X100 on the job

[emraphoto]

emraphoto, excellent "review".
I like read story about camera on the hard job instead of tests, tests, tests. I like the way to get to know the new camera like yours.
By the way, I think that you can take good(!) picture with every digital camera.
Those picture are "strong". I can't describe my thoughts more and better, my English is still poor (but I'm working hard on this!).
...
and again: "please post more if you feel so inclined!"

No need to apologize Przyjaciel. I am always happy to see folks from other countries on the forum. It is what makes the RFF so great. I can talk to a friend (or two) in Australia and make a new one in Poland too. You have done a great job and I understood everything you said.

I will continue to ad my thoughts on the FUJI as the days pass. I will also post photos!

 

[richardvanle]

Nice hands-on write-up. Thanks.

 

[PatrickT]

I love it!!

 

[emraphoto]

so, day uh... 14?

a few more thoughts on the X100. i will post photos later this evening or in the am.

having an admittedly limited understanding of the 'bits and bobbles' that go into a camera such as the Fuji, i hesitantly ask, "why did we move backwards when it comes to the af abilities of cameras of the Fuji's class"?

when one considers the af performance of a camera like the hexar af it seems hard to understand how we have returned to what seems like the stone age in af ability. now the Fuji isn't crippled per say by af performance BUT in low light conditions with low contrast scenes it seems to struggle. why pack a sensor capable of stunning high iso performance when the camera is 5 years behind a film camera from 20 odd years ago? is there technological hurtles that i am not understanding? eventually the camera will find focus with a bit of patience and knowledge. it is a bit distracting though to hear the lens raking in and out.

the X100 is potentially one of the best reportage cameras i have come across in the digital realm. the two issues i have encountered, standing in the way, are the somewhat weak af performance when the going gets tough and today the camera seemed a bit 'buggy'. when changing to macro mode, i found the camera going to the macro choice screen and before i could confirm it the screen shut off. after a second, and sometimes third attempt, the camera finally complied. by then, the goings on had been interrupted and i became the photographer mucking with his camera. half way through filling a 4 gig card i ended up with a card error message and i am unsure as to where i am at with the images shot. it wasn't one of my sandisk extreme cards (which in fact cleared up the problem pronto) but it WAS formatted in camera and not a cheapo card. i don't know if i buy into this whole 'must use top end/specific cards' business? a great reportage camera, targeted at professionals, should be able to run any bloody card i put in it. minor gripe to some but a well thought out and reliable feature for others.

i am still quite fond of the X100 and intend to put some real mileage on it. i hope that the 'buggy' day is an isolated experience. it must also be added that a quick restart seemed to clear up any issues i was having.

perhaps some RFF folk who understand the inner workings of cameras like the X100 would comment on the AF choice and performance relative to things like cost, size, available technology etc?

 

[DtheG]

Not a bug but a feature?

Not a bug but a feature?

so, day uh... 14?

the camera seemed a bit 'buggy'. when changing to macro mode, i found the camera going to the macro choice screen and before i could confirm it the screen shut off. after a second, and sometimes third attempt, the camera finally complied. by then, the goings on had been interrupted and i became the photographer mucking with his camera.


This is disconcerting when you first discover it but quite useful once you realise that pressing the macro button a second time will (because it is now the 'left option' button) toggle macro mode. wait for the screen to shut off or hall press the shutter and the change of mode is set. This avoids having to fiddle with trying to press the tiny OK button. Same applies to Drive, Flash and Disp options.

 

[emraphoto]

indeed that would be very useful if my particular camera was complying the day in question. after removing battery and restarting the camera all seems back to normal.

i cannot comment in depth on the size issue with the X100 as most of my subjects are very well aware of my presence. with that said it felt a whole lot different then the hasselblads i have been shooting as of late. i can forget about the camera (when it is up to the task) and just 'see'. there will always be a time when i have no interest in anything beyond pressing the shutter. with some knowledge the X100 seems up to the task.

the files are very nice. i shoot quite a bit in the 800 range and the finished jpegs have a look somewhat akin to the 1dmkIIn (that i love).

 

[emraphoto]

the camera (X100) endured a rain shower today with nary a complaint. i still scratch my head when folks are critical of the build quality.

the exposure compensation dial is a godsend as i tend to use it a lot. i haven't had issue with it turning inadvertently yet however i can see where folks concern derives from. i suppose it is a double edged sword as i like to be able to control it easily while the camera is at my eye.

the auto focus struggled a bit today with low contrast, low light interior work. with a bit of know how (finding a high contrast local area) it is easy to deal with. i am eager to try zone focusing with the iso pumped up inside. perhaps tomorrow?

so far it has taken a bit of getting used to. with that said, this is as close as anyone has come to what i want out of a digital camera. the viewfinder is a godsend for those who have grown accustomed to them.

 

[emraphoto]

the X100 was all but invisible until the boys ran out of both money and drugs. when they started rounding up stuff to sell/pawn i decided to call it a day.

 

[papasnap]

when one considers the af performance of a camera like the hexar af it seems hard to understand how we have returned to what seems like the stone age in af ability.

damnit I have the exact same problem/complaint! I'm baffled by it. For me a camera is worse than useless if it can't reliably focus, and I do most of my shooting in the kind of dim light that modern compact cameras and even expensive DSLRs seem to do woefully in.

As you've pointed out it's especially frustrating in light of the improvements being made in high iso performance, while the AF systems still hunt around terribly in the kind of light/contrast that my hexar AF or my manually focused leica m7 RF has no problems focusing in.

I know active infrared AF systems have some limitations eg minimum focus distance, and can be fooled by some reflective surfaces. But on the other hand, the minimum focus issue could be addressed by a combination active + passive system like the Contax G1/G2, and I've lost countless photo opportunities from having a DSLR or compact camera hunting around in low light, and I can't even remember the last time I lost a shot because my Hexar didn't focus. Another issue I can think of is large lenses or hoods getting in the way of the IR beams, which would make sense on a DSLR but on a compact fixed lens camera like the X100 surely this wouldn't be an issue.

For years I've been hoping that someone would make a "digital hexar af" - the X100 is the closest i've seen, but unless it can focus reliably in low light/low contrast it's just no good to me.

Oh! I almost forgot to mention. Dynamite shots you've posted

 

[Spyro]

Low light? Make that NO light required for the Hexar AF to acquire focus! I think everybody should use this camera for a week just to get an idea what real AF is all about.

+1 on the photos, they're getting better and better!

 

[emraphoto]

well i hate to give the impression that the X100 is a dog in the focussing dept but now that you have mentioned it i do scratch my head on a regular basis. iso whatever but no af to match seems silly in this age.

i do hope that someone from the mad scientist crew chimes in to explain what could be a perfectly logical hurtle with the inner bobbles of the X100. otherwise i suppose i will stand about and scratch said head.

PJames - i share your sentiment very much. give me a light tight box and lens and set me free. i suppose i grow tired of the 'review scene' and thought i could add some user interface opinion. will it survive an inadvertent rain shower? yes. can it focus it spotty, low contrast light? barely. can you shoot a full day on one battery? seems so.

more useless info to come.

 

[emraphoto]

Low light? Make that NO light required for the Hexar AF to acquire focus! I think everybody should use this camera for a week just to get an idea what real AF is all about.

+1 on the photos, they're getting better and better!

amen! (the hexar)

 

[KM-25]

I have now shot close to a thousand candid images for corporate clients in a *very* documentary style setting in the past three days and just love this little camera. I too use similar range but higher contrast items for same plane of focus, works great.

I use this camera on auto ISO, Astia with medium hard shadows to mimic good chrome. I also use the comp button a ton, very natural, fast.

