Photography News Issue 58

Camera test 32

Photography News | Issue 58 | photographynews.co.uk

In some cases, I got the monitor message ‘Cannot execute’ but most of the time I got the next menu which lets you select focus range, focus point or leave it to the camera. When the planets align the mode works well enough but you can get some odd effects around highlights, for example. Used within limits, though, good results are possible To test the camera’s focusing and exposure performance I shot a selection of images in a variety of lighting situations. Generally, the camera delivered spot-on results time after time and that applied to auto white-balance too. I tried single point, zone and wide AF. Focusing was fast and sensitive with a variety of lenses and only very low light and low contrast tripped it up. The Wide AF mode works fine for shots of organised groups of people and general distant scenes but

it doesn’t always pick up the right subject to focus on and so the option of quickly sliding into zone or single point AF is welcome. Using the touchscreen to focus and shoot is the other quick way of dealing with the situation, although you can’t do this with the eye up to the viewfinder. Focus tracking in continuous AF mode was okay with subjects with bold lines but it was less able with less defined subjects. For exposures I used multi- patternmetering and that coped very ably with most situations without the need for exposure compensation. I shot hundreds of shots and only a few were duff, and this was usually when shooting into a strong light. The X-T100’s £619 price includes the XC 15-45mm f/3.5-5.5 OIS PZ lens which on its own costs £259. The optical construction of this compact zoom is 10 elements in nine groups.

Verdict

Features 22/25 A sound feature set and a workable range of custom options Performance 23/25 AF can be slightly slow, but generally very good Handling 21/25 Flexible monitor and exposure compensation dial get a thumbs-up Value for money 24/25 Great value option to get into the Fujifilm X-system Overall 90/100 The X-T100 is a capable camera, perfect for its target market and nicely priced. Pros Great price, articulating monitor, feature set, good high ISO performance, overall image quality, robust feel Cons Can be slow responding too like Multi Focus mode and 4K Burst Shooting plus easy selfie shooting. Add Fujifilm’s Film Simulation modes and the camera’s creative filters and I can see a lot of people really enjoying their imaging with the X-T100, and you can’t quibble with that. The X-T100 offers aspiring Fujifilm X-series owners a relatively low cost option and for your money you do get a very well featured product that is capable of impressive image quality and a high standard of performance. You get some interesting features

There is no aperture ring fitted so adjusting f/stops is done via the camera. There are two zoom rings. The broader one gives a smooth zooming action with two speeds, the slower speed being quite quiet so better for video use. You get a whine at the faster speed. The thinner zoom barrel gives a more controlled stepped zoom effect but this emits sound so it’s better for shooting stills. The lens has an integral 3EV benefit image stabilisation system. Turn the camera on and the lens extends to its working position and is ready to shoot in about one second. It is a good starter lens and as the X-T100 is currently being marketed with it, the combination is great value and, of course, once you are into the system there is an extensive range of fully compatible primes and zooms on offer.

The option of quickly sliding into zone or single point AF is welcome

Images Multi-pattern metering worked well in most lighting situations, whether 10am or 10pm, without using exposure compensation. Both shots taken at ISO 200.

ISO 200

ISO 800

Performance: ISO

The ISO range is ISO 200 up to 12,800 in Raws with the option of expansion to ISO 100 and ISO 25,600 and 51,200 when shooting just JPEGs. So the pictures shown here are original JPEGs in the case of the ISO 25,600 and 51,200 settings while the others started life as Raws that were processed in LightroomCC with no noise reduction applied. This set of shots was taken at twilight with the X-T100 fitted with a 23mm f/2 lens and mounted on a Manfrotto BeFree GT tripod. The exposure at ISO 200 was 6secs at f/5.6. The camera’s high ISO noise reduction was set to zero. Image quality was impressive at slower speeds but even at ISO 800 there was barely any noise, and fine detail remained at the same level as lower ISO speeds. The situation didn’t change much at ISO 1600 and this speed can be used for critical purposes with no issues. There was evidence of graining in smooth mid-tones but image quality remained high. Go up to ISO 3200 and the deterioration from ISO 1600 was

Original image

ISO 1600

ISO 3200

ISO 6400

ISO 12,800

surprisingly small, with fine detail still crisp and filmic-looking noise at acceptable levels. With some careful processing of the Raw, there is no reason why you could not get exhibition-quality prints out of files shot at this speed. Grain was more obvious at ISO 6400 but it wasn’t horrendous, although detail did suffer a little at this speed, and at 12,800 image

quality began to look less impressive, as you would expect. The two extended speeds, ISO 25,600 and 51,200, are JPEG only. While the amount of noise was acceptable for such high speeds, the camera’s internal processing gave slightly unnatural, over-smooth processed looking results. That said, if you need sharp shots in appalling light they are usable if you accept that look and use the final results at modest sizes. All round, this conventional sensor camera performed really well in respect of ISO, with lovely quality at lower speeds, with the higher speeds of 1600 and 3200 looking very good too.

ISO 25,600

ISO 51,200

There is no reason why you could not get exhibition-quality prints out of files

Above Fine detail remained well resolved and clean, even at ISO 3200.