FUJI S2 - TIPS & QUIPS       

BEWARE THE ULTRA

I have used SanDisk Compact Flash chips in my Fuji cameras with pretty good success, so when I saw the ‘Ultra’ Sandisk chip with 256K, I bought 2 of them. Problem is that the Camera would not read the chip. I put the chip into the Zio card reader on my computer and tried to access the chip. The computer actually powered itself down. Scary business! I sent the chips back. Shortly afterward I read in the Gary Fong news letter - sales brochure - whatever - that several other people have had serious problems with ‘fast’ chips. Before switching to a new or faster brand - I am making sure I test the chip in the store or in the camera first - to make sure it actually works.

123 BATTERIES

These little things are a royal pain in the tuches. They will quit on you with little warning, and if you are in the middle of a wedding and the bride is coming down the aisle when one quits (we have experienced this), you could be in trouble. I don’t like throw away batteries in the first place, and prefer the NiMHd batteries over everything else - but Fuji has a better idea - so they make you buy 3 different kinds of batteries to get the unit functional. After much griping and complaining, I decided to buy the batteries and keep them in the camera - instead of removing them and using the AA batteries to do all the work. Here is what happens. When you remove the 123 batteries, the AA batteries pick up the task that the 123 batteries were doing, and the camera keeps working - BUT - the batteries wont last as long, and if you have a big lens - like my 2.8 70-200, the lens may not autofocus. Not good! My latest solution is to buy the 123 batteries in bulk form and cut the cost per battery down below 2 bux each. Where does he get 123 batteries for under 2$ each - you should be asking. I bought a package of 30 plain yellow 123 batteries for (under $60 cant find the bill) from www.shoptronics.com - and now use both AA and 123 all the time.