Fujifilm S6000fd Optics

Zoom
A generous 10.7x optical zoom range, with great performance. Excellent results from digital zoom as well.

The Fujifilm FinePix S6000fd offers quite a generous optical zoom range, covering the equivalent of a 28-300mm range on a 35mm camera. Results were good at wide angle, with minimal corner softness and coma distortion, though there is some purple fringing in the corners, common at wide angle. It's tough to say whether the overall softness at wide angle is due to the lower resolution or a slight optical softness, as we're becoming accustomed to higher resolution cameras. At telephoto, the images are very sharp, showing impressive detail in the bricks. The S6000fd's conservative 2x digital zoom did an excellent job as well, and preserved fine detail throughout the frame. Great results overall!

Macro
A larger-than-average macro area in the normal mode, though a tiny area in Super Macro mode. Flash is partially blocked by the lens in either mode.

The Fujifilm S6000fd's macro setting performed about average in its normal mode, capturing a larger minimum area of 4.44 x 3.33 inches (113 x 85 millimeters). However, in Super Macro mode, the minimum area is much smaller, at 1.56 x 1.17 inches (40 x 30 millimeters). Detail and resolution were excellent in both shots. In the Super Macro mode, the external lighting resulted in a very uneven exposure with strong hot spots that obscured detail in the corners. The camera's flash was partially blocked by the lens, resulting in an uneven exposure and a very strong shadow. (Plan on using external lighting for your closest macro shots with the S6000fd.)

Distortion
Low barrel and pincushion distortion.

Distortion is the tendency for the lens to bend straight lines outward (like a barrel -- usually at wide angle) or inward (like a pincushion -- usually at telephoto). The FinePix S6000fd's 0.25% barrel distortion at wide angle is much lower than average among the cameras we've tested, and really only minimally visible in its images. At the telephoto end, the 0.12% pincushion distortion is also quite low.

Chromatic aberration
High, noticeable effect on images at edges, not uncommon among long zooms.

Chromatic aberration is rather high at both wide angle and telephoto, showing very bright coloration on either side of the target lines. The effect is noticeable in several of our test shots. (This distortion is visible as a very slight colored fringe around the objects at the edges of the field of view on the resolution target.)

Corner Sharpness
Minor softening in the corners of the frame, strongest effect at wide angle.

The Fujifilm FinePix S6000fd produced slightly soft corners in a few shots. It's hard to tell which is softer in the corners, the wide or tele shots, but the telephoto end is strongly influenced by the chromatic aberration in the scene. At telephoto, all four corners of the frame are slightly soft, and even the center of the frame is softer; though the effect isn't that strong.

Coverage
Excellent frame accuracy with both the EVF and LCD monitor.

The Fujifilm FinePix S6000fd's electronic optical viewfinder (EVF) and LCD monitor produced identical results here (not surprising since they're essentially the same view), with right about 100% accuracy at both zoom settings. Good results overall.