X pro 1 on its way, Gas attack

[lxmike]

Ha, I just bought an X-Pro1 today too! I've been shooting B&W film on my Leica III or an M4 and decided that I wanted to try my hand this year at color. After much saving (and my wife's blessing) I bought the X-pro1, 35mm, 23mm, and put a pre-order in for a 56! Now that's a serious G.A.S. attack! It must have hit both you and me at the same time today.

You must have a very understanding wife

 

[lxmike]

I must admit that I am equaly excited and equally scared by the prospect of using this camera, l have been shootihg film and rangefinders since the 1970s but l find the prospect of so many menus and settings onnthe x pro as daunting....l.
but exciting all the same

 

[CliveC]

I've been considering the XPro 1 as well, but the last thing I need right now is another lens system. Just a little bit cheaper and it will undoubtedly weaken my resolve.

The leaf shutter of the X100/X100S would be lovely too.

 

[GaryLH]

does the 18mm f2 come with a lens hood or are they optional

Except for the 23 pancake, I believe that Fuji lenses all come w/ lens hoods. My 14, 18, 35, 60 and 18-55 came w/ lens hood included. The 23 did not.

Gary

Opps.. Saul answered already

 

[OurManInTangier]

Except for the 23 pancake, I believe that Fuji lenses all come w/ lens hoods. My 14, 18, 35, 60 and 18-55 came w/ lens hood included. The 23 did not.

Gary

Opps.. Saul answered already

Any reason why not? I'm assuming the giant petal shaped hood should have come as standard with that lens...at least it did with mine and others I know with this lens.

Having said that I've never used the lens hood, though I am looking to find a smaller replacement just in case it does ever flare 😀

EDIT: Or am I being really dim and you're talking about the pancake? Apologies if so, its been a long day!

 

[OurManInTangier]

I must admit that I am equaly excited and equally scared by the prospect of using this camera, l have been shootihg film and rangefinders since the 1970s but l find the prospect of so many menus and settings onnthe x pro as daunting....l.
but exciting all the same

Mike, once you get the menu set up as you like it can be simplicity itself.

I think one of the reasons so many do like this camera is that you can switch between a simple set-up akin to a proper Rf and a full EVF, auto everything and pretty much anything in between.

Fuji's menus are a little in-depth but some of the sound advice above and a little research should have you up and running pretty quickly.

I'll just add to the suggestions regarding batteries. I have two bodies and eight batteries and I can very nearly get through them on a busy (full) day
depending on how I'm set-up and what I'm photographing.

 

[GaryLH]

Any reason why not? I'm assuming the giant petal shaped hood should have come as standard with that lens...at least it did with mine and others I know with this lens.

Having said that I've never used the lens hood, though I am looking to find a smaller replacement just in case it does ever flare 😀

EDIT: Or am I being really dim and you're talking about the pancake? Apologies if so, its been a long day!

Opps.. Brain went left field.. Good catch.. I am thinking 27 pancake. Not sure why I typed 23..

Gary

 

[rybolt]

One last comment that I wish I'd known when I first started with the cameras. If you've used a DSLR don't expect the same type of AF. Almost all DSLR cameras use a Phase detect system while mirrorless cameras use a contrast system. It works very differently and requires a little more patience until you get used to it.

 

[GaryLH]

Mike, once you get the menu set up as you like it can be simplicity itself.

I think one of the reasons so many do like this camera is that you can switch between a simple set-up akin to a proper Rf and a full EVF, auto everything and pretty much anything in between.

Fuji's menus are a little in-depth but some of the sound advice above and a little research should have you up and running pretty quickly.

I'll just add to the suggestions regarding batteries. I have two bodies and eight batteries and I can very nearly get through them on a busy (full) day
depending on how I'm set-up and what I'm photographing.

Once u are happy w/ your changes, write then down someplace. The bad is that Fuji sw developers are behind the curve in terms of modern embeded sw design that does not require the sw setup changes in the config to be defaulted everytime there is a firmware update.

Gary

 

[OurManInTangier]

Once u are happy w/ your changes, write then down someplace. The bad is that Fuji sw developers are behind the curve in terms of modern embeded sw design that does not require the sw setup changes in the config to be defaulted everytime there is a firmware update.

Gary

My one gripe about the camera....and its not even really about the camera.

Signing off before I sound like a total Fuji luvvie🙂

 

[GaryLH]

One last comment that I wish I'd known when I first started with the cameras. If you've used a DSLR don't expect the same type of AF. Almost all DSLR cameras use a Phase detect system while mirrorless cameras use a contrast system. It works very differently and requires a little more patience until you get used to it.

