Fuji X100

[Pseudolus]

So on a whim I purchased an X100 last weekend. I have a Nikon d300 with a nice array of lenses but to be honest recently my photography has dropped off because I get bored of carrying it around with me. I considered the Leica M9 but it's still a big lump (not just talking about the cost either) and I thought at my skill level I just did not need it. Anyway, took out the x100 for a graduation a few days ago having spent an evening practising and getting used to it and I must say I am very pleased with it. It's very intuitive to use, completely silent in operation, very sharp and easy to carry around.

Down sides - the battery ran dry very quickly; and if your take burst shots you can only take up to 5 and then it processes them for what seems an age before you can take again.

Struggled with front lit portrait as well with a strong sun shining straight into the face of the other half. Just couldn't get the settings right before she got annoyed with me, and the auto settings didn't compensate enough.

Took a rapid snap of a security guard; pointed in vague direction from the waist without looking at VF or OVF and it came out nicely....

http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/2770/dsf0464.jpg

Anyone else have one of these and can pass on some great tips?

[FracturedRabbit]

Had one for nearly a year and then sold it; great image quality but the slow auto-focus drove me nuts.

Make sure you have the latest firmware installed, it improves things a lot. Search around the web and read everything you can find on setup and usage. Here's some to get you started:

http://jonathanjk.com/fuji-x100-a-resource/

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=103375

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=103424

[BangkokImages]

I have one of the very first x100's and continue to love it. If I may offer some thoughts and suggestions?

1. When coming from a DSLR it's natural to compare it's performance to a DSLR and this makes for many unhappy customers (because it's not a DSLR and doesn't contain all of it's systems). Keep in mind this is a relatively new genre (mirrorless) of camera which is still in the process of defining itself. There will be compromiseis to get that small light feeling.

2. Only use Fuji batteries (not the cheap generics) and cycle their charge a few times and you should be up to 200-250 images per charge without problem. More than enough for this style of camera.

3. Ya, burst shooting ties up the camera, but not being a DSLR it doesn't have the processor power/speed.

4. Your front lit portrait. Whenever exposure mode of the x100 or an DSLR (most are using dynamic exposure mode which divides the sensor up into segments (with the Nikon it's 1005 segments for example) taking a reading from each segment, and then the computer compares these readings against a database which holds (depending on camera model) 50,000-120,000 scenaries and then picks what it thinks to be the most appropriate one. You can vary from a dynamic exposure on the x100 using the super convenient Ev (exposure compensation) dial on the right of the top panel by up to two stops. If this isn't enough compensation many get stuck. All you have to do is put the camera in spot metering mode (where it meters the center 8% of the frame) and allow the camera to meter directly off the face of the subject vs. the entire scene. This will be a direct light vs. exposure reading, and not a dynamic light vs. database reading.. and will provide a very accurate exposure of the face while letting the background do what it will within the dynamic range of it's sensor. And with the x100 you have several compressed dynamic range settings to try.

5. Autofocus is known to be slow. You can improve autofocus quite a bit by understnading how it works and taking advantage of it's strengths. For instance, you can change the size of the autofocus sensor squares you seee in the viewfinder. I think at the time of it's release only the x100 offered this feature. Very handy for adjusting sensor size to subject matter. Also, update your firmware. Fuji has improved AF several times now via firmware upgrades. Lastely, look for vertical contrast splits and intentionally place the AF sensor on these splits for a fast autofocus. A step not necessary for most DSLR's unless you're in very low light.. but it's not a DSLR so anything to helo along it's short comings is helpful.

6. I wrote a short article here on how save a bit using a generic filter adapter and hoodwhich you can't tell from the real one. A writer on my site wrote about using his x100 (actually MY x100) on his last trip to China and includes some great tips on it's use. And then he followed it up with a more complete review here.

7. It's a great little camera with superb image quality. Day or night it's sure to please. I hope you found this post helpful.

Edited August 23, 2012 by BangkokImages

[Pseudolus]

A thousand LIKES for this post. Awesome. Cheers especially for the Spot metering mode tip

Edited August 31, 2012 by astral
No need for the long quote