Pentax Optio S5z Review

The "Green" mode is for quick and simple point-n-shoot operation, no experience is necessary. There are no menu or function options available.

Program AE mode is also automatic but you can select from many menu or function options (see below). When the shutter is half-pressed and the autofocus locks, the active AF point bracket will shrink and turn green. The shutter speed and aperture values are also displayed.

Press the MODE button to change exposure mode, choices are: Program AE, Night Scene, Movie, Panorama Assist, Landscape, Flower, Portrait, Self-Portrait, Sunset, Food, Pet, Text, Sports, Surf&Snow, Special Effect, User configurable.

Record Menu options:

Recorded Pixels - 5M, 4M, 3M, 2M, 1024, 640
Quality Level - Best, Better or Good
White Balance - Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Tungsten, Fluorescent NW (Neutral and White ), Fluorescent D (Daylight), or Manual
Focusing Area - Wide or Spot
AE Metering - Multi segment, Center-weighted or Spot
Sensitivity - Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400
EV Compensation - ±2.0 in 1/3EV steps
Time-lapse Movie - x2, x5, x10, x20, x50, x100, Off
Digital Zoom - On/Off
Aux AF Light - Focus-assist lamp On/Off
Instant Review - 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 secs. and Off
Memory - Saves shooting function settings when camera is turned off
Color Mode - Full color, B&W, Sepia
Fn Setting - Define function of the GREEN button
Sharpness - Hard, Normal or Soft
Saturation - Hard, Normal or Soft
Contrast - Hard, Normal or Soft

Movie mode lets you record MPEG-4 motion video in 640x480 resolution at 30fps, monaural audio is also recorded. The length of movies is limited only by available memory.

It also features a Time-lapse movie mode, which allows you to take movies at a delayed frame rate. When they are played back, action appears sped up. It is enabled via the Record menu. No sound is recorded.

Macro focus mode covers from 7.1 in. (0.18 m) to 1.64 ft (0.5m), while Super Macro mode get you as close as 2.4 inches (0.06m).

To focus manually -- Press the Focus mode button until "MF" is displayed and then adjust the focus distance by using the Up and Down positions of the 4-way controller. When you are actively changing the focus, the center portion of the LCD display is magnified and a distance scale is shown on the left. The focus can also be locked at infinity.

One other focusing feature is the ability to freely move the active AF Area to any one of the 49 possible positions within the frame.

Memory and Setup options:

Memory - Set parameters you want remembered from power off to power on.
Format - Format the SD card
Sound - On/Off
Date Adjust - Set Date/Time
World Time - Set World Time
Language - Set user Language
USB Connection - PictBridge, PC
Video Out - NTSC or PAL
Brightness Level - Adjust LCD back light
Quick Zoom - On/Off
Quick Delete - On/Off
Sleep Timeout - Off, 30sec., 1min. or 2min.
Auto Power Off - Off, 3min. or 5min.
Guide Display - Enable the brief popup labels when switching modes
Reset - Reset to Default