The best camera I've ever used... period.

Yep, the X100 is a satisfying little devil. I still occasionally have M9 lust issues, but I remember the size, cost, leaf shutter, high ISO and ND filter of the X100, and I'm able to keep talking myself down off of the Leica edge.

Ariefb, I really, really like that shoe store photo. Nice work.
 
I guess i'm in the minority here. It's my favorite digital camera, as far as the image quality, but I don't think it's the best camera i've used. For one thing, I don't fully trust it anymore, after having SAB twice, so I don't feel comfortable with it as my only camera if i'm out and about. Another is mine still doesn't focus on everything I want it to when I want it to.. maybe you guys are doing something differently... dunno. Mine also doesn't always get the exposure right for some reason. I mean, usually it does, but sometimes it's way off.

oh well.. it's still a fun little camera
 
My camera is only a couple of months old, so I guess it's been a little rosier for me. Newer serials starting with 21xxxx apparently don't have the SAB issue, so I've not had to worry much, and I've also only used the newest firmware, so I haven't experienced many of the firmware issues.
 
I want to start by saying that the image quality of the X100 and the 23mm f/2 lens are fantastic. The camera has a great feel and the location of the shutter dial and aperture ring make me feel like a photographer again. The 1/1000th shutter speed really attracted me to this camera for environmental portraits and having greater control of the ambient light.

Having said all that, the battery life sucks. I recently took a fully-charged battery on assignment and needed to change it right when I needed it at the second location. I don't use the back screen and the viewfinder is always on optical viewfinder.

One of the problems is the camera takes so long to wake up/turn on. Sometimes it's instant and sometimes it's up to 8 seconds (?!?). That is amazing to me in the year 2012. I am glad they fixed that with the XPro-1 but that does me little good as I invested in the X100. That's why I just leave it on with no auto shutoff but of course that leads to the battery drain.

Overall I like the camera, but I find I don't use it as much as I thought I would. It's nice to take with me when I go our with the family so I don't have to carry an SLR, or I will take my 5D without the grip and a 135mm lens and have a pretty good coverage with relatively low weight.

I have considered selling the X100 on many occasions but I always chicken out. I know I would regret it.
 
capitalK said:
I want to start by saying that the image quality of the X100 and the 23mm f/2 lens are fantastic. The camera has a great feel and the location of the shutter dial and aperture ring make me feel like a photographer again. The 1/1000th shutter speed really attracted me to this camera for environmental portraits and having greater control of the ambient light.

Having said all that, the battery life sucks. I recently took a fully-charged battery on assignment and needed to change it right when I needed it at the second location. I don't use the back screen and the viewfinder is always on optical viewfinder.

One of the problems is the camera takes so long to wake up/turn on. Sometimes it's instant and sometimes it's up to 8 seconds (?!?). That is amazing to me in the year 2012. I am glad they fixed that with the XPro-1 but that does me little good as I invested in the X100. That's why I just leave it on with no auto shutoff but of course that leads to the battery drain.

Overall I like the camera, but I find I don't use it as much as I thought I would. It's nice to take with me when I go our with the family so I don't have to carry an SLR, or I will take my 5D without the grip and a 135mm lens and have a pretty good coverage with relatively low weight.

I have considered selling the X100 on many occasions but I always chicken out. I know I would regret it.
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for faster wake up times remember to ALWAY reformat your card after your download pix to computer.
tony
 
rbelyell said:
for faster wake up times remember to ALWAY reformat your card after your download pix to computer.
tony
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Yep. You should be doing this anyway - any time you put your card into a computer and back into the camera - format it. If you don't, you'll get slow startup, and at some point your card will die.
 
gavinlg said:
Yep. You should be doing this anyway - any time you put your card into a computer and back into the camera - format it. If you don't, you'll get slow startup, and at some point your card will die.
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oh i didn't know that. Thx for the tips.

@CapitalK: the Optical VF drains battery faster than EVF. Most reviewers state that, so you might wanna stick to EVF most of the time.
 
Ariefb said:
the Optical VF drains battery faster than EVF
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Yes, I read this about three or four months ago, and since then I've been using the EVF except in situations when I really want the OVF. My impression is that the battery life has improved very noticeably. I haven't done systematic testing of this, so I'm unable to quote any figures, but the improvement certainly seems quite substantial.

I'm no expert in this, but I read that it's because the overlay information has to match the brightness of the OVF. Therefore, more power is required for the overlay in the OVF - particularly when conditions are very bright - than for the lower brightness level of the EVF.
 
I am just back from 3 weeks Malaysia. It was a tough decision, but I decided to ONLY bring the X100 as my camera. No film, no other digital system.

No regrets at all. It was liberating and I have some pictures that I really love and am printing them at up to A3+. The hardest part is choosing between BW and color! Malaysia has such nice colors, but the BW images look sooo good p-processed.

The shooting experience reminded me of bringing just my CLE plus rokkor 40, at the start of my street-photography hobby, a time that I really treasure.

Will make a post soon about my trip and the x100.
 
zwarte_kat said:
It was a tough decision, but I decided to ONLY bring the X100 as my camera.
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That is quite brave - especially as, when you have other gear available to you, it's so tempting to take it as back-up, "just in case".

Glad your trip worked out well, and look forward to seeing some shots posted.
 
Shucks. I never should have clicked on this thread. Now I want one and I want it now, but a couple of questions. I'm an old guy with (can you believe it?) old eyes and so I'm a deep lover of AF. However, some of you say it's not infallible, but it's been my experience with Minolta Maxxum 7000, Maxxum 7, Pentax 20D, Canon G10 and most recently, the Canon S95, that none are. Sometimes there's a miss. I guess the question is, is this a serious and vexing problem? The second question is - given the vicissitudes of street photography, can I simply go MF and hyperfocal for street and AF for everything else?

Also, where can I get the best price on a new one?
 
I have pretty poor vision myself, shooting with glasses has it's problems, however hyperfocal street shooting is great with the X100.

With AF it all depends on how close your subject is, the AF marker in the viewfinder isn't compensated like the frame-lines are when your subject is close, so you need to either use the EVF when relying on auto-focus at anything closer than 1.5m or roughly guess through the OVF
 
Ted,

I think about issues with X100 AF as follows:

Before the most recent firmware upgrade there were more problems than there are now. Some reports are simply out of date.

The hybrid finder is more complicated than just an OVF or EVF alone. Many owners did not understand parallax. Some reports are from people who did not understand how to get the most out of the AF system.

Right now the AF is not as fast nor is it as easy to use as many DSLRs and some m 4/3 cameras. At the same time, unless you are doing action photography, there is no fundamental limitation. You do have to switch between the OVF and EVF depending on what you need to photograph. You have to be flexible.


For me, I operate the AF manually. I typically use the OVF employing the focus and recompose method. For precise framing, shorter subject distances or difficult focusing situations I switch to the EVF. When time permits I confirm focus using the finder zoom function. I typically use the audio focus confirmation option. I also the focus scale display to confirm the focus has moved.

Using hyper focus in manual focus mode is straightforward. I will suggest you keep the shutter half pressed more often then not. The shutter delay is negligible with a shutter half press because the exposure is locked. The shutter half press is required for minimum delay in manul exposure mode too. The shutter speed is limited at wide apertures. This is why Fuji included a built in 3x ND filter. People who don't understand leaf shutters can have problems in very bright light.

I have no reservations recommending the X100 for street work. But it takes some practice to be Winogrand quick. Compared to DSLRs and cameras with larger lenses, people just don't notice the X100. When they do, many think you using an old camera and they don't feel threatened.
 
For snaps and product shots, digital is fine. For real photography you need a real camera - the Rolleiflex SL66E. Sheer class. (How do I make a smiley face again?)
 
Darvoz, willie 901, thanks so much for your comments. Looks as if there's a bit of a learning curve involved. Not to be deterred, I'm saving my money for an X100.
 
tedwhite said:
Darvoz, willie 901, thanks so much for your comments. Looks as if there's a bit of a learning curve involved. Not to be deterred, I'm saving my money for an X100.
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The one thing which X100 owners don't talk about is shutter lag, I don't know why but X100 has shutter lag, even if used in manual mode, combine that with slow write speed and its not the fluid shooting experience one expects form a such a hyped camera.

I'd rather wait and maybe consider Fuji XE-1 than spend all that money on a X100.
 
fstops said:
The one thing which X100 owners don't talk about is shutter lag, I don't know why but X100 has shutter lag, even if used in manual mode, combine that with slow write speed and its not the fluid shooting experience one expects form a such a hyped camera.

I'd rather wait and maybe consider Fuji XE-1 than spend all that money on a X100.
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I have to say I haven't had an issue with shutter lag, really. And the write speed isn't that bad IMO...it's not shooting like a machine gun but it's not that much slower than advancing film IMO.

But that's just me.

The reliability is a real problem, as is battery life. But I can live with it I think, until the X200 gets here. If it takes the X100 and builds on the few issues it had, I'll get it on day 1. Love this little camera.
 
fstops said:
The one thing which X100 owners don't talk about is shutter lag, I don't know why but X100 has shutter lag, even if used in manual mode, combine that with slow write speed and its not the fluid shooting experience one expects form a such a hyped camera.

I'd rather wait and maybe consider Fuji XE-1 than spend all that money on a X100.
Click to expand...

you need to mark this statement with an asteriks and some fine print. If you half press the shutter before taking the photo (which is what you have to do in AF mode anyway), there is no shutter lag. Similarly if you half press the shutter in anticipation of a shot in MF mode (which you should do to 'set' the frameline parralax compensation in the finder), there is no shutter lag.
If you just mash the shutter button there will be lag - which is the same with most digital cameras.

Also the write speed is no problem with a fast card.
 
gavinlg said:
you need to mark this statement with an asteriks and some fine print. If you half press the shutter before taking the photo (which is what you have to do in AF mode anyway), there is no shutter lag. Similarly if you half press the shutter in anticipation of a shot in MF mode (which you should do to 'set' the frameline parralax compensation in the finder), there is no shutter lag.

Also the write speed is no problem with a fast card.
Click to expand...

+1

Totally agree.. If u do it w/o the half press, there is definitely shutter lag.

Gary
 
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