Kodak Z990 Easyshare Max – The last Eastman Kodak Camera

Ah Kodak, fond memories and probably the first name which comes to mind when thinking of either Film or Photography. How the mighty have fallen. This wasn’t the last Eastman Kodak camera, it was released a few months before the very last one, but it’s their very last decent camera and the last of its kind.

I admit I love Kodak Digital cameras and their “Kodak Color Science” – nothing like it ! (One reason why my Kodak CCD Olympus E-1 is my main “serious” Digital Camera) I have a collection of 5 and here is one I have had for about 13 years since it was released when I bought it new. I bought it because it was a Kodak and as I had owned a few before and had missed out on their P880 (which I now have) this seemed like the closest to that, though it isn’t a CCD camera and as I’ll look into later, the colour output isn’t quite typical ‘Kodak’.

I haven’t shot anything with it since 2018 as I had left it in Peru and never remembered to get it back. Anyway it’s now back home safe and sound after spending the best part of 7 years in South America. I have been shooting it’s smaller brother; the Kodak Z950 for the past year or so, which I like so much that I still have to shoot it some more before writing an article about it.

The Kodak Z990 features a 30x (28mm to 840mm) Schneider Kreuznach optical zoom lens. It has a 12 megapixel Backlit CMOS sensor, with Full HD video recording at 1080p (1920 × 1080 @30 fps) with stereo sound. The video is very nice and steady, with good sound and that long zoom is excellent especially when travelling.

The camera supports manual controls with PASM dial, RAW image capture, and includes various shooting modes such as HDR, Night scene long exposure, and Intelligent portrait. It also has Film Simulation accessible via a press of a button, including Ektachrome, Kodakchrome, Kodacolor, TRI-X and TMax.

I admit I have never used these modes (except try out shots) and instead used it in Aperture priority with color set to standard with saturation slightly cranked up, which I prefer.

The Kodak Z990 also has image stabilization, a super macro mode, and can shoot at up to 9 frames per second at full resolution.

The stabilization works pretty well so you can hand hold long zoom shots at base ISO. I have only ever shot it in base ISO, to be honest I never shoot at more than ISO400 (except on B&W) – the 400 only comes into play when taking snaps of cameras for reviews.

Zooming is of the power variety but quick enough in and out. It performed very well at an Airshow in Duxford Oxfordshire.

It comes with a 3.0-inch colour LCD monitor with 460k pixels and is powered by four AA batteries. The body is nice, solid polycarbonate with an almost total rubberized coating giving a comfortable and reassuring grip. The buttons and dials have a nice quality tactile feel. The camera measures 4.9 × 3.4 × 3.7 inches and weighs approx 1.3 pounds.

Key Features:

• 12 megapixel Back-lit CMOS sensor
• Kodak’s first BSI CMOS sensor
• 30x optical zoom lens with image stabilisation
• Wide-angle lens, range from 28-840mm in 35mm equivalent
• f/2.8 (wide) – f/5.6 (tele) lens
• 3 inch screen HVGA 460k pixels / EVF
• Artistic effects: HDR (high dynamic range), Dramatic, Night scene long exposure, Intelligent portrait
• Film effects: KODACHROME, KODACOLOR, EKTACHROME, TRI-X, T-MAX, Sepia
• HD Video: 1080p (1920 × 1080 @30 fps), with stereo sound
• High-speed burst mode: capture up to 60 fps @ 2 MP (max 20 shots)
• P,A,S,M Modes, Face Detection, and Histogram Display
• ISO125 – 6400

I bought this new and used it extensively travelling in Britain and abroad in Turkey, Peru and Pakistan. Unfortunately most of my photos have been archived on spinning HD’s and I haven’t been too proactive enough to dig in the attic and sift through the files. Which is a shame, but I have a selection of photos here which demonstrate the color and quality of the camera.

Shooting with it is quite quick, the EVF is bright and clear and quite good for the age and original price point. I shall use it again soon.

The sensor isn’t a classic Kodak CCD – it’s a BSI CMOS and produces good images though they’re on the warm side, not as pleasing as say the Konica Minolta A200 but not bad. For classic Kodak CCD color get hold of a Kodak Z950 or P880.

Comparing the Kodak Z990 to the Kodak Z950 – that is a much slower camera lacking an EVF and less resolution, but the color on that is very nice, beautiful Kodak Color Science CCD color which this lacks. That is a very special Digicam and I must say this isn’t too bad. The P880 output is more refined than the Z950 – that hits the spot and is more like the Olympus.

I have kept this Kodak Z990 since buying it new from Amazon in 2011, I’d never sell it, as it’s a keeper (more sentimental reasons than anything else to be frank). The very long zoom, color, the look of the photos and ease of use combined with the HD video make this has been a good travel companion. It’s also Eastman Kodak’s last “higher end” camera so is one for the history books.

Share this post: