Quick review of my X100 with images

[TimothyHughes]

Quick informal review of my X100 with some photos around Madison.
http://blog.th-photo.net/2011/05/first-impressions-fuji-x100.html


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Timothy

 

[RAZOR]

Pretty good review. I think Fuji really hit the mark with camera's design and overall performance. I love it!

 

[TimothyHughes]

Pretty good review. I think Fuji really hit the mark with camera's design and overall performance. I love it!

Right on.

However, I'm a bit critical of it at times when I compare it to some features and performance of my six-year-old Canon 5D.

 

[RAZOR]

Funny you should say that. I am using a 5D classic as my DSLR as well. After using the X100 for a few days I started questioning the need for the 5D. I don't tend to change lenses that often and the 50L is permanently attached right now. I think the IQ between the 2 cameras is very similar and I am pleasantly surprised at the performance of the X100. I can justify keeping the 5D for two reasons. The ability to use on/off camera flash with modifiers and the ability to change lenses. After all they are both just tools and each has there particular uses. I will say that I take the X100 everywhere with me and I have taken some great shots that otherwise would have been missed because the 5D would have been sitting on my desk.

 

[peripatetic]

Yeah, when I upgraded to the 5D2 from the 5D I had gone from IQ that was "almost always good enough" to "almost always more than I needed".

The X100 is as good for all practical purposes as my 5D was.

Seriously thinking of ditching the 5D2 now while I can still get a good price for it.

 

[TimothyHughes]

Funny you should say that. I am using a 5D classic as my DSLR as well. After using the X100 for a few days I started questioning the need for the 5D. I don't tend to change lenses that often and the 50L is permanently attached right now. I think the IQ between the 2 cameras is very similar and I am pleasantly surprised at the performance of the X100. I can justify keeping the 5D for two reasons. The ability to use on/off camera flash with modifiers and the ability to change lenses. After all they are both just tools and each has there particular uses. I will say that I take the X100 everywhere with me and I have taken some great shots that otherwise would have been missed because the 5D would have been sitting on my desk.

I do agree IQ is similar between the two. I also agree that having the camera with you is vital, and I hope to bring my X100 out a lot this summer.

However, when I consider how fast the 5D is at waking up from sleep mode, changing autofocus points, getting to a histogram on playback and basic response time in the menus it just makes my X100 seem a bit sluggish. That said, I'm not used to the buttons and menu layout yet so maybe I'll get more used to using the X100 instinctively like I do my 5D.

 

[RAZOR]

I do agree IQ is similar between the two. I also agree that having the camera with you is vital, and I hope to bring my X100 out a lot this summer.

However, when I consider how fast the 5D is at waking up from sleep mode, changing autofocus points, getting to a histogram on playback and basic response time in the menus it just makes my X100 seem a bit sluggish. That said, I'm not used to the buttons and menu layout yet so maybe I'll get more used to using the X100 instinctively like I do my 5D.

I do agree with the fact that the menu system is sluggish and the wake-up time is slow comparitively speaking. I have my X-100 set up on auto iso with a max of 3200, Astia film simulation for skin tones, fine .jpeg, power saver on the OVF and quick start mode. This gets the camera moving pretty good and I get lots of battery power.

 

[CK Dexter Haven]

Sluggish wake-up?

Sluggish wake-up?

I do agree with the fact that the menu system is sluggish and the wake-up time is slow comparitively speaking.

Have you guys seen Steve Huff's article, about how the card speed may affect startup times?

http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2011/...x100-and-how-i-get-around-them-by-steve-huff/

Might this help?

 

[cee]

Snoozer?

Snoozer?

I do agree with the fact that the menu system is sluggish and the wake-up time is slow comparitively speaking. I have my X-100 set up on auto iso with a max of 3200, Astia film simulation for skin tones, fine .jpeg, power saver on the OVF and quick start mode. This gets the camera moving pretty good and I get lots of battery power.

So...could I have a x100 slung around my neck in the 'ON' position and snap a photo immediately?

Or...does it have to "wake up" and come back to life if it has been inactive around my neck?

 

[Jamie Pillers]

The camera has an "Auto Power Off" function that turns the camera off after a specified time (2 min. or 5 min.) with no activity. You can set this function to "Off", in which case the camera will always be on, but according to the manual the battery life is reduced significantly if you do this.

My Auto Power Off setting is 5 minutes. But when I'm doing something like street photography, where I need to be ready at any moment, I just half-push the shutter button from time to time (a nervous habit I developed years ago when I was using a Konica Hexar AF). This keeps the camera on.

 

[dmc]

I have not had any problems with the speed of power up on the X100. If you want you can walk around all day with the camera on, just turn off the power saver setting. You will need to carry extra batteries though. Leaving the image review turned on will help speed up the write speed when shooting RAW. I have a feeling that there will be a fix in the next firmware update to allow you to continue shooting while the camera writes the previous shot.

 

[anorphirith]

Quick informal review of my X100 with some photos around Madison.
http://blog.th-photo.net/2011/05/first-impressions-fuji-x100.html


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Timothy

so to clarify, did you have to wait 6.5 seconds in raw before you were able to take another picture ?

 

[willie_901]

I just got my stop watch out.

Time from switch off to ready (cold start): 2.5 sec.

Time from standby mode to ready (warm start): 1.7 sec.

Time to write one RAW file: 4.0 sec

Time to write 3 RAW files from an exposure bracket burst: 9.5 sec

There were no power saving options in place. The camera has a SanDisk Extreme Pro 8 GB card that is only formatted in-camera and is never written to from my computer. The X100's internal memory was formatted as well.

So for a single exposure it would take 4.0 sec. before you could manually change a parameter (aperture, shutter speed) and take another shot. But the wait time between taking pictures using the same parameters and settings is on the order of 0.2 sec.

 

[TimothyHughes]

so to clarify, did you have to wait 6.5 seconds in raw before you were able to take another picture ?

I actually went off http://jonathanjk.com/2011/03/16/fuji-x100-write-speeds/ these specs for my estimate.

I've upgraded to Firmware v. 1.1 and it seems like a bit over 2 second write time for RAW files.

 

[denbraven]

I just got my stop watch out.

Time from switch off to ready (cold start): 2.5 sec.

Time from standby mode to ready (warm start): 1.7 sec.

Time to write one RAW file: 4.0 sec

Time to write 3 RAW files from an exposure bracket burst: 9.5 sec

There were no power saving options in place. The camera has a SanDisk Extreme Pro 8 GB card that is only formatted in-camera and is never written to from my computer. The X100's internal memory was formatted as well.

So for a single exposure it would take 4.0 sec. before you could manually change a parameter (aperture, shutter speed) and take another shot. But the wait time between taking pictures using the same parameters and settings is on the order of 0.2 sec.

How fast is your Sandisk Extreme Pro card? Because my Sandisk 30mb/s card, it takes less than 1 second to write a RAW file (with firmware v 1.10 - did you update yours yet?). It does, however, take almost 4 seconds if I'm shooting RAW+JPEG, but if it's only RAW, then less than a second.