Test photos
On this page we have a selection of shots taken using the Casio Exilim EX-Z40 supplied for review.
This shot was taken in bright late afternoon summer sunlight. The conditions were extremely contrasty and it's not surprising to see burned out highlights, though the shadows haven't suffered too badly. Some softness in the corners of the frame, as identified in our test chart analysis is even visible in these images reproduced at smaller size for the Web.
This time I've moved the girls to the shade under a tree. Exposure is slightly on the dark side but the colours are mostly true. Even this relatively low contrast shot caused purple fringing with some cameras we tested around the edges of the white chairs, but the EX-Z40 kept this problem under control in all but the most extreme conditions.
Flare when the sun was in front of the camera was a problem the EX-Z40 failed to cope with well compared to other cameras tested at the same time.
With its 35mm (equiv) wide angle zoom limit, you get good, but not generous coverage. The green grass and blue of the skies is reproduced well, while the white in the houses remains neutral. Exposure is good.
At full (105mm equiv) telephoto zoom setting, there is a slight darkening of the scene, but it's not as bad as other cameras we tested. Colours are again neutral.
This shot of a classic GPO phone box can be a tough test for some cameras. The red paint is perhaps a smidgen too blue in balance, but overall not bad.
This is one of the test shots we examined in printed form. Colours are good, but sharpness is inconsistent and the model farm animals are more washed out than other cameras we tested at the same time.
Indoor flash performance close to the subject was very good, with no burned out highlights despite the dark background. Skin tones were reproduced well too. The use of red-eye reduction mode only made a marginal difference and red-eye overall wasn’t a major problem. Despite the absence of an AF assist lamp, the EX-Z40 usually managed to focus well on the subject in dark areas.
The EX-Z40's built in flash was about average for the class of camera in terms of power and as this image shows, there is a sharp fall off in intensity towards the extreme corners of the frame.
Using the EX-Z40's night scene mode, it's possible to get effective results, though a tripod would be vital as this mode results in exposures as long as several seconds.
Noise and fringing
Taken at ISO 100, above is a portion of the frame magnified by about 50%. The image illustrates two things: on the bad side - excessive blue channel noise grain in the sky area, as detected in the DXO Analyzer tests and on the good side – purple fringing being kept under control. Fringing isn't absent, but it's really not a problem with the EX-Z40. General image noise is not too bad and almost undetectable in normal conditions, apart from blue areas, at ISO 100. Noise gradually builds up as ISO speed is increased, being quite noticeable at ISO 400 but this is comparable to many of the EX-Z40's peers.
