Big test
exposure bracketing, you can set up to nine frames in a range, from 0.3EV to 3EV. For focus bracketing, shoot up to 999 frames in one to ten steps. There is no in-camera focus stacking, so you’ll need software, such as Affinity Photo, if you want to merge shots afterwards with minimal effort. Round the rear of the camera is the new high-res monitor, which also tilts to suit low- and high-level shooting. I didn’t have an X-T30 for a side-by-side comparison, so couldn’t assess the benefit of having more dots. But the images looked nicely detailed when they were checked at higher magnifications. With a smaller body, I needed to adjust my grip to get at the focus lever. I’d prefer it to be slightly higher, perhaps at the same level as the Q button – meaning less of a change in grip required to get your thumb over there. It’s also quite small, but you can always use the monitor to move the AF zone around by touch – a screen icon lets you set this. Although, there is no touch and drag AF option with the EVF. The focus lever itself does offer choice. In face detection, for example, you can switch between detected faces – and, as usual, focus area can be adjusted by pressing the lever in. Push it to zoom. The Q button brings up the editable Q menu. Here, you can have four, eight, 12 and 16 options. Although, it is actually one fewer because the top-left exposure mode setting can’t be swapped for anything else. For the other windows, you can
choose from 38 functions, including self-timer, image size and face detection. It is the usual adaptability I would expect from a Fujifilm camera – and great to see on a machine at this price level. Speaking of versatility and customisation, there’s much more to mention. The Fn1, AE-L, AF-L, Q and view mode buttons (plus the rear input dial), all have 61 options. This includes ‘none’, which can be set if you don’t like the default. And the touch monitor with up, down, left and right swipes has 55 of its own. Put simply, the X-T30 II has all the customisation potential you could wish for. I enjoyed the company of the X-T30 II, which I used mostly in tandem with the XF33mm f/1.4 standard lens. A full test of this new lens will be coming up soon in PN , but it proved itself very capable – my test shots looked awesome and packed with sharp detail. I mostly used aperture-priority AE, but also manual and auto mode. Exposure performance was good, even doing well in the low November sun, with compensation only on occasion. Auto white-balance remained reliable in the constantly changing light of the test period. There’s no IBIS in the X-T30 II, but I found the camera handholdable down to 1/15sec with the 33mm lens. This is thanks to a smooth shutter release and low-vibration mechanical action. It’s quiet, too. The machine’s AF system is soft, swift and accurate. I didn’t have
WHEELY SHARP The X-T30 II with the XF33mm f/1.4 lens was used for this close-up. Exposure was 1/750sec at f/1.4 and ISO 160. The out-of-camera JPEG was wonderfully crisp – a credit to the lens, as well as the camera
PERFORMANCE: ISO
In order to assess the ISO skills of the Fujifilm X-T30 II, we shot the following night scene with XF33mm f/1.4 lenses fixed on a Leofoto LS-324C tripod. The exposure for ISO 160 was 2secs at f/7.1, and Raws were processed through Adobe Lightroom, with default noise reduction. From our tests, ISO performance was impressive and you are assured of clean, very detailed and nicely saturated pictures. I’d happily shoot at ISO 800, or even slightly higher for critically good images. Shots taken at ISO 1600 to 3200, treated with noise reduction in editing or using Deep Prime in DxO PhotoLab 5, would give files capable of serious enlargement. Moving up to ISO 6400, probably the highest speed where quality is still pretty good, noise is much more evident, but it’s neutral rather than coloured. Fine detail isn’t too badly impacted.
“I NEEDEDTO ADJUST MY GRIP TOGET ATTHE FOCUS LEVER”
160
800
POWER DRIVE It’s simple to change shooting speed or set up exposure bracketing on the X-T30 II
1600
3200
6400
12,800
25,600
51,200
ANGLED FOR A BETTERVIEW On the rear of its slender body, the X-T30 II’s touch monitor provides a highly detailed image – and it can be tilted for waist-level or overhead shooting
Issue 95 | Photography News 33
photographynews.co.uk
Powered by FlippingBook