miXed zone: X20 and street photography, ghost town, admiringlight 55-200 review and more

X-M1

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 – Some shots taken with the X-M1 in Bilbao. See them here at Reality Scanner’s Flickr.

– Hands on preview of the X-M1 at lensvid here. The bootom line: “Although we should emphasize again that we did test a sample camera and not a production one, we can say that if you are looking for a small and not extremely expensive mirrorless camera with the highest image quality currently on the market at this budget – the X-M1 is a very appealing choice. However if AF is a dominant factor (if you are shooting a lot of moving objects for example), if you have large hands or just can’t live without a viewfinder – there are better options on the market for you.”

X100S

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-FR-readers Olaf and Kasia were in Montana’s Ghost Towns with the Fuji X-series (X100S and X-PRO1). “Composition, light and creativity must always come before technical considerations.” So enjoy his pictures here.

threeguyswithcameras did a review that covers the [shoplink 12883]X100S[/shoplink], the [shoplink 13071]Nikon Coolpix A[/shoplink], and the [shoplink 13349]Ricoh GR[/shoplink]. The first part is here, and part two will be coming shortly. Check it out here.

X20

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image courtesy: riflessifotografici

Street photography (with the X10/X20): Another gratification for riflessifotografici and strepher Donato Chirulli (theartofphotography1). Italian readers can now read at the well known Italian magazine fotocult.it an interview in which Donato explains his way to deal with Street Photography and, in particular, on the use of compact cameras such as the Fujifilm X10 and X20. For a review of his latest book “discovering street photographyread this interview here (translation).

 X-E1

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– Old lenses, new tricks: using m42 lenses on the X-E1 at lightpriority.net.

– Ronmartblog’s X-E1 first part of his review (and many samples) can be read here. “This is a special camera that is extremely well built, and I really enjoy it!” And here is part two of his review. From his conclusions: “Overall, I give this camera a guarded recommendation to those who can afford to pay for the wonderful quality body and very good sensor that it offers. It’s sure to please as long as you keep yourself in good light and stay out of situations that require ISO > 800.

lenses

admiringlight XF 55-200 review here. “Overall, Fuji has created a truly outstanding zoom lens with the Fujinon XF 55-200mm f/3.5-4.8 R LM OIS. It’s a lens that is not only sharp throughout the range, but has excellent color rendering, beautiful bokeh and good control of lens aberrations.”

– findingrange published his Zeiss Touit 12mm review… a lot of PROS but also some CONS can be read here: “[…] optically, this lens is simply fantastic.  It renders very nicely, and it’s so incredibly sharp.  Optically, I don’t really think you could ask for more from a lens.  A super wide angle lens like this takes some time to get use to, so if you’re not sure if this is a lens for you, go to a good local dealer […], and ask them if you could try it out.

– FR-reader Tjeerd shared via FR-facebook his Zeiss 12mm fotoshoot and review. You can check it out here. His conclusions: “The Zeiss Touit 12mm f/2.8 is a very high quality lens. It’s fun to use and gives you a lot of creative options. It’s ultra wide and should fill in the gap where the 18mm or 35mm can’t reach. It’s quite light, compact and feels very durable.  Even though 2 mm doesn’t sound like much, on a wide end it makes quite a bit of difference I presume. Should you get this one over the Fuji 14mm? Well with a price difference of 220 euros, it’s up to you if the extra 2mm and the Zeiss logo is worth it.”

X-PRO1 (and firmware 3.01)

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– Xavier: “Hello Patrick, Thank your for your great blog, It’s my first read each day :) I contact you because of a problem I have with my X-Pro1 since firmware update 3.0 (and still with the 3.01). It’s seems that there’s a little community who have the same issue, and I’m surprised that nobody talks about it on your website. It’s a problem of freezing when taking a picture, and the only way to shut the camera off, or to continue to use it,  is the removal of the battery. Then, when the battery is back in, and the camera switched on, it works normally. Until the next freeze. This happens very often. I say you that because of the impact your blog can have on Fuji, perhaps if you mention it, Fuji will give a look at the problem and work on a new update that fix it. Who knows… Thank you for your time, and thank you for your so useful blog ! Xavier (flickr)”

– “The Fujifilm X-Pro1 – A Year in Review” at binaryframe here: “The Fujifilm X-Pro1 has been an important camera in my life. It has fundamentally altered my lifestyle to the extent that I am now immersed in the art of photography. It is my constant companion for documenting life and carries the responsibility of capturing memories with the same vivid expression that I recall in my mind. In this task it succeeds spectacularly.”

Pixel Peeping Time: GF6 vs X-M1 vs E-P5 and X-E1 vs-X-PRO1 vs X-M1

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image courtesy: cameralabs

1) In their GF6 review, cameralabs compared the IQ of the [shoplink 14918]GF6[/shoplink], [shoplink 13828]X-M1[/shoplink] and [shoplink 13800]E-P5[/shoplink]. Check it out here.

