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Camera review
FujifilmX100T ON TEST
SPECS
STREETPRICE £999 CONTACT www.fujifilm.eu/uk SENSOR 16.3 megapixels APS-C X-Trans CMOS II,
Roger Payne gets his hands on the third model in the FujifilmX100 series, but is it all he’d hoped for? He takes it for a spin to see if it goes above and beyond its predecessors
23.6x15.6mm IMAGESIZE 4896x3264 pixels ISORANGE
200-6400 expandable down to 100 and up to 51,200 AUTOFOCUSMODES Single, continuous EXPOSURE COMPENSATION +/-3EV in 0.3EV stops, bracketing available SHUTTER 30secs-1/32,000sec, plus B and T (combination of mechanical and electronic shutter functions) METERING 256-zone meteringmulti, spot, average EXPOSUREMODES ProgramAE, shutter- priority AE, aperture- priority AE andmanual SHOOTINGSPEEDS 6fps MONITOR 3in, 1040k dot resolution STORAGE 55MB internal memory, SD, SDHC, SDXC DIMENSIONS (WXHXD) 126.5x74.4x52.4mm WEIGHT 440g (including battery andmemory card)
Words & pictures by Roger Payne
which is more about fine-tuning. Tweaks abound, although existing X100S users may not consider them significant enough to upgrade. Despite looking remarkably similar to its predecessors, the T does feature a plethora of design changes. The aperture ring on the fixed 23mm lens now offers third-stop steps, while the manual focus ring, shutter speed dial and exposure compensation dial (now offering +/-3 stops) have a more grippy surround. Around the back, there’s a larger and more detailed LCD, while the button layout has been shuffled. Ironically, the most significant external design change is also the least obvious. Whereas the X100 and X100S only had one function button that could be overridden, the X100T has seven – one on the top-plate, the four surrounding the Menu button and two on the left of the rear LCD. This is both good and bad. Good in that you can get the camera set up perfectly to your needs. Bad in that I regularly forgot which function I’d assigned to what button. Both sensor and processor remain unchanged from the X100S, but there are alterations to the T’s viewfinder, which now boasts extra functionality, including an electronic rangefinder. This manifests as a small window representing an enlargement of the selected focusing point in the bottom right corner of the finder when the optical viewfinder mode is activated. If you’re autofocusing, it offers a useful extra visual check for sharpness, but it really comes into its own when manually focusing. Here, the electronic rangefinder can use a digital split image or focus peaking to help confirm sharp focus. It’s certainly a useful addition but you do need to keep your eye straight to the viewfinder. Look slightly off-centre, and you can get a ‘ghost’ of the rangefinder encroaching into the frame.
Other viewfinder improvements? The display rotates depending on the orientation of the camera, but only in the electronic viewfinder mode. There’s also an automatic parallax correction mode where the framing alters depending on how close you are to a subject. A maximum shutter speed of 1/32,000sec is made possible thanks to the T’s new electronic shutter although, by nature of its design, it won’t help you freeze really fast-moving subjects. That’s because the shutter ‘rolls’ to achieve this kind of speed with the sensor being progressively scanned. Any movement during this shutter roll will lead to image distortion. That said, 1/32,000sec is perfect for using the lens’s f/2 maximum aperture in bright conditions. And if the light’s still too bright, the X100T has a built-in three-stop ND filter that can be quickly switched on. Other useful additions include the Classic Chrome Film Simulation mode, which offers muted tones remarkably similar to Kodachrome emulsions of old, plus there’s now Wi-Fi connectivity. I’m repeatedly told by people younger than me that wireless is the way forward, but I remain unconvinced, especially when you consider the frustrations I had with trying to get the X100T and my iPad to chat to each other. But let’s get back to where we came in. The X100T may not be the best functioning camera I’ve ever used, it may have its quirks, but as soon as you see the results, all those minor indiscretions evaporate. Viewing an X-Trans image for the first time is, for me, as exciting and eye-opening as watching a print appear in a tray of developer. The X100T delivers outstanding sharpness and delicious colours almost every time you press the shutter and that is what makes it so special.
When I write, I use a fountain pen. When I shave, I use shaving soap and a bristle brush. When I listen to music, I do so through hi-fi separates. That’s not because these are the easiest or most efficient options, it’s because of the way using these items makes me feel. Doing all of the above is, to me, an intensely satisfying experience, one that goes a considerable way beyond the basic function of the task itself. If you can appreciate this mindset, you’ll appreciate the Fujifilm X100T. It may not represent the easiest or most efficient way to take photographs, but it makes the picture- taking process immensely satisfying. Fujifilm’s X100 series – now in its third incarnation – is a triumph of aesthetics over conformity. There are certainly cameras out there that handle better, are easier to navigate around and are better specified than the X100T, but they reside in a homogenous mass of middle-ground design and functionality; they do everything well, but they don’t really do anything differently. You simply cannot tar the X100T with the same brush. As the father of the X-series, the original X100 first came to market in March 2011, and opinions were divided. Yes, it looked stunning. Yes, it delivered brilliant results, but what had happened to the autofocusing? Slow and ponderous, the AF frustrated. The X100S followed in early 2013, with improved AF and a new sensor at the top of a list of considerable changes. Now we have the X100T,
The FujifilmX100Tmaynot represent the easiest or most efficient way to take photographs, but itmakes the picture-taking process immensely satisfying
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Photography News | Issue 18
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