Review Date: September 5, 2012
Category: Beginner to Serious Amateur
Samsung EX2F
HANDLING & FEEL
The Samsung EX2F replaces the EX1. In looks, it’s almost a clone of the EX1 save for a couple of buttons changing functions. It still looks professional in its black (with white, silver and chrome accents) high-intensity magnesium body. The low-key and muted design is pleasing and handsome. Overall, you get the feeling of a well-built camera.
The F1.4(W)-F2.7(T) lens is one of the fastest around. It features a 3.3x optical zoom, with the starting focal length an ultra wide-angle 24mm. The 80mm tele is just enough for use as a portrait lens or tele macro for when you do not want to get too close physically to the subject. The EX2F has a ring around the lens barrel that screws out so you can screw in an optional filter (with an appropriate adapter) or conversion lenses.
On the front of the camera, at top left of the lens is the AF-assist Light/Self-timer lamp. The Remote control sensor of the EX1 is gone since the EX2F now incorporates Wi-Fi and a smartphone can be used as a remote viewfinder and shutter release.
The Front Wheel allows you to select a shutter speed in Shutter-Priority and Manual modes, as well as dial in an exposure compensation when pressed in and rotated. It also allows you to navigate options in MENU, select a setting when you press the Fn key and to position the AF Frame. You can rotate the Front Wheel with either your index or middle finger whichever feels more natural to you.
Startup is fast at about 1 sec. (from Power ON to LCD ready for capture, i.e. time-to-first-shot). Shot to shot times is about 1.2 sec. (@ 10 shots in 12 sec. in M mode, 1/125sec.).
In good lighting, there is no practical shutter lag and AF is fast and precise. In low lighting, AF is also fast and locks precisely. I like and find Selection AF to be really useful; it uses the OK Button and Navigation wheel, Front Weel or Direction keys to quickly position the AF Frame at 9 x 5 = 45 focus points. Unfortunately these avoid a large swatch of the screen edges.
You can save an image in the RAW file format. It takes about 5 sec. to write a RAW image to memory card (though you can take the next one in about 2 sec.). You can also select to save a RAW+JPEG (Super Fine, Fine or Normal).
At Picture Size = Super Fine, a 14.2MP JPEG image is compressed down to anywhere between 3MB and 8MB. A RAW image occupies about 30MB. Unfortunately, PCAutoBackup downloads only JPEG files and I had to drag-n-drop the RAW file to my PC.
Included in the box is a rechargeable Li-ion battery SLB-10A that can take about 240 shots (Samsung’s standard) on a fresh charge. An AC Adapter uses the USB Cable to recharge a depleted battery directly in-camera in approx. 240 min.
The Samsung EX2F uses the SD (1–2 GB guaranteed), SDHC (up to 32 GB guaranteed) and SDXC (up to 64 GB guaranteed) memory cards.
Samsung EX2F Top View
The top of the camera has the Shutter Release Button with the Zoom lever around it, the [Shooting] Mode dial, and the Drive mode dial on the right side of the camera. The Power button has moved off from being in the middle of the Drive mode dial to a spot of its own. A blue ring lights up around the Power button when the camera is ON.
The stereo microphone is in front of the Power button, one hole to the right and one to the left. There is a hot shoe where you can attach optional Flash SEF42A, an optical viewfinder or external microphone. On the left side of the hot shoe you’ll find the popup flash and Flash Release switch. Where is the [mono] Speaker? It is now on the left side [viewed from the back].
The [Shooting] Mode dial has Smart Auto, PASM, Magic Plus, Movie and Wi-Fi. Unfortunately, there is no Program Shift. Magic Plus gives access to the Scene Modes, In-Camera Sweep Panorama (that works really fast and well), Magic Frame, Split Shot, Picture in Picture, Artistic Brush, HDR and Creative Movie Maker.
In-Camera Sweep Panorama works really fast and well, even giving you an indicator of how much field of view you’re capturing. The Artistic Brush effects are quite interesting: after you have taken the picture, you can see the effect being applied, brush stroke by brush stroke, right on the screen.
The Drive mode dial has Single, Precapture, Continuous (Low, Medium, High), Auto Bracket (Exposure, WB) and Self-timer (2 sec, 10 sec.). Precapture starts taking pictures even before you press the shutter release button and is a great choice for catching the right moment [since we often react a second too late]. Continuous allows you to take a burst of 3, 5 or 10 frames in one second. I love that you can set the Self-timer on the Drive Mode dial and not have to set it for every single shot.
In Movie mode, select Continuous to shoot at L=120fps (640 X 480), M=240fps (384 X 288), H=480fps (192 X 144) and play it back in slow motion at 30fps for up to 10 seconds.
Both dials can conveniently be freely rotated in any direction.
It takes about 3 seconds to zoom from wide to tele and I counted approx. 15 intermediate steps. You can disable Smart Zoom [Shooting Menu – Smart Zoom – OFF] but I was not able to disable Digital Zoom and it is so easy to slip past optical zoom into digital zoom territory. [Digital Zoom is automatically disabled when using Face Detection, Smart Filter, Tracking AF or Manual Focus.]
Samsung EX2F Back View
A large 3.0-in. AMOLED display screen with a high 614k-dot resolution takes up most of the space at the back. The AMOLED is a beautiful screen and has a fast enough refresh rate for a smooth display. The monitor’s brightness can be adjusted in MENU. The EX2F’s screen is one of the rare ones that gains up extremely well in low-light to allow you to see and compose in low light conditions. The screen can be pulled out and it swivels to point up, down and front, and can as well be closed for protection.
PHOTO TIP: You can swivel the LCD all the way to face the front for self-portraits. After composing the scene on the LCD, just remember that you want to be looking at the lens, not the LCD before tripping the shutter.
You can record 1920 x 1080 videos @ 30fps with stereo sound. You can zoom while filming videos.
TIP: In the Video Menu, set Voice to Sound Alive function ON [Movie Menu – Voice – Sound Alive On] and you will barely hear a whisper when you zoom during video recording.
A couple of nice features: the hinged plastic Terminal door opens up wide to allow unimpeded access [don’t you hate fighting with a rubber flap?] to the HDMI port, USB and A/V port (one port used by both cables). There is a nice Battery/Card door and the battery has a latch to keep it from accidentally falling. The tripod socket at the bottom is metal; you won’t be able to change battery when the camera is on a tripod. The tripod socket is not centered with the lens or inline.
The Samsung EX2F is nicely built with lots of controls at your fingertips. All the important functions are accessible from a dial or control button and it’s all put together so you get a digital camera that is intuitive from the moment you pick it up. The serious photographer looking for a premium digital camera will find lots to like in the handling and use of the Samsung EX2F.
Next: Samsung EX2F User’s Experience