2) The Chinese site pcpop posted its X-M1 review and on page 5 they compared the trinity, X-PRO1 vs X-E1 vs X-M1 here (tranlsation). “Fuji X-M1 picture quality than the previous two cameras better number. When using ISO800-6400, we can very clearly see the X-M1 richer detail, noise situation is a little less than the first two and the color more vivid. Therefore, we conclude that both the degree of detail or color reduction, Fuji X-M1 has improved to some extent. Although Fuji X-M1 is more biased in favor of the entry-level users, but this does not prevent this machine’s high performance and high quality.”

image courtesy: popco

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Tested: ephotozine XF 27mm and XC 16-50 review

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the XF 27mm is in stock at various stores as BHphoto, Adorama and Pictureline

ephotozine just posted its XF 27mm review here and the XC 16-50 review here. The XC 16-50 is recommended by ephotozine, confirming that the image quality of Fuji’s XC line remains top notch. Now ephotozine has tested all the Fuji lenses. Check the reviews here. They recommend 6 of the 8 Fuji lenses, the [shoplink 12892]XF 55-200[/shoplink], [shoplink 12887]XF 18-55mm[/shoplink], [shoplink 12888]XF 14mm[/shoplink], [shoplink 12889]XF 35mm[/shoplink], [shoplink 12890]XF 60mm[/shoplink] and now also the XC 16-50.

XF 27mm verdict: “Those looking for as compact a lens as possible for their X-series camera have no other option as lightweight and compact as this lens available to them at the moment. This lens delivers very high levels of sharpness in the centre of the frame, and although adequate, the performance towards the edges of the frame isn’t on quite the same level. The price at launch may seem slightly high when compared to established lenses available for other camera formats, but as this lens is freshly launched, that may change in time. However as the build quality of this lens is so high, that goes some way towards justifying a higher price tag.”

XC 16-50 verdict: “Although most people who end up owning this lens will do by picking it up as part of a kit with the X-M1 camera, it still may be a compelling choice for owners of other X-series cameras, due to it’s light weight, 16mm wide-angle and comparatively low price. Add to that the decent optical performance throughout the zoom range, as well as low levels of chromatic aberrations, low falloff and distortion, it makes this a very competent lens, for not a lot of money.”

IN STOCK STATUS CHECK

X-M1 (body only or with 16-50mm)USA: AmazonUS / BHphoto / Adorama / DigitalRev / [shoplink 13828 ebay]eBay[/shoplink] / Pictureline EUROPE: [shoplink 13828 ebay]eBay[/shoplink] / DigitalRevAmazonITA / AmazonDE / WexUK / PCHstore

XF 27mm – USA: AmazonUS / BHphoto / Adorama / DigitalRev / [shoplink 13828 ebay]eBay[/shoplink] / Pictureline EUROPE: [shoplink 13828 ebay]eBay[/shoplink] / DigitalRev / WexUKAmazonDEAmazonITA / PCHstore XC 16-50: [shoplink 13828 ebay]eBay[/shoplink] / WexUK / PCHstore

Review: Fujifilm FinePix HS50EXR

 

Usually here at Fujirumors you are used to read reviews about the Fuji X-series. But I thought it’s worth to make an exception for the [shoplink 14383]Fuji HS50EXR[/shoplink], according to some reviews I’ve read one of the best superzoom bridge camera currently available.

Here is a comprehensive review about this camera. You can read it here in the original language or go to the translated version. The reviewer says that it’s worth every cent. Of course there are some CONS, as the small ½” sensor… and while the X-series spoils us with an awesome high ISO performance, the HS50EXR noise is clearly visible at more than ISO 1600. But an excellent macro, fast focussing (hybrid autofocus) and good build quality make the HS50EXR interesting for all those looking for a bridge camera.

Fuji HS50EXR: [shopcountry 14383]

Gold Award: X100S review at dpreview

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The long awaited DPR review of the X100S is finally online. Take your time go through the 20 pages here. The overall score is of 81%… but don’t worry, the image quality is excellent, the lens is very sharp, the viewfinder rocks, the JPEG’s are amazing, the built-in ND filter has little or no negative impact on image quality… but it has an “unexciting video mode, clunky ergonomics, so-so audio and occasional moiré issues“, “only one-step magnification option in EVF/LCD live view mode” no face-detectionAF and some more CONS you can read at the conclusions here. But as the reviewer said at the end:

“The only thing about it which feels wrong, and outmoded is the video feature, but let’s be honest – that’s not why you’re reading this review. Despite some minor annoyances, the X100S wins our coveted gold award. Sorry it took so long!”

Some of the CONS could be fixed in future firmware updates. Wouldn’t it be nice, for example, to have face-detectionAF? So let’s address to Fuji our suggestions for further improvements on the X100S in the comments!

have a great day
Patrick

Fuji X100S: [shopcountry 12883]