Anyone else intrigued by the new Fuji X20 and X100s

[Jim O]

I was intrigued, but not $1,200 intrigued. Then the EOS-M was selling at $299 so I got one of them instead, couldn't be happier.

You pays your money and you takes your choice.

I love my 85/1.8 and don't think the 85/1.2 L is worth five times as much. The marginal benefit isn't there for me. For others, it is.

On the other hand, I don't think the EOS M measures up to the X100S. There are big differences, starting with an OVF and a built-in flash. Focus is quick. Images are sharp. Skin tones are spot on. Fill flash exposure just works. There is no wait for the flash to recycle. Bokeh is pleasing.

I haven't really had trouble with flare so I haven't bought the hood. If I did, I wouldn't buy Fuji's overpriced filter adapter and hood. I'd buy a third party one. I used the reversed empty filter ring technique at http://www.kenrockwell.com/fuji/x100s.htm#recommendedaccessories.

I bought 49mm Tiffen protector for $4.50 and removed the glass, then mounted a multicoated Hoya UV on it. I have the original metallic ring on that. I'm not seeing vignetting of any note with all of that.

I take my X100S everywhere. Seriously, like my American Express card, I don't leave home without it. It won't replace my 6D but it is a nice camera to carry and use.

Now if and when the next generation of "M" comes out, and if they address more of the issues, I might get one. By then perhaps the X200 will be out, and the choice may be very different.

 

[Jim O]

Just to give an idea what this camera can do, this is a 100% crop of an image I took this last week at a restaurant during a bright afternoon. You can see that the scene is brightly backlit and there are a mixture of color temperatures. Flash was on for fill. Settings were 1/50 sec, f/2.0, ISO 800. No exposure compensation. I did fix the color temp a bit on the Raw image but not much else other than to remove a blemish on her face.

 

[Dylan777]

Just to give an idea what this camera can do, this is a 100% crop of an image I took this last week at a restaurant during a bright afternoon. You can see that the scene is brightly backlit and there are a mixture of color temperatures. Flash was on for fill. Settings were 1/50 sec, f/2.0, ISO 800. No exposure compensation. I did fix the color temp a bit on the Raw image but not much else other than to remove a blemish on her face.

I love the retro design of x100s, but I couldn't resist the IQ from RX1

RX100s feels little "plasticy". Look forward for Fuji solid Retro design with FF 35mm f1.4 fixed, I'm all in.

 

[Jim O]

Just to give an idea what this camera can do, this is a 100% crop of an image I took this last week at a restaurant during a bright afternoon. You can see that the scene is brightly backlit and there are a mixture of color temperatures. Flash was on for fill. Settings were 1/50 sec, f/2.0, ISO 800. No exposure compensation. I did fix the color temp a bit on the Raw image but not much else other than to remove a blemish on her face.

I love the retro design of x100s, but I couldn't resist the IQ from RX1

RX100s feels little "plasticy". Look forward for Fuji solid Retro design with FF 35mm f1.4 fixed, I'm all in.

I love the look and feel of the X100S.

This was just a quick snap to demonstrate the metering. Given the fairly extreme backlighting (the sun was shining in), the exposure was really good. The highlights aren't *completely* blown, and you can see some detail in the mirror on the wall on the right, albeit out of focus - I intentionally shot this wide open.

The fill flash exposure is better than most Canons , with the possible exception of the most recent 2-3 bodies.

 

[Aglet]

tantalizing rumor for something big in 2014..

read near bottom..

http://photorumors.com/2013/08/26/some-additonal-fuji-x-a1-camera-info/

 

[petach]

I first got the XE-1 then the X100s and offloaded my 5D Mk11. I was to travel to Australia for 2 months and I could not bear the thought of lugging around a heavy body with an assortment of "L" lens's

Truthfully, had I got the X100S first, the XE-1 would not have had a look in.....and I would have kept the 5D Mk11

I have to say, the X100S is an astonishing camera. I know they say it is the person behind the camera that makes the difference, but the camera does have to be capable of translating your vision. It does that in spades. The IQ is fabulous and I believe it is very very close to being equal to anything produced from a full frame Canon or Nikon. It is a great street shooter and the 6400 ISO in low light is very, very useable. In fact, you could use it all the time.

I have done street, landscape and cityscapes with it and it never lets me down. One key thing about the retro look? Doesn't look threatening for street work. You can tuck in close, no noise shutter....bish, bash, bosh. Job done.

As an accompanying camera to your Canon (in whichever iteration......mine is a 6D) it will surprise you and you will love it like you have never loved a camera before.

 

[unfocused]

I've been waiting to reply to this post.

Last week I walked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Before the trip I bought an X-20 because the last thing I wanted to do was carry a massive DSLR and lens combination on the trail. I left my 7D and lenses locked up at the hotel on the rim and used the X-20 for the hike.

While I bought it primarily for this trip, I also wanted a small, convenient camera to keep with me for unexpected opportunities.

In essence, it was exactly what I wanted for my purposes and I have not been disappointed. Would it replace my 7D? No. But, the quality of the images are certainly competitive under most circumstances and for most purposes.

My primary consideration was to have a viewfinder and I have not been disappointed by the X-20. The bonus is that I have found the live view to be very useful and in fact, I am probably shooting in live view as often or even more often as I am using the viewfinder.

I love that the camera automatically switches from live view to the viewfinder when you place your eye up to the viewfinder. I wish Canon would offer this option.

I love the panorama feature of the camera. It's just great fun and the quality is really impressive. I'm confident that some of my panoramic shots with this little camera will be able to be enlarged to quite impressive sizes.

I found myself leaving the camera on the "Professional" setting (P) most of the time so I didn't have to spend a lot of time adjusting exposures for fleeting shots. It performed very well.

Even under extreme lighting conditions (bright sun, deep shadows) the exposures were pretty much spot on (I shot in raw and I do tweak the exposures some, but they were always within tolerances)

Things not to love:

I did not and I would not recommend using this camera a ISOs much above 400. It's a small sensor and you have to be realistic.

The panorama mode only saves in JPEG. Not a huge issue but it would be nice to shoot RAW.

The on-screen previews are not the best (There were several shots that looked soft when I tried to zoom in on the review mode. To my surprise – pleasant – once I downloaded the images and imported them in to Photoshop they were much sharper than they appeared on the camera's preview screen.)

I've read several reviews of the X-20 and many say this is just a really fun camera. I would agree. It is much improved from the X-10 and, though costly for a "point and shoot" it was well worth the investment for me.