d or 400d, or a nikon d70s or pentax k100d. is it a good alternative to a digital slr camera, im planning to use it shooting events like parties, weddings, some portraits and pictorials, is it ok? it has a hot shoe, im thinking of getting a flash , what flash would be compatible with it, with ttl, zoom, etc.. would a nikon speedlight work with full functionality in this camera? shall i get this, or get a dslr instead. what d u think?

Answer 1

If you want a prosumer camera, there are better options. This review for the S9100 lists a few: http://reviews.cnet.com/Fujifilm_FinePix_S9100/4505-6501_7-32040457.html
But for parties and weddings, a dSLR would be a better choice anyway. These are low light situations where you can really use the better AF performance of a dSLR, can do without the shutter lag of a prosumer, and really don't need the 1/10th second delay from an electronic viewfinder. You also get more advanced flash options and better high ISO quality (if you want to leave the flash off, or just use some fill flash in low light situations). Then, with portraits, a dSLR will give you much better bokeh. In all, that's quite a list of advantages.
What you give up is the ability to shoot video and a nifty swivel screen for live preview.
I used to use a 35mm film camera myself, and when I bought a digital prosumer I cursed the thing. It was great for sunny landscapes but crap for just about everything else. This Spring I finally bought a dSLR and retired my film camera.
The dSLR models that you're considering are all pretty good. I'd select either the 350D or the D70s, based on whichever feels better in your hands. The extra cash for the 400D would be better spent on lenses, and the K100D is a pretty basic model.
For lenses, I like the Nikon 18-70mm ($310) and the Canon 17-85mm ($500). Both brands also make a nice 50mm f/1.8 (<$100) for low light/ portraits. You can probably find all of those on eBay, too.

Answer 2

I'd say whether you buy this Fuji or an SLR depends on how far you think you will go with shooting events, etc. If you are headed down the path of being a pro, you will end up with a nice DSLR, such as Nikon D200. It would make sense to me to start with something like a Nikon D50 so that as you add lenses, they will still be useful in the future.

I realize that the Fuji does not have the need to add lenses, but the down side of this is that you are stuck with the one you get and it might not work out for you. My concern is that one user said that there is a lot of distortion at 28 mm and you WILL be wanting to use that in tight quarters for weddings and stuff.

Also, the Fuji sensor is only about 1/10th the size of a DSLR's sensor and that can't be good for image quality.

If you are thinking you'd like to get your feet wet and see if you really want to go downthis path, go ahead and get the Fuji. Plan on replacing it once you are making a bit of money, though, because you will find it limiting. If you end up not going into serious business, you will still have a nice point and shoot camera, though.