This camera is freaking Brilliant!!!!!!

the camera (X100)

the exposure compensation dial is a godsend as i tend to use it a lot. i haven't had issue with it turning inadvertently yet however i can see where folks concern derives from. i suppose it is a double edged sword as i like to be able to control it easily while the camera is at my eye.

the auto focus struggled a bit today with low contrast, low light interior work. with a bit of know how (finding a high contrast local area) it is easy to deal with. i am eager to try zone focusing with the iso pumped up inside. perhaps tomorrow?

so far it has taken a bit of getting used to. with that said, this is as close as anyone has come to what i want out of a digital camera. the viewfinder is a godsend for those who have grown accustomed to them.

 

[KM-25]

Just did the new firmware update, maybe I am crazy after shooting with this thing everyday this week for 10 hours a day, but the AF seems to be doing noticeably better in low light.

Do the update, check it out and see if you get the same thing...

 

[M4streetshooter]

There's a few things to assist the Focus... with the new firmware update... you can make the AF target smaller by pressing the AF button on the left and then use the jog lever to adjust the size of the box. The smaller the faster and more accurate it becomes. This makes sense as the AF area is smaller and thus makes it more accurate. You have to be in AFS to use this feature. Unfortunately, you can't adjust the Focus box for MF.
I use MF all the time and the camera responds better even in low light. You don't have to go to Macro mode either to get in close.
I do notice that the camera focuses faster after the update....

Good seeing your words John... Don

 

[KM-25]

OK, you have to try this if you have not already:

In terms of focus, I think the X100 has improved quite a bit as the overall operation has gotten less laggy and has more snap to it. The AF hunts and misses less in medium low light, still misses in MF using the AF/AE-L button in the lowest of light though.

The biggest issue I see in manual focus is the larger AF box / target, it is just not anywhere near as accurate as when the camera is set on AF-S mode, especially now that decent parallax correction has been added on in the recent firmware upgrade. So I think that the way around this for Fuji would be to ditch the larger AF box version and just go with the smaller more accurate one in all modes, or at least have the option to. I almost never use the focus ring because it is simply too slow and not as precise as using the camera's AF system.
Often if you are photographing in situations that the subject is against or shot through a busy or bright background / foreground, the AF misses and either hits the background / forground it self or just lands on arbitrarily on 7 feet, regardless of what the subject or background distance is. However, it does *not* do this anywhere near as much when in AF-S mode with the far smaller and more accurate AF box, the hit ratio is much better.

So what I have done to combat this issue is either use AF/AE-L in manual when dealing with simply non-complex and darker than the subject backgrounds or use AF-S when the opposite, more problematic subject background combos are in play. The KEY to using it this way is to properly set up and use the combination of AF and lock buttons in this mode:

Simply go to the set up menu and set "AE/AF-LOCK MODE" to S and then right below it, set "AE/AF-LOCK BUTTON" to AF-L. What this allows you do to is simply lock the focus for as many shots as you want at where you hit focus until you either toggle the button off, review the image or shut the camera off again. Leave the button on and both the non-paralax corrected frame and the corrected one light up green and stay that way letting you know you are locked for as many shots as you like and then when you want to find a new focus point, hit the button again, nail focus and either lock it and recompose or just get one shot. This also works great in EVF mode for close ups.

With practice, I am finding this to be a great if not far better option to using the AF/AE-L button in manual mode.

Using the camera this way has made it a much more usable if not near perfect Leica-esque tool for me, I hope it does for you too...🙂

P.S., cut out two 4x4mm squares of gaffers tape and stack them on the Menu button. The difference in how well it works is amazing.

 

[Richard G]

Deep. Great. Thanks Dan.

 

[emraphoto]

Just discovered the jog dial/aperture stops thing today. Totally by accident (apparently i am far to sophisticated to read a M-A-N-A-U-L)

 

[SimonSawSunlight]

that bird feeding shot!!

 

[emraphoto]

Yeah, little moment of craziness there. That fella is one of the most interesting blokes i have come across in a LONG time.