The Fujifilm FinePix S3 Pro is an interchangeable lens digital single-lens reflex camera introduced in February 2004. Its successor, the Finepix S5 Pro, was released on 25 September 2006. It is based on a

Nikon F80 The Nikon F80 (or N80 as it is known in the U.S.) is an SLR prosumer camera manufactured by Nikon, released in January 2000. History The F80 was introduced on January 27, 2000, to the worldwide consumer market. It was the successor to the F70 ...

(N80 in the U.S.) viewfinder, shutter, mirror-box and

autofocus An autofocus (or AF) optical system uses a sensor, a control system and a motor to focus on an automatically or manually selected point or area. An electronic rangefinder has a display instead of the motor; the adjustment of the optical system ...

modules surrounded by a Fujifilm body that includes its own proprietary CCD image sensor and electronics, and a vertical grip shutter release. It has a

Nikon F The Nikon F camera, introduced in April 1959, was Nikon's first SLR camera. It was one of the most advanced cameras of its day. Although many of the concepts had already been introduced elsewhere, it was revolutionary in that it was the firs ...

lens mount and can use most lenses made for 35 mm

Nikon (, ; ), also known just as Nikon, is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, specializing in optics and imaging products. The companies held by Nikon form the Nikon Group. Nikon's products include cameras, camera ...

SLR cameras, but only with manual operation with Nikon AIS lenses, unusually for a digital SLR the S3 Pro can be used with a manual cable release. It is autofocusing and has an electronically controlled

focal plane shutter In camera design, a focal-plane shutter (FPS) is a type of photographic shutter that is positioned immediately in front of the focal plane of the camera, that is, right in front of the photographic film or image sensor. Two-curtain shutter ...

with speeds from 30 sec. to 1/4000 sec. with x-

flash synchronization In photography, flash synchronization or flash sync is the synchronizing the firing of a photographic flash with the opening of the shutter admitting light to photographic film or electronic image sensor. In cameras with mechanical (clockwor ...

at shutter speeds up to 1/180 sec. It has built-in exposure metering with spot, center weighted and evaluative modes and also features a pop-up flash. Its

ISO ISO is the most common abbreviation for the International Organization for Standardization. ISO or Iso may also refer to: Business and finance * Iso (supermarket), a chain of Danish supermarkets incorporated into the SuperBest chain in 2007 * Iso ...

film speed equivalents range from 100 through 125, 160, 200, 400, 800 and 1600. The camera is discontinued and no longer in production. The camera's principal distinction is its 23mm x 15.5mm photo sensor. Designated the

Super CCD Super CCD is a proprietary charge-coupled device that has been developed by Fujifilm since 1999. The Super CCD uses octagonal, rather than rectangular, pixels. This allows a higher horizontal and vertical resolution (at the expense of diagonal res ...

SR, it is unique in two ways. First, like its predecessors used in the earlier

FinePix S1 Pro The Fujifilm FinePix S1 Pro was an interchangeable lens digital single-lens reflex camera introduced in January 2000. It was based on a Nikon F60 (Nikon N60 in the U.S.) film camera body that was modified by Fujifilm to include its own propriet ...

and

FinePix S2 Pro The Fujifilm FinePix S2 Pro is an interchangeable lens digital single-lens reflex camera introduced in January 2002. It is based on a Nikon F80 (N80 in the U.S.) film camera body that was modified by Fujifilm to include its own proprietary image ...

, it has its

photodiodes A photodiode is a light-sensitive semiconductor diode. It produces current when it absorbs photons. The package of a photodiode allows light (or infrared or ultraviolet radiation, or X-rays) to reach the sensitive part of the device. The packag ...

oriented diagonally rather than horizontally and vertically as in all other

DSLR A digital single-lens reflex camera (digital SLR or DSLR) is a digital camera that combines the optics and the mechanisms of a single-lens reflex camera with a digital imaging sensor. The reflex design scheme is the primary difference between a ...

cameras. This allows the use of a sophisticated interpolation system that produces an output image equivalent to 12.1

megapixels In digital imaging, a pixel (abbreviated px), pel, or picture element is the smallest addressable element in a raster image, or the smallest point in an all points addressable display device. In most digital display devices, pixels are the sm ...

. The apparent resolution of images in this interpolated mode lay somewhere between 6.17 megapixels and the 12.34 megapixel interpolated output. Second, it uses two photodiodes in each photo site when capturing an image at full resolution, with a primary sensor providing the normal sensitivity of a CCD sensor and another which is smaller and less sensitive. The purpose of this scheme is to provide greater resistance to the gross overexposure of highlights which is more common among digital cameras than film cameras. When used in 6 megapixel mode, the secondary, highlight sensor is disabled and only the larger sensor captures an image. The S3 can produce images in JPEG format with the option of three rendering tonalities. Two of these ('F1' and 'F2') are generally regarded to emulate the look of Fujifilm colour films. The third ('Standard') gives a more neutral image and may also be set for B&W (monochrome) capture. Like the S5 which superseded it, the S3 gained popularity amongst numerous, professional Wedding Photographers for its ability to more accurately render skin tones and for its wide dynamic range, compared to comparable digital cameras of its time. The S3 can utilise two types of memory card storage: CF and XD cards. The camera can be remotely tethered to a computer via a Firewire connection. A monochrome-only, Live View capability is available for image composition via the rear LCD screen of the camera. This can be viewed for a maximum duration of thirty seconds, at which time mirror lock up is automatically cancelled and default function resumes.

Ultraviolet/infrared version

On August 9, 2006, Fujifilm announce

a variation of the S3 Pro capable of photographing in the ultraviolet and (principally) infrared spectra, the Fujifilm FinePix S3 Pro UVI

References

Fujifilm FinePix S3 Pro UVIR review
{{Fujifilm DSLR cameras Fujifilm F-mount cameras, S3