Some of the newer designs in last year or so, mirrorless cameras are now using phase detection as well. The new sensor designs have some dedicated cells w/ phase detect and they use a hybrid focus algo to provide better af performance. In the Fuji camera line, this is seen on the xe2 and the xt1. These hybrid sensor designs did not always provide the so called performance improvements as noted by the initial complaints about the Canon eos m.

That being said, phase detect af speed on dslr is still way ahead of mirrorless.. Roger at lensrental in a couple of his blogs entires has shown that neither phase or contrast is as accurate as manual focusing. What was interesting, in one post, the accuracy appeared to me to be better w/ contrast detection for a given number of tries (grouping around chart was tighter).

Gary

 

[lxmike]

Although I have 35 years experience with film lm very new to all the ins and outs of digital, , so l need all the help l can get and do appreciate all the replies, out of interest are there any good articles regarding Raw verses JPEG, in the past l have only ever shot jpeg, l need to research the benefits of raw

 

[GaryLH]

Fuji jpgs are amongst the best out there. Some are happy enough to never or rarely use raw. Raw gives u ability to play games because there is about 1-2 stops of head room to adjust the shadow and/or highlights to your liking.

If u tend to use out of camera (ooc) jpgs, then raw won't matter. If u do a lot of post processing, then raw tends to be the preferential format.

The tricks used depends a lot on the photo sw u intend to use.

Gary

 

[back alley]

since fuji i have only been using jpegs…with light post processing…they accept it easily.
i shoot the fujis like i shot everything else i have ever used.
aperture priority, focus and recompose etc.
once set up there is little need to make changes to menu settings.

 

[lxmike]

since fuji i have only been using jpegs…with light post processing…they accept it easily.
i shoot the fujis like i shot everything else i have ever used.
aperture priority, focus and recompose etc.
once set up there is little need to make changes to menu settings.

That is exactly my approach when using a camera, aperture priority, focus and then recompose,, is this easy to set up on the x pro 1

 

[back alley]

That is exactly my approach when using a camera, aperture priority, focus and then recompose,, is this easy to set up on the x pro 1

very…set to A…keep the af box in the center…the basic set up takes a few minutes at first and then depends on how much you like to tinker.

my habit is to check out the exif data on pics posted on flickr to see what settings others use, especially if i like the look of their pics. then i copy that for awhile and see how it fits for me.

 

[lxmike]

very…set to A…keep the af box in the center…the basic set up takes a few minutes at first and then depends on how much you like to tinker.

my habit is to check out the exif data on pics posted on flickr to see what settings others use, especially if i like the look of their pics. then i copy that for awhile and see how it fits for me.

Many thanks, for colour work l have always used fuji film and ilford hp5 for mono. I always shoot in aperture priority mode, l mainly intend to shoot street and indoor cafe scenes.

 

[lxmike]

Well off to bed now to have happy dreams of my new incoming Fuji, thanks for all the replies in this thread chaps, many thanks, will let you know when the Fuji arrives

 

[gavinlg]

Congratulations. I really enjoy using my X-Pro 1.

Tips

o Get the most recent manual from Fujifilm's website that describes the firmware updates

o Turn power Saving mode off

o Initially turn off Silent Mode and then turn of all sounds except the focus confirmation audio beep. This will help you learn how the AF works and to maximize AF performance

o Turn on the CORRECTED AF FRAME option (parallax correction in OVF)

o Don't hesitate to switch between the EVF and OVF as needed. As the subject gets closer to the camera, the EVF can be critical for AF success.

o Learn how to quickly switch from OVF to EVF, and back (or in EVF mode as well) to automatically zoom in the focus region. This can help confirm the AF found the object you intended to use and not a background object with much higher contrast.

o After awhile, experiment with different focus-region box sizes in EVF mode. The size is fixed in OVF mode.

o Experiment with focus peaking. Focus peaking can be useful for completely manual focusing (turning the lens collar only).

o Each display, OVF, EVF and LCD can have different customization settings. You have to set your preferences for each display.

o Buy extra batteries. Two additional batteries is not a luxury.

o If you use raw files there is no technical reason to exceed ISO 2000. Instead use the shutter speed and aperture you need in manual exposure mode and push the expose during post-processing.

o Initially don't use auto-ISO, auto-DR and other automated functions. Turn them back on as you gain experience. If you use raw, these functions (especially auto-DR) are not useful.

o If you use raw files, the less sharpening the better. With ACR-based rendering, color balance can make a difference with respect to image detail. Raw rendering parameters will be different than those you may use for Bayer sensors.

This is an excellent guide, I 100% agree with everything stated here. Make sure you follow these suggestions for the best experience. Most importantly, turn the AF correction frame ON.

 

[lxmike]

hopefully my X Pro 1 should arrive tomorrow.....................yippee