S2 Pro

I recently purchased two S2pro bodies for around 50 each and am pleased with the results from an admittedly old camera.

Two issues are firstly the "black screen of death". a number of cameras were fitted with sensors of third party manufacture which have mostly failed, Fuji were replacing sensors on affected cameras even out of warranty. Stocks of replacement sensors have been used up, a number of theses cameras have recently been listed on eBay

The second issue is the dual battery system. If the CR123's go flat first, the camera malfunctions maybe even refusing to switch on. A suspected "dead" s2pro may be revived by taking the Cr123's out, although some functions such as flash will not work. The main advance on the s3prowas to switch to a single battery system.

As for file size, I shoot RAW at max. resolution which comes out at around 12mp, when converted to JPEG this comes out at around 1.5mb, treated with smartfix in PSE10 boosts the file to around 8mb.

the s2 and s3pro's won't accept cards bigger than 2gb which will hold 150 shots at max. size

Write speed slow compared to a modern camera

But what else will give images of compatible quality for less than 200, maybe less than 100

Not a conventional choice for bird photography but a DSLR that has a proven record as far as quality of image is concerned, the upper body is basically a Nikon F80, whilst power and internals are Fuji. Works with almost any Nikon lens you can think of, though metering is lacking when used with some older Nikon lens. Amazingly, this camera is more compatable with Nikon flash guns than most current Nikon cameras.... utilising features that Nikon have implemented in their flashes but haven't enabled in their cameras.

No question in my mind that Fuji's Super CCD (when set to deliver 12mp images)is resolving more detail than any other 6mp dslr, I've interpolated test images from the competing cameras to ascertain if Fuji's hype is justified, and it is (it is purely hype on most Fuji cameras though).... The S2 isn't producing genuine 12mp but does resolve detail that many feel equates to roughly 8-9mp.
Noise levels are very low, even compared to modern cmos designs. More than capable at iso800 and 1600 with a bit of in-computer work (neatimage). Luma noise is very low at all 'speeds'vs competing cameras but chroma noise is evident at iso400+, also some slight strobing in very fine detail. I knew of latter when I purchased and knew it wouldn't be a problem with Quantum Mechanic 2 photoshop plug-in, and it hasn't turned out to be a problem.

Colour accuracy seems to be ahead of the competitors (which is why the camera is widely used by pro portrait photographers)...but I'm not sure it's a big deal with in-computer editing.

Metering is accurate, 2% spot-metering is a boon. EV increments are .5 rather than .33, which is a drawback, especially with digital and it's poor performance in exposure latitude.

The 2 frame per sec isn't the end of the world compared to 3 fps of the competing cameras, memory buffer will allow 7-8 shots in a burst and write time seems a lot faster than I was led to believe.

Lack of mirror lock-up isn't a big deal either, there just isn't time to mess around with that in most situations (macro people will de more disappointed). Other than the shutter-lag, this camera is every bit as responsive as the Nikon 35mm slr's that I have used in the past, when using prime lenses with built-in motors it is as rapid and silent as anything around, managing to AF at f8 (f5.6 lens + 1.4 t.c.)given a bit of contrast to lock onto.

The Nikon MB16 battery pack can be used with a tiny modification (file!), but the life from 4x AA's (use 2200mah+ rechargeables)seems more than ample to me. Use of 2x CR123A batteries is a pain but they're not compulsory (but advisable), they last for ages if you don't use the built-in flash.

The shutter-release button is threaded for a cable-release, which is a rarity these days...but at leat you don't have to fork out for the manufacturers own remotes (which are often expensive, and in the case of Canon, very hard to find in stock)

The S3 pro shouldn't be too many months away, so hold fire.