Fujifilm X-H2S
Big test
PRICE: £2499
FUJIFILM.COM/UK
Fujifilm’s fifth-generation X-Trans CMOS sensor is here – and the X-H2S is the first camera to embrace the new tech
at 6.2K whole frame or 4K at 120fps, with a wide range of codec and format options. The in-body image stabiliser offers a 7EV benefit, the EVF has a 5.76M-dot resolution and the weather-sealed body has dual cards slots – SD and CFexpress B. Finding my way around the X-H2S body and menus was straightforward. Although, to put that into context, I own Fujifilm APS-C and medium format cameras. Its body is bigger than the X-T4, with a deeper handgrip, and I found it a perfect fit for my average-sized hands. It’s comfortable to walk around just holding the camera. The top-plate design is more GFX 100S than X-T4, so there is a large sub-menu and mode dial on the left, complete with seven custom settings. On the right, the shutter button has an on/off collar, ideal for quick use. There’s also a movie record button and three buttons, two with ISO and white-balance as default – all can be reassigned. I found myself hitting the movie record button when I didn’t mean to, so I deactivated it. The back panel is nicely furnished with controls. There’s an input dial, large multi-selector, a four-option D-pad and articulating touchscreen. This has swipe functionality, so you can assign features to each of the four directions. Swivel the monitor out of the way and you see two small screw holes to accept the optional Fan-001, available
WORDS AND IMAGES BY WILL CHEUNG
FUJIFILM’S STRATEGY IS simple: develop a great sensor, instal it in a wide range of cameras and repeat. So, ten years after the X Series was introduced, we’re onto the fifth- generation X-Trans CMOS sensor. When Fujifilm launched the X-H2S, emphasis was placed on speed and potential for action and nature photographers. Its souped- up performance is thanks to the 26-megapixel, X-Trans CMOS HS sensor, a stacked unit and the X-Processor 5. To give a taste of this dynamic team’s potential, you can shoot around 170 full-size Raws at 40fps, with AE/AF tracking and no EVF blackout. But such speed comes at a cost. And at £2499 body only, the X-H2S is the most expensive X Series camera money can currently buy, but there’s much more on offer than just superfast shooting. The AF system has seen a significant performance uplift, with improved tracking and subject recognition. For video, it can capture
“THE X-H2S IS UNDOUBTEDLY A SPEED MONSTER, ESPECIALLY WITH THE CFEXPRESS B CARD”
for £169. Fujifilm claims that at 25°C the X-H2S can shoot 4K/60p video for around four hours – assuming you have a big enough card – without overheating. However, if you’re working in warmer climes, the Fan- 001 is a compact, easily fitted, quiet- running cooling fan to give you even more video-shooting capacity. I tested the X-H2S with a selection of lenses that included the XF33mm f/1.4, 50-140mm f/2.8, 150-600mm f/5.6-8 from Fujifilm and the Tamron 17-70mm f/2.8. I’ve already touched on the X-H2S’s 40fps shooting skills. This is with its electronic shutter, and the sensor’s quick readout helps minimise rolling shutter effects. It is still a very handy 15fps with its mechanical shutter. I tested those speed claims using a Prograde CFexpress type B card and a Sandisk 300MB/s SD card. With the CFexpress type B card and electronic shutter, I got 160 full, lossless compressed Raws at 40fps. Then it slowed down to around 15fps and stayed at that rate for many more shots. The write LED extinguished after five seconds.
types at full speed. Regardless of the card, I was shooting Raws at 40fps with no buffering issues. My bursts were typically one or two seconds, so not too prolonged and that allowed time for the buffer to clear. The electronic shutter is silent, but you can select a shutter noise. It’s a nice click, not a metallic squeak. Through the EVF you get blackout- free shooting, which makes subject tracking easier. If shooting at 40fps has any downside, it’s the huge number of shots you can rack up very, very quickly. I often had hundreds of shots before I knew it. That’s obviously no reflection on the camera, but something you should bear in mind. You need a fast computer, an efficient viewing software and plenty of storage. The upside is that you are likely to capture the decisive
Shooting performance was pretty good with the SD card too, reaching 150 shots before slowing down to 11fps. In this case, the write LED went off after 65 seconds. With the mechanical shutter and CFexpress card, the camera just carried on at 15fps and probably would have filled the card at that rate had I kept my finger on the shutter button. Plus, the buffer cleared very quickly. Swapping to the SD card, I got 15fps for 118 frames and then the rate slowed to 6fps. That speed was maintained for a long time. The X-H2S is undoubtedly a speed monster, especially with the CFexpress B card, but it was pretty respectable with a fast SD card. Should you need more shooting capacity, set a 1.25x crop. I went out for a couple of shoots running the X-H2S with both shutter
CLASSIC CONTROLS While the X-H2S has the sub-monitor of the X-H1, its top-plate design is more in the style of the GFX 100S, with the array of push buttons placed handily for the right forefinger
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