Fuji X100

[Steve Waller]

I like this camera ( a lot).. lovely lense and very very smart.

 

[Hamish Gill]

That one of the flower really pops mate! Perfect dof to get the flower in and the leaves out of focus!
And yeah, quality wise, there's certainly nothing I can see to complain about ...
What are the camera settings for the shots?

 

[Steve Waller]

Both at f4 and 320 iso ( I was playing around with iso a load.) Took these in auto, with the macro on, so that's fixed the aperture. The Olive Oil can came in at 1/240 and the flower at 1/320.
First thing to say really is the flower colour aint neutral ! But I like it.
There is a setting on the menu for processing to emulate different film types..so I'm looking forward to doing comparisons with that.

 

[Hamish Gill]

Of love to see the comparisons!
Fuji are well known for thier colours! The dpreview review goes into the film types a bit ...
Might be worth a read!

 

[Larry Bolch]

I was quite amazed at the out-of-the-camera JPEG quality. However, with Adobe Camera RAW6.4 supporting the camera, I just shoot RAW now, instead of RAW+JPEG. There is a neat RAW converter built in the camera, via the playback menu so if you want to generate a JPEG, all the camera settings—including film simulations—can be done after the fact.

 

[Steve Waller]

Thanks Larry.. interesting. I haven't tried that yet.
These pics were taken with the default jpeg settings.

 

[Pete Askew]

There is an excellent review of the X100 on http://www.reidreviews.com. Very, very detailed and with a lot of test images both under real life and controlled conditions. If, like me, you are thinking about getting one of these cameras, it would be worth subscribing as it is the most useful and balanced account I have read so far.

The overall conclusion is very positive. He compares the X100 with an X1, DP2s and an M8.2 (for obvious reasons). I keep wavering about whether this is a camera that would give me something I do not have already. Mainly I'm looking for a substitute for my GR Digital III but I still don't think this is it. It sits too close to the size and functionality of my M9 without the interchangeable lenses and image quality that the M9 can deliver. It would give an advantage at high ISO and that is the thing that may eventually tempt me rather than thinking of it as a pocketable replacement of the GR.

 

[Steve Waller]

You are no doubt right Pete, with those other cameras available to you it's difficult for me to see what the X100 will give. However all I can say is that the information I see through the viewfinder, combined with the ability to instantly switch to a digital view won it for me. Also, not being a very technically accomplished photographer I am learning so much more using the X100.

 

[Larry Bolch]

I have just posted a gallery from the first two and half months with the X100. Chronicling a family and a group of friends, a few tests including ISO12,800 and some street stuff. You will notice that the camera rarely intrudes or calls attention to itself—with a few exceptions worth including—and those being photographed are simply living their lives. Shooting from the car window, a gal dancing on the sidewalk reacted very positively and danced for the camera. Not candid, but it really felt right.

http://www.larry-bolch.com/ephemeral/x100/index.html

 

[Hamish Gill]

And how are you finding the camera? Have you upgraded the firmware to the latest version? Do the differences help?

 

[Larry Bolch]

And how are you finding the camera? Have you upgraded the firmware to the latest version? Do the differences help?

OK—the out-of-the-camera JPEGs are amazing as long as you don't mind turning the interpretation of your exposures over to an anonymous firmware developer just north of Sendai. I have been shooting aperture priority since it became possible in the film era. I have been shooting RAW since it was possible in the digital era, because I never felt prints produced by an anonymous technician in the lab were mine. I would rather not have to apologize for the work of someone I do not know. By doing the whole thing myself, there is no one to blame—but myself.

I may—or may not—upgrade the firmware. In any case, I am in no rush. Most of the improvements do not involve me, only those who shoot JPEGs and use the camera as a play-toy. When I learned that the camera remembered what ISO was set for each of the modes, I mistakenly thought that was a feature—not a flaw. Great that you can switch from aperture priority at ISO3200 to shutter priority and still have ISO200 you set a couple of hours ago! OK, this sent some hardware buffs ballistic and Fuji accommodated them—I suspect to the detriment of the camera. Now one ISO fits all and there is no way to set up the camera with settings specifically appropriate to the mode. It makes no sense to me, but to some hardware buffs, it solves the problem of a vacant memory setting in the head.

Fine—I only shoot aperture priority or manual with floating ISO giving me the setting for the combination I dial in. If the control diddlers want consistent ISO, they now can dial in new settings over and over. For me the upgrade is of no consequence in this context.

With RAW, floating ISO as with my D700, and aperture priority, the much chronicled quirks disappeared. For those who want obsessive levels of control—though avoid RAW which was designed for exactly this—and still want to shoot just 8-bit per channel JPEGs, Fuji included a very accommodating therapist for the obsession. There is a RAW converter on the review menu that will let you apply all of the camera JPEG settings after the fact. You can make endless conversions and store them without writing over anything. I have had a few giggles when someone has remarked upon the retro look of the camera, by instantly doing a B&W conversion for them using this feature. If ACR and the X100 played football, Barcelona would be forgotten by the friends of Old Trafford and Sir Alex.

During working years, I always carried a small rangefinder camera that could produce publication-quality photographs. Fuji made great cameras like this back then, but my choice was the Konica S3. My ex-, a writer, claimed it in the settlement—it was that good. The X100 has swapped the levers, cams and mirrors of the mechanical rangefinder for digital electronics which are much quicker and more configurable but the essence of the S3 has returned. The X100 is probably confusing to a P&S or dSLR shooter, but makes perfect sense to anyone with a rangefinder in their past.

As you see by the gallery, film ISO400 is now digital ISO12,800. The Fujinon lens is every bit as good as those I used on 8×10 view cameras, and the sensor is custom made with microlenses shifted to produce the optimum entry angle to each photosite. Quality at any ISO setting nearly rivals my D700.

I plan to keep my D700 indefinitely—and also the X100. These are fully mature digital cameras, and for a photographer, deliver the images. Both will be a hard act for both companies to follow when marketing demands a new model.

When I have something specific to shoot and need the versatility of the D700, that is the weapon of choice. When I have nothing whatever in mind to shoot, I can leave three kilograms of hardware at home and just put 445 g in a pouch at my waist. When photographing the friends and the family I have been chronicling for years, the X100 is superb.

It is silent and it is all but invisible. I do not need to yell "Hold it!" and freeze people into phony poses. I capture people reacting with each other, babies, dogs and cats. I capture flamboyant friends in extravagant gestures or in the most subtle of interactions. With the superb fill flash, I can open up shadows in back-lit situations that only in the most extreme circumstances, will flash even be detected.

On the street at midnight, a person who was dancing on the sidewalk spotted the camera, and danced for it. Still it did not intrude, she never missed a beat and it was a beautiful moment of interaction—even though the camera was revealed as visible. We had a deep and very real relationship, even though it only lasted for a couple of exposures. The camera was our bond and posed no threat.

The D700 is huge—nearly 3 kg with only two lenses. It is large and attracts attention. It is also a superb image capture device when subtlety and stealth are not a factor. The X100 is just a mere 445 g, ultimately mobile and wondrously responsive. Any time there is a planned shoot requiring the most flexible of all cameras along with the highest possible image quality, naturally, the D700 will do the job. The rest of the time, the X100 is in a small pouch at my waist every time I walk out. It may go out several times and never make a single image. However when there is a photograph that presents itself—it is there.

Both require the services of a photographer. Neither has training wheels, nor an "Auto-Create Masterpiece" selection. Both require fluency in camera operation and photography, so would be a disappointment for those reluctant to put years into learning. However for an actual photographer, they are a near perfect team.

 

[Hamish Gill]

Interesting stuff Larry, an good to see some real life shots!
I'm glad you like it as much as you expected to, I do feel very hopeful that I'll get as much out of it as you from reading your comments ... If it ever turns up that is ...
I have the birth of my first child coming up and I hope to have it for then, my d3 might be a bit inapropriate?!

 

[Steve Waller]

Hi again
Hamish and I were having a cyber chat at another place... thought it would be nice to also plonk these here.

I LOVE this camera.

Its in the same way that I have a thing for mechanical watches.. hi end vinyl players.. I dunno, things that just oooze quality, but are functional as well as decorative.

but with this, its extended my abilities to be creative...or at least to try.
I want to take more photos.... what more can I say?

Had a long awaited trip with the family to Chicago and Northern Michigan this July..so I snapped away with the X100.
Its a great camera for learning on as you go along. I figured out more on this holiday than I had for years mucking about with my Nikon D70
Not only that, but I really wouldn't have carried around a bigger camera...

 

[Steve Waller]

Not so much about the X100, which continues to make me smile...but the fact that it has given me the desire to achieve certain things.
For instance, Fiona had commented that her new colours for our sitting room actually matched our cat's eyes... So of course I wanted to capture it...
Here are the results.
I've got bugger all fancy software (mainly cos this imac G5 is getting on a bit, and I keep on intending to replace it with something newer.
So first of all I took several pics of Tilly (the cat) with colours...especially the new cushions.

then emailed it to myself ... opening it on my ipod touch, using coloursplash to highlight the cat's eyes and cushion highlights only.

Before emailing back to myself and making the whole lot sepia in iphoto, with a bit of cropping.

thanks for looking

 

[Hamish Gill]

Steve!
How's it going? You wanna buy a hifi rack?

I love that last version!
So your still enjoying the camera eh? Good news concidering the impulsive purchase!
They have just announced a interchangeable lens version ...
The buggers, I want one of them too now!

 

[Steve Waller]

Hi Hamish
Still love the X100, and wish I had the dosh for an X pro 1.
It reminds me of the lust I used to have for the old Contax G.
Looks very special.
Good luck with the rack sale.. bit of a misunderstanding. Sorry.

 

[Darren Bradley]

Excellent shots and very interesting conversation here. I was about to buy one when I saw the X-pro 1 coming out so thinking I may jump on one of those instead... but judging by what I'm reading, the X100 might be good enough.

 

[Hamish Gill]

Hi Hamish
Still love the X100, and wish I had the dosh for an X pro 1.
It reminds me of the lust I used to have for the old Contax G.
Looks very special.
Good luck with the rack sale.. bit of a misunderstanding. Sorry.

No no, you misunderstood my comment, I was just voicing my worries that I was asking to much for it ... It wasn't your comment that made me think that ... To be honest, when I was building it I was thinking it had to be worth £4-500 ... I paid so much for some of the spare bits for it! Then I had a look on eBay ... ...

 

[Steve Waller]

For anyone that doesn't havea clue wot we are on about (and that usually includes me an Hamish)..he is trying to sell a hifi rack on another forum (Art of Sound for any potential purchasers !)
Of course its worth £4-500. Just the difficulty of finding the people to pay that which is the issue!.
Ebay must be the way to and let the market decide.

Back to the plot.
Darren..I'd go for the X Pro 1 if it were me. With a great option of lenses, it'll be much more flexible than the X100.
Not that I'd ever get rid of mine, even if I managed to get a X Pro 1.
Horses for courses, and there are plenty of times when I would want the X100 just stuffed into a coat pocket. (its a tad too snug for the trouser pocket...unless I get bigger trousers of course. )

 

[Larry Bolch]

I walk a lot, and while my mind tells me I am still young, my creaking knees disagree. I am totally pleased with the D700 I bought when it first came out and it will remain my workhorse for years. The problem is that with the minimal kit, the bag weighs in the region of four kilograms. However, this covers just about any situation I may want to photograph.

In film days, I was working from a car and being paid to lug anything from a Nikon F system to 8×10 view-cameras. When the working day was done, I and every other working shooter I knew, carried small, self-contained rangefinder cameras. The X100 is the 2011 version of them. Silent leaf-shutter that will sync up to 1/2000th of a second in the case of the X100, so will do fill flash in sunlight. So quaint and unobtrusive that people ignore it and don't pose. I can photograph the lives of friends exactly as it is lived. For documenting people, it is as close to being an invisible camera, or tapping into your optic nerve, as any camera I have ever used. My goal is not to use it to capture the picture of a lifetime, but rather pictures of life.

Fujifilm X100 - Street, Candid, Personal - Carry-Everywhere Camera.

If the X100 is my Konica S3 and my D700 is my Nikon F3, the X-Pro1 will be the replacement for my Leica M3. Focal plane shutter, so it will not be silent, but it will be quiet, though it is also not suitable for synchro-sunlight like the X100. Classic photojournalist's kit of prime lenses. Among working shooters, Fujinons get the respect of Zeiss and Schneider, while largely unknown to consumers. While not as small as the X100, it is still fairly stealthy. Big dSLRs seem to be irresistible bait to rent-a-cop bullies, while I expect no one will notice one carrying an XP1 into an event. The X100 weighs just 445g, ready to shoot. The XP1 body is 450g and with the full compliment of three lenses 967g. The D700 body alone is 995g with no lens mounted!

When walking out with absolutely nothing in mind to shoot—say walking to the grocery store—the X100 will forever be in my pocket. When I want a light-weight, urban, walkin'-'round, shooting'-stuff system, the XP1 will join it. (I still want the silent shutter, high flash-sync and superb 35mm equivalent Fujinon. I will carry both cameras.) When traveling by car and working out of the car, when doing any shoot that requires a wide range of focal lengths, when using the interval timer, and so on, the D700 will be the choice.