The new Fuji ... are you buying new or will you wait and buy a used one later on?

[videogamemaker]

I've looked for Leica M8+24mm images for inspiration, but the only ones that really demonstrate what i would want are the ones with the 24/1.4, and the Fuji's lens doesn't do 1.4. I would not like to have to shoot wide open all the time just to get foreground/background separation.

There were several example images in the norwegian hands-on that got pulled that showed it will be possible to have a nice dof separation from subject to background. Just flickr river the leica X1 and you can find quite a few nice examples, and it's a f/2.8, a full stop slower.

Here are two that show what I mean:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/peterlueck/4371613974/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sergiorecabarren/5073669902/

If you really want to blur your background completely away, that's what portrait lenses are for, not even a 24mm 1.4 is gonna do that.

Also according to DOF calculator, an M8 with 24mm 1.4 focused at 1 meter, you get 11 cm in focus. With the X100 at 1 meter you get 15cm in focus. Should be fairly similar in terms of background focus. Now if you were comparing and M9 35mm 1.4 at 1 meter, that would probably show a noticeable distance, but only if you had both prints in front of you to compare.

 

[al1966]

I have an Olympus EP-1 with 17mm (35mm Eqiv) so for me to buy the Fuji it would have to devalue to a low low price like £200. I don't need it I like the way I can shoot with the Oly and I can change lenses. The Fuji seems a bit of a dead end cam but it sure looks fun.

 

[videogamemaker]

I have an Olympus EP-1 with 17mm (35mm Eqiv) so for me to buy the Fuji it would have to devalue to a low low price like £200. I don't need it I like the way I can shoot with the Oly and I can change lenses. The Fuji seems a bit of a dead end cam but it sure looks fun.

If you could imagine that money back in your pocket, and fast-forward to after the X100 release date, and you were looking for primarily a 35mm lens, would you still pick the EP-1 over the x100?

Just curious, based on your experience with the ep-1

 

[dreilly]

That would be cool if the X100 came with a trip to Mongolia. I'd buy it over the M9 for sure! 🙂

I'm wary of initially released images. But I am very optimistic about this camera. I loved the Hexar AF and they seem to have very closely followed that camera's form.

 

[andrew00]

I'll be getting one.

Large sensor camera w/external flash option & viewfinder is just the ticket. The design is a plus.

 

[al1966]

If you could imagine that money back in your pocket, and fast-forward to after the X100 release date, and you were looking for primarily a 35mm lens, would you still pick the EP-1 over the x100?

Just curious, based on your experience with the ep-1

Yes I would pick the EP-1 as I also have the Panasonic G1 with zoom and LTM and M42 mounts,the Jupiter 8 makes a nice portrait. But the big thing for me is aspect ratio, I prefer 645/43 to 32 they work better for me.

 

[jsrockit]

I'm not going to buy any new digital camera until the second generation sensors hit the market.

We are still on the first generation?

 

[Snapper_uk]

Second hand? Do people actually buy second hand digital? Sounds like a recipe for disaster to me....

 

[videogamemaker]

Second hand? Do people actually buy second hand digital? Sounds like a recipe for disaster to me....

I bought my 5D original third hand. Still going strong after 2 years of my ownership. It's knocked and knicked, but works great.

 

[damien.murphy]

Second hand? Do people actually buy second hand digital? Sounds like a recipe for disaster to me....

Depends. I've bought four dslrs over the course of the time I shot digitally. Two were new, two were used. Didn't have a problem with any of them.

DSLR's are better than compacts, with regard to build quality though, so am not sure I would feel the same about buying compact cameras used, although I did buy a Fuji refurbished F40fd compact that has been problem free for the 2+ years I've had it.

I'm not sure where I would put the X100 re: build quality, until I have one in my hand. Contrary to popular belief, the electronics in digital cameras do not seem to be the weak link. Lot of people, including Brian Sweeney here, have digital cameras that are 10+ years old and fully functional.

 

[jsrockit]

Second hand? Do people actually buy second hand digital? Sounds like a recipe for disaster to me....

Why? these cameras are a lot more durable than people make them out to be.

