Fujifilm HS10 or S9600

[sjw36]

Hi,
I am starting to get into Photography and desperately need some guidance. I have learn't a lot from a friend about aperture and other things such as shutter speeds and am deciding to buy my own camera.

I have decided between 2 options, a HS10 and a Second hand S9600.

From my research the HS10 is a lot newer, has a much larger zoom, more features and more megapixels, unfortunately it is also going to £160 more with the bag and memory card than the S9600.

The S9600 is of my friend who isn't biased as he will sell it to somebody else if I don't buy it, The only benefit I have found on the S9600 is that it has a larger sensor.

My main concerns about getting the S9600 is the lack of zoom and also that it has no image stabilizers. The camera is only going to cost £100 and so I want to know if it is a good deal?

Also how much difference will the smaller sensor make?

At the moment I am borrowing the S9600 and have been really impressed by the quality on close ups of flowers and other detailed objects. Would I lose this quality on the HS10?

I want to be able photograph people surfing, and also close ups of animals, e.g birds without scarring them away. Also I would like to take photos of detailed Cathedrals and buildings whilst on Holiday, but also be able to take landscapes.

Any help would be much appreciated by anybody with experience with these cameras?

I am willing to pay for the HS10 but only if it is worth paying the extra.

Cheers

[Markulous]

Had a quick look at the specs and thought I'd come down in favour of the HS10 but I'm impressed by what the S9600 can achieve. OH has the HS10 but I've yet to have a go (she's only just got it - wanted a relatively compact camera with max optical zoom ti take with dogs instead of her 60D)

Many of us dSLRers started life with the Fuji S602z and I learned much about my photography with that camera - and I can see that camera in both of these. So I'd suggest that you'll get some great pics with the S9600 and learn much (it allows priorities and RAW as well as exposure compensation) - arguably the HS10 will allow a longer reach in both optics and light (with the twice a s great zoom and stabiliser) but at £100 the S9600 seems excellent value for money - whereas the cheapest HS10 I've found is over twice that @ £220

[chris-p]

The s9600 is good value but there is a lot of difference in sensor technology between it and the HS10. The HS10 is also relatively good value at the £220 that Mark found.

Depends on how much money you can realistically afford but I'd have the HS10 every day of the week. Better lens, better sensor architecture, better menus, better autofocus, better ergonomics, better build quality, image stabilisation, bigger (tilting) LCD screen, faster drive speed, video capability, SD compatability, an orientation sensor, the list goes on. The HS10 is lighter too.

WRT the question about sensor sizes, the difference is minial and not something I would worry about at all given the advances in pixel binning and A/D conversion since the s9600.

If there was a bigger difference in price between them I think it would be a tougher call but if you can get an HS10 for around £200 - £240 it seems like a no brainer to me.