Please recommend Fujifilm body for manual focus legacy lenses

[Rayt]

I have a bunch of old Olympus Pen F lenses from 20mm to 100mm I would like to use on a Fuji digital. Can anyone recommend which body? I’ll consider new or used of any vintage as long as it fits the criteria which is manual focus, large high resolution EVF with focusing aids, IBIS useful but not necessary. I have been going over online reviews and they talk about autofocus performance and video. Budget wise something under $800 would be nice. Thanks!

 

[jsrockit]

If you want ibis at your price you have X-H1 and X-S10 and that is it. The X-H1 also has a big VF. That said, the body is big too. Something like the X-E4 would be perfect for the pen f lenses size wise, but the VF is small and it has no ibis. A lot of people here will say X-Pro2, but the older the bodies the worse the EVF, refresh rates and focusing aids in general. It is up to you what specs are acceptable or not. The X-T3 could work for you too, but no ibis. I would probably go X-E4 to be in line with the size of the lenses you want to use and forget ibis.

 

[Rayt]

Thanks. I just need a small walk around camera with a moderate wide angle for street snaps and will pretend it’s an M7 with a Summicron with no IBIS necessary. Good point about newer bodies having better EVF. The X-E4 is the right size for the tiny Pen lenses.

 

[Coldkennels]

A lot of people here will say X-Pro2, but the older the bodies the worse the EVF, refresh rates and focusing aids in general.

I use the X-Pro2 with vintage glass all the time, and the EVF and focusing aids are pretty good. Things get difficult with uncoated pre-war lenses as there's less for the focus peaking to pick up on, but with anything from the 1960s onwards, it does fine.

That said, I wouldn't suggest an X-Pro for anyone who's primarily going to be using adapted lenses, as its USP (the optical finder) isn't as good with vintage glass, even with the pop-up focusing window. In that situation, I'd go for an X-T model instead. Yes, they're a bit bigger than the X-Es, but the ISO dial on the top deck is worth the extra size, as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Austintatious]

I know you asked about Fuji, but for adapted lenses and IBIS at your price point, you can find a Sony A7II in good shape. They have the features your looking for and they kinda started the whole adapted legacy lens thing.

 

[jsrockit]

I use the X-Pro2 with vintage glass all the time, and the EVF and focusing aids are pretty good. Things get difficult with uncoated pre-war lenses as there's less for the focus peaking to pick up on, but with anything from the 1960s onwards, it does fine.

For sure you can, but you never know ones expectations. It is 7 years old at this point, so EVFs keep getting better. That is why I said what I said. I am a huge X-Pro fan though I use the 3 nowadays. It is my favorite camera.

 

[OlivierAOP]

dpreview has a useful search tool by features. There are 9 Fuji APS-C ILCs with EVF from 2018 to now in your approximate price range. X-H1 has high res EVF + IBIS, X-T3 high res EVF, X-S10 IBIS.

 

[Dogman]

The X-Pro2s are my main Fuji cameras and, although I'm happy with the Fujinon lenses, I also use several adapted Voigtlander and third party Chinese manual focus lenses with them. I'm not even a fan of EVFs but the XP2 EVF works well for me. Much better than the older cameras like the early XE and XT and XP1 models. Later models would probably be better and include IBIS but could run over your budget. XPros are still expensive second hand but it's probably the minimum you should consider.

 

[Dogman]

I just did a quick look at MPB's site and they have a "like new" X-H1 for less than $800. Pretty good deal although I have no experience with that particular camera.

I do note it is missing the rubber cover for the bottom accessory grip connection. Big deal. A small piece of gaffer tape would fix that.

 

[Rayt]

I think I am going to get an X-T1. It’s an older model but seems it’s still quite capable especially that high magnification EVF and very film camera like user control.

 

[jsrockit]

I think I am going to get an X-T1. It’s an older model but seems it’s still quite capable especially that high magnification EVF and very film camera like user control.

Honestly, go for an X-T2 at least. A better sensor and better focusing aids with an EVF that has a better refresh rate and isn't too much more $$$. I have been a Fuji (digital) fan since the original X100 and have owned most of them. The X-T2 could be the best deal out there at the moment. That said, the X-E4 and those small lenses... how could you pass that up? 😉

 

[shawn]

I think I am going to get an X-T1. It’s an older model but seems it’s still quite capable especially that high magnification EVF and very film camera like user control.

With adapted lenses the larger EVFs are good as they offer more display options including the dual display which lets you see the main image in one window and a zoomed in display for focusing in a second window.

Shawn

 

[Rayt]

Honestly, go for an X-T2 at least. A better sensor and better focusing aids with an EVF that has a better refresh rate and isn't too much more $$$. I have been a Fuji (digital) fan since the original X100 and have owned most of them. The X-T2 could be the best deal out there at the moment. That said, the X-E4 and those small lenses... how could you pass that up? 😉

I just need a camera to play around with neglected lenses in my drawer. I can go full blown top range but then knowing me I wouldn’t be able to resist those native lenses and eventually end up with more stuff. An X-T1 is just the ticket and KEH has/had (wink wink) one jus a minute ago!

 

[jsrockit]

Well, ok then. the X-T1 is smaller than subsequent models and less video centric. It is still a cool camera. Have fun and update us at some point.

 

[Rayt]

I’ll post some photos with the Olympus Pen F lenses. I also get a used Fuji X Leica M adapter as well.

 

[Coldkennels]

I just need a camera to play around with neglected lenses in my drawer. I can go full blown top range but then knowing me I wouldn’t be able to resist those native lenses and eventually end up with more stuff. An X-T1 is just the ticket and KEH has/had (wink wink) one jus a minute ago!

It's not a bad choice. I used the X-T1 for work for years without any complaints; it's a solid little camera. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

 

[Dogman]

Honestly, the X-T1 is a very nice and capable camera. However, in my experience, it's not great with manual focus lenses.