 

[jsrockit]

Not sure what your're getting at, but the Tivoli is American no? I guess it went over my head.

I know I'm not buying it hoping to be HCB. I'm buying it because I like the digital workflow, but like the control layout of vintage cameras i.e. dedicated knobs.

 

[CK Dexter Haven]

Just flickr river the leica X1 and you can find quite a few nice examples, and it's a f/2.8, a full stop slower.

Here are two that show what I mean:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/peterlueck/4371613974/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sergiorecabarren/5073669902/

If you really want to blur your background completely away, that's what portrait lenses are for, not even a 24mm 1.4 is gonna do that.

Thanks for the examples, but these just illustrate my point. That's exactly what i would expect, and it's not nearly what i would want.

Here's an example of the kind of subject/background distance that would be a good indicator for me:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/soelin/4850217230/

I don't see enough difference in this versus what i'd see from something like a Canon G12, and at least the zoom cam lets you extend the focal length to try to get shallower DOF.

I have seen decent 24/1.4 shots with an M8, though. I'll just have to wait and see, but i don't think the X100 is really the camera for me. I do love the aethetics/design and intent, though. I'm still a few years away from my ideal - something like this, but full-frame.

 

[kevin m]

Second hand? Do people actually buy second hand digital? Sounds like a recipe for disaster to me....

I bought a well-used 5D that had been fitted with a new shutter and battery box (for a reasonable, non-Leica price, I might add) and it's done me well for the two-plus years I've had it. Best $1,000 digital dollars I ever spent. 😛

 

[hausen]

I have my name on the list at my local shop here in NZ. Think this is the perfect carry around for me. Want something with me all the time and have a small messenger bag for it already. Don't care that it doesn't fit in my pocket because I want something with EVF and that is price you pay. I know I should wait for 2nd generation but feel I miss opportunities now because I don't have a camera with me. Call me shallow but this little thing is gorgeous as well and it will make me happy every time I use or look at it.

 

[Keith]

I think my mom had one of those too ... maybe everyone's mom did?

I don't think it would look out of place on the X100. 😀

 

[zumbido]

I've bought many second-hand, used and abused digital SD-series Canon Powershots. They've always served just fine after fixing whatever the known problem was (often a cracked LCD, sometimes a lens error that just required a spring or other bit of the extension mechanism to be put back into place). Unless the thing has been smashed this stuff is a lot more durable than you think. I'd feel a lot less sure about buying a DSLR second-hand personally. A lot more interlocking bits that can go wonky compared to a digicam which is pretty much stamped whole out of a piece of plastic. ;P

 

[Keith]

I've noticed that no matter how these X100 threads start they all end up the same!

Fuji need to get these things into people's hands so at least the praise and criticism can have some substance. 😀

 

[Jorge-AD]

waiting on the yellow af assist light...

waiting on the yellow af assist light...

A camera designed from the ground up for available-light candid PRO photography should have active infrared AF as the Hexar AF did. Instead we get a big bright and ugly yellow AF assist LED that is sure to turn heads for all the wrong reasons... (or turn AF off and struggle with manual focus and no AF aids :bang: ).

So I am waiting for now...

Now if Fuji came out with combination of Hybrid and Phase detection AF, like the one Hiroshi Kawahara from FujiFilm mentioned the X100 team was developing just two months ago: http://www.quesabesde.com/noticias/fujifilm-finepix-x100-entrevista-hiroshi_kawahara,1_7074

Wait, that might just be in the Xmass Limited edition all-black X100... So for now I am definitely waiting, carring my zone-focused GRD2 everywhere, and secretely saving for a Hybrid AF X100.

Jorge AD
http://artenemo.org

 

[berlincontemporary]

Not wanting to be left out of the 'starting an X100 thread brigade' I thought I'd ask this question.

It'll be an expensive camera in Oz I supect and as much as I like the look and potential of it, if I do get one, I'll be waiting until a used example crops up at a good price that would come into Australia under our $1000.00 import tax threshold.

That could be up to a year down the track of course but in the meantime I have numerous toys to keep me occupied! 😀

Wheres the "i wont buy one" button?