Fujifilm Finepix S1 (1 Viewer)

I was looking in a local branch of Jessops and thought that this camera might be a contender for use in bird photography. It looked a bit more compact than the HS50, but any thoughts on their relative merits? I can't find much on here. I've briefly tried digiscoping, but was looking for something more flexible.

Take a look at this thread.

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=292929[/URL]

S1 came in second in this review:

http://http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/best-superzoom-2014/best-superzoom-2014-pg7-conclusions-and-winners.HTM

The S1 might be on my buy list by shooting RAW; overcomes some of the JPEG limitations.

There seems to be a large variation of opinion depending on which review you read.

http://www.digitalversus.com/digital-camera/fujifilm-finepix-s1-p18466/test.html

for example, was not too impressed.

Hence I was interested to see if anyone had actually tried one.

Maybe the problem is differing priorities.

I've got a Fuji X10 which I use for general use ( I like it a lot ) but I want something that gives extra reach for bird photography.

For me handleablity, stabilisation, response times and a good viewfinder are important. I'd like it to be as compact as possible if I'm also lugging around a scope and binoculars. I need something that I can use quickly ie get the bird in the frame, focus and take the shot rapidly. Maybe some of the testers are not too bothered about the time taken to set up the camera, waiting for it to zoom, focus